New Hampshire
- Parents sue to block school tax-cap question from November ballot — Two Granite State parents, David Bates of Warner and Kelly Wieser of Campton, filed suit arguing the ballot question on local school property tax caps is misleading and unconstitutional, asking a Merrimack County judge to keep it off November’s ballot. (New Hampshire Bulletin — read more)
- Hyperscale data center eyed for Bow — Federal filings show Granite Shore Power, owner of the shuttered Merrimack Station coal plant, is exploring a 350-megawatt data center project in Bow; Gov. Kelly Ayotte has called for a statewide moratorium on such facilities. (New Hampshire Bulletin — read more)
- Residency questions raised for Democratic Senate candidate Harned — Mortgage documents are raising questions about how long state Senate candidate Rebecca Harned has actually lived in New Hampshire, despite her claim of residency dating to 2017. (NH Journal — read more)
Maine
- Maine’s high court sides with father in religious custody dispute — The Maine Supreme Judicial Court upheld restrictions barring a mother from taking her daughter to Calvary Chapel without the father’s consent; the case is headed to the U.S. Supreme Court. (The Maine Wire — read more)
- Portland diocese settled abuse claims only with a no-further-suit condition — Lawyers say the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland resolved roughly 100 older clergy-abuse claims, but only after requiring claimants to agree not to pursue further legal action. (Portland Press Herald — read more)
- Gorham clears way for quarry expansion — Town officials approved an expanded quarry operation despite continued objections from neighboring residents. (Portland Press Herald — read more)
Vermont
- Judge questions diocese’s discount sale of Rice Memorial High — A Vermont judge pushed back on the Catholic Diocese of Burlington’s plan to privately sell Rice Memorial High School to a group of supporters for $4.3 million — about 14% of a church-commissioned $30.5 million appraisal. (VTDigger — read more)
- Derby woman’s killer sentenced to 30 years — Family members remembered the slain Derby woman as “everyone’s friend” as the man convicted of her murder apologized in court and received a 30-year sentence. (VTDigger — read more)
- Lawmakers scrutinize prison policy on past-minimum-date holds — Corrections Commissioner Jon Murad defended a policy allowing the department to keep incarcerated individuals beyond their minimum release dates, a practice the ACLU says undercuts recent sentencing reforms. (Vermont Public — read more)
