House Republicans remain concerned that excessive spending, combined with a lack of true priorities, will result in hardship and tax increases down the road. Democrats created a state budget that is 11 percent higher than the last one.

Gracie Talbot of Piscataquis Community High School came in third in the 220-pound division. In the consolation finals Talbot pinned Tayanne Aquino of Mountain Valley High School of Rumford at the 3:45 mark.

We are in the middle of the misinformation age. The latest is the recent effort by a people’s veto group Reject Big Pharma to use the ploy of claiming that Big Pharma is behind the new law requiring vaccinations. I am writing to set the record straight. I have many beefs with Big Pharma, but they are not driving the law to require vaccination of children. Science is.

Pine Tree Hospice brings you Trivia Night at 7 p.m. on Saturday, March 14 at The Commons at Central Hall.

The Maine attorney general’s office has asked a federal judge to dismiss an ex-police officer’s lawsuit against the Penobscot County district attorney on the same grounds that an appeals court threw out a similar lawsuit in 1992 against the man who was then the county’s top prosecutor. 

Halle Pelletier scored seven of her game-high 22 points to help fuel a fourth-quarter surge on Feb. 20 as top-seeded Greenville earned its second straight trip to the Class D South girls basketball championship with a 52-33 semifinal win over No. 4 Seacoast Christian Academy of South Berwick at the Augusta Civic Center.

The Maine Association of Basketball Coaches recently announced that three players from the region have been chosen for the 2020 Maine McDonald’s Senior All-Star Games on Saturday, March 7 at Newman Gymnasium on the campus of Husson University.

Upcoming events around the region.

The American Red Cross of Maine and the Dexter Fire Department  are teaming up to make town residents safer by installing free smoke alarms in their homes, helping them create escape plans and providing other fire safety tips.

The Wassebec Genealogy Chapter will be holding a meeting at 2 p.m. on Sunday, March 1 in the conference room at Mayo Regional Hospital. After the general meeting a program will be presented by Thompson Free Library Director Greta Schroeder on conducting oral interviews.