By Lauren McCauley | Editor
“That moment reminded all of us that the decisions and the role that government plays in our lives are not abstract.” - Ruben Torres of the Maine Immigrant Rights Coalition, on the slate of new anti-ICE laws taking effect less than two weeks after a Biddeford man was killed by federal agents.
Protesters gathered outside an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Scarborough, Maine on July 14, 2026, one day after an ICE officer killed a man in Biddeford. (Photo by Eesha Pendharkar/Maine Morning Star)
IMMIGRATION
By Emma Davis
As President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement tactics face renewed scrutiny after the fatal shooting of a man in Biddeford, new Maine laws take effect Wednesday that prevent local resources and agencies from being used to support mass deportation efforts.
JUSTICE
By Eesha Pendharkar
Maine’s indigent defense agency is already projecting a $4 million shortfall for the upcoming year, three months after Maine lawmakers allocated $13 million in one-time emergency funding to help the agency pay contracted private attorneys.
GOVERNMENT
By Emma Davis
These “affordability payments” were a cornerstone of the latest state budget, which officially takes effect Wednesday.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
DHS removes interview requirement for asylum seekers, possibly speeding removals | Ariana Figueroa, States Newsroom
Rise in US preteen suicide rate alarms mental health experts | Nada Hassanein, Stateline
Pro-data center industry group behind ad campaign in Oregon, six other states | Alex Baumhardt, Oregon Capital Chronicle
Washington says goodbye to South Carolina US Sen. Lindsey Graham | Ashley Murray, States Newsroom
Flap over noncitizens on state voter rolls seen as unlikely to boost SAVE America Act | David Lightman, States Newsroom
State lawmakers of both parties say it’s time to rethink America’s fragile childcare system | Kevin Hardy, Stateline
Haitian immigrants brace for end of protected status | Ariana Figueroa, States Newsroom
Courts issue conflicting rulings on Trump executive order restricting vote-by-mail | Jacob Fischler, States Newsroom
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