Press Releases
Wyden Applauds House Passage of Bipartisan Bill to Reauthorize Secure Rural Schools Program
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today applauded the House passage of his bipartisan legislation introduced with Senators Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., and James Risch, R-Idaho, to reauthorize the Secure Rural Schools (SRS) program and ensure rural, forested communities across Oregon and the country receive funding for roads, schools, law enforcement and other critical services. “The Secure Rural Schools program has been a lifeline for rural communities across … Continue Reading
December 10, 2025
Wyden Reintroduces Bill to Keep Hemp on the Market with Strong Consumer Protections
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today reintroduced legislation that would return hemp to the market and create national safety standards for hemp-derived products, keep these products out of the hands of children, and ban unsafe, untested hemp products. Reintroduction of the Cannabinoid Safety and Regulation Act (CSRA) follows passage of last month’s government funding bill containing a provision to outlaw hemp products nationwide. Wyden has long pressed for common-sense … Continue Reading
December 10, 2025
Wyden, Colleagues Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Extend Tax Relief for Wildfire Victims
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden said today he has joined Senate colleagues to introduce legislation that would permanently ensure wildfire survivors in Oregon and nationwide are not taxed on compensation they receive for losses and damages suffered during a wildfire. “The last thing Oregonians need when they’re rebuilding after a wildfire is to get clobbered by a big tax bill on their financial settlements,” Wyden said. “This bill will make it possible for wildfire survivors to use … Continue Reading
December 10, 2025
Wyden Objects to Bill That Would Threaten Encryption, Calls for New Resources to Crack Down on Predators Online
I don’t often disagree with my colleague from Illinois, and I very much share the stated goals of the STOP CSAM Act. Child sexual abuse material is a toxic plague on the internet. There are real victims who need support, and criminals who need to be hunted down and locked up. I don’t take a backseat to anyone when it comes to helping kids and punishing predators. Last Congress, Senator Durbin and I compromised on a different version of this bill and agreed to let that version pass by … Continue Reading
December 10, 2025
Wyden, Colleagues Introduce Legislation to Protect Airline Passengers from Flight Cancellation and Delay Fees
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden said today he has joined colleagues in introducing legislation that would protect travelers by requiring airlines to provide cash compensation and free rebooking for passengers facing significant delays or cancellations caused by the airline. Introduction of the Flight Delay and Cancellation Compensation Act follows the decision by the Trump administration earlier this year to rescind a Biden-era rule that protected travelers against these fees and … Continue Reading
December 09, 2025
Wyden, Merkley Applaud House Passage of Bipartisan Bill to Reauthorize Secure Rural Schools Program
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today applauded the House passage of his bipartisan legislation introduced with Senators Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., and James Risch, R-Idaho, to reauthorize the Secure Rural Schools (SRS) program and ensure rural, forested communities across Oregon and the country receive funding for roads, schools, law enforcement and other critical services. “The Secure Rural Schools program has been a lifeline for rural communities across … Continue Reading
December 09, 2025
Wyden, Budd Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Support Family Farmers, Grow Agritourism
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Ted Budd, R-N.C., today introduced bipartisan legislation to support the economic development and growth of agritourism businesses nationwide by increasing federal resources like loans, grants, broadband, and educational programs to small family farmers. “Small family farmers are the backbone of our country’s agricultural sector,” Wyden said. “There’s no question that the federal government needs to step up and support family farmers at … Continue Reading
December 09, 2025
Wyden, Merkley Introduce Bill to Stop Trump Administration Replacing Immigration Judges with Inexperienced Attorneys
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley said today they are joining their Senate colleagues in introducing legislation that would prevent Donald Trump from abusing loopholes to appoint inexperienced attorneys as temporary immigration judges. The Temporary Immigration Judge Integrity Act aims to close loopholes the Trump administration has been using to short-circuit due process and accelerate its mass deportation agenda. This bill follows Trump weaponizing U.S. immigration … Continue Reading
December 08, 2025
Wyden, Merkley Urge Trump Administration to Release Funds for Klamath Family Head Start
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley said today they are calling on the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Head Start to release grant funding essential to preventing the Klamath Family Head Start program from foreclosing on its main site in Klamath Falls, Oregon. “Despite the program submitting a full application for funding to pay off an outstanding loan and purchase their facility more than six months ago, Klamath Family Head Start still has yet … Continue Reading
December 08, 2025
Wyden, Merkley, Colleagues Introduce Legislation to Protect Patients and Ensure More Americans can Afford Health Care
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden said today is leading Senate colleagues, including U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley, in introducing legislation to protect health care coverage for millions of Americans and improve the effectiveness of the ACA Health Insurance Marketplace. The Restoring Patient Protections and Affordability Act would renew the enhanced premium tax credits for three years, extend the 2026 open enrollment period, reduce paperwork for families, and lower out-of-pocket … Continue Reading
December 04, 2025
Wyden Introduces Bill to Address Health Care Labor Shortage
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today introduced legislation that would help address the ongoing health care labor shortage by making it easier for health care employers to create new registered apprenticeship programs to train the next generation of health professionals. “The Republican health care ‘agenda’ is a runaway train barreling toward our country’s health care system,” Wyden said. “Health care is the biggest employment sector in our country. But doctors, nurses, … Continue Reading
December 04, 2025
Merkley, Wyden, Hoyle Announce Newport Helicopter Returns to the Community
Washington, D.C. - Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden, along with Representative Val Hoyle (OR-04), today announced that Admiral Kevin Lunday, Acting Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard, committed to the Senators on a call that an essential rescue helicopter located at the Newport Air Facility would remain there: “Thanks to public pressure and action from the courts, the Coast Guard has committed to keeping the rescue helicopter in Newport for good, which is critical ahead of … Continue Reading
December 04, 2025
Wyden, Crapo Introduce Bipartisan Pharmacy Benefit Manager Legislation
Washington, D.C.—U.S. Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-Oregon) and Chairman Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) today introduced the Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM) Price Transparency and Accountability Act to fix market distortions and increase transparency in federal prescription drug programs to lower patient costs at the pharmacy counter. “It’s long past time to go after middlemen who are making Americans’ prescription drugs more expensive,” Wyden said. “The … Continue Reading
December 04, 2025
Wyden, Merkley, Crapo, Risch Push for Passage of Secure Rural Schools Reauthorization
Washington, D.C. -- U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley (both D-Oregon), alongside U.S. Senators Mike Crapo and James Risch (both R-Idaho) are leading a bipartisan coalition of 83 lawmakers in sending a letter today to House leadership requesting urgent reauthorization of the Secure Rural Schools (SRS) and Self Determination Act. The bill, which the Senate unanimously passed in June 2025, would reauthorize the program through fiscal year 2026 and provide lapsed payments for fiscal years … Continue Reading
December 03, 2025
Wyden, Boozman, and 19 Colleagues Introduce Resolution Condemning Baha’i Oppression in Iran
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Senator John Boozman, R-Ark., today led 19 Senate colleagues in introducing a bipartisan resolution condemning Iran’s government for persecuting members of the Baha’i faith. “The Iranian government has squeezed every freedom from members of the Baha’i community,” Wyden said. “Imprisoning and torturing Baha’is and taking away their rights is immoral, unjust, and just plain wrong. The Baha'i community in Iran deserves to freely practice … Continue Reading
December 03, 2025
Merkley, Wyden, Colleagues Urge Secretary Bessent to Reject Proposed Dollar Coin Designs Featuring Donald Trump
Washington, D.C. - Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley and Nevada’s U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto led seven Senate Democrats—including Senator Ron Wyden—in a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent calling on him to reject the proposed designs for the Semiquincentennial dollar coin featuring the likeness of President Donald Trump. “American lawmakers throughout history have reaffirmed the time-honored tradition of not circulating U.S. currency with images of currently elected … Continue Reading
December 02, 2025
Wyden, Colleagues Press DHS on Obstruction of Congressional Visits to Detention Facilities
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden said today he has joined Senate colleagues to question the Department of Homeland Security about obstruction of congressional access to detention facilities. “Obstructing Congressional access to immigration detention facilities violates Federal law and undermines Congress’s inherent authority to conduct oversight that ensures detained individuals’ human rights and protects Americans from agency waste, fraud, and abuse,” the senators wrote to … Continue Reading
November 25, 2025
Merkley, Wyden Fighting to Reverse SNAP Cuts and Restore Food Security for Millions of Americans
Washington, D.C. - After Trump and Congressional Republicans earlier this year passed their ‘Big, Ugly BETRAYAL’ of a budget bill that will let millions of families go hungry, Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley led the entire Senate Democratic Caucus—including Oregon’s U.S. Senator Ron Wyden—in introducing the Restoring Food Security for American Families and Farmers Act of 2025. This legislation would repeal all the devastating cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) made … Continue Reading
November 24, 2025
Wyden, Merkley Demand Trump Administration Cleanup Toxic Waste to Protect Military Families and Local Communities
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley said today they have joined their colleagues in urging the Trump administration to reverse its decision delaying cleanups of toxic chemicals at hundreds of military installations in Oregon and nationwide. The senators also sought protections for military families and nearby communities from contamination by per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) at the affected sites. “For years, communities contaminated by PFAS from nearby DOD … Continue Reading
November 24, 2025
Merkley, Wyden Join 88 Lawmakers in Urging Protection of Electric Vehicle Investments in Bipartisan Surface Transportation Negotiations
Washington, D.C. - Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden today joined 88 lawmakers in pushing leaders on the Senate Environment and Public Works and House Transportation and Infrastructure Committees to protect electric vehicle (EV) investments while reauthorizing bipartisan surface transportation legislation. The lawmakers reaffirmed their commitment to supporting a similar bipartisan surface transportation process to the historic passage of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, but … Continue Reading
