Press Releases
Wyden praises 9th Circuit decision to maintain Oregon's Death with Dignity law
Portland, OR U.S. Senator Ron Wyden today praised the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit's ruling upholding Oregon's Death with Dignity law. Today's ruling thwarts U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft's appeal of an April 2002 U.S. District Court ruling that also upheld Oregon's law, which has faced serious opposition since being approved by Oregon voters in 1994 and again in 1997.Wyden has twice defeated Congressional efforts to overturn Oregon's physician assisted suicide law and … Continue Reading
May 20, 2004
Senate Agriculture Committee extends pilot summer lunch program for kids to Oregon
Washington, D.C. At the request of U.S. Senators Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Gordon Smith (R-Ore.), the U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee has extended the Lugar Summer Food Pilot Program to include Oregon. The pilot program increases the availability of food to children who received free or reduced-priced meals during the school year but who cannot access such meals during the summer months.We cant allow hungry children to slip through the cracks for even a couple of months, Wyden said. With this … Continue Reading
May 19, 2004
Wyden Placing "Hold" on FTC Nominee Deborah Majoras
Washington, DC - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) today announced his intention to place a "hold" on the nomination of Deborah Majoras to become Chair of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Wyden, who has called on the FTC in the current and previous Administrations to take action to protect consumers from high gasoline prices, received no indication from Majoras that under her leadership the agency would take any steps to end numerous and well-documented anti-competitive practices … Continue Reading
May 13, 2004
Senators Hail EPA Inspector General's Decision to Review Administration's Mercury Rule
WASHINGTON, DC -- U.S. Sens. Jim Jeffords, I -Vt., Patrick J. Leahy, D-Vt., Joe Lieberman, D-Ct., Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-NY., Barbara Boxer, D-Ca., Tom Carper, D-De., and Ron Wyden, D-Or., today hailed the decision by the EPA Inspector General Nikki Tinsley to review the process in which EPA formulated its December proposed rule to regulate mercury emissions from electric utilities.In an April 12 letter, the seven Senators asked the Inspector General to examine serious concerns with how the … Continue Reading
May 12, 2004
Wyden, Lott Support 9/11 Families' Call to Declassify Entire Commission Report
Washington, DC - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Trent Lott (R-Miss.) today called on the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States, more commonly known as the "9/11 Commission," to declassify and make public all sections of the Commission's upcoming report on the 2001 terrorist attacks on New York and the Pentagon. Wyden and Lott, members of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, made the request after speaking with leaders of the 9/11 victims' families groups … Continue Reading
May 07, 2004
Wyden calls for full wildfire prevention funding for Healthy Forests Restoration Act
Washington, D.C. Speaking from the floor of the U.S. Senate today, U.S. Senator Ron Wyden called on the House-Senate Budget conference committee to fully fund hazardous fuels reduction projects under the Healthy Forests Restoration Act (HFRA). Wyden successfully spearheaded a $343 million budget amendment in March to fully fund the law, but rumors circulating on Capitol Hill suggest that the Budget conference committee plans to eliminate this funding, even though it received unanimous … Continue Reading
May 07, 2004
Senators: Heavy Filling of Strategic Petroleum Reserve Drives up Gas Prices
Washington, DC - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and twenty-nine colleagues in the U.S. Senate today called on the Bush Administration to, at a minimum, slow the filling of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR). The Senators cited recent reports that filling the SPR at a very high rate contributes to higher crude oil and gasoline prices. In a letter to U.S. Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham, the senators questioned why the administration has sped filling the SPR to 300,000 barrels per day, … Continue Reading
May 06, 2004
Wyden, Graham Legislation Would Expand McCain-Feingold Accountability Rules for Campaign Advertising
Washington, DC - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) today unveiled their bipartisan legislation to make candidates for federal office take more explicit personal responsibility for ads on the Internet, in print or in prerecorded phone calls referring directly to the candidate's opponent. The Political Candidate Personal Responsibility Act of 2004 follows Wyden's original "Stand by Your Ad" provision on which current accountability rules for TV and radio ads … Continue Reading
May 05, 2004
Portland Community Development Projects to Receive Nearly $200 Million in Tax Credits
Washington, DC - Today, Senators Gordon Smith and Ron Wyden announced that three Portland community development programs have been awarded federal tax credits totaling almost $200 million to invest in Oregon's low-income communities under the New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) Program. The awards will be announced officially tomorrow, May 6. "This is a great example of how private enterprise can be used in the public interest," Smith said. "These credits will make it possible to restore historic … Continue Reading
May 05, 2004
Portland to Receive $8 Million for Homeland Security
Washington, DC - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Gordon Smith (R-Ore.) today announced that the Oregon Department of State Police will receive $8,112,992 for homeland security preparedness in the Portland area. Funds are being awarded to help Portland prevent, deter, respond to, and recover from threats and incidents of terrorism. This grant is being awarded by the Urban Area Security Initiative Grant Program through the Department of Homeland Security's Office for Domestic Preparedness. … Continue Reading
April 29, 2004
Senate Approves 4-Year Extensions of Ban on Unfair Discriminatory Internet Taxes
Washington, DC -- U.S. Senators George Allen (R-Va.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Commerce Committee Chairman Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz) today hailed full Senate passage of the Internet Tax Non-Discrimination Act (S. 150), legislation extending the ban on multiple and discriminatory taxation on Internet access and online sales. The legislation bans three types of taxes that unfairly single out the Internet, including taxes on Internet access, double taxation (for example, by two or more states) of a … Continue Reading
April 13, 2004
Wyden Calls for Declassification of Bin Laden Documents Since 1998
Washington, DC - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) this week called for the declassification of "all documents distributed to or created by officials of both the current and former [presidential] administrations regarding the threat posed by Osama bin Laden and his al Qaeda organization, and the way in which policymakers perceived, considered, planned and responded to this threat, dating back to the August 1998 bombings of the United States Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania." In a letter to the … Continue Reading
April 08, 2004
Forest Service accepts Wydens proposal to create a Prineville forest health research center
Washington, DC U.S. Senator Ron Wydens proposal to create a forest health research center at the headquarters of the Ochoco National Forest in Prineville has been accepted by the Administration. The Prineville center will be established under existing authority and could begin operations as soon as late 2005.After all the twists and turns of working to get this facility established, Im extremely pleased the Forest Service accepted my proposal to create a forest health research center in … Continue Reading
April 02, 2004
Wyden calls on Administration to move quicklyand protect Oregon jobs in Biscuit salvage
Washington, DC Saying that "time is clearly of the essence," U.S. Senator Ron Wyden today called on the Administration to move quickly on salvage operations in the Biscuit fire area. In doing so, Wyden also urged the Administration to give a "strong preference" in jobs to Oregonians, who bore the brunt of the Biscuit fire."I believe the people of my state, who bore the burden and fears of the Biscuit fire, and who now bear the burden of a half million acre burn area, should have a strong … Continue Reading
March 25, 2004
Prepared remarks of U.S. Senator Ron Wyden
Two-thousand four is a momentous year for wilderness in Oregon. It marks the 40th anniversary of the 1964 Wilderness Act and the 20th anniversary of the last Oregon Wilderness bill (1984).But perhaps most importantly, 2004 marks the bicentennial of the single most important exploratory committee ever to be launched by this Federal government: the Lewis and Clark Expedition.I can see no better way to mark this auspicious year than by enacting a new Oregon Wilderness bill: the "Lewis and Clark … Continue Reading
March 24, 2004
U.S. Senate committee approves Wyden's bill to establish Prineville forest health research center
Washington, DC U.S. Senator Ron Wyden's bill (S. 1910) to establish a forest health research center at the Ochoco National Forest headquarters in Prineville, Oregon today passed the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.The Prineville facility will be charged with carrying out an inventory and assessment of forest stands on federal land and, with the consent of owners, private forest land. The assessment will evaluate forest health conditions now and in the future, and … Continue Reading
March 23, 2004
Wyden Presses FTC Chair to Review Agencys Orders on Bakersfield Refinery
Wyden Presses FTC Chair to Review Agencys Orders on Bakersfield RefinerySenator calls on Muris to provide answers, determine whetherFTC orders from Chevron-Texaco merger make facility less viableMarch 23, 2004Washington, DC Continuing his strong criticism of the Federal governments inaction on rising gas prices across the country, U.S. Senator Ron Wyden today called on Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chairman Timothy Muris to review previous oil company mergers and FTC orders that may be … Continue Reading
March 22, 2004
Smith-Wyden Bill Means Forestry Revenues Stay Home
Washington, DC Today, Senators Gordon Smith (R-OR) and Ron Wyden (D-OR) introduced The Umpqua National Forest Land Management Act which authorizes the sale of certain surplus Umpqua National Forest Service property to exclusively fund the expansion of local U.S. Forest Service facilities and the acquisition of additional tracts of Umpqua National Forest land."Oregonians should see the benefits from the Forest Service land sales in their backyard," said Smith. "This bill enables the Forest … Continue Reading
March 19, 2004
Wyden joins students & educators to celebrate arrival of $56,000 in computer equipment at River Road / El Camino del Rio Elementary School
March 19, 2004Eugene, OR - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden today joined students and educators at River Road/El Camino del Rio Elementary School in Eugene to celebrate the arrival of more than $55,000 in state-of-the-art computer equipment donated by the Beaumont Foundation of America.In February 2003, Wyden and Frank Newton, Executive Director of the Beaumont Foundation, encouraged Oregon schools and … Continue Reading
March 17, 2004
Smith, Wyden Announce Emergency Agriculture Aid
WASHINGTON, D.C. Today, Senators Gordon Smith (R-OR) and Ron Wyden (D-OR) announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture is providing $620,500 through the Emergency Conservation Program (ECP) to Oregon farmers and ranchers facing the consequences of natural disaster.This aid is another clear example of the Bush Administrations steadfast support of American family farmers, Smith said. Oregons farmers and ranchers deserve that, especially when facing unforeseeable disaster.The damages and … Continue Reading
