Press Releases
Wyden, Merkley: Five Oregon Airports Secure Total Federal Aid of $1.45 Million
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today announced that airports in Lake, Columbia, Deschutes, Linn and Wasco counties have secured a total of more than $1.4 million in federal grants for construction, infrastructure rehabilitation and more. “Oregonians count on local airports in their communities for jobs, economic vitality, public safety and much more that strengthen quality of life,” Wyden said. “I’m glad these Oregon communities have earned these federal airport … Continue Reading
April 08, 2024
Wyden, Merkley Announce $2.5 Million towards Solar Projects over Canals in Central Oregon
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today announced the North Unit Irrigation District (NUID) in Central Oregon has secured a $2.5 million federal award to build and monitor solar panels on the main canal of its Deschutes project. The irrigation district is proposing to build floating photovoltaic solar panels on the main canal of the Deschutes project located near Bend. The project will allow the novel technology of floating solar panels on a canal to be evaluated, … Continue Reading
April 05, 2024
Merkley, Wyden Announce Over $90 Million Coming to Oregon for Drinking Water and Wastewater Advancements
Washington, D.C. - Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden today announced a total of $90,393,000 in federal funding from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is headed to Oregon to fund safe drinking water projects and strengthen wastewater and stormwater infrastructure, which will protect public health and treasured bodies of water across the state. “Reliable access to clean water is essential for the health and safety of every community in Oregon,” said Merkley, Chair … Continue Reading
April 01, 2024
Wyden, Colleagues File Amicus Brief Urging Supreme Court to Affirm that Federal Law Requires Hospitals to Provide Emergency Stabilizing Care Including Abortion Care
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Ron Wyden said today he has joined Senate and House colleagues in leading an amicus brief submission to the U.S. Supreme Court in Moyle v. United States and Idaho v. United States, two consolidated cases concerning the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA) that the Supreme Court will hear this month. The act requires hospitals that receive Medicare funding to provide necessary “stabilizing treatment” to patients experiencing medical … Continue Reading
March 28, 2024
Wyden Praises FCC Move To Protect Consumers and Government Personnel from Hackers and Foreign Spies Exploiting Wireless Carriers’ Lax Security to Track Phones
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today applauded the Federal Communications Commission and Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel for requesting public comments on the effectiveness of industry’s efforts to protect Americans against unwanted spying over wireless phone networks. The announcement comes in response to a request by Sen. Wyden last month for the Biden Administration to plug well-known weaknesses in America's phone networks, referred to as SS7 or Diameter, and prevent … Continue Reading
March 28, 2024
Merkley, Wyden Announce $250,000 for The Meating Place for New Processing and Packaging Equipment
Washington, D.C. - Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden announced today that The Meating Place will receive $250,000 from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Local Meat capacity grant program. Both Merkley and Wyden have toured The Meating Place’s retail shop and custom-exempt beef, hog, sheep, and wild game processing facility in Hillsboro, Oregon, which is the first operational Oregon Department of Agriculture slaughter and processing plant in the state. This allows … Continue Reading
March 27, 2024
Wyden, Merkley Announce Clean Energy Assistance for the City of Oakridge and Harney County
Washington D.C. - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today announced that Harney County and Oakridge have earned spots in a federal Department of Energy program providing technical assistance that helps disadvantaged communities and those with historical ties to fossil fuel industries take control of their clean energy future. “This federal investment will fuel communities that are quite literally running low on energy and need technical support to fill their tank,” Wyden said. “I’m … Continue Reading
March 27, 2024
Wyden, Merkley, Colleagues Commend FTC’s Enforcement Against Rite Aid’s Discriminatory Use of Facial Recognition Technology
Washington D.C. - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today announced they joined 10 of their colleagues in a letter to the Federal Trade Commission applauding its recent enforcement against Rite Aid for its use of discriminatory and invasive facial recognition technology. In the Rite Aid settlement, the FTC found the company’s use of facial recognition systems in its pharmacies led to thousands of false identifications, resulting in individuals being wrongfully searched, accused of … Continue Reading
March 27, 2024
Statewide Wins: Merkley, Wyden Deliver Critical Community Projects Across Oregon in 2024 Funding Package
Washington, D.C. - Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden today announced they secured investments for essential community-initiated projects across Oregon in both of the fiscal year 2024 (FY24) government funding packages that recently cleared Congress and were signed into law by President Biden. With the support of members of Oregon’s Congressional delegation in the U.S. House of Representatives—Reps. Earl Blumenauer, Suzanne Bonamici, Val Hoyle, Andrea Salinas, and Lori … Continue Reading
March 26, 2024
Wyden Requests DNI Haines Declassify Information Related to Paul Manafort’s Relationship with Russian Government Operatives
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today called on the Biden Administration to declassify information concerning Paul Manafort’s involvement with Russian government operatives, following news reports that Manafort may soon join Donald Trump’s presidential campaign. Manafort served as Trump’s campaign chairman for portions of the 2016 presidential campaign. He later was convicted of multiple crimes, including tax and bank fraud related to his work for a Ukrainian oligarch … Continue Reading
March 25, 2024
Merkley and Wyden Announce Big Investments Secured for Oregon Families and Rural Communities in Final 2024 Funding Package
Washington, D.C. - Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden today announced major investments for Oregon to expand access to affordable, quality health care and mental health resources, boost manufacturing, and enhance emergency response coordination—including nearly $36 million in funding for 28 critical community-initiated projects across the state—have passed through the final fiscal year 2024 (FY24) minibus funding package. This sweeping six-bill package cleared both chambers of … Continue Reading
March 22, 2024
Wyden, Merkley Announce $1.29 Million Federal Investment in Bend Municipal Airport
Washington D.C. - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today announced a federal investment of $1.29 million for Bend Municipal Airport toward construction of a new air traffic control tower. “Bend Municipal Airport is an important part of Central Oregon’s robust, local economy,” Wyden said. “It’s a gateway to expansion for small businesses who can ship their products quickly, or bring in potential clients or investors to witness the grandeur of Central Oregon firsthand. I’m gratified … Continue Reading
March 22, 2024
Wyden, Merkley, Colleagues Celebrate 14 Years Since Passage of the Affordable Care Act
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today joined Senate Democrats in celebrating the upcoming 14th anniversary this Saturday of the Affordable Care Act’s passage. Senate Democrats are touting record-breaking ACA enrollment, highlighting how Democrats have built on the successes of the ACA, and speaking out against Donald Trump recently vowing he would “never give up” on repealing the Affordable Care Act. He called the failure to repeal the ACA during his term “a low … Continue Reading
March 22, 2024
Wyden, Colleagues Introduce EAT Local Foods Act
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Ron Wyden said today he has joined Senate colleagues in introducing legislation that would create a permanent grant program for state and tribal governments to use local food producers for hunger relief programs. Wyden said the EAT Local Foods Act would increase access to locally-sourced, fresh, healthy, and nutritious food in underserved communities and help family farmers, fishermen, and local food producers grow their markets. “It is incredibly important … Continue Reading
March 21, 2024
Merkley, Wyden: OSU Receives Federal Funding Award to Boost Wildfire Smoke Resiliency in Oregon
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden announced today Oregon State University (OSU) received $667,500 as an initial award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to develop a set of interventions that includes tailored toolkits and resources that can be used by schools, preschools, and daycares to reduce wildfire smoke exposures and increase community resilience across Oregon. The investment comes through the EPA’s new Wildfire Smoke Preparedness … Continue Reading
March 21, 2024
Wyden, Merkley, Colleagues Call on Biden Administration to Stop Withholding Social Security Payments to Pay Defaulted Student Loans
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senators Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), today led colleagues including U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) in calling on the Social Security Administration, the U.S. Department of the Treasury, and the U.S. Department of Education to end the practice of offsetting Social Security benefits to pay off defaulted student loans. Offsets under the Treasury Offset Program (TOP) are particularly devastating for seniors and people with disabilities who rely … Continue Reading
March 20, 2024
Wyden, Merkley Support DEQ Oversight for Knife River Corporation West’s Wastewater Permit in Crook County
Washington D.C. - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley said today they support the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) addressing concerns raised by the Crook County Board of Commissioners and local residents regarding the Knife River Corporation-West’s wastewater permit in the county. “[Crook County] residents have continued to raise concerns over unsafe drinking water and potential health impacts to humans including skin rashes, as well as health impacts to livestock and … Continue Reading
March 15, 2024
Merkley, Wyden Join Senate Colleagues in Letter to USPS Postmaster General DeJoy Demanding Protection of Jobs and Mail Delivery
Washington, D.C. —Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden joined a letter led by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) to Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, urging him to stop any changes to United States Postal Service (USPS) service standards that would result in job losses and further degrade mail delivery performance, especially in rural areas. Joining Merkley, Wyden, and Sanders on the letter are Senators Michael Bennet (D-CO), Laphonza Butler (D-CA), Bob Casey (D-PA), Catherine Cortez Masto … Continue Reading
March 14, 2024
Wyden Announces Five Town Halls in Rural Oregon
Portland - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden today announced he will hold in-person town halls in Klamath, Lake, Harney, Grant and Wheeler counties from March 23-25. Heading into these five town halls, Wyden will have held 1,076 town halls throughout Oregon - including 11 so far this year -- in fulfillment of his pledge to hold at least one town hall each year in each of our state’s 36 counties. “I promised to hold open-to-all town halls every year in every county so every Oregonian has the … Continue Reading
March 14, 2024
Oregon Delegation Pushes for Federal Disaster Declaration in Response to Ice Storms
Washington, D.C. — Oregon’s Congressional delegation—U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden, alongside U.S. House of Representatives Earl Blumenauer, Suzanne Bonamici, Val Hoyle, Andrea Salinas, Lori Chavez-DeRemer, and Cliff Bentz—wrote a letter to the White House urging approval of Oregon Governor Tina Kotek’s request for a Major Disaster Declaration from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The Governor’s formal request for the State of Oregon and the Confederated Tribes of … Continue Reading
