Press Releases
Merkley, Wyden, Blumenauer Announce $11 Million for the Historic Columbia River Highway Project
Washington, D.C. - Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden and U.S. Representative Earl Blumenauer (OR-03) announced today the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) is awarding the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) $11 million to make further progress on the final segment of its sweeping project to reconnect the Historic Columbia River Highway. The federal funding comes through a Fiscal Year 2024 Nationally Significant Federal Lands and … Continue Reading
May 24, 2024
Wyden Introduces Fair Repair Act
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden today introduced the Fair Repair Act, legislation to guarantee consumers and small businesses a right to repair their own products by requiring manufacturers to make diagnostic repair information, parts, and tools readily available. “When you buy something, you shouldn’t have to pay extra, or ask special permission from a corporation just to get it fixed,” said Senator Wyden. “The Fair Repair Act is a common-sense step to put users in control of the … Continue Reading
May 24, 2024
Following Horrific Findings at FCI Sheridan, Oregon Lawmakers Demand Federal Bureau of Prisons Address Staffing Shortages and Other Alarming Risks
Washington, D.C. - Oregon’s congressional delegation—U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley, alongside U.S. Reps. Earl Blumenauer, Suzanne Bonamici, Andrea Salinas, and Val Hoyle — today demanded the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) Director take swift action to address staffing shortages, inmate medical needs, and other alarming issues that put staff and inmates at risk. The lawmakers wrote BOP Director Colette Peters after findings were issued this week from the Department of Justice … Continue Reading
May 24, 2024
Wyden, Merkley Announce NOAA Recommendations for Oregon Fish Passage Projects
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today announced the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries’ recommendations for Oregon fish passage projects funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act. “Salmon and other native fish are so central to our culture and economies here in Oregon, and it is essential to help recovery efforts after years of population decline,” Wyden said. “These projects are vital to restoring and … Continue Reading
May 23, 2024
Wyden Statement on Senate Republicans Blocking Debate on Bipartisan Immigration Bill
Washington, D.C. - Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., released the following statement today after Senate Republicans blocked debate on the bipartisan immigration bill for a second time: “I continue to hear from Oregonians concerned about our broken immigration system and who want Congress to act on comprehensive solutions to address today’s challenges. This is why I voted today - and earlier this year - to advance essential debate on bills that reflect true, bipartisan compromise. “Just like … Continue Reading
May 23, 2024
Heading into Warmer Summer Months, Wyden and Schrier Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Combat Catastrophic Wildfires
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Representative Kim Schrier, D-Wash., today reintroduced the bipartisan National Prescribed Fire Act of 2024, which would support pre-fire season prescribed burns as an essential, science-based strategy to save lives and property. In the 2022 Fiscal Year, 63 million acres of National Forest Service lands were at high or very high risk of being a wildfire hazard. Since vegetation continues to grow at an increased rate, the Forest Service … Continue Reading
May 23, 2024
Wyden, Merkley Join 13 Senators in Introduction of New Bill to Shine Light on Supreme Court’s Shadow Docket
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today joined 13 senators in introducing new legislation that would bring much-needed transparency to decisions on the U.S. Supreme Court’s emergency docket, also called the “shadow docket.” The Shadow Docket Sunlight Act would require a written explanation and vote count for any decision concerning injunctive relief, including decisions on the Supreme Court’s shadow docket, to provide clarity and consistency to judicial … Continue Reading
May 23, 2024
Wyden, Merkley Join Bipartisan Deliver for Democracy Act to Help Local News Overcome Persistent Postal Delays, Surging Rate Increases
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today joined the introduction of bipartisan legislation that would help local news outlets overcome their current crisis by providing incentives to ensure reliable postal service and limit excessive rate increases. The Deliver for Democracy Act comes in the wake of the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) consistently raising rates for periodicals under the guise of increased efficiency and improved service. However, local news has yet to … Continue Reading
May 23, 2024
Wyden, Merkley Reintroduce Legislation to Strengthen Accountability and Combat Discriminatory Police Practices
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today joined the reintroduction of legislation that would strengthen the U.S. Department of Justice’s and state governments’ ability to hold police and other officials accountable for discriminatory practices. After Michael Brown was fatally shot by a Ferguson, Missouri police officer in 2014, President Obama’s Justice Department launched a civil rights investigation, which concluded the Ferguson Police Department had a history of … Continue Reading
May 23, 2024
Wyden Secures New Protections for Intelligence Community Personnel Facing Political Firings and Whistleblower Retaliation
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., announced that he secured key protections for Intelligence Community personnel from political firings as part of the Intelligence Authorization Act that passed the Senate Intelligence Committee Wednesday evening. The Wyden provision ensures that personnel who are involuntarily moved from one employment status to another can retain their protections from firing. The provision also assures that if an intelligence community employee is fired … Continue Reading
May 22, 2024
Wyden, Merkley: NOAA Selects OMSI as Regional/National Heat Monitoring Center
Washington D.C.— U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today announced the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) in Portland will be NOAA’s Pacific Northwest hub for the Center for Collaborative Heat Monitoring, gathering local temperature data to support heat resilience in Oregon and throughout the country. “As the climate crisis worsens, heat is becoming an even more grave concern for vulnerable Oregonians without air conditioning as well as farmers dealing with drought and … Continue Reading
May 22, 2024
Wyden, Colleagues Call on Feds to Crack Down on Tax Prep Giants’ Ongoing Violations of Taxpayer Privacy
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, chair of the Senate Committee on Finance, today joined with four congressional colleagues to urge top federal officials to investigate use and disclosures of legally protected and sensitive taxpayer information by tax prep companies. The letter from Wyden and the four members of the Senate and House follows up on findings of the lawmakers’ July 2023 investigation that found H&R Block, TaxAct, and TaxSlayer had illegally shared the data of … Continue Reading
May 22, 2024
Wyden, 14 Democratic Senators Commend Biden on Historic Student Debt Relief Effort and Offer Feedback to Strengthen Proposal
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden said today he has joined 14 fellow senators in submitting a public comment letter to Secretary Miguel Cardona of the U.S. Department of Education on President Biden’s proposal to reduce or eliminate federal student loans for tens of millions of borrowers in Oregon and nationwide. Published in the Federal Register last month, the new proposal comes after the Supreme Court blocked President Biden’s original student debt forgiveness plan last summer. … Continue Reading
May 21, 2024
Wyden, Merkley, Colleagues Call to Strengthen Federal Pell Grant Program
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today joined Senate colleagues in calling on the Senate Appropriations Committee to secure funding for the Pell Grant program for Fiscal Year 2025. In the letter, the senators request a discretionary increase to the award as Congress works towards doubling the Pell Grant for students. “We remain concerned that the value of the Pell Grant has steadily declined since it was first created - now covering the lowest share of the cost of … Continue Reading
May 21, 2024
Merkley, Wyden Tout $9.8 Million Coming to Oregon for Brownfield Cleanup
Washington, D.C. - Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden announced $9,806,847 is coming to the state from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to support cleanup projects at brownfields sites, land that has been previously polluted or contaminated. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which Merkley and Wyden championed, added $1.5 billion to the EPA’s Brownfields Program to help assess and clean up contaminated properties and return blighted properties to productive reuse … Continue Reading
May 20, 2024
Wyden, Merkley Announce $5.5 Million to Replace Aging Water Infrastructure in Oregon
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley said today that Oregon will receive $5.5 million in federal funds from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act to replace aging water delivery infrastructure in communities across Oregon. “Access to reliable and safe water is essential for communities to thrive in rural and urban Oregon,” Wyden said. “Updating our water infrastructure not only prevents waste, but keeps communities thriving. This funding is a … Continue Reading
May 20, 2024
Wyden, Merkley, More Than 130 Lawmakers Tout Direct File’s Successes, Urge Biden Administration to Expand Program and Make Permanent
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley said today that they and more than 130 lawmakers sent a letter to U.S. Department of Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and IRS Commissioner Daniel Werfel, applauding the Direct File program’s success pilot and urging them to make it permanent while expanding its functionality and scope. The letter follows the 2024 tax season’s conclusion and the IRS Direct File program’s implementation in 12 pilot states which allowed taxpayers to … Continue Reading
May 17, 2024
Wyden Presses Federal Officials to Make Improvements Quickly at Roseburg VA
Washington, DC - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden today urged top federal Department of Veterans Affairs officials to act quickly to make improvements identified in a troubling new report that details how problems with staffing levels and electronic records at the Roseburg VA Health Care System are undermining care for veterans. Wyden’s letter to Dr. Teresa Boyd of the VA Northwest Health Network Office follows a report this week by the VA’s Office of Inspector General (VA OIG). “First, I recognize … Continue Reading
May 16, 2024
Wyden, Merkley, Colleagues Urge End of Private Immigration Detention Centers, Demand Closure of Facilities with Inhumane Conditions
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley said today they and seven colleagues urged federal agencies, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), to phase out the use of private detention centers, and close four facilities with well-documented inhumane conditions. “The federal government should not pay private facilities with continuously problematic conditions,” the lawmakers wrote in a letter to the Department of Homeland … Continue Reading
May 16, 2024
Merkley, Wyden Announce Over $6.2 Million to Boost Oregon’s Innovative Wood Products Economy and Support Healthy Forests
Washington, D.C. - Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden announced today the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) is investing $6,276,170 in 13 projects in Oregon to boost the creation of innovative wood products, develop more markets for uses of mass timber and renewable wood energy, and increase the capacity of wood processing and manufacturing facilities. The federal funding is critical to ensuring the state’s leadership in the wood products industry, while helping to restore healthy … Continue Reading