The Senate Appropriations Committee has advanced the Fiscal Year 2026 Defense Appropriations Act, which includes substantial funding for defense programs in Maine. The bill, approved by a vote of 26-3, provides $851.9 billion in discretionary funding and now moves to the full Senate and House for further consideration.
Senator Susan Collins, Chair of the Appropriations Committee, announced her role in securing these provisions. “This legislation supports the brave men and women of our armed forces as well as the hardworking Mainers at BIW, PNSY, Pratt & Whitney, and elsewhere across the state, who make invaluable contributions to our nation’s defense,” said Senator Collins. “As the Chair of the Appropriations Committee, I will continue to advance this funding as the appropriations process moves forward.”
The bill includes a 3.8 percent pay raise for servicemembers and a 10 percent increase for junior enlisted personnel. It also maintains requirements for workforce development at key facilities such as Bath Iron Works (BIW) and Portsmouth Naval Shipyard (PNSY), including a mandate that no fewer than 100 apprentices be inducted at PNSY and each of the other shipyards.
For research initiatives, $27.5 million is allocated to Department of Defense projects that could benefit efforts at University of Maine (UMaine), with $10 million designated for UMaine’s Additive and Hybrid Manufacturing pilot facility.
The legislation also provides $44 million to support Marine Corps investments in amphibious and autonomous ground vehicle systems designed to improve operational effectiveness in contested environments. One platform highlighted is the Ripsaw Robotic Combat Vehicle developed by Howe & Howe Technologies in Waterboro, Maine. Senator Collins has promoted this technology as an example of innovation needed within the U.S. defense industrial base.
