The Mills administration said this week that the officers who patrol the State House complex will soon be managed by the Maine State Police as part of an effort to enhance efficiency and coordination amid growing security demands.

But the change apparently caught Capitol officers by surprise, coming just weeks after their bargaining unit wrapped up negotiations over a new contract.

In an email first reported by the Bangor Daily News , Maine Department of Public Safety Commissioner Michael Sauschuck informed Capitol Police officers that the unit will gradually be absorbed by the much-larger Maine State Police. According to the paper, Sauschuck wrote that the shift will improve operations at a time when "threats against our legislators and properties continue to grow while the general at

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