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QUOTE OF THE DAY
— Mike Smith, manager of Mi’kmaq Farms & Fish Hatchery in Caribou, one of more than 100 food producers in Maine that has participated in Local Foods for Schools, a national program that the U.S. Department of Agriculture ended this week.
TODAY’S TOP STORIES
Maine schools said they will buy less from local farms after the U.S. Department of Agriculture cut reimbursements. More than 160 Maine school districts and 100 food producers participated in the federal Local Foods for Schools program, which the agency ended this week.
Maine’s air quality is likely to get worse after federal environmental rollbacks. Prevailing winds that blow fossil fuel pollution from the west have already earned Maine the nickname “tailpipe of the nation” and contributed to some of the highest asthma rates in the country.
Maine homes are sitting on the market for longer. While sales are often slower in the winter and after a presidential election, homes are sitting for an average of 10 days longer than they were this time last year.
A longtime Bangor florist shop is moving downtown. Lougee & Frederick’s Inc. aims to move to an empty storefront at 21 Washington St., next to Quality Jewelers, on April 1.
A transit hub for travelers to Bar Harbor is opening in June. At the 10,000-square-foot visitors’ center, day visitors to the island can park and ride buses to and from their destinations.
NEWS FROM AROUND THE STATE
- Maine public universities have no transgender athletes. The Trump administration tried to pull funding anyway.
- Maine joins multi-state lawsuit to block Trump administration Education Department layoffs
- Senate fails to pass short-term budget to fill MaineCare shortfall
- Maine prices are increasing faster than the national average
- TD Bank closing 4 Maine locations
- Steuben bans commercial rocket launches and space manufacturing
- New group forms to defend Maine’s aquaculture industry
- Rockland will soon turn former school into affordable housing
- Nirav Shah will be joining Colby College
- Northern Light to close Waterville hospital in June
- Massachusetts man fatally shot in Palmyra
- Man allegedly caused $45K in damage at Maine ski resort
- Body washes ashore in Portland
- Cooper Flagg a ‘real longshot’ to play in Duke’s next game after injuring ankle
- Unbeaten Bowdoin women’s basketball seeking 1st national title
- UMass Lowell traveling to UMaine for Saturday’s Hockey East quarterfinal
MAINE IN PICTURES
FROM THE OPINION PAGES
“The administration likely started its crackdown on protesters with Khalil because it was easy to portray him in a bad light.”
LIFE IN MAINE
It’s not everyday that you see an eagle go for a ride on its road kill. Camden resident Alison McKellar captured the rare moment on a drive recently.
These territorial birds are all angry with each other right now. “While we wait for the spring migrants to arrive, we can amuse ourselves with the resident local birds that are gearing up for spring,” Bob Duchesne writes.
