Labor organization asks judge to force LePage to release federal funds
Good morning from Augusta, where Coastal Counties Workforce is escalating its legal battle against Gov. Paul LePage over unspent job training funds.
The suit has been building since last month. The Brunswick-based organization, which first sued the governor and Labor Commissioner John Butera in October, has filed for an injunction in U.S. District Court to force the administration to release federal 2017 Workforce Innovation & Opportunity Act funds that have been left unspent. The money is meant to help laid-off workers, low-income adults and struggling young adults find work. LePage told the federal government in September that Maine would no longer participate in the program, which sends approximately $9 million a year to Maine.
On Friday, the organization filed its latest motion in the case. It argues that LePage and Butera are bound by federal law to use the funds within a month of receiving them, that the organization would suffer “irreparable harm” if the funds are not provided and that its suit is in the public interest.
Also on Friday, the LePage administration moved for the case to be dismissed. The arguments in favor of dismissal were that Coastal Counties does not have a cause of action against the government because there are no laws guaranteeing the organization the funding, and that the funds would be released upon the issuance of a contract.
Read more: http://stateandcapitol.bangordailynews.com/2017/11/20/labor-organization-asks-judge-to-force-lepage-to-release-federal-funds/