Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Susan Collins, Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, announced that she advanced $6,300,000 in Congressionally Directed Spending for the University of Maine (UMaine) System in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations bill. The bill, which was officially approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee last week, now awaits consideration by the full Senate and House.
This funding builds off the more than $52 million in Congressionally Directed Spending Senator Collins advanced for the UMaine System in the FY 2026 Commerce, Justice, and Science and Agriculture, Rural Development, and Food and Drug Administration Appropriations bills.
“The University of Maine System is dedicated to advancing the state through an array of innovative programs, projects, and cutting-edge research,” said Senator Collins. “This funding would support initiatives to increase health care training, modernize outdated equipment, renovate facilities, and conduct important research across the UMaine System. As the Chair of the Appropriations Committee, I will continue to advocate for this funding as the appropriations process moves forward.”
“Maine’s public universities are at the forefront of advancing research and workforce development to benefit Maine’s people and economy. We are greatly appreciative of Senator Collins’s support of these projects, which will enable our universities to conduct state-of-the-art R&D in the sciences, engineering, and computing, while simultaneously educating the future innovation workforce of the region,” said Joan Ferrini-Mundy, Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation for the University of Maine System.
“With the planned renovations to the Ricker Addition building, the University of Maine at Farmington is responding to the dire shortage of trained healthcare professionals in rural Maine. Renovations will outfit new health professional classrooms and simulation labs. The renovated space will provide vital training infrastructure and a pipeline to employment with regional partners in the healthcare industry,” said Joseph McDonnell, President, University of Maine at Farmington.
"This funding would provide much-needed equipment for high-demand health profession programs at the University of Maine at Presque Isle, including our exercise science, medical laboratory technology, and physical therapist assistant programs, as well as the nursing program we partner with the University of Maine at Fort Kent to deliver on our campus," said Ray Rice, President, University of Maine at Presque Isle. "Training our students for door-opening degrees in these health professions requires modern equipment--from hospital beds to hematology analyzers--that allow us to provide advanced hands-on training, ensuring our graduates are both workforce-ready and able to help meet the future healthcare workforce needs in our region and throughout Maine."
This funding advanced through the Committee’s markup of the FY 2026 LHHS Appropriations bill—an important step that now allows the bill to be considered by the full Senate.
Funding advanced by Senator Collins is as follows:
Health Care Training Center Renovations
Recipient: University of Maine Farmington
Project Location: Farmington, ME
Amount Requested: $1,900,000
Project Purpose: For facilities and equipment to support a new Health Care Education Center.
Forest Health Facility Equipment
Recipient: University of Maine System
Project Location: Orono, ME
Amount Requested: $500,000
Project Purpose: To purchase equipment for the University’s Forest Health lab.
Modernizing Engineering and Computing Labs
Recipient: University of Maine System
Project Location: Orono, ME
Amount Requested: $2,400,000
Project Purpose: To purchase equipment for the engineering and computing department labs.
Health Care Training Equipment Upgrades
Recipient: University of Maine System
Project Location: Presque Isle, ME
Amount Requested: $1,500,000
Project Purpose: To purchase equipment for the health care profession programs at the University of Maine Presque Isle.
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 Chair of the Appropriations Committee, Senator Collins is committed to championing targeted investments that will benefit Maine communities.
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