Press Releases

Merkley, Oregon Delegation Decry Sudden Loss of Columbia River Hatchery Funding 

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley and the Oregon Congressional Delegation members Senator Ron Wyden, and Representatives Andrea Salinas (OR-06), Janelle Bynum (OR-05), Suzanne Bonamici (OR-01), Val Hoyle (OR-04), and Maxine Dexter (OR-03) decried the decision of Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) to abruptly end its participation in the Safe Area Fisheries Enhancement (SAFE) program. The SAFE program has been operational since 1993, and provides reliable stocks

Peters, Schumer, Murray & Merkley Lead Senate Democrats in Demanding OMB Rescind Rule Giving President Sweeping Power to Politicize Federal Grants

WASHINGTON, DC — U.S. Senators Gary Peters (D-MI), Ranking Member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee; Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Senate Democratic Leader; Patty Murray (D-WA), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee; and Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Ranking Member of the Senate Budget Committee, led the entire Senate Democratic caucus in demanding

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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