Floor Statements

I yield the floor.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, I rise today, along with my colleagues Senator Cardin, Senator Marshall, and Senator Shaheen, to introduce the Home Health Emergency Access to Telehealth (HEAT) Act. This bipartisan bill would help ensure that seniors who rely on home health care have the choice to receive these critical services through telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic and future public health emergencies.

COVID-19 is the greatest public health challenge since the flu pandemic of 1918 and has claimed the lives of more than 565,000 Americans. This public health emergency has underscored the need for older adults and other at-risk populations to have access to health care in the home setting. Home-based care is crucial to ensuring that this pandemic does not create devastating long-term health consequences due to delayed care. The highly skilled and compassionate care that home health agencies provide is an important component of this in-home care.

I have been a strong supporter of home care since my very first home visit, which took place in my hometown in Aroostook County early in my Senate service. This experience gave me the opportunity to meet and visit with home health patients, where I saw first-hand what a difference highly skilled and caring visiting nurses and other health care professionals make to the lives of patients and their families. I have been a passionate advocate for home care ever since.

Last year, my bipartisan home health legislation, the Home Health Care Planning Improvement Act, became law as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. This law, which I championed for 13 years, will improve the access Medicare beneficiaries have to home health care by allowing physician assistants, nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, and certified nurse midwives to order home health services. Far too often seniors experience unnecessary delays in accessing home health care. To avoid these needless delays, it is common sense that other medical professionals who are familiar with a patient's case should be able to order these services.

Home health professionals have continued to provide face-to-face services during the COVID-19 public health emergency, but this crisis has created additional challenges, including the need to maintain an adequate supply of personal protective equipment to protect themselves, their patients, and their patients' families. The use of telehealth and virtual visits can help address these challenges. Unlike other Medicare providers, however, home health agencies are not eligible to receive Medicare reimbursement for telehealth services during the COVID-19 emergency.

Last May, I chaired Congress' first hearing examining COVID-19's devastating impact on seniors. During the hearing, Dr. Steven Landers, President and CEO of the Visiting Nurse Association Health Group, testified that, despite this lack of Medicare reimbursement, his organization has found telehealth to be an essential part of providing high quality home health care during the COVID-19 public health emergency. He urged action to ensure that home health providers can continue offering these critical services remotely.

Maine home health care providers have also shared their stories about how telehealth is helping them to continue caring for their patients during COVID-19. Through a combination of video visits and care calls, one provider has been able to care for a woman with severe heart and lung disease and keep this patient out of the hospital. The nurse would speak with the woman by phone a couple of times per week to assess any symptoms that needed follow up. If the nurse identified an issue during the call, she would schedule a video visit and also work with the patient's physician to modify medications as needed.

The bill we are introducing today would authorize Medicare reimbursement for home health services provided through telehealth during an emergency period. The services would not be reimbursed unless the beneficiary consents to receiving the services via telehealth. To ensure that the Medicare home health benefit does not become a telehealth-only benefit, Medicare reimbursement would only be provided if the telehealth services constitute no more than half of the billable visits made during the 30-day payment period. The Secretary of Health and Human Services would be required to issue guidance on the authorization of and payment for home health services provided via telehealth.

Home health serves a vital role in helping our Nation's seniors avoid more costly hospital visits and nursing home stays. The COVID-19 emergencyhas further underscored the critical importance of home health services and highlighted how these agencies are able to use telehealth to provide skilled care to their patients. The Home Health Emergency Access to Telehealth (HEAT) Act would ensure that seniors in Maine and across the country retain access to remote home health services during the COVID-19 emergency and future public health emergencies.

Thank you, Mr. President.

Mr. President, today is Earth Day, and there are many issues, environmental challenges, that each of us could be discussing here on the Senate floor.

I have chosen to speak on a bill that I am introducing today that is called the Comprehensive National Mercury Monitoring Act. I am pleased to be partnering, once again, with my colleague from Delaware, Senator Carper, who serves as the chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee. Our bipartisan bill would help ensure that we have accurate information about the extent of mercury pollution in our country.

Mercury is a potent neurotoxin. It poses significant ecological and public health concerns, especially for children and pregnant women. Mercury exposure has gone down as U.S. mercury emissions have declined. However, the levels remain unacceptably high.

It is estimated that nearly 200,000 children born in the United States have been exposed to levels of mercury in the womb that are high enough to impair their neurological development. This exposure can impose a lifelong disability.

In addition, the societal costs of neurocognitive deficits associated with mercury exposure are estimated to be approximately $4.8 billion per year.

In Maine, some of our lands and bodies of water face higher mercury pollution compared to the national average. Maine has been called the tailpipe of the Nation, as the winds carrying pollution, including mercury, from the West drift into the State of Maine

A system for collecting information, such as we have for acid rain and other forms of pollution, does not currently exist for mercury, which, ironically, is a more toxic pollutant. A comprehensive mercury monitoring network is needed to protect human health, safeguard our fisheries, and track the effect of emission reductions. This monitoring network would also help policymakers, scientists, and the public better understand the sources, consequences, and trends of mercury pollution in our country.

Specifically, our legislation would do the following:

First, it would direct the EPA, in conjunction with the Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Geological Survey, the National Park Service, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and other Federal Agencies, to

establish a national mercury monitoring program to measure and monitor mercury levels in the air and watersheds, water and soil chemistry, and in marine, freshwater, and terrestrial organisms at multiple sites across the Nation.

Mr. President. I rise today to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the Town of Vassalboro, ME. Vassalboro was built with a spirit of determination and resiliency that still guides the community today, and this is a time to celebrate the generations of hard-working and caring people who have made it such a wonderful place to live, work, and raise families.

The year of Vassalboro's incorporation, 1771, was but one milestone in a long journey of progress. For thousands of years, the land along the great Kennebec River was the home of the Abenaki Tribe, who hunted, fished, and tilled the fertile soil. The reverence the Abenaki had for the natural beauty and resources of the region is upheld by the people of Vassalboro today.

Vassalboro's roots run deep into American history. It originally was part of the lands granted to the Pilgrims of the Plymouth Colony in the 1600s. Later, the town became home to a large settlement of Quakers and a center of the movement to abolish slavery. The Society of Friends continues to have a positive presence in the town today. The statue of the Union soldier in Monument Park stands in silent tribute to the many patriots who have stepped forward to serve the cause of freedom.

With the mighty Kennebec River providing power, Vassalboro was home to many lumber, grain, and textile mills. Built in 1850, the Olde Mill on Main Street was one of the largest mills in New England and world famous for the quality of the cashmere it produced. The wealth produced by hard work and determination was invested in schools and churches to create a true community.

Today, visitors and residents alike enjoy Vassalboro's quiet parks, beautiful historic buildings, and exciting outdoor recreation opportunities. The energy and planning that are going into the town's 250th anniversary celebration demonstrate the pride townspeople have in their town.

Mr. President, Vassalboro's 250th anniversary is not merely about the passing of time, it is about human accomplishment. We celebrate the people who, for longer than America has been a nation, have pulled together, cared for one another, and built a great community. Thanks to those who came before, Vassalboro, ME, has a wonderful history. Thanks to those there today, it has a bright future.

Mr. President, I rise to introduce two bipartisan bills that would help improve Americans' retirement security. Together, these bills would make it easier for more small employers to offer retirement plans and encourage employees to save more for their retirement.

There are many reasons why American households struggle to save for retirement, including the shift away from employer-based ``defined benefit'' plans and rising health care and long-term care costs. Longer life spans increase the risk of outliving retirement savings. The economic and health impacts of the COVID-19 crisis may also pose a threat to retirement security.

Increasing access to employer-sponsored retirement plans is one way to help improve the financial security of many Americans. According to the Georgetown University Center for Retirement Initiatives, nationwide only about 54 percent of private sector workers had access to a retirement plan through their employer in 2020. In Maine, the percentage is a bit higher; approximately 59 percent of private sector employees had access to a retirement plan at work. But that still leaves more than 200,000 employees without access to a plan.

In December 2019, provisions from my bipartisan Retirement Security Act were signed into law as part of the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement or ``SECURE'' Act. These provisions will help to expand access to employer-provided retirement plans by reducing their cost and complexity, especially for small businesses. This law represents an important step forward, but more is needed.

Congress established SIMPLE (Savings Incentive Match Plan for Employees) retirement plans in 1996 to encourage small businesses to provide their employees with retirement plans. These plans are less costly and easier to navigate than traditional 401(k) plans and provide an alternative approach for employers to help their employees save for retirement.

The SIMPLE Plan Modernization Act, which I am introducing today with my colleague, Senator Mark Warner, would provide greater flexibility and access to employees and employers seeking to save for retirement by using SIMPLE plans.

This legislation would expand access to SIMPLE plans by increasing the contribution limit for most small businesses. In addition, the bill includes incentives to encourage small businesses to move from a SIMPLE plan to a 401(k) plan when they are able to make this change.

Like many Americans, spouses of active duty service members often face challenges when it comes to saving for retirement. Military spouses also face one hurdle that many others do not: frequent moves and changes in employment.

According to the Department of Defense, about one-third of military service members experience a permanent change of station move every year. When a service member moves, their spouse usually relocates with them. The military spouse may face periods of unemployment, where they are not able to participate in an employer-sponsored retirement plan. When they do find a new job, they often work part-time, despite seeking full-time work, or are only able to spend a few years with their employer before moving again. These factors often preclude them from being eligible to receive employer contributions to their retirement plan or from being fully vested in their plan.

The second bill I am introducing today focuses on helping to address this need by providing a tax credit to small employers who provide military spouses with accelerated eligibility for retirement plan participation, employer contributions, and vesting.

In particular, the Military Spouses Retirement Security Act, which I am introducing with my colleague Senator Maggie Hassan, would make small employers--those with up to 100 employees--eligible for a tax credit of up to $500 per year per military spouse. The credit would be available for three years per military spouse. The amount of the credit would be equal to $200 per military spouse, plus 100 percent of all employer contributions for that spouse, up to $300.

To receive the tax credit, small employers must make a military spouse immediately eligible for retirement plan participation within two months of hire. Upon plan eligibility, a military spouse must be eligible for any matching or non-elective contribution available to a similarly situated employee with at least two years of service, and must be 100 percent immediately vested in all employer contributions.

In light of the positive effects these bills would have on strengthening retirement security for millions of Americans, I urge my colleagues to support the SIMPLE Plan Modernization Act and the Military Spouses Retirement Security Act.

Thank you, Mr. President.

Mr. President, I rise to urge my colleagues to support passage of H.R. 1799, the PPP Extension Act of 2021. It is imperative that we act immediately to pass this bill because we are just days away from the PPP being closed to applications for assistance. This bill mirrors legislation I introduced with my colleagues, Senators Cardin and Shaheen, which is cosponsored by Senators Marshall, Sullivan, Rosen, Murkowski, Leahy, Wyden, Tillis, Ossoff, Capito, Merkley, Heinrich, Portman, Klobuchar, and Manchin.

Last March, Senators Rubio, Cardin, Shaheen, and I crafted the Paycheck Protection Program, PPP--a forgivable loan program designed to help keep small employers afloat and their employees paid during the pandemic.

The bipartisan bill we are considering today would simply extend the current application deadline for new PPP loans from March 31 to May 31 of this year and then provide an additional 30-day period during which time the Small Business Administration may continue processing applications received prior to the new May 31 deadline. This bipartisan bill passed the House last week by an overwhelming margin of 415 to 3.

The PPP has been a lifeline for small businesses in Maine and across the country, providing the support they need to survive the pandemic and continue paying their employees. In 2020, more than 5 million small employers received forgivable PPP loans, helping to sustain upwards of 50 million American jobs. This included more than 28,000 Maine small businesses, which received nearly $2.3 billion in forgivable PPP loans. The average loan size in Maine during this time was $80,000.

Recognizing the importance of this program for our Nation's small employers, the bipartisan December 2020 COVID-relief law provided an additional $284.5 billion to reopen the Paycheck Protection Program and allow the hardest hit small employers to receive a second forgivable loan. The December law also made other improvements to the PPP, such as expanding forgivable overhead expenses to include supplier costs and investments in facility modifications and personal protective equipment needed to operate safely.

Since reopening in January, more than 3.1 million additional forgivable loans--totaling nearly $196 billion--have been approved for small businesses across the country. In Maine, more than 12,700 small employers have

been approved for $797 million in forgivable loans since PPP's reopening. In total, Maine small employers have been approved for upwards of $3 billion in forgivable loans since the program was created last year.

I have heard from numerous small employers about the impact this program has had on them and their employees. The PPP has helped the owners of Pottle Transportation in Hermon, Anglers Restaurants in Hampden, and the Harraseeket Inn in Freeport keep their businesses alive and their employees paid. Hodgdon, America's oldest boat builder, was able to keep its family-owned East Boothbay business in operation with the help of two forgivable PPP loans. The owner of Channel X Radio in Aroostook County told me that two forgivable PPP loans kept his business going. The Boys & Girls Clubs of Southern Maine and the Y in Bangor have been able to provide childcare and other services to children due to support from the PPP.

With the ongoing distribution of COVID-19 vaccines and reopening of our Nation's economy, I am hopeful that better times will soon be ahead. We are not there yet, which is why we need to extend the deadline to apply for new PPP loans. Extending the deadline would provide more time for the Small Business Administration to resolve error messages generated by its computer systems that prevented eligible small businesses from receiving approval for a PPP Loan. It would also give us more time to address an inequity facing certain sole proprietors who received their PPP loans before the Biden administration unexpectedly announced a change in the maximum loan amount calculation for these types of businesses.

By extending the PPP for another 2 months and then providing an additional 30 days after that time for the SBA to process applications that are still pending, the bill before us today would help our Nation's small employers retain access to forgivable PPP loans.

This bill has been endorsed by more than 90 organizations, including the National Federation of Independent Business, U.S. Chamber of Commerce, American Hotel & Lodging Association, International Franchise Association, National Restaurant Association, the U.S. Travel Association, and the Independent Community Bankers of America. I would ask unanimous consent that these letters of support be printed in the Record at the conclusion of my statement.

I would like to once again thank my colleagues, Senators Cardin and Shaheen, for partnering with me on this legislation, and Senator Rubio for working to craft the PPP and oversee its implementation. I look forward to working with them and the new administrator of the Small Business Administration to ensure that the PPP is implemented according to Congressional intent.

I urge my colleagues to support passage of this bill.

Mr. President, I urge all of our colleagues to vote yes on this bill, which will provide a crucial 2-month extension for the Paycheck Protection Program.

This program has been a lifeline to countless small businesses and has saved more than 50 million jobs in this country.

I salute my colleagues Senator Cardin and Senator Shaheen for their work on this extension, which was overwhelmingly passed by the House.

Let's talk about briefly what would happen if we do not act. If we do not act, there are approximately 190,000 loans still under review, which prevents any of these businesses from receiving a second PPP loan. These small businesses need this assistance now in order to pay their employees and stay afloat during this pandemic.

We cannot wait. The House has gone home. We cannot allow an interruption of this vital program that has made such a difference to our small businesses and their employees.

I urge all of my colleagues to support this 2-month extension, with an additional month for SBA to review the applications.

Vote on H.R. 1799

Mr. President.

Mr. President, I rise today to support the Shaheen- Collins substitute to prevent a cut in Medicare reimbursements for hospitals, nursing homes, home health agencies and other healthcare providers who continue to care for their patients in this era of COVID. Congress twice last year suspended the 2-percent Medicare sequester in bipartisan COVID relief packages, and I hope we can do so once again.

At a time when our country is relying so heavily on our healthcare providers to help get us back to normal, we cannot ignore the financial realities they face. Almost half--17 out of 36--of Maine hospitals finished last year with a negative operating margin. According to Northern Light Health in Maine, relief from the Medicare sequester amounts to $1 million per month.

The Shaheen-Collins amendment will extend the current sequester moratorium until the end of the year. This financial certainty is needed in these uncertain times.

I urge my colleagues to support the Shaheen-Collins substitute.

Thank you.

Vote on Amendment No. 1410

Madam President, small businesses and their employees are the backbone of our economy, particularly in States like those of the Presiding Officer and the State that I am privileged to represent, the great State of Maine.

Later today, the Senate is slated to vote on cloture on the motion to proceed to H.R. 1799, the PPP Extension Act of 2021.

As a sponsor of the Senate companion bill, along with my colleagues Senator Cardin and Senator Shaheen, I urge my colleagues to support the cloture motion.

We are also delighted that several of our colleagues have joined us as cosponsors of the Senate companion bill.

The Paycheck Protection Program continues to be a lifeline for small businesses. It has made the difference between their shutting their doors and laying off their employees and their being able to remain open, survive the pandemic, and most important of all, send paychecks to their employees.

Since the program was created last year, more than $718 billion in forgivable Small Business Administration loans have been approved, securing tens of millions of jobs in this country.

The program has also been responsible for bringing approximately $3 billion to the State of Maine in forgivable loans that have allowed our small businesses, particularly those in the hospitality industry, to survive the pandemic and continue to send paychecks to their employees.

The current application deadline for the PPP is March 31. That is just days away. I continue to hear about the urgent need for more PPP assistance from Maine's small businesses and to hear from others who are eligible for assistance but whose financial institutions are getting error messages from the Small Business Administration's computer system.

Originally, the SBA had used the E-Tran system. For some reason, it switched computers for this round of PPP, and we understand that there are more than 190,000 applications that are pending for approval that are likely eligible for assistance but are held up because of computer glitches or other errors.

The bill before us today mirrors the legislation that I introduced with Senators Cardin and Shaheen in that it provides for a clean extension of the PPP application deadline. It would simply extend the application deadline for PPP loans from March 31 to May 31, just 2 more months, and then it would provide an additional 30 days for the SBA to process pending applications.

So if a small restaurant, for example, applied for a second PPP loan for which it is eligible because its revenues are down by 25 percent, comparing similar quarters in 2019 and 2020, it would not lose out because it applied in May and the SBA did not get time to process the application.

Our bill has been endorsed by more than 90 organizations, including the Nation's largest small business advocacy group, the National Federation of

Independent Business, which is key voting this vote. It has also been endorsed by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the American Hotel & Lodging Association, the International Franchise Association, the National Restaurant Association, the U.S. Travel Association, and the Independent Community Bankers of America.

The House passed this clean PPP extension last week by an overwhelming margin of 415 to 3.

With the House now in recess and the Senate leaving this week, advancing a clean extension through the Senate ensures the continuation of this vital relief for our small businesses and their employees. We simply have to get this done.

I agree with my colleagues that there are further improvements that could be made to PPP, such as addressing an issue facing certain sole proprietors. Unfortunately, the new administration changed the rules, so sole proprietors who applied early when the program reopened in January were treated differently than sole proprietors who are applying now. That obviously doesn't make sense. We should have the same rule.

I have talked with the new SBA Administrator about this problem. She agrees that it is unfair and needs to be fixed and has committed to working with all the sponsors and with the House and Senate Small Business Committee to find a solution to ensure that the program is implemented as Congress intended.

But in order to ensure that there is adequate time to develop and implement these improvements, we must first, without delay, pass H.R. 1799 to keep the PPP open for another 2 months.

I urge all of my colleagues to support cloture and passage of this important bipartisan legislation. It truly is bipartisan.

Mr. President, earlier this week, I joined Senator Leahy in introducing the Stop Illegal Trafficking in Firearms Act. Our bill would strengthen Federal law by making it easier for prosecutors to go after gun traffickers and straw purchasers, those individuals without criminal records who buy firearms for other people so they can bypass the Federal background checks law. Our bill would also fully protect the rights of the vast majority of gun owners who are law-abiding citizens.

Straw purchasing is intended to achieve one result: to put a gun in the hands of a criminal who cannot legally obtain one. Today, traffickers, in particular, exploit weaknesses in Federal law by targeting people who can lawfully purchase guns. Then, those traffickers use those guns to commit crimes or sell them to other criminals. They often ship them across State lines, straight up I-95's ``Iron Pipeline'' and other interstate highways. They frequently connect with criminal gangs that are ready to sell or trade those guns for prescription opioids, heroin, and fentanyl, and commit other crimes.

Yet right now, a straw purchaser can be prosecuted only for lying on a Federal form, a paperwork violation. Our bill would create new criminal offenses for straw purchasing, which would help law enforcement officials take down these criminal enterprises.

The heroin and fentanyl epidemic is taking a devastating toll on all of our communities. Police officers in Maine tell me about the familiar patterns they see: Drug dealers and gang members, often from out-of- State and with criminal records, cross into Maine and approach drug addicts to be their straw buyers, people with clean records who may legally purchase firearms. They target addicts, who exchange guns for heroin to support their drug dependencies, and the cycle repeats time and again.

I received a briefing from Federal law enforcement officials about a case in Maine fitting this exact pattern. Gang members trafficked crack cocaine and heroin between New Haven, CT, and Bangor, ME, and committed acts of violence including assaults, armed robberies, attempted murder, and murder. They traded narcotics for firearms and then distributed those firearms to other gang members. This is exactly the criminal activity our bill aims to prevent. And our bill would complement existing laws that target criminals who are profiting off of firearm and drug trafficking.

It is very difficult to prevent and prosecute straw purchasing offenses under current Federal law. As I stated, right now, a straw purchaser can be prosecuted only for lying on a Federal form, which amounts to a paperwork violation.

The Stop Illegal Trafficking in Firearms Act would create new, specific criminal offenses for straw purchasing and trafficking in firearms. Instead of a slap on the wrist, these crimes would be punishable by up to 15 years in prison. For those straw purchasers who know or have reasonable cause to believe that the firearm they are acquiring will be used to commit a crime of violence, that crime would be punishable by up to 25 years in prison.

Our bill would also strengthen existing laws that prohibit gun smuggling. Right now, it is illegal for someone to smuggle a firearm into the United States with the intent to engage in drug trafficking or violent crime. To combat the drug cartels operating across our southern border, however, we must also prohibit firearms and ammunition from being trafficked out of the United States for these illegal purposes. In doing so, our bill would provide an important tool to combat trafficking organizations that are exporting firearms and ammunition from the United States and into Mexico where they are used by drug cartels that are in turn fueling the heroin crisis here at home.

I also want to emphasize that our bill protects the Second Amendment right of law-abiding citizens. It protects legitimate private gun sales and is drafted to avoid sweeping in innocent transactions and placing unnecessary burdens on lawful, private sales. It expressly exempts certain transactions that are allowed under current law, such as gifts, raffles, and auctions. Furthermore, the bill expressly prohibits any authority provided by this act from being used to establish a Federal firearms registry.

The Stop Illegal Trafficking and Firearms Act will help keep guns out of the hands of criminals without infringing upon the constitutional rights of law-abiding citizens. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, helping students achieve their education and career goals has long been a priority for me. I come to the floor today to introduce two bipartisan bills. Both are aimed at helping students pursue higher education, complete their degrees, and have satisfying work lives.

Prior to my election to the Senate, I worked at Husson University in Bangor, ME. Many of Husson's students, for the most part, are first- generation college students. They are the first in their families to take that step of pursuing higher education.

I saw firsthand the importance of several Federal initiatives: Pell grants, work study, and TRIO--programs that are specifically aimed at students whose families have little or no experience at all with higher education.

The first bill that I am introducing today is the Educational Opportunity and Success Act. It would reauthorize and strengthen the Federal TRIO Programs.

I have been a longtime champion of TRIO. It helps students prepare for, succeed in, and graduate from college or other institutions of higher learning. I would like to thank Senators Tester, Capito, and Baldwin for joining me as original cosponsors.

Congress created the TRIO Programs because it recognized that low- income, first-generation college students often face significant obstacles to accessing and completing higher education. Our bipartisan bill would reauthorize these programs, modestly increase grant sizes, and make it easier for administrators to reach students who would benefit from TRIO.

The bill also updates the way that the programs are evaluated and streamlines the application process. The bill would also increase the small stipend for Upward Bound students. Upward Bound is one of the TRIO Programs. These stipends make their college visits more accessible. These visits are often the first time that these young people have experienced a college campus. And it would create a new stipend for veterans participating in the Veterans Upward Bound Program.

The Educational Opportunity and Success Act would also institute a commonsense process for correcting TRIO applications that have minor errors.

Now, let me give you a concrete example. In 2017, the Department of Education initially rejected dozens of Upward Bound applications based on arbitrary, nonsubstantive formatting criteria, such as line spacing or font size irregularities. The Department lost sight of the goal of serving students and instead focused on whether the formatting criteria were followed exactly correctly.

One of these applications was from the University of Maine at Presque Isle. It had used 1\1/2\ spacing instead of double spacing in text appearing in graphics in just two of the application's 65 pages.

Imagine that the application was not considered on its merits at all because of a spacing error that accompanied graphics on 2 pages of a 65-page application. The Department's bureaucratic decision would have denied 960 disadvantaged Maine high school students from the chance of fulfilling their academic potential.

After many months of advocacy, I worked with the Department of Education. I kept pressing the Department. And I worked with my Appropriations colleagues to reverse this ill-conceived policy. But it took Federal legislation to move the Department from its bureaucratic decision, which affected potentially 960 students in northern Maine. It affected students that were in other high schools as well across this country. I remember Montana was one of those that was affected.

The University of Maine at Presque Isle ultimately received its TRIO grant to serve those students. The bill that we are introducing today would prevent the Department of Education from rejecting applications simply on the basis of formatting criteria. This is a commonsense reform that will prevent unnecessary bureaucratic obstacles in the future. We should be making sure that Federal funds get out the door efficiently and focus on the students they are meant to serve.

I have met so many Maine TRIO students and have loved learning about their dreams for the future. One of them is a priest who serves in Skowhegan, ME. Neither of his parents went beyond the eighth grade. He, through the encouragement of the Upward Bound Program, went to Dartmouth and then on to the seminary and is now a priest.

Let me tell you about another outstanding individual, Jason Judd. Jason grew up in Athens, ME, a very small community. Jason said: I knew that education was the only way I could escape poverty. Upward Bound taught me how to be successful in education and encouraged me to pursue my passions.

Jason is a first-generation college graduate. With the support of Upward Bound, he went to the University of Maine at Farmington and earned his bachelor's degree. He chose to go into school administration. He received his master's degree from the University of Southern Maine in educational leadership and earned his doctorate from Northeastern University in organizational leadership studies.

Now, Jason is the executive director of Educate Maine, where he works to improve education in our State. TRIO put him on the path to success. And now Jason supports students just like

himself across the State of Maine, a real success story that TRIO helped make possible.

The TRIO Programs have changed the lives of first-generation students across Maine and the country, opening the doors to the opportunities provided by higher education. I would ask all of my colleagues to support this important legislation to extend and improve the TRIO Programs

Mr. President, the second bill I am introducing today is the Success for Rural Students and Communities Act. This bill would help students living in rural areas achieve their higher education goals and connect them with economic opportunities in their communities. I want to thank Senators Hassan, Cornyn, and Smith for introducing this legislation with me.

According to census data, two out of three Maine schools are in rural communities, and more than half of Maine students attend these schools. Ninety percent of Maine's students graduate from high school. That is great. But only 62 percent enroll in some kind of higher education right away. Unfortunately, an even lower percentage of Maine students go on to actually earn a degree or a credential. That often leaves them with student debts but without the credential or degree that they need.

Maine's experience is not unique. Rural students tend to graduate from high school at higher rates than their peers in urban districts and at about the same rate as their suburban peers, but fewer rural graduates enroll in college upon graduation than their urban and suburban counterparts. Our bill would authorize $60 million for demonstration grants to create community partnerships that help rural students access college and career pathways

Community stakeholders, such as local school districts, colleges, universities, regional economic development entities and community organizations, would join together to help students and their families navigate higher education opportunities and address barriers that too often stand in the way to their achievement.

For example, partnerships could work together to expose students to college campuses, courses, programs, and internships. They could focus on enrollment and completion rates of rural, nontraditional students, who may find that they need additional credentials or who once began but did not finish postsecondary education.

Today, as you well know, many of the employers require something more than a high school diploma--perhaps a college degree, a skilled trade credential, or a professional certificate. Our bill would encourage schools and local employers to work together to put students on pathways into the high-demand jobs available where they want to live. Several strategies could be developed and tested, including work-based learning opportunities like apprenticeships, internships, and a sequence of courses on the path to a certain skill or job.

In northern Maine, the Aroostook Aspirations Initiative is using this model successfully to help put students on pathways to academic and career success. The initiative collaborates with local businesses and with colleges and universities to offer seminars that guide students throughout their education. Students can team up with employers in the area through internships that give them the experience and the careers they wish to pursue.

Last year, I met, from Aroostook County, a student named Katelyn Amero, who came to Washington to talk about her career goals. Katelyn hopes to pursue a career in medicine. In 2019, Katelyn participated in the Emerging Rural Leaders program at the University of Chicago, which provides opportunities for rural high school students to enroll in college courses over the summer months. That program has helped put her on the path to becoming a physician.

The Success for Rural Students and Communities Act would support dynamic programs such as the Emerging Rural Leaders program and the Aroostook Aspirations Initiative. It would encourage other communities to innovate in similar ways.

Both bills I am introducing today would provide critical support for students across the country who are seeking to achieve their college and career dreams. I urge my colleagues to support both of these bills

Mr. President, I rise today to join my colleague from Arizona, Senator Sinema, in introducing legislation to support the ongoing operation of the national child abuse hotline, which is currently operated by Childhelp, a national non-profit. Of all the major national help hotlines, the crisis line for child abuse and neglect is the only one without a Federal authorization and dedicated funding. Our bill, the National Child Abuse Help Hotline Act of 2021, would give the Administration for Children and Families the authority to award funding to increase Federal support for this important hotline.

Tragically, on average, five children die every day from child abuse and neglect. According to the most recent Department of Health and Human Services' Child Maltreatment Report, 656,000 children were victims of child abuse and neglect in 2019, and a heartbreaking 1,770 children died--including three young children in Maine. The many stresses created by the COVID-19 pandemic have exacerbated the risks for vulnerable children, and I fear that the data from 2020 and 2021 will show a worsening crisis.

According to the CDC, ``heightened stress, school closures, loss of income, and social isolation resulting from . . . . the COVID-19 pandemic have increased the risk for child abuse and neglect.'' As Michelle Fingerman of Childhelp, the current operator of the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline, details: ``There is a wide range of fallout from pandemic anxiety and school shutdowns. There is more abuse already occurring in homes where caregivers are melting down from the stress, children are trapped at home with abusers, schools and daycare are closed, and therapists and other frontline providers are now more difficult to access.''

Despite these risks, official reports to child protection agencies have declined across the country, in some places by as much as seventy percent. But, fewer official reports does not mean abuse and neglect are on the decline. To the contrary, less in-person contact between children and mandated reporters like teachers, physicians, and coaches is one explanation for this reporting decline. Additionally, while the number of emergency department visits related to child abuse and neglect decreased in 2020, the percentage of visits severe enough to require hospitalization increased. Better access to prevention and intervention services can help stop these troubling trends.

The Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline is a resource that is accessible to children and families across the country, especially while many children are still not attending school in person full-time. A simple phone call or text to the hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child can connect people with those who can come to a child's aid before the unimaginable occurs. The hotline saw 11,573 contacts in May 2020, which is more than 40 percent higher than during May 2019. Childhelp's text and online chat platforms also experienced a significant volume increase last year. For the past few years, Congress has appropriated $1 million to pilot these platforms, and our legislation would help the grantee chosen by ACF expand its reach to more children and families.

The helpline serves a wide range of individuals in every single state--at-risk children, distressed parents seeking crisis intervention, and concerned individuals who suspect that child abuse may be occurring. In Maine, where one in every 71 children is a victim of abuse, the National Child Abuse Hotline assisted nearly 200 callers in 2019. Those in need are connected--either on the phone, text, or online

chat--with social workers who can offer confidential crisis intervention, information, and referrals to emergency, social service, and support resources.

The National Child Abuse Help Hotline Act would provide a meaningful Federal investment to protect children across the country, authorizing $2 million annually for the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) to award a grant to a nonprofit entity to support a 24-hour, national, toll-free telephone hotline. That hotline will get information and assistance to victims of child abuse or neglect, parents, caregivers, mandated reporters, and other concerned community members. This will not interfere with any state-mandated reporter hotlines and will bolster those state efforts. In fact, the current operator has more than 80 community partners in just Maine alone.

Mr. President, child abuse is preventable, and the helpline's prevention and intervention activities are both successful and well- documented. Consistent Federal support for the National Child Abuse Hotline will improve our ability to reach children of all ages, as well as parents or caregivers, during the pandemic and beyond. I urge my colleagues to support the adoption of this important legislation that could save lives.

Mr. President, I rise to introduce School Food Modernization Act to assist our schools in updating outdated kitchen equipment, allowing them to provide healthier meals to students. I also thank my colleague from Minnesota, Senator Smith, for cosponsoring this bill.

School meals play a vital role in the lives of so many of our children. As one school nutrition director from Maine recently told me, school meals are the ``foundation for student success.'' Nearly 100,000 schools participate in the National School Lunch program, serving 30 million children each day, helping to prevent hunger. Many children consume up to half their daily caloric intake at school, and some get their most nutritious meals of the day at school instead of at home. Because school meals are a significant source of daily nutrition for so many, we must consistently aim to improve the program to best serve students.

The COVID-19 pandemic has further highlighted the importance of school meals for many families. Across the country, schools and nutrition programs were adapted to remote and hybrid learning models during the pandemic. Nutrition programs in Maine and other states have tirelessly continued to support the nutritional needs of students despite school closures, with many schools offering as many as four or five meal delivery options to ensure families can continue to access food seven days a week. I met recently with school nutrition directors from Maine who said lack of equipment, including access to cold storage, has forced them to be even more creative in continuing to serve children across Maine during COVID-19. Many schools are using stoves from the 1960s and others lack adequate storage facilities to store the large amount of food needed to provide multi-day bulk meal bags for children and families who are learning remotely or attending school only part-time.

The fact is schools built decades ago often lack the equipment and infrastructure necessary to do more than reheat and serve one or two meal options each day. Even before the pandemic, nearly 90 percent of schools needed at least one piece of updated school kitchen equipment. It is estimated that Maine schools alone would need $58.8 million for equipment infrastructure upgrades needed to serve healthy meals to all of our students. The Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee, on which I serve, has consistently recognized this need and appropriated $30 million for School Equipment Assistance Grants last year. The School Food Modernization Act would codify and improve this successful grant program to better meet the growing need nationwide.

The School Food Modernization Act seeks to help school food service personnel offer a wide variety of nutritious and appealing meals to all students. First, the bill would provide targeted grant assistance to supply the seed funding needed to upgrade kitchen infrastructure or to purchase high-quality equipment. Second, it would establish a loan guarantee assistance program within USDA to help schools acquire new equipment. Finally, to aid school food services personnel in running successful, healthy programs, the legislation would authorize grants to support training and technical assistance for food service personnel.

Mr. President, I encourage my colleagues to continue supporting school kitchen equipment needs as the Child Nutrition Reauthorization process takes shape. If our children are going to be able to learn and meet their full potential, they need their minds and bodies to be fully nourished. This bill would help us achieve that goal.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, this is the time of year when people are calculating their taxes and filing their returns. There are inequities in our Tax Code, and the bill I am introducing today, the SALT Deduction Fairness Act, would help remedy one of these inequities. This bill would ensure that limits on State and local tax deductions, also known as SALT deductions, do not disproportionately and unfairly penalize married couples.

Currently, the amount in State and local taxes that both single and married filers may deduct from their annual income taxes is capped at $10,000. Single filers and married filers are treated the same, and married people who file their taxes separately are limited to $5,000 each. In other words, people would be better off not getting married when it comes to the SALT deduction. My bill removes this penalty by simply doubling the deduction to $20,000 for married filers.

This is the situation we have now: Two single people can both claim $10,000 worth of State and local income taxes as a deduction on their Federal returns, but if they get married, they can claim only $10,000 together. This is a classic example of a marriage tax penalty.

When the Senate considered the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act in 2017, I worked to keep the SALT deduction in the Federal Tax Code because of the increased tax burden its elimination would have imposed on many Mainers who pay property taxes on their seasonal cottages as well as their homes, who remit annual excise taxes on their vehicles, and who are subject to State income taxes.

The SALT deduction has been in the Tax Code since 1913, when the Federal income tax was first established. It is intended to protect families from double taxation, from essentially paying a tax on a tax.

The Senate adopted my amendment, which paralleled that of the House, to retain the deduction for State and local taxes up to $10,000. This deduction is especially important to families living in high-tax States, like Maine, which has one of our Nation's highest State taxes and where many residents own second homes, like camps on Maine's beautiful lakes. Last year, an analysis by WalletHub found that Maine had the fourth highest overall tax burden behind only New York, Hawaii, and Vermont. Yet Maine's median household income ranked only 35th in the Nation and was approximately $6,800 below the U.S. median household income. So maintaining this deduction provides important tax relief for those Mainers who continue to itemize their deductions. Yet we can do better. We can make the SALT deduction fairer by eliminating the marriage penalty that limits a married couple to just $10,000; whereas, if they were not married, they could each claim $10,000.

According to the U.S. Census, there are more than 60 million married couples living in our Nation. Our Tax Code should be fair to them. We should not create a situation in which married couples would have been better off financially, in terms of taxes, had they not married. One way to accomplish this goal is to double their access to deductions for the State and local taxes they pay, including from properties they share, such as their homes. This legislation would remedy this double taxation problem and eliminate the marriage tax penalty when it comes to the SALT tax deduction.

It boils down to this: We simply should not be unfairly penalizing American taxpayers for being married.

I urge my colleagues to support this commonsense bill to fix this marriage tax penalty

Mr. President, this is the time of year when people are calculating their taxes and filing their returns. There are inequities in our Tax Code, and the bill I am introducing today, the SALT Deduction Fairness Act, would help remedy one of these inequities. This bill would ensure that limits on State and local tax deductions, also known as SALT deductions, do not disproportionately and unfairly penalize married couples.

Currently, the amount in State and local taxes that both single and married filers may deduct from their annual income taxes is capped at $10,000. Single filers and married filers are treated the same, and married people who file their taxes separately are limited to $5,000 each. In other words, people would be better off not getting married when it comes to the SALT deduction. My bill removes this penalty by simply doubling the deduction to $20,000 for married filers.

This is the situation we have now: Two single people can both claim $10,000 worth of State and local income taxes as a deduction on their Federal returns, but if they get married, they can claim only $10,000 together. This is a classic example of a marriage tax penalty.

When the Senate considered the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act in 2017, I worked to keep the SALT deduction in the Federal Tax Code because of the increased tax burden its elimination would have imposed on many Mainers who pay property taxes on their seasonal cottages as well as their homes, who remit annual excise taxes on their vehicles, and who are subject to State income taxes.

The SALT deduction has been in the Tax Code since 1913, when the Federal income tax was first established. It is intended to protect families from double taxation, from essentially paying a tax on a tax.

The Senate adopted my amendment, which paralleled that of the House, to retain the deduction for State and local taxes up to $10,000. This deduction is especially important to families living in high-tax States, like Maine, which has one of our Nation's highest State taxes and where many residents own second homes, like camps on Maine's beautiful lakes. Last year, an analysis by WalletHub found that Maine had the fourth highest overall tax burden behind only New York, Hawaii, and Vermont. Yet Maine's median household income ranked only 35th in the Nation and was approximately $6,800 below the U.S. median household income. So maintaining this deduction provides important tax relief for those Mainers who continue to itemize their deductions. Yet we can do better. We can make the SALT deduction fairer by eliminating the marriage penalty that limits a married couple to just $10,000; whereas, if they were not married, they could each claim $10,000.

According to the U.S. Census, there are more than 60 million married couples living in our Nation. Our Tax Code should be fair to them. We should not create a situation in which married couples would have been better off financially, in terms of taxes, had they not married. One way to accomplish this goal is to double their access to deductions for the State and local taxes they pay, including from properties they share, such as their homes. This legislation would remedy this double taxation problem and eliminate the marriage tax penalty when it comes to the SALT tax deduction.

It boils down to this: We simply should not be unfairly penalizing American taxpayers for being married.

I urge my colleagues to support this commonsense bill to fix this marriage tax penalty

Mr. President, I rise to introduce the PPP Extension Act of 2021. I'm pleased to be joined in introducing this bill by my colleagues, Senators Cardin and Shaheen. Last March, the three of us, along with Senator Rubio, formed a Small Business Task Force that crafted the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP)--a forgivable loan program designed to help keep small employers afloat and their employees paid during the pandemic. The bipartisan bill that we are introducing today would simply extend the current application deadline for new PPP loans from March 31st to May 31st of this year, and then provide an additional 30-day period during which time the Small Business Administration may continue processing applications received prior to the new May 31st deadline. Representatives Velazquez, Luetkemeyer, Bourdeaux, and Kim (CA) have introduced a companion bill in the House.

The PPP has been hugely successful in helping our Nation's small businesses and nonprofits survive the pandemic and continue paying their employees. In 2020, more than five million small employers received forgivable PPP loans, helping to sustain upwards of 50 million American jobs. This includes more than 28,000 Maine small businesses, who received nearly $2.3 billion in forgivable PPP loans.

Recognizing the importance of this program for our Nation's small employers, the bipartisan December 2020 COVID-relief law provided an additional $284.5 billion to reopen the Paycheck Protection Program and allow the hardest hit small employers to receive a second forgivable loan. The December law also made other improvements to the PPP, such as expanding forgivable overhead expenses to include supplier costs and investments in facility modifications and personal protective equipment needed to operate safely.

Since reopening in January, more than two million additional forgivable loans--totaling nearly $165 billion--have been approved for small businesses across the Nation. In Maine, more than 10,000 small employers have been approved for more than $692 million in forgivable loans since PPP's reopening. In total, Maine small employers have been approved for nearly $3 billion in forgivable loans since the program was created last year.

I have heard from countless small employers about the impact this program has had on them and their employees. The owner of Shipyard Brewing Company in Portland told me that without the relief that PPP provided, his company would be bankrupt. The Ecology School, a non- profit environmental education program in Saco, would have had to lay off the majority of its staff without the support of two forgivable PPP loans. I've heard from the owners of Jeff's Catering in Brewer, the Poland Spring Resort, and the Hamilton Marine in Searsport that PPP helped keep their businesses alive and their employees paid.

With the ongoing distribution of COVID-19 vaccines and the promise of warmer weather throughout the Nation, there is a light at the end of the tunnel. We're not there yet, which is why we need to extend the deadline to apply for new loans. Extending the deadline would also help address concerns I continue to hear from Maine small employers about delays in the processing of new loan applications because of difficulty in resolving error messages generated by the Small Business Administration computer system.

By extending the PPP for another two months and then providing an additional 30 days after that time for the SBA to process applications that are still pending, this bill would help our Nation's small employers retain access to forgivable PPP loans. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.

Thank you, Mr. President.