Press Releases
In the Wake of Corinthian Collapse, Wyden and Merkley Join Colleagues to Urge the U.S. Department of Education to Hold College Accreditors Accountable
WASHINGTON, D.C. - In the wake of the collapse of Corinthian Colleges, Oregon's Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today joined 22 of their colleagues in a new letter urging the U.S. Secretary of Education John King to ensure that college accreditors, the gatekeepers to the $150 billion in federal financial aid that flows to colleges and universities each year, are held accountable in ensuring that schools are providing their students with a quality education and not just saddling them with … Continue Reading
April 21, 2016
Wyden Leads Bipartisan Group of Senators in Introducing Kids to Parks Day Resolution
Washington, DC - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden, D-Ore., Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., Cory Booker, D-N.J., Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., and Mazie K. Hirono, D-Hawaii, today introduced a Senate measure to encourage active lifestyles for children across America by designating May 21 National Kids to Parks Day. The sixth 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 … Continue Reading
April 21, 2016
Oregon Delegation Applauds TSA’s Return to Klamath Airport
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Oregon's Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden and Congressmen Greg Walden and Peter DeFazio today applauded news that the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) will restore screening services at the Crater Lake-Klamath Regional Airport in Klamath Falls, clearing the path for commercial service to return to the airport. The Crater Lake-Klamath Regional Airport has been working to restore commercial service since carrier SkyWest left the airport in June 2014. Last fall, … Continue Reading
April 21, 2016
Wyden, Merkley Introduce Bill to Name Clinic in The Dalles For Local War Hero Loren Kaufman
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley introduced legislation that would designate the veterans community-based outpatient clinic in The Dalles the Loren R. Kaufman Memorial Veterans' Clinic. The Oregon senators said their bill introduced this week would provide long-overdue recognition to a local Army soldier who served bravely in both World War II and the Korean War. "There is no better way to remember Loren Kaufman's service and sacrifice than honoring him at a clinic that … Continue Reading
April 21, 2016
Wyden Strongly Supports Paris Climate Change Agreement
Washington, DC - Sen. Ron Wyden today strongly backed the Obama Administration's decision to sign the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change's Paris Agreement on April 22, which coincides with Earth Day in the United States. Wyden said he proudly signed on to the April 21 letter sent to President Obama by Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.) and nearly 150 lawmakers because it fits perfectly with his approach of "putting points on the board every day" to combat climate change. "This … Continue Reading
April 20, 2016
Senate Passes Two Wyden Renewable Energy Bills
Washington, D.C. - Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., announced the Senate today passed two bills he wrote to increase domestic production of low-carbon renewable energy from underground hotspots and the power in ocean waves, tides and currents. Wyden's Marine and Hydrokinetic Renewable Energy Act would boost domestic production of renewable energy from ocean waves, tides and currents and facilitate private investment in potential projects. His Geothermal Energy Opportunities Act would encourage … Continue Reading
April 19, 2016
Wyden Demands U.S. Energy Department Response to Discovery of Hanford Tank Leak
Washington, DC -- Sen. Ron Wyden today demanded the U.S. Energy Department establish an independent panel to monitor and report on an already damaged high-level waste tank and to re-assess the risks associated with the remaining double shell-tanks at the Hanford Reservation. Wyden's letter to Energy Department Secretary Ernest Moniz follows in the wake of reports that Hanford workers on Sunday detected an unexpectedly large amount of waste in an outer tank while retrieving high-level waste … Continue Reading
April 19, 2016
Senate Passes FAA Bill that Includes Merkley-Wyden ‘TSA Fairness Act’ to Restore Commercial Service at Klamath Falls Airport
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Oregon's Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden announced that the U.S. Senate today passed legislation renewing and updating the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)'s authorities, which includes a bipartisan provision pushed by Merkley and Wyden, the Treating Small Airports with Fairness (TSA Fairness) Act. The TSA Fairness Act would restore Transportation Security Administration (TSA) screening at, among other smaller airports, the Crater Late-Klamath airport. This … Continue Reading
April 19, 2016
Wyden Legislation to Help Oregon UAS Sites in Pendleton, Tillamook and Warm Springs Passes Senate
WASHINGTON, D.C. - A provision cosponsored by Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden to extend the life of the unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) test site program through 2022 was approved today by the Senate. The inclusion in a larger FAA bill of Wyden's legislation extending congressional authorization for the test sites from 2017 until 2022 will provide much-needed certainty to Oregon's test sites in Pendleton, Tillamook and Warm Springs as well as three test sites outside Oregon. "This Oregon industry … Continue Reading
April 14, 2016
Wyden, Merkley, Democratic Senators Join in Call for Bipartisan Action on Supreme Court Nomination
Washington, D.C. - Oregon's U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today joined their Democratic Senate colleagues in calling on Senate Republicans to sign a letter requesting a hearing to consider Merrick Garland's nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court. Every Democrat in the Senate has agreed to sign a letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Charles Grassley pushing for transparency and action in the Supreme Court nomination process. Senate … Continue Reading
April 13, 2016
Wyden Statement on Burr-Feinstein Anti-Encryption Bill
Washington, D.C. -Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., issued the following statement in response to a new anti-encryption bill released today. "The encryption debate is about having more security or having less security. This legislation would effectively outlaw Americans from protecting themselves. It would ban the strongest types of encryption and undermine the foundation of cybersecurity for millions of Americans. This flawed bill would leave Americans more vulnerable to stalkers, identity thieves, … Continue Reading
April 12, 2016
Wyden Statement on BLM Plan for O&C Counties
Washington, D.C. -The Bureau of Land Management's latest plan for managing forests in Oregon's O&C Counties makes clear that only congressional action can deliver real certainty on jobs, the environment and timber harvest, Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., said today. "While I appreciate the BLM's latest attempt to update forest management in Western Oregon, the reality is only legislation can provide the certainty necessary to sustainably increase the timber harvest and protect clean water," Wyden … Continue Reading
April 12, 2016
Wyden Honors Oregon’s Beverly Cleary
Washington, DC - Sen. Ron Wyden today marked the upcoming 100th birthday for award-winning and beloved author Beverly Cleary, an Oregon native whose books set in Portland have long enchanted millions of children. In a congressional statement, Wyden cited the positive impact of Cleary's children's books, which have sold more than 90 million copies to young readers who devoured the tales of Ramona Quimby, Henry Huggins, Ribsy, Ralph S. Mouse, and so many other memorable characters. "Thanks to … Continue Reading
April 08, 2016
Wyden Statement on Draft Bill Requiring Companies to Undermine Strong Encryption
Senator Ron Wyden issued the following statement today, in response to a draft bill that would require companies to undermine strong encryption: "This legislation says a company can design what they want their back door to look like, but it would definitely require them to build a back door," Wyden said. "For the first time in America, companies who want to provide their customers with stronger security would not have that choice - they would be required to decide how to weaken their products … Continue Reading
April 07, 2016
Wyden, Merkley: Federal Agencies Commit to Marijuana Scheduling Decision This Year
Washington, D.C. - In a response to requests from U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and their Senate colleagues, three federal agencies announced plans to release a determination this year about whether to reschedule marijuana. The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) responded on Monday to a letter from the senators that requested … Continue Reading
April 07, 2016
Senate Takes Up FAA Bill That Includes Merkley-Wyden Provision to Bring TSA Service Back to Klamath Airport
WASHINGTON, D.C. - The United States Senate has now acted by a unanimous, bipartisan vote to move forward on legislation renewing and updating the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)'s authorities. The legislation includes a bipartisan provision pushed by Oregon's Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden, the TSA Fairness Act, that would restore TSA screening at, among other smaller airports, the Klamath Falls airport. This provision is important for the restoration of commercial service at the … Continue Reading
April 06, 2016
Wyden Statement on WhatsApp Implementing End-to-End Encryption
Washington, D.C. -Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., issued the following statement about WhatsApp's announcement it will upgrade security for millions of people who use its messaging app: "This is a significant step to strengthen online security for millions of people worldwide. Consumers are demanding the best possible security for their digital communications and WhatsApp is just the latest company moving to meet that demand. This is especially important for human rights activists, political … Continue Reading
April 06, 2016
Wyden, Merkley Statement on Klamath Agreements Announcement
Washington, D.C. - Oregon's U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley, today released the following statement after the announcement that the governors of Oregon and California, along with the Department of the Interior, will begin a process to remove the Klamath River Basin dams in a step forward to address water issues affecting the region. "These agreements are a major step forward toward implementing the Klamath Basin water agreements. One agreement lays out a path toward a history-making … Continue Reading
April 04, 2016
Wyden, Heinrich Praise CIA Decision to Drop Email Destruction Proposal
Washington, D.C. - Senate Intelligence Committee members Sens. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., praised the CIA's decision to drop a proposal to destroy the vast majority of its emails, rather than archive them like other government agencies. Wyden and Heinrich issued a joint statement commending the CIA's decision to drop the plan: "Given the grave importance of CIA operations, it is critical to preserve the agency's emails, to enable independent oversight and an accurate … Continue Reading
April 04, 2016
Wyden Statement on Passage of Defend Trade Secrets Act
Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., issued the following statement on the passage of the Defend Trade Secrets Act Monday evening: "I supported this legislation because trade secrets have come under greater and greater threat from international espionage and require special protections if they are to retain their value," Wyden said. "Uniquely, trade secrets can lose some or all of their value when exposed, making their protection from bad actors that much more critical. I want to continue working to … Continue Reading
