SENATOR COLLINS SECURES SEAT ON POWERFUL SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE
Senate leaders have appointed U.S. Senator Susan Collins to a seat on the oldest and most powerful of Senate committees—the Senate Appropriations Committee, which is responsible for approving all federal discretionary funding. Senator Collins’ membership marks the first time that Maine has been represented on this coveted panel since Margaret Chase Smith served on it in 1972.
Senator Collins was sworn-in to her third term in the United States Senate earlier this month where she will also serve as Ranking Member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and as a senior member of the Special Committee on Aging.
Senator Collins said, “I am delighted that Senate leaders have chosen me for this important position. Our nation faces an extremely tight federal budget and economic experts confirm that we are in the midst of a recession. It is more crucial than ever that federal dollars are spent as wisely as possible.”
“My membership on the Appropriations Committee will allow me to have greater input on funding of priorities that are important to Mainers, such as shipbuilding, health care, education, and transportation infrastructure, while also giving me the ability to continue pressing for the elimination of wasteful spending that exacerbates our federal deficit. And, as a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, I will continue to work tirelessly on defense issues that are important to Maine, and our nation, and be a leading advocate for Bath Iron Works, Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, and the many other defense contractors in Maine that contribute to our national security.”
The very first chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, when it was first organized in 1867, was a Republican Senator from Maine, Lot Morrill.
Senator Collins was sworn-in to her third term in the United States Senate earlier this month where she will also serve as Ranking Member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and as a senior member of the Special Committee on Aging.
Senator Collins said, “I am delighted that Senate leaders have chosen me for this important position. Our nation faces an extremely tight federal budget and economic experts confirm that we are in the midst of a recession. It is more crucial than ever that federal dollars are spent as wisely as possible.”
“My membership on the Appropriations Committee will allow me to have greater input on funding of priorities that are important to Mainers, such as shipbuilding, health care, education, and transportation infrastructure, while also giving me the ability to continue pressing for the elimination of wasteful spending that exacerbates our federal deficit. And, as a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, I will continue to work tirelessly on defense issues that are important to Maine, and our nation, and be a leading advocate for Bath Iron Works, Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, and the many other defense contractors in Maine that contribute to our national security.”
The very first chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, when it was first organized in 1867, was a Republican Senator from Maine, Lot Morrill.
