Press Releases

Today, Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) announced more than $1.2 million in federal grants for businesses in Maine’s First District through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Rural Energy for America Program (REAP). The grants were made possible through the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which was passed by Congressional Democrats and signed into law by President Biden in 2022. 

“Once again, the landmark IRA is bringing real, lasting investment in rural electrification to communities across Maine,” said Pingree, a member on the House Agriculture Committee. “Grants like these are helping businesses become part of the climate solution. REAP grants are not only critical to reducing our country’s dependence on fossil fuels; they also help businesses reduce energy costs, allowing them to invest in their people—and pass along those savings to their customers. Congratulations to all of these well-deserving Maine businesses.”

Today’s REAP recipients in Maine’s 1st District include: 

• $490,083 for Goodwins Chevrolet (Brunswick, Maine) to install a new 360.36-kilowatt roof-mounted solar photovoltaic (PV) system, which is expected to save the businesses $57,312 in energy costs annually. 
• $243,772 for Golf Traditions, Inc. (Falmouth, Maine) to help the company install a 165-kilowatt ground- and roof-mounted solar PV system, with expected savings of $28,410 annually.
• $38,100 for Reform Physical Therapy, Inc. (Topsham, Maine), to install a 21.36-kilowatt ground-mounted, dual-axis tracking solar PV system, saving an estimated $4,913 in annual energy costs. 
• $302,726 for The Freeport Hotel LLC (Freeport, Maine), to install a 298.35-kilowatt roof-mounted solar PV system, which is expected to save the company $31,531 in annual energy costs. 
• $67,987 for Chase Solar (Warren, Maine) to install a 71-kilowatt ground-mounted solar PV system, which is expected to generate more than 96,000 kilowatt hours of electricity annually. 
•  $97,500 for Great Works Properties, Inc. (Berwick, Maine), to install a 21.6-kilowatt ground-mounted solar PV system, which is expected to generate 33,120 kilowatt hours of electricity annually. 

In addition to the six projects in Maine’s First District, this latest round of REAP grants will include funding for seven projects in Maine’s Second District. 

The REAP program helps agricultural producers and rural small business owners expand their use of wind, solar, geothermal and small hydropower energy and make energy efficiency improvements. These innovations help them increase their income, grow their businesses, address climate change and lower energy costs for American families.

The IRA, championed by House Democrats and signed into law by President Biden in August 2022, represents the single largest investment in climate and clean energy solutions in American history.

In 2023, Pingree and all Democrats on the House Agriculture Committee wrote to Chair Glenn “G.T.” Thompson (R-Pa.) and Ranking Member David Scott (D-Ga.) to protect the rural clean energy funding passed in the historic Inflation Reduction Act in the upcoming Farm Bill. 

Pingree is the author of the Agriculture Resilience Act, comprehensive legislation that sets a bold vision of reaching net-zero greenhouse gas emissions in U.S. agriculture by the year 2040. In addition to the Agriculture Committee, Pingree is the Ranking Member of the Appropriations Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Subcommittee, which she chaired in the 117th Congress. 

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