WASHINGTON, Nov. 5 -- Rep. Earl Blumenauer, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: Today, Congressman Earl Blumenauer, former vice-chair of the House Select Committee on Global Warming, applauded the efforts of a global coalition of more than 11,000 scientists led by Dr. William Ripple and Christopher Wolf of Oregon State University to declare a climate emergency. These scientists, representing 153 countries around the world, published a paper highlighting the urgent need for bold action   more

WASHINGTON, Nov. 7 -- Rep. Peter A. DeFazio, D-Oregon, chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, issued the following news release: Today, Chair of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Peter DeFazio (D-OR), and Chair of the Subcommittee on Aviation Rick Larsen (D-WA) sent a letter to Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Stephen Dickson questioning the way the FAA made decisions on two safety-related items with potentially catast  more

WASHINGTON, Nov. 8 -- Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: * * * - As Big Pharma's prices skyrocket, one in four Americans with diabetes is rationing insulin--and some have died as a result * * * Oregon's Senator Jeff Merkley and Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today introduced the End Price Gouging for Insulin Act, legislation that would end drug companies' exorbitant price hikes on insulin that have made it difficult for millions of Americans to afford the drug. When  more

WASHINGTON, Nov. 5 -- Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: Oregon's Senator Jeff Merkley joined Congressmen Alcee Hastings (D-FL-20) and Vern Buchanan (R-FL-16) today in announcing a new resolution calling for an end to the global trade of dog and cat meat, given reports that 30 million dogs and 10 million cats are cruelly slaughtered each year for consumption. "Millions of dogs and cats are subjected to inhumane conditions before being slaughtered in the most barbar  more

WASHINGTON, Nov. 6 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: Oregon's U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden today announced $15.5 million in federal funding for a critical roadside expansion project along the Foothill Road/North Phoenix Road Corridor in Medford. "Oregon's drivers, cyclists and pedestrians rely on the quality of our roadways to safely get from point A to point B," Merkley said. "That's why BUILD grants and the safety infrastructure improvements they mak  more

WASHINGTON, Nov. 4 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: Oregon's Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden today announced a nearly $8.5 million electric infrastructure investment in West Oregon Electric Cooperative, Inc., a Vernonia-based co-op which serves communities throughout Columbia, Yamhill, Tillamook, Washington, and Clatsop counties. Merkley serves as the top Democrat on the Senate Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee, which oversees funding for the United Sta  more

WASHINGTON, Nov. 7 -- The U.S. Senate confirmed the nomination of an individual for a position in the Trump Administration on Nov. 6: Danielle J. Hunsaker, of Oregon, to be United States Circuit Judge for the Ninth Circuit.  more

WASHINGTON, Nov. 5 -- Rep. Peter A. DeFazio, D-Oregon, chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, issued the following statement after President Trump announced the withdrawal of the U.S. from the Paris climate agreement: "Instead of rising to the greatest challenge of our time, once again President Trump is choosing to pander to a backward-looking minority of special interests who either refuse to accept the seriousness of climate change, or who are far too interested i  more

WASHINGTON, Nov. 5 -- Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Oregon, issued the following statement after President Trump notified the United Nations that the U.S. would withdraw from the Paris Agreement on climate change: "Just as we're learning that warming timelines and impacts have been underestimated, this is the exact wrong time to remove the United States from the Paris Climate Accord. Critics of the Accord like to claim there will be negative economic impacts of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and mov  more

WASHINGTON, Nov. 7 -- Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: Chair of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Peter DeFazio (D-OR), and Chair of the Subcommittee on Aviation Rick Larsen (D-WA) sent a letter to Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Stephen Dickson questioning the way the FAA made decisions on two safety-related items with potentially catastrophic consequences: rudder cable protection on the Boeing 737 MAX and lightn  more

WASHINGTON, Nov. 6 -- Rep. Greg Walden, R-Oregon, issued the following news release: Today, Representative Greg Walden (R-Hood River) announced that the City of Medford will receive $15.5 million from the Department of Transportation (DOT) through their Better Utilizing Investment to Leverage Development (BUILD) program. Representative Walden wrote to and spoke with Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao in support of the city's request for funding, which will help expand the roadway along Foo  more

WASHINGTON, Nov. 5 -- Rep. Kurt Schrader, D-Oregon, issued the following statement on the Trump administration's decision to withdraw from the Paris Agreement, an international agreement to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions and mitigate global warming: "The decision of President Trump to formally withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement is totally reckless and seriously damages our credibility on the world stage. The Paris Agreement stresses the importance of internation  more

WASHINGTON, Nov. 7 -- Rep. Greg Walden, R-Oregon, issued the following news release: Today, Representative Greg Walden (R-Hood River) published an op-ed in the East Oregonian ahead of Veterans Day. An excerpt of Rep. Walden's op-ed is below. The full article may be viewed here (https://iqconnect.lmhostediq.com/iqextranet/iqClickTrk.aspx?&cid=OR02GW&crop=0000.0000.0000.0000&report_id=&redirect=https%3a%2f%2fwww.eastoregonian.com%2fopinion%2fcolumnists%2fwalden-we-must-continue-standing-up-for-o  more

WASHINGTON, Nov. 1 -- Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, issued the following statement on the nomination of Washington County Circuit Court Judge Danielle Hunsaker to a vacant seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit: "I enjoyed the opportunity to meet with Judge Hunsaker, and have received some positive references about her work. "I believe, however, that a lifetime appointment to these critically important circuit court positions should be reserved for individuals with more extens  more

WASHINGTON, Nov. 4 -- Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Environment and Public Works Committee and Senate Democrats' Special Committee on the Climate Crisis, issued the following statement after President Trump initiated a U.S. withdrawal from the Paris climate agreement: "Today's decision represents an embarrassing and shameful abandonment of U.S. leadership on the global stage. "This abdication is not only terrible for America's moral standing   more

WASHINGTON, Nov. 6 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, ranking Democratic member of the Senate Finance Committee, issued the following news: * * * - Bill would require public reporting, tighten rules and terminate zones that are not low-income * * * Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today introduced legislation to impose much-needed guardrails and transparency measures on the Opportunity Zone program. "The Opportunity Zone program has been troubled from the start. The Trea  more

WASHINGTON, Nov. 6 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, ranking Democratic member of the Senate Finance Committee, issued the following statement at the Senate Budget Committee hearing on budget process reform: "I'm pleased to have the opportunity to fill in for Senator Sanders in his role today. I assume it comes with 8.8 million twitter followers and a cameo on Saturday Night Live. "This afternoon, this committee will have an important debate about fixing the federal budget. It's a challenge that re  more

WASHINGTON, Nov. 5 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, ranking Democratic member of the Senate Finance Committee, issued the following statement on the status of legislation to limit President Trump's tariff authority under Section 232, in response to a speech by Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa: "I share the chairman's goal of legislation to discipline Donald Trump's erratic use of trade authorities that could gain overwhelming bipartisan support, and I look forward to working toward that goal. "As o  more

WASHINGTON, Nov. 6 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden today announced he is co-sponsoring legislation that would help low-income and rural tenants of multifamily rural housing stay in their affordable housing units. Direct federal home loans under what's known as Section 515 help to develop affordable housing development in rural areas, but the required affordability restrictions are eliminated when those loans mature or are pre-paid. The Rural   more

WASHINGTON, Nov. 6 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: * * * - In a letter to FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, Wyden urges mandatory cybersecurity requirements for 5G networks of all wireless carriers * * * U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today urged the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to secure next-generation, 5G telephone networks against hackers, scam-artists and foreign spies. In a letter addressed to FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, Wyden demanded the administration re  more

WASHINGTON, Nov. 6 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: * * * - Senators urge administration officials to comply with previous executive orders to prevent human trafficking * * * U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., this week urged the Trump administration to do more to ensure the federal government does not do business with contractors that have human trafficking or forced labor in their supply chains of companies. In a letter with Sens. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, and Ric  more

WASHINGTON, Nov. 6 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: * * * - Sprawling Surveillance Law Must Be Openly Debated in the Senate Intelligence Committee Before Any Closed-Door Vote * * * U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., today called for open hearings in the Senate Intelligence Committee on Section 215 of the Patriot Act before any markup is held. Wyden and Heinrich are senior members of the Senate Intelligence committee. They have consisten  more

WASHINGTON, Nov. 7 -- Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: * * * - Legislation protects over a million acres of wilderness to boost recreation economy, supports local ranchers * * * U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., a senior member of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, and U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., today introduced legislation to provide Malheur County several economic development opportunities by maintaining and improving rangeland to sup  more

WASHINGTON, Nov. 7 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: * * * - Legislation protects over a million acres of wilderness to boost recreation economy, supports local ranchers * * * U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., a senior member of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, and U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., today introduced legislation to provide Malheur County several economic development opportunities by maintaining and improving rangeland to suppor  more

WASHINGTON, Nov. 6 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, ranking Democratic member of the Senate Finance Committee, issued the following news: * * * - Wyden, Neal request information about whether Treasury Department political appointees interfered to steer tax breaks to longtime associates * * * Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and House Ways and Means Chairman Richard E. Neal, D-Mass., have launched an investigation into the Treasury Department's Opportunity Zone designati  more

WASHINGTON, Nov. 6 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, ranking Democratic member of the Senate Finance Committee, issued the following news: * * * - Lawmakers request GAO review the effectiveness of the Opportunity Zone program, zone designations and compliance * * * Following numerous media reports of possible wrongdoing by senior administration officials in implementing the Opportunity Zone program, Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron Wyden, D-Ore., House Ways and Means Chairman Richard E  more