AUGUSTA, Maine — The Maine House has sustained Gov. Paul LePage’s veto of a $20 million bond proposal earmarked for research and development, just hours after senators voted to override it.

The House vote was 88-53 in favor of overriding the veto, short of the two-thirds margin needed. Senators voted 29-6 earlier Thursday morning to override the veto.

Given the split vote between the chambers, the governor’s veto stands.

The research and development bond would have allowed the state to borrow $20 million that would be awarded to Maine businesses, nonprofit organizations, university research labs and others as competitive grants from the Maine Technology Institute.

The bond would have specifically targeted organizations working in the renewable energy, biotechnology, marine technology, forestry, agriculture and precision manufacturing sectors.

Lawmakers approved the R&D bond proposal and the four others that will appear on November’s ballot earlier this month during a brief, two-day session. All five bond packages passed the House and Senate with support from more than two-thirds of lawmakers.

LePage vetoed only the research and development proposal and allowed the four others to go to voters without his signature.

The Senate also voted to override the governor’s veto of a teacher certification bill. The bill aimed to encourage teachers to seek national certification. LePage used the veto to again criticize the state’s teachers union for endorsing a referendum to allow same-sex marriage rather than focusing on students.

Copy the Story Link