WASHINGTON, D.C. – In response to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) proposals today that would update nutrition labeling, U.S. Senator King (I-Maine) encouraged the agency to examine menu-labeling requirements for small business and grocers: “Updating labeling requirements for food packages and other consumer products is long overdue. The FDA’s proposal today is a welcome step in the effort to modernize labels, and I look forward to reviewing the details,”... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King announced today that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) will award $32.8 million in federal funding for the mitigation of the New England Multispecies Groundfish Fishery disaster declared by the Secretary of Commerce and that the 25-percent state match requirement will be waived, as Senators King and Collins had requested in a letter earlier this month. The funding will help assist struggling fishermen across New England,... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Maine’s Congressional delegation sent a letter today to FEMA Acting Regional Administrator Paul Ford in support of the State’s request for federal disaster assistance funding for all of Maine’s counties and municipalities in the wake of the major ice storm that hit the state beginning on December 21, 2013. In the letter, signed by Senators Susan Collins and Angus King and Representatives Mike Michaud and Chellie Pingree, the delegation cites the more... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – As part of a time-honored Senate tradition, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) today delivered President George Washington’s 1796 Farewell Address on the Senate floor. “Washington was the execution of the vision of the Constitution. When he took office, there was no United States. There was an idea, there was a vision, there was a concept, but how it was actually put into practice was so much in the consequences of Washington’s decisions on a day-to-day... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King, a member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and Senate Armed Services Committee, released the following statement after returning from a trip to the Middle East with Senator Tim Kaine, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Near Eastern and Central and South Asian Affairs, and member of the Senate Armed Services Committee. “First, it was extraordinarily valuable to meet with dozens of Americans who are serving... Continue Reading »
BEIRUT, LEBANON – U.S. Senators Tim Kaine, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Near Eastern and Central and South Asian Affairs, and member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and Angus King, a member of the Senate Armed Services and Intelligence Committees, made a two-day visit to Lebanon as part of their wider trip to the region. The Senators had substantive discussions with President Michel Sleiman, Prime Minister Tammam Salam, Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF)... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) released a letter to Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Commissioner John Koskinen urging the IRS to end to the increasing prevalence of “dark money” in American politics by limiting the vast role that tax-exempt nonprofit organizations are able to play in influencing elections through large-scale, anonymous donations. According to current IRS rule, a 501(c)(4) tax-exempt organization can participate in political activity... Continue Reading »
RAMALLAH and JERUSALEM – Today U.S. Senators Tim Kaine, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Near Eastern and Central and South Asian Affairs, and member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and Angus King, a member of the Senate Armed Services and Intelligence Committees had substantive discussions with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah and Palestinian Authority chief negotiator Saeb Erekat. They also met with a group of... Continue Reading »
JERUSALEM, ISRAEL – Today U.S. Senators Tim Kaine, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Near Eastern and Central and South Asian Affairs, and member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and Angus King, a member of the Senate Armed Services and Intelligence Committees, visited an Iron Dome site near the Gaza border, as well as had substantive discussions with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon. During the... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – As part of his ongoing effort to keep the people of Maine up to date with his work in Washington, U.S. Senator Angus King sat down to discuss this week’s events in the nation’s capital. In his weekly address Senator King discussed: A bill to suspend the nation’s debt ceiling until March of 2015, which successfully passed both chambers of Congress this week. A bill to fully restore cost-of-living adjustments (COLA) for military retirees under the age... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Tim Kaine, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Near Eastern and Central and South Asian Affairs, and member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and Angus King, a member of the Senate Armed Services and Intelligence Committees, will depart today for a week-long trip to the Middle East. Senators Kaine and King will visit Israel and the West Bank. Senator Kaine will also visit Egypt. In Israel, Kaine and King will visit an Iron... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King and Representative Mike Michaud issued the following statement today after a meeting in the U.S. Capitol with representatives from Cate Street and Great Northern Paper: “We had a productive meeting with the leadership of Cate Street and Great Northern Paper in which they stated that they have a plan for restarting the mill in East Millinocket with the hope of returning some workers by May 1st. We look forward to reviewing... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) released the following statement today after voting for legislation that would repeal the reduction in the cost-of-living adjustment for military retirees under the age of 62: “I have long said that the men and women who have served in our military and risked their lives for our country should not have to bear the financial burden of efforts to reduce the national debt and deficit. When I voted for the bipartisan budget agreement... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) released the following statement today after voting to suspend the nation’s debt ceiling through March 15, 2015: “Congress had for far too long gambled with the financial stability of the economy and with markets across the world by threatening to default on debt already incurred by our nation. Almost everyone agrees that we should continue to work to shrink our federal debt and deficit in a responsible way, but using the... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King announced today that he has hired Kathleen Connery Dawe to serve as Director of Communications in his Washington, D.C. office. “I am excited to welcome Kathleen to my team,” Senator King said. “She is an experienced communicator who brings the kind of knowledge and communications experience that will well-serve the people of Maine.” “At a time when Washington seems paralyzed by partisanship,... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King today announced that the Town of Buxton Fire - Rescue Department will receive a federal grant totaling $441,460 from the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) program. This competitive funding will enable the department to hire and train new firefighters. SAFER grants are administered by the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency. “Maine fire departments play an invaluable role safeguarding our... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Susan Collins, a senior member of the Senate Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, and Angus King, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, today announced that Bath Iron Works (BIW) has been awarded a preliminary design contract for the U.S. Coast Guard’s Offshore Patrol Cutter (OPC) worth more than $21 million. BIW is now one of three shipyards in contention for the final contract. “With its skilled workforce and an outstanding record... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) and Angus King (I-Maine) announced today that they have introduced legislation to protect jobs, reduce regulatory burdens, and provide greater certainty for health information technologies (health IT). The Preventing Regulatory Overreach To Enhance Care Technology (PROTECT) Act of 2014 offers a more specific regulatory framework for health IT that promotes innovation and job creation while protecting patient safety. “Not only is... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King, along with a bipartisan group of their colleagues, today wrote a letter to President Barack Obama urging him to use all available tools to address propane shortages and price spikes that have impacted several thousand people in Maine and many more across the country. A confluence of events, including a greater than normal use of propane in the Midwest, particularly harsh winter temperatures, and infrastructure constraints, has... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King today announced that the Department of Agriculture has awarded a total of $1,093,138 in grant funding to two Maine school districts and a rural health care provider through the Distance Learning and Telemedicine Loan and Grant program. The award amounts and recipients are as follows: Maine School Administrative District #37 – including the towns of Addison, Columbia, Columbia Falls, Millbridge, Harrington, and Cherryfield... Continue Reading »
