Press Releases
Wyden Statement on nomination of Gigi Sohn to serve on the Federal Communications Commission
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., released the following statement in support of Gigi Sohn to serve on the Federal Communications Commission: "Between her years working on behalf of regular Americans who lack affordable, reliable access to the internet and her experience inside the government, Gigi Sohn is the epitome of what an FCC commissioner should be," Wyden said. "No amount of astroturfed attacks on behalf of the Big Cable companies will change that. Ms. Sohn has broad … Continue Reading
January 31, 2023
Wyden, Merkley: Nearly $90 Million Federal Loan to Umatilla Electric Cooperative for Power Grid Improvements
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today announced that the Umatilla Electric Cooperative will receive a nearly $90 million federal loan to expand and improve the electric grid in Northeastern Oregon. "Oregon's severe weather events-from windstorms that down power lines and spark catastrophic infernos to ice and hail storms that cause losses in power as well as property damage-prove that we must fortify our aging grid infrastructure," Wyden said. "This federal … Continue Reading
January 31, 2023
Merkley, Wyden Join Colleagues in Introduction of Legislation to Provide Historic, Permanent Investment in Home Care for Seniors and People with Disabilities
Washington, D.C. - Oregon's U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden joined Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) and colleagues in introducing the Better Care Better Jobs Act. The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the urgent need to ensure that all Americans have the option to receive quality, long-term care in the setting that meets their needs and preferences, and the vast majority of Americans prefer to receive such care and support at home. This legislation would expand access to home and community-based … Continue Reading
January 30, 2023
Wyden, Merkley, Blumenauer: Feds to Invest $715,000 Toward Proposed Move of Mt. Hood Summit Rest Area
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley and U.S. Rep. Earl Blumenauer today announced the proposed relocation of the Mt. Hood Summit Rest Area on Highway 26 east of Government Camp has secured $715,000 in federal funds to study the move. The resources from the Federal Lands Access Program (FLAP) follows a Oct. 7, 2021 letter that Wyden, Merkley and Blumenauer wrote to U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg seeking the funds for more than two dozen organizations working … Continue Reading
January 27, 2023
Wyden Announces WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert Will Visit Portland
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden today announced that WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert has accepted his invitation to participate in a panel discussion on women's sports during her visit to Portland on Monday, Feb. 6. The women's basketball coaches from Oregon State University and the University of Oregon as well as top Trail Blazers and Thorns executives will be among those contributing to the roundtable conversation about how the city can help continue to support the growth of … Continue Reading
January 27, 2023
Wyden To Hold Town Halls in Columbia and Benton Counties
Portland - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden today announced he will have open-to-all, in-person town halls in Columbia and Benton counties the weekend of Feb. 4-5. Wyden has already held 11 town halls so far throughout Oregon in 2023 - and 1,038 town halls overall statewide in fulfillment of his pledge to hold at least one town hall each year in each of Oregon's 36 counties. "Public service is all about being accountable, and open-to-all town halls provide all Oregonians the opportunity to ask me any … Continue Reading
January 27, 2023
Merkley, Wyden, Hoyle: “Frustrated and Deeply Disappointed” that Port of Coos Bay’s Critical Shipping Container Project is Denied Major Federal Investments, Vow to Continue the Funding Fight
Washington, D.C. - Oregon's U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden, and U.S. Representative Val Hoyle (OR-04), issued the following joint statement today after the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) did not select the Oregon International Port of Coos Bay's request for a $1.25 billion Mega Grant, also known as a National Infrastructure Project Assistance Grant funded through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, in the first round of funding from the program that would have been used to … Continue Reading
January 26, 2023
Wyden Statement on FDA Announcement on CBD
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., released the following statement on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announcement on the regulatory path forward for CBD: "The current regulatory gray zone for hemp-derived CBD isn't working. Regulations are needed to protect consumer safety and to make sure the hemp producers and farmers in Oregon and across the country are on a level playing field with other legal products. The FDA has asked for Congress to act, and I plan to … Continue Reading
January 24, 2023
Oregon Lawmakers Announce More Than $3 Million in New Rental Assistance Funding
Washington, D.C. - Today, Oregon lawmakers announced that the U.S. Treasury is awarding new rental assistance funding to both the State of Oregon and City of Portland. Oregon Housing and Community Services will receive $2,034,948.16 and the City of Portland will receive $1,107,256.77. The funding comes in the wake of Governor Tina Kotek declaring a "Homelessness State of Emergency" earlier this month and unveiling her $130 million budget. The state legislature is anticipated to take up … Continue Reading
January 23, 2023
Wyden, Merkley: Cascades East to Receive Additional Physician Residency Slots to Expand Health Care Workforce in Southern Oregon
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley this week announced that Cascades East Family Medicine Residency Program, a partnership between Oregon Health & Science University and Sky Lakes Medical Center in Klamath Falls, will receive additional physician resident training slots in July, a crucial step in expanding the Southern Oregon health care work force. "Training more medical residents right here in Klamath Falls is a promising sign of progress toward improving access … Continue Reading
January 19, 2023
Sen. Wyden and former Rep. Cox Urge Supreme Court To Uphold Precedent on Section 230
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and former Representative Chris Cox, R-Calif., the original co-authors of Section 230, today submitted an amicus brief to the U.S. Supreme Court urging the court to uphold decades of precedent concerning their 1996 law. Section 230 is a pioneering internet law provision that ensures the person who creates content - such as a tweet, blog post or video - is the one legally responsible for it. Section 230 has been called the most important law … Continue Reading
January 18, 2023
Wyden Calls for DOJ Watchdog To Investigate Mass Surveillance of Money Transfers
Washington, D.C. - Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., asked the Department of Justice Inspector General to investigate the relationship between multiple federal law enforcement agencies and an Arizona nonprofit that has collected records of millions of Americans' money transfers. Wyden's request reflects new details about the Transaction Record Analysis Center (TRAC) that he uncovered as part of a year-long investigation showing the program is far broader than previously known. In March 2022 Wyden … Continue Reading
January 17, 2023
Wyden: Feds Responsive to Oregon Concerns About New Broadband Maps
Washington, DC - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden said today that top federal officials responsible for more than $42 billion in high-speed internet funding are proving responsive to concerns about ensuring that a new broadband map is accurate so rural Oregonians get the funding they need to expand internet access. Wyden spoke last week by phone with both Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and Assistant Commerce Secretary Alan Davidson, Administrator for the National Telecommunications and Information … Continue Reading
January 17, 2023
Merkley, Wyden Announce $450,000 Coming to Oregon for Arts and Local Cultural Organizations
Washington, D.C. - Oregon's U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden announced a total of $450,000 is coming to Oregon from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) for Arts Projects and Challenge America grants in several communities in the state: Beaverton, Bend, Eugene, Portland, Salem, Springfield, and Warm Springs. "Art plays a critical role in enriching our lives, and it's important that we give the artists in our communities the support they need to keep delivering their crafts … Continue Reading
January 13, 2023
Wyden, Sanders: New GAO Report Shows Corporate Windfall from 2017 Republican Tax Law
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., today issued the following statements on a new analysis from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) showing the 2017 Trump tax law's immediate tax breaks for large, profitable corporations. GAO found that in the first year after the law went into effect: The effective tax rate for profitable corporations was just 8.9 percent, a 40 percent drop from the prior year. 34 percent of profitable corporations paid … Continue Reading
January 13, 2023
Wyden, Colleagues Demand Answers from Southwest Airlines for Holiday Meltdown
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ron Wyden this week joined Senate colleagues to seek answers from Southwest Airlines for its mass flight cancellations in Oregon and nationwide over the holidays in the final week of December. "The mass flight cancellations at Southwest Airlines ("Southwest") during the last week of December ruined the holidays for tens of thousands of travelers, stranding them at gates without their bags and forcing them to miss celebrations with families and friends," Wyden … Continue Reading
January 12, 2023
Wyden, Merkley Push to Include 12 Weeks of National Paid Family and Medical Leave in President Biden’s Budget
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today joined colleagues in urging the Biden administration to advance a national paid family and medical leave program in the FY2024 budget. "We thank President Biden for his commitment to expanding paid leave and urge that the administration's FY24 budget request meaningfully reflect that commitment. The United States is the world's only industrialized nation that does not guarantee workers paid leave, even though nearly all workers … Continue Reading
January 12, 2023
Wyden, Merkley: Oregon Housing Authorities Receive more than $900,000 in Housing Vouchers for Oregonians with Disabilities
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley this week announced that six Oregon counties will receive 80 vouchers from the Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD) to fund permanent affordable housing assistance to Oregonians with extreme mental health concerns and disabilities.? "As the weather continues to be wet and cold, I'm gratified to see more Oregonians get a roof overhead," Wyden said. "Housing is a basic human need. These permanent housing vouchers are … Continue Reading
January 10, 2023
Merkley, Wyden Announce Nearly $200,000 Coming to Oregon for Water Efficiency Projects
Washington, D.C. - Oregon's U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden announced that $198,668 is coming to Oregon from the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation for project to improve water efficiency in Bend, Morrow County, and Klamath County. "Reliable water supply is vital for communities, farmers and ranchers, and for many iconic wildlife species?to thrive," said Merkley. "I'm pleased these funds are going to help improve water efficiency improvements in Oregon's agriculture industry so there's more … Continue Reading
January 06, 2023
Wyden, Merkley: Nearly $20 Million to Oregon School Districts to Hire More Mental Health Providers
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today announced that four Oregon school districts will receive a combined nearly $20 million in competitive grants from the U.S. Department of Education to hire additional licensed mental health providers over the next five years. "Students, teachers and counselors across Oregon tell me just how crucial school-based mental health services are to young people facing challenges at home and in the classroom-but these services are … Continue Reading
