Press Releases

Merkley to Burgum: Our Public Lands Are Not for Sale

Washington, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley, Ranking Member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies, released the following statement after a hearing on the President’s Fiscal Year 2026 budget request for the U.S. Department of the Interior with Secretary Doug Burgum: “Secretary Burgum testified

Heinrich, Murray, Klobuchar, Merkley Slam USDA for Evasive Response on Wildfire Mitigation Projects, Workforce Cuts, and Funding Freezes

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Ranking Member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, along with U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Ranking Member of the Senate Appropriations Committee; Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry; and U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley

KAINE, VAN HOLLEN, MERKLEY INTRODUCE BILL TO STRENGTHEN STATE DEPARTMENT WORKFORCE

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (SFRC), announced the introduction of the State Department Integrity and Transparency Act, legislation to strengthen the State Department workforce and ensure senior State Department leaders are selected based on merit—not money or politics. The bill would

Merkley, Wyden, Bonamici, Hoyle, Salinas Urge Continued Support for West Coast Fishermen and Oregon’s Seafood Industry

Washington, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden, alongside U.S. Representatives Suzanne Bonamici (OR-01), Val Hoyle (OR-04), and Andrea Salinas (OR-06) sent a letter to U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Administrator Bruce Summers, who oversees the agency’s Agricultural Marketing Service, calling on the USDA to deliver critical federal support to West Coast fishermen

Wyden, Merkley, Colleagues Call to Support Small Cannabis Businesses

Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today joined Senate colleagues in calling on the Senate Appropriations Committee to allow small cannabis businesses in Oregon and other states that have legalized cannabis sale and use to access Small Business Administration (SBA) loans.  “SBA’s current policy excludes from

RUBIO, MERKLEY INTRODUCE BILL TO REAUTHORIZE UYGHUR HUMAN RIGHTS POLICY ACT 

The People’s Republic of China continues to brutally suppress Uyghurs and other ethnic groups. The United States must continue to hold officials accountable for these abuses.  The Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act, which U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) led, was signed into law in 2020 and its sanctions are set

Wyden, Merkley Announce National Trail Designation for Banks-Vernonia State Trail 

WASHINGTON D.C.—Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today announced the designation of the Banks-Vernonia State Trail to the National Trails System. The newly designated trail joins a network of more than 1,300 existing national recreation trails, which can be found in every U.S. state, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.  

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