Maine crime victims must now receive notification of a defendant's escape from prison or jail under a new state law.

The law also applies in the case of individuals with mental illness who have escaped from an institution where they've been committed.

Victims must receive information about how the defendant escaped, from where the defendant escaped and when.

Currently, the Department of Corrections does notify victims of such escapes but no law requires such updates.

The bill became law April 15 without Republican Gov. Paul LePage's signature.

A leading Democrat hopes a new law will increase the number of highly skilled workers in Maine.

The law uses federal welfare funds to fund a new program to help low-income families pursue post-secondary degrees or credentials.

Individuals eligible for the program would have to have an income at or below 185 percent of the federal poverty level. The degree would also have to be in a field where the job outlook is at least average, as defined by the Department of Labor.

Democratic House Speaker Sara Gideon said the law will address Maine's pressing workforce shortage.

Maine schools hoping to boost security now get explicit priority for state loans.

The law says school security upgrades get high priority for consideration for loans through Maine's underfunded school renovation fund. Current law gives high priority for safety projects in general.

Democratic Sen. Rebecca Millett said the law's particularly important in light of the February shooting at a high school in Parkland, Florida.

The law becomes effective three months from the day lawmakers return to Augusta to consider LePage's vetoes.

Maine courts setting sentences for those convicted of murder will start considering if the victim had also been subjected to domestic violence.

A new law directs courts to weigh whether the victim was a family or household member who had also experienced domestic violence at the convicted person's hands.

Republican Gov. Paul LePage, himself a survivor of domestic abuse a child, signed Democratic Sen. Troy Jackson's bill into law this month.

The law will become effective three months from the day lawmakers return to Augusta to consider LePage's vetoes.

A judge has ordered Maine's secretary of state to reopen a probe into Republican U.S. Senate candidate Max Linn's petition to be on the ballot.

The judge told Secretary of State Matt Dunlap on Friday to accept new evidence from the campaign of Eric Brakey of Auburn, who is seeking the Republican nomination to run for U.S. Senate.

Both candidates are seeking to challenge incumbent independent U.S. Sen. Angus King. Democrat Zak Ringelstein has also entered the race.