Congressional Delegation Updates

Supporting Maine’s Forest Products Industry

By: Sen. Susan M. Collins

Throughout Maine’s history, our forest products industry has created good-paying jobs, driven local economies, and sustained rural communities. It is a linchpin of our State’s economy, generating an estimated $619 million in economic output and providing $342 million in income to around 9,000 Mainers.

Across the nation, this vital industry was already facing significant headwinds due to a changing 21st century economy and unfair trade practices. Here in Maine, the industry is further hampered by the explosion at the Androscoggin Mill in Jay, the shutdown of the paper machine at Sappi in Westbrook, and the announcement by Seven Islands that it shut down its contractors through September.

COVID-19 has only compounded these challenges. The logging industry has experienced a steep decline in demand for wood fiber since the coronavirus pandemic began, leading to an estimated 20 percent or more drop in the timber harvest this year.

Maine’s family logging and timber hauling businesses need our support. That is why I have joined

Pushing Relief for the Forest Economy in Washington

For generations, Maine’s loggers and truckers have worked in tough conditions to get the job done. No matter the challenge, you’ve used innovation and hard work to overcome obstacles and make vital contributions to your community, your state, and your country.

But right now, the challenges you’re facing are unlike anything we’ve dealt with before ranging from health risks to economic dynamics. The coronavirus pandemic’s ripple effects are hitting the forest industry hard financially. Economic uncertainty has created sharp and rapid downturns in markets for forest products, including a significant decrease in pulp and paper manufacturing. There’s no amount of hard work or innovation that can overcome that; it’s the simple law of supply and demand.

That’s why it is so critical that Congress steps up, and makes sure that America’s critical forest products industry and all the loggers who rely on it to make a living can make it through this crisis. This industry is a major foundational piece of American manufacturing, with Rep. Jared Golden to introduce the bipartisan, bicameral Loggers Relief Act that would provide critical financial assistance to the skilled professionals who work in this industry in order to help them get through this difficult period. and the economic pillar of rural communities across the country.

Our bill would establish a new program at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to provide direct payments to timber harvesting and hauling businesses that can demonstrate they have experienced significant economic hardship compared to the previous year. These businesses would qualify for direct payments from the USDA.

Specifically, our legislation would provide payments to eligible log harvesting and hauling businesses that have experienced at least a 10 percent loss in revenues as compared to the same timeframe last year. Those who qualify would receive direct payments and would only be permitted to use the funds for operating expenses, including payroll.

I come from a forest-products family. There are few enterprises that require more faith in the future and respect for the past. It is essential that existing, generations-old businesses are supported at this difficult time. It also is essential that young people in forestproducts families have the opportunity to live and prosper in the communities they love. As the industry continues to cope with the impact of the pandemic, I remain committed to pushing for direct assistance for our loggers.

I want you to know – you have allies, fighting like hell for you in Washington. With a bipartisan group of Senators, including Senator Collins and Representative Golden, we are pushing for economic relief for the logging industry. We’ve introduced the Loggers Relief Act, which would provide direct aid to loggers, just as relief funds have been extended to farmers and other agricultural producers. At the same time, we’re pushing the Department of Agriculture to use its powers to make this type of aid immediately available.

I’ll keep you updated as our fight continues and, as always, I’m here to help. If you have ideas or questions, please reach out to my team by visiting king.senate.gov. Take care, and be safe – we will get through this challenge, together.

For generations, logging has provided Mainers with good, reliable, and steady jobs that can support families, helping to bring about the middle class and thriving rural economies.

The COVID-19 pandemic has drastically reduced demand for raw wood material consumption, leading to devastating impacts to the logging industry in Maine and across the country. A recent survey conducted by the Professional Logging Contractors of Maine found that 88 percent of survey respondents, who are loggers and forest truckers, have been negatively affected by the coronavirus crisis. Additionally, the Jay mill explosion and Sappi mill closures have caused hardships for Maine’s loggers this year. When the Sappi Paper Machine 9 closed and pulp production stopped at Pixelle’s Jay mill, it was a sobering reminder of the many struggles the logging industry faces.

Family logging businesses in Maine need support from policymakers at all levels of government. Congress must step up to protect jobs within the logging industry and provide targeted, direct relief. Similar to the programs set up for farmers or fishermen, loggers should be eligible to receive direct relief from the federal government. That’s why I’ve cosponsored the Loggers Relief Act along with the rest of the Maine delegation.

It’s been a challenging six months for folks all across the Second District, but it’s been particularly tough for loggers. Stagnating prices for wood fiber are hitting the industry especially hard during COVID-19, and the explosion in Jay this past April put the jobs of many hardworking Mainers at risk. Maine loggers and truckers need serious action from Congress to make it through the coronavirus pandemic.

That’s why I have proposed legislation tailored specifically to loggers and logging small businesses. I told you last time about that bill – the Logger’ s Relief Act – which I was preparing to introduce with Congressman David Rouzer (NC-07). Well, we brought that bill in the House as planned, and Senator Susan Collins (RME) and Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) joined us in introducing companion legislation in the U.S. Senate.

The Loggers Relief Act would give the same kind of emergency relief that farmers and fishermen are getting during the coronavirus pandemic to loggers and truckers, too. Under the bill, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) would make low-interest loans available for folks in the logging industry who have been hit the hardest by COVID-19.

The bill is showing signs of momentum in both chambers of Congress. The Loggers Relief Act has 17 other bipartisan cosponsors in the House, including 11 Republicans. In the Senate, the bill has 5 additional cosponsors including Senator Angus King to help push it forward. I’ll keep working to get more Members of Congress on board, and to get that bill to the House floor.

This bipartisan, bicameral legislation would establish a new United States Department of Agriculture program to provide direct financial relief for this vital industry, which has experienced an estimated 20 percent drop in timber harvest due to the pandemic. Much like the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program for farmers, the Loggers Relief Act would provide direct payments to logging and log trucking businesses that can demonstrate they’ve experienced significant economic hardship compared to last year.

Our state’s logging industry employs around 9,000 Mainers, most of whom live in rural communities. As a member of the House Appropriations Committee, I will continue to prioritize federal funding to ensure these jobs exist far into the future. I hope House and Senate leaders incorporate the Loggers Relief Act in our next coronavirus relief bill because our rural economy relies on this industry.

Beyond the Loggers Relief Act, I’m still working hard to help all Maine small businesses, including the ones that belong to logging families. So, in July, I introduced the bipartisan RESTART Act

The RESTART Act is a lot like the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), offering loans to small businesses who need them, but with some key differences.

Specifically, it would allow small business owners more flexibility when choosing how to spend their loan, while still keeping them eligible for loan forgiveness. That means you could spend more of any loan you receive under RESTART on utility costs, payments on mortgages, and equipment. I am continuing to press House leadership to include the RESTART Act in a future COVID-19 relief package.

If you have suggestions about how I can work for you or your family here in Congress, or you need help navigating federal programs during the pandemic, we’re still available every week to hear from you.

If we can assist you, please contact one of my offices below:

▪ Bangor Office: 6 State Street, Bangor ME 04401. Phone: (207) 249-7400

▪ Caribou Office: 7 Hatch Drive, Suite 230, Caribou ME 04736. Phone: (207) 492-6009

▪ Lewiston Office: 179 Lisbon Street, Lewiston ME 04240. Phone: (207) 241-6767

▪ Washington Office: 1223 Longworth HOB, Washington DC 20515. Phone: (202) 225-6306

Please feel free to flag any questions or concerns you may have for me – and thank you!