Press Releases
Wyden Introduces Bill to Address Health Care Labor Shortage
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today introduced legislation that would help address the ongoing health care labor shortage by making it easier for health care employers to create new registered apprenticeship programs to train the next generation of health professionals. “The Republican health care ‘agenda’ is a runaway train barreling toward our country’s health care system,” Wyden said. “Health care is the biggest employment sector in our country. But doctors, nurses, … Continue Reading
December 04, 2025
Merkley, Wyden, Hoyle Announce Newport Helicopter Returns to the Community
Washington, D.C. - Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden, along with Representative Val Hoyle (OR-04), today announced that Admiral Kevin Lunday, Acting Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard, committed to the Senators on a call that an essential rescue helicopter located at the Newport Air Facility would remain there: “Thanks to public pressure and action from the courts, the Coast Guard has committed to keeping the rescue helicopter in Newport for good, which is critical ahead of … Continue Reading
December 04, 2025
Wyden, Crapo Introduce Bipartisan Pharmacy Benefit Manager Legislation
Washington, D.C.—U.S. Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-Oregon) and Chairman Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) today introduced the Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM) Price Transparency and Accountability Act to fix market distortions and increase transparency in federal prescription drug programs to lower patient costs at the pharmacy counter. “It’s long past time to go after middlemen who are making Americans’ prescription drugs more expensive,” Wyden said. “The … Continue Reading
December 04, 2025
Wyden, Merkley, Crapo, Risch Push for Passage of Secure Rural Schools Reauthorization
Washington, D.C. -- U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley (both D-Oregon), alongside U.S. Senators Mike Crapo and James Risch (both R-Idaho) are leading a bipartisan coalition of 83 lawmakers in sending a letter today to House leadership requesting urgent reauthorization of the Secure Rural Schools (SRS) and Self Determination Act. The bill, which the Senate unanimously passed in June 2025, would reauthorize the program through fiscal year 2026 and provide lapsed payments for fiscal years … Continue Reading
December 03, 2025
Wyden, Boozman, and 19 Colleagues Introduce Resolution Condemning Baha’i Oppression in Iran
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Senator John Boozman, R-Ark., today led 19 Senate colleagues in introducing a bipartisan resolution condemning Iran’s government for persecuting members of the Baha’i faith. “The Iranian government has squeezed every freedom from members of the Baha’i community,” Wyden said. “Imprisoning and torturing Baha’is and taking away their rights is immoral, unjust, and just plain wrong. The Baha'i community in Iran deserves to freely practice … Continue Reading
December 03, 2025
Merkley, Wyden, Colleagues Urge Secretary Bessent to Reject Proposed Dollar Coin Designs Featuring Donald Trump
Washington, D.C. - Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley and Nevada’s U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto led seven Senate Democrats—including Senator Ron Wyden—in a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent calling on him to reject the proposed designs for the Semiquincentennial dollar coin featuring the likeness of President Donald Trump. “American lawmakers throughout history have reaffirmed the time-honored tradition of not circulating U.S. currency with images of currently elected … Continue Reading
December 02, 2025
Wyden, Colleagues Press DHS on Obstruction of Congressional Visits to Detention Facilities
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden said today he has joined Senate colleagues to question the Department of Homeland Security about obstruction of congressional access to detention facilities. “Obstructing Congressional access to immigration detention facilities violates Federal law and undermines Congress’s inherent authority to conduct oversight that ensures detained individuals’ human rights and protects Americans from agency waste, fraud, and abuse,” the senators wrote to … Continue Reading
November 25, 2025
Merkley, Wyden Fighting to Reverse SNAP Cuts and Restore Food Security for Millions of Americans
Washington, D.C. - After Trump and Congressional Republicans earlier this year passed their ‘Big, Ugly BETRAYAL’ of a budget bill that will let millions of families go hungry, Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley led the entire Senate Democratic Caucus—including Oregon’s U.S. Senator Ron Wyden—in introducing the Restoring Food Security for American Families and Farmers Act of 2025. This legislation would repeal all the devastating cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) made … Continue Reading
November 24, 2025
Wyden, Merkley Demand Trump Administration Cleanup Toxic Waste to Protect Military Families and Local Communities
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley said today they have joined their colleagues in urging the Trump administration to reverse its decision delaying cleanups of toxic chemicals at hundreds of military installations in Oregon and nationwide. The senators also sought protections for military families and nearby communities from contamination by per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) at the affected sites. “For years, communities contaminated by PFAS from nearby DOD … Continue Reading
November 24, 2025
Merkley, Wyden Join 88 Lawmakers in Urging Protection of Electric Vehicle Investments in Bipartisan Surface Transportation Negotiations
Washington, D.C. - Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden today joined 88 lawmakers in pushing leaders on the Senate Environment and Public Works and House Transportation and Infrastructure Committees to protect electric vehicle (EV) investments while reauthorizing bipartisan surface transportation legislation. The lawmakers reaffirmed their commitment to supporting a similar bipartisan surface transportation process to the historic passage of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, but … Continue Reading
November 24, 2025
Merkley, Wyden, Western Senators Call for Emergency Funding for Wildfire Recovery on Federal Lands
Washington, D.C. - Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden joined fellow Western Senators to urge Congress to pass additional funding to support wildfire recovery on federal lands. In a letter to Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Susan Collins (R-ME) and Vice Chair Patty Murray (D-WA), the Senators pressed for additional resources to help National Parks, National Forests, and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) lands recover from this year’s devastating wildfires. Since damage to … Continue Reading
November 21, 2025
Merkley, Wyden Announce $11.5 Million to Oregon for Expanding Regional Public Transportation
Washington, D.C. - Today, Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden announced the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) is awarding $11.5 million to the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) on behalf of Coos County Area Transportation, Yamhill County Transit Area, and Benton Area Transit to acquire and maintain new buses. The federal investment will help support and expand regional transit networks by purchasing, leasing, or rehabilitating buses, and the facilities and … Continue Reading
November 19, 2025
Wyden, Welch, Balint Introduce End Rent Fixing Act to Crack Down on Companies Using Algorithms to Illegally Raise Rents
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden and Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vt., with 10 Democrats, today reintroduced legislation to crack down on companies that would help landlords increase rents in already high-priced markets. These services would allow landlords to collude to set prices via software and price-setting algorithms. Rep. Becca Balint, D-Vt., is leading the House version of the bill. The legislation is cosponsored by Sens. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., Cory Booker, D-N.J., Richard … Continue Reading
November 19, 2025
Wyden Asks Coast Guard to Meet This Sunday in Newport About Its Unexplained Relocation of Search-and-Rescue Helicopter
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden today asked U.S. Coast Guard officials to join him this Sunday morning, Nov. 23 at the Newport Municipal Airport to provide him and this central Oregon Coast community answers about the relocation of a Coast Guard helicopter essential to local public safety. Wyden wrote in his letter to Admiral Kevin E. Lunday, Acting Coast Guard Commandant, that he would like that Nov. 23 airport meeting with a Coast Guard representative to happen before his annual … Continue Reading
November 17, 2025
Wyden Announces Town Hall on Sunday, November 23 in Lincoln County
Portland - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden today announced he will hold an open-to-all town hall Sunday, November 23 in Lincoln County. Heading into this 1:30 pm town hall at the Newport High School gym (322 NE Eads St., Newport), Wyden has held 1,137 open-to-all town halls in keeping his promise to hold at least one town hall each year in each of Oregon’s 36 counties. “The Oregon Way is all about showing up in our state’s communities, listening to everybody’s opinions and answering their questions,” … Continue Reading
November 17, 2025
Merkley, Wyden, Colleagues Call on Trump Admin to Immediately Halt Plans to Upend Key Homelessness Program
Washington, D.C. - Today, Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden joined their Democratic Senate colleagues to urge Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Scott Turner to immediately halt reported plans to make drastic changes to the Continuum of Care (CoC) program, which could result in nearly 200,000 Americans being forced out of their housing and back into homelessness. The 42 Senate Democrats called on Secretary Turner to instead use the authorities that … Continue Reading
November 17, 2025
Wyden, Merkley Push Trump Administration to Release Funds for Heating Assistance for Low-Income Americans
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley said today that they are joining a bipartisan group of senators to push the Trump administration to immediately release funds for the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), a lifeline program that helps low-income Americans afford their energy bills. The letter to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. comes as the Trump administration sits on $4 billion in … Continue Reading
November 14, 2025
Wyden, Colleagues Introduce Bill to Rein in Abuse of National Guard in Domestic Deployments
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden said today he has joined Senate colleagues to introduce legislation that would limit Donald Trump’s ability to deploy the National Guard into U.S. communities. The No Troops in Our Streets Act gives Congress the ability to stop a military deployment at home with a simple majority of votes, at any time. The legislation would apply to the deployments to Los Angeles, Portland, and Chicago. If Trump invokes the Insurrection Act in the future, it would … Continue Reading
November 13, 2025
Wyden, Warner Demand Release of CISA Report on Insecurity of U.S. Phone Networks
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Mark Warner, D-Va., vice-chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, demanded the release of a report detailing specific, serious threats to U.S. phone networks, which the Trump administration has refused to release. “The continued suppression of a report identifying serious vulnerabilities of the U.S. telecommunications sector undermines the public’s understanding of these threats and stymies an important public debate on a … Continue Reading
November 13, 2025
Wyden, Schumer, Warren, and Cortez Masto Press Trump to Restore Export Controls After Trading Sensitive U.S. Technology to China in Trade Talks
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., Democratic Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Sen Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., pressed Donald Trump on his decision to trade away U.S. national security in search of quick handshake deals to mitigate his disastrous trade agenda by suspending critical export controls that helped prevent Chinese companies from accessing American-made advanced technology. “Trump’s selling off our tech advantage to China … Continue Reading
