By Lauren McCauley | Editor
“We are not asking the state to undo generations of harm overnight. We are asking it not to take us backward. Our cultural survival is tied to the health of the Penobscot River, and there is too much at stake to keep adding to the harms it already carries.” - Penobscot Nation Tribal Chief Kirk Francis, on the Tribe’s opposition to expanding Juniper Ridge Landfill.
Trucks bring waste to Cell 16 at Juniper Ridge Landfill, a plot of land where trash is actively being landfilled. Just over half of Maine’s landfill waste ends up in Juniper Ridge, which is expected to reach capacity in 2028. (Photo by AnnMarie Hilton/ Maine Morning Star)
ENVIRONMENT
By Kaitlyn Budion
A Penobscot County Superior Court justice has backed the state’s finding that expanding Juniper Ridge Landfill is in the public interest, according to a release from the challengers, clearing the way for the project to move forward.
COMMENTARY
By Lauren McCauley
We approach our elections coverage by focusing on what voters want to hear from candidates, rather than trying to determine who’s ahead before the votes have been cast or counted.
IMMIGRATION
By Shaun Robinson, VT Digger
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement could hire more workers at its offices in Vermont as part of a $100 million plan to boost intelligence-gathering for the branch of the agency that carries out arrests and deportations, federal records show.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
USDA offering $8B in farmer relief payments | Cami Koons, Iowa Capital Dispatch
Trump’s DOJ steps up pressure on California over noncitizen voters 2 weeks from election | Jonathan Shorman, States Newsroom
How Nebraska helped turn 2026 into the year of the independent US Senate candidate | Jonathan Shorman, States Newsroom
Cheaper manufactured homes could be having a moment, if only states can catch up | Robbie Sequiera, Stateline
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