Press Releases

Forty-One Senators Push to Keep Harmful Environmental Riders Out of Appropriations Bills

Senators warn that inclusion of poison pills harming the environment would undermine Senate’s ability to pass bipartisan spending bills Washington, D.C. – Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works; Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Ranking Member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior,

Merkley, Salinas, Pacific Northwest Democrats to Secretary Rollins: Act Quickly to Hire Agricultural Research Staff Across the Region

Washington, D.C. – Today, Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley and U.S. Representative Andrea Salinas (OR-06) led a group of their Pacific Northwest colleagues in pressing U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Brooke Rollins over her commitment to promptly fill critical staff positions that remain vacant at USDA’s Agricultural Research Service

Merkley, Wyden Announce Up to $3 Million for Solar Energy Partnership in Bend

WASHINGTON D.C. – Oregon Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden announced today that a partnership involving PV Powered, a manufacturer of photovoltaic solar inverters in Bend, Oregon, will receive up to $3 million from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to develop solar energy grid integration systems (SEGIS).  A portion

Merkley Amendment to Bolster Local Energy Efficiency Programs Passes Senate

Washington, D.C. – Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley today offered an amendment to the Senate Energy and Water Appropriations bill to support efficiency programs to help homeowners and business owners renovate buildings to save energy and cut their bills.  The amendment was adopted unanimously.  “This amendment will enable homeowners and local

Merkley Seeks Improvements to Mortgage Modification Program

WASHINGTON, DC – As top Obama Administration officials prepare for a meeting with the nation’s mortgage servicing companies, Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley today urged the Administration to take a number of steps to make it easier for homeowners at risk of foreclosure to modify the terms of their mortgages. “With

Merkley Applauds Fed for Steering Payment Ban

WASHINGTON, DC – Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board, Ben Bernanke, announced today that the Federal Reserve is recommending new rules to benefit consumers, including a ban on yield spread premiums, also known as steering payments.  The new rules also require lenders to provide borrowers with a straightforward explanation of

en_USEnglish