Press Releases

Merkley Statement on 25th Anniversary of September 11 Terrorist Attacks

Washington, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley released the following statement in remembrance of the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001: “I will never forget that day 25 years ago: the clear blue morning sky, the billowing black smoke, the clouds of white ash, and everywhere, the confusion and fear. Our

Merkley Statement on Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie G. Bunch III

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley – the lead Democrat on the Interior Appropriations Subcommittee which oversees federal funding for the Smithsonian Institution – released the following statement after the Institution announced Secretary Lonnie G. Bunch III would be retiring after a five-decade career as a museum

Merkley Statement on Additional Water for Klamath Users

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Ken Salazar, Secretary of the Interior, announced that additional water resources would be made available for Klamath irrigators.  Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley issued the following statement on the announcement: “Mother nature has dealt the farmers and ranchers in the Klamath Basin a harsh blow this year.

Merkley, Bond, Bayh Introduce Bill to Rebuild Local Economies Hit Hardest by Recession

Washington D.C. – U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Kit Bond (R-Mo.), and Evan Bayh (D-Ind.) today introduced legislation to help local businesses stay afloat during times of recession and high unemployment.  The Rebuilding Local Business Act creates a temporary three-year HUBZone “Rebuilding Status” for counties that have an unemployment rate

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,

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