WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator Angus King (I-Maine) released the following statement in response to the Congressional Budget Office’s preliminary score of the Graham-Cassidy healthcare bill: “Today’s CBO report on the previous version of Graham-Cassidy does nothing to alleviate concerns raised in outside studies that the plan will hurt Maine people. The latest version – which the CBO will not score before the September 30th deadline – is merely an attempt to... Continue Reading »
BRUNSWICK, ME – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) today wrote to the Unicode Consortium requesting it include a new lobster emoji in the 2018 release of its standard character set. The new emoji would be available for use on social media platforms and smartphones. Currently, emoji exist for crabs, shrimp, fish, and other marine animals, but not lobsters. A lobster emoji, however, is currently short-listed to be added in, subject to approval by the Consortium’s Technical Committee at... Continue Reading »
JACKMAN, ME – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) today met with local business leaders, town officials, health professionals and community members in Jackman to hear their concerns about the health care crisis facing the Jackman community. Senator King toured the Jackman Community Health Center, where Penobscot Community Health Care (PCHC) now operates as the town’s sole emergency medicine provider, and hosted a roundtable discussion on the challenges related to the decreased... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) today joined a bipartisan group of his colleagues to announce the introduction of the Protecting Jessie Grubb’s Legacy Act (Legacy Act), legislation to help ensure that medical professionals have full knowledge of their patients’ previous opioid addiction if the patient gives consent. This will improve health care coordination and reduce the risk of overdose death for people with substance use disorders by allowing their... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King today joined a bipartisan group of Senators to call for immediate action to extend critical funding for community health centers before funding runs out at the end of this month. In a letter to the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, Collins, King and 68 other Senators expressed their strong support for community health centers, which provide access to cost-effective primary and preventive care for... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Yesterday, U.S. Senators King (I-Maine), Ernst (R-Iowa), Donnelly (D-Ind.) and Collins (R-Maine) introduced bipartisan legislation that would increase funding to successful U.S. Department of Agriculture export promotion programs and help U.S. farmers maintain an edge in the increasingly competitive global marketplace. The bill, the Cultivating Revitalization by Expanding American Agricultural Trade and Exports (CREAATE) Act, aims to revitalize the USDA’s export... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Yesterday, U.S. Senators King (I-Maine), Ernst (R-Iowa), Donnelly (D-Ind.) and Collins (R-Maine) introduced bipartisan legislation that would increase funding to successful U.S. Department of Agriculture export promotion programs and help U.S. farmers maintain an edge in the increasingly competitive global marketplace. The bill, theCultivating Revitalization by Expanding American Agricultural Trade and Exports (CREAATE) Act, aims to revitalize the USDA’s... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) today spoke on the floor of the U.S. Senate in response to yet another iteration of a health care proposal to repeal the Affordable Care Act. “Mr. President, over the past several weeks there have been real discussions, bipartisan discussions about fixing the problems in the affordable care act, about controlling the growth of premiums, about being sure that there is some... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King today announced that the U.S. Senate passed the 2018 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) last night with key victories for Maine. The bill, passed by the Senate with a vote of 89-8, now heads to conference committee to reconcile differences with the NDAA passed by the House of Representatives. “The men and women in our Armed Forces and in defense related industries... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Angus King (I-Maine) and Jim Risch (R-Idaho) today announced that the Western Governors’ Association, a bipartisan group of 19 governors from Western states and 3 governors from Western U.S. territories, has endorsed the Securing Energy Infrastructure Act. The bipartisan legislation, introduced by the Senators earlier this year, seeks to protect America’s electric grid from cyber-attacks. The WGA expressed their support in a letter earlier this... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Susan Collins, the Chairman of the Senate Aging Committee, and Angus King announced today that the Department of Health and Human Services’ Administration on Aging has awarded MaineHealth a grant of $957,096 to provide additional training to Alzheimer’s caregivers and expand the reach of dementia-capable health care services. “There are approximately 27,000 people in Maine living with Alzheimer’s disease today, and that number will... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King today announced his opposition to a proposed amendment in the Fiscal Year 2018 National Defense Authorization Act that would create a revised Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) process beginning in 2021. “With heightened tensions around the world, our country’s national security must be a top priority, and a base closure round at this time is not in our national security interests. As we saw with the decisions to close Brunswick Naval... Continue Reading »
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King joined a bipartisan group of 36 U.S. Senators in asking the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC), the Department of Justice (DOJ), and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to investigate the sale of nearly $2 million in Equifax securities held by high-level Equifax executives shortly after the company learned of a massive cybersecurity breach. Equifax, a major consumer credit reporting agency, recently disclosed that... Continue Reading »
PORTLAND, ME – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) released the following statement today in recognition of the 16th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks: “Sixteen years ago today, terror struck at the heart of America. On this day of reflection and remembrance, we join together to remember those we lost as we pay tribute to their memories by recommitting ourselves to the very values that were attacked that day. Hope, love and compassion rose above the... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King announced that the Institute of Museum and Library Services has awarded Bates College a total of $249,760 through its National Leadership Grants for Libraries program. This award will support Bates’ expansion of the Diverse Book Finder, a repository for children’s books, and further the development of its analysis and search engine capabilities to identify racial representation gaps in children’s... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) announced today that the U.S. Senate has unanimously passed the Strengthening Mosquito Abatement for Safety and Health (SMASH) Act, bipartisan legislation Senator King introduced that would help give states and localities the tools they need to fight back against mosquitos and the viruses they carry. The bill will now be sent to the House of Representatives for its consideration. “Insect-borne diseases aren’t a one-year... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The offices of Maine’s Congressional Delegation will host a Military Academy Seminar in cooperation with the Maine Maritime Academy in Portland on Tuesday, September 12, 2017 at the Clarion Hotel, 1230 Congress Street, from 6 – 8:30 PM. Registration is from 5:30 – 6 PM. Students, parents and guidance counselors who are interested in the application process for the United States Military, Naval, Air Force, Merchant Marine and Coast Guard Academies, state... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King announced today that the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) has awarded a Small Business Innovation Research Grant totaling $769,681 to Novo Biosciences, Inc. in Bar Harbor. The grant will support research on developing treatment methods for healing damaged heart tissue caused by heart attacks. “Heart disease is the number one cause of death in America and affects thousands of Mainers every year. It is... Continue Reading »
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King announced today that the Maine Coalition Against Sexual Assault (MECASA) and the Maine Coalition to End Domestic Violence (MCEDV) will receive $147,693 and $91,443, respectively, through the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) State Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence Coalitions Program. “Survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence should have access to every resource available to ensure their safety,” said... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) released the following statement on the Administration’s announcement on Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA): "Those protected under DACA came here as children with their parents – at no fault of their own – and have been here for years and years. In that time, they’ve worked to provide for their families, pay taxes, and contribute to the American economy. While I am... Continue Reading »
