Wyden, Merkley Demand Trump Administration Reverse Public Safety Cuts in Oregon and Nationwide
Citing loss of a federal grant for the Union County DA’s Office, Oregon senators write that “poorly thought out and rash cuts like this will only serve to embolden fentanyl traffickers and decrease public safety.”
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today demanded the Trump administration reverse cuts to vital federal public safety and law enforcement grants that help communities fight fentanyl and more throughout Oregon and nationwide.
“These grants provide crucial funds for local law enforcement in Oregon and nationwide to support victims of crime, combat fentanyl trafficking, and prevent gun violence,” Wyden and Merkley wrote to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi. “Hundreds of grantees across the country counting on these funds to carry out this important work were informed on April 22, 2025, that their grants - which had already been awarded - were being terminated immediately.”
The Oregon senators noted that among the federal Justice Department (DOJ) grants cut was one for the Union County District Attorney’s Office that enabled the embedding of a law enforcement officer in this rural Eastern Oregon county to support public safety and investigate crimes such as negligent homicide caused by fentanyl dealers and traffickers.
“Without the funding provided through this federal grant, the District Attorney’s office will be forced to curtail investigations and prosecutions of serious crimes, putting this small community and broader region in danger,” the senators wrote Bondi. “Like many counties in Oregon, Union County is grappling with a severe fentanyl crisis. DOJ funding provided critical support to help prosecute fentanyl dealers responsible for the deaths of Oregonians.”
“We are deeply concerned that poorly thought out and rash cuts like this will only serve to embolden fentanyl traffickers and decrease public safety,” Wyden and Merkley wrote. “We urge you to change course and reverse these budget cuts, which will make our communities more vulnerable to the scourge of illegal fentanyl.”
The entire letter is here.
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