$750,000 Requested by Senator Collins for New Washburn Public Safety Building Passes Appropriations Committee

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Susan Collins, a senior member of the Appropriations Committee, announced today that $750,000 in funding she requested for the construction of a new Washburn Public Safety building was included in the Fiscal Year 2022 Agriculture, Rural Development, and Food and Drug Administration Appropriations Bill.  The bill was passed by the Appropriations Committee today by a vote of 25-5 and will now be considered by the full Senate.

“Washburn’s current public safety building is more than 100 years old and is not well suited to house the modern equipment used by the fire department and police department to keep residents safe.  A new building would allow Washburn’s brave firefighters and police officers to continue to deliver reliable emergency services to protect local residents and businesses while also providing new office space for the town,” said Senator Collins.  “As a senior member of the Appropriations Committee, I strongly advocated on behalf of Washburn to include this critical project in the funding bill, and I will continue to champion this investment in Maine’s infrastructure as the process moves forward.”

The town of Washburn is home to approximately 1,700 Mainers.  The Fire Department has 19 volunteer firefighters, while the Police Department employs three full-time officers, as well as two reserve officers.

During the Appropriations process, Senator Collins submitted a total of 110 Congressionally Directed Spending requests amounting to more than $286 million across nine Fiscal Year 2022 Appropriations bills.  The funding will support projects by Maine’s state government, municipalities, and non-profits that will promote job creation and economic development, improve infrastructure, expand community resources for Mainers, and protect our environment.  The text of the remaining Appropriations bills will be released over the next several weeks.

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