Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King announced that the Maine Department of Public Safety and local municipalities have been awarded $3,972,092 through the CARES Act for law enforcement to prevent, prepare for, and respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

“Maine’s state and local law enforcement make sacrifices every day to keep our communities safe,” said Senators Collins and King in a joint statement.  “As they continue to work on the front lines to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, this funding will help to ensure that these brave men and women have the resources they need to not only protect others, but to maintain their own health and safety.” 

This funding, allocated through the Department of Justice’s Coronavirus Emergency Supplemental Funding (CESF) Program, will support a broad range of activities, including overtime; equipment (including law enforcement and medical personal protective equipment); hiring; supplies (such as gloves, masks, sanitizer); training; travel expenses (particularly related to the distribution of resources to the most impacted areas); and addressing the medical needs of inmates in state, local, and tribal prisons, jails, and detention centers.   

More than $4.4 million has been allocated through the CESF to state and local law enforcement departments in Maine. Eligible municipalities have until Friday, May 29, 2020 to complete the application for funds. The list of eligible local departments in Maine can be found HERE.  

To date, the funding has been awarded as follows: 

• The State of Maine Department of Public Safety has been awarded $3,266,879.
• Lewiston has been awarded $85,314.
• Auburn has been awarded $38979.
• Portland has been awarded $219,535.
• South Portland has been awarded $45,597.
• Saco has been awarded $36,405.
• Biddeford has been awarded $96,714.
• Westbrook has been awarded $47,070.
• Kennebec County has been awarded $58,008.
• Augusta has been awarded $77,591.

 Last week, Senators Collins and King joined a bipartisan group of their colleagues in introducing a resolution recognizing the week of May 10 through May 16 as National Police Week, which passed unanimously.  This resolution honored police officers, sheriffs, and other law enforcement officers in Maine and throughout the country for serving our communities with valor, dignity, and integrity.