Baxter advocates seek additional $6 million

From: WMTW, ME - Feb 4, 2004

AUGUSTA (AP) -- The Legislature's Appropriations Committee Wednesday heard pleas for a renewal of funding to the Baxter Compensation Authority.

Advocates said payments to victims of abuse at Maine's school for the deaf had exhausted an initial allocation.

To date, compensation has been awarded to about one-third of 240 registered claimants, with total payments pegged at slightly more than $5 million.

A new bill seeks an additional $6 million. It comes at a time when state lawmakers and the Baldacci administration have just completed work of a $109 million budget-balancing package for the current fiscal year and are looking toward a similar task to cover a potential shortfall in fiscal 2005.

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