Baldacci signs bills on records, prisons

AUGUSTA – Gov. John Baldacci is getting busier signing bills sent to him from the Legislature, including one to clarify Maine’s public records law and one dealing with the state’s prison industries.

Baldacci signed into law a bill that fine-tunes the law applying to reporters and others who request information from public agencies.

The new law will say a public agency can ask a person making a request to clarify what he wants. Supporters say this will make it easier for public agencies to fulfill the request.

The other bill, which Baldacci also signed Wednesday, starts a review of the state Corrections Department’s prison industries program, with an eye on developing new marketing strategies and more diversified product lines.