Nearly $11 Million for Maine Community Colleges Advanced by Senator Collins in Funding Bills

Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Susan Collins, Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, announced that she advanced $10,669,000 in Congressionally Directed Spending for Maine Community Colleges. Included in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 Financial Services and General Government (FSGG) and Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education (LHHS) Appropriations bills, this legislation was officially approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee today and now awaits consideration by the full Senate and House.

"Maine's Community Colleges provide important educational opportunities in technical fields, career training, and transfer programs to students seeking to further their education," said Senator Collins. "This funding would support facility and equipment upgrades, helping to expand nursing, health education, and business development programs across the state. As the Vice Chair of the Appropriations Committee, I will continue to advocate for this funding as the appropriations process moves forward."

"This higher education funding championed by Senator Collins would be transformational for our students and Maine, providing critically needed health care equipment and facilities that would not only quickly increase the number of skilled health care workers in Maine, but help us sustain our goal of doubling the number of nursing graduates from Maine's community colleges," said David Daigler, President, Maine Community College System. "The funding for Southern Maine Community College in particular would directly benefit Mainers by investing in the expansion of emergency medical care, plumbing, and heat pump training, all industries facing workforce shortages in Maine."

This funding advanced through the Committee's markup of the FY 2025 FSGG and LHHS appropriations bills-an important step that now allows the bill to be considered by the full Senate. Committee consideration of legislation is a key part of regular order, which helps our government function efficiently and deliver results for the people of Maine and America.

Funding advanced by Senator Collins is as follows:

SMCC Education and Training Accelerator Lab

Recipient:?Southern Maine Community College (SMCC)?

Project Location:?South Portland, ME??

Amount Requested:?$4,000,000??

Project Purpose: To upgrade facilities and expand training and business development programs.

CMCC Nursing Education Equipment Enhancement

Recipient: Central Maine Community College (CMCC)

Project Location: Auburn, ME??

Amount Requested: $861,000??

Project Purpose: To purchase nursing education equipment.

EMCC Nursing and Allied Health Education Simulation Expansion

Recipient: Eastern Maine Community College (EMCC)?

Project Location: Bangor, ME?

Amount Requested: $5,308,000?

Project Purpose: To construct and equip a nursing and allied health care simulation laboratory and learning center on campus.

NMCC Nursing and Allied Health Education Simulation Expansion

Recipient: Northern Maine Community College (NMCC)?

Project Location: Presque Isle, ME?

Amount Requested: $500,000??

Project Purpose: To purchase labor and delivery simulation equipment.

In July, Senator Collins advanced more than $12 million in Congressionally Directed Spending for the Maine Community College System in the FY 2025 Appropriations bills.

In 2021, Congress reinstituted Congressionally Directed Spending. Following this decision, Senator Collins has secured more than $1 billion for hundreds of Maine projects for FY 2022, FY 2023, and FY 2024. As the Vice Chair of the Appropriations Committee, Senator Collins is committed to championingtargeted investments that willbenefit Maine communities.

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