WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Access to Community Care for Veterans Act of 2015, legislation co-sponsored by U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King, passed the United States Senate today by unanimous consent. This legislation would require the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to expand eligibility of the Choice Program to cover veterans who reside more than 40 miles driving distance from the closest VA facility that offers the specific care they need. The bill must now be considered... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King announced today that the U.S. Department of Education has selected the University of Maine to receive $250,000 in funding for The Mentoring and Advanced Preparation for Maine’s Early Intervention Scholars (MAPME) program. This program will help Maine’s increase the number of highly qualified personnel prepared to meet the needs of young children and their families, particularly those with a high need. “Early... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King wrote to the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Committee on Environment and Public Works, Senators James Inhofe (R-OK) and Barbara Boxer (D-CA), to request that the transportation reauthorization bill include investment in innovative technologies that will address “our rapidly aging transportation infrastructure.” In their letter, the Senators underscored that “in 2013, 11 percent, or 66,405, of our... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) announced that he has signed onto legislation that would direct the Secretary of the Treasury to convene a panel of citizens to recommend a woman whose likeness would be featured on a new twenty dollar bill. Senator King released the following statement: “From Maine’s own Margaret Chase Smith to Frances Perkins, Eleanor Roosevelt, Harriet Tubman and many, many others, the United States has a long and proud history of... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) released the following statement today in response to an announcement by the University of Southern Maine (USM) that Glenn Cummings will serve as the institution’s next President: “Glenn is the right person at the right time to lead the University of Southern Maine,” Senator King said. “From the Maine legislature, to the U.S. Department of Education, to the University of Maine at Augusta, Glenn has demonstrated an... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S Senator Angus King (I-Maine) announced that three Federally Qualified Health Centers in Aroostook County – Fish River Rural Health, Katahdin Valley Health Center, and Pines Health Services – will share a $100,000 grant from the Department of Health and Human Services. This federal funding will support the centers’ collaborative efforts to deliver joint services and lower healthcare costs in Northern Maine. “Rural health centers across... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) today sent a letter to the Co-Chairs of the Broadband Opportunity Council – Department of Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker and Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack – urging them to coordinate with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to analyze how various programs are promoting broadband deployment and adoption in rural America. The resulting report, due no later than August 20th, 2015, would examine the... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – During a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing today, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) underscored the importance of streamlining the overly-burdensome permitting process for hydroelectric dams, which is holding back states like Maine from taking greater advantage of hydropower. “Any permitting program that takes seven to ten years and costs $50 to $100 million isn’t a permitting program. It’s an annuity for lawyers and... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King today announced that the Department of Housing and Urban Development has awarded $124,797 in Capital Fund Emergency Safety and Security Program grant funding to the Fort Fairfield Housing Authority. The money will be used to purchase a security camera system, doors, locks, lighting, and fencing at Borderview Rehab & Living Center in Van Buren, Fields Lane in Fort Fairfield, and Hillcrest Estates in Fort Fairfield to improve... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King released the following statement welcoming OnProcess Technology, a supply chain logistics and supply chain optimization company, to Maine. The global company, which is based Massachusetts, will open a new logistics support center in Belfast that is expected to create approximately 250-300 new jobs. “We are delighted that OnProcess Technology has recognized the opportunity for growth here in Maine,” said... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King congratulated Thornton Academy of Saco for being recognized by the Department of Commerce for its long-standing efforts to promote international education and economic and cultural development by drawing students from around the world. “In today’s complex world, connecting with new people and new ideas has never been more important,” Senators Collins and King said. “Thornton Academy, with its... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Angus King and Susan Collins made public the text of a letter they sent, along with Senators Roy Blunt (R-Missouri), Heidi Heitkamp (D- N.D.), Thad Cochran (R-Miss.), and Claire McCaskill (D-Missouri), to the Department of Health and Human Services urging the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to delay new menu labeling requirements at supermarkets, grocery stores, and similar retail locations for at least one year. The bipartisan group... Continue Reading »
AUGUSTA, ME – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) today delivered the keynote address at Kennebec Valley Community College’s 45th Commencement Exercises held at the Augusta Civic Center. In his remarks, King congratulated the 427 graduating students for their hard work and offered advice as they embark on the next chapter of their lives. “The Kennebec Valley Community College graduating class of 2015 is proof positive that hard work really does pay off,” said Senator King.... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, announced today that the Committee has approved the Fiscal Year 2016 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) with a provision to improve the eligibility criteria of HUBZones located at former U.S. military installations closed through the so-called “Base Closure and Realignment,” or BRAC process. The bill also contains provisions pushed by Senator King to fully fund... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine), a member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, announced today that he has introduced two pieces of legislation that would encourage and safeguard the use of Maine’s natural resources to generate renewable electricity. The Working Forests for Clean Energy Act would ensure that emissions generated from sustainably-harvested biomass would be considered carbon neutral under the President’s proposed Clean Power... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – As the City of Portland pursues a bid to host a meeting of the Arctic Council in 2016, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine), a founding member of the Arctic Caucus, yesterday sent a letter to Secretary of State John Kerry strongly urging him to consider the city and underscoring the important role Maine will play in Arctic activities in the years to come. “As part of its responsibilities under the chairmanship, it is my understanding that the State Department will... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Nearly 8 million undergraduate students next year will see their student loan rates drop from 4.66 percent to 4.29 percent, saving borrowers millions of dollars in interest, according to senators who sponsored the Bipartisan Student Loan Certainty Act of 2013. U.S. Senators Angus King (I-Maine), Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), Richard Burr (R-N.C.), and Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) sponsored the legislation that tied student loans to market rates. It became law on August 9,... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King announced today that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will be awarding the state of Maine $355,930 in funding under the Clean Vessel Act grant program to promote clean water and recreational boating. The Maine Department of Environmental Protection plans to use the investment to install or upgrade ten pumpout stations and provide an operation and maintenance stipend to pumpout vessels and stationary... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) released the following statement today after voting against a procedural motion to advance legislation that would grant Trade Promotion Authority to the President: “Mainers know all-too-well the difficulty and hardship of competing on a playing field that’s tilted against them and have felt all-too-personally the sting of job losses resulting from lop-sided trade agreements,” Senator King said. “Giving the... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Angus King and Susan Collins, along with fifty-nine of their colleagues, yesterday sent a letter to Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Tom Wheeler calling for a modernization of rules intended to ensure that Americans in rural areas have access to affordable broadband services. Under current rules, Universal Service Fund (USF) support for broadband in rural areas is dependent on the outdated requirement that customers also sign up for... Continue Reading »
