Congress

Bill contains billions of dollars for medical care, women veterans, homeless veterans; includes specific language on Walla Walla VA, South Puget Sound CBOC

November 17, 2009 -- (WASHINGTON, D.C.) – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) helped pass legislation through the full Senate that provides $109 billion for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The bill passed by a 100-0 vote.

The funding, which is included in the fiscal year 2010 Military Construction and Veterans Affairs funding bill, is $150 million more than the President requested. The majority of the funding will go directly to health care services which will help cut wait-times, increase access to quality care and mental health services for our veterans.    » read more »

Bill honors young girl whose brother said, “… what you call people is how you treat them.”

17-Nov-2009 --
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Barbara A. Mikulski today introduced Rosa’s Law, a bill that will eliminate the terms “mental retardation” and “mentally retarded” from the federal law books. U.S. Senator Michael B. Enzi (R-Wyo.), Ranking Member of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, is the Republican sponsor of the bill.

Senator Mikulski’s statement as delivered on the Senate floor follows:    » read more »

November 17, 2009 -- Washington, DC – Today the Senate passed legislation that will increase funding for housing and supportive services for veterans. Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley voted in favor of the measure which was passed as part of the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Act.

“After serving our nation selflessly and putting their lives on the line for the safety of our citizens, it is completely unacceptable that veterans are sleeping on the streets and not receiving the care and services they deserve,” said Merkley “This funding is an important step forward in helping veterans get off the streets and back on their feet.”    » read more »

Statement of the Honorable Blanche L. Lincoln, Chairman, Hearing on Child Nutrition Reauthorization

November 17, 2009 -- As prepared for delivery:

“Good morning and welcome to the Senate Agriculture Committee, where today we will continue a series of hearings begun by my predecessor, Senator Tom Harkin, in anticipation of the reauthorization of federal child nutrition programs. We are honored today to be joined by two distinguished panels of witnesses, including Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack and a panel of experts from Arkansas.    » read more »

November 17, 2009 -- “While it is good to know that 14,700 people have now disclosed previously hidden offshore bank accounts, the U.S.–Swiss Annex disclosed today, designed to compel disclosure of the names of U.S persons with Swiss accounts at UBS, is very disappointing.

"It complicates and muddies what should have been a straightforward agreement by UBS and the Swiss Government to disclose Swiss accounts hidden from the United States by U.S. accountholders.

"UBS admitted last year that it ‘participated in a scheme to defraud the United States’ out of tax revenue. Since then, UBS has been prohibited by its government from simply turning over the names of the 52,000 U.S. clients suspected of participating in that tax evasion scheme with UBS.    » read more »

Senate Appropriations Bill Would Direct Nearly $87 Million to Seven Projects

November 17, 2009 --
WASHINGTON — Senators Carl Levin and Debbie Stabenow, both D-Mich., today hailed the Senate’s passage of a bill including $87 million for seven projects in Michigan and funding for the Department of Veterans Affairs. The Senate and House of Representatives must now reconcile their versions of the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Act for fiscal year 2010 before moving to final passage in both chambers.    » read more »

November 17, 2009 -- WASHINGTON – Senator Carl Levin, D-Mich., introduced legislation today that would provide flexible loans to small businesses suffering from a lack of credit due to poor economic conditions or changes in the financial market.    » read more »

November 17, 2009 -- "Mr. President, I introduce today the Small Business Intermediary Lending Pilot Program Act of 2010.

As a member of the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee I have been concerned about access to affordable financing for small businesses.    » read more »

WASHINGTON -- Nov. 17, 2009 – Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) Tuesday urged the Senate to vote to end the filibuster of the nomination of Judge David Hamilton to the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals. Hamilton’s nomination has been pending on the Senate’s executive calendar since June 4.

President Obama nominated Judge Hamilton on March 17. He appeared before the Judiciary Committee twice, on April 1 and April 29. His nomination is supported by Indiana Senators Richard Lugar (R) and Evan Bayh (D). Senate Republicans have rejected efforts to reach an agreement to debate and vote on Hamilton’s nomination, and last Tuesday, the Senate Majority Leader filed cloture – a motion to bring debate to an end – on the nomination.    » read more »

WASHINGTON -- Nov. 17, 2009 – Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy Tuesday joined 56 other Senators to defeat an amendment to the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Act that would have prohibited the use of funds to construct or modify prison facilities to hold individuals currently being detained at the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Leahy has opposed similar measures designed to curb the tools and resources available to the Federal Government to bring charges against detainees held at Guantanamo Bay. The amendment was opposed by the Attorney General, the Secretary of Defense, and the Secretary of Homeland Security.

Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.),
Chairman, Senate Judiciary Committee,    » read more »

WASHINGTON (Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2009) – Ten state Attorneys General are backing legislation authored by Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) to repeal the health insurance and medical malpractice insurance industries’ exemption from federal antitrust laws.

In a letter dated November 13, Attorneys General from Vermont, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maine, Oregon, Arizona, Iowa, Montana, Florida and Wyoming urge Congress to end the decades-old exemption from federal antitrust laws, which are designed to encourage competition and protect consumers. Dating back to the 1945 McCarran-Ferguson Act, health insurers and medical malpractice insurers have been exempt from these laws. Leahy chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee, which held a hearing on the exemption in October.    » read more »

11/16/2009 -- WASHINGTON -- United States Senator Mary L. Landrieu, D-La., today urged the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to help protect homeowners from scams by companies and individuals claiming to have solutions for tainted Chinese drywall. In a letter to FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz, Sen. Landrieu and five other Senators raised concerns about deceptive practices that prey on consumers with defective drywall and asked the Commission to fully investigate and prosecute companies engaging in these activities.

The letter was signed by Senators Bill Nelson (D-Fla.), David Vitter (R-La.), Thad Cochran (R-Miss.), Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) and Jim Webb (D-Va.).    » read more »

11/17/09 -- "The PACT Act will strengthen our tobacco laws to ensure that law enforcement has the tools they need to investigate and prosecute cigarette traffickers. Each day we delay its passage, terrorists and criminals raise more money, states lose significant amounts of tax revenue, and kids have easy access to tobacco products sold over the internet.    » read more »

November 17, 2009 -- WASHINGTON, DC – Senator Ted Kaufman (D-DE), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, released the following statement after the Obama Administration’s announcement of a Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force earlier today:

“I applaud the President’s creation today of an interagency Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. As I’ve said since my first week in office, we need to hold accountable the people and institutions whose criminal behavior contributed to the worst financial crisis in my lifetime. That is the only way for investors and the public again to have confidence in the financial markets.”    » read more »

November 17, 2009 -- Washington, DC -- U.S. Senator Tim Johnson (D-SD), Chairman of the Military Construction, Veterans Affairs (VA) and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee, today announced that the Senate has unanimously passed the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Bill for FY2010.

Johnson authored the spending measure from his position as Chairman, and placed a strong emphasis on addressing the needs of rural and homeless veterans while also providing for important South Dakota priorities.    » read more »