After its funding was cut by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Maine Sea Grant may yet keep its head above water. Wednesday, U.S. Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) and Maine State Rep. Holly Stover (D-Boothbay) announced separate efforts at the state and federal levels to re-fund the program. 

Collins announced March 5, the Department of Commerce (DOC), which oversees NOAA, has agreed to renegotiate funding for Maine Sea Grant to better align with the Trump administration’s priorities. According to her office, Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick is directing NOAA to renegotiate the program’s work to ensure it focuses on advancing Maine’s coastal economies, working waterfronts and sustainable fisheries.   

“I appreciate the Secretary’s willingness to work together to ensure that Maine Sea Grant can continue to conduct research, support a robust pipeline of skilled labor, and ensure that our coastal economies remain profitable hubs for fishermen, lobstermen, and hospitality workers ...," Collins said.  

According to Maine Sea Grant, a 2023 federal investment of $1.5 million contributed to $23.5 million in documented economic benefits. They also reported creating or supporting 332 Maine businesses and 565 jobs in 2023; the program has 20 employees. Collins’ office reported Maine Sea Grant has more than 700 established partnerships with businesses, researchers, community organizations and local and county governments. 

NOAA announced Feb. 28, funding for the $4.5 million award was discontinued, and the award was immediately terminated. The award had just begun year two of a four-year cycle. The agency said activities proposed for the second year of the award “are no longer relevant to the focus of the Administration’s priorities and program objectives.”        

In a memo March 5, NOAA’s Vice Admiral Nancy Hann said the DOC is committed to engaging in bilateral negotiations to modify the Year Two award requirements and related funding for Maine Sea Grant after conversations with Collins and her staff.   

“Through these bilateral negotiations, the Department will ensure that the American people, including hardworking Mainers like lobstermen and fishermen, receive the benefit of the bargain consistent with the Administration’s priorities and continued relevance to program objectives,” Hann said.   

U.S. Sen. Angus King (I-ME) and Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (D-ME) sent a letter to Lutnick March 5. They asked the federal government to honor its commitment to Maine, and demanded answers for what they called NOAA’s “ill-advised” and “reckless” decision. Neither NOAA memo specified what activities were unaligned with the administration’s priorities, and it is unclear what changes Maine Sea Grant would have to make to match them.

“NOAA’s justification for this decision—claiming that Maine Sea Grant’s work is ‘is no longer relevant to the focus of the Administration’s priorities and program objectives’—is both perplexing and deeply troubling,” they said. “Maine Sea Grant has been a longstanding partner of NOAA and other federal agencies since 1971. Additionally, it is worth noting that we are unaware of any similar terminations at other Sea Grant programs, leading us to believe that Maine’s program has been unfairly singled out.”  

At the state level, Stover announced March 5 that she introduced an emergency bill to fund Maine Sea Grant. Stover’s proposal would transfer up to $3 million from the Rainy Day Fund to replace the cut federal funding over the next two years.  

“We certainly really appreciate the effort being put forth by our federal delegation to address the loss of funding to the Maine Sea Grant program,” Stover told the Register. She added, the efforts are complementary. “However, we have to all do everything that we can to look towards restoration of the funds to keep the program that has existed for (almost) 55 years in place.” 

Stover said, if federal grants are restored, funding would be returned to Maine’s Rainy Day Fund. Her bill requires approval by the bipartisan Legislative Council before it can be considered by the full Legislature. She hopes the council can review it in the next few weeks. 

“The Maine Sea Grant has served as a crucial investment in our coastal communities for more than a half century,” Stover said in a statement. “It is baffling and frankly indefensible that the federal government would suddenly roll back this funding without any warning or valid explanation. I am submitting this bill as a backstop, because if we aren’t able to restore the Maine Sea Grant, it will have devastating effects on our fishermen, their families and communities, and our economy statewide.”