Press Releases
Wyden Co-sponsors Legislation to Fully Fund Special Education
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden today announced he is co-sponsoring a bill that would finally ensure Congress' commitment to fully fund the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), decades-old legislation to ensure every child with a disability has access to educational opportunity. Wyden said the IDEA Full Funding Act introduced by Sens. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., and Jon Tester, D-Mont., would fix Congress' failure to provide funding promised by the historic IDEA when it … Continue Reading
March 13, 2018
Wyden Response to Klamath Basin Drought Declaration
Washington, DC - U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., issued the following statement in response to today's drought declaration by Gov. Kate Brown for the Klamath Basin: "Ahead of what looks to be another devastating drought year facing the Klamath Basin, I heard one thing clearly last weekend at my Klamath Falls town hall and throughout Klamath County: everybody is hurting - the tribes, ranchers, farmers, small businesses, fishing families, conservationists, and we're going to have to work together … Continue Reading
March 13, 2018
Wyden Slams Zinke over Efforts to Gut the Land and Water Conservation Fund
Washington, DC - U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today slammed Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke over the Trump administration's budget that would gut funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). During today's Senate Energy and Natural Resources hearing, Wyden noted that Zinke said nine times during his Senate confirmation hearing last year that he considered himself a Teddy Roosevelt Republican - one committed to preserving our country's national treasures. Wyden said Zinke's record in … Continue Reading
March 13, 2018
Wyden Opposes Nominations of Pompeo and Haspel
Washington, D.C. - Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., a senior member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, issued the following statement opposing the nominations of Mike Pompeo to serve as secretary of state, and Gina Haspel to serve as director of the Central Intelligence Agency "I oppose the nominations of both Mike Pompeo to be secretary of state and Gina Haspel to be CIA director. Before and after his confirmation as CIA director, Mike Pompeo has demonstrated a casual relationship to truth and … Continue Reading
March 08, 2018
Wyden, Hatch Introduce Legislation to Increase Access to Retirement Savings
Washington, D.C. - Senate Finance Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) today introduced the Retirement Enhancement and Savings Act of 2018 (RESA), which aims to increase voluntary retirement savings and includes a provision to establish more flexible multiple employer plans. "Working Americans are struggling to set money aside for retirement," Wyden said. "This bipartisan bill gives employers incentives to make it easier for their employees to save. … Continue Reading
March 07, 2018
Wyden, Hood River Student Call on Congress to Act on Gun Safety
Washington, D.C. - Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today said at a hearing with Senate Democratic leadership that Congress can no longer do nothing in the face of gun violence ripping through schools and communities across America. Testifying at the hearing was 16-year-old Eva Jones, a sophomore at Hood River Valley High School, who Wyden invited to share her experience as a student working to prevent gun violence. "Mass shootings and school massacres have become disturbingly common in our country. … Continue Reading
March 07, 2018
Wyden Works to Boost Opportunities for Women- and Minority-Owned Businesses in Senate Banking Bill
Washington, D.C. - Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today introduced a measure to expand access to business opportunities for women- and minority-owned businesses. Wyden filed an amendment to legislation the Senate is considering this week would address the existing lending gap for women- and minority-owned businesses and encourage more lending to women and minorities trying to start or help grow their small business. It would require the enforcement of a rule created under the Dodd-Frank Act that … Continue Reading
March 07, 2018
Wyden, Merkley, Walden: Klamath Water Agreement is “Attainable”
Washington, D.C. - Oregon Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley and Rep. Greg Walden said today that a long-term water agreement in the Klamath Basin can be achieved with the continued help of the Interior Department. The three Oregon lawmakers said in their letter to Deputy Commissioner Alan Mikkelsen, senior advisor to the U.S. Secretary of the Interior, that they appreciated the assistance provided by the Interior Department. And they told Mikkelsen they stand ready to work with him and all … Continue Reading
March 06, 2018
Wyden, Bonamici Push for Lifeline Funding for Rural Counties in Must-Pass Government Funding Bill
Washington, D.C. - Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Rep. Suzanne Bonamici, D-Ore., along with a bipartisan group of members of Congress and county commissioners from across the country, today urged Congress to provide long-term, lifeline funding for rural counties in upcoming must-pass legislation. In a news conference next to the U.S. Capitol steps, Wyden, Bonamici and county commissioners including Multnomah County Commissioner Loretta Smith called on Congress to reauthorize the Secure Rural … Continue Reading
March 06, 2018
Wyden Questions Voting Machine Manufacturer on Security Weakness Posed By Remote Access
Washington, D.C. -Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today asked the nation's largest voting machine manufacturer, ES&S, to explain whether it sells voting machines or other products with remote-access software, which could be exploited by hackers to compromise the machines. The New York Times Magazine reported last month that ES&S sold voting machines and other election-management products with pre-installed remote-access software. Allowing remote access significantly weakens the security of … Continue Reading
March 05, 2018
Wyden Sends Additional Questions to NRA Regarding Alexander Torshin and Foreign Funding
Washington, D.C. -Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today sent a series of additional questions to the National Rifle Association about whether it receives funding from foreign sources, including Russia. The letter follows on questions Sen. Wyden sent on Feb. 2, regarding reported financial ties between the NRA and Russia, which the NRA did not address in a response sent last month. Meanwhile, media reports have indicated close ties between the NRA and Russian oligarch Alexander Torshin. "I remain … Continue Reading
March 01, 2018
Wyden Hosts Three Town Halls Next Week
Portland - Senator Ron Wyden will hold town halls next week in Jefferson, Deschutes and Klamath counties. These upcoming three town halls will increase to 879 the number of town halls Wyden has held since promising when first elected to hold annual town halls in each of Oregon's 36 counties. "These open-to-all town halls represent the best of our state's proven tradition of participatory democracy, which depends on all Oregonians having the opportunity to ask any question of the people they … Continue Reading
February 28, 2018
Wyden Renews Call for Klamath River Basin Solution
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden today renewed the call for a long-term, collaborative solution in the Klamath River Basin, in a hearing before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water and Power. On the brink of another drought year, Wyden stressed the urgent need to come together and find a workable way forward for tribes, irrigators, and wildlife habitat protection in the Klamath Basin. Wyden asked Alan Mikkelsen, senior adviser to the Interior secretary for … Continue Reading
February 28, 2018
Wyden Formally Requests Senate Intelligence Committee Hearing on Follow-the-Money Issues
Washington, D.C. -In light of extensive public reports about financial connections between Donald Trump, Trump associates and Russia, including indictments of top Trump campaign officials for financial crimes, Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today asked Senate Intelligence Committee leaders to hold public hearings on follow-the-money issues. "Following the money is a critical component of any counterintelligence investigation, particularly when there are this many indicators of extensive, … Continue Reading
February 27, 2018
Wyden Statement on FOSTA-SESTA Passing House
Washington, D.C. -Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., issued the following statement on the House passage of FOSTA-SESTA. "History shows that politicians have been remarkably bad at solving technological problems. I have written laws in the past, including Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act and the Internet Tax Freedom Act, that have kept politicians and special interests from sinking the internet. This bill will only prop up the entrenched players who are rapidly losing the public's trust. … Continue Reading
February 27, 2018
Wyden Co-sponsors Bill to Protect Veterans
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden announced today he is co-sponsoring legislation that would protect veterans from paying for the VA's accounting mistakes. The bill introduced by Sens. Jon Tester (D-Mont.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) follows a VICE news report that found overpayments from the VA have been on the rise since 2013. In 2016 alone, the VA issued upwards of 200,000 overpayment notices to veterans, often recouping funds by withholding some or all … Continue Reading
February 22, 2018
Wyden, Merkley, DeFazio Preserve Southwestern Oregon Mineral Withdrawal
Washington, D.C. - Oregon Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley and Rep. Peter DeFazio today announced that the U.S. Forest Service has told them it will not revisit a southwestern Oregon mineral withdrawal protecting more than 100,000 acres from development. That good news in a letter from Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue, who oversees the Forest Service, came in response to a Nov. 14, 2017 letter from Wyden, Merkley and DeFazio. The three lawmakers had urged the Trump administration in their … Continue Reading
February 22, 2018
Wyden, McCaskill Urge Customs and Border Protection to Turn On Anti-Forgery Features for e-Passports
Washington, D.C.-Senators Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., ranking member of the Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee today urged U.S. Customs and Border Protection to take basic steps to improve U.S. border security by acquiring the capability to use anti-tampering and anti-forgery features built into e-Passports. The Enhanced Border Security and Visa Entry Reform Act of 2002 required foreigners participating in the Visa Waiver Program -which permits entry into … Continue Reading
February 15, 2018
Wyden, Merkley Push Zinke for Response to Five-Month-Old Sagebrush Request
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today asked the Interior Department for a positive response to their Sept. 22 letter urging approval for a program that has inmates produce sagebrush plants to help restore sage grouse habitat after fires. Today's letter to Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke comes after the two Oregon senators received no response to their letter from nearly five months ago encouraging approval as soon as possible of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) … Continue Reading
February 15, 2018
Wyden Votes to Protect Dreamers, Provide Funding for Effective Border Security
Washington, D.C. - Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today voted in favor of a bipartisan compromise that would protect the estimated 11,000 Dreamers in Oregon as well as provide funding for effective border security measures. The bill failed to advance in the Senate today on a vote of 54 to 45. It needed 60 votes to advance. The bipartisan, compromise legislation the Senate voted on today would have granted permanent legal status to 1.8 million undocumented immigrants, including young people who … Continue Reading
