Press Releases
Wyden Statement on the President’s Speech at the National Defense University
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) issued the following statement in response to President Obama's counterterrorism speech at the National Defense University: "The President said today that 'we must define the nature and scope' of the conflict with al-Qa'ida, 'or else it will define us.' I couldn't agree more. In my twelve years on the Senate Intelligence Committee I have seen the consequences of letting this struggle define the United States. The President's speech today was … Continue Reading
May 23, 2013
Wyden Announces Framework for O&C Legislation; Offers Proposal that will Create Jobs, Provide Revenue to Counties, Protect Old Growth and Wilderness
WASHINGTON, D.C. -Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) today announced a framework for legislation to resolve century old O&C Lands issues that he plans to introduce and see passed into law. Successful O&C legislation will create jobs in the woods, protect our clean water sources, old growth trees and habitats, and establish a permanent and stable source of revenue for O&C counties. The goal of this announcement is to get the greatest amount of local input while fleshing out the … Continue Reading
May 20, 2013
Wyden and Merkley Applaud Senate Confirmation of Federal District Court Judge Michael McShane
Portland, OR - Oregon Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today applauded the Senate's confirmation of Multnomah County Circuit Court Judge Michael McShane to serve as a U.S. District Court Judge in Eugene. "Over the years Oregon has been blessed with a long line of distinguished judges," Wyden said. "Judge McShane will be a tremendous asset to the court and he will certainly add to that tradition. He's got a heart for people, a head for the law and a high-minded sense of justice." "Over his … Continue Reading
May 16, 2013
Bipartisan Group of House and Senate Lawmakers Introduce Silviculture Regulatory Consistency Act
WASHINGTON, D.C.-A bipartisan group of senators and U.S. House members today introduced bills to provide certainty to forestry companies and workers, by reaffirming the Environmental Protection Agency's 37-year-old policy toward regulation of runoff from forest roads. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chairman Ron Wyden, D-Ore., Senator Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, and Representatives Jaime Herrera Beutler, R-Wash., and Kurt Schrader, D-Ore., introduced the Silviculture Regulatory … Continue Reading
May 15, 2013
Wyden Amendment to Help Small Ports Included in Senate Bill
WASHINGTON, D.C. - An amendment sponsored by Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) that will increase the chances that much needed maintenance and dredging money gets to small ports, including those on the Oregon Coast, is part of a water resources bill passed by the United States Senate today. The amendment, one of several in the bill important to Oregonians, directs the Army Corps of Engineers to use money left over from maintenance of high-use, deep-draft ports and the Great Lakes Navigation System … Continue Reading
May 15, 2013
Wyden Statement on the Government Acquisition of AP Phone Records
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) released the following statement in response to press reports about government collection of the Associated Press' phone records. Wyden, a senior member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, has long been a staunch advocate for press freedom. "I am very troubled by the recent reports of the government acquiring large amounts of the Associated Press' phone records. The breadth of these subpoenas raises serious questions about how … Continue Reading
May 09, 2013
Wyden, Merkley Ask Agriculture, Interior Secretaries for Emergency Grazing Rights on Federal Land in Southeastern and South Central Oregon
Washington, D.C. - Faced with another year of drought conditions in Southeastern and South Central Oregon, Oregon Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley are asking the Department of Agriculture extend emergency grazing of cattle on Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management land. "Given the severity of the drought and the disastrous conditions faced by these Oregon farmers and ranchers, we ask that you expeditiously consider extending emergency grazing opportunities on Forest Service and … Continue Reading
May 09, 2013
Wyden to get Wildland Fire Briefing in Portland on Friday, May 10, 2013, at 10 a.m.
Portland, OR -With dry conditions across Oregon and an early start to the 2013 fire season, Senator Ron Wyden, chair of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, will receive a wildland fire season briefing from federal and state officials on Friday, May 10, 2013, at the Northwest Coordinated Fire Center in Portland. Last year, Oregon experienced a near-record amount of acres burned. This year, the early start to fire season is the result of a drier-than-normal spring and a week of … Continue Reading
May 09, 2013
House and Senate Lawmakers Announce Legislation to Help Students Choose Between Colleges
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden, D-Ore., Marco Rubio, R-Fla., Mark Warner, D-Va., and U.S. Representatives Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., and Robert Andrews, D-N.J., today introduced bicameral, bipartisan legislation that would ensure that a wide range of accurate, comparative and easy to understand data about colleges would be readily available online for prospective students and their families. The Student Right to Know Before You Go Act of 2013 would streamline existing institutional … Continue Reading
May 03, 2013
Wyden Schedules Town Halls in Klamath and Lake Counties
Portland, OR - Oregon Senator Ron Wyden will hold his annual town halls in Klamath and Lake counties on May 11, 2013. The meetings will be held in Klamath Falls and Lakeview. Wyden has been holding town halls in every Oregon county every year beginning in 1996. Klamath County Town Hall Meeting Date: May 11, 2013 Time: 10:30 a.m. Location: Oregon Institute of Technology College Union Auditorium 3200 Campus Drive Klamath Falls Lake County Town … Continue Reading
April 23, 2013
Wyden and Murkowski Unveil “Follow the Money” Reform Bill
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, today introduced bipartisan campaign finance reform legislation to address the influx of anonymous federal election spending and bring transparency and consistency to campaign finance law. The Follow the Money Act of 2013 creates a simple and universal system of disclosure for independent spending in federal campaigns. The legislation would require the source of independent spending to be disclosed in a manner … Continue Reading
April 18, 2013
NEWS CONFERENCE: On Eve of Earth Day, Wyden in Medford on Sunday to Discuss Economic and Environmental Benefits from Lower Natural Gas Prices
WHO: Senator Ron Wyden RVTD Director Julie Brown Mike Montero, board chair of RV Clean Cities Steve Gambee, Rogue Disposal WHAT: News conference on the environmental and economic benefits of lower natural gas prices. WHEN: 11:15 a.m., Sunday, April 21, 2013 Medford, OR - On the eve of Earth Day, members of the Rogue Valley Clean Cities Coalition will join Oregon Senator Ron Wyden at a news conference on the economic and environmental benefits of … Continue Reading
April 18, 2013
Wyden in Eugene on Saturday for Earth Day Events, Opening of New UO Student Veteran Center
Portland, OR - Oregon Senator Ron Wyden will be in Eugene on Saturday, April 20, 2013, to attend the annual EWEB Earth Day Celebration and the grand opening of the new University of Oregon Student Veterans Center. Wyden will also visit Arcimoto, the Eugene-based electric vehicle company and drop in at Sprout!, the regional "food hub" in Springfield. April 20, 2013: 10:15 a.m., Arcimoto, 544 Blair Boulevard, Eugene. 11:15 a.m., EWEB Earth Day Celebration, River's Edge Plaza, 500 E. … Continue Reading
April 17, 2013
Baldface and Rough and Ready Creeks named to “Most Endangered Rivers” List
Washington, D.C. - Oregon Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley renewed their call for federal agencies to prevent environmentally damaging mining operations at Baldface and Rough and Ready Creeks in Southwestern Oregon, after American Rivers named the two creeks to its "Most Endangered" list, on Wednesday. Wyden and Merkley have urged the federal Bureau of Land Management to administratively withdraw the creeks from mining multiple times since 1998. Wyden and Merkley sent their most recent … Continue Reading
April 17, 2013
Burr and Wyden Seek to Strengthen VA’s Pension Program and Protect America’s Veterans
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Richard Burr, R-N.C., have introduced bipartisan legislation aimed at ending abuses of a low-income veterans' pension program. The Veterans Pension Protection Act seeks to combat a growing niche industry that profits by preying on elderly veterans. So-called "pension poachers" are convincing veterans with substantial assets to hide those assets in trusts and annuity products in an effort to qualify for the maximum allowable needs-based … Continue Reading
April 16, 2013
Wyden Testifies on Behalf of Hermiston Wastewater Bill, Drought Relief Act
Washington, D.C. - The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water and Power today held a hearing on two bills by Chairman Ron Wyden, D-Ore.: S. 693, the City of Hermiston Water Recycling and Reuse Project, and S. 659 - Reclamation States Emergency Drought Relief Act reauthorization. The City of Hermiston Water Recycling and Reuse Project would authorize the Bureau of Reclamation to share a small portion of the costs to build a new wastewater treatment plant. "This is … Continue Reading
April 12, 2013
U.S. Navy to Name New Ship the USS Portland
PORTLAND, Or -- The U.S. Navy will name the next San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock ship the USS Portland, Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) announced today. "Oregon has a long history with the U.S. Navy going back to the construction of hundreds of World War II Liberty and Victory ships at three Portland-area shipyards," Wyden said. "I want to thank Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus for naming a ship for Oregon's largest city. It is an honor for the City of Portland and for all … Continue Reading
March 29, 2013
Wyden, Merkley Applaud Sustainable Fisheries Decision
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., are applauding a federal decision that will help commercial fishermen profit while encouraging sustainable fisheries. "It's a good decision that reaffirms what fisherman needed - a sound, science-based solution that protects the environment as well as fishermen's bottom line," Wyden said. "Our fishing economy depends on a sustainable fishing management plan that provides for a healthy ecosystem and healthy yields for … Continue Reading
March 28, 2013
Wyden and Merkley Statement on Secure Rural Schools Money
Washington, D.C. - Oregon Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley released the following statement regarding the Obama Administration's decision to ask rural counties to return $18 million in Secure Rural Schools money due to sequestration. $3.6 million of that would come from Oregon counties. "The administration clearly failed to plan for the impact of the sequester on Secure Rural Schools funding for rural counties, as demonstrated by the contradictory approaches taken by Bureau of Land … Continue Reading
March 26, 2013
Wyden Statement on Full Funding of Tuition Assistance Programs for National Guard Members
Portland, Or - Oregon Senator Ron Wyden issued the following statement today following President Obama's signing of a continuing appropriations bill that includes full funding of tuition assistance for veterans. "Earlier today, President Obama signed the continuing appropriations bill into law. I supported this important piece of legislation because it will fund the government through October and avert a senseless and unnecessary showdown. As part of this effort, I was proud to cosponsor an … Continue Reading
