Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) sent a bipartisan letter to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem urging the immediate release of emergency funds provided by Congress to repair Coast Guard facilities in Maine and New Hampshire that were damaged by recent storms.
“We write to request that you urgently obligate the emergency supplemental funds Congress provided to recapitalize Coast Guard facilities in Portland, ME, Southwest Harbor, ME and New Castle, NH,” the Senators wrote. “A combination of severe storm damage and resource constraints have hampered the ability of the Coast Guard to perform its important missions in Maine and New Hampshire, such as escorting submarines as they arrive and depart from the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard.”
“These facilities not only support our local communities and economies, but they also serve vital national security interests. The Coast Guard has a long and growing backlog of stations and facilities in need of repair or recapitalization. We see these issues firsthand in Maine and New Hampshire,” they continued. “In February 2025, the Government Accountability Office found that 49% of the Coast Guard’s shore infrastructure is beyond its expected service life and that the agency has a $7 billion backlog in shore infrastructure projects.”
“We respectfully request your commitment that the Department of Homeland Security and the Coast Guard use the supplemental Procurement, Construction & Improvements funds as soon as possible to recapitalize Coast Guard stations in Rockland ME, Portland, ME, Southwest Harbor, ME and New Castle, NH,” they concluded.
Earlier this year, Senator Collins announced that she had secured more than $40 million in funding that the U.S. Coast Guard requested for repairs to the Coast Guard facilities in Rockland, Southwest Harbor, and Portland damaged by recent storms. This funding was included in disaster relief legislation that has passed Congress and been signed into law. It included more than $210 million for construction projects, of which a portion was allocated for repairs to Coast Guard facilities in Maine.
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