WASHINGTON (AP) — The federal government shut down at the stroke of midnight Friday, halting all but the most essential operations and marring the one-year anniversary of President Donald Trump’s inauguration in a striking display of Washington dysfunction. Last-minute negotiations crumbled as Senate Democrats blocked a four-week stopgap extension in a late-night vote, causing the […]
shutdown
Posted inNation / World, sj-web
Conservatives balk at GOP plan to avert government shutdown
WASHINGTON (AP) — Hard-line conservatives are threatening to scuttle Republican leaders’ plans to prevent a weekend government shutdown and saying GOP leaders lack the votes to push their proposal through the House. The setback late Tuesday came as a deal between President Donald Trump and Congress to protect young immigrants from deportation also remained distant. […]
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Posted inMaine
Legislators turn to small group of lawmakers for budget deal
AUGUSTA (AP) — A small group of lawmakers has the task of coming up with a budget deal over the next few days and averting a government shutdown at the peak of the state’s tourism season. Lawmakers have arrived at a deadlock on education funding after months of deliberation, and negotiations over a final budget […]
Posted inMaine
Maine’s Congressional delegation says ‘no’ to government shutdown
As federal lawmakers wrestle with the latest specter of a government shutdown, Maine’s Congressional delegation appears to be mostly unified in their stance against closing the government’s doors — again. A 17-day federal government shutdown in 2013 resulted in millions of dollars lost to Maine’s economy and billions being lost to the national economy. The […]
Posted inBusiness, Franklin
Verso to shut down Bucksport Mill for 2 weeks; Jay not affected
Verso Paper Corp. will temporarily shut down its Bucksport Paper Mill for two weeks beginning Thursday due to the high cost of natural gas and not enough paper orders, Bucksport Mill spokesman William Cohen said Monday. There are no plans to idle Verso Paper’s Androscoggin Mill in Jay, spokeswoman for that mill, Cherilee Budrick, said […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Budget battle, shutdown delay Maine heating aid
PORTLAND (AP) — Federal heating aid to low-income Mainers has been delayed primarily because of the federal budget battle and government shutdown last month. A spokeswoman for MaineHousing, which oversees the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program in Maine, said the agency usually knows by October how much funding it will receive. By Friday, the […]
Posted inBusiness, sj-web
After abysmal attendance for past two months, the Maine Jump might shut down on Nov. 1
BANGOR — Barring a large uptick in business to finish the month, The Maine Jump will close its doors Nov. 1, according to owner Ryan Hatch, who attributes the potential shutdown to a nosedive in attendance this fall and poor management decisions. Maine Jump is an inflatable play place, featuring slides, climbing walls, obstacle courses […]
Posted inBusiness, Nation / World, sj-web
Will U.S. budget deal save holiday season for retailers? Maybe not.
NEW YORK (AP) — Will Washington be the Grinch who stole Christmas? After weeks of bickering between Congress and the White House, President Barack Obama on Wednesday signed into law a plan that ended a partial 16-day government shutdown and suspended the nation’s debt limit until early next year. But the measure, which comes just […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
LePage lifts Maine’s civil emergency
AUGUSTA — Gov. Paul LePage announced Friday afternoon that the statewide civil emergency he called in response to the federal government shutdown is over. LePage declared a civil emergency by proclamation on Oct. 9, eight days after the federal government shutdown began Oct. 1. He said at the time that it was a precautionary measure […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Collins: ‘I love it that the women of the Senate led the way out of this impasse’
“My staff, too, had been furloughed,” she said at a press conference held at Husson University on Thursday, the day the 16-day government shutdown ended. “I started writing a plan that could move us forward. I marched down to the Senate Floor where I challenged my colleagues to work together. “Shortly after my speech, my phone […]