AUGUSTA (AP) — Maine Gov. Paul LePage vetoed a bill on Monday designed to provide information about food packaging that contains the toxic chemical bisphenol-A.
The bill vetoed by the Republican governor would have required companies with $1 billion or more in gross annual sales to report to the state if they use chemicals like BPA in food packaging.
LePage said in his veto message that the bill directs the Department of Environmental Protection to do more work without additional resources, putting an unfunded mandate on the state. He said the federal government may already be exploring “reasonable and consistent measures to address these concerns.”
The veto comes after a group of Maine parents met at the Capitol on Monday urging the governor to sign the bill. Supporters of the bill say that parents have the right to know what products contain BPA so they can protect their children.
LePage vetoed 20 other bills Monday, including one that would have changed the state’s workers’ compensation laws, which LePage said would drive up costs and hurt Maine businesses.
LePage has vetoed nearly 80 bills this session, more than any other Maine governor in a single session recent history.
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