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In a bipartisan effort to prevent thousands of Maine children from losing access to meals, all four members of Maine’s Congressional Delegation wrote to U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Sonny Perdue to express their full support for a request by the Maine Department of Education for a waiver extension that is critical to maintaining children’s access to meals during the COVID-19 pan... Read More »

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) today announced southern Maine will receive two grants totaling $4,618,674 to mitigate the financial losses for public transit systems due to the coronavirus pandemic. The Greater Portland Transit District (GPTD) will receive $4 million and the Biddeford-Saco-Old Orchard Beach Transit Committee (BSOOB) will receive $618,674—funding which was allocated by th... Read More »

Maine’s Congressional Delegation wrote to U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue to call for improvements to be made to the Farmers to Families Food Box Program, which is purchasing up to $3 billion in fresh produce, dairy, and meat products to distribute to those in need. No Maine distributors were awarded a contract in the first tranche of funding, and as a result, the program’s b... Read More »

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) today cosponsored two legislative initiatives to address systemic police brutality, racial profiling, and the use of excessive force against Black Americans. A resolution led by Reps. Pressley, Omar, Bass, and Lee calls on Congress to condemn police brutality, racial profiling, and to take urgent action in response; H.R. 1636, the Commission on the Social St... Read More »

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) today released the following statement regarding President Trump’s inflammatory rhetoric and intent to visit Maine as the nation grapples with a deadly pandemic, record unemployment, and widespread protests of police brutality toward Black Americans: “Governor Mills has good reason to worry that President Trump’s vitriol could spark unrest in Maine. While th... Read More »

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) today announced Appalachian Mountain Club will receive a grant of $1 million from the North American Wetlands Conservation Act and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to conserve 16,311 acres around the Gulf of Maine and protect over 100 migratory bird species. Appalachian Mountain Club will also receive $3,000,700 in matching funds. “The Gulf of Maine is on... Read More »

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) voted with her House colleagues on both sides of the aisle to pass H.R. 7010, bipartisan legislation which would alter the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and make it more accessible to the small businesses most in need of relief. Pingree also supported H.R. 6782, a bipartisan bill to provide more transparency over the PPP loan program. “For many small bus... Read More »

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) today announced Portland Community Health Center in Portland has been awarded $245,988 from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to support telehealth services for COVID-19 treatment. The funding comes from the FCC’s COVID-19 Telehealth Program and was authorized by the CARES Act. “I’ve long known that telemedicine is essential for Mainers’ health, bu... Read More »

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) released the following statement on the death of George Floyd: "This week our nation witnessed the death of George Floyd at the hands of an officer who was entrusted to protect all people regardless of their skin color. The gross injustice inflicted on Mr. Floyd is another example of the systemic racism and violence visited upon communities of color. Mr. Flo... Read More »

Maine’s congressional delegation took action this week to protect nonprofits — which employ one in every six workers in the state — from federal guidance that would lead to hundreds of thousands of dollars in unexpected, upfront costs for many nonprofit organizations. In a letter to U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) Secretary Eugene Scalia, Congressman Jared Golden (ME-02), Senators Susan Collins (R-... Read More »

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) today announced the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program is now open for applications from Maine farms. USDA is dispersing a total of $16 billion in direct payments to farmers across our country, $9.5 billion which was authorized in the CARES Act and $6.5 billion from the Commodity Credit Corporation. “While all farms are struggling to stay afloat in this pan... Read More »

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) today issued the following statement in recognition of Memorial Day: “Every day, members of the American military bravely step forward to leave their homes behind and march towards the unknown. Many do not come home. Memorial Day is a time to remember the brave servicemembers who lost their lives in defense of our freedoms. “I also want to recognize those we... Read More »

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine), a vice chair of the Congressional LGBTQ Caucus, today led a bipartisan letter with Congressman Chris Stewart (R-Utah) and 42 members requesting that the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to utilize its funding and resources from the CARES Act to support the more than six million LGBTQ youth in the United States during the CO... Read More »

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree issued the following statement on the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)’s Coronavirus Food Assistance Program eligibility details: “Although all farmers in this country are dealing with the economic fallout of COVID-19, small and local growers who sell primarily to restaurants and direct-to-consumer markets are particularly hard hit as they typically don’... Read More »

Senator Susan Collins and Congresswoman Chellie Pingree today wrote to Maine Department of Marine Resources (DMR) Commissioner Patrick Keliher, advocating for swift allocation of the more than $20 million Maine received through the CARES Act for fishing industry relief. The lawmakers encouraged DMR to quickly develop a plan for how the funding would be allocated in the state. Full text of Collins ... Read More »