WASHINGTON, March 24 -- Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, issued the following news release on March 22, 2023: As Congress begins working on the sweeping agricultural and food policy legislation known as the Farm Bill, U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, today led a roundtable discussion with Native leaders from Hawaii and across the country to hear about the issues critical to their communities and discuss how the federal government can help. Ma  more

WASHINGTON, March 23 -- Sen. Benjamin Cardin, D-Maryland, issued the following statement on March 21, 2023, with eight senators: [Edited to adjust error by source.] * * * U.S. Senators Ben Cardin, Chris Van Hollen (both D-Md.), Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), and Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) released the following statement on Palestinian Authority (PA) and Israeli officials' recent meetings in  more

HONOLULU, Hawaii, March 22 -- Rep. Ed Case, D-Hawaii, issued the following news release on March 21, 2023: Congressman Ed Case (HI-01) today applauded President Biden's direction to the Secretary of Commerce to initiate consideration of designation of the waters of the U.S. Pacific Remote Islands as a National Marine Sanctuary. The action follows Case's calls, commencing in May 2022 in partnership with the Pacific Remote Islands Coalition and others, for maximum protection of U.S.-owned and co  more

WASHINGTON, March 25 -- Rep. Ed Case, D-Hawaii, issued the following news release on March 24, 2023: Congressman Ed Case (HI-01) today welcomed the announcement by the United States Coast Guard that it will deploy the Harriet Lane, a 270-foot Cutter with a 100-person crew, to Hawai'i. The Coast Guard plans to use the Medium Endurance Cutter as an addition to a Hawai'i-based fleet for responsibilities in Hawai'i waters as well as an increasing Coast Guard presence throughout the Indo-Pacific. T  more

WASHINGTON, March 24 -- House Democratic Caucus issued the following news release on March 23, 2023: House Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar and Vice Chair Ted Lieu held a leadership press conference with Reps. Glenn Ivey (MD-04) and Jill Tokuda (HI-02) celebrating the 13th anniversary of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). CHAIRMAN PETE AGUILAR: Vice Chair Lieu and I are joined by two amazing new Members who joined in the 118th Congress, Glenn Ivey from Maryland and Jill Tokuda from Hawaii. I a  more

WASHINGTON, March 24 -- Sen. Mazie K. Hirono, D-Hawaii, issued the following news release and letter: Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) joined eleven of her Senate colleagues in a letter to the Vice Chair for Supervision of the Federal Reserve (Fed) Michael Barr, calling on him to exercise the Fed's authority to apply stronger regulation and supervision to banks with assets totaling $100 to $250 billion. The letter was led by Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA). "The fall of both SVB and Signature, t  more

WASHINGTON, March 23 -- Sen. Mazie K. Hirono, D-Hawaii, issued the following news release on March 22, 2023: Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), Chair of the Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Readiness and Management Support, convened a Subcommittee hearing to examine the relationship between the Department of Defense (DOD) and small businesses, and what more DOD can do to increase the number of small businesses they contract with. In the hearing, the Subcommittee heard from leadership represen  more

WASHINGTON, March 25 -- Sen. Mazie K. Hirono, D-Hawaii, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, questioned General Glen VanHerck, Commander of the U.S. Northern Command (NORTHCOM) and North American Aerospace Defense Command, on the need for a robust, unified plan for missile defense of Hawaii during a full committee hearing. "General VanHerck, you are responsible for homeland defense and you noted this morning that  more

WASHINGTON, March 23 -- Sen. Mazie K. Hirono, D-Hawaii, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) and Brian Schatz (D-HI) and Representatives Jill Tokuda (D-HI) and Ed Case (D-HI) introduced legislation to combat Rapid Ohia Death (ROD), which has killed more than a million Ohia trees in Hawaii since its discovery in 2014. The Continued Rapid Ohia Death Response Act of 2023 authorizes $55 million in federal funding over the next eleven years to support ongoing effor  more

WASHINGTON, March 22 -- Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, issued the following news release on March 21, 2023: U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai'i) today reintroduced the Electric Bicycle Incentive Kickstart for the Environment (E-BIKE) Act, legislation to promote the use of electric bicycles, or e-bikes, through a refundable consumer tax credit. E-Bikes are increasingly being used as a cheaper, more environmentally-friendly transportation option for short trips and daily commutes that can help bre  more

WASHINGTON, March 24 -- Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, issued the following statement on March 23, 2023: * * * U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D- Hawai'i) today released the following statement after the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced it is seeking public comment on updated rules for contracts with automatically recurring fees, including a proposed "click-to-cancel" provision and annual notification reminders that would help customers more easily get out of unwanted subscriptions. "Free tr  more

WASHINGTON, March 25 -- Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, chairman of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai'i), chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, and U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), vice chairman of the Committee, led a roundtable discussion, titled "Native Priorities for the 2023 Farm Bill Reauthorization," to hear directly from Native agricultural experts and leaders on their communities' priorities as C  more

WASHINGTON, March 22 -- Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, chairman of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai'i), chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, and U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), vice chairman of the Committee, announced more than $3 million in Department of the Interior Tribal Tourism Grant Program funding to 30 Tribes and Tribal organizations, including four Alaska Tribes and Tribal Organizations. Thi  more

WASHINGTON, March 24 -- Sen. Tina Flint Smith, D-Minnesota, issued the following news release and letter: U.S. Senators Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Angus King (I-Maine), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), and Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) wrote the Vice Chair for Supervision of the Federal Reserve (Fed) Michael Barr  more

WASHINGTON, March 25 -- Sen. Tina Flint Smith, D-Minnesota, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Todd Young (R-Ind.), Mike Braun (R-Ind.), and Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) re-introduced legislationto support farmers seeking to adopt conservation and innovative climate practices on their farms. The Conservation and Innovative Climate Partnership Act would bridge the divide between the innovative research taking place at land-grant universities and those who farm for  more

WASHINGTON, March 23 -- Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts, issued the following news release and letter: U.S. Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Angus King (I-Maine), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), and Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) wrote the Vice Chair for Supervision of the Federal Reserve (Fed) Michael   more

WASHINGTON, March 23 -- Sen. Todd Young, R-Indiana, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Todd Young (R-Ind.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Mike Braun (R-Ind.), and Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) re-introduced the Conservation and Innovative Climate Partnership Act to support farmers seeking to adopt conservation and innovative climate practices on their farms. This bill would bridge the divide between the innovative research taking place at land-grant institutions and those who farm for a living  more