February 10

Washington Notebook: King, Collins earn praise for roles on committee

By Kevin Miller kmiller@mainetoday.com
Washington Bureau Chief

(Continued from page 1)

click image to enlarge

Independent Sen. Angus King and Republican Sen. Susan Collins

2012 file photo/The Associated Press

The society would later be renamed the Portland Museum of Art, according to information on the museum's website. The house -- along with the adjacent L.D.M. Sweat Memorial Galleries, which Mrs. Sweat ordered built in her husband's memory -- are a major part of the museum today.

POSTAL FLAP

Maine Reps. Mike Michaud and Chellie Pingree, both Democrats, sent a letter to the postmaster general of the U.S. Postal Service last week requesting additional information on the decision to eliminate Saturday mail delivery.

While packages will still be delivered on Saturdays, Pingree and Michaud raised concerns about payroll, Social Security checks and prescription drugs that may not be considered packages.

"With service standard changes implemented in the last year, a check previously mailed on a Friday within our state could take an additional three days for delivery," the two representatives wrote in their letter to Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe. "What studies has the USPS conducted in regard to the impact of such delivery changes on the economies of rural communities? What contingency plans has the USPS developed to ensure that consumers still receive these vital items in a timely fashion?"

SEXUAL ASSAULT HEARING

A Maine native who testified before Congress last year about sexual assault in the military is once again lending her voice -- as well as her name -- to an effort to help other assault survivors.

Ruth Moore of Milbridge will be back in Washington for a news conference announcing a bill that aims to make it easier for survivors of "military sexual trauma" to receive benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs.

The bill, named the Ruth Moore Act of 2013, is being sponsored by Pingree and Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont. The measure would relax the evidentiary requirements for veterans seeking VA disability benefits for sexual assault.

Moore went public with her own story last July for the first time after 23 years. As a Navy enlistee, she was raped twice by her superior officer but her assailant was never punished. Moore has said she was never fully treated for the attack and has struggled to receive disability benefits from the VA after decades of emotional problems stemming from the attack.

Washington Bureau Chief Kevin Miller can be contacted at 317-6256 or at:

kmiller@mainetoday.com

 

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