Press Releases

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

MERKLEY, BROWN OUTLINE AMENDMENT THAT WOULD STRENGTHEN INSIDER TRADING BILL

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Members of the Senate and their staff would be required to divest themselves of any individual stock holdings or put them in a blind trust under an amendment outlined by Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley and Senator Brown (D-OH). In a conference call earlier today, the Senators outlined

MERKLEY: CALLER ID “SPOOFING” MUST COME TO AN END

Washington, DC – Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley today sent a letter to Federal Communications Chairman Julius Genachowski concerning recent reports of fraudulent use of caller ID technology. Press reports have indicated a dramatic increase of caller ID “spoofing”, or callers that misrepresent themselves on caller IDs.  In many cases, these

Merkley Applauds USDA Investment in ZeaChem Biofuel Production Facility in Boardman

PORTLAND, OR – Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley applauded today’s U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) announcement that ZeaChem Inc. has been selected for a $232.5 million USDA loan guarantee to help the construction of ZeaChem’s first commercial scale cellulosic biorefinery in Boardman, Oregon. The state-of-the-art facility will turn woody biomass and

Merkley Statement on State of the Union

Washington, DC- Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley issued the following statement on President Barack Obama’s third State of the Union address:  “Tonight, President Obama focused on our most important challenge as a nation: how to make America work for working Americans again.  For the last three and half decades, the wealthy

Merkley Statement on Finalized HHS Contraception Ruling

Portland, OR – Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley issued a statement following the announcement by the Department of Health and Human Services of a final rule on preventive health services.  The new rule will ensure that women with health insurance coverage will have access to the full range of the Institute

Merkley Statement on Second Anniversary of Citizens United

Portland, OR- Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley today issued a statement on the second anniversary of the Citizens United decision allowing unlimited secret donations by corporations in elections. “Our nation is unique in world history in that it was founded on the simple idea that the people are in charge. However,

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