Helping vulnerable people in #Maine takes many forms from stocking food pantries to providing shelter and counseling to simply offering to listen. Leaders at faith-based organizations across the state joined us for a conversation about these efforts Wednesday. themainemonitor.org/faith-leader...

In the #Maine Senate race to replace Sen. Susan Collins, Democratic frontrunners Gov. Janet Mills and Graham Platner are part of the End Citizens United’s Unrig Washington initiative. Read more for free from our D.C. correspondent, in partnership with @notus.com, below 👇

ICYMI: Wabanaki Public Health and Wellness, for the first time, has trained about 30 #doulas to help families leading up to and during #birth, as other birthing services across #Maine have ceased. Read more for free at the link 👇

Members of the Legislature’s Joint Standing Committee on State and Local Government voted unanimously to table a bill intended to provide #bankruptcy protection to #Maine counties and municipalities after the bill changed direction, setting up the possibility of a second public hearing.

Federal authorities demanded information about those employed at the Cumberland County #Maine jail a day after Sheriff Kevin Joyce blasted immigration agents for arresting one of his guards. Read more for free from @bangordailynews.bsky.social. themainemonitor.org/ice-demanded...

Join reporter Sean Scott, TONIGHT from 6 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. for a panel discussion with #Maine leaders at faith-based organizations who serve low-income and other vulnerable community members. Register for the free event: www.facebook.com/share/1CEks8...

Evaristo Kalonji, an asylum seeker from Angola who has no criminal record, vanished. He turned up in one detention center, then another. @krstnimg.bsky.social sits down with @newscentersmaine.bsky.social to discuss how this plays into the bigger picture of ICE's Catch of the Day operation in Maine.

Do you have questions about what’s happening in your town government? Interested in reporting but lack training? You could be a great candidate for our new fellowship, focused on Western and Downeast #Maine. Monitor Local's editor breaks down our career lab and how you can contribute to local news.

Some Washington County #Maine, towns, including Alexander and Talmadge, will see nominal #tax increases of less than $2K. Others — including Addison, Baileyville, Calais, Eastport, Lubec, Milbridge and Steuben — will face increases exceeding $100K.

Months into an organized campaign against prices and policies at #Hannaford, many people in #Maine who shop at the store said they were unaware of a public push to bring down the grocer’s prices. Read more for free at the link 👇 themainemonitor.org/aggressive-c...

A federal #immigration enforcement surge appears to have ended in #Maine, but the legal response to agents’ tactics may just be beginning. Read more from @krstnimg.bsky.socialand Sean Scott for free below 👇

An underpass installed beneath a busy stretch of road in Eliot, #Maine, a few years ago has led to “a substantial reduction in turtle mortalities,” according to a state biologist. themainemonitor.org/turtle-tunne...

Wabanaki Public Health and Wellness, for the first time, has trained about 30 #doulas to help families leading up to and during birth, as other #birthing services across #Maine have ceased. Read more for free below 👇

A bell-to-bell #cellphone ban has quickly gone from a fringe issue to one with strong support in the Maine Legislature. Read more for free on how this will affect cellphone use in #Maine schools at the link 👇 themainemonitor.org/mills-school...

Last May, Houlton Regional Hospital became the 11th in #Maine to shut down its #birthing unit, part of a growing crisis that has left half of Maine’s #hospitals without obstetric services. Emily Hedegard sat down with @newscentersmaine.bsky.social to discuss the impact of the closure on the region.

Sen. Susan Collins said Thursday that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem told her large-scale #ICE operations in #Maine have ended and there are currently no planned operations for the future. Read more from our D.C. correspondent, in partnership with @notus.com, for free below 👇

Nine faith leaders were arrested during a pray-in at Sen. Susan Collins' Portland, #Maine, office on Tuesday after asking that she push the federal government to end #ICE operations in Maine. Read more from our partners @notus.com and reporter Sean Scott for free below 👇

Evaristo Kalonji, an #asylumseeker from Angola who has no criminal record, vanished from South Portland, #Maine. He turned up in one detention center, then another. Read more from @krstnimg.bsky.social for free below 👇 themainemonitor.org/missing-cong...

Join Maine Monitor reporter Sean Scott for a discussion with #Maine leaders at faith-based organizations that serve low-income and other community members, including by providing housing, food assistance and addiction recovery services. Register for the free event: www.facebook.com/share/17x4uP...

One observer said #ICE agents approached an older woman in South Portland, #Maine, driving a Volkswagen, who had gotten closest to the officers, spoke with her, and then fired projectiles at her.

We want to hear from you if you have witnessed federal agents detain someone in #Maine, if you know someone who is in #ICE custody, or if you have faced repercussions for observing. If you’d prefer, you can do so via email or Signal. Click for more information 👇 themainemonitor.org/help-us-repo...

#Maine gubernatorial candidate Jonathan Bush called on the rest of the field to join him in condemning the government’s handling and explanation of #AlexPretti's death. Click to read more for free below 👇

Six #Maine towns and the Passamaquoddy Nation have declined to prepay their portion of the county’s #debt, while several others are set to meet this week as the county approaches its payment deadline. Read more on this and more from our Monitor Local #news initiative at the link 👇

Have questions about what’s happening in your town government? Interested in reporting but lack training? We are joining Journalism New England’s Career Lab for a 3-month program that will provide hands-on training for aspiring community reporting fellows to contribute to our reporting. Apply now 👇

When Houlton Regional Hospital in #Maine announced the closure of its #maternity unit, the hospital said it would remain prepared to take emergency #births. But when Dr. Rose Fuchs’ team called for help with her patient’s emergency, the initial answer was no. themainemonitor.org/her-labor-tu...

We want to hear from you if you've seen federal agents detain someone in #Maine, if you know someone who is in #ICE custody, or if you have faced repercussions for observing their activities. If you prefer to contact a specific reporter or editor, you can via email or Signal. Click to learn more 👇

Reporter Rose Lundy sat down with @newscentersmaine.bsky.social's Brian Yocono to discuss what she heard from witnesses who have seen #ICE activity in #Maine and families of loved ones who have been detained. Read her full reports for free on our website: themainemonitor.org

Democratic candidates in #Maine came out strongly against Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s new surge in the state, bringing deportation efforts to the forefront in two of this year’s most pivotal races. Read more for free from our D.C. correspondent, in partnership with @notus.com below 👇

Deep freezes in 2023 and 2024 provided relief for some of the most preyed-upon #tree species in #Maine. Will that continue in 2026? Read more from Emmett Gartner at the link below. themainemonitor.org/forest-pests...

Moose River, which is north of Jackman, #Maine, and lies closer to Quebec City than Portland, may be the state's most isolated frontier town. Read more for free from Daniel O'Connor at the link 👇 themainemonitor.org/people-enjoy...

UPDATE: Reporter Rose Lundy spoke with a bystander who witnessed the #detainment of Juan Sebastian Carvajal-Munoz, a civil engineer from Colombia in Portland #Maine, earlier today. The bystander took the videos below of the scene. Read the full report for free 👇 themainemonitor.org/masked-agent...

Reporter Rose Lundy reports on how a civil engineer in Portland, #Maine, was detained by #agents, leaving his car running in the street with a smashed window. Read more from her and reporter @joshkeefe.bsky.social's report below themainemonitor.org/masked-agent...

Masked agents in police vests #detained Juan Sebastian Carvajal-Munoz, a civil engineer from Colombia employed by an engineering consulting company, in Portland Thursday. Carvajal-Munoz earned a master’s degree from the University of #Maine, and colleagues said he was in the country on a work visa.

Editor Kate Cough has returned from maternity leave and Interim Deputy Editor Erin Rhoda will stay on as a deputy editor alongside Stephanie McFeeters. In addition, MCPIR's Executive Director announced that Patrick Sweeney has joined the organization as its first Director of Finance and Operations.

Did you know that we offer all our #news for free? Not only that, we have curated #newsletters that bring the latest headlines right to your inbox. And to get our Monitor Local coverage, sign up for our Downeast and western #Maine newsletter. Sign up now: themainemonitor.org/newsletters/

Thank you to everyone who joined us along with Twice Sold Tales for Coffee Hour with the Monitor Local in Farmington, #Maine, yesterday! We appreciate the people who came out to share a cup of coffee and talk about local news! Check back for our next coffee hour soon.

Voters approved a #redflaglaw in #Maine last November and it's set to take effect in February, offering a new way to temporarily remove #guns from those who appear to be suicidal or pose harm. @emilykbader.bsky.social sits down with @newscentersmaine.bsky.social to discuss how it will work.

#Maine Rep. Chellie Pingree is frustrated that the Department of Homeland Security is ignoring her requests for more information on its deportation surge in the state. Read more from our D.C. correspondent, in partnership with @notus.com, for free below 👇

On Tuesday, officials representing the second-largest city in #Maine chose a youth counselor to serve on the council instead, after a long and heated public meeting where tensions about #ICE filtered into the debate. Read more from @joshkeefe.bsky.social for free below 👇

Reporter Rose Lundy spoke with the daughter of Micheline Ntumba, who was #detained in the parking lot of her Portland #Maine apartment building after she had dropped off another child at school. Read Rose's full story for free below 👇 themainemonitor.org/mother-of-4-...

Agents wearing police tactical vests detained Micheline Ntumba, a Portland #Maine resident, before 8:30 a.m. Wednesday after Ntumba dropped off one of her four children at Portland High School, according to her 20-year-old daughter. Read more for free at the link 👇

In this edition of our Radio Hour, our deputy editor speaks with the executive director of the Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting and the editor of Monitor Local about the new reporting initiative in western and Downeast #Maine, discussing how it started and what coverage looks like so far.

Communities in #Maine are on edge as rumors grow about #ICE enforcement in Lewiston and Portland. Our reporters are making calls and finding out what they can, and will be monitoring the situation. If you see or hear of anything you think we should know, get in touch: themainemonitor.org/contact-us/

For last week's Climate Monitor newsletter, I wrote for @themainemonitor.org about the first 44 projects funded with Maine's trail bond, and how the work relates to climate change. themainemonitor.org/building-tra...

Washington County, #Maine commissioners voted last Wednesday against supporting a #bill set for a public hearing this week that would allow government entities — like Washington County — to declare #bankruptcy. themainemonitor.org/washington-c...

Maine’s new #redflag law, which was approved by voters in November, is set to take effect next month, offering a new way to temporarily remove #guns from people who appear to be suicidal or pose a risk of harm to others. Read more from @emilykbader.bsky.social for free 👇

We are excited to announce that health reporter, Rose Lundy, is one of eight women chosen for the @womenjournos.bsky.social’s 2026 JAWS Health Journalism Fellowship. The goal is to train more #journalists in #health reporting and help diversify the pool for better and more inclusive reporting.

Communities in #Maine are on edge this weekend as rumors grow about possible #ICE enforcement. Our reporters are making calls and finding out what they can, and will be monitoring the situation. If you see or hear of anything you think we should know, get in touch: themainemonitor.org/contact-us/

#Maine saw more than 100 applicants for the first round of the Maine Trails Program, and awarded funds to 44 projects that will help communities better prepare trails for #storms, protect against #erosion, increase accessibility and more. Read more for free below 👇

One in five long-term nursing home residents in #Maine are still receiving #antipsychotic meds, despite statewide efforts to reduce reliance on them, which can come with health risks for older adults. Read more on how this affects seniors at the link👇 themainemonitor.org/antipsychoti...