WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) today joined Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and Jon Tester (D-Mont.) to reintroduce legislation that would overhaul the Department of Veterans Affairs’ broken appeals process. The process has not been updated since 1933, and more than 450,000 appeals are currently pending. Because of redundancies and inefficiencies in the current process, most veterans wait years for a decision on their appeals. By replacing the current... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – In response to an announcement today by Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) that the Democrats would filibuster the nomination of Judge Neil Gorsuch to the U.S. Supreme Court, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) issued the following statement: “The Minority Leader’s decision does not impact my approach to Judge Gorsuch’s nomination, which has always been to carefully review his record, follow his confirmation hearing closely, hear from Maine people,... Continue Reading »
Click HERE for b-roll of Senators Collins and King greeting Cape Elizabeth students Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King welcomed high school students from Cape Elizabeth to Washington, D.C., yesterday. The annual trip by the AP Government class allows the students to meet their Senators and Congressmen, attend congressional hearings, and tour the Capitol building. “We are delighted to welcome these students from Cape Elizabeth High School to our... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – In response to an announcement that NOAA will close the Northern Gulf of Maine (NGOM) Scallop Management Area tonight, U.S. Senator Angus King and Congresswoman Chellie Pingree released the following statements today: “The closing of the NGOM scallop management area will at least result in a temporary respite to the problems caused by the flaws in the current management plan, but it also highlights the continued and critical need to develop a more vigorous strategy... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Angus King (I-Maine) and John Cornyn (R-Texas) today introduced the Delivering Elderly Lunches and Increasing Volunteer Engagement and Reimbursements (DELIVER) Act of 2017, legislation that would promote volunteerism within meal delivery programs and help provide meals to more seniors across America. “In a rural state like Maine, with an aging population, the demand for home-delivered... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King announced today that the Maine Educational Center For the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (MECDHH) will receive $143,825 in funding through the Health Resources and Services Administration’s Universal Newborn Hearing Screening and Intervention Program. The funding will support MECDHH’s Early Childhood & Family Services program. “Early detection and intervention of hearing loss in infants can prevent delays in... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King and Congresswoman Chellie Pingree have sent a letter to a regional NOAA official requesting additional information on measures being taken by the agency to ensure the future sustainability of the Gulf of Maine sea scallop fishery. The letter comes in the wake of problems that the area’s management plan faces in accounting for scallop landings by fishermen with different types of permits. Additionally, the letter follows the Fishermen’s... Continue Reading »
BRUNSWICK, ME – As rural communities across Maine continue to confront economic challenges created in part by unfair trade deals, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) today sent a letter to President Trump outlining several trade reforms that he hopes the President will prioritize to support Maine industries and interests. In his letter, Senator King outlined three priorities that could bolster ongoing efforts to assist trade-sensitive industries and their workers in Maine, including: 1)... Continue Reading »
BRUNSWICK, ME – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) today convened a discussion at People Plus in Brunswick to highlight how the proposed bill to replace the Affordable Care Act would hurt older, middle class Maine people by sharply driving up the amount of money they would have to pay for their healthcare coverage. Senator King’s discussion today brought together officials from People Plus, an organization that supports Maine people as they age, AARP Maine, Consumers for Affordable... Continue Reading »
BRUNSWICK, ME – In response to the release of the President’s budget blueprint for Fiscal Year 2018, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) released the following statement today: “I recognize and agree with the need to reduce federal spending as part of a balanced effort to tackle the debt and deficit, but I have a hard time seeing how eliminating heating assistance, cutting medical research, and ending economic development funding do little more than harm people, families, and... Continue Reading »
BRUNSWICK, ME – U.S. Senators Angus King (I-Maine) and Jim Risch (R-Idaho) announced today that they have introduced the Future Logging Careers Act, legislation that would level the playing field for the logging trade with other agricultural fields by allowing family members to learn about and get experience in the trade of logging from an earlier age so that they may carry on the family business. “Logging is more than a job in Maine. It’s an age-old tradition that’s... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Susan Collins (R-ME), Angus King (I-ME), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) led a bipartisan group of 10 Senators in writing to the Acting Secretary of the Navy, requesting that he delegate down the chain of command the authority to grant increased reimbursement rates for public shipyard workers’ long-term temporary duty (TDY) assignments. Currently, the authority to grant these increased reimbursements rests with an official on the... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Angus King (I-Maine), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), co-chairs of the Senate Broadband Caucus, have introduced bipartisan legislation to measure the economic impact of broadband on the U.S. economy. While the federal government measures the economic impact of many industries, it does not produce current, reliable statistics on the economic impact of broadband on the U.S. economy. Accurate, reliable data on the economic impact of... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – In conjunction with Sunshine Week, a national initiative meant to emphasize the importance of an open government, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) today reintroduced legislation to increase transparency in campaign contributions and help inform voters about who is funding the candidates on their ballot. The Real Time Transparency Act would require that all political contributions of $1,000 or more be filed with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) within 48... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Following a bipartisan push from U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King and U.S. Representatives Chellie Pingree and Bruce Poliquin, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced today that it plans to perform emergency maintenance dredging in the lower Kennebec River between Phippsburg and Bath, Maine. The Maine Delegation sent a letter last November calling on the Corps to dredge the river in response to concerns that the channel was below the authorized navigation... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King today sent a letter to Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Rick Perry formally inviting him to visit the University of Maine. The visit would allow Secretary Perry to survey the ongoing work the University is doing in conjunction with DOE and key partners in the public and private sectors. Secretary Perry had previously indicated his willingness to visit UMaine to Senator King during his confirmation hearing before the... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – In response to the Congressional Budget Office’s (CBO) score of the proposal to replace the Affordable Care Act, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) released the following statement: “We knew all along this was a bad bill. The CBO’s score confirms it. Fourteen million people will lose their health insurance next year under this proposal – and 24 million will lose it by 2026. Look... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – As more Americans are choosing to grow older in their own homes, U.S. Senators Angus King (I-Maine), Susan Collins (R-Maine), and Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) today introduced legislation that will help make independent living less burdensome. The Senior Home Modification Assistance Initiative Act would establish a process to better coordinate the many existing federal home modification programs and provide more consumer-friendly information on how those programs can benefit... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King today met with Lily Tedford of South Portland and Katie Waeldner of Yarmouth, Maine’s 2017 delegates to the 55th Annual United States Senate Youth Program (USSYP). Lily and Katie are among 102 other students from across the country who were selected to spend a week in Washington, D.C. to get an on-the-ground experience of the federal government and political process. “Lily and Katie are outstanding students who have... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) took to the Senate floor today to speak out against the recently released proposal to replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which he said will hurt Maine seniors, give tax breaks to the wealthy at the expense of middle class Mainers, and end up costing people across the state more money while delivering less. In his remarks, Senator King also called on the U.S. House of Representatives to put a halt to the repeal effort and, instead,... Continue Reading »
