Press Releases
Wyden, Merkley, Colleagues Request Report Detailing Looming Health Insurance Impacts Following Unprecedented Republican-Led Cuts to Medicaid, Premium Tax Credits
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., said today he is leading Senate colleagues, including Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., in requesting a detailed analysis of how Republican-led cuts to Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act will affect Americans’ health insurance plans. “We are deeply concerned about the impacts of actions that Trump and Republicans have taken, including finalizing rules that will ensnare Americans in needless red tape, diminish benefits, increase copayments, and stand up … Continue Reading
August 07, 2025
Wyden Announces Five Oregon Town Halls in August
Portland - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden today announced he will hold open-to-all town halls this month in Polk, Jefferson, Josephine, Benton and Clatsop counties. Heading into these five town halls from August 14-23, Wyden has held 1,129 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. “I’m looking forward to these town halls in communities large and small because hearing my fellow Oregonians’ opinions and answering their … Continue Reading
August 06, 2025
Wyden, Merkley, Colleagues Press Private Student Loan Lenders on Plans for Borrowers After Republicans Slash Access to Federal Loans
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley, both D-Ore., said today they have joined Senate colleagues to press major private student loan lenders on their plans to serve the incoming surge of borrowers pushed their way because of the Republicans’ recently passed budget bill. The legislation, in addition to stripping health insurance and food assistance from millions of Americans, will also hurt families by drastically cutting access to federal student loans, driving families … Continue Reading
August 05, 2025
Merkley, Wyden Announce $22 Million to Support Working Forestland and Tribal Access in Eastern Oregon
Washington, D.C. - Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden announced today the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) is awarding $22 million to the Qapqapa Wildlife Area project in Northeast Oregon’s Union County, which will be co-managed by the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) and the Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife (ODFW). This funding through the Forest Legacy Program at the U.S. Department of Agriculture will restore traditional Tribal access for … Continue Reading
August 05, 2025
Wyden, Merkley Announce $2.2 Million for Rural Broadband Technical Assistance in Oregon
Washington D.C.—U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley, both D-Ore., today announced more than $2.2 million in funding to help expand high-speed internet in communities across rural Oregon. “It is more important now than ever to have reliable access to the internet, especially for rural Oregonians who depend on emergency updates for natural disasters, accessing telehealth options, student research and so much more,” Wyden said. “But for too many communities in rural Oregon, it can be … Continue Reading
August 04, 2025
Merkley, Wyden Announce Senate Passage of Critical Community-Initiated Projects
Washington, D.C. - Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden today announced essential investments for Oregon families and rural and underserved communities passed the Senate, including five community-initiated projects for communities across the state championed by the Senators. These investments were included in the first package of Fiscal Year 2026 (FY26) funding bills that cleared the chamber with bipartisan support. As Congress holds the power of the purse, this government … Continue Reading
August 04, 2025
Dexter, Wyden, Merkley Announce Nearly $1 Million for Clean Water Infrastructure in Gresham
GRESHAM, OR — Today, Congresswoman Maxine Dexter, M.D. (OR-03) and U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley announced that the City of Gresham received $959,752 from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for essential upgrades to Gresham’s Wastewater Treatment Plant to remove ammonia in the waste streams created by growth in the semiconductor industry. The funding was secured by members of the Oregon delegation as an essential community project included in the Fiscal Year 2024 government … Continue Reading
August 01, 2025
Wyden Seeks Answers from Key Financial Regulator on Trump’s Crypto Conflicts of Interest
Washington, D.C. - Amid the Trump family’s explosion in wealth from its activity in cryptocurrency, U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) wrote this week to the head of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), a key stablecoin regulator, seeking detailed information about any steps the agency is taking to ensure Donald Trump’s enormous conflicts of interest do not interfere with its work to help maintain the stability of the U.S. financial system. “The launch of a stablecoin directly … Continue Reading
August 01, 2025
Wyden, Merkley, Colleagues Urge Administration to Reinstate EPA Employees Retaliated Against for Exercising Free Speech Rights
Washington, DC- U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley (both D-Ore.) said today they have joined 15 Senate colleagues in pressing the federal Environmental Protection Agency to reinstate employees placed on administrative leave after signing a “Declaration of Dissent” expressing concern with the agency’s direction under the Trump administration. “We write to you with deep concerns regarding recent reporting that you placed more than 140 Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) employees on … Continue Reading
August 01, 2025
Wyden, Merkley, Colleagues Call for Restoration of Voting Rights Act
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley, both D-Ore., said today they have joined Senate colleagues in reintroducing legislation that would update and restore critical safeguards of the original Voting Rights Act of 1965 that federal court rulings have eroded in recent years. “Six decades after Congress passed the landmark Voting Rights Act, Americans face new barriers blocking their fundamental right to vote,” Wyden said. “Passing voting rights protections has never been … Continue Reading
July 31, 2025
Wyden, Lieu, Daines, and McClintock Reintroduce Legislation to Protect Americans from Warrantless Government Surveillance
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., with Senator Steve Daines, R-Mont., and Representatives Ted Lieu, D-Calif., and Tom McClintock, R-Calif., reintroduced bipartisan, bicameral legislation today to defend Americans’ rights by requiring warrants to deploy cell site simulators, also known as “stingray” devices, which are used by law enforcement agencies to track individuals and identify all phones in an area. The Cell Site Simulator Warrant Act creates clear legal standards for … Continue Reading
July 30, 2025
Wyden Calls for Investigation Into Reported Diversion of Resources From Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Investigations By Department of Homeland Security
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., called for an immediate investigation of reports the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has drastically diverted resources away from investigations into serious crimes against children, including child sexual abuse and human trafficking, in order to devote more resources to rounding up immigrants. “Instead of locking up rapists, child predators and other violent criminals, Trump appears to be diverting investigators to target cooks, farm … Continue Reading
July 29, 2025
Wyden, Merkley, Colleagues Call for Large-Scale Expansion of Humanitarian Aid in Gaza, and Resumption of Diplomatic Efforts to Secure a Ceasefire and End the War
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) today joined more than 40 other senators in a letter to the Trump administration expressing alarm about the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, calling for the large-scale expansion of humanitarian aid and urging the administration to resume diplomatic efforts to secure a ceasefire agreement and end the war. “The acute humanitarian crisis in Gaza is also unsustainable and worsens by the day,” the senators wrote. “Hunger and … Continue Reading
July 29, 2025
Senate Passes Wyden Bill to Release Unclassified Report on Phone Network Security Threats
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today unanimously passed legislation requiring the release of an unclassified report containing important details about U.S. telephone network security. “Congress and the American people deserve to read this report. It includes frankly shocking details about national security threats to our country’s phone system that require immediate action,” Wyden said on the Senate floor on Monday. Wyden took to the Senate floor following years of … Continue Reading
July 29, 2025
Update: Merkley, Wyden, Hoyle: Federal Disaster Relief Coming to Southern Oregon Flooding Recovery
UPDATE: Merkley, Wyden, and Hoyle have been informed that FEMA denied Governor Kotek’s Major Disaster Declaration request to provide support to eligible individuals and households in Coos, Curry, and Douglas counties through the Individual Assistance (IA) program. Additionally, FEMA denied the Oregon lawmakers’ request to make the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) available in the three counties and statewide. Washington, D.C. - Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden and U.S. … Continue Reading
July 29, 2025
Wyden, Welch Lead Bill to Repeal Trump ‘Sick Tax’ and Big Pharma Handouts in ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senators Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Peter Welch, D-Vt., said today they have introduced legislation to repeal changes to Medicaid cost-sharing requirements and handouts to Big Pharma in the Republicans’ reconciliation tax and spending bill. The Repealing the Trump Sick Tax Act would repeal the “sick tax” imposed by Trump and congressional Republicans’ recently passed budget bill, which forces Medicaid enrollees to pay an out-of-pocket fee every time they need to see a … Continue Reading
July 29, 2025
Wyden Joins Bipartisan Legislation to Protect Small Businesses from Trump Tariffs on Canada
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today announced he has joined his colleagues in the Senate to introduce legislation that would exempt United States-owned small businesses from tariffs imposed on Canada. “Trump’s Canada tariffs don’t make sense for ANYONE, but especially not for American small businesses. Taxes on products from Canada means small businesses in America will pay more for the inputs they use to make things here in the United States - meaning prices will go up, … Continue Reading
July 28, 2025
Wyden Calls for Release of Unclassified Report on National Security Threats to U.S. Phone System
Watch a video of Wyden deliver his remarks here Since July 2022, I’ve repeatedly urged CISA to release an important, unclassified report by independent cybersecurity experts that the agency commissioned, titled “U.S. Telecommunications Insecurity 2022.” Congress and the American people must read this report. It includes frankly shocking details about national security threats to our country’s phone system that require immediate action. CISA permitted my staff to read the report at the … Continue Reading
July 28, 2025
Merkley, Wyden Announce Over $9.6 Million Heading to Oregon to Protect Forests and Advance Wood Product Innovation
Washington, D.C. - Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden announced today the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) is investing $9,622,000 in 17 projects in Oregon to boost the creation of innovative wood products, develop more markets for uses of mass timber and renewable wood energy, and increase the capacity of wood processing and manufacturing facilities. This federal funding is critical to ensuring the state’s leadership in the wood products industry, while helping to restore healthy … Continue Reading
July 28, 2025
Merkley, Wyden Advocate for Affordable Child Care
Washington, D.C. - Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden said today they cosponsored the Child Care for Working Families Act, comprehensive legislation to ensure families across America can find and afford the high-quality child care they need. “Child care is essential for the success of working families, but as I hold town halls in all of Oregon’s 36 counties, I hear from hardworking families about child care being too hard to find and too expensive,” said Merkley. “We need to … Continue Reading
