WASHINGTON, March 20 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following statement on the Department of Energy announcing a solicitation for the purchase oil to begin filling the Strategic Petroleum Reserve: "Thank you to Secretary Brouillette for moving quickly to follow President Trump's order. "This is an important initial step to combat the market manipulation our producers are facing from Saudi Arabia and Russia. "I applaud the Administration for prioritizing midsize and small Am  more

WASHINGTON, March 19 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) wrote a letter to President Trump urging him to embargo crude oil from Russia, Saudi Arabia, and other Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) nations. This comes in response to recent actions taken by these countries to distort energy markets when oil demand is exceedingly low because of the coronavirus pandemic. Earlier this week, Senator Cramer and   more

WASHINGTON, March 20 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) announced the U.S. Department of Commerce National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) awarded a grant totaling $700,000 to the Dakota Manufacturing Extension Partnership Inc. The grant is received through the Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership Center in North Dakota.  more

WASHINGTON, March 21 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), a Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee member, announced the Department of the Interior through the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) has dispersed a grant totaling $12,807,752 to North Dakota. The funds are authorized by Congress through the Pittman-Robertson Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act and Dingell-Johnson/Wallop Breaux Federal Aid in Sport F  more

WASHINGTON, March 20 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) announced the National Science Foundation awarded a grant of $193,872 to the University of North Dakota (UND) to perform collaborative research at UND's main campus. This grant is approved through the Chemical Theory, Models and Computational Methods program in the NSF Division of Chemistry. The investment will specifically finance the project entitled "Rare-event Si  more

WASHINGTON, March 19 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following statement: U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) issued the following statement on U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross announcing a $1.5 million grant for the North Dakota State University (NDSU) Research & Technology Park: "President Trump and his Administration give North Dakota unprecedented access and attention, and an investment in protecting the region now while empowering the next generation is a prime example  more

WASHINGTON, March 21 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following statement on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell Introducing the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act: "Well done to Leader McConnell and Senate Republican chairmen. Phase Three is moving at warp speed, as it should. Now is not the time for slow walking or procedural purity. Today's plan aims to stabilize the economy, help the American people with their finances, provide relief for small business  more

WASHINGTON, March 19 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following statement after the Senate passed the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (H.R. 6201): "Negotiated by President Trump and House Democrats, this bill gives immediate and vital relief for American workers and small businesses who are suffering and unsure of what the future holds. "It also provides flexibility for the Administration to direct assistance where it's needed most. "This legislation is an important s  more

WASHINGTON, March 13 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following statement on President Trump declaring a national emergency to manage the coronavirus outbreak: "This is the right thing to do and the right time to do it. As he has at every step, President Trump demonstrated the extraordinary leadership our country needs, striking the right balance of bold and decisive action with diplomacy and collaboration. "Today's event was an incredible show of force, bringing the private a  more

WASHINGTON, March 19 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following statement: U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) issued the following statement regarding President Trump ordering the Energy Department to purchase United States crude oil to fill the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) after Russia and Saudi Arabia caused significant disruptions to the energy market: "This is an important first step, and I am confident Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette will carry it out well." Senator C  more

WASHINGTON, March 16 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following statement after the Senate passed a short-term reauthorization of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act: "This is the right call by Senate leadership. The House gave us six days to consider a three-year reauthorization with no time to debate alternative approaches. "From what we have seen, their rushed plan is insufficient for protecting the Constitutional rights of American citizens and does not properly addr  more

WASHINGTON, March 19 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following op-ed on the coronavirus, published on the Fox News website: "Under President Trump, the United States economy is roaring. Just look at the February jobs report, with 273,000 new jobs added, job numbers in December and January revised up by 85,000, and average hourly earnings up 3 percent from this time last year. "Our rocket-ship economy is strong, but the coronavirus outbreak threatens to derail some of this mome  more

WASHINGTON, March 19 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) introduced legislation to provide community banks with regulatory relief as coronavirus continues to negatively impact the economy. "A combination of good management by industry leaders and prompt action by the Federal Reserve has given our system the liquidity it needs to combat the economic downturn, but current laws and regulations create perverse incentives for fin  more

WASHINGTON, March 21 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) announced the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Office of Rural Development (RD) awarded a $41,000 grant to the city of Finley in Steele County. This Rural Development investment will be used to purchase a payloader for the city of Finley. The equipment will be used for street maintenance, landfill maintenance, snow removal, and other miscellaneous city needs.  more

WASHINGTON, March 21 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), announced the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) awarded a grant totaling $2,578,350 to the North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality (NDDEQ). These funds are used by NDDEQ to perform delegated program activities, perform quality assurance activities, and maintain regional and national data bases associated with environmental programs. They address cl  more

WASHINGTON, March 20 -- Sen. John Hoeven, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: * * * - Legislation Aligns Tax Filing Deadline with Treasury Department's Extended Tax Payment Deadline * * * Senator John Hoeven cosponsored the Tax Filing Relief for America Act, legislation to extend the tax filing deadline from April 15, 2020, to July 15, 2020 given the coronavirus outbreak. The U.S. Treasury Department previously announced that it would extend the tax payment deadline for filers  more

WASHINGTON, March 19 -- Sen. John Hoeven, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: * * * - Senator Also Spoke to President Trump to Get Saudi Arabia to Help Stabilize Energy Markets & Counter Economic Impacts of COVID-19 * * * Senator John Hoeven today pressed Princess Reema Bandar Al Saud, the Saudi Arabian Ambassador to the U.S., to help pull back on Saudi's oil price war with Russia. The senator stressed the ongoing economic impacts of the novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) and t  more

FARGO, North Dakota, March 18 -- Sen. John Hoeven, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: * * * - Senator Worked to Advance NDSU's Application, Supports Tech Sector as the Third Wave in ND's Economic Growth * * * Senator John Hoeven announced that the Economic Development Administration (EDA) has awarded a $1.5 million grant to the North Dakota State University (NDSU) Research and Technology Park for its new Innovation Studio. The Innovation Studio will serve as a makerspace for   more

WASHINGTON, March 19 -- Sen. John Hoeven, R-North Dakota, issued the following statement: Senator John Hoeven issued the following statement after joining the Senate in passing legislation to assist families, workers and small businesses impacted by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak. The legislation: * Ensures access to testing for the virus. * Requires paid family, medical and sick leave to help prevent the spread of the disease. * Provides emergency unemployment insurance.   more

WASHINGTON, March 20 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Kevin Cramer (R-ND) and Mark Warner (D-VA) introduced S. 3533, the "Securing and Enabling Commerce Using Remote and Electronic (SECURE) Notarization Act of 2020,". This bipartisan legislation, backed by North Dakota's Governor Doug Burgum, permits immediate nationwide use of Remote Online Notarizations (RONs), a type of electronic notarization where the notary and signer are in different   more

WASHINGTON, March 19 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release on March 18: U.S. Senators Kevin Cramer (R-ND) and Dan Sullivan (R-AK) led a discussion between a group of 10 senators and HRH Princess Reema Bandar Al Saud, the Saudi Ambassador to the United States. During the call, the Senators urged the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to halt its recent harmful efforts to boost oil production and lower crude oil prices. Today's phone call follows a letter, led by Senators   more

WASHINGTON, March 19 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Kevin Cramer (R-ND) and Mark Warner (D-VA) introduced S. 3533, the "Securing and Enabling Commerce Using Remote and Electronic (SECURE) Notarization Act of 2020,". This bipartisan legislation permits immediate nationwide use of Remote Online Notarizations (RONs), a type of electronic notarization where the notary and signer are in different physical locations. "Americans shouldn't have t  more

WASHINGTON, March 17 -- Sen. John Hoeven, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release: Senators John Hoeven and Kevin Cramer helped introduce the Securing All Livestock Equitably (SALE) Act, bipartisan legislation to address the problem of livestock dealer payment default. Quick turnaround between the purchase and resale of cattle by a dealer often leaves the rancher who originally owned the cattle with little recourse if a dealer defaults on a purchase, as the livestock has often already  more