As a member of the House Appropriations Committee, Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) today announced the full House Appropriations Committee has approved the Labor, Health and Human Services, and Related Agencies bill and the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies bill. Pingree secured increased funding for programs within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) that address threats to coastal communities and invest in resilient and sustainable fisheries. She further secured investments in maternal mental health screening and treatment, biomedical research, child care, and community economic development, as well as $2,795,000 in funding for local projects in her district.
“The bills passed by the House Appropriations Committee today provide the funding increases needed to help hardworking families across America. With investments in research and economic development coupled with funding for child care and family supports, families nationwide will be able to go back to work and school, ensuring their kids have accessible child care and lifting up struggling families,” said Pingree. “Importantly, this legislation includes more than $2.7 million in Community Project Funding for my district, targeted towards projects that will make a difference in the lives of my constituents. From supporting Maine’s Climate Action Plan and lobster fishery to oral health care to substance use treatment and recovery, these investments will improve the health and well-being of Mainers across the state.”
In the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies bill, Pingree secured $1,605,000 in Community Project Funding, member-directed spending for projects with the highest need in Maine communities. Details of the projects are below:
This funding will support Milestone’s substance use services, including the expansion of its inpatient medical detoxification program and the establishment of an Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP). Milestone operates the only detox program in Maine’s First District that admits clients who are uninsured or underinsured, and must often turn away dozens of clients a day. The IOP would further help to serve clients who are unable to access detox and provide long-term recovery support care for those who need it after completing detox.
This funding would launch a network of Virtual Dental Homes, a community-based oral health care delivery system in which children become established patients with a dental practice but receive their preventive care and early intervention in school and primary care settings without having to travel to the dental office for appointments unless they need more complex treatment.
This funding would establish a pilot program to connect people with immediate substance use disorder treatment resources and support their reintegration into the community after treatment. Modeled on successful projects elsewhere in Maine, Project Recovery uses a unified approach to recovery that will draw on the public health focus of the City of Augusta Fire/EMT Department to leverage resources in harm reduction and treatment as well as job training and placement, housing, and other forms of critical support.
In the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies bill, Pingree secured an additional $1,190,000 in Community Project Funding. Details of the projects are below:
The Maine Climate Coordination Center (MC3) will serve as the coordination hub called for in the state’s Climate Action Plan and will support implementation of key strategies outlined in the plan. UMaine is already a hub of activity for solutions aligned with the challenges outlined in the plan, and MC3will develop connections, coordination, and communication to bring the plan to life by leveraging the new and ongoing work of plan implementation taking place throughout UMaine and agencies, NGOs, communities, companies, and individuals throughout the state. Timely action is required to avoid the worst of the anticipated effects of climate change and the dire consequences for the state’s natural resource economy, for the broader tourism and recreation economy, and for all Maine people’s health and livelihoods. This hub would provide the needed structure to implement the Climate Action Plan’s goals and serve as a model for effective climate coordination and response that could be duplicated in other states.
With this funding, the Maine Department of Marine Resources would develop an extensive outreach and education strategy to engage fishermen and develop common understanding across Maine’s lobster industry about the status of right whales and new regulations from NOAA. Facilitated discussions will inform the development of principles to guide future management actions that will be initiated to meet risk reduction targets of the Conservation Framework. The Maine lobster fishery provides $1.5 billion in revenue to the state through its direct supply chain, and thousands of jobs. Over the next decade, regulatory actions to protect right whales are going to require the fishery to significantly change its operations. These changes are expected to have far-reaching impacts throughout the supply chain and related shoreside industries, as well as coastal communities. Planning for the future of this fishery is critical to the economic survival and resilience of Maine’s coastal economy.
For 2022, the Labor-HHS bill provides $253.8 billion, a 28 percent increase above 2021. Details of the investments are available here and highlights are provided below:
Creates and sustains good-paying American jobs through investments in job training, apprenticeship programs, and worker protection
Grows opportunity with transformative investments in education, including record funding for high-poverty schools and students with disabilities, and strong increases for programs that expand access to post-secondary education
Supports middle class and working families with increased funding for child care and development programs, Head Start, and preschool development grants
Strengthens lifesaving biomedical research with increased funding for the National Institutes of Health, including funding to establish the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health
Bolsters our public health infrastructure with more resources for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and for states and local governments to strengthen infrastructure and capacity
Addresses our nation’s most urgent health crises, including maternal health, mental health, gun violence, and opioid abuse, while making strides to reduce persistent and unacceptable health disparities
Advances equal treatment for women by increasing funding for the range of health services, including family planning, covered by Title X and repealing the discriminatory Hyde Amendment
For 2022, the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies bill provides $81.3 billion, an increase of 14 percent above 2021. Details of the investments are available here and highlights are provided below:
Confronts the climate crisis with strong funding for climate resilience and research at NASA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the National Science Foundation
Provides $85 million for the National Sea Grant College Program to continue work in scientific research, education training, and extension programs to support coastal ecosystems, sustainable fisheries, and resilient communities.
Addresses gender-based violence with strong increases for Violence Against Women Act prevention and prosecution programs, as well as efforts to reduce the backlog of unprocessed rape kits.
Requires state and local governments, as a precondition for receiving any fiscal year 2022 COPS or Byrne JAG funds, to comply with nine conditions aimed at improving police practices, including eliminating racial profiling and implicit bias; eliminating excessive force and chokeholds; eliminating “no-knock” warrants in drug cases; eliminating contractual arrangements that prevent investigations of law enforcement misconduct; and eliminating sexual contact between police and persons in their custody.
Pingree has been a member of the House Appropriations Committee since 2011. She currently serves as Chair of the House Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Subcommittee.
