Mainebiz

W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 7 N OV E M B E R 2 8 , 2 0 2 2 Twenty-three fire departments and or- ganizations in Maine received a to- tal of $3.3 million to upgrade equip- ment and support personnel through the Fiscal Year (FY) 2021 Assistance to Firefighters Grants and the FY 2021 Staffing for Adequate Fire Emergency Response Grants. U.S. Environmental Protection Agen- cy awarded $13.3 million to 13 school districts in Maine as part of its Clean School Bus Program rebate competi- tion. The funding will help school dis- tricts purchase 34 clean school bus- es, including 11 clean, zero-emission school buses in the town of Wells. The state of Maine was awarded $42.5 million through the Department of Health and Human Services' Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, which pro- vides funding to help low-income house- holds pay their energy bills. The U.S. Department of Justice's Office for Victims of Crime and Office on Vio- lence Against Women announced that five Maine tribes received a total of $2 million to fund victim assistance programs and to help compensate Native American victims for crime-related losses. The Maine Connectivity Authority re- ceived $5 million to support the de- velopment of a five-year action plan to close the broadband gap in rural Maine. The funding was authorized through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and provided through the Broadband Eq- uity, Access, and Deployment Program that was created and funded by the bi- partisan infrastructure law. Sappi North America Inc., a producer and supplier of paper, packaging products and pulp, announced that it completed the sale of its hydroelectric assets on the Presumpscot River to Dichotomy Power LLC, a green energy supplier based in Ridgefield, Conn. The city of South Portland complet- ed a 4.7-megawatt solar array atop its capped landfill. The array will generate an estimated 5.8 million kilowatt (kW) hours of renewable energy each year, offsetting 63% of the city's municipal electric load and 4,100 metric tons of annual carbon emissions, according to EPA statistics. The project was fi- nanced through Power Purchase Agree- ments managed by ReVision Energy. Schooley Mitchell, an indepen- dent cost reduction consulting firm, announced that it has expanded its services into Maine. Southern Maine Community College in South Portland said it received a donation in excess of $1 million from a longtime, anonymous donor to benefit students in hands-on trade programs looking to en- ter the workforce after graduating. C R E D I T S & D E B I T S N O T E W O R T H Y S T A T E W I D E S T A T E W I D E N O T E W O R T H Y S O U T H E R N S O U T H E R N Maine businesses will see $23.7M in unemployment tax cuts in 2023 — Welcome relief, courtesy of relief funds With holiday shopping season coming up, Waterville unveils revamped downtown — Two-way traffic pattern is only part of the upgrade Loring base eyed for production of synthetic jet fuel — Could mean up to 650 jobs in Aroostook County Split decision: Portlanders welcome all cruise ship passengers, Bar Harbor votes to restrict — Bar Harbor voters turn back on tourism economy Home costs keep rising but sales slide — Tight inventory and rising interest rates are a double-whammy for prospective homebuyers P H O T O / C O U R T E S Y O F T H E M A I N E D E PA R T M E N T O F L A BO R "This is welcome news for Maine employers," said Department of Labor Commissioner Laura Fortman.

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