Press Releases

Merkley Remarks at FY27 Interior Department Budget Hearing with Secretary Burgum

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 as prepared for delivery at the hearing reviewing the President’s Fiscal Year 2027 budget request for the U.S. Department of the Interior with Secretary Doug Burgum: Senator Merkley’s remarks, as

Merkley Seeks Answers on Hegseth’s Role in Dismantling Military’s Civilian Harm Prevention Guard Rails in Advance of Iran War

Washington, D.C. — Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley—a senior member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee—joined a group of Senators in seeking answers on U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s role in weakening civilian harm prevention programs and the catastrophic civilian impacts of President Trump’s war in Iran. “The high human

Merkley, Kaine, Warren, Whitehouse, Colleagues Demand Secretary McMahon Provide Flexibility to Student Loan Borrowers Who Are Being Forced to Exit the SAVE Plan

Washington, D.C. – Today, Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley, Virginia’s U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, Massachusetts’ U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren, and Rhode Island’s U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse led a group of their Senate Democratic colleagues in pressing the U.S. Department of Education on its recent announcement to move more than 7

Senate Committee Clears Merkley Columbia River Restoration Act

Washington, D.C. – Today, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee passed a bill authored by Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley, Idaho Senator Mike Crapo and Montana Senator Max Baucus, to support the clean-up and restoration of the Columbia River Basin.  The bill will authorize the Environmental Protection Agency to provide

Merkley Statement on PILT Funding Announcement

WASHINGTON, DC – Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley issued the following statement on the Department of Interior’s announcement of Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) funding being sent to local governments today: “Oregon taxpayers don’t have the luxury of waiting to pay their property taxes, and the federal government shouldn’t either. 

Merkley Statement on Passing of Senator Robert Byrd

WASHINGTON, DC – Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley issued the following statement on the passing of West Virginia Senator Robert Byrd: “Thirty years ago, I first entered the Capital as an intern for Senator Mark Hatfield.  Even then, Senator Byrd was already a mainstay of the Senate.  In the years since,

Merkley, Wyden and Schrader Announce $10 Million Award for City of Stayton

Washington D.C. – Oregon Senators Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Congressman Kurt Schrader (D- Ore.)announced today that the Rural Development office within the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has approved an award to the City of Stayton for over $10 million. The award includes a loan of

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