Randy Billings

Portland Press Herald

Randy Billings is a government watchdog and political reporter who has been covering Portland City Hall for the Press Herald since 2012. His beat touches on a wide range of topics, including immigration, homelessness, education, tourism, real estate development and the economy in Maine’s largest city. He has been a Portland-based journalist since 2005. A life-long Mainer who loves the outdoors, Randy is also a bassist who brews his own beer at his North Yarmouth home, where he lives with his wife and two children.

Latest

Published
March 6, 2023

Fake school threats lead to calls for harsher penalties

Ten schools in Maine were swatted on Nov. 15, leading to scores of students barricading themselves in their classrooms, armed police officers roaming school hallways looking for nonexistent shooters, and parents wondering if they would see their children again.
Published
March 5, 2023

Republicans hope 20-year-old spending cap helps cut Mills’ budget

If left unamended, a safety valve tied to Maine’s commitment to fund 55% of public education could chop almost half of Gov. Janet Mills’ $900 million proposal.
Published
March 1, 2023

Higher fines for violating hands-free driving law attract fans, key detractors

Though a state police lieutenant says more needs to be known about the existing law’s effectiveness, supporters of increasing the fine to $500 say the current $50 penalty for handling a cellphone while driving fails as a deterrent.
Published
February 28, 2023

Talbot Ross among Black leaders honored at White House ceremony

Maine House Speaker Rachel Talbot Ross, D-Portland, was one of five Black house speakers honored at the event.
Published
February 27, 2023

Increased pay has bolstered ranks of attorneys representing indigent clients

But the Maine Commission on Indigent Legal Services says that the pay increase needs to be extended beyond this summer and that more needs to be done to stabilize the program and meet the state’s constitutional obligations.
Published
February 26, 2023

Right to housing among a flood of proposed state constitutional amendments

Rep. Benjamin Collings, D-Portland, hopes it would lead to new policies requiring more housing assistance and resources.
Published
February 25, 2023

Top job, low pay: No governor makes less than Maine’s

There’s a new bipartisan push to raise the $70,000 salary for the state’s chief executive. But plenty of previous attempts have failed.
Published
February 23, 2023

Bill seeks to crack down on vehicles covered in snow, ice

The bill would give drivers 48 hours to clear snow and ice from their vehicles, but it faces opposition from commercial truckers.
Published
February 21, 2023

Sen. Angus King caught up in ‘Twitter Files’ controversy

Records released by Twitter CEO Elon Musk show that in 2018 Sen. Angus King flagged over 350 ‘suspicious’ social media accounts, including those that mentioned his Republican opponent, Eric Brakey.
Published
February 17, 2023

Brewer lawmaker revives effort to ban child marriages in Maine

The legislation by Rep. Kevin O’Connell is part of a broader push to eliminate child marriage in the United States, and elsewhere, to prevent the exploitation of minors, especially girls.