Lawmakers are spending this week finishing up on legislation before taking a break to consider gubernatorial vetoes later this month or in early May.
A supplemental fiscal 2015 budget bill (LD 1858) was enacted unanimously in the Senate and by a wide margin of 136-8 in the House. Gov. Paul LePage is reported to be dissatisfied with the bill and views it as failing to fully fund expected needs in the Medicaid program. There is speculation on whether he will call lawmakers into special session later this spring or summer.
The Medicaid expansion “compromise” (LD 1487), that most Republicans voted against and all Democrats voted for, was vetoed and the veto was sustained in the Senate.
A controversial change in the workers compensation law (LD 1641) is expected to be vetoed. The bill would inject a new level of potential litigation when an injured worker is interviewed by an employer or representative of the employer. If the worker is not informed of the right to have a representative present (family, union or lawyer), the information obtained could not be used by the employer in contesting payment on an injury claim.
A recap of the legislative session together with the status of key legislation will be contained in an upcoming edition of NFIB Insight.
