Press Releases
Oregon Delegation Urges Swift Distribution of Emergency COVID-19 Funds to Health Care Providers
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley, and U.S. Reps. Peter DeFazio, Earl Blumenauer, Suzanne Bonamici, Kurt Schrader and Greg Walden today urged federal officials to distribute emergency funds as soon as possible for health care providers in Oregon and nationwide to cover expenses and revenues lost due to COVID-19. In a bipartisan letter today to Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, the Oregon lawmakers said distributing $100 billion from the Public Health and … Continue Reading
April 08, 2020
Wyden Urges Funding to Support Local Journalism and Media in any Future COVID-19 Relief Package
Washington, D.C. -- U.S. Senator Ron Wyden said today he will support funding to help local journalism and media in any future COVID-19 relief package. In a letter to Senate leadership, Wyden joined with 18 senators to warn that the widespread impact of the COVID-19 pandemic - including plummeting advertising revenue - could decimate regional and local news outlets even as communities have become increasingly reliant on their reporting amidst the public health crisis. The son of a … Continue Reading
April 08, 2020
Merkley, Wyden Announce Over $450,000 in Grants for Critical Earthquake Research
WASHINGTON, DC- Oregon's U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden today announced over $450,000 in earthquake research grant funding for Oregon. The grants will be administered by the U.S. Geological Survey, and will be allotted to Oregon State University, Portland State University, and the University of Oregon. The schools will receive $84,964, $87,243, and $282,262, respectively. "The best way to handle a crisis-from a pandemic to a national disaster-is to be prepared," Merkley said. "As … Continue Reading
April 08, 2020
Wyden, Cardin Urge SBA to Ensure Equal Access to Paycheck Protection Program for ESOP-owned Small Businesses
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Ben Cardin, D-Md., called on the Small Business Administration (SBA) to resolve uncertainty regarding employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs) and make clear to banks and other lenders that ESOP-owned small businesses qualify for the new Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). The senators' letter to SBA Administrator Jovita Carranza follows reports of eligible ESOP-owned small businesses being turned away by banks and lenders due to unclear SBA … Continue Reading
April 08, 2020
Wyden, Merkley Announce More Than $12 Million in COVID-19 Grants for Oregon Health Centers
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today announced that more than $12 million in federal grants will be available for health centers statewide to support their work responding to COVID-19 in their communities. The $12.4 million in federal Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) grants from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act will help clinics statewide to provide care for Oregonians during the challenges posed by this public health … Continue Reading
April 07, 2020
Wyden Urges Trump Administration to Help Americans Experiencing Homelessness Access Coronavirus Relief Payments
Washington, D.C. -- U.S. Senator Ron Wyden today pressed the Trump Administration to ensure that people experiencing homelessness in Oregon and nationwide receive access to coronavirus relief payments. In a letter to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, Wyden joined with 27 colleagues to point out the steep obstacles faced by people experiencing homelessness when trying to have access to the direct stimulus payments in the latest COVID-19 relief package. "[P]eople experiencing homelessness … Continue Reading
April 07, 2020
Wyden, Colleagues Request COVID-19 Testing Data from CDC To Ensure Effective Response to the Pandemic
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., with 16 colleagues, today asked the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) to publicly report all available information about who is able to access COVID-19 tests, which continue to be scarce. The members of Congress requested data broken down by sex, race, ethnicity, whether a patient is a health care provider and any other available demographics. The CDC is currently only disclosing a subset of its data, primarily the age groups of those testing … Continue Reading
April 07, 2020
Wyden Releases New GAO Report Underscoring Need to Address Maternal Mortality Crisis
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today joined a group of his colleagues to release a new report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) on maternal mortality describing how maternal deaths are tracked, trends and disparities in mortality data, and how federal funding is being used to reduce pregnancy-related deaths. Wyden and colleagues requested the report in 2018 to determine how effectively federal investments were being used and what improvements could be made to … Continue Reading
April 07, 2020
Wyden, Merkley to Introduce Legislation Helping Immigrant Families During COVID-19 Public Health Crisis
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley said today they will introduce legislation that would ensure everyone in the United States can have access to health care and other critical resources that are needed to survive the coronavirus pandemic. "This global pandemic has touched off a massive public health challenge for everybody in our country, and the response to keep everybody safe must not discriminate against any human being based on immigration status," Wyden said. "This … Continue Reading
April 06, 2020
Wyden, Merkley Urge Feds to Make Farmers and Agricultural Businesses Eligible for COVID-19 Economic Injury Grants
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today urged the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) to make farmers and agricultural businesses in Oregon and nationwide eligible for economic injury grants included in the latest COVID-19 emergency relief package. Wyden and Merkley wrote in their letter to SBA Administrator Jovita Carranza that expanding the Emergency Economic Injury Grant Program (EIDL) included in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act is … Continue Reading
April 06, 2020
Wyden, Merkley Call for SBA to Accept Loan Applications from Cannabis Businesses in Cannabis-legal States
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today announced they are requesting that the Small Business Administration (SBA) be prohibited from denying loan applications to cannabis small businesses in states like Oregon that have legalized cannabis use. In the Oregon lawmakers' letter to Senate colleagues overseeing SBA appropriations, they urged language prohibiting the SBA loan denials to cannabis businesses by noting the clear shift in public opinion toward supporting legal … Continue Reading
April 06, 2020
Merkley, Wyden, Colleagues Urge Administration to Ensure Continuity of Food Supply by Supporting Farmers During Coronavirus Pandemic
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Oregon's U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden, along with a bipartisan group of 30 of their Senate colleagues, have sent a letter to Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue to urge the administration to provide urgent relief to America's farmers during the coronavirus crisis. Agricultural businesses are critical to both the country's food supply chain and the vitality of countless rural areas across Oregon and America. "Americans always depend on our nation's farmers to … Continue Reading
April 06, 2020
Merkley, Wyden, Colleagues Urge Administration to Ensure Continuity of Food Supply by Supporting Farmers During Coronavirus Pandemic
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Oregon's U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden, along with a bipartisan group of 30 of their Senate colleagues, have sent a letter to Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue to urge the administration to provide urgent relief to America's farmers during the coronavirus crisis. Agricultural businesses are critical to both the country's food supply chain and the vitality of countless rural areas across Oregon and America. "Americans always depend on our nation's farmers to … Continue Reading
April 04, 2020
Wyden Statement on Trump Firing Intelligence Community Inspector General
U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., a senior member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, issued the following statement on Donald Trump's firing of top Intelligence Community watchdog: "Overnight, Donald Trump carried out another attack on whistleblowers and independent oversight, continuing his campaign against anyone who can hold him accountable for corrupting the government to his personal benefit. He is systematically installing unqualified cronies in the place of intelligence professionals … Continue Reading
April 03, 2020
Wyden Presses Treasury to Ensure Equal and Timely Access to Paycheck Protection Program
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today urged the U.S. Department of the Treasury to do everything in its power to reassure U.S. banks and lenders that they are adequately prepared to provide relief to America's small businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic. Today is the first day small businesses are eligible to apply for emergency loans through the Paycheck Protection Program established in the recent Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. Large and … Continue Reading
April 03, 2020
Wyden Launches One-Stop Economic Resources Web Link for Oregonians During COVID-19 Public Health Crisis
Washington, D.C. -- As the Small Business Administration launches the Paycheck Protection Program today, U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden announced a one-stop economic resources link on his web page for Oregonians needing more information during the COVID-19 public health crisis about unemployment insurance, direct cash assistance, and grants and loans for small business. The web link is https://www.wyden.senate.gov/covid-19-economic-resources. "Oregonians need a one-stop web link to cut quickly through … Continue Reading
April 03, 2020
Wyden, Merkley, Udall Urge Interior Department to Halt Policy Actions Unrelated to COVID-19
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., and Tom Udall, D-N.M., today urged the U.S. Department of Interior to immediately stop pursuing any policy proposals or actions unrelated to the COVID-19 emergency that require a public comment period until the threats of COVID-19 have subsided. "As the country is addressing the public health emergency of COVID-19, the agencies within the Department of Interior should be focused on how to bolster the response to COVID-19 … Continue Reading
April 03, 2020
Wyden Urges Small Business Administration to Allow Co-ops Equal Access to COVID-19 Aid
Washington, D.C. -- U.S. Senator Ron Wyden today urged the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) to treat cooperative businesses-or co-ops-the same as other small businesses and allowed equal access to aid provided in the recent Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act). In a letter to SBA Administrator Jovita Carranza, Wyden specifically requested that co-ops in Oregon and nationwide can fully participate in the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) to provide the … Continue Reading
April 03, 2020
Wyden, Merkley Welcome Updated Blood Donation Policy
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley said today that federal officials' updated blood donation deferral policy takes a needed first step in the middle of the COVID-19 public health crisis to let more healthy gay and bisexual men donate blood. The new FDA policy comes after the Oregon senators had joined more than a dozen colleagues last week in pressing the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to reverse course on discriminatory blood donor deferral policies that effectively … Continue Reading
April 03, 2020
Wyden, Merkley, Udall Urge Interior Department to Halt Policy Actions Unrelated to COVID-19
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., and Tom Udall, D-N.M., today urged the U.S. Department of Interior to immediately stop pursuing any policy proposals or actions unrelated to the COVID-19 emergency that require a public comment period until the threats of COVID-19 have subsided. "As the country is addressing the public health emergency of COVID-19, the agencies within the Department of Interior should be focused on how to bolster the response to COVID-19 … Continue Reading
