Press Releases

Merkley, Wyden, Colleagues Reintroduce Updated DISCLOSE Act to End Corrupting Influence of Dark Money in American Elections 

185 Democrats support effort to empower voters and expose billionaire and special interest control over our government and courts  Washington, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden joined a bicameral group of Democrats in reintroducing the DISCLOSE Act, legislation to shine a bright light of transparency on the scourge of dark money in politics and make government more

Ranking Members Heinrich and Merkley Demand Answers from Trump Administration on Efforts to Erase History on Public Lands

Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senators Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Ranking Member of the U.S. Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies, sent a letter to the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) demanding answers from the National Park Service (NPS) following reports that

Merkley Investigates Chemical Industry Insiders Taking Over Critical EPA Chemical Safety Office

Washington, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley—the top Democrat on the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) subcommittee overseeing environmental justice, chemical safety, and waste management—today sent an oversight letter following reports of former chemical industry lobbyists filling key positions at the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office of Chemical

Wyden, Merkley Join Colleagues to Reintroduce the Marijuana Justice Act

Washington, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley last week joined Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., and colleagues in reintroducing the Marijuana Justice Act to end the federal prohibition on marijuana. “The War on Drugs destroyed lives, and no one continues to be devastated more than low-income communities

Merkley Pushes USDA to Get Rural Broadband Funding to Communities

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley today pushed U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Sonny Perdue to make sure that new rural broadband funding reaches the communities it was intended to help. As the top Democrat on the Senate Agriculture and Rural Development Appropriations Subcommittee, Merkley successfully fought to

Merkley Decries ICE Detainment of Infants

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley released the following statement after the American Immigration Council (AIC) filed a complaint with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), calling on ICE to release infants with their mothers from custody. Currently, at least nine infants under one year of age are being

Merkley Introduces Resolution to Prevent Military Intervention in Venezuela Without Explicit Congressional Authorization

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Following repeated hints from the Trump Administration that it is considering a military intervention in Venezuela, Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley today introduced a Senate resolution that would prohibit military action in Venezuela without explicit congressional approval. Merkley is a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and

Merkley and Colleagues Offer $2 Billion Plan to Reduce Class Sizes

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley, along with U.S. Senators Michael Bennet (D-CO), Kamala Harris (D-CA), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), today introduced bold new legislation to invest in smaller class sizes for public schools across America. Smaller class sizes increase student achievement and

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