Merkley, Wyden Announce Over $52 Million in PILT Payments to Support Vital Services in Oregon
Washington, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden today announced counties throughout Oregon will receive a combined total of $52,016,022 in Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) funding for 2026. Because local governments cannot tax federal lands, annual PILT funding helps to defray the costs associated with
During Pride Month, Merkley, Wyden, Colleagues Introduce Resolution Apologizing for Government Discrimination Against LGBTQ+ Civil Servants, Servicemembers
Washington, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden joined a resolution led by U.S. Senators Tim Kaine (D-Va.) and Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.) to acknowledge and apologize for the mistreatment of and discrimination against LGBTQ+ individuals who have served in the uniformed services, as civil servants, or in
Rosen, Curtis, Merkley, Banks Introduce Resolution Condemning Chinese Suppression of Ethnic Minorities
WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senators Jacky Rosen (D-NV), John Curtis (R-UT), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), and Jim Banks (R-IN) introduced a bipartisan resolution that condemns a law passed by the Chinese Communist Party and set to go into effect on July 1 that targets ethnic minorities and expresses support for Tibetans,
Bipartisan Group of Western Senators Introduce Legislation to Provide Financial Certainty for Rural Counties
Washington, D.C. – A bipartisan group of Western senators today introduced legislation to provide long-term financial security for rural counties. The legislation introduced by U.S. Senators Ron Wyden, D-Ore., Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., Jim Risch, R-Idaho, Michael Bennet, D-Colo., and Cory Gardner, R-Colo., would reauthorize the Payments in
Wyden, Merkley, Walden Press Feds on Large Air Tankers
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley and U.S. Rep. Greg Walden today pressed the Forest Service to explain why it has failed to award any ”call when needed” (CWN) contracts to providers of wildfire-fighting large air tankers (LAT). The Oregon lawmakers noted in a letter to
Merkley Secures Additional Funding for National Guard Wildfire Fighting Training
Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley today announced that the Senate Appropriations Committee included $8.5 million in the Department of Defense appropriations bill to train National Guard Members to fight wildfires. The funding is a $1.5 million increase over last year and the previous year, when Merkley first secured the additional
Merkley Urges Financial Regulators to Reject Gutting of Volcker Rule
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley, who co-authored the Volcker Rule along with former Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI), today strongly urged federal financial regulators to reject a proposed rewrite of the landmark financial reform provision that would place gaping loopholes into the rule’s protections. “Your agencies have been charged
Merkley, Wyden Announce Emergency Relief for Wine and Hazelnut Growers Now Available
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden today announced that millions of dollars appropriated in the bipartisan disaster relief package this summer is now available for Oregon wine and hazelnut growers. “When disaster strikes, the communities who’ve been hit need a direct line in DC to
Merkley Reacts to FDA Withdrawal of Flavored E-Cigarettes
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley, the top Democrat on the Appropriations Subcommittee that oversees the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), released the following statement after the FDA announced that it is temporarily pulling all flavored e-cigarette products from the market: “This action is outrageously overdue. It’s been clear