Interior Cuts in Trump Administration’s “Skinny” Budget to Leave Lasting Scars on Public Lands, Tribal Nations, and Human Health
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Ranking Member of the Interior-Environment Subcommittee on the Senate Appropriations Committee, released the below statement following the release of President Trump’s ‘skinny’ budget for Fiscal Year 2026. “This budget is exactly what we expected from this administration: abandoning critical programs, slashing essential government services,
Merkley Announces Central Oregon Town Halls
Washington, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley announced today he will hold three town halls for Oregonians in Jefferson, Crook, and Deschutes counties on Saturday, May 10. Merkley will be joined by U.S. Representative Janelle Bynum for the Deschutes County town hall in Sisters. The three rescheduled events in Central
Sens. Wicker, Merkley Introduce Bipartisan Nurse Corps Tax Parity Act
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., Co-Chairs of the Senate Nursing Caucus, introduced the Nurse Corps Tax Parity Act. This legislation would ensure that nurses in the federal Nurse Corps do not need to pay income tax on their student loan repayments and scholarships. “Nurses are essential to
Senate Passes Merkley Proposal to Create Jobs by Repairing Crumbling Water Infrastructure
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, the U.S. Senate passed Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley’s Water Infrastructure Financing Innovation Act (WIFIA) as part of the Water Resources Development Act of 2013. The program would create jobs by providing low-cost loans to communities for infrastructure projects to repair or upgrade their water systems. “A
Senate Passes Merkley-Brown “Buy America” Amendment to Water Infrastructure Bill
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, the U.S. Senate passed an amendment authored by Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley and Senator Sherrod Brown of Ohio to extend Buy America provisions to water infrastructure. The amendment, which was added to the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA), will strengthen and support U.S. manufacturing by ensuring
Merkley Statement on Inspector General IRS Report
Washington – Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley issued the following statement after the release of an Inspector General report that the IRS was inappropriately targeting conservative groups for reviews of their tax-exempt status. “What the IRS did was wrong. Targeting groups by their name or their ideology is absolutely unacceptable. The
Merkley Cosponsors Bill to Lower Student Loan Rates
Washington, DC- Today, Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley cosponsored a bill that would allow students to pay the same interest rate on their federally-subsidized Stafford loans as big banks get when they borrow money from the Federal Reserve. On July 1st of this year, student loan interest rates are set to
Merkley Introduces Breastfeeding Legislation and Highlights Portland Police Bureau’s Commitment to Working Mothers
Portland, OR – Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley today joined Portland Police officers and breastfeeding advocates to introduce the Supporting Working Moms Act. This legislation would expand a provision that Merkley succeeded in including in the health care reform law to ensure that new mothers have the time and space to
Wyden, Merkley Ask Agriculture, Interior Secretaries for Emergency Grazing Rights on Federal Land in Southeastern and South Central Oregon
Washington, D.C. – Faced with another year of drought conditions in Southeastern and South Central Oregon, Oregon Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley are asking the Department of Agriculture extend emergency grazing of cattle on Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management land. “Given the severity of the drought and
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