Van Hollen, Merkley, Colleagues Introduce Bill to Protect Aid Workers in Conflict Zones
WASHINGTON – Today, on Human Rights Day, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) introduced legislation to protect humanitarian aid workers operating in conflict zones. The lawmakers’ legislation, the Commitment to Aid Workers Act, would strengthen U.S. efforts to safeguard those who risk their
Senate Republicans Block Merkley’s Bill to Prevent War with Venezuela
Washington, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley released the following statement after Senate Republicans blocked consideration of his Prohibiting Unauthorized Military Action in Venezuela Act of 2025, which would block federal funds from being used for military actions in Venezuela: “As the Constitution so clearly says, Congress has the power
Senators Blunt Rochester, Merkley, Warnock Introduce Bill to Repair Infrastructure, Bridge Communities
Washington, DC – U.S. Senators Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), and Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) today introduced the Restoring Essential Public Access and Improving Resilient (REPAIR) Infrastructure Program Act. The bill would reauthorize and expand the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Reconnecting Communities Program as the REPAIR Infrastructure Program,
Giving America a Raise: Merkley and Colleagues Introduce Legislation Calling for National Minimum Wage Increase
Washington, DC – Today, Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley joined Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), the leading Democrat on the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, and Senators from the Democratic Caucus to introduce new legislation to raise the federal minimum wage to $12.00 by 2020. The Raise the Wage
Wyden, Schumer, Feinstein, Casey, Merkley, Brown, Warner Introduce Bill to Protect Communities from Oil Train Accidents
Washington, D.C. – Sens. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., Bob Casey, D-Penn., Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, and Mark Warner, D-Va., today introduced legislation to protect local communities by getting unsafe oil trains off the tracks and giving firefighters and other first responders in local
Merkley Introduces Education-To-Jobs Package
Washington, DC – Today, Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley announced an education-to-jobs package to better connect students to careers. Merkley’s bills, introduced today in the U.S. Senate, would protect students from predatory for-profit colleges peddling degrees that do not actually lead to jobs, and improve access to middle and high school
Merkley Introduces Legislation to Make Hospitals Safer for Nurses and Patients
Washington, D.C. – Today, Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley introduced legislation to make hospitals safer for nurses and patients. The Registered Nurse Safe Staffing Act of 2015 requires hospitals participating in Medicare to implement thorough staffing plans for nursing services and establishes whistleblower protections for patients and employees. “As the husband
Merkley on Supreme Court Marriage Equality Cases: “Discrimination Has No Place in our Nation’s Laws”
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley released the following statement after the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments in landmark cases that could bring marriage equality for same-sex couples to all 50 states: “There are few concepts as fundamentally American as equality. As the United States Supreme Court hears oral
Udall, Whitehouse, Merkley, Booker Announce Breakthrough Improvements to Landmark Chemical Safety Bill
WASHINGTON — Today, Democratic U.S. Sens. Tom Udall (N.M.), Sheldon Whitehouse (R.I.), Jeff Merkley (Ore.) and Cory Booker (N.J.) announced a major breakthrough agreement in historic legislation to reform the nation’s broken chemical safety law, a day before a “markup” hearing to finalize the legislation in the Senate Environment and