WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) this week joined a bipartisan group of his colleagues to write to the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies urging the Subcommittee to defund the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) reinstated expansion of civil asset forfeiture practices. In the letter, the Senators submit that expanding equitable sharing and adoptive seizures of property violate due process protections for American... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) yesterday joined a group of his colleagues to write to the Senate Finance Committee urging its leadership to protect tax incentives for American workers saving for retirement, and reject changes to the tax system that would harm existing incentives. The letter comes as the Senate majority is poised to release tax reform legislation this week. “Tax reform should be about strengthening the financial security of low-income and middle... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Angus King (I-Maine) joined Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Pat Roberts (R-KS), and Jerry Moran (R-KS) as part of a bipartisan group of thirty-nine senators in a letter urging the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to ensure its commitment to affordable and reliable broadband for consumers in hardest to reach communities across rural America. “A lack of resources to meet our [shared national broadband] goals is... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Senator Angus King (I-Maine) announced that he led a letter to President Donald Trump with Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and a group of 19 senators, calling on the President to support additional funding necessary to combat the opioid epidemic. “We appreciate your formal declaration that the opioid epidemic is a National Public Health Emergency. While this is a positive step forward, more action must be taken in order to... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Angus King (I-Maine) announced today the United States Department of Health and Human Services’ Administration for Children and Families has awarded the York County Community Action Corporation $1,308,121 for their Head Start and Early Head Start projects. “Head Start gives young children and families in Maine the tools they need to succeed,” said Senators Collins and King in a joint statement. “By... Continue Reading »
LEWISTON, ME – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) today continued his open enrollment information tour during a press conference at Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston to provide information to Maine citizens about the Affordable Care Act (ACA) open enrollment period, which began on November 1st and ends on December 15th. The press conference featured health care professionals and advocates, application assisters, and health care providers and... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King announced that the U.S Department of Agriculture (USDA) has awarded a $1,579,000 loan to Fox Islands Electric Cooperative through USDA Rural Development’s Electric Program to support the communities on Vinalhaven and North Haven. Fox Islands Electric Cooperative will use the funds to improve five miles of electric line and make other system improvements. Fox Islands Electric Cooperative is a utility cooperative that... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) joined 21 of his colleagues in a letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) calling on them to protect the Prevention and Public Health Fund (PPHF) and ensure it is not used to offset the costs of reauthorizing important bipartisan health initiatives. The U.S. House of Representatives has proposed cutting 75 percent of the Prevention and Public Health Fund as part of... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine), a member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, today questioned representatives from Facebook, Twitter, and Google about the Russian government’s use of social media platforms to interfere in the 2016 election and the committee’s ongoing investigation. During his questioning, Senator King underscored both the responsibility of social media companies to create clear guidelines to mitigate malign activity on their... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – In a statement submitted to the Congressional Record last week, U.S. Senator Angus King paid tribute to the life of Richard Dudman, a career journalist and dedicated community member in the Ellsworth region. Dudman is perhaps best known for his work Forty Days with the Enemy which chronicles the time he spent in the captivity of Viet Cong-aligned guerillas while on assignment for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch in Cambodia during the Vietnam War. Dudman passed away this... Continue Reading »
BRUNSWICK, ME – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) today released the October edition of his podcast, Inside Maine with Senator Angus King. In this special Halloween edition, Senator King speaks with Sally Lobkowicz, also known as the “Lady in the Red Cloak,” about her haunted history tours in Midcoast Maine and the way Maine’s history can help build community and drive tourism. Senator King then speaks to Tom and Andy Wilbur, the father-son duo behind Wilbur’s... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Angus King (I-Maine) today wrote to the U.S. Department of Interior (DOI) urging it to reconsider its proposed strategies to address the maintenance backlog in the National Park System. The letter follows an announcement this week from the DOI that it is proposing to increase fees at 17 highly-visited national parks – including Acadia National Park – during peak seasons to help offset the backlog. The proposal... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. –U.S. Senators Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Angus King (I-Maine) today announced that this week, they joined a group of bipartisan colleagues and sent a letter to the International Trade Commission (ITC) in support of a petition by the Coalition for the Fair Trade of Hardwood Plywood. In the letter, the Senators voice their support for an affirmative decision in an ongoing antidumping/countervailing duty (AD/CVD) case against Chinese hardwood plywood... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) released the following statement in response to the Trump Administration’s move to declare the opioid epidemic as a public health emergency. “Opioid abuse is a slow-moving hurricane that envelops the entire nation, and with each loss leaves another community and family wrecked in its wake. The President’s declaration of a national public health emergency is a strong indication that this administration is turning... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S Senator Angus King (I-Maine) today continued his push to establish a comprehensive strategy to combat the opioid and heroin epidemic that is devastating communities in Maine and across the country. Senator King joined a group of his colleagues to introduce the Combating the Opioid Epidemic Act, legislation that would invest $45 billion for prevention, detection, surveillance and treatment of opioids. Senator King today also wrote to President Trump urging him to... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) today announced that last night the Senate unanimously passed a resolution honoring the Sailors and Marines of the USS Forrestal, an aircraft carrier that caught fire following a series of ammunition explosions on July 29, 1967 while in the Gulf of Tonkin during the Vietnam War. The fire claimed the lives of 134 servicemembers and injured 161 others. Among the survivors was now-Senator John McCain (R-AZ). Senator King joined a bipartisan... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S Senator Angus King (I-Maine) today announced that the U.S Senate Select Committee on Intelligence voted 12-3 to approve the FISA Amendments Reauthorization Act of 2017, which will extend the sunset of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance (FISA) Act to December 31, 2025. Included in the reauthorization is an amendment Senator King introduced with Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) that addresses the procedures by which U.S. intelligence agencies query data incidentally... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) spoke at the Opportunity Alliance in South Portland to urge Maine people to prepare for the Affordable Care Act 2018 Open Enrollment Period, which begins November 1st. Senator King was joined by healthcare advocates, application assisters, healthcare providers and insurers to highlight the continued availability of ACA healthcare plans, as well as reinforce the shortened enrollment window to sign up for coverage. “Reports of... Continue Reading »
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King today announced that six organizations received grants totaling $196,124 from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Microentrepreneur Assistance Program. These funds will be used to help microenterprises start-up and grow in Androscoggin, Franklin, Oxford, Aroostook, Cumberland, and Penobscot Counties. “These investments will give invaluable assistance to Maine entrepreneurs by providing resources and... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) questioned officials from the Department of Defense, Department of Homeland Security and Federal Bureau of Investigation during a Senate Armed Services Committee focused on the nation’s cyber defenses. In his questioning, Senator King emphasized the importance of establishing a national doctrine for deterring adversaries in cyberspace. “I think [the need for a doctrine is] one of the key issues here,” said... Continue Reading »
