PORTLAND, Maine (AP) - U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree will chair a powerful House subcommittee that oversees the budget for many federal agencies including the Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Forest Service and most of the Department of Interior.
The Maine Democrat’s appointment was announced on Monday, the Portland Press Herald reported. Pingree has represented Maine’s 1st District for the past 12 years and will be one of 12 representatives to chair the powerful subcommittees of the Houses’ Appropriations Committee.
As the chair of the Appropriations Subcommittee for Interior, Environment and Related Agencies, Pingree told the newspaper she would focused on rebuilding programs related to climate change.
“Under the Trump administration there was a real disdain for anything related to climate change and frankly government in general,” she said. “Departments like the EPA and the Department of Interior have been gutted and there have been a lot of cuts and a lot of attrition of knowledgeable and experienced people.”
The position also oversees drafting of the budgets for the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Endowment for the Arts and the Smithsonian, the newspaper reported.
Penobscot Nation Chief Kirk Francis celebrated Pingree’s appointment, the newspaper reported, and said he hoped for additional funding of the Indian Health Service, tribal court system and programs that deal with pollution and climate change mitigation.
“She has long had strong relationships with Maine’s tribal nations and understands the issues we and our surrounding communities face,” he said.
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