WASHINGTON, April 12 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: BISMARCK - While federal law routinely penalizes recidivist child exploitation offenders for their crimes, a loophole in the existing Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) fails to sufficiently discipline repeated child exploitation offenders with prior military convictions. To close this significant loophole, U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) joined U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) in cosponsoring his  more

WASHINGTON, April 9 -- Sen. John Hoeven, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: Senator John Hoeven, a senior member of the Senate Agriculture Committee and Ranking Member of the Senate Agriculture Appropriations Committee, today introduced the Federal Agriculture Risk Management Enhancement and Resilience (FARMER) Act, legislation to strengthen crop insurance and make higher levels of coverage more affordable for producers. Cosponsors of the bill include Senate Agriculture Committe  more

WASHINGTON, April 12 -- Sen. John Hoeven, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: BISMARCK, N.D. - Senator John Hoeven, a member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources (ENR) Committee, today issued the following statement after the Biden administration issued a final rule to further limit Bureau of Land Management (BLM) oil and gas leasing and increase the cost of producing energy on federal lands. The rule would impose new fees and increase existing bonding requirements, royalty  more

WASHINGTON, April 11 -- Sen. John Hoeven, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: Senator John Hoeven issued the following statement after the U.S. Senate passed the House companion to a resolution of disapproval under the Congressional Review Act (CRA) that he introduced with Senator Bill Cassidy (R-La.) to overturn the National Labor Relations Board's (NLRB) joint employer rule, which forces liability on companies for another business' employees even if they do not directly oversee  more

WASHINGTON, April 10 -- Sen. John Hoeven, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: Senator John Hoeven issued the following statement after the U.S. Senate passed a resolution of disapproval under the Congressional Review Act (CRA), sponsored by Senator Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), to overturn costly, overreaching emissions mandates on state departments of transportation (DOTs). Last year, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) reinstated an Obama-era rule requiring state DOTs to set an  more

WASHINGTON, April 12 -- Sen. John Hoeven, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: At a hearing of the Senate Defense Appropriations Committee this week, Senator John Hoeven pressed Air Force and Space Force leaders to ensure the U.S. maintains its advantages in intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) and nuclear capabilities to counter its adversaries in any future conflict. Hoeven pointed to investments being made by Russia and China in their nuclear and surveillance for  more

WASHINGTON, April 10 -- Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith, R-Mississippi, issued the following news release: Intended for New Farm Bill, Legislation Would Enhance Risk Management Tool for Producers VIDEO: Senator Hyde-Smith Cites Mississippi Producers' Woes in Making Case for Improving Crop Insurance Programs.VIDEO: Patrick Johnson of Tunica, National Cotton Council Vice Chairman, Advocates for FARMER Act.PHOTO: Senator Hyde-Smith speaks at news conference. Left to right: Patrick Johnson of the Nationa  more

WASHINGTON, April 12 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: BISMARCK - Typically E15 fuel cannot be sold during the summer months due to Reid Vapor Pressure (RVP) requirements under the Clean Air Act (CAA). U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) has long supported the year-round, nationwide sale of E15 to allow consumers and producers regulatory consistency and choice. In 2022 and 2023, Senator Cramer joined a number of his colleagues to call on the Environmental Pro  more

WASHINGTON, April 11 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: BISMARCK - The National Park Service (NPS) announced an award of $110,950 to North Dakota from the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). These funds are authorized by Congress through LWCF and allows the state to further allocate these funds to support local public parks projects, state conservation, and expand outdoor recreation access. The grants will be distributed to the following projects in N  more

WASHINGTON, April 11 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: ***Click here to download video. Click here for audio.*** BISMARCK - On Thursday, U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) joined Larry Kudlow on Fox Business after the passage of his bipartisan Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution to nullify the Federal Highway Administration's (FHWA) illegal final rule which require states to measure tailpipe emissions on the National Highway System and then set declin  more

WASHINGTON, April 9 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced a total award of $6,015,160 in discretionary funding to the following programs and initiatives in North Dakota: $3,000,000 to the University of North Dakota, provided through the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy to fund a cooperative agreement supporting the Rural Health Information Hub (RHIhub). $1,564,410 to the Standing Rock Siou  more

WASHINGTON, April 11 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: In late October 2023, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) released a final rule to expand the circumstances under which a company may be considered a joint employer. The new rule undermines the franchise business model by forcing liability on companies for another business' employees, even if they do not directly manage them. Additionally, it creates uncertainty among small and local businesses   more

WASHINGTON, April 12 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: BISMARCK - U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), member of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee, issued the following statement on the Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) final onshore oil leasing rule, which will hike up the bonding requirements and fees for oil and gas companies, raise royalty rates, and tighten permitting regulations on federal lands. "Inflation is soaring, and energy   more

WASHINGTON, April 9 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: ***Click here to download video. Click here for audio.*** During a Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) hearing on Tuesday, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Charles Q. Brown, Jr. provided testimony on the Department of Defense budget request for Fiscal Year 2025 and the Future Years Defense Program. U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) specifically ask  more

WASHINGTON, April 10 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: In November 2023, the U.S. Department of Transportation's (DOT) Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) finalized a rule, forcing state departments of transportation and metropolitan planning organizations to measure greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions on the highway system and set declining targets, despite lacking any authority from Congress to do so. As a result of this federal overreach, U.S. Senator Ke  more

WASHINGTON, April 8 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: Each year, the Social Security Administration (SSA) determines the cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) by analyzing the Consumer Price Index in order to reflect the fluctuations in goods and services across the country. The SSA last announced a 3.2% adjustment in October of 2023 and will reveal the next COLA in October of 2024. Introduced by Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee Chairman Jon Tester (D-MT) a  more

WASHINGTON, April 9 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: At the beginning of March, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced its final rule to restrict credit card penalties, capping late fees at $8, down from $32. The rule, which is expected to go into effect on May 14, 2024, fails to consider how the proposal would harm American consumers, resulting in lower credit scores and reduced credit availability. With the introduction of a Congres  more