AUGUSTA – A measure sponsored by Rep. Morgan Rielly, D-Westbrook, that would develop a Working Waterfront Infrastructure Engineer Corps recently received $90,000 in funding support for fiscal year 2026-27 from the Maine House and Senate. The bill was signed by Gov. Janet Mills yesterday.
LD 1433 will establish the Working Waterfront Infrastructure Engineer Corps Pilot Program for undergraduate and graduate students to further examine and address issues impacting Maine’s working waterfronts by developing expertise in engineering, planning and permitting to restore and protect the working waterfront and other vulnerable infrastructure. Further, the measure directs the Maine Commission for Community Service to study the feasibility of developing a higher education service corps program and report their findings to the Legislature’s Education and Cultural Affairs Committee as well as the State and Local Government Committee by Dec. 3, 2025.
The bill will provide funding to the University of Maine System to support the pilot program.
“The extreme winter storms in December 2023 and January 2024 laid bare the workforce and capacity challenges to rebuild working waterfronts,” said Rielly. “The Working Waterfront Infrastructure Engineers Corps will present an opportunity for the state to develop more pathways into these roles and to increase the number of people with appropriate skills and experiences by recruiting Maine’s engineering students. It will expand on my work to create opportunities for national service programming and will be crucial in ensuring Maine’s coastal and island communities are resilient in the face of future storms.”
“This Engineer Corps Pilot Program is a potential boon for our working waterfronts,” said Rep. Julie McCabe, D-Lewiston. “Getting younger Mainers involved in this field would help to preserve and improve Maine’s aquaculture sector, as well as defend against the effects of climate change.”
“I am thrilled to see the passage of LD 1433,” said Sen. Rick Bennett, U-Oxford. “This is an innovative investment in our working waterfronts and our youth. LD 1433 pairs Maine’s engineering talent with the real needs of our coastal communities. It is a smart, pragmatic policy—building up vital marine infrastructure to brace for climate change while giving students practical, hands‑on experience that guarantees strong returns for our communities and the next generation of professionals.”
“The University of Maine looks forward to leveraging our engineering excellence and Maine Sea Grant’s deep connections to coastal communities to deliver meaningful hands-on research and service learning for our students and solutions to strengthen our state’s working waterfronts,” said Gayle Zydleweski, director of Maine Sea Grant.
Through community conversations over the last year in response to the destructive coastal storms of the winter of 2023-24, Maine Sea Grant has consistently heard a need for access to engineering solutions and services. During the two-year pilot funded by the Legislature, Maine Sea Grant will recruit and mentor UMaine undergraduate and graduate students to assist with coastal community risk assessment, resilience, engineering and infrastructure design, providing real-world engineering solutions that small Maine communities could otherwise not afford. The initiative is consistent with UMaine’s commitment to being a learner-centered R1 institution that prepares its students for success in the Maine workforce while providing direct service to the state.
Rielly is serving his third term in the Maine House of Representatives and is a member of the Joint Standing Committee on Marine Resources and the Joint Standing Committee on Environment and Natural Resources. He represents a portion of Westbrook.
Contact:
Brian Lee (Rielly, McCabe) | 305-965-2744