Tag: Natural Resources and Rural Development

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Merkley, Wyden Announce Over $2.1 Million Grant for Postsecondary Manufacturing Education at Central Oregon Community College

January 21, 2026

Washington, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden announced that $2,187,923 in federal funding is coming to Central Oregon Community College to boost its manufacturing postsecondary education program, expanding the pipeline of skilled workers to meet the needs of local employers while supporting long-term regional economic growth.

Ranking Member Merkley, Colleagues Denounce Trump Administration’s Partisan Changes to National Park Service Access for 2026

January 16, 2026

Washington, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley—the top Democrat overseeing funding for the National Park Service— today led U.S. Senators Alex Padilla (D-CA), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Jack Reed (D-RI), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Ed Markey (D-MA), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Patty Murray (D-WA), Cory

Ranking Member Merkley: Interior-Environment Funding Bill Boosts Wildfire Resiliency, Water Infrastructure, and Climate Investments in Oregon and Across the Nation

January 15, 2026

Washington, D.C. – Today, Senate Interior-Environment Appropriations Subcommittee Ranking Member Jeff Merkley (D-OR) released the following statement after the Senate passed the Interior-Environment Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 Appropriations bill in an overwhelmingly bipartisan vote of 82-15: “Oregonians turned out in record numbers during my town halls last year and delivered

Merkley, Padilla Lead Senate Colleagues to Protect Timely USPS Delivery of Ballots, Mail Across the Nation

January 15, 2026

Washington, D.C. – Today, Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley and California’s U.S. Senator Alex Padilla, Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration, raised concerns with recent developments by the United States Postal Service (USPS) affecting postmark practices. Right before the holiday season, USPS clarified its recent practices

Merkley Statement on House & Senate Negotiated Interior-Environment FY 2026 Appropriations Bill

January 6, 2026

Washington, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley, the Ranking Member of the Senate Interior-Environment Appropriations Subcommittee, released the following statement after the House and Senate negotiated text of the Interior-Environment FY 2026 Appropriations bill was released: “This bill is far superior to a Continuing Resolution for funding the core programs

Merkley, Wyden, Colleagues Urge Trump Administration to End Staffing Crisis at Fish and Wildlife Service, Warn of Devastating Impacts to Ecosystems and Public Lands

December 22, 2025

Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR)—the top Democrat overseeing funding for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS)—and U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR)—former chairman and current senior member of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources—joined their colleagues in urging the administration to immediately address and reverse the

Merkley, Wyden Announce $2.2 Million in Federal Support for Coastal Erosion Work in Lincoln County

December 19, 2025

Funds will support MidCoast Watersheds Council’s work in Siletz and Yaquina Estuaries Washington, D.C. – Today, Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden announced the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) is awarding $2,210,835 to the MidCoast Watersheds Council to restore 125 acres of tidal wetlands and 6.2 miles

Wyden, Merkley, Colleagues Celebrate SRS Reauthorization for Rural Oregon Counties

December 19, 2025

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today celebrated the signing of their bipartisan Secure Rural Schools Reauthorization Act into law, reauthorizing funding for the U.S. Forest Service’s Secure Rural Schools and Self-Determination Program (SRS) through FY 2026 and providing lapsed payments to counties in Oregon and nationwide for FY 2024

ALSOBROOKS, CRAMER, MERKLEY, CURTIS INTRODUCE LEGISLATION TO REAUTHORIZE WILDLIFE CROSSINGS PROGRAM

December 18, 2025

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Senator Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD), Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR), and Senator John Curtis (R-UT) announced legislation reauthorizing the Wildlife Crossings Program. This program at the Federal Highway Administration is a competitive grant program with the goal of reducing Wildlife Vehicle Collisions (WVCs) while improving habitat

Merkley, Marshall Launch New Bipartisan Effort to Unlock Federal Support for Hazardous Cleanup Following Wildfires

December 16, 2025

Washington, D.C. – Today, Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley and Kansas’ U.S. Senator Roger Marshall introduced the brand-new Post-Wildfire Environmental Assistance Act. The bipartisan bill provides a straightforward solution for communities in Oregon and across the nation to access federal aid for hazardous material cleanup following a wildfire. “Fighting wildfires