On January 25, 2025, Maine Senator Susan Collins voted to confirm Kristi Noem as secretary of homeland security, and days later Noem's ICE put in place the policy allowing immigration arrests at houses of worship, which a federal appeals court said in October 2026 likely exposes worshipers to imminent harm. In March 2026 Collins voted to confirm Noem's successor, Markwayne Mullin, as the department kept limits on clergy visits to people in detention.
Collins also voted to confirm Secretary of State Marco Rubio, whose department cut off funding to the church agencies that resettle refugees, and Catholic Charities Maine closed its Greater Bangor refugee office in 2025, citing the suspension of refugee resettlement and the loss of federal funding.
Susan Collins's Confirmation Votes and the Pressure on Houses of Worship and Faith-Based Aid
- Collins Voted to Confirm Kristi Noem, Whose ICE Opened Houses of Worship to Immigration Arrests. On January 25, 2025, Susan Collins voted to confirm Kristi Noem as secretary of homeland security, and she was confirmed 59 to 34. The administration rescinded the long-standing limits on enforcement at churches, synagogues and mosques on January 20, 2025, in what became known as the "Huffman Memorandum", and Eleven days later, then-Acting ICE Director Caleb Vitello issued a more detailed policy memo under Noem, leaving supervisors to decide case by case. Twenty-seven Christian and Jewish groups sued, saying the new policy is spreading fear of raids, thus lowering attendance at worship services and keeping people from congregations that host on-site foodbanks, meal programs, homeless shelters and other support services. On October 20, 2026, the federal appeals court in Washington held that "Plaintiffs' members likely face imminent harm from increased enforcement at their houses of worship" and sent the case back to the district court.
- Collins Voted to Confirm Markwayne Mullin as Homeland Security Kept Clergy From Ministering to Detainees. On March 23, 2026, Susan Collins voted to confirm Markwayne Mullin as secretary of homeland security, and he was confirmed 54 to 45. Clergy in Minnesota filed a lawsuit Feb. 23 against the Department of Homeland Security over being barred from giving spiritual care to detainees at a federal building in Minneapolis and later won a court order, and under Mullin, the Archdiocese of St. Louis filed a federal lawsuit Oct. 5, 2026, over a no-contact policy that prohibits priests from distributing holy Communion to people held by ICE, the National Catholic Reporter reported.
- Collins Voted to Confirm Marco Rubio, Whose State Department Cut Off Church Refugee Agencies and Faith-Based Aid. On January 20, 2025, Susan Collins voted to confirm Marco Rubio as secretary of state, and he was confirmed 99 to 0. Rubio's department abruptly halted funding for its refugee resettlement program run by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, and The halt resulted in layoffs of 50 people in the conference, which then ended its federal refugee partnerships; Catholic Charities agencies have both laid off employees, and halted their refugee resettlement programs. As acting head of USAID, Rubio canceled most of its programs, and Two of the 12 largest non-governmental recipients of USAID funds are faith-based; Catholic Relief Services braced for cuts of as much as 50% of its staff. The administration also set the refugee ceiling for fiscal 2026 at up to 7,500 refugees, down from up to 125,000 refugees the year before.
What the Religious Freedom Rollbacks Under Susan Collins's Confirmations Mean for Maine
- Refugee resettlement. Catholic Charities Maine closed its Greater Bangor refugee and immigration services office on June 30, 2025, citing the administration's suspension of refugee resettlement, the loss of federal funding, and the small number of refugee clients there, so refugees in the Bangor area lost their nearest resettlement office.
- Houses of worship. Churches across Maine, like those across the country, no longer have the protection from immigration arrests that the federal government had kept For more than thirty years, according to the October 2026 opinion of the federal appeals court in Washington.
Frequently Asked Questions About Susan Collins on Religious freedom
What is Susan Collins's record on religious freedom under Trump?
Susan Collins voted to confirm Homeland Security Secretaries Kristi Noem and Markwayne Mullin, whose department carried out the policy allowing immigration arrests at houses of worship and limited clergy visits to people in detention. She voted to confirm Secretary of State Marco Rubio, whose department cut off the Catholic bishops' refugee program and faith-based foreign aid, and in Maine Catholic Charities closed its Greater Bangor refugee office.
Can ICE make arrests at churches under the officials Susan Collins confirmed?
Yes. After Susan Collins voted to confirm Kristi Noem, ICE adopted a policy that lets supervisors approve enforcement at houses of worship case by case, with no "bright line rules", according to the federal appeals court in Washington, which found in October 2026 that worshipers likely face imminent harm and sent the case back to the district court.
How did the refugee cuts under the secretary of state Susan Collins confirmed affect Maine?
Susan Collins voted to confirm Marco Rubio in January 2025, and after his department halted refugee resettlement funding, Catholic Charities Maine closed its Greater Bangor refugee office, citing the loss of federal funding. The national refugee ceiling for fiscal 2026 fell to 7,500.
Last updated: 2026-10-25