BRUNSWICK, ME – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) joined 23 of his colleagues in a letter urging Senate leadership to include critical workforce development and career and technical education (CTE) funding in the next coronavirus relief bill. In their letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, the senators echoed the concerns of 38 labor and education advocacy groups calling for immediate assistance from Congress, and requested a minimum workforce... Continue Reading »
BRUNSWICK, ME – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine), along with 22 of his Senate colleagues, urged the Department of Treasury to increase its efforts to make Economic Impact Payments available to the most vulnerable populations—including those without access to the internet who cannot file a tax return electronically. In a letter to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, King and his colleagues highlighted that at least 21 million Americans are without high-speed internet access and they face a... Continue Reading »
BRUNSWICK, ME – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine), joined a group of his Senate colleagues to introduce legislation to protect U.S. workers from coronavirus in response to widespread reports of unsafe workplaces leading to preventable illnesses and deaths. The COVID-19 Every Worker Protection Act would require the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to issue an Emergency Temporary Standard that establishes a legal obligation for all workplaces to implement comprehensive... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Angus King (I-Maine) announced that the Economic Development Administration (EDA) has awarded $160,000 to the Southern Maine Planning & Development Commission (SMPDC). The funding will support SMPDC’s development of an economic resiliency strategy to mitigate the effects of recent and future natural disasters in York County.“Natural disasters have the potential to disrupt the way of life in Southern Maine... Continue Reading »
BRUNSWICK, ME – Today, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) released the following statement after the Senate approved a bipartisan agreement that would provide an additional $484 billion in funding to support America’s small businesses and hospitals hit hard by the economic impacts of coronavirus, as well as increasing federal funds to support coronavirus testing:“This agreement isn’t perfect, but it is progress, and will make a real difference for several sectors of our society which are being... Continue Reading »
BRUNSWICK, ME – Today, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) released the following statement after the Senate Intelligence Committee released a new report, titled “Review of the Intelligence Community Assessment.” The report examines the sources, tradecraft, and analytic work behind the 2017 Intelligence Community Assessment (ICA) that determined Russia conducted an unprecedented, multi-faceted campaign to interfere with the 2016 U.S. presidential election. The installment builds upon the... Continue Reading »
BRUNSWICK, ME – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) and 35 of his colleagues urged Vice President Mike Pence and other members of the Trump Administration to ensure the safety of the nation’s food supply and protect essential workers in the food supply chain. The letter comes after numerous reports of essential workers in meatpacking plants, processing facilities, farms, grocery stores, and markets falling ill from COVID-19. In their letter, the Senators urged the White House and federal... Continue Reading »
BRUNSWICK, ME – Today, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) participated in a telephone press conference to open “Rural Health Care Week” – especially the unique coronavirus-related strains on the healthcare system – in a Medicaid Awareness Month event with Protect Our Care. In addition to Senator King, the call also featured Maine State Representative Anne Perry (D-Calais) and Brad Woodhouse, Executive Director of Protect Our Care.“The impacts of coronavirus – including the costs of preparation... Continue Reading »
BRUNSWICK, ME – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) joined 37 of his Senate colleagues in pressing congressional leaders to make sure that any future coronavirus relief legislation includes strong measures to secure healthcare coverage for Americans in the wake of the coronavirus crisis. In a letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, the Senators urged them to take the... Continue Reading »
BRUNSWICK, ME – Today, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) applauded an announcement by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) that recipients of benefits through the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) would receive their stimulus payment from the CARES Act with no additional action needed. Today’s announcement comes after King joined a group of 47 Senators in calling on the Administration to issue stimulus checks automatically to recipients of benefits through the VA or the Supplemental... Continue Reading »
Washington, D.C.—All eight members of the Maine and New Hampshire Congressional Delegations wrote to U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue today, urging him to provide price stabilizing assistance to assist New England dairy farmers who are struggling with plummeting prices for milk products and increased costs due to the COVID-19 pandemic.The letter was signed by U.S. Senators Susan Collins, Jeanne Shaheen, Angus King, and Maggie Hassan and U.S. Representatives Chellie Pingree,... Continue Reading »
BRUNSWICK, ME – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine), a founding member of the bipartisan Senate Climate Solutions Caucus, joined a group of his colleges in raising concerns about the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) refusal to strengthen ambient air quality standards despite research showing its link to higher COVID-19 mortality. In a letter to EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler, the Senators are calling for immediate answers from the EPA on what it is doing to enforce existing air pollution... Continue Reading »
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King joined a bipartisan group of Senators in sending letters urging the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to provide financial relief and direct payments to farmers who have suffered from losses amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The recently-passed Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act made $9.5 billion available for USDA to provide support for agricultural producers who are struggling because of the... Continue Reading »
BRUNSWICK, ME – Today, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) and Tim Kaine (D-Va.) led a group of 20 Senators in a letter to Senate leadership to call for increased investments in mental and behavioral health in future COVID-19 relief legislation. Reports have shown Americans are experiencing negative effects on their mental health due to the coronavirus pandemic – which could pose short- and long-term dangers to their well-being. In their letter, the Senators highlighted the threat COVID-19 poses... Continue Reading »
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King announced that the State of Maine has been awarded $10,953,470 to provide child care assistance for low-income families, health care sector employees, first responders, sanitation workers, and other workers deemed essential, and to support child care providers. This funding, authorized by the CARES Act they voted for, was awarded through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Children and... Continue Reading »
BRUNSWICK, ME – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) spoke with more than a hundred coastal Maine business leaders on a tele-conference to hear firsthand about the implementation of the CARES Act, the most pressing challenges facing the region’s businesses, and discuss the future economic impacts they are facing due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The call was hosted by the Penobscot Bay Regional Chamber of Commerce (and can be heard by clicking here), and also featured Maine Department of... Continue Reading »
BRUNSWICK, ME – Today, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) was appointed to serve on a task force focused on charting a safe path to re-opening the American economy by President Donald Trump. The bipartisan, bicameral committee will work to determine the best possible plan to re-open the American economy in a way that supports long-term public health and spurs much-needed economic activity. In his below statement, Senator King emphasizes that he will push the committee to put health outcomes... Continue Reading »
BRUNSWICK, ME – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) joined a bipartisan group of 38 colleagues requesting that any future legislation to address the coronavirus pandemic includes support for victims and survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault. The senators express concern that service providers are reporting that abusers are further isolating their victims, withholding financial resources, and refusing medical aid; rape crisis centers are seeing increased need for services, and many... Continue Reading »
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, U.S. Senators Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Angus King (I-Maine) pressed the administration to speedily release funds from the Emergency Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) Grant Program, which was established in the CARES Act to make sure small businesses facing immediate needs could quickly access the direct financial support they need to survive. In a letter to Small Business Administration (SBA) Administrator Jovita Carranza, Senators Collins and King raise their... Continue Reading »
WASHINTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Angus King (I-Maine), along with colleagues in both the House and the Senate, wrote to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) urging the Administration to resume premium processing for physicians seeking employment-based visas. Doctors on these visas increase access to healthcare, especially in rural areas, through the Conrad 30 program, which allows foreign medical school graduates who have been trained in the United States... Continue Reading »
