WASHINGTON, June 30 -- Rep. Peter A. DeFazio, D-Oregon, chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, issued the following news release: Chair of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Peter DeFazio (D-OR) sent a letter to Lieutenant General Todd T. Semonite of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) to push for an extension of the finalization of the Environmental Impact Statement as it relates to the Pebble Mine Project, due to concerns over lack of con  more

WASHINGTON, July 1 -- Rep. Tom O'Halleran, D-Arizona, issued the following statement: Following reports that a federal judge had ruled that Alaska Native corporations can access the $8 billion coronavirus aid fund set aside for tribal governments under the CARES Act. * * * "I fought to ensure that the CARES Act set aside specific funding to assist tribal governments in addressing both the public health and economic crises caused by the coronavirus pandemic. "I am disappointed to see that the  more

WASHINGTON, July 2 -- Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska, issued the following news release: Alaska Congressman Don Young applauded over $8 million in preparedness grants for fiscal year 2020 for Alaska, which were announced this week by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The DHS competitive preparedness grant program provides funding to state, local, and tribal partners to bolster preparedness and response efforts against terrorist attacks, natural disasters, and other emergencies. Full award in  more

WASHINGTON, July 2 -- Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska, issued the following statement: Following his "no" vote on H.R. 2, Alaska Congressman Don Young released the following statement. * * * "Alaskans know how critical reliable infrastructure and safe transportation are to our state's vast and unique geography. Roads, bridges, and railways are essential for connecting Alaska's cities, rural communities, and Native villages to hospitals, grocery stores, schools, and other basic necessities. I have be  more

WASHINGTON, July 2 -- Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, D-Hawaii, issued the following news release: Reps. Tulsi Gabbard (HI-02), Ed Case (HI-01), and Don Young (AK-at large) introduced the Equitable Payments for Nursing Facilities Act, a bipartisan bill that would authorize the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to make adjustments to payment rates for Skilled Nursing Facilities (SNFs) in Hawai'i and Alaska under Medicare. The Secretary currently can do this for hospitals, but doe  more

WASHINGTON, July 2 -- Rep. Ed Case, D-Hawaii, issued the following news release: Reps. Tulsi Gabbard (HI-02), Ed Case (HI-01), and Don Young (AK-at large) introduced the Equitable Payments for Nursing Facilities Act, a bipartisan bill that would authorize the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to make adjustments to payment rates for Skilled Nursing Facilities (SNFs) in Hawai'i and Alaska under Medicare. The Secretary currently can do this for hospitals, but does not   more

WASHINGTON, July 1 -- Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska, issued the following news release: U.S. Representatives Don Young (AK-00) and Debbie Mucarsel-Powell (FL-26) introduced the bipartisan Shovel-Ready Restoration Grants for Coastlines and Fisheries Act of 2020. This legislation authorizes $3 billion for shovel-ready resilience projects to help bring back jobs lost by COVID-19 and boost the climate resilience of our coastlines. "Alaskans know how important the ocean is to our fishing industry and ou  more

WASHINGTON, July 3 -- Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-California, issued the following news release: The Senate passed a bipartisan resolution introduced by Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Kamala D. Harris (D-Calif.) and Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) designating July as "American Grown Flower Month" and encouraging consumers to buy "Certified American Grown" flowers. American consumers spend $27 billion on floral products each year. While the majority of Americans would prefer to buy locally grown fl  more

WASHINGTON, July 1 -- Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, chaired a hearing to examine the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the U.S. territories -- American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. "All of our states face challenges in fighting the spread and impact of COVID-19. The territories face additional hurdles, from limited capacity to handle a health pandemic to economie  more

WASHINGTON, July 2 -- Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, issued the following news on July 1: U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, today chaired a hearing to examine the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the U.S. territories -- American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. "All of our states face challenges in fighting the spread and impact of COVID-19. The territories face additional  more

WASHINGTON, July 3 -- Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) took part in a Senate Committee on Indian Affairs oversight hearing focused on evaluating the response and mitigation to the COVID-19 pandemic in Native communities across the nation. This hearing is particularly relevant to Alaska, as many Native communities currently reflect on previous health emergencies that have disproportionately impacted rural Alaska, such as Tubercu  more

WASHINGTON, July 2 -- Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, released the following statement on the announcement of Hilcorp's acquisition of BP's Alaska upstream assets. "I'm very pleased to see this transaction move forward and appreciate Hilcorp's commitment to Alaska," Murkowski said. "This announcement is particularly welcome news for our state as we work to rebuild our economy. Hilcorp has ensured a stable natural gas supp  more

WASHINGTON, July 2 -- Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, issued the following statement on the announcement of Hilcorp's acquisition of BP's Alaska upstream assets: "I'm very pleased to see this transaction move forward and appreciate Hilcorp's commitment to Alaska. "This announcement is particularly welcome news for our state as we work to rebuild our economy. Hilcorp has ensured a stable natural gas supply in Cook Inlet and secured   more

WASHINGTON, June 30 -- Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, issued the following news release: U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) announced that the Department of the Interior is distributing $31,683,971 to eligible local governments across Alaska through the Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) program. The PILT program provides monetary compensation to local governments in the state that contain federal lands that are not subject to state or local taxation. This revenue supports local governments in provi  more

WASHINGTON, July 2 -- Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, issued the following news release: The Alaska Congressional Delegation introduced bipartisan, bicameral legislation that will provide for fair Medicare payments for nursing facilities in Alaska and Hawaii. The bill will authorize a cost-of-living adjustment at skilled nursing facilities in those states to take into account the higher costs of delivering care. The Equitable Payments for Nursing Facilities Act of 2020 is led by U.S. Senators Li  more

WASHINGTON, July 2 -- Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, issued the following news release: The U.S. Senate unanimously passed legislation to extend the Paycheck Protection Program to August 8, 2020. The small business loan program expired yesterday, on June 30. It now needs to pass the House in order for it to be sent to the President's desk to be signed into law. Just last week the Department of Treasury and Small Business Administration announced a rule allowing commercial fishing businesses to  more

WASHINGTON, July 1 -- Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, issued the following news release: As communities across the nation continue to work on plans to safely re-open amid the COVID-19 pandemic, U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) took part in a Senate HELP Committee hearing focused on how to safely return to work and back to school. The hearing featured Dr. Anthony Fauci of the National Institutes of Health, Admiral Brett Giroir of HHS, FDA Commissioner Dr. Stephen Hahn, and CDC Director Dr. Robe  more

WASHINGTON, July 2 -- Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, issued the following news release: The U.S. Senate unanimously passed legislation to extend the Paycheck Protection Program to August 8, 2020. The small business loan program expired yesterday, on June 30. It now needs to pass the House in order for it to be sent to the President's desk to be signed into law. Just last week the Department of Treasury and Small Business Administration announced a rule allowing commercial fishing businesses to a  more

WASHINGTON, July 2 -- The Senate Indian Affairs Committee issued the following testimony by Lisa Elgin, secretary of the National Indian Health Board, at a hearing entitled "Evaluating the Response and Mitigation to the COVID-19 Pandemic in Native Communities": On behalf of the National Indian Health Board and the 574 federally-recognized sovereign American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) Tribal Nations we serve, I submit this testimony for the record. Our nation is gripped by the most unprec  more

WASHINGTON, July 2 -- Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, issued the following news: U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, and Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., took to the Senate floor this week to urge their colleagues to pass the American Energy Innovation Act (AEIA), rather than leaving behind years of important bipartisan work and resigning our nation's energy policies to at least another year without modernization. Excerpts from the Senato  more

WASHINGTON, June 29 -- Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), and Rand Paul (R-Ky.) introduced an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) to limit the transfer of certain surplus military-grade equipment to local law enforcement agencies across the country. The Schatz-Murkowski-Harris-Paul amendment places limitations on the Department of Defense's 1033 program  more

WASHINGTON, July 3 -- Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Brian Schatz (D-Hawai'i), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Mazie K. Hirono (D-Hawai'i), and Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) introduced new legislation that will provide for fair Medicare payments for nursing facilities in Hawai'i and Alaska. The bipartisan bill will authorize a cost-of-living adjustment at skilled nursing facilities in those states to take into account the higher costs of delivering care. "Nu  more

WASHINGTON, July 2 -- Sen. Tom Udall, D-New Mexico, vice chairman of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Tom Udall (D-N.M.), vice chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, and Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) spoke on the Senate floor about the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on American Indian and Alaska Native communities in the United States, and called for immediate Senate action on additional COVID-19 relief for Native American Tri  more

WASHINGTON, July 2 -- Sen. Tom Udall, D-New Mexico, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Tom Udall (D-N.M.), vice chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, and Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) spoke on the Senate floor about the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on American Indian and Alaska Native communities in the United States, and called for immediate Senate action on additional COVID-19 relief for Native American Tribes necessary to uphold trust and treaty responsibilit  more