WASHINGTON, June 28 -- Sen. Cory Booker, D-New Jersey, issued the following news release on June 26, 2023, and a letter: U.S. Senators Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Mazie Hirono (D-HI) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Representatives Joaquin Castro (TX-20) and Pramila Jayapal (WA-07) led 80 Senate and House Democrats in a comment letter expressing support for the Biden administration's proposed rule to extend eligibility for ACA coverage and certain other federal health insurance programs to recipients   more

WASHINGTON, June 28 -- Sen. Cory Booker, D-New Jersey, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and U.S. Representatives Gregory Meeks (N.Y.-05) and Sydney Kamlager-Dove (CA-37) introduced a bicameral resolution recognizing the contributions of African American music to America's musical heritage, addressing the need for greater access to music education for African American students, and supporting the designation of June 2023 as African American Music Appreciation   more

WASHINGTON, June 27 -- Rep. Rob Menendez, D-New Jersey, issued the following news release on June 26, 2023: Congressman Rob Menendez today announced his introduction of the Working Families Task Force Act (H.R. 2614), which would establish a federal task force to improve the standard of living for working families in America. "I am proud to introduce the Working Families Task Force Act, which will ensure a whole-of-government approach to creating solutions to address affordability, child care,  more

WASHINGTON, June 28 -- Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-New Jersey, issued the following statement on June 27, 2023: * * * Today, June 27, 2023, U.S Congressman Josh Gottheimer (NJ-5) and Congresswoman Nicole Malliotakis (NY-11), Co-Chairs of the bipartisan Anti-Congestion Tax Caucus, released the following statement in response to New York Governor Kathy Hochul's announcement that the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has formally approved the New York City Central Businesses District Tolling Prog  more

WASHINGTON, June 28 -- Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-New York, issued the following statement on June 27, 2023: * * * Today Reps. Nicole Malliotakis (NY-11) and Josh Gottheimer (NJ-05), Co-Chairs of the bipartisan Anti-Congestion Tax Caucus, released the following statement in response to New York Governor Kathy Hochul's announcement that the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has formally approved the New York City Central Businesses District Tolling Program, otherwise known as the Congestion  more

PARSIPPANY, New Jersey, June 26 -- Rep. Mikie Sherrill, D-New Jersey, issued the following statement on June 24, 2023: * * * Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill (NJ-11) released the following statement on the one year anniversary of the Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization decision which overturned the constitutional right to an abortion and has allowed for the dangerous and sweeping state laws that restrict the bodily autonomy and freedoms of women. "In the year since the protections provid  more

WASHINGTON, June 27 -- Rep. Frank Pallone Jr., D-New Jersey, issued the following news release on June 26, 2023: Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) today applauded the $263.6 million in federal funding New Jersey will receive to expand broadband access in the state. The funding comes from the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law that Pallone fought for as Chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee last Congress. The state will prima  more

PISCATAWAY, New Jersey, June 30 -- Rep. Frank Pallone Jr., D-New Jersey, issued the following news release on June 29, 2023: Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) held a press conference today about federal funding he secured for the Metlar-Bodine House Museum. Pallone secured $500,000 in a federal spending bill signed into law last year to help complete an extensive restoration project for the museum, including construction of the Forever the 4th gallery that will feature the Ross Hall Wall.   more

PATERSON, New Jersey, June 30 -- Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr., D-New Jersey, issued the following news release on June 29, 2023: Congressman Bill Pascrell, Jr. (D-NJ-09) this morning criticized the U.S. Supreme Court's narrowminded ending of affirmative action in college admissions, ending decades of positive precedent and practices. "Today's decision by this right-wing Supreme Court wipes away decades of legal precedent that have had a net positive impact on America and on the lives of generations   more

WASHINGTON, June 24 -- Rep. Chris Smith, R-New Jersey, issued the following statement: * * * Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), Co-Chair of the Congressional Pro-Life Caucus, issued the following statement on the one-year anniversary of the Dobbs v. Jackson decision: "Dobbs is the game changer--and God-willing, the beginning of the end of the culture of death. It is an engraved invitation to policy makers at every level including Congress and the President to protect unborn children from the violence   more

WASHINGTON, June 30 -- Rep. Donald M. Payne Jr., D-New Jersey, issued the following statement on June 29, 2023: * * * Rep. Donald M. Payne, Jr. issued the following statement regarding the U.S. Supreme Court's decision today to reject affirmative action in college admission standards. The Court issued two rulings in related cases, Students for Fair Admissions v. President and Fellows of Harvard College and Students for Fair Admissions v. University of North Carolina, that said affirmative acti  more

WASHINGTON, July 1 -- Rep. Donald M. Payne Jr., D-New Jersey, issued the following statement on June 30, 2023: * * * Rep. Donald M. Payne, Jr. issued the following statement regarding the U.S. Supreme Court's decision today to deny student loan relief to more than 43 million American borrowers. In the two cases, Biden v. Nebraska and Department of Education v. Brown, the Court said President Biden did not have the authority to eliminate $400 billion in student loan debt through the Higher Educ  more

TRENTON, New Jersey, June 26 -- Rep. Chris Smith, R-New Jersey, issued the following news release on June 24, 2023: Congressman Chris Smith and Rosemarie Fenchel of the group "The Abortion Survivors Network," at the June 24, 2023 rally at the state House Annex in Trenton. Congressman Chris Smith (R-Manchester) addressed a crowd gathered at the New Jersey State House Annex in Trenton, New Jersey Saturday at the New Jersey Right to Life's event marking the one-year anniversary of the overturning  more

TOMS RIVER, New Jersey, June 30 -- Rep. Chris Smith, R-New Jersey, issued the following statement on June 29, 2023: * * * Citing Governor Phil Murphy's own Division of Rate Counsel, Rep. Chris Smith (R-Manchester) today issued the following statement urging the New Jersey Legislature to reject legislation--A-5651 and S-4019--backed by the Governor that will redirect US federal tax credits to the Danish offshore wind company Orsted: "The hardworking people of New Jersey deserve better than Tre  more

WASHINGTON, July 1 -- Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, D-New Jersey, issued the following news release on June 30, 2023: Today, Congresswoman Bonnie Watson Coleman (NJ-12) and Congressman Al Green (TX-09) introduced the Renaming the National School Lunch Program Act. This bill would rename the National School Lunch Act (NSLA) after Jean E. Fairfax, a civil rights icon who played an instrumental role in the integration of public schools in the South and helped overhaul the National School Lunch Progr  more

WASHINGTON, June 28 -- Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, D-New Jersey, issued the following news release on June 27, 2023: Today, Congresswoman Bonnie Watson Coleman (NJ-12) reintroduced the Customer Non-Discrimination Act, legislation that ensures fair treatment for LGBTQ+ Americans in public spaces and commercial services open to the public. The bill, also included as a provision of the Equality Act, adds sexual orientation, sex, and gender identity to the prohibitions on discrimination covered by   more

EWING, New Jersey, June 30 -- Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, D-New Jersey, issued the following statement on June 29, 2023: * * * Congresswoman Bonnie Watson Coleman (NJ-12), Co-Chair and Co-Founder of the Congressional Caucus on Black Women and Girls, and Chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus's Policing, Constitution, and Equality Task Force released the following statement in response to the Supreme Court's decision to overturn precedent and end affirmative action: I am appalled by the  more

TRENTON, New Jersey, June 30 -- Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, D-New Jersey, issued the following news release on June 29, 2023: Today, Congresswoman Bonnie Watson Coleman (NJ-12), New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) Commissioner Shawn LaTourette, Trenton Mayor Reed Gusciora, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that Trenton, New Jersey will get nearly $2 million from President Biden's Investing in America Agenda to clean up a former industrial site in  more

JERSEY CITY, New Jersey, June 27 -- Sen. Robert Menendez, D-New Jersey, issued the following statement on June 26, 2023: * * * U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) issued the following statement in response to the Biden Administration's announcement that it will invest more than $42 billion as part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to expand high-speed internet access nationwide, with New Jersey set to receive $264,689,548 in Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) grants: "The Biden  more

JERSEY CITY, New Jersey, July 1 -- Sen. Robert Menendez, D-New Jersey, issued the following statement on June 30, 2023: * * * U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) issued the following statement in response to the Supreme Court's 6-3 decision in Biden v. Nebraska: "Today's MAGA Supreme Court majority decision in Biden v. Nebraska is ludicrous. Their assertion that President Biden's loan forgiveness program was not in line with Congressional intent under the HEROES Act is plain wrong. And it depr  more

JERSEY CITY, New Jersey, July 1 -- Sen. Robert Menendez, D-New Jersey, issued the following statement on June 30, 2023: * * * U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) issued the following statement in response to the Supreme Court's 6-3 decision in 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis: "With today's decision in 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis, the right-wing majority continues to cement its legacy as the first Supreme Court in a generation to brazenly strip away hard-fought rights from marginalized communities -   more

JERSEY CITY, New Jersey, June 30 -- Sen. Robert Menendez, D-New Jersey, issued the following statement on June 29, 2023: * * * U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) issued the following statement in response to the Supreme Court's 6-3 decision in Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College: "Striking down affirmative action in U.S. colleges and universities turns back the clock on progress, full stop. With a partisan decision to overturn more than five decades   more

JERSEY CITY, New Jersey, June 26 -- Sen. Robert Menendez, D-New Jersey, issued the following statement on June 24, 2023: * * * U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) issued the following statement on the one year anniversary of the Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, which overturned 50 years of precedent set by Roe v. Wade on the right to seek abortion care: "A year ago today, six far-right justices on the Supreme Court threw out decades of legal precedent --   more

WASHINGTON, June 27 -- Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr., D-New Jersey, issued the following statement on June 26, 2023: * * * U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), alongside Representatives Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.-05) and Bill Pascrell, Jr. (D-N.J.-09), issued the following statement in response to the Federal Highway Administration's decision to allow New York's Congestion Tax proposal to move forward without requiring a full and complete study of how this plan will affect New Jersey: "We are outraged a  more

WASHINGTON, June 27 -- The Senate Environment and Public Works Subcommittee on Chemical Safety, Waste Management, Environmental Justice and Regulatory Oversight issued the following testimony by Chris Tandazo, statewide environmental justice organizer with the New Jersey Environmental Justice Alliance, involving a hearing on June 15, 2023, entitled "Impacts of Plastic Production and Disposal on Environmental Justice Communities": * * * Good morning everyone. And thank you to Senator Merkley fo  more

WASHINGTON, June 28 -- Sen. Robert Menendez, D-New Jersey, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statement on June 27, 2023: * * * U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, released the following statement ahead of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's (NATO) summit in Vilnius, Lithuania: "Sixteen months after Russian President Vladimir Putin's brazen and unprovoked invasion, the Ukrainian people have repeated  more

WASHINGTON, July 1 -- Sen. Robert Menendez, D-New Jersey, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statement on June 30, 2023: * * * U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statement upon the conclusion of Pride Month 2023: "During Pride Month, we celebrated LGBTQI+ communities and individuals, and their contributions across the globe. We also took time to reflect on - and reaffirm - our commi  more

WASHINGTON, June 29 -- Sen. Robert Menendez, D-New Jersey, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following statement on June 28, 2023: * * * U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, released the following statement in response to the House Appropriations Subcommittee's markup of the 2024 State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Funding bill proposal to cut the international affairs budget by 31 percent: "House Repu  more

WASHINGTON, June 30 -- Sen. Robert Menendez, D-New Jersey, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) and Jim Risch (R-Idaho) Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, led 29 colleagues in releasing the following statement marking the 26th anniversary of Hong Kong's handover and the 3rd anniversary of the Hong Kong "National Security Law." Joining Menendez and Risch are Senators Mitch Mc  more

WASHINGTON, July 1 -- Sen. Robert Menendez, D-New Jersey, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) and Jim Risch (R-Idaho), Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, released the following statement encouraging a renewal and expansion of cross-border humanitarian aid to Syria ahead of the July 10 expiration date: "Every six months, the Russian Federation uses its veto at the UN Securi  more

WASHINGTON, June 27 -- Sen. Robert Menendez, D-New Jersey, issued the following news release on June 26, 2023: Today, U.S. Senators Bob Menendez and Cory Booker (both D-N.J.), alongside U.S. Representatives Mikie Sherrill (D-N.J.-11), Donald Payne, Jr.(D-N.J.-10), and Bill Pascrell, Jr. (D-N.J.-09) announced $47,000,000 million for the New Jersey Transit (NJ Transit) Corporation to modernize the Hilton Bus Garage, located in Maplewood. The funding is to accommodate battery-electric buses and in  more

JERSEY CITY, New Jersey, June 30 -- Sen. Robert Menendez, D-New Jersey, issued the following news release on June 29, 2023: U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), a senior member on the U.S. Senate Finance Committee which has jurisdiction over national health care policy, and Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.) introduced the Ensuring Access to Lower-Cost Medicines for Seniors Act - vitally important bipartisan legislation to tackle one of the biggest drivers of the high cost of prescription drugs, part  more

PARSIPPANY, New Jersey, June 29 -- Rep. Mikie Sherrill, D-New Jersey, issued the following news release on June 28, 2023: Representative Mikie Sherrill (NJ-11) is blasting the Department of Transportation's decision to move forward with New York's unfair congestion pricing plan, which will cost New Jersey commuters up to $23 each day to get into New York City for work. "This decision is a slap in the face of every New Jersey commuter who powers the city's economy and every New Jersey resident   more

PARSIPPANY, New Jersey, June 28 -- Rep. Mikie Sherrill, D-New Jersey, issued the following news release on June 27, 2023: Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill (NJ-11) is taking bipartisan action to address the significant learning loss caused by COVID-19-related disruptions to children's education. This week, she is introducing theExpanding Access to High-Impact Tutoring Act alongside Republican Rep. Nancy Mace (SC-01). This bill aims to improve the academic achievement and recovery of students through  more

WASHINGTON, July 1 -- Rep. Chris Smith, R-New Jersey, issued the following news release on June 30, 2023: Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), Chair of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Global Human Rights, today introduced new legislation to bar the importation of all goods containing cobalt, lithium and other rare earth minerals mined in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) through child exploitation and forced labor trafficking and also to counter China's control of strategic metals and minera  more

NORTH JERSEY, New Jersey, June 27 -- Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-New Jersey, issued the following statement on June 26, 2023: * * * Today, June 26, 2023, U.S. Congressman Josh Gottheimer (NJ-5), Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ), and Congressman Bill Pascrell, Jr. (NJ-9) released the following statement in response to the U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Highway Administration's (FHWA) decision to allow New York's and the MTA's Congestion Tax plan to move forward without requiring a full and   more

MAHWAH, New Jersey, June 29 -- Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-New Jersey, issued the following news release on June 28, 2023: Today, June 28, 2023, U.S. Congressman Josh Gottheimer (NJ-5), a member of the Congressional Lyme Disease Caucus, announced bipartisan federal action to combat ticks, spread awareness to protect families, and boost investment in R&D for Lyme disease treatment. Gottheimer was joined by environmental experts to highlight how North Jersey families can protect themselves from tick  more