WASHINGTON, May 7 -- Sen. Christopher Murphy, D-Connecticut, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) joined Democratic Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Rep. Nydia M. Velazquez (D-N.Y.) to write the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) requesting Administrator Pete T. Gaynor extend the incident period for the major disaster declaration in Puerto Rico to cover the most recent earthquake damages of May 2, 2020. The curren  more

WASHINGTON, May 8 -- The Government Accountability Office has issued a report (GAO-20-325) is entitled "Food Safety: FDA and USDA Could Strengthen Existing Efforts to Prepare for Oversight of Cell-Cultured Meat". The report was sent to Rep. Rosa L. DeLauro, D-Connecticut, chairwoman of the House Appropriations subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies, on May 7, 2020. Here are excerpts of summaries associated with the report. What GAO Found: "General info  more

WASHINGTON, May 8 -- The Government Accountability Office has issued a report (GAO-20-382) is entitled "Poverty Reduction: HHS Can Improve Information to Assist States and Localities in Adopting Approaches That Serve Whole Families". The report was sent to Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Missouri, chairman, Sen. Patty Murray, D-Washington, ranking member of the Senate Appropriations subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies, Rep. Rosa L. DeLauro, D-Connecticut, chairwom  more

NORWICH, Connecticut, May 1 -- Rep. Joe Courtney, D-Connecticut, issued the following news release: Congressman Joe Courtney (CT-02) announced that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) will award federal grants totaling $451,133 to six municipalities across eastern Connecticut. HUD will disperse the new awards to municipal housing authorities in Brooklyn, New London, Norwich, Putnam, Vernon, and Willimantic. The new grant awards were authorized under the bipartisan CARES A  more

NORWICH, Connecticut, May 5 -- Rep. Joe Courtney, D-Connecticut, issued the following news release: In response to rising rates of unemployment, Congressman Joe Courtney (CT-02) joined House Committee on Education and Labor Chairman Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (VA-03) on Friday in introducing new legislation that would invest $15 billion in America's workforce training infrastructure, as well as in career and technical education programs. The Relaunching America's Workforce Act would authorize new   more

NORWICH, Connecticut, May 6 -- Rep. Joe Courtney, D-Connecticut, issued the following statement after the Small Business Administration announced that they have finally provided farmers and agricultural businesses with access to the Economic Injury Disaster Loan and grant program: Rep. Courtney is the Co-Chairman of the bipartisan Congressional Dairy Caucus, and has pressed U.S. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin and SBA Administrator Jovita Carranza to act swiftly on the new EIDL funding authori  more

NORWICH, Connecticut, May 6 -- Rep. Joe Courtney, D-Connecticut, issued the following news release: Congressman Joe Courtney (CT-02) released the following statement after receiving confirmation that the New London VA Community Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC) has officially been granted a new lease award that will keep them in New London, and will allow them to grow their presence in order to better serve the community. Courtney received word from Al Montoya, CEO and Medical Center Director of t  more

WASHINGTON, May 1 -- Rep. Rosa L. DeLauro, D-Connecticut, issued the following news release: Amid announcements concerning preliminary clinical trial data on remdesivir and anticipated emergency use authorization from the FDA, U.S. Representative Lloyd Doggett (D-TX), Chair of the House Ways and Means Health Subcommittee, and Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), Chair of the Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations Subcommittee, urge Secretary Azar to release information about the ex  more

WASHINGTON, May 7 -- Rep. Jahana Hayes, D-Connecticut, issued the following news release: Congresswoman Hayes (CT-05) announced that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has selected the Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments (NVCOG) for an $800,000 Brownfields Revolving Loan Fund Grant. "I am pleased that the Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments will be receiving an EPA grant to help remediate the Brownfields in Connecticut," said Congresswoman Hayes. "In both Fiscal Years 2020 and 2  more

WATERBURY, Connecticut, April 30 -- Rep. Jahana Hayes, D-Connecticut, issued the following statement: "This week, my husband, a first responder in the City of Waterbury was exposed to and tested positive for COVID-19 at his workplace. I am incredibly grateful that at this time he seems to be healthy and asymptomatic. Given my exposure, I was also tested and it was thankfully negative. Out of an abundance of caution, and in keeping in line with guidance from the Centers for Disease Control, my f  more

WASHINGTON, May 5 -- Rep. John B. Larson, D-Connecticut, issued the following news release: Rep. John B. Larson (CT-01) joined 87 House Democrats in a letter led by Rep. Jan Schakowsky (IL-09) to Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Alex Azar and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Seema Verma. The letter requests that a portion of the $25 billion in funding for COVID-19 testing provided by Congress as part of the Paycheck Protection Program and Healt  more

WASHINGTON, May 7 -- Rep. John B. Larson, D-Connecticut, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and U.S. Representatives John Larson (D-1), Joe Courtney (D-2), Rosa DeLauro (D-3), Jim Himes (D-4), and Jahana Hayes (D-5) applauded $2.3 million in U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) funding for assisting communities in cleaning up contaminated brownfield properties in Connecticut. "This funding is desperately needed more th  more

HARTFORD, Connecticut, May 5 -- Rep. John B. Larson, D-Connecticut, issued the following news release on May 4: House Ways and Means Social Security Subcommittee Chairman John B. Larson (CT-01) called for an emergency expansion of Social Security to help address the current economic crisis due to the COVID-19 pandemic. "Social Security is our nation's number one anti-poverty program and the number one lifeline for seniors. Seniors are the most vulnerable to this virus, and among them hits mino  more

PARSIPPANY, New Jersey, May 8 -- Rep. Mikie Sherrill, D-New Jersey, issued the following news release: Co-Chairs Mikie Sherrill (NJ-11) and Pete King (NY-02) led a meeting of the Regional Recovery Task Force with New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy and Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont to discuss the region's plans to reopen the economy. The Members of Congress and the Governors underscored the need for cooperation and communication at the state and federal level to help the Northeast. They also add  more

WASHINGTON, May 8 -- Rep. Rosa L. DeLauro, D-Connecticut, issued the following news release: Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (CT-03) and Congresswoman Suzan DelBene (WA-01) sent a letter to House and Senate leaders calling for the inclusion of an expanded and improved, fully refundable Child Tax Credit (CTC) in the next coronavirus response package. DeLauro and DelBene's letter has 60 total cosigners from the House Democratic Caucus. A recent Columbia University study estimated poverty rates are ra  more

HARTFORD, Connecticut, May 5 -- Rep. John B. Larson, D-Connecticut, issued the following news release: Representatives John B. Larson (CT-01), Jared Huffman (CA-02), and Dean Phillips (MN-03) led a letter to House leadership urging them to focus on national service priorities in future stimulus legislation and invest in the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNSC) to aid in recovery efforts during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Specifically, the letter asks that the next con  more

WASHINGTON, May 2 -- Reps. Nita M. Lowey, D-New York, chairwoman of the House Appropriations Committee, and Rosa DeLauro, D-Connecticut, chairwoman of the Subcommittee on House Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies, issued the following joint statement on the hearing on COVID-19: "Congress and the American public deserve a clear-eyed view of the path forward for responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. "In the short-term, that entails what our federal government is doing  more

PARSIPPANY, New Jersey, May 6 -- Rep. Mikie Sherrill, D-New Jersey, issued the following news release: Regional Recovery Task Force Co-Chairs Mikie Sherrill (NJ-11) and Pete King (NY-02) led the first session of the bipartisan group last week to hear from former FDA Commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb, who is currently advising the governments of Maryland and Massachusetts on their COVID-19 responses. Sherrill and King, alongside members from New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Delaware, and Pennsyl  more

HARTFORD, Connecticut, May 5 -- Sen. Christopher Murphy, D-Connecticut, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) announced on Monday that Whelen Engineering Company, Inc., in Chester is this week's "Murphy's Monday Manufacturer." Founded in 1952 by George W. Whelen III in his garage in Deep River, Whelen Engineering Company specializes in the manufacturing of warning lights, white illumination lighting, vehicle control systems, sirens, and programming software for   more

WASHINGTON, May 6 -- Sen. Christopher Murphy, D-Connecticut, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) joined U.S. Senators Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), and 17 of their Democratic Senate colleagues in sending a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo urging the Department of State and the Trump administration to take immediate action to exempt emergency global health funding appropriated by Congress for the COVI  more

WASHINGTON, May 9 -- Sen. Christopher Murphy, D-Connecticut, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), top Democrat of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Near East, South Asia, Central Asia, joined legislation led by Ranking Member Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) introducing sweeping comprehensive legislation to provide an additional $9 billion in funding to help support international efforts to fight the COVID-19 pandemic. The COVID-19 International Response   more

HARTFORD, Connecticut, May 7 -- Sen. Christopher Murphy, D-Connecticut, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and U.S. Representatives John Larson (D-1), Joe Courtney (D-2), Rosa DeLauro (D-3), Jim Himes (D-4), and Jahana Hayes (D-5) applauded $2.3 million in U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) funding for assisting communities in cleaning up contaminated brownfield properties in Connecticut. "This funding is desperately  more

HARTFORD, Connecticut, May 9 -- Sen. Christopher Murphy, D-Connecticut, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and U.S. Representatives John Larson (D-1), Joe Courtney (D-2), Rosa DeLauro (D-3), Jim Himes (D-4), and Jahana Hayes (D-5) applauded $7.5 million that Connecticut health centers will receive from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), to ex  more

WASHINGTON, May 8 -- Sen. Christopher Murphy, D-Connecticut, issued the following news release on May 7: U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), a member of the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, on Thursday questioned Dr. Francis Collins of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and Dr. Gary Disbrow of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) on the administration's novel coronavirus response during the first HELP Committee hearing since COVID-  more

WASHINGTON, May 1 -- Rep. Rosa L. DeLauro, D-Connecticut, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, and Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (CT-03), Chair of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, urged Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos to reverse her harmful and unauthorized guidance that will restrict more than 7.5 million students from ac  more

WASHINGTON, May 9 -- Sen. Christopher Murphy, D-Connecticut, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), both members of the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, on Friday led 8 Senate Democrats in urging the Trump administration to cover the COVID-19 treatment expenses for those enrolled in short term, limited duration insurance (STLDI) plans. These so-called junk plans, which are heavily promoted by th  more

WASHINGTON, May 6 -- Sen. Christopher Murphy, D-Connecticut, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) wrote to the Director of the Bureau of Prisons (BOP), Michael Carvajal, demanding that he provide answers regarding the department's response to the COVID-19 outbreak at FCI Danbury. There are currently over 60 inmates and 50 staff who have contracted the disease, including one inmate who has died. "We are also concerned that, whi  more

WASHINGTON, May 8 -- Sen. Christopher Murphy, D-Connecticut, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) joined U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Jack Reed (D-R.I.), who led a bipartisan group of 25 lawmakers in pushing to make sure urgently needed federal assistance is delivered to America's fishermen and seafood processors, who have been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic. In their lett  more

WASHINGTON, May 9 -- Sen. Christopher Murphy, D-Connecticut, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and 18 Senators sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD), urging the agency to put in place a comprehensive mental health care plan to ensure the well-being of servicemembers and their families during and after the pandemic. "We urge you to develop a plan to protect and promote mental health and wellbeing, assess and ref  more

WASHINGTON, May 9 -- Sen. Christopher Murphy, D-Connecticut, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and 23 Senators sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), urging the agency to develop and implement comprehensive mental health care plans to ensure veterans' well-being during and after the pandemic. "The stress, uncertainty, and isolation associated with the pandemic - all risk factors for suicide in a populat  more

WASHINGTON, May 7 -- Sen. Christopher Murphy, D-Connecticut, issued the following news release on May 6: In a letter addressed to the President of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Mark Emmert, U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-N.J.) this week urged the NCAA to take further action to ensure that college athletes are able to access the rights and opportunities they deserve. Their letter comes in the wake of a recently released report from the   more

WASHINGTON, May 8 -- Sen. Christopher Murphy, D-Connecticut, issued the following news release on May 7: Following reports of an attempted raid on Venezuela allegedly orchestrated by a group of Venenzuelan military defectors and two American citizens, U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), along with U.S. Senators Tim Kaine (D-Va.) and Tom Udall (D-N.M.), all members of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, on Thursday asked the U.S. Department of State, U.S. Department of Justice, and the  more