In The News
Sen. Shaheen says COVID-19 cases in White House, Senate should be 'wake-up call' for nation
by Adam Sexton
MANCHESTER, N.H. - Sen. Jeanne Shaheen has said the president and first lady's COVID-19 positive diagnoses are a wake-up call for the country. Shaheen said the slew of cases among top Republicans in the White House and Senate should prompt action on a new relief bill, when it is safe to reconvene. Shaheen said she wished the president, first lady, her Republican colleagues and everyone testing positive for COVID-19 a full recovery, but she believes the cluster of cases traced to the White Hous… Continue Reading
October 04, 2020
National Flight Simulator named Veteran-owned business of the year
by Jonathan Phelps
MANCHESTER - Steve Cunningham launched National Flight Simulator after buying a flight simulator. "I would like to think it was a brilliant business plan, but it was by accident," he told a crowd gathered at his leased space at the Manchester Regional Airport. Now, he operates five state-of-the-art simulators and is the only insurance company-approved simulator-based training center in New England. "I went from one sim in a broom closet to all of this," he said. On Friday, Cu… Continue Reading
October 04, 2020
Somersworth officials nervous as pandemic continues to take economic toll
by Kimberley Haas
Leaders in the city of Somersworth are worried they will have to cut essential services for residents due to the economic fallout associated with COVID-19. Somersworth, which borders Maine, is the smallest of Strafford County's tri-cities. With a population of just under 12,000 people, they do not have the same tax base as neighboring Dover and Rochester, but residents face many of the same social issues. "We have a lot of families that are food insecure," Superintendent Robert Gadomsk… Continue Reading
September 29, 2020
NH loan fund to get $557K to help small businesses
CONCORD (AP) - A total of $557,000 is going to the New Hampshire Community Loan Fund to support small businesses and promote economic growth in communities amid the pandemic, the state's congressional delegation said Tuesday. "As the economic fallout spurred by this pandemic worsens, it is essential that New Hampshire businesses have the support they need to survive this crisis," U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, a Democrat, said in a statement. U.S. Sen. Maggie Hassan, a Democrat, said the fund "is p… Continue Reading
September 26, 2020
Sen. Shaheen: More work to be done to streamline PPP forgiveness loans
by Adam Sullivan
LEBANON, N.H. (WCAX) - Senator Jeanne Shaheen says more work needs to be done to streamline the forgiveness process for PPP loans. Goekon is one of the thousands of businesses in New Hampshire to receive a total of $2.5 billion in assistance. The company makes measuring equipment for infrastructure and mining projects. While businesses say PPP was a life safer for their bottom line, there is concern the forgiveness application is overly cumbersome, which could unintentionally end up saddling … Continue Reading
September 25, 2020
EPA approves dredging site off coast of Maine, New Hampshire
PORTSMOUTH (AP) - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has designated an area about 12 miles off the coast of Portsmouth as a long-term disposal site for dredging material from Maine, New Hampshire and northern Massachusetts, the agency announced Friday. The Isles of Shoals North Disposal Site meets a need in a region where there are no EPA-designated, long-term disposal sites for dredged material. The only active site, off Cape Arundel, Maine, was previously closed, then reopened, and will… Continue Reading
September 24, 2020
Bias in U.S. Military Promotions Cited as Senators Offer Measure
by Josyana Joshua and Daniel Flatley
Two senators on the Foreign Relations Committee introduced a measure aimed at reducing bias in military promotions by withholding some identifying information from the boards that decide on them. In an effort to reduce biased choices tied to race or gender, Senators Todd Young, a Republican from Indiana, and Jeanne Shaheen, a New Hampshire Democrat, want the Pentagon to exclude information including a candidate's name, gender, age and race. Photographs would also be banned. "Removing bias and … Continue Reading
September 23, 2020
Strafford County gets federal money for economic push amid pandemic
by Kyle Stucker
ROCHESTER - The federal government has allocated $379,131 in COVID-19 relief funds to create a new economic recovery coordinator position to assist Strafford County municipalities and businesses. The Strafford Regional Planning Commission position is designed to provide new resources and strategic planning assistance to the region, both to help with the impacts of the pandemic as well as with the communities' other development challenges. In announcing their application for the funding last mo… Continue Reading
September 22, 2020
U.S. trial of Foley killers 'steps closer,' Shaheen says
by Kevin Landrigan
Two ISIS terrorists accused of killing former New Hampshire resident and freelance war correspondent James Foley and three other American hostages are "several steps closer" to trial in a U.S. court, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen said Tuesday. British authorities on Tuesday confirmed they gave to U.S. officials evidence widely seen as pivotal to building a case against El Shafee Elsheikh and Alexanda Kotey. "This is very welcome news and a critical step to ending the legal limbo that has stalled… Continue Reading
September 22, 2020
Delegation urges Air Force to provide water to Newington homeowners
by Jeff McMenemy
NEWINGTON - Members of the state's congressional delegation are calling for the Air Force to provide safe drinking water for five Newington homeowners whose wells have tested above the state's new, more protective PFAS standards. In a letter signed by U.S. Sens. Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan, along with U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas, they note "there are five properties in the town of Newington ... participating in ongoing private water supply well monitoring. Currently, the owners and residents of… Continue Reading
September 21, 2020
Shaheen Tours UNH Testing Lab As School Nears 100,000 Completed COVID Tests
by Todd Bookman
The University of New Hampshire has processed more than 99,000 COVID-19 tests since July. The high volume, according to school officials, is allowing the school to identify and isolate positive cases rapidly before they can spread. The school's model is drawing praise from state and local officials, including Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, who toured the school's testing center on Monday. UNH is requiring students to get tested at least twice a week. Students are provided with saline solution and nasal … Continue Reading
September 20, 2020
NH businesses hit by USPS slowdown; pols push for solutions
by Jonathan Phelps
The U.S. Postal Service's well-publicized delivery problems of the past few months have severely handicapped New Hampshire businesses, especially those in rural areas, as they try to rebound from the pandemic's crippling economic effects. Electronic Imaging Materials, a specialty-label manufacturing company in Keene, relies on the Postal Service to receive materials and ship its products domestically and internationally. Recently, one shipment took eight days to arrive from Brattleboro… Continue Reading
September 16, 2020
CDC officials say COVID vaccine for ‘general public’ not available till spring or summer
WASHINGTON (WCAX) - U.S. health officials believe a coronavirus vaccine will be available later this year, but when will the public get it? At Wednesday's Senate Appropriations Hearing, CDC Director Robert Redfield said the vaccine could become available in November or December, but only a limited supply. Redfield says it likely won't be available to the general public until the second or third quarter of 2021. New Hampshire Senator Jeanne Shaheen questioned Assistant Secretary of Health and H… Continue Reading
September 15, 2020
Manchester receives $82,000 federal law enforcement grant
by Andrew Sylvia
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Last week U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) announced that the Manchester Police Department will receive $82,000 through the Law Enforcement Mental Health and Wellness Act Program, which is operated by the DOJ's Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) Office. The Law Enforcement Mental Health and Wellness Act Program promotes peer mentoring health and wellness, supports suicide prevention programs and invests in improving access to mental health and wellness for law enfo… Continue Reading
September 10, 2020
Shaheen: New system to help ships, subs navigate Piscataqua River
New technology will helps ships and submarines navigate the Piscataqua River. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., vice chair of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee that funds the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, announced Thursday the agency will install a new marine navigational system at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. The Physical Oceanographic Real-Time System, or PORTS, is an integrated series of sensors which provide critical, real-time information on oceanographic and meteoro… Continue Reading
September 07, 2020
Veterans building homes for veterans in the Gate City
by Kimberly Houghton
The Greater Nashua Habitat for Humanity broke ground Friday on its newest home that will be occupied by two veteran families. "We have veterans building for veterans," said Scott Slattery, executive director of the Greater Nashua Habitat for Humanity, explaining the volunteer team that will be helping to construct the two-unit home consists of several area veterans. The organization is constructing the home at 10 Paxton Terrace in Nashua, which is currently vacant property on a small q… Continue Reading
September 04, 2020
Principal gets a high-profile story reader: Sen. Shaheen
by Lloyd Jones
CONWAY - On Thursday, Pine Tree School Principal Aimee Frechette got her first night off in 175 days from her self-appointed task of reading bedtime stories online each night to her students. However, she had a more than capable fill-in - Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.). What started as a two-week way to feel connected to students during the COVID-19 pandemic became a nightly ritual for Frechette. The principal of the Center Conway K-6 school began reading a picture book a night on the sc… Continue Reading
September 03, 2020
Trump Is Trying To Rig The Census And Hopes You Won’t Notice, Key Senator Warns
by Jennifer Bendery
WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump is trying to rig the 2020 census for political gain and his administration's effort to quietly rush the national headcount will leave millions of people ? particularly communities of color ? politically weakened for at least a decade, a key senator is warning. "They don't really want the American people to know what's going on with the census," New Hampshire Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, the top Democrat on the Senate subcommittee charged with funding the census, … Continue Reading
September 03, 2020
Shaheen and Gregg tour Rye Harbor ahead of dredging
RYE - U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen and former U.S. Sen. Judd Gregg together visited Rye Harbor on Wednesday and received an update on dredging operations scheduled to begin this fall. The dredging is necessary to combat the severe shoaling that has rendered parts of the waterway difficult to navigate. During their visit, Shaheen, a Democrat, and Gregg, a Republican, met with state and local officials, including the Geno Marconi, director of New Hampshire Ports and Harbors, and the Rye harbor master… Continue Reading
September 01, 2020
New Hampshire entertainment venue operators dread audience fear of returning
by Liisa Rajala
U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen met Monday with representatives of New Hampshire's entertainment venues to learn how another federal relief package could be of assistance. But it quickly became apparent that money alone was not going to save New Hampshire's arts and culture scene. "I'm so grateful for the size of the NERF [NH Nonprofit Emergency Relief Fund] we got because we can set that aside and pay our bills," said Nicki Clarke, the Capitol Center for the Art's executive director, referring to a s… Continue Reading
