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 30, 2021

Restaurants’ complaints lead Portland to look at regulating food delivery services

Two city councilors are drafting a proposal to require third-party food delivery services to have a formal agreement with the restaurants before offering delivery.
Published
March 29, 2021

Portland public art gets a fresh look through social justice lens

The city’s public art collection will be reviewed to make sure it reflects cultural and racial diversity and social justice, a process known as decolonizing.
Published
March 23, 2021

New plan rekindles effort to create park on Portland’s harborfront

The city is receiving pro bono assistance from a team of community leaders who share the vision for public open space on the eastern waterfront.
Published
March 18, 2021

Universities to study racial disparity in arrests in Portland, South Portland

USM’s Cutler Institute and Northeastern’s Institute on Race and Justice will study data from each city to determine whether either police department’s law enforcement has been biased against people of color.
Published
February 24, 2021

Portland activists, tenants want to join lawsuit and defend rent control

People First Portland and the Foreside Tenant’s Union want to intervene in a lawsuit by the Southern Maine Landlord Association seeking to block implementation of a citizen initiative approved by voters in November.
Published
February 23, 2021

Advocates urge Portland to reconsider needle exchange policy

The city allows clients to receive only the same number of clean needles as the used needles they turn in, unless they qualify for an exemption.
Published
February 19, 2021

Portland committee recommends new department to promote racial equity

Mayor Kate Snyder and councilors appointed the commission following a series of Black Lives Matter demonstrations over the summer and will present an interim report to councilors on Monday.
Published
February 11, 2021

Advocates ask high court to force Portland to hold vote on clean elections

The Maine Supreme Judicial Court heard arguments Thursday, after a lower court dismissed the lawsuit brought by Fair Elections Portland, which wants to create the state’s first public financing option for municipal candidates.
Published
February 8, 2021

More renters seek help as relief program struggles to keep up

The state reports there are 2,000 rent relief applications filed before Dec. 31 still being processed, and renters say they are running out of savings.
Published
January 18, 2021

Portland’s needle exchange program stands alone in keeping strict rules

With overdose deaths on record pace during the pandemic, city officials are urged to take advantage of state waivers intended to ensure that drug users have access to clean needles and overdose reversal drugs.