The carbon pollution in our atmosphere from burning fossil fuels like oil and coal is waging a direct and unchecked assault on our farming, fishing and forests – the cornerstones of Oregon’s rural economy.
When Jeff was young, his dad worked as a millwright. He spent his childhood in Southern Oregon timber communities, where timber jobs were what put food on the table and kept roofs over folks’ head. Fires and insect infestations are already killing trees at alarming rates across the Northwest, and climate change will only make these threats to our forests worse. Other iconic Oregon industries like our coastal oyster hatcheries are threatened by ocean acidification, and fishing and farming alike are facing threats from declining snowpacks and increased drought.
Congress needs to wake up. Climate change is real, and it’s bad for our economy and jobs, especially in rural Oregon and the places that most depend on our abundant natural resources.
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
Merkley Remarks at Department of the Interior Budget Hearing with Secretary Burgum
Washington, D.C. – Today, Senate Interior-Environment Appropriations Subcommittee Ranking Member Jeff Merkley (D-OR) delivered the following remarks at the hearing reviewing the President’s Fiscal Year 2026 budget request for the U.S. Department of the Interior with Secretary Doug Burgum: Senator Merkley’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, are below: “Thank you,
Merkley, Daines, Salinas, Guthrie, Hoyle Champion Bipartisan Bill to Train Next Generation of Wildland Firefighters
Washington, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley, Montana’s U.S. Senator Steve Daines, U.S. Representatives Andrea Salinas (OR-06), Brett Guthrie (KY-02), and Val Hoyle (OR-04) today reintroduced the bipartisan Civilian Conservation Center Enhancement Act of 2025. This legislation directs the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the U.S. Department of
Merkley Remarks at EPA Budget Hearing with Administrator Zeldin
Washington, D.C. – Today, Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley – the Ranking Member of the Senate Interior-Environment Appropriations Subcommittee – delivered the following remarks at the hearing reviewing the President’s Fiscal Year 2026 budget request for the Environmental Protection Agency with Administrator Lee Zeldin: Senator Merkley’s remarks, as prepared for
Merkley, Crapo Lead Bipartisan Effort to Expand Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration
Washington, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley and Idaho’s U.S. Senator Mike Crapo today teamed up to introduce the bipartisan Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration (CFLR) Program Reauthorization Act of 2025. This legislation would reauthorize and expand the CFLR program, which helps fund collaborative and community-based forest management. The CFLR program has a
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