Marina Villeneuve

Investigative reporter

United States

I'm an investigative reporter based in Boston covering government accountability, health and environmental issues for Boston 25. I previously covered New York and also Maine state government and politics for The Associated Press. I've reported from three countries in English and Spanish for the world's leading news outlets. I use records requests, sourcing, data and narratives to break news and dive into policy issues impacting people's lives. Reach me at marina.villeneuve(a)gmail.com.

Portfolio
AP NEWS
07/13/2021
New York takes conservative approach counting virus deaths

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - The federal government's count of the COVID-19 death toll in New York has 11,000 more victims than the tally publicized by the administration of Gov. Andrew Cuomo, which has stuck with a far more conservative approach to counting virus deaths.

AP NEWS
08/04/2021
Majority of NY Assembly would oust Cuomo if he doesn't quit

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - A majority of state Assembly members support beginning impeachment proceedings against Gov. Andrew Cuomo if he doesn't resign over investigative findings that he sexually harassed at least 11 women, according to an Associated Press count Wednesday.

AP NEWS
04/20/2021
New York, New Jersey hide full details of virus spending

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York and New Jersey, early hot spots during the COVID-19 pandemic, have so far declined to release detailed breakdowns of their spending on personal protective gear and medical equipment during the first frenzied months of the virus outbreak...

AP NEWS
04/23/2021
NY won't say what it told DOJ about nursing home outbreaks

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Gov. Andrew Cuomo's office said it won't reveal what it told the U.S. Justice Department about COVID-19 outbreaks in nursing homes, partly because doing so would be an "invasion of personal privacy." The Justice Department last year asked the governors of several states, including New York, to turn over certain, basic statistics related to deaths and infections inside nursing homes.

AP NEWS
04/20/2021
Another 1,700 virus deaths reported in NY nursing homes

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York state reported more than 1,700 previously undisclosed deaths at nursing homes and adult care facilities in a tally that included for the first time people believed to have been killed by the coronavirus before their diagnoses could be confirmed...

AP NEWS
03/27/2021
Vaccines haven't cured loneliness in New York nursing homes

HERKIMER, N.Y. (AP) - Vaccines have begun saving lives in New York's nursing homes, but they haven't yet cured another crisis caused by the pandemic: loneliness. Persistently high rates of COVID-19 have left the majority of the state's nursing homes off limits to visitors, despite relaxed guidance meant to help reopen them.

AP NEWS
03/27/2019
APNewsBreak: Ex-governor pardoned late mentor's grandson

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - Former Maine Gov. Paul LePage pardoned his late mentor's grandson in the final days of his second four-year term, according to documents obtained by The Associated Press that detail pardons for crimes including drug trafficking, tax evasion and embezzlement of public funds.

AP NEWS
12/29/2018
Maine's governor leaves behind spotty legacy on transparency

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - Republican Gov. Paul LePage promised to fight for citizens' rights to access information from Maine's government and kicked things off with a vow that his transition would be "the most transparent" in history. As he prepares to leave office eight years later, he leaves behind a spotty legacy on transparency.

AP NEWS
04/21/2019
APNewsBreak: Numbers of Maine lawmakers who went on to lobby

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - At least 14 Democrat and eight Republican lawmakers in Maine have gone on to register as paid lobbyists over the past three decades, a practice that is being targeted by a bill moving through the Legislature.

AP NEWS
07/14/2021
Former prison doctor sues, blasts state's painkiller policy

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - A doctor who worked for New York's corrections system and took issue with a crackdown on prescription drug abuse is suing the agency, saying he was forced to quit and faced harassment for seeking appropriate care for his patients. At issue is a policy shift the system made five years ago to increase oversight at a time of heightened concern regarding overprescribing painkillers in prisons.

AP NEWS
04/30/2017
Pick for public utility advocate has wireless industry ties

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - The governor's pick for the public's chief advocate for utility customers has a history of ties with the wireless and telecommunications industry, from thousands of dollars in political contributions, to a stint lobbying for AT&T. Republican Gov.

AP NEWS
04/23/2021
Mint, menthol: Vape industry has dug heels in on flavor bans

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - Efforts to ban flavored e-cigarettes and reduce their appeal to youngsters have sputtered under industry pressure in over a half-dozen states this year even as one state, Michigan, moves ahead with its own restrictions and President Donald Trump promises federal ones...

US News & World Report
Student Loan Servicer Fights Back as States Eye Protections

By MARINA VILLENEUVE, Associated Press AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - The nation's largest servicer of federal student loans has lobbied against states' efforts to license student loan servicers in Maine and elsewhere this year as it seeks to become the nation's single servicer of student loans under a plan backed by U.S.

AP NEWS
04/22/2021
Independents uneasy about taking cash, even from indie group

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - Hoping to capitalize on voter frustration over growing polarization in politics, a group fueled partly by what critics call "dark money" plans to spend $3 million this year to support and elect independents. But some free-spirited lawmakers are declining their help.

AP NEWS
02/07/2022
Ethics groups want investigation of free help Cuomo received

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Good government groups say New York's ethics commission should investigate whether former Gov. Andrew Cuomo broke the law by accepting free help from a group of former aides who worked to defend him against sexual harassment allegations.

AP NEWS
08/02/2019
Records show Democrat disclosed reimbursement for donations

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) - A Maine Democratic Senate hopeful disclosed using her leadership political action committee to reimburse herself for political contributions in 2015 and 2016, according to state and federal campaign finance reports. Maine House Speaker Sara Gideon's campaign manager Amy Mesner said Thursday that Gideon's fundraising committee received "incorrect guidance on how to process" such contributions.

AP NEWS
11/04/2018
'Dark money' helps fuel litany of campaign ads in ... Maine?

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) - The battle over who will represent Maine in the largest congressional district east of the Mississippi River is the most expensive political race in state history, leading to more television campaign ads than any other state and underscoring millions of dollars of so-called "dark money" pouring into the race.

AP NEWS
07/27/2021
NY law has long let officials use campaign funds for defense

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Some legislators want to change New York's campaign finance rules after Gov. Andrew Cuomo used $285,000 in political donations to pay lawyers representing him in sexual harassment and misconduct investigations.

AP NEWS
04/20/2021
Report: Trump commission did not find widespread voter fraud

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) - The now-disbanded voting integrity commission launched by the Trump administration uncovered no evidence to support claims of widespread voter fraud, according to an analysis of administration documents released Friday.

AP NEWS
04/29/2021
Vaccine wait goes on for New Yorkers with health problems

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Even as New York has expanded the ranks of healthy people who can get the coronavirus vaccine, it has wrestled with tough decisions about extending eligibility to people with medical conditions that might make them extra vulnerable...

AP NEWS
02/15/2018
Critics say Maine slow to expand opioid care for uninsured

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - Five uninsured Mainers benefited last year from a multimillion-dollar plan that was supposed to help combat the opioid crisis by expanding treatment to as many as 400 individuals with or without insurance. The state Department of Health and Human Services in a Feb.

AP NEWS
04/20/2021
Backers of rural dental care find something to smile about

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - It can be hard to keep smiles healthy in rural areas, where dentists are few and far between and residents often are poor and lack dental coverage. Efforts to remedy the problem have produced varying degrees of success.

AP NEWS
12/12/2016
Juvenile detention centers struggle with transgender inmates

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) - The nation's juvenile detention centers are largely ill-equipped to handle transgender teens, leaving them vulnerable to bullying, sexual assault, depression and suicide, advocates say. Young transgender people are too often sent to girls' or boys' lockups based on their anatomy, not their gender identity, and can end up suffering psychologically and getting picked on by other inmates or staff members, according to advocacy groups.

US News & World Report
5/13/2017
New England Confronts Little-Known, Messy Legacy of Mining

By MARINA VILLENEUVE, Associated Press BROOKSVILLE, Maine (AP) - Think of New England industry, and mills, farms and lobsters come to mind. But the region also has a sometimes-messy legacy of mining - and the bill is due.

AP NEWS
04/22/2021
Democrat-controlled statehouses endorsing clean energy

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - Soon after taking office, Maine's Democratic Gov. Janet Mills announced renovation plans for the governor's mansion. She wanted to add solar panels. The move was seen as a rebuke to her predecessor, Republican Gov. Paul LePage, whose administration put a moratorium on new wind turbines and enacted policies that critics say stymied solar energy in the state.

AP NEWS
04/20/2021
Maine governor, predecessor share a fondness for speeding

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - Former Gov. Paul LePage and current Gov. Janet Mills couldn't be more different when it comes to politics. But, according to their state driving records, they share at least one thing: a lead foot. Mills, who previously served as a lawmaker and the state’s top law enforcement official, has received violations for speeding and operating uninspected or unregistered vehicles since 1975, according to her driving record, which The Associated Press obtained from the secretary...

AP NEWS
06/29/2021
New NY rent fund sees website glitches, but tenants hopeful

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Tenants and their advocates hope New York's revamped rent relief program will finally help renters and landlords who have struggled to get assistance since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Paperwork requirements made it tough for tenants and landlords to get relief funds.

AP NEWS
07/13/2021
Lawmakers demand answers on New York rent relief rollout

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - It will be weeks before New York issues any payments from the state's $2.4 billion COVID-19 rent relief fund, state officials told The Associated Press Tuesday, adding to delays in a program that has been beset by technical glitches with its online application portal.

AP News
7/22/2021
NY releases some rent aid, but lawmakers say it’s too little

ALBANY, N.Y. -- New York state has sent out just $117,000 in coronavirus pandemic rent relief money to help bail out struggling landlords and tenants as of Thursday, and lawmakers say that is far too little as the expiration of the state’s eviction moratorium nears. The Legislature plans to hold a hearing soon on the sluggish roll-out of the state’s $2 billion rent relief program, which has been plagued by a string of website glitches and poorly trained hotline workers.

AP NEWS
03/11/2022
New York is urged to pay public's ballooning utility debt

ALBANY, N.Y. - At least 1.4 million households in New York are behind on electric and natural gas bills - a number that soared during the pandemic - and consumer advocates are calling on the state to pay off their ballooning debt with federal aid.

AP NEWS
05/11/2021
Infections persist as vaccinations lag at some nursing homes

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Despite a massive vaccination campaign, New York nursing homes are still reporting hundreds of infections a week as some residents and staff have skipped getting the shots. Nursing facilities in the state reported 782 infections among staff and residents in the 14 days ending April 25, the most in the nation...

AP NEWS
09/01/2016
To quell uproar, Maine governor seeks 'spiritual guidance'

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - Republican Gov. Paul LePage said Wednesday he intends to seek "spiritual guidance" in hopes of quieting a controversy he created when he left an obscene message on a Democratic lawmaker's voicemail and then said he wished he could challenge him to a duel and point a gun at him.

AP NEWS
04/29/2021
As infections climb, NY avoids closures by shifting metrics

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - For months, as they planned for a possible resurgence of the coronavirus, New York's leaders talked about how a strict set of scientific metrics would guide decisions about whether to reimpose restrictions and closures that helped tame the virus in the spring...

AP NEWS
08/21/2021
Nursing homes struggle with staffing amid outbreaks

Associated Press (AP) - Nursing homes in parts of New York hit worst by this winter's COVID-19 surge say they're struggling to find enough staff as workers have gotten sick or needed to quarantine. About 80 nursing homes have reported nursing shortages as of early January, according to The Associated Press' analysis of the latest federal and state data.

AP NEWS
01/30/2020
State faces calls to act more swiftly on climate change

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York state has set some of the nation's most ambitious goals on fighting climate change, but some activists say it isn't moving fast enough. Lawmakers holding budget hearings this week faced protests from environmental and left-leaning groups who criticized the lack of new solar and wind projects breaking ground in the state.

AP NEWS
04/20/2021
Fox meteorologist Dean turns into fierce Cuomo critic

NEW YORK (AP) - To Fox News Channel's Janice Dean, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is a liar and a criminal. He blames others for his "disastrous decisions." He needs to resign - no, that's not enough. "He needs to go to jail!" she thundered on "Fox & Friends."

AP NEWS
10/19/2019
Capitol Watch: Politics decide when bills get to Cuomo desk

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - A huge pile of legislation passed this year by newly empowered New York Democrats is still awaiting the governor's signature, and advocacy groups and lawmakers are clamoring to get their bills turned into law. Gov.

AP NEWS
04/20/2021
Cuomo retreats from open news briefings that made him a star

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York's governor gained national attention last spring, and won an International Emmy, for daily, televised news briefings at which he answered barrages of questions from journalists about the COVID-19 pandemic. But lately, Gov. Andrew Cuomo has shied away from coming face to face with reporters as sexual harassment allegations against him have mounted.

AP NEWS
04/20/2021
New York Assembly hires top law firm for Cuomo investigation

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York's Assembly has hired a Manhattan law firm to assist in its impeachment investigation of Gov. Andrew Cuomo, legislative leaders announced Wednesday in a pick that was quickly criticized by at least two women accusing the governor of sexual harassment.

AP NEWS
05/01/2021
Nurses on NY's front lines call for minimum staffing ratios

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Nurses on the front lines of New York's COVID-19 pandemic are calling for the state to enact minimum staffing standards ahead of another wave of infections. Health care industry leaders, though, warn that passing such a law would saddle facilities with billions of dollars in extra costs they can't afford.

AP NEWS
04/28/2021
Coronavirus clusters swell on both sides of the US

Alarming clusters of the coronavirus swelled on both coasts of the U.S. on Tuesday, with more than 70 cases now tied to a biotech conference in Boston and infections turning up at 10 nursing homes in the hard-hit Seattle area...

AP NEWS
04/20/2021
New York ethics agency's role in Cuomo allegations unclear

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - As impeachment investigators in the New York legislature and the attorney general's office take the lead in investigating allegations of power abuses and improprieties by Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo, it remains to be seen what role might be played by the state's ethics agency.

AP NEWS
10/05/2020
Cuomo defends not wearing a mask at indoor presser

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Gov. Andrew Cuomo defended his decision not to wear a mask at an indoor press conference held Monday in New York City where he called for tougher enforcement of state rules requiring masks and social distancing.

AP NEWS
03/03/2020
NY eyes extra revenue but forecasters warn of new virus

New York could see at least $700 million in extra tax revenue through March 2021, but the state's economic outlook is nonetheless uncertain because of the new coronavirus outbreak. The state's latest forecast says the spread of the disease could end up severely restraining global and domestic growth and hurting global supply chains.

AP NEWS
08/21/2021
Cuomo impeachment talk grows in New York Legislature

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - As he's reeled from twin scandals over his treatment of women and COVID-19 deaths in nursing homes, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has had to confront a once-unthinkable question: Could enough rogue Democrats combine with Republicans to force him out of office?

AP NEWS
04/20/2021
New York's true nursing home death toll cloaked in secrecy

NEW YORK (AP) - Riverdale Nursing Home in the Bronx appears, on paper, to have escaped the worst of the coronavirus pandemic, with an official state count of just four deaths in its 146-bed facility. The truth, according to the home, is far worse: 21 dead, most transported to hospitals before they succumbed.

AP NEWS
12/30/2020
NY suspends visitation at state prisons amid outbreaks

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York suspended visits to state prisons starting Wednesday because of a rise in coronavirus cases among inmates and staff and in surrounding communities. The state Department of Corrections, which first suspended most in-person visits in mid-March, reopened prisons to visitors in August.

AP NEWS
04/20/2021
Two Democratic governors see stars dimmed by virus woes

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - At the outset of the coronavirus pandemic, two Democratic governors on opposite ends of the country were hailed as heroes for their leadership in a crisis. Now they're leaders on the ropes. Andrew Cuomo of New York and Gavin Newsom of California are embroiled in distinct political woes.

AP NEWS
04/06/2020
Stay home rules extended in NY amid glimmer of hope

NEW YORK (AP) - New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo extended stay-at-home restrictions through the end of the month and increased fines on violators to up to $1,000, citing fresh evidence Monday that the outbreak-fighting rules could be helping the state avoid a worst-case catastrophe.

AP NEWS
04/20/2021
Bully, or just Queens tough? Criticism piles up for Cuomo

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Over his long career, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has been known as a brutal, even vindictive political opponent, quick to retaliate against people who oppose his agenda or challenge him publicly. Tough tactics - even against fellow Democrats - brought him to the pinnacle of power in New York.

AP NEWS
04/20/2021
Millionaires in NYC set to face highest tax rate in US

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - The highest-earning New Yorkers would face the nation's steepest income tax rate under a budget lawmakers expected to vote on and pass Tuesday. It would serve as a win for the Democratic party's left wing, who say that millionaires in Manhattan penthouses have fared far better amid the pandemic then struggling small businesses and low-income New Yorkers.

AP NEWS
11/25/2020
New York state may speed up, permanently expand vote-by-mail

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York may permanently expand voting by mail - something it tried on a wide scale for the first time this year - while also trying to reform its molasses-slow and opaque process for counting absentee ballots.

AP NEWS
04/20/2021
In some parts of New York, vote count shrouded in secrecy

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Policies favoring secrecy over transparency have meant that New Yorkers will be among the last Americans to learn the final vote tallies in the 2020 election, with results in a few races still unknown one month after Election Day...

AP NEWS
04/20/2021
New York lawmakers agree to legalize recreational marijuana

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York is poised to join a growing number of states that have legalized marijuana after state lawmakers reached a deal to allow sales of the drug for recreational use. The agreement reached Saturday would expand the state's existing medical marijuana program and set up a a licensing and taxation system for recreational sales.

AP NEWS
04/20/2021
Blame game? Cuomo takes heat over nursing home study

Gov. Cuomo is facing blistering criticism over an internal report that found a controversial state directive that sent thousands of recovering coronavirus patients into nursing homes was "not a significant factor" in some of the nation's deadliest nursing home outbreaks.

AP NEWS
04/20/2021
NY count: 6,300 virus patients were sent to nursing homes

NEW YORK (AP) - New York hospitals released more than 6,300 recovering coronavirus patients into nursing homes during the height of the pandemic under a controversial, now-scrapped policy, state officials said Monday, but they argued it was not to blame for one of the nation's highest nursing home death tolls...

AP NEWS
08/13/2021
Calls grow for Cuomo harassment inquiry. But by whom?

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - A former aide's allegations that New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo subjected her to an unwanted kiss during years of sexual harassment have spurred calls for an investigation - and questions about who might meaningfully conduct one.

AP NEWS
08/20/2020
Cuomo: Earlier mask mandate could have made a difference

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo made a rare acknowledgment of a misstep in his response to COVID-19 on Wednesday as he acknowledged an earlier statewide mask mandate could have made a "dramatic difference" in the fight against the coronavirus this spring.

AP NEWS
08/04/2020
NY rolls back legal immunity for hospitals, nursing homes

Nursing homes and hospitals in New York can once again be held liable in lawsuits and criminal prosecutions for care provided to patients not being treated for COVID-19 under a law signed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo Monday.

AP NEWS
04/29/2021
NY mail-in voting deluge fuels uncounted ballots, confusion

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York's quest to keep voters safe from COVID-19 by letting them vote by mail in the June primary has led to big delays in tabulating results, concerns about disenfranchisement - and questions about whether there will be an even bigger mess in the fall...

AP NEWS
04/20/2021
Cuomo administration 'froze' over nursing home data requests

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo's top aide told Democratic lawmakers that the administration took months to release data revealing how many people living at nursing homes died of COVID-19 because officials "froze" over worries the information was "going to be used against us...

AP NEWS
08/11/2020
NY faces bigger deluge in mail-in voting in November

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Election officials are warning that cash-strapped New York has a lot of work to do before Nov. 3 to ensure it can handle an even bigger flood of absentee ballots in light of a surge in mail-in voting that fueled a six-week delay for results of the June primary.

AP NEWS
04/28/2021
Stark disparities in New York City's virus toll

NEW YORK (AP) - The coronavirus has cut an unequal path of grief through New York City, hitting hardest in a ring of predominantly poorer, nonwhite neighborhoods a long subway and bus ride from Manhattan, according to data released by the city Monday.

AP NEWS
'Just not fair': Communities bristle at new NYC shutdowns

NEW YORK (AP) - Anger and resentment flared Wednesday in New York City neighborhoods facing new coronavirus shutdowns, with some residents saying the state is unfairly targeting Orthodox Jewish communities as it tries to stamp out hot spots before they spread. Protests erupted in Brooklyn's Borough Park neighborhood Tuesday night after Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced new restrictions on schools, businesses and houses of worship in some parts of the city and state

AP NEWS
04/29/2021
NY to start vaccinating people with health problems Feb. 15

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York's governor announced Friday the state will open up vaccine eligibility by Feb. 15 for people with a wide range of certain health conditions - from obesity to hypertension, cancer and intellectual and developmental disabilities - that put them at high risk of severe illness from COVID-19.

AP NEWS
04/20/2021
NYC virus deaths exceed 4,000, topping toll for 9/11 attacks

NEW YORK (AP) - New York City's death toll from the coronavirus rose past 4,000 on Tuesday, eclipsing the number killed at the World Trade Center on 9/11. In Britain, Prime Minister Boris Johnson lay in intensive care, believed to be the first major world leader hospitalized with the virus.

AP NEWS
04/20/2021
Former aide says Cuomo kissed her, suggested strip poker

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - A former member of New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo's administration who previously accused him of sexual harassment offered new details Wednesday, saying he once kissed her on the lips without consent.

AP NEWS
04/20/2021
Cuomo official grilled on virus nursing home deaths, secrecy

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Lawmakers grilled New York's top health official about the steep, though ultimately unknown death toll at nursing homes amid the coronavirus pandemic. Lawmakers are holding hearings geared at understanding why and how the pandemic took root in nursing homes that house among the most residents nationwide: 101,000 residents as of March.

AP NEWS
07/15/2021
Lawmakers urge NY to lift limits on nursing home visits

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Lawmakers are demanding that Gov. Andrew Cuomo lift remaining restrictions for visits at nursing homes, according to a letter two dozen Democratic lawmakers sent to the governor this week. The coronavirus pandemic has had a heavy toll on nursing homes in New York, where state health officials have taken a cautious approach to visitations.

AP NEWS
02/18/2022
NY won't enforce booster mandate for health workers

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York will not enforce its mandate requiring health care workers to get COVID-19 boosters in light of concerns about staffing shortages, state health officials said Friday. Gov. Kathy Hochul pointed to a troubling rise in breakthrough infections when she announced the mandate in January.

AP NEWS
04/22/2021
NY lets voters get absentee ballots due to virus concerns

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York will allow voters to request absentee ballots for the general election because of an outbreak - like coronavirus - under a new state law signed Thursday. New Yorkers can now vote by absentee in any election through Jan.

The Maine Monitor
08/08/2014
Maine crime victims have little help receiving restitution from the system

For Linda Descoteaux of Saco, the last nine years have been full of calls, letters and promises from Maine courts that go unfulfilled. When a man defrauded her of $4,000 in 2005, the York County district attorney's office sent her a letter saying he'd pay her back part of what he stole by 2009.

The Maine Monitor
08/09/2014
Chief judge: Restitution "system is imperfect and we know it"

It was a typical Monday morning for Charles LaVerdiere, chief judge for the Maine District Court: He presided at Waterville District Court, facing 125 people who needed to be arraigned between 8:30 and 11:30 a.m. One by one, LaVerdiere informed each defendant of the charges for crimes ranging from simple theft to shoplifting, to OUIs, to domestic violence and assaults.

The Maine Monitor
09/17/2014
'We're not getting anywhere': A judge's day enforcing victim restitution orders

Editor's note: This is the latest installment in the Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting's series about Maine's victim restitution program. BANGOR - Steven Bell stood before a judge at Penobscot Judicial Center, answering questions about the $1,083 he owes in restitution for a theft that happened nine years ago.

Phys
How millennial nostalgia fueled the success of 'Pokemon Go'

The children who once dreamed of capturing real-life Pokemon starting in the 1990s are now the nostalgic millennials helping fuel the worldwide success of "Pokemon Go." Take Bailey Richardson. Now 26, her grandest dream was once to set out in the world and capture and train the big-eyed, shrieking creatures known as Pokemon, originally numbering 151 in all.

AP NEWS
08/20/2016
Rural Mainers want more say in fast-tracked wind projects

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - Maine's quest to become a leader in wind power - producing enough megawatts to light up more than a million homes - has gotten pushback from rural residents who say they want a greater voice in proposals that now bypass them and go directly to the state for review.

AP NEWS
06/23/2019
Maine Medicaid expansion not moving as quickly as expected

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - Thousands fewer Mainers than projected have signed up for Medicaid in the first six months of a statewide expansion of the program. Enrollment projections had ranged from 50,000 by mid-2019 to 70,000 new Medicaid recipients.

AP NEWS
09/10/2016
Gov. LePage to 'privatize' Maine's $62.5M welfare program

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - Republican Gov. Paul LePage wants to turn over the administration of Maine's $62.5 million welfare program to a New York City-based nonprofit that's faced a dozen state and federal lawsuits since 2013. Fedcap Rehabilitation Services acknowledges its recent litigation in its bid proposal to Maine officials while also describing its accomplishments.

The Washington Times
11/3/2016
Letter: Maine returned welfare money, then sought guidance

Newly released federal correspondence shows Maine did not formally ask about the legality of transferring $13.4 million in federal funds for needy kids until after it had changed course on its plan to spend the money on the elderly instead. Maine’s Democratic state auditor, Pola Buckley, chastised the state Department of Health and Human Services for improperly transferring millions of dollars aimed at low-income children to fund a program serving the elderly and disabled.

Press Herald
12/21/2016
LePage said ballot referendums are just 'recommendations.' Legal experts say he's wrong.

AUGUSTA - Gov. Paul LePage has a history of interpreting the state's constitution in ways that are later discredited, but that didn't stop him from lobbing more dubious claims this week. In an interview Tuesday on WVOM-FM, a Bangor radio station, LePage claimed the Maine Constitution says approved ballot referendums are just "recommendations" that "the Legislature doesn't even have to enact."

Press Herald
01/12/2017
LePage ignores all but friendly media, in departure from previous governors

AUGUSTA - Republican Gov. Paul LePage has gone three months without a news conference and has retreated to friendly talk-radio stations and conservative online outlets. It appears the new normal for Maine journalists is covering LePage's often unchallenged, sometimes dubious remarks to websites such as Breitbart or on WVOM-FM and WGAN-FM on Tuesdays and Thursday mornings.

Boston.com
Drug abuse in Maine sends more children into state custody

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) - The number of children removed from their homes in the state because of a parent's drug abuse has been on the rise with the worsening drug epidemic. At least one person a day dies in Maine from a drug overdose, according to the secretary of state's office.

US News & World Report
2/19/2017
With Mobile Unit, Group Tackles Drug Treatment Amid Crisis

WALPOLE, Maine (AP) - Two men in long-term recovery from heroin addiction are taking up the challenge of low-cost drug treatment options across the state with a new mobile unit offering services like clean needles and syringes and treatment options.

US News & World Report
Few Welfare Recipients Tested for Drugs in Maine Under Law

By MARINA VILLENEUVE, Associated Press AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - Republican Gov. Paul LePage has long contended that drug-testing welfare recipients will help protect taxpayer dollars, but only a handful have submitted to tests under the current law. His administration blames Democrats for the scant results.

AP NEWS
04/08/2017
Republicans hope Trump amenable to food stamp restrictions

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - Maine resident Zak McCutcheon says he likes soda but acknowledges he'd drink less of it if his governor convinced Republican President Donald Trump to put restrictions on the approximately $200 a month he receives in food stamps. He thinks it may even make recipients healthier and less overweight.

US News & World Report
4/22/2017
Chronic Pain Patients Say Opioid Law Creates New Crisis

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - Jane Avery says the pain from her psoriatic arthritis is the worst at 2 a.m. when she can't sleep and already has met her daily limit on painkillers. Her daily dosage of the drugs was cut in half about six months ago.

Press Herald
05/04/2017
Lawsuits filed without help of Maine's AG cost state $385,000

AUGUSTA - Republican Gov. Paul LePage's administration has paid more than $385,000 since 2014 for a couple of private law firms to represent him in court when the Democratic attorney general declined to do so or when he requested private lawyers, according to a state database of government finances.

US News & World Report
05/17/2017
Medicaid Recipients Say They Need Health Care to Work

By MARINA VILLENEUVE, Associated Press PORTLAND, Maine (AP) - Medicaid recipients in Maine told state regulators Wednesday they shouldn't be forced to work to continue getting their health care benefits as the Republican governor has proposed. The health care bill recently approved by U.S.

The Washington Times
09/22/3600
Defenders of poor working without pay as lawmakers debate

A lawyer in a rumpled beige suit leaned over the courtroom's jury box to confer one-by-one with his clients: two rows of men and women facing various charges along with what about half described as homelessness, mental illness or drug addiction.

The Washington Times
09/22/3600
2 Republicans, union say governor emptying out prison

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - Gov. Paul LePage is taking steps to empty out a minimum-security state prison and force a closure over the objections of state lawmakers, according to union representatives and two Republican legislators from Washington County.

AP NEWS
07/01/2017
Partial government shutdown in Maine after budget impasse

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - A partial state government shutdown began early Saturday in Maine after lawmakers failed to meet a deadline for a new state budget while House Republicans revealed they were working with GOP Gov. Paul LePage on a secret, alternative plan.

AP NEWS
10/31/2017
Maine Medicaid expansion vote seen as 'Obamacare' referendum

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) - The roiling national debate over the government's proper role in health care is coming to a head in a state more commonly known for moose, lobster and L.L. Bean. On Nov. 7, voters in Maine will decide whether to join 31 other states and expand Medicaid under former President Barack Obama's Affordable Care Act.

AP NEWS
02/09/2018
Governor moves to empty prison as lawmakers mull its future

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - Republican Gov. Paul LePage moved Friday to empty a minimum security prison as Maine lawmakers debated the future of the facility, which costs $5 million per year to run. Lawmakers fought LePage's moves last year to close Downeast Correctional Facility in Machiasport, which ended up receiving funding through June of this year.

AP NEWS
06/25/2018
Governor floats hospital tax to pay for Medicaid expansion

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - Some lawmakers said Monday that Maine's Republican governor has been floating a new tax on hospitals to pay for voter-approved Medicaid expansion. Republican Senate President Mike Thibodeau said that Gov. Paul LePage's administration has sent word the governor is considering the idea.

AP NEWS
03/18/2018
Costs for lawsuits involving Maine governor exceed $100K

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) - Lawsuits in which Republican Gov. Paul LePage hired outside legal representation have cost the state at least $110,000 since last fall, raising the total expenditures to at least half a million dollars over the past four years, according to a review by The Associated Press.

AP NEWS
04/30/2018
NOT REAL NEWS: Maine legislators did not vote for mutilation

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - Maine lawmakers did not vote to allow female genital mutilation, despite reports circulating widely online. Several sites claimed Democrats in the Maine Legislature voted to allow the practice, which is common in parts of Asia, Africa and the Middle East. Female genital mutilation is already outlawed in the U.S.

Washington Post
04/27/2018
Suspect in deputy killing dropped off near where body found

NORRIDGEWOCK, Maine - A woman who for years provided a home for the fugitive suspected in the killing of a Maine sheriff's deputy said Friday that she discovered the officer's body in her yard. Kimberly Sirois said she found the body of Somerset County Cpl. Eugene Cole around 7 a.m.

US News & World Report
Governor's Push Against Wind Permits Gets Day in Court

By MARINA VILLENEUVE, Associated Press PORTLAND, Maine (AP) - Republican Gov. Paul LePage's lawyers on Friday asked a judge to toss a lawsuit challenging the governor's executive order to halt wind turbine permits in western and coastal regions of rural Maine. Advocacy groups challenged the constitutionality of LePage's January order, claiming it's causing uncertainty in the wind industry.

AP NEWS
07/23/2018
Judge tosses challenge of order halting wind turbines

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) - A judge has tossed a legal challenge of Republican Gov. Paul LePage's executive order halting wind turbine permits in parts of Maine, while leaving the door open to revisit the topic. Superior Court Justice Andrew Horton said in his decision Friday that the governor has admitted that his own administration is not enforcing the executive order.

AP NEWS
08/16/2018
Governor's legal costs to rise as Medicaid lawsuit continues

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) - Maine could pay up to $200,000 for a Boston-based lawyer to defend the LePage administration in a lawsuit over voter-approved Medicaid expansion. The Department of Health and Human Services in a state form dated Monday proposed increasing the cost of a no-bid contract with law firm Consovoy McCarthy Park from $100,000 to $200,000 through December.

AP NEWS
08/20/2018
As Maine waffles on Medicaid expansion, residents in limbo

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - Maine residents seeking health coverage under voter-approved Medicaid expansion are in limbo as Republican Gov. Paul LePage's administration refuses to say definitively whether it plans to provide it. An advocacy group has said LePage's administration signaled through an attorney that Maine is going to reject people applying for Medicaid expansion.

AP News
9/7/2018
Governor says he’ll keep blocking payments to AG office

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — Republican Gov. Paul LePage said Friday he won’t release $4.9 million that lawmakers budgeted for Democratic Attorney General and gubernatorial candidate Janet Mills’ office until she provides him legal bills that are as detailed as those of private law firms. LePage told The Associated Press on Friday that he’ll keep doing so until she sends him invoices that describe what her office is working on and include “hours and charges” like private law firms do.

AP NEWS
09/10/2018
LePage says he'll deny applicants until expansion is funded

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - Republican Gov. Paul LePage said he'll continue denying applications under a voter-approved Medicaid expansion until lawmakers provide funding under his terms. Pro-Medicaid expansion advocates who are suing to force Maine to roll-out voter-approved Medicaid expansion have encouraged Mainers to apply for Medicaid expansion this summer.

AP NEWS
09/27/2018
APNewsBreak: Feds say no to LePage job-training penalties

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - Federal officials told Gov. Paul LePage in June that he can't impose financial penalties on local groups that help job-seekers as part of his battle to cut bureaucracy out of job-training efforts, according to correspondence obtained this month by The Associated Press through a federal Freedom of Information Act request.

AP NEWS
09/26/2018
As federal Medicaid funding declines, states mull costs

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - Maine's Republican governor has said federal regulators want to know how Maine would pay for Medicaid expansion. But it's unclear just how that issue will play out in Maine, the first state to pass Medicaid expansion under Republican President Trump's administration.

Boston.com
11/12/2018
In Maine, a new way of voting is facing its biggest test yet

Politics PORTLAND, Maine (AP) - The election drew to a close last week in most places but not in fishing villages, potato farms and vast tracts of wilderness that comprise Maine's 2nd Congressional District. The four-way political battle won't conclude until a computer algorithm has the final say this week on whether Republican Rep.

AP NEWS
12/03/2018
Record level of women elected in Maine amid liberal spending

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - Maine voters sent a record number of women to the Legislature on Election Day as liberal spending boosting female candidates helped Democrats sweep into control of the Statehouse. A total of 72 female lawmakers will soon be sworn in to the Legislature now dominated by Democrats, including 12 in the Senate and a record-breaking 60 women in the House, according to election results collected by The Associated Press.

AP NEWS
02/05/2019
Maine sees many welfare fraud claims but few prosecutions

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - A tiny fraction of the hundreds of welfare fraud allegations made last year ended up being prosecuted by the attorney general's office, according to state documents. Out of 1,160 allegations of potential welfare fraud last year, only 25 cases were referred to the attorney general by the Fraud Investigations and Recovery Unit of Maine's Department of Health and Human Services.

AP NEWS
11/16/2019
Capitol Watch: Commissions make law behind closed doors

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New Yorkers can expect more fireworks as political appointees finish writing laws for a $100 million system to let political candidates run with public funds. Critics argue the nine-member Public Campaign Financing Commission is the latest example of lawmakers and the governor failing to pass laws themselves and unconstitutionally shoving off responsibility to a state commission that lacks expertise, staffing and a budget for legal battles.

AP NEWS
05/12/2021
Capitol Watch: Nurses, midwives look for clarity on abortion

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - There is still some some uncertainty about how nurse practitioners and midwives are affected by a law that was supposed to expand the number of New York health care providers who can perform abortions. In January, the state Legislature codified a "fundamental right" to have an abortion at a time when some states have restricted access.

AP NEWS
05/14/2021
Court allows NY virus restrictions ahead of Jewish holidays

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - A federal judge refused Friday to block New York's plan to temporarily limit the size of religious gatherings in COVID-19 hot spots. U.S. District Judge Judge Kiyo Matsumoto issued the ruling after an emergency hearing in a lawsuit brought by rabbis and synagogues, arguing the restrictions were unconstitutional.

AP NEWS
04/20/2021
House race up in air as county finds 55 uncounted ballots

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Nearly a month after Election Day, a county in New York on Tuesday said it had discovered a small batch of uncounted ballots with the potential to sway the outcome of one of the nation's closest battles for a seat in Congress...

AP NEWS
04/20/2021
Nursing home disclosures taint Cuomo's pandemic performance

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo wrote a book on managing the COVID-19 crisis. Now he faces intensifying accusations that he covered up the true death toll of the pandemic on nursing home residents, attacks that challenge his reputation for straight-shooting competency and could cloud his political future.

AP NEWS
04/20/2021
Top Dems call on Cuomo to resign amid harassment allegations

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo confronted a stunning series of defections Friday amid allegations of sexual harassment that left the high-profile Democrat fighting for his political survival, angry and alone. By day's end, the three-term governor had lost the support of almost the entire 29-member New York congressional delegation and a majority of Democrats in the state legislature.

AP NEWS
04/20/2021
Cuomo addresses harassment claims, vows to stay in office

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Wednesday rejected calls for his resignation in the face of sexual harassment allegations that have threatened his hold on power and damaged his national political standing.

AP NEWS
04/29/2021
Cuomo mulls suing over census, but fight could be tricky

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - There's no easy path for New York to win a legal fight with the U.S. Census Bureau over its narrow loss of a Congressional seat, but Gov. Andrew Cuomo said this week he's looking at "legal options" nevertheless.

AP NEWS
05/17/2021
Cuomo set to earn $5M from book on COVID-19 crisis

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo disclosed Monday that he was paid a $3.1 million advance to write his COVID-19 leadership book last year and under his publishing contract will make another $2 million on the memoir over the next two years.

AP NEWS
08/10/2021
Gov. Andrew Cuomo resigns over sexual harassment allegations

NEW YORK (AP) - Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced his resignation Tuesday over a barrage of sexual harassment allegations in a fall from grace a year after he was widely hailed nationally for his detailed daily briefings and leadership during some of the darkest days of the COVID-19 pandemic.

AP NEWS
08/05/2021
EXPLAINER: How Cuomo might be impeached, removed from office

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, buffeted by sexual harassment allegations and numerous investigations, is increasingly looking like he could be impeached and removed from office - something that hasn't happened to the state's governor in nearly 108 years.

AP NEWS
08/08/2021
Cuomo's top aide resigns as governor faces harassment furor

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Melissa DeRosa, a fixture next to Gov. Andrew Cuomo for months during his coronavirus news conferences, resigned late Sunday on the heels of a report that found Cuomo sexually harassed 11 women, leaving the governor without his top aide as he faces the prospect of impeachment.

AP NEWS
08/23/2021
Kathy Hochul becomes New York's first female governor

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Kathy Hochul became the first female governor of New York at the stroke of midnight Tuesday, taking control of a state government desperate to get back to business after months of distractions over sexual harassment allegations against Andrew Cuomo.

AP NEWS
08/24/2021
Hochul vows swift action as she takes helm in New York

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Kathy Hochul became the first female governor of New York on Tuesday and in her first hours on the job sought to bring a sense of urgency to tackling big problems that went unaddressed during Andrew Cuomo's distracted final months in office.

AP NEWS
08/31/2021
Cuomo legal woes continue, could cost public at least $9.5M

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - The state has already agreed to pay up to $9.5 million to lawyers representing and investigating Cuomo and his administration over sexual harassment allegations and other matters, according to The Associated Press' review of available contracts.

AP NEWS
08/25/2021
New NY governor adds 12,000 deaths to publicized COVID tally

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Delivering another blow to what's left of former Gov. Andrew Cuomo's legacy, New York's new governor acknowledged on her first day in office that the state has had nearly 12,000 more deaths from COVID-19 than Cuomo told the public.

AP NEWS
11/11/2021
'Mean girls' and heels: Transcripts shed light on Cuomo saga

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo appeared pugilistic and paranoid at times in an 11-hour deposition, made public Wednesday, denying the sexual harassment allegations that forced him from office while ascribing political motives to the people investigating his behavior.

AP NEWS
09/23/2021
Advocates urge NY to boost $2B fund for undocumented workers

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York might be on track to exhaust its $2.1 billion pandemic relief fund for undocumented workers, just weeks after it began accepting applications. Advocacy groups for immigrant workers are calling on the state to add as much as $1.4 billion to the fund - the largest of its kind in the county - to meet unexpectedly strong demand.

AP NEWS
11/16/2021
Ethics body rescinds approval for Cuomo book deal

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - The committee's vote comes over a year after the 2020 publication of "American Crisis: Leadership Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic," which largely recounts the governor's once-daily press conferences last spring.

AP NEWS
11/26/2021
Half of NY's $2.4B in rent aid held up 6 months after launch

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Nearly $1 billion in funding meant to cover back rent for New Yorkers who suffered economic hardship because of the COVID-19 pandemic still hasn't made it into the hands of tenants six months after the program launched.

AP NEWS
01/07/2022
Judge dismisses sole criminal charge against Andrew Cuomo

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - The only criminal charge filed over the sexual harassment allegations that drove former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo from office was dismissed Friday at prosecutors' request, clearing what had been seen as the most serious legal threat to the Democrat.

AP NEWS
01/21/2022
NY expands absentee voting after defeat of ballot measure

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New Yorkers can again choose to vote by absentee rather than face the risk of catching COVID-19 at polling sites through the rest of 2022 under a bill that Gov. Kathy Hochul signed Friday. The Assembly passed the bill 100-45 on Wednesday, and the Senate passed the bill last week with a 42-21 vote.

AP NEWS
01/31/2022
Proposed NY political maps could hurt GOP in House battle

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Proposed political maps released by the leaders of New York's Democrat-dominated legislature would give the party an advantage in 22 of of the state's 26 congressional districts and mean reelection trouble for several Republican members of the U.S.

AP NEWS
02/02/2022
New York Legislature approves new congressional maps

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York's legislature approved new congressional district maps Wednesday that will expand Democrats' power for years to come in a state where the party already holds a dominating advantage. The Senate voted 43-20 on party lines Wednesday to pass the congressional maps.

AP NEWS
02/18/2022
Cuomo sued by NY trooper who said he sexually harassed her

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - A New York state trooper who testified that former Gov. Andrew Cuomo sexually harassed her has filed a lawsuit Thursday asking a federal court to declare that Cuomo, a top aide and state police violated her civil rights.

AP NEWS
03/29/2022
Bills deal renews debate over public dollars for arenas

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York looks poised to become the next place to give a huge subsidy to a professional sports arena, despite questions about whether the civic pride of having a team justifies giving so much public money to a private business.

AP NEWS
04/12/2022
NY lieutenant governor resigns after arrest in federal probe

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York Lt. Gov. Brian Benjamin resigned Tuesday in the wake of his arrest in a federal corruption investigation, creating a political crisis for Gov. Kathy Hochul seven months after she selected Benjamin as a partner to make a fresh start in an office already rocked by scandal.

AP NEWS
04/09/2022
$220B budget becomes law, boosted by fed aid, surplus

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York is set to rely on an influx of federal funds and higher-than-expected tax revenues to balance a $220 billion, one-year state budget, which went into law Saturday. The sale of to-go cocktails became legal once Gov.

AP NEWS
04/26/2022
Fight over gerrymandering argued at NY's highest court

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Judges on New York's highest court peppered attorneys with sharp questions Tuesday as they considered whether to throw out new congressional district maps that Republicans say were unconstitutionally gerrymandered.

AP NEWS
04/15/2022
NY Gov. Hochul hits election hurdle in running mate's arrest

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - One man's scandal catapulted New York Gov. Kathy Hochul into office. Will alleged misconduct by another man hurt her chances of holding on to the job? Hochul's previously smooth path to a Democratic primary win hit a major bump this week when her lieutenant governor resigned following his arrest in a federal corruption investigation.

NBC New York
04/21/2022
Panel of Judges Hears Arguments in NY Gerrymandering Lawsuit

Did New York's Democratic-led Legislature unconstitutionally pass new maps setting congressional district boundaries for the next decade? That's among the questions before a panel of five mid-level appellate judges, who began hearing arguments Wednesday.

AP NEWS
04/28/2022
Task of drawing NY political maps falls to judge and scholar

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - After New York's highest court threw out new congressional district maps drawn by the state Legislature, the task of redrawing them has fallen to a rural judge and a researcher at Carnegie Mellon University.

AP NEWS
04/27/2022
Court rejects congressional maps drawn by Democrats

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York's highest court on Wednesday rejected new congressional maps that had widely been seen as favoring Democrats, largely agreeing with Republican voters who argued the district boundaries were unconstitutionally gerrymandered.

AP NEWS
05/02/2022
NY governor faces fallout of running mate resignation

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - When New York Gov. Kathy Hochul took office last year after her predecessor resigned in a sexual harassment scandal, one of her first big decisions was appointing a lieutenant governor who could help restore trust in government.

AP NEWS
05/04/2022
Judge won't revive political maps that favored Dems

A federal judge refused to order New York to hold its congressional and state Senate primaries this spring using district maps declared unconstitutional by state judges, saying a legal effort by Democrats to revive the maps looked unlikely to succeed.

AP NEWS
05/06/2022
Calls for more public input on new NY political maps

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Community activists and lawmakers traveled to a rural courthouse Friday in western New York to weigh in on the shape of the state's political district maps, and to ask a judge for more opportunities for the public to be heard.

AP NEWS
06/02/2022
Voting rights protections passed in New York legislature

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York would make it easier to sue over discriminatory voting policies and require localities with a history of civil right violations to get approval before changing election rules, under legislation that passed the Democrat-controlled Assembly and Senate Thursday.

AP NEWS
06/02/2022
NY passes bill raising age to buy, own semi-automatic rifles

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York's legislature voted Thursday to ban anyone under age 21 from buying or possessing a semi-automatic rifle, a major change to state firearm laws pushed through less than three weeks after an 18-year-old used one of the guns to kill 10 people at a supermarket in Buffalo.

ABC News
6/9/22
New push to force gunmakers to adopt microstamping

NY this week became the 2nd state to enact a law intended to force firearms manufacturers to adopt microstamping, a technology in which guns imprint tiny codes on ammunition cartridges as they are fired - creating a unique signature police could use to help solve crimes.

AP NEWS
06/13/2022
New York state to protect abortion providers under new laws

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York has expanded legal protections for people seeking and providing abortions in the state under legislation signed by Gov. Kathy Hochul on Monday. The Democratic governor pushed for the laws in anticipation of the U.S.

AP NEWS
07/01/2022
NY overhauls handgun rules in effort to preserve some limits

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York lawmakers approved a sweeping overhaul Friday of the state's handgun licensing rules, seeking to preserve some limits on firearms after the Supreme Court ruled that most people have a right to carry a handgun for personal protection.

AP NEWS
07/08/2022
Gun applicants in NY will have to list social media accounts

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - As missed warning signs pile up in investigations of mass killings, New York state is rolling out a novel strategy to screen applicants for gun permits. People seeking to carry concealed handguns will be required to hand over lists of their social media accounts for a review of their "character and conduct."

AP NEWS
07/21/2022
Outside review planned for New York's COVID-19 response

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - A third-party auditor will review the New York state government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic, including efforts by the administration of the previous governor to downplay the number of deaths of nursing home residents.

AP NEWS
08/03/2022
Justice Department details threats against election workers

The U.S. Justice Department has charged five people for making threats of violence against election workers amid a rising wave of harassment and intimidation tied to the 2020 presidential election, a top official told U.S. senators Wednesday.

AP News
7/19/19
Maine grappling with closure of nursing homes

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — More than a dozen nursing homes have shuttered in Maine in past five years, and leaders representing them in the aging state plan to meet next week with the administration of Gov. Janet Mills to push for $1 million in held-up funding. Maine currently has 94 nursing homes, down from 102 in 2017.