Press Releases
Wyden, Bennet Press Interior Secretary to Respect Local Input on Sage Grouse Plans
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Michael F. Bennet, D-Colo., today pressed Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke to respect local input and years-long collaborative efforts on land management plans to prevent an Endangered Species Act listing for the Greater Sage-grouse. Such a listing would harm land users by creating unpredictability for ranchers, conservationists, sportsmen, and industry. "Over the last decade, federal agencies, states, and a broad coalition of groups … Continue Reading
May 15, 2017
Wyden Pushes for Stronger Security in Collection of Personal Information
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today pushed a federal panel to recommend that strong data security measures be employed by government agencies collecting and analyzing personal information in an upcoming report to Congress on evidence-based policymaking. In a letter today to the Commission on Evidence-Based Policymaking, Wyden stressed the need to use privacy enhancing technologies (PETs) to protect private data that is collected and stored in government databases. The … Continue Reading
May 11, 2017
Wyden, Merkley Urge Feds to Lift Sudden Suspension of Public Land Advisory Groups
Washington, DC - U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today urged the Interior Department to lift its sudden suspension of long-standing local committees and advisory boards that provide essential community input on public land management. The letter to Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke follows reports from Oregonians on public resource advisory councils and committees (RACs) that the Department of Interior (DOI) postponed all their meetings until September. "We are very concerned about this … Continue Reading
May 10, 2017
Wyden Announces Hold On Treasury Nominee Until Administration Produces Documents on Russian Dealings With Trump Associates
Washington, D.C. - Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today placed a hold on the nomination of Sigal Mandelker to be Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence. Wyden said he will maintain that hold until the Treasury Department provides the Senate Intelligence Committee and Senate Finance Committee information and documents related to Russia and its financial dealings with President Trump and his associates. On Tuesday, May 9, Senate Intelligence Committee Vice Chairman … Continue Reading
May 10, 2017
Senators introduce bipartisan bill to protect law-abiding knife owners
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Mike Enzi, R-Wyo., introduced legislation today to ensure that those traveling with a properly secured knife are not prosecuted under local or state laws which ban certain knives. "The Interstate Transport Act provides common-sense protections for knife owners traveling through the United States," Wyden said. "Our bipartisan bill would protect public safety, respect states' rights and ensure knife owners who are following the law are … Continue Reading
May 09, 2017
Wyden Statement on Firing of FBI Director James Comey
Washington, D.C. -Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., issued the following statement on the firing of FBI Director James Comey: "I have long been a critic of Director Comey, for his views about surveillance and torture, his stance on secret law and his conduct during the investigation into Secretary Clinton. But Donald Trump's decision to fire him now, in the midst of an investigation into Trump associates and their ties to Russia, is outrageous. Director Comey should be immediately called to testify in … Continue Reading
May 09, 2017
Wyden, Schatz Ask FCC For Details of Reported Cyberattack
Chairman, Ajit Pai, to explain in more detail the nature of a reported cyberattack on May 8, including how it impacted the public's ability to comment on a proposal to roll back net neutrality protections. In their letter, the senators asked Chairman Pai if the FCC was prepared to defend against such distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, should they happen again. Distributed denial-of-service-attacks involve bad actors flooding a given website with more online traffic than it is … Continue Reading
May 09, 2017
Wyden, Merkley Urge FCC to Protect Net Neutrality
Washington, DC - U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today wrote Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Ajit Pai to express their strong opposition to the Chairman's plans to gut net neutrality protections. "Net neutrality rules protect the free flow of ideas that are creating new industries, educating our youth, promoting free speech, and supporting the communications that we rely on every day," the Oregon senators wrote in the letter along with Sen. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) … Continue Reading
May 03, 2017
Senators Introduce Bill to Boost Next-Generation Hydro Power
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., Angus King, I-Maine, Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, and Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, today introduced legislation to increase domestic production of low-carbon, renewable energy from the natural power in ocean waves, tides and currents. The Marine Energy Act provides federal resources to encourage private investments in renewable energy projects that use the power in oceans to produce electricity. "Capturing the energy found in ocean … Continue Reading
May 03, 2017
Wyden, Merkley, Bonamici Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Extend Urgently Needed Lifeline to Rural Oregon Counties
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., and Rep. Suzanne Bonamici, D-Ore., today introduced a bipartisan bill in the Senate and House to restore urgently needed federal funding for vital resources in rural counties in Oregon and across the country. The bill will extend payments to counties for two years through the Secure Rural Schools and Self-Determination (SRS) Act. Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, and Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., led the bill introductions … Continue Reading
May 02, 2017
Wyden Stresses Urgent Need to Extend Secure Rural Schools and Sustainably Increase Forest Management
Washington, D.C. - Rural counties in Oregon and across the country urgently need restored federal funding for vital county services and sustainably increased timber harvests, U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., stressed at a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing today. Wyden underscored the importance of both extending Secure Rural Schools (SRS) payments to counties and sustainably increasing timber harvests in order to keep the essential services SRS has funded since Congress first … Continue Reading
May 01, 2017
Wyden Statement on Oregon priorities in Government Funding Bill
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today issued the following statement on an agreement to fund the federal government through Sept 30, 2017, the end of the fiscal year: "The bill to fund the government through September contains some good news for Oregon communities, including increased funding to maintain our national parks and resources to keep our public lands open for outdoor recreation opportunities. It also provides help for students struggling to afford college by … Continue Reading
April 28, 2017
Wyden Statement on NSA Ending Collection of Americans’ Emails About Surveillance Targets Under FISA 702
Washington, D.C. - Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., issued the following statement in response to the National Security Agency's announcement it will no longer sweep up emails that are merely about foreign surveillance targets, under the FISA 702 program. "This change ends a practice that could result in Americans' communications being collected without a warrant merely for mentioning a foreign target," Wyden said. "For years, I've repeatedly raised concerns that this amounted to an end run around the … Continue Reading
April 27, 2017
Wyden, Merkley Call on Administration to Protect Coastlines from Offshore Oil Drilling
Washington, D.C. - Oregon Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley joined their Senate colleagues today in calling on the Trump administration to protect the coastlines of the United States from offshore oil drilling. The senators sent a letter to Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke urging him not to revise the 2017-2022 Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program (Five-Year Plan) to eliminate protections for the East and West Coasts, the Eastern Gulf of Mexico and for the sensitive marine … Continue Reading
April 27, 2017
Senate Passes Bipartisan Resolution Designating May 20 “Kids to Parks Day”
Washington, DC - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden, D-Ore., Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., Cory Booker, D-N.J., Rob Portman, R-Ohio, Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., and Mazie K. Hirono, D-Hawaii, applauded the Senate's passage of their bipartisan resolution to encourage children to get outdoors by designating May 20 National Kids to Parks Day. The seventh annual Kids to Parks Day kicks off a summer-long series of events at local, state and national parks. Kids to Parks Day began in 2011 with the National Park … Continue Reading
April 26, 2017
Oregon Leaders, Joined by Diverse Group of Local Stakeholders, Urge Protection of Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, in response to an unprecedented Executive Order mandating a "review" of national monuments designated since 1996, Oregon's Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden, Governor Kate Brown, and a diverse group of local stakeholders including tribes, sportsmen and businesses highlighted the benefits of the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument and urged the Trump Administration to protect the full monument for future generations. Following a local, scientist-led campaign to … Continue Reading
April 24, 2017
Wyden Votes “No” on Sonny Perdue to Lead the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., released the following statement after voting against the confirmation of Sonny Perdue to be the secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture: "I have concerns about Mr. Perdue's commitment to vital programs for rural Americans, such as the Secure Rural Schools program, and am not convinced he recognizes the vital role they play in hard-hit rural communities. Additionally, when we spoke, he simply would not commit to making sure the U.S. … Continue Reading
April 12, 2017
Senators Call for Boosted Funding to Decontaminate Lead-Tainted National Guard Armories and Readiness Centers
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, Oregon's Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden led a group of ten Senators calling on Senate Appropriations Committee leaders to dedicate adequate funding to cleaning up National Guard sites across the U.S. that have been contaminated by dangerous amounts of lead dust. In addition to their National Guard uses, these armories and readiness centers are often used by the community for events such as job fairs and are rented out for weddings, baby showers, baptisms and … Continue Reading
April 11, 2017
Wyden Demands Answers from United Airlines About Forcible Removal of a Passenger
Washington, DC - U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden today joined with 20 colleagues to demand answers from United Airlines about the forcible removal of a ticketed passenger on Flight 3411 from Chicago, Illinois to Louisville, Kentucky. "Consumer trust and confidence are critical to ensure this industry continues to thrive, and we hope United Airlines will work diligently to immediately address this incident and make necessary improvements to ensure it does not occur again," wrote Wyden and the senators. … Continue Reading
April 07, 2017
Wyden Statement on Syria
Washington, D.C. - Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today issued the following statement on Syria: "I am relieved that Bashar al-Assad's most recent war crime-the use of banned nerve gas to poison his own citizens-has finally convinced the Trump administration what my Senate colleagues and I have long known: the bloodthirsty Assad regime has no qualms about the liquidation of its detractors. This use of sarin against men, women, and most horrifically, against children, violates international rules and … Continue Reading
