Press Releases
Merkley, Wyden, Walden Push for Emergency Aid for Flood-Stricken Eastern Oregon
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Oregon's U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden, with Congressman Greg Walden (R-OR-5), are pushing the Trump administration for an expedited review of the "presidential major disaster declaration" that Oregon Governor Kate Brown requested for three Oregon counties and a tribal nation that suffered severe damage from historic flooding in February. Officials estimate damages to public and individual property amount to more than $30 million. The lawmakers also emphasized … Continue Reading
March 05, 2020
Merkley, Wyden Join Bipartisan Group of Senators in Urging Vice President Pence to Ensure Coronavirus Resources for Tribes and Urban Native Communities
WASHINGTON, DC - Oregon's U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden joined a bipartisan group of 25 senators in writing to Vice President Mike Pence requesting the administration meaningfully engage with Native communities and Tribal leaders on their response to the 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19). The senators sent the letter following congressional passage of a coronavirus emergency supplemental appropriations bill that includes $40 million for Tribes, Tribal organizations and Urban Indian … Continue Reading
March 05, 2020
Merkley, Wyden Announce Senate Passage of Emergency Coronavirus Funding Bill
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Oregon's U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden today announced the Senate passage of a bipartisan, bicameral coronavirus emergency funding bill, which will provide $8.3 billion in new funding to respond to the COVID-19 outbreak. "In the face of this public health crisis, we need good information, good science, and the right tools in the right hands to limit the virus's spread and keep people safe," said Merkley. "It's important that members of Congress of both parties … Continue Reading
March 05, 2020
Wyden and Khanna Introduce Bill to Protect Whistleblowers, Ensure Journalists Aren’t Targeted for Publishing Classified Information
Washington, D.C. - As the Trump-Barr Justice Department increasingly targets whistleblowers and political enemies, Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., today introduced the Espionage Act Reform Act to rewrite the hundred-year-old law governing when reporters and whistleblowers can be prosecuted for discussing government secrets. The Wyden-Khanna legislation reaffirms First Amendment protections for journalists who publish classified information, and ensures whistleblowers can … Continue Reading
March 04, 2020
Wyden Calls on Census Bureau to Address Impact of Coronavirus on 2020 Census
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden today urged the U.S. Census Bureau to put a plan in place to ensure that the expanding coronavirus outbreak doesn't hurt the accuracy of the 2020 Census, and to make sure the health of census takers is protected. In the letter to Census Bureau Director Steven Dillingham, Wyden and 16 other senators also requested a Senate briefing on the status of the census no later than March 27, 2020. "An accurate and comprehensive census is fundamental to our … Continue Reading
March 04, 2020
Oregon Officials to Hold Flood Recovery Meeting in Pendleton
Portland - All Oregonians hit by the recent floods that devastated Umatilla County are invited to a March 10 meeting with federal, tribal, county, city and non-profit officials who will provide information and answer community questions about recovering from the disaster. The meeting from 5 pm to 7:30 pm on Tuesday, March 10 at the Pendleton Convention Center (1601 Westgate) was coordinated by U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley, Gov. Kate Brown and U.S. Rep. Greg Walden. "I know … Continue Reading
March 04, 2020
Wyden, Merkley Support Baker City Watershed Road Repairs
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today urged federal officials to improve emergency response and access to public lands by fixing the only accessible route through the fire-prone Baker City watershed. The Oregon senators' letter to U.S. Forest Service Chief Vicki Christiansen comes in support of Wallowa-Whitman National Forest officials' request for capital improvement project funds to repair the Marble Creek Pass Road. Wyden and Merkley noted in their letter that the … Continue Reading
March 03, 2020
Wyden Presses DOE Secretary on Agency’s Failure to Prioritize Hanford Cleanup
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today pressed U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Dan Brouillette on the agency's failure to prioritize cleaning up the Hanford site and protecting workers and surrounding communities from contamination. In a hearing before the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee on Donald Trump's FY2021 budget, Wyden cited a recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) report that found significant problems with the way contaminated … Continue Reading
March 03, 2020
Wyden, Merkley Urge the Supreme Court to Uphold Statute Protecting Consumers from Unwanted Robocalls
Washington, D.C. - Oregon's U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley joined more than a dozen members of Congress to file an amicus brief with the Supreme Court urging the Justices to uphold the validity of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), the long-established law that requires callers to obtain consent before robocalling. "The TCPA remains an essential, if not more essential, piece of legislation today," the members of Congress wrote in their brief. "By restricting calls made to … Continue Reading
March 03, 2020
Wyden on FERC Nominee Vote: “The Trump administration appears determined to overthrow any semblance of independence at the FERC”
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., released the following statement opposing today's U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources vote advancing the nomination of James P. Danly to be a member of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC): "The Trump administration appears determined to overthrow any semblance of independence at the FERC. For months, the agency has operated without a full and bipartisan commission, throwing into question whether its decisions are … Continue Reading
March 02, 2020
Wyden and Warren Demand Answers on Allegations that Trump Administration Has Been Using Confidential Therapy Notes to Detain and Deport Migrant Children
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., today demanded answers from the Trump administration regarding allegations that confidential information disclosed by unaccompanied migrant children to mental health professionals is being distorted and used against these children by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to pursue deportation or prolonged detention. Wyden and Warren today sent separate letters to Assistant Secretary for the … Continue Reading
February 28, 2020
Merkley, Wyden Announce $6.4 Million in Wildfire Recovery and Resilience Funding for Ochoco, Mt. Hood Forests
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Oregon's U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden announced today that the Ochoco and Wasco Forest Collaboratives have secured $1.68 million and $4.78 million in grant funding, respectively, from the Forest Service and National Resource Conservation Service. The funds will help the forests recover damage from previous wildfires, and boost resilience to future blazes. Senators Merkley and Wyden wrote letters to the Forest Service and National Resource Conservation Service in … Continue Reading
February 27, 2020
Wyden Statement on Reported FCC Fines on Wireless Carriers Failing to Protect Location Data
U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today released the following statement on reports that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will fine wireless companies for failing to protect users' location data: "Based on today's news reports, it seems clear Chairman Pai has failed to protect American consumers at every stage of the game - this issue only came to light after my office and dedicated journalists discovered how wireless companies shared Americans' locations willy nilly. He only … Continue Reading
February 27, 2020
Wyden, Merkley Announce Warm Springs and Eugene Housing Authorities to Receive HUD Funding
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today announced that Homes for Good, based in Eugene, Ore., and Warm Springs Housing Authority will receive U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) funding to help economically empower families living in federally subsidized housing by facilitating access to supportive services. These include health services, child care, transportation, job placement, job training, and more. Warm Springs Housing Authority will receive … Continue Reading
February 26, 2020
Wyden Co-sponsors Bill to Stop Trump Raids of Defense Department Funds for His Border Wall
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden today announced he is co-sponsoring legislation that would reverse and restore the Trump administration's short-sighted and dangerous transfer of $3.8 billion to build part of Donald Trump's ineffective border wall. The Restoring Military Priorities Act of 2020 also would reduce the Trump administration's transfer authority so it cannot turn around and try to divert additional funding for Trump's border wall. Currently, there is no other process at … Continue Reading
February 26, 2020
Wyden, Merkley: Lane County to Get More Than $1.1 Million in FEMA Funds
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today announced that Lane County will get a federal emergency grant totaling more than $1.1 million to cover costs for severe storms from February 2019 that caused flooding, landslides, and mudslides. "When Oregonians get clobbered by destructive weather, it's vital that the federal government step up to help with recovery from these disasters," Wyden said. "I am gratified that our teamwork with Lane County officials to secure funds … Continue Reading
February 26, 2020
Wyden, Colleagues Push USDA to Expand Rural Broadband Access
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today led a bipartisan group of senators to urge the Trump administration to expand access to rural broadband by changing a requirement that prevents providers in rural communities across 19 states from even applying to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) ReConnect program, which funds rural broadband deployment. Since 2018, USDA has been authorized to make grants and loans of about $600 million per year to foster rural broadband … Continue Reading
February 25, 2020
Wyden Presses Forest Service on Backlog of Hazardous Fuels and Wildfire Prevention Projects in Oregon
Washington, D.C. - In a hearing before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee today, U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., pressed the chief of the U.S. Forest Service for an update on implementation of the "fire borrowing" fix and the agency's plans to prioritize the 2.5 million acres backlog of hazardous fuels and wildfire prevention projects in Oregon. Congress in 2018 passed Wyden's Wildfire Disaster Funding Act to end the damaging budget practice of "fire borrowing," which for years … Continue Reading
February 21, 2020
Wyden, Merkley Push Trump Administration to Withdraw Rules Allowing for Taxpayer-Funded Discrimination
Washington, D.C. - Oregon's U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley urged the Trump administration to withdraw proposed rules that would expand federally funded discrimination against members of the LGBTQIA+ community, women, non-religious people and religious minorities. Wyden, Merkley and other Senate Democrats sent three separate letters to the Departments of Education, Labor and Health and Human Services (HHS). Both rules would eliminate crucial protections that would leave eligible … Continue Reading
February 20, 2020
Wyden Demands DOE Improve Protections for Hanford Workers and Surrounding Communities
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today requested the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) take additional steps to ensure the safety and protection of workers at the Hanford site and communities in the region following a new Government Accountability Office (GAO) report that finds significant problems with the way contaminated excess facilities at Hanford are evaluated, monitored and prioritized for remediation. In a letter to DOE Secretary Dan Brouillette, Wyden wrote, "Although … Continue Reading
