ICYMI: Hickenlooper Tours Northwest Colorado on Wildfire Recovery, Drought, and Quarry Expansion Fight

In case you missed it, last week U.S. Senator John Hickenlooper traveled across Northwest Colorado to address the West’s historic drought and a wildfire season already breaking records for size and damage. On Monday, he joined Governor Polis, Senator Bennet, and first responders in Fruita for an update on the Snyder Fire—Colorado’s fifth-largest wildfire—and to honor the three firefighters who tragically lost their lives, as well as the two others who were injured.

On Thursday, he hosted a discussion overlooking the Yampa River in Steamboat Springs on the Western drought emergency and its toll on agriculture and our economy.

On Friday, he met with ranchers impacted by last summer’s Lee and Elk fires who were denied FEMA aid after the Trump administration put politics ahead of disaster relief. He then toured three projects he helped support — the 1st street revitalization project in Parachute, Rifle’s Center of Excellence for Advanced Technology Aerial Firefighting, and Silt’s water treatment facility — before joining Glenwood Springs officials and community leaders to oppose the proposed limestone quarry expansion above town.

Check out what they’re saying:

The Daily Sentinel: Officials recognize sacrifice of firefighters killed in Mesa County at Monday press conference

At a Monday press conference in Fruita, Director of the U.S. Wildland Fire Service Brian Fennessy recognized the service and sacrifice of the three firefighters that were killed responding to the Knowles Fire in western Mesa County Saturday.

Fennessy spoke alongside Governor Jared Polis, U.S. Senators John Hickenlooper and Michael Bennet, as well as other federal, state and local officials, and called the loss of the firefighters “heartbreaking.”

…Hickenlopper later released a statement on the five firefighters.

“Our hearts are with the families of those lost, with those who were injured, and with everyone still on the front lines,” Hickenlooper said. “Colorado is facing another difficult wildfire season and our firefighters are doing everything they can to protect our communities. It’s time for every level of government to match their service with solutions that make everyone safer.”

Colorado Sun: Chief of new Wildland Fire Service confident in “unified response” to wildfire threat despite deaths of 3 firefighters

Despite losing three firefighters in the beginning of what is promising to be a very active fire year, Brian Fennessy, director of the newly created U.S. Department of Interior’s Wildland Fire Service, said he has confidence in the new agency. He said he anticipates it will result in a more robust ability to attack fires with unified resources.

…Polis was joined by U.S. Sens. Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper, who also expressed their gratitude to the fallen firefighters.

KJCT News 8: Colorado leaders gather in Fruita to address growing wildfire crisis

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis joined U.S. Senators John Hickenlooper and Michael Bennet, along with state and federal fire personnel, June 29 in Fruita to provide the latest information on fire suppression efforts in western Colorado and across the state.

The briefing came as wildfires continued to spread, threatening communities including Glade Park, Ouray, Leadville, and Beulah.

…Senator Hickenlooper noted that snowpack has provided little protection against fire conditions this season. “The snowpack’s effect in creating conditions that aren’t hospitable to wildfires is almost nil, almost nothing,”he said.

Western Slope Now: Officials mourn firefighters, Fruita Snyder Mesa Fire

Gov. Jared Polis, U.S. Sens. John Hickenlooper and Michael Bennet, along with fire officials and other leaders, gathered Monday in Fruita to discuss the Snyder Mesa Fire and to reflect on the deaths of three wildland firefighters.

…Hickenlooper added, “Our hearts are with the families of those lost, with those who were injured, and with everyone still on the front lines. Colorado is facing another difficult wildfire season, and our firefighters are doing everything they can to protect our communities. It’s time for every level of government to match their service with solutions that make everyone safer.”

Steamboat Radio: Senator Hickenlooper Talks Water with Local Leaders

United States Senator John Hickenlooper was in Routt County Thursday to meet with local leaders and officials to hear about issues with water, such as the drought emergency across the West, and how it affects things like ranching, outdoor recreation and wildfire mitigation

“As difficult as democracies are, they’re based on getting people together and letting everyone tell you what you need to know. This afternoon, the people of Routt County are free with their thoughts and happy to share and I can walk away from here with all kinds of arguments I can take back to Washington and fight to get more money.”

Post Independent: Hickenlooper, Glenwood officials speak out against proposed RMI Quarry expansion

U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper joined Glenwood Springs city councilors, Garfield County commissioners and members of the Citizens Alliance on Transfer Trail on Friday to speak out against Rocky Mountain Industrials’ (RMI) latest quarry expansion proposal.

…After listening to short speeches from Glenwood Springs Mayor Marco Dehm, Glenwood Springs Mayor Pro-Tem Erin Zalinksi, Garfield County Commissioner Tom Jankovsky, and Glenwood Springs Citizens’ Alliance President Jeff Peterson, Sen. Hickenlooper said the nonpartisan support shown in the Glenwood Springs community will translate into higher levels of state and federal government.

“A lot of these people working for Western states and smaller communities really don’t like the idea of some corporation coming in and strong-arming the community and overwhelming the state,” he said on Friday.

…The initial proposal would allow RMI to mine 447 acres of public land and extract up to 5 million tons of material per year. To transport that material, RMI would have to send more than 500 trucks up and down Transfer Trail every day and have an idling train ready to move material to the Front Range.

…“You can’t overturn a whole community. I can’t even conceive of all that pollution, even just from 100 trucks daily. They’ll put human roadblocks to keep that from happening,” he said.

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Hoeven: $24 Million Build Grant Awarded for Bridge Replacements in Traill & Cass Counties

FARGO, N.D. – Senator John Hoeven today announced the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has awarded a $24 million grant to replace three bridges spanning the Red River, including two bridges in Traill county and one bridge in Cass County. Currently, the bridges are severely deteriorated, with one bridge being closed and the other two subject to weight restrictions. This has significantly restricted transportation in the region, particularly for freight transit and farming operations, while slowing emergency service response times and impacting the local quality of life. Accordingly, Hoeven has been working as a member of the Senate Transportation Appropriations Committee to advance the three-bridge repair project, having:

Worked to make the funding available under the Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development (BUILD) grant program.

Repeatedly made the case for the project to (DOT) officials, including in a letter he recently sent with the North Dakota congressional delegation to Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy.

The project is expected to finish the design phase this year and begin construction in 2027, with a goal of completing the effort in 2029.

“Replacing these bridges is an important priority for communities on both sides of the Red River, especially farmers in this region. That’s why we worked to secure this $24 million award, which will restore access to these important corridors that connect our two states. Doing so will not only support economic activity by better enabling the movement of freight and commercial goods, but it will improve the quality of life for local residents,” said Hoeven.

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Senator Justice Visits Marshall Health Network – Hoops Family Children’s Hospital

HUNTINGTON, WV – Today, Senator Jim Justice visited Marshall Health Network – Hoops Family Children’s Hospital, where he met with patients, families, and caregivers to hear firsthand about their experiences and learn more about the specialized care the hospital provides.

“It was really special getting to spend time with these kids and their families today. You hear their stories, see the strength they’ve got, and it reminds you just how important places like Hoops Family Children’s Hospital are. These doctors, nurses, and caregivers do incredible work every single day, and I’m grateful for all they do to take care of West Virginia’s children and give families hope when they need it most,” said Senator Jim Justice.

BACKGROUND:

Senator Justice met with staff from Marshall Health Network and a former patient from Hoops Family Children’s Hospital last month.

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Heinrich, Luján, Bennet, Colleagues Reintroduce Bill to Help Small Farms Access Federal Support

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senators Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), a member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), a member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, and nine Senate colleagues reintroduced legislation that will help small farms access federal conservation programs delivered through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP).

“Small farms are the backbone of our rural communities, but they often struggle to compete with big farms in accessing important USDA conservation funding. We need to do all that we can to ensure that small farms have the resources they need to build soil health, conserve natural resources, and sustain their way of life,” said Senator Heinrich. “This legislation aims to provide much-needed support for small farmers in New Mexico and across the country by unlocking financial resources, all while growing our economy and protecting our environment. As the Senate Agriculture Committee moves forward with marking up a new Farm Bill, policies that support small farms must be included.”

“Growing up on my family’s small farm in Nambé, I saw firsthand the hard work it takes to keep a farm running,” said Senator Luján. “Farmers and ranchers deserve access to federal conservation programs that work for them, especially as the climate crisis worsens. This legislation will help ensure that small farms have the support they need to strengthen their operations and protect New Mexico’s land and water.”

“After hearing from farmers and ranchers across Colorado, especially those who are just getting started or facing barriers to accessing federal resources, it is clear our conservation programs are falling short of their promise. By making these programs more accessible to smaller operations, we can help producers adopt soil health practices, strengthen local food systems, and protect our environment,” said Senator Bennet.

USDA’s EQIP is a voluntary conservation program that offers farmers and ranchers financial cost-share and technical assistance to implement conservation practices on working agricultural lands. Small farms and ranches often find it difficult to navigate federal conservation programs and, because payment rates are based on acreage, they face meaningful pay discrepancies compared to larger agricultural operations. Small farmers who wish to undertake soil health practices have to dedicate the same time and effort as larger farms to access EQIP while only receiving a fraction of the benefit.

The Small Farm Conservation Act modifies EQIP to create a new subprogram dedicated to helping small farmers and ranchers access and receive adequate financial and technical assistance.

Specifically, the Small Farm Conservation Act would:

Create a subprogram within EQIP tailored to support small farms and ranches;

Establish a national subprogram coordinator and one in each state;

Streamline the application and approval processes for small farmers and ranches;

Create a bonus payment for farms under 50 acres employing soil health practices;

Allow small farms to enroll on a continuous basis instead of waiting for the annual ranking period; and

Require the Natural Resources Conservation Service to train field staff on conservation tailored for small-scale agriculture and to conduct outreach to small-scale farmers and ranchers.

In addition to Heinrich, Luján, and Bennet, U.S. Senators John Fetterman (D-Pa.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Bernard Sanders (I-Vt.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), and Angus King (I-Maine) cosponsored this legislation.

The text of the bill is available HERE.

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Senator Marshall: America is Not the World’s Babysitter: Europe Needs to Step Up

Senator Marshall Joins Pete Mundo on KCMO Radio

Salina – U.S. Senator Roger Marshall, M.D. (R-Kansas), joined Pete Mundo on KCMO Radio to discuss the heightened tensions in Iran and what a path to peace looks like, the rise of socialism and Marxism in the Democrat party, and how the Middle East and Europe need to step up and do their part in the world.

Click HERE to download the full video.

On increased tensions with Iran:

“Hey, Pete. Yeah, good morning — I’m catching my breath here. I still think that’s Trump negotiating. I had a saying that started nine years ago: ‘Take everything he says seriously, but not literally.’ I’m still locked in on a couple goals as I look forward to the future years: number one, no nukes for Iran; number two, no boots on the ground; number three, keep the Strait open, pay attention to the price of gas and groceries. We may have to bomb the heck out of them some more. Pete, I hate war, and you know that we talked about this before. ‘I hate war as only a soldier who lived it can,’ that’s what President Eisenhower said as well. So, you know, every year we take a step forward, we take two steps backwards. These people are extremists, they’re impossible to deal with, but we cannot let them have nukes. So, we’ll see what the next chapter is — and it’s just literally day by day. Hope that makes sense.”

On the future of the war:

“Well, certainly I think that the midterms will be decided by the price of gasoline in October. So, I think if we’re going to do something, we got to rip the bandage off and just go in there. And again, I’m not the warmonger — I wish people could get to know me for 20 minutes here. But, if they don’t come back to the table here, there’s going to be an extreme bombing. But I don’t think it’s going to take a week — maybe two weeks — for that to happen, and then we’ll be done with it and go from there. But we don’t want to do that, you know — we don’t want to destroy their infrastructure, and then there’ll be civilians killed as well. I still think that this is negotiating, the president saying, ‘Look, Iran, I’m not sure how many times we’ve got to play this game with you.’ But these are religious fanatics, and they’re impossible to deal with. You know, these other countries here — we’ve defanged Iran — these other Gulf countries need to step up and figure out what they’re going to do to manage Iran. It should not be the United States’ responsibility.”

On whether the U.S. underestimated Iran:

“Yeah, and that’s a really hard question for me to answer, because you know I wasn’t ‘inside, inside’ the White House. I think that we maybe underestimated their resolve, if that would be an accurate way to say this. They’re just so irrational that they’re willing to have their country totally destroyed, and they haven’t given up yet — it doesn’t make any sense. Anybody with any common sense would have said, ‘Okay, we give up, we yield, and what’s next in life?’ So, if we underestimated something, it was how fanatical these people are — it’s so hard for Americans to appreciate how crazy these people are.”

On the rise of socialism in the Democrat party:

“Yeah Pete, I think it’s just shocking to see the people that are in the Democrat party that are the voice now of the Democrat party — these are radical Marxists and they’re certainly left of socialism. I’m not going to call them communists today, but they’re certainly Marxist. They want to destroy everything, they hate America, they want to end capitalism. The typical socialist just wants to regulate socialism, and then redistribute the money — higher taxes, and more social programs — but these people want to abolish capitalism, they want to abolish ICE, they want open borders, those types of things. And they’re the tail wagging the dog at the Democrat party — this is who Chuck Schumer is kowtowing to right now is his far-left people in his party. So, I think it’s pretty concerning.”

On moderate Democrats in the Senate:

“Well, they’ll talk to us privately. I mean, I’ve been part of this bipartisan prayer breakfast now for, gosh, three years — there’s about 12 Democrats, 12 Republicans and we get to know each other really well. And they truly are, a lot of them that go to that Bible study, are very much the moderates of the party. But they’re afraid to be photographed with us, they’re afraid to let people even know that they’re communicating with us, that they’ll be excised from the Democrat party. So yeah, in private it scares them to death, but you know, they’re just afraid to say that publicly, because they’ll be excommunicated from the party.”

On Adam Hamilton performance in the Democrat Primary:

“Well, it’s not surprising — you recall the last election Chuck Schumer contributed about $30 million. We were outspent three-to-one, four-to-one dollars, and still won by double digits as well. You know, I think we’re actually rooting for Adam Hamilton to win that primary. We think he is going to be a horrible general candidate for them — I think he’s going to have a really hard time playing his wokeism across the rest of the state. Anything outside of Johnson County and outside of Lawrence — I just don’t think his focus on DEI and being woke and those types of things are going to play well across the rest of Kansas. So, we’re kind of quietly rooting for him, and we’ll see what happens. I think he’s going to have a harder time getting out of that primary, though, than he ever imagined.”

On what America needs from the NATO Summit:

“I want Europe to stand up for themselves. Why do we have to babysit them? Why do we have to have 100,000 troops in Europe? Look, World War II is over with. How long ago did that all happen and they still expect us to be their military over there. They talk about going to 4-5% of their GDP on military, and not even half of them reached the 2% goal yet. So, they’re all talk. I would be embarrassed if I was a Frenchman and would talk to my wife and daughter and say, ‘Hey, honey, we’re going to depend on America to protect us.’ So, I think that this is tough love from the President — NATO needs to stand up and have somebody besides America paying for everything. If you put all the European countries together, their GDP approaches ours. We’ve got plenty of problems, we’ve got plenty of challenges — we’ve got China to babysit, Russia to babysit from a nuclear standpoint, we have our own borders to protect. So, I’m just looking forward to Trump continuing to push those European countries to stand up for themselves and make a bigger investment in their own military.”

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VIDEO: Senator Moody Secures Nearly $2 Billion in FEMA Recovery Assistance for Florida Communities Hit by Major Hurricanes

PUNTA GORDA, Fla.—Senator Ashley Moody continues working to secure long-sought FEMA assistance funds for Florida communities recovering after being hit by major hurricanes. Senator Moody has now secured nearly $2 billion in total funds statewide. Senator Moody secured more than $64 million for Charlotte County covering 28 restoration projects and broke the news today at the county EOC.

“Florida has been waiting on essential disaster assistance funds for hurricane recovery since 2017— I’ve been in the Senate for less than a year and a half and have worked hard to bring nearly $2 billion of outstanding FEMA funds back home to Florida. I’ll continue fighting to deliver the federal support Floridians need while making the disaster recovery process more transparent, efficient, and accountable,” said Senator Ashley Moody.

BACKGROUND:

Senator Moody secured more than $64 million for 28 projects in Charlotte County. The projects support the restoration of essential infrastructure, including waterways, roads, traffic signal systems, debris removal, and improvements to the Port of Charlotte. These federal investments have played a critical role in the recovery from the impacts of Hurricanes Debby, Helene, Milton, Idalia, and Ian. Additionally, more than $14.4 million has been secured in joint projects including Charlotte County and other counties in the Southwest region.

Senator Moody also announced today that more than $57 million has been secured for nearby Lee County and more than $4.2 million for Collier County.

Statewide, Senator Moody has secured more than $1.8 billion in FEMA public assistance funding.

These grants will be distributed along with the previously announced funds through FEMA’s Public Assistance and Hazard Mitigation Assistance programs to support more than 500 recovery projects across the state. This money is disbursed to the state and local communities for disaster recovery projects.

These projects include repairs to educational facilities, restoration of critical infrastructure, debris removal, and costs incurred during emergencies to protect life and property.

Senator Moody introduced the TRACK Act (Transparency in Recovery Assistance & Claims Knowledge Act) to bring more transparency to the FEMA disaster aid process, which has now been passed into law.

The TRACK Act mandates a status tracker on the FEMA website, so victims of a disaster have easily available knowledge and insight of their claim’s progress.

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Murphy Demands Trump Halt Illegal Move To Undermine Civil Rights Enforcement, Special Education Services

WASHINGTON–U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), a member of the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, joined the Senate Democratic Caucus in demanding the Trump administration put students first and follow the law by immediately reversing course on the transfer of civil rights enforcement and special education programs out of the Department of Education (ED) and into the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), respectively. These latest moves are part of the Trump administration’s explicit effort to dismantle ED, threatening key funding and support services for students, schools, and families nationwide.

“The administration’s latest attempts to dismantle the Department of Education through the four Interagency Agreements (IAA) announced June 16, 2026 are outrageous and put the educational outcomes of students and their rights in the classroom at risk,” wrote the Senators in a letter to Secretary of Education Linda McMahon.

In the letter, the Senators emphasized that Congress appropriates annual funding to ED to help states and local educational agencies carry out programs and ensure children, and families are served in accordance with federal law. The annual bipartisan appropriation bills approved by Congress do not provide ED with the authority to transfer mission critical programs to outside agencies.

“We have a simple demand: follow our nation’s education and appropriations laws as Congress wrote them to protect students’ most basic right to a quality education. More than 80 education, disability, parent, and civil rights groups have vocally opposed the recent IAAs and other departmental changes. We call on this administration to immediately cease implementing these IAAs… and take immediate action to strengthen civil rights enforcement—instead of burying students’ cases behind more bureaucracy. Our students and their families deserve nothing less,” the Senators continued.

In April, Murphy questioned Secretary of Education Linda McMahon on the Trump administration’s attempted dismantling of ED’s Office of Civil Rights (OCR) during a HELP subcommittee hearing. Murphy pressed Secretary McMahon over her contradictory statements regarding the Trump administration’s plans to gut OCR and mass firings of OCR attorneys investigating civil rights complaints. The Trump administration’s announced transfer of civil rights enforcement from ED to DOJ’s Civil Rights Division (CRT), which has lost an estimated 75% of its civil rights staff attorneys since 2025 and is unequipped to handle the over 23,000 complaints OCR receives and evaluates annually, will only compound this ongoing crisis for vulnerable students.

Meanwhile, this Administration has refused to provide information regarding what office within HHS will carry out special education programs, leaving teachers, students, and families with even greater uncertainty about where to turn. Burying special education programs in a sprawling HHS with significant other responsibilities, instead of at the ED, will jeopardize outcomes for students with disabilities.

“Special education and vocational rehabilitation are education programs. Any attempt to move these programs to HHS would fundamentally alter the purposes of these services, upending fifty years of work that took place at the federal, state, and local level to improve educational and employment outcomes for people with disabilities,” wrote the Senators. “It appears the administration values its backward goal of dismantling ED over the faithful execution of the law and improving opportunities and outcomes for children, youth, and students with disabilities.”

The letter was also signed by U.S. Senators Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Angus King (I-Maine), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Chris Coons (D-Del.), John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.), Andy Kim (D-N.J.),Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Mark Warner (D-Va.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.), Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), John Fetterman (D-Pa.), Gary Peters (D-Mich.), and Michael Bennet (D-Colo.). Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), and Patty Murray (D-Wash.).

A full version of this letter is available here and below.

Dear Secretary McMahon:

The administration’s latest attempts to dismantle the Department of Education (“ED”) through the four Interagency Agreements (IAA) announced June 16, 2026 are outrageous and put the educational outcomes of students and their rights in the classroom at risk. These actions illegally move the administration of special education programs authorized under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), vocational rehabilitation programs authorized under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Rehabilitation Act), and the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) from ED to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). They also transfer fundamental civil rights enforcement responsibility away from ED’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) to the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division (DOJ CRT). Congress authorized these programs to be carried out by ED, and Congress annually appropriates funding to ED to carry out these authorized programs, including most recently in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2026. The administration’s actions fly in the face of what Congress has required, directly undermine every child’s right to a quality public education in this country, and must be immediately reversed.

Since ED was established, Congress charged it with the responsibility of carrying out special education and vocational rehabilitation programs and authorized the administration of these programs under the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS). Similarly, Congress assigned civil rights enforcement responsibilities to the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights at OCR. The Department of Education Organization Act of 1979 explicitly prohibits the Secretary from abolishing any offices established under ED and from altering any assigned delegation of functions. You have also acknowledged in congressional testimony that only Congress can determine whether to dismantle ED and its programs. Make no mistake – the IAAs rolled out by this administration dismantle ED and illegally circumvent Congress. While ED’s purported position is that these are “proofs of concept” for Congress to codify, other statements from ED and White House staff contradict the alleged “temporary” nature of these moves. Last year, the White House even claimed that ED was “abolished.” ED has not been abolished, and it is not within the administration’s authority to move the administration of these programs to any other agency. In fact, Congress affirmed on a bipartisan, bicameral basis earlier this year, “that no authorities exist for the Department of Education to transfer its fundamental responsibilities under numerous authorizing and appropriations laws, including through procuring services from other Federal agencies…” and that these agreements will “create inefficiencies, result in additional costs to the American taxpayer, and cause delays and administration challenges in Federal funding reaching States, school districts, and schools.”

Special education and vocational rehabilitation are education programs. Any attempt to move these programs to HHS would fundamentally alter the purposes of these services, upending fifty years of work that took place at the federal, state, and local level to improve educational and employment outcomes for people with disabilities. It appears the administration values its backward goal of dismantling ED over the faithful execution of the law and improving opportunities and outcomes for children, youth, and students with disabilities. This administration has refused to provide information regarding what office within HHS will carry out these weighty responsibilities under this agreement because it has not been determined. This lack of forethought demonstrates how little concern it has for students with disabilities and their learning. The administration couldn’t possibly know that this will be in the best interest of children and families because it doesn’t even know where and how these programs will be administered in the future.

The most recent reauthorization of IDEA passed by Congress, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004, reiterates that the responsibility for administering the law is clearly vested with ED. The law also vests the Secretary of Education with various duties, including allotting funds to States; carrying out monitoring and oversight of States’ implementation; reviewing and approving State performance plans required under the law; subsequently reviewing and making annual determinations of State compliance under law; and furnishing technical assistance to States; among other activities. However, the law does not contain any provisions that would permit ED to offload its responsibilities to another agency.

Congress created a clear federal oversight role for ED because of our nation’s ugly history of denying children with disabilities a free appropriate public education. This critical federal enforcement has allowed ED to maintain accountability and find States in violation of IDEA, such as when Texas set an illegal cap on special education identification leading to a deliberate under-identification of children with disabilities and when New Mexico failed to maintain appropriate state special education funding. Clearly, federal oversight is a necessary component of our nation’s special education system. Without it, families and children with disabilities are left to fight alone to secure services they are entitled to when schools and states fail to meet their obligations.

Additionally, Congress authorized the Secretary of Education to carry out vocational rehabilitation programs in Titles I, III, V, and VI of the Rehabilitation Act. Congress directed the Secretary to undertake various responsibilities in administering the vocational rehabilitation programs, including awarding grants to designated State agencies; approving unified State plans; establishing performance standards and indicators required under the law; and supporting designated State agencies in the provision of preemployment transition services including highlighting best state practices and consulting with other federal agencies; among other activities. Unsurprisingly, the Rehabilitation Act does not contain any provisions that would permit ED to offload its responsibilities to another agency.

These important responsibilities support nearly ten million individuals with disabilities and their families throughout our nation. ED’s actions have already caused them significant harm and uncertainty. This arrangement is the latest callous attack on Americans with disabilities who need quality services and rely on federal support. It follows the sweeping and unlawful firing of 121 employees at OSERS during the government shutdown—an action Congress ultimately had to reverse. This administration’s workforce reductions and reorganization last year also eviscerated ED’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR), costing taxpayers up to $38 million, as mounting backlogs in OCR’s critical work left parents of students with disabilities in the dark about the status of their civil rights complaints. At the same time, ED moved almost all programs supporting elementary and secondary education to multiple agencies with limited capacity and expertise administering similar programs, segregating these programs from those supporting our youth with disabilities and compromising decades of progress toward inclusive education. Each of these actions has undermined ED’s ability to fulfill its obligations under IDEA and the Rehabilitation Act. ED is now illegally transferring responsibilities to HHS—an agency undergoing major disruptions and whose principal subagency charged with supporting individuals with disabilities was proposed for elimination by the administration—and DOJ—an agency that this administration is weaponizing against the American people. This is in addition to the responsibilities unlawfully assigned to other agencies through interagency agreements for which this administration still has not explained full costs, potential benefits, and operational details.

Under this administration, OCR has failed to uphold the federal government’s obligations to protect students from unlawful discrimination. ED’s decision to transfer fundamental civil rights enforcement responsibilities to DOJ CRT will only make things worse. In 2025, ED’s OCR reached the fewest resolution agreements in over 12 years and failed to reach a single resolution agreement related to sexual harassment, sexual violence, racial harassment, discriminatory school discipline, or the seclusion and restraint of children with disabilities. ED has repeatedly refused to answer basic questions regarding the status of over 12,000 pending cases that were under investigation by OCR at the start of this Administration.

Instead of correcting OCR’s disastrous track record under this administration and working to rebuild OCR after taking a hatchet to it, this administration has chosen to waste taxpayer funds attempting to illegally transfer OCR’s functions to DOJ CRT. Under this administration, DOJ CRT has lost an estimated 75% of its civil rights staff attorneys since January 2025. DOJ CRT is not equipped nor designed to handle the over 23,000 complaints OCR receives and evaluates annually. While OCR is required to evaluate every single complaint it receives, DOJ CRT uses prosecutorial discretion to pick and choose the cases it takes to court. Under this IAA, students whose complaints are not prioritized by DOJ CRT may never see their rights vindicated, meaning thousands of students facing discrimination are likely to be ignored by the federal government. This is an unacceptable outcome for the millions of students and families across the country.

Congress appropriates annual funding to ED to help States and local educational agencies carry out programs and ensure children, youth, students, and families are served in accordance with federal law. The annual bipartisan appropriation bills approved by Congress do not provide affirmative authority to ED to transfer special education funding or vocational rehabilitation services to HHS, nor ED’s civil rights enforcement responsibilities to DOJ CRT. In fact, the only transfer authority provided to ED by the annual appropriations bill is the authority to transfer one percent of discretionary funds between education appropriations accounts, so long as no such appropriation is increased by more than three percent by any such transfer. Such a limited transfer within ED is not what is contemplated here. Moreover, transfers of any other type, including the type contemplated by this IAA, are prohibited by section 512 of Division B of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2026, which states, “None of the funds made available in this Act may be transferred to any department, agency, or instrumentality of the United States Government, except pursuant to a transfer made by, or transfer authority provided in, this Act or any other appropriation Act.”

As with the authorizing statutes, the annual appropriations process clearly requires ED to carry out both IDEA and Rehabilitation Act programs and to operate OCR at ED. ED has the expertise in working with state educational agencies, state vocational rehabilitation agencies, and local school districts in the administration of special education and vocational rehabilitation programs and for resources and oversight in complying with federal civil rights laws. Schools in local communities and state educational agencies rely on the guidance and technical expertise from the educational experts at ED to carry out these programs. Congress recognizes the expertise that specific agencies provide and deliberately decides which agency to vest authority with when passing laws. Congress was clear when it vested ED with the authority to carry out special education programs in 2004, and vocational rehabilitation programs in 2014, and did not provide any mechanism in the law for ED to transfer that authority to another agency. The June 16th IAAs fly in the face of laws enacted by Congress, annual appropriations requirements, and practice in states.

We have a simple demand: follow our nation’s education and appropriations laws as Congress wrote them to protect students’ most basic right to a quality education. More than 80 education, disability, parent, and civil rights groups have vocally opposed the recent IAAs and other departmental changes. We call on this administration to immediately cease implementing these IAAs, fully implement IDEA and the Rehabilitation Act as Congressionally directed, and take immediate action to strengthen civil rights enforcement—instead of burying students’ cases behind more bureaucracy. Our students and their families deserve nothing less.


Murray Sounds Alarm on Trump’s Reorganization of USFS & USDA Amidst Wildfire Season

In Everett, Murray vocally opposes Trump’s so-called reorganization and rejects funding cuts to Forest Service and Critical USDA programs

***B-ROLL HERE***

Everett, WA – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, held a roundtable discussion with local leaders and stakeholders about the disastrous reorganization of USFS and USDA and what this means for the state of Washington in the midst of wildfire season. Senator Murray was joined by: Jody Weil, former Mount Baker-Snoqualmie Forest Supervisor; Tom Uniack, Executive Director of Washington Wild; Tom O’Keefe, Senior Director of Policy and Science at American Whitewater; Jamie Loucky, CEO of Washington Trails Association; Dan Rankin, Mayor of Darrington; Dan Brown, Director of the School of Environmental; Forest Sciences at the University of Washington and Chairman Hazen Shopbell, Tulalip Tribes.

The Trump administration has pushed out thousands of USFS staff, frozen federal funding, and may shutter USFS research stations in Wenatchee and Seattle. Washington state has already experienced numerous destructive wildfires this season, and is expected to have an above average wildfire risk across the state this year.

“We are in the middle of what could be the most dangerous wildfire season we’ve seen in a long time. And sadly, we’ve already seen homes demolished and lives lost this year due to fires in Chelan and Spokane,” said Senator Murray. “Over the last year, the Trump administration has seriously weakened the Forest Service’s ability to do its job by pushing out thousands of critical staff, blocking funding for crucial programs, and chaotically changing rules and procedures on a dime. Not only that, but this administration’s so-called reorganization of the Forest Service and USDA is nothing more than an attack on America’s public lands. Here in Washington state, they want to shut down labs that conduct necessary research, tracking the warning signs for wildfires, and providing guidance for forest managers. When we invest in fire preparedness, we save lives, we save businesses, we save farms, and we save communities. Trump wants to also cut funding for the Forest Service and critical USDA programs, so I’m tearing his budget up and throwing it in the trash. I will not stop pushing back hard for Washington state, our public lands, and for wildfire preparedness, prevention, and safety.”

“Throughout my career, I’ve seen how Forest Service scientists provide the research that makes management of our national forests successful—from reconnecting salmon habitat and improving watershed resilience to managing outdoor recreation,” said Tom O’Keefe, Senior Director of Policy and Science at American Whitewater. “Weakening the agency’s regional research capacity risks losing decades of scientific expertise and partnerships that help ensure investments in restoration, forest stewardship, and recreation are guided by the best available science. The Pacific Northwest’s forests and rivers deserve scientists who live, work, and build knowledge in the landscapes and communities they serve.”

“I appreciate Senator Murray highlighting the impacts of changes at USDA and the Forest Service that were made in Washington DC but have real impacts locally here in Washington State,” said Tom Uniack, Executive Director of Washington Wild. “Significant reductions in staff at the Forest Service have limited the agency’s ability to provide adequate public safety, wildfire response, resource protection and honoring tribal treaty rights and lifeways.”

As Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, in the Interior and Environment appropriations bill for Fiscal Year 2026, which Senator Murray negotiated and helped pass into law, Murray worked to include essential investments in wildfire preparedness and suppression. In FY26, she secured $6.13 billion for the U.S. Forest Service, with separate additional funding for the Wildfire Suppression Operations Reserve. The bill rejected the steep $1.4 billion cut to the Forest Service’s non-fire budget proposed by President Trump and provides funding for the Forest Service to improve forest restoration and fire risk reduction efforts on federal lands. The FY26 bill also fully funds essential wildfire preparedness and suppression efforts by providing $4.25 billion for wildfire suppression, of which $2.85 billion is for the Wildfire Suppression Operations Reserve Fund and continues to support the increased pay for federal firefighters enacted into law last year. Senator Murray continues to push back against Trump’s FY27 budget request, to protect our public lands.

Senator Murray has been a leading voice raising the alarm on how the Trump administration’s funding freezes, punishing cuts to the workforce, and mass reorganization at the U.S. Forest Service and other key agencies are seriously undermining wildfire preparedness and response in Washington state. Earlier this year, Senator Murray fought back against Trump’s proposed cuts to key programs and reorganization at USDA that could threaten resources for wildland firefighting, and pressed USFS Chief Schultz for more information on reports noting National Forest Trails were understaffed following widespread firings. Last year in a Senate hearing, Senator Murray pressed Schultz on how the mass layoffs and funding freezes were putting wildfire preparedness in jeopardy. Senator Murray also joined forces with Senator Merkley and wildfire officials to lay out how the Trump administration’s cuts and layoffs are threatening wildfire preparedness across the Pacific Northwest. Last year, Senator Murray also released a report on how the Trump administration’s cuts to the National Park Service hurt Washington state and threaten wildfire response in the parks.

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Sens. Ossoff, Rev. Warnock Delivering Resources to Strengthen Student Safety at Morehouse College

Atlanta, Ga. — U.S. Senators Jon Ossoff and Reverend Raphael Warnock are delivering new Federal resources to strengthen student safety at Morehouse College.

These new resources will help Morehouse strengthen campus security by installing motorized gates at entrances to campus, cameras at dorm entrances, and proximity locks on classrooms and offices throughout the campus.

Sens. Ossoff and Reverend Warnock are delivering $556,000 for the project through bipartisan government funding legislation that became law on January 23.

“I have worked to secure investments in Georgia’s HBCUs since the day I took office. Senator Reverend Warnock and I built a bipartisan coalition of support in the Senate to invest in Morehouse College with new resources to strengthen student safety,” Sen. Ossoff said.

“As a 1991 graduate of Morehouse, I know how important this institution is not only to its students and staff but to the HBCU community,” said Senator Warnock. “We must ensure our HBCU campuses continue to be a place of safe and secure learning. I am proud to have secured these federal funds with Senator Ossoff to make sure Morehouse College remains that.”

“Enhancing the security infrastructure that protects the Morehouse community is a critical investment in the future of our campus,” said Dr. F. DuBois Bowman ’92, the 13th president of Morehouse College. “We are grateful to Senator Jon Ossoff and Senator-alumnus Raphael Warnock for their continued commitment to the safety and well-being of Morehouse and the broader Atlanta community that engages with the institution every day.”

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Padilla, Heinrich, Huffman Demand Investigation into Trump Plan to Roll Back Offshore Drilling Safety Protections

Lawmakers warn the proposed Marine Minerals Administration could weaken independent safety oversight established after Deepwater Horizon and leave workers, communities, and taxpayers more vulnerable to another preventable disaster

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senators Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) and Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and U.S. Representative Jared Huffman (D-Calif.-02) urged the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) to investigate the Trump Administration’s proposed agency consolidation within the Department of the Interior (DOI). The lawmakers demanded answers about whether the consolidation would undermine the independent offshore safety oversight Congress established after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill and leave workers, communities, and taxpayers at greater risk.

The letter follows an announcement from the Trump Administration in April that DOI is consolidating the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (OEM) and the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) to create the new Marine Minerals Administration (MMA), while proposing draconian cuts to the Interior Department in its Fiscal Year 2027 (FY27) budget request.

“The April 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster was one of the worst environmental catastrophes in our nation’s history, killing 11 workers and releasing millions of barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico,” wrote the lawmakers. “In response, in October 2011, the Department of the Interior dissolved MMS and established the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) and the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) to separate offshore leasing and resource development responsibilities from independent safety and environmental enforcement functions. The reorganization was intended to address the very regulatory failures that contributed to the Deepwater Horizon disaster by ensuring that offshore safety and environmental protection would not be subordinated to industry pressure or revenue generation.”

“Sixteen years later, offshore oil and gas development has only increased,” continued the lawmakers. “U.S. oil production remains near record highs, with approximately 95 percent of offshore production now occurring in deepwater environments that present substantially greater technical, operational, and environmental risks… At the same time, the Trump administration and congressional Republicans are aggressively pursuing expanded offshore leasing, opening additional areas to drilling, and reducing royalty rates that shortchange taxpayers while incentivizing further fossil fuel extraction.”

“Interior’s April 2026 announcement that it intends to reconsolidate BOEM and BSEE into a new Marine Minerals Administration (MMA) raises serious concerns about whether Interior is collapsing the firewall between resource development and independent safety oversight that was established after Deepwater Horizon,” wrote the lawmakers. “These concerns are compounded by the fact that Interior is pursuing this reorganization amid significant workforce reductions, including staffing losses resulting from the 2025 Deferred Resignation Program and additional proposed cuts in the fiscal year 2027 budget request. The Department is simultaneously expanding the scope of its responsibilities to include offshore critical minerals leasing and other new activities.”

The lawmakers concluded the letter by requesting GAO investigate the creation of the new Marine Minerals Administration, and the steps that the Trump Administration is taking to ensure that the agency can properly oversee deep-sea mining efforts to prevent another disaster like Deepwater Horizon.

In addition to Padilla, Heinrich, and Huffman, the letter was signed by U.S. Representative Luz Rivas (D-Calif.-29).

Padilla has fought to protect California from the Trump Administration’s efforts to destroy renewable energy projects and promote new oil drilling off the coast. Last month, Padilla and Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) slammed the Trump Administration’s efforts to undo Invenergy’s offshore wind projects, including the Even Keel wind project off California’s central coast. In June, Padilla and Senator Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) introduced legislation to establish strict standards for offshore oil and gas operators and set requirements to hold them responsible for decommissioning and cleanup efforts off the coast. In May, Padilla and Schiff launched an investigation into Sable Offshore Corp.’s politicized efforts to restart oil drilling operations off the Santa Barbara coast and demanded answers about the company’s collaboration with the Trump Administration to invoke the Defense Production Act (DPA) in relation to this project. In April, Padilla pressed Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, highlighting that the Trump Administration’s plans to drill off of California’s coast coupled with proposed cuts to funding for environmental programs and enforcement will endanger the coastline, the people who live there, and coastal economies. Last year, Padilla introduced the West Coast Protection Act to permanently prohibit new oil and gas leases for offshore drilling off the coast of California, Oregon, and Washington.

The full letter is available here and below.

Dear Ms. Williams Brown,

The April 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster was one of the worst environmental catastrophes in our nation’s history, killing 11 workers and releasing millions of barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. In the aftermath of the spill, multiple investigations identified regulatory failures and deeply entrenched ethical issues and conflicts of interest within the former Minerals Management Service (MMS), which simultaneously prompted offshore development, collected royalties, and conducted oversight. In response, in October 2011, the Department of the Interior (Interior) dissolved MMS and established the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) and the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) to separate offshore leasing and resource development responsibilities from independent safety and environmental enforcement functions. The reorganization was intended to address the very regulatory failures that contributed to the Deepwater Horizon disaster by ensuring that offshore safety and environmental protection would not be subordinated to industry pressure or revenue generation.

Sixteen years later, offshore oil and gas development has only increased. U.S. oil production remains near record highs, with approximately 95 percent of offshore production now occurring in deepwater environments that present substantially greater technical, operational, and environmental risks. New frontier projects, including the recently approved Kaskida development, are pushing into ultra-deepwater conditions characterized by extreme pressures, temperatures, and operational complexity. At the same time, the Trump administration and congressional Republicans are aggressively pursuing expanded offshore leasing, opening additional areas to drilling, and reducing royalty rates that shortchange taxpayers while incentivizing further fossil fuel extraction. Interior has also expanded its focus on cataloging offshore critical mineral deposits in anticipation of future seabed mining activities that carry poorly understood, but likely significant, environmental risks.

Against this backdrop, Interior’s April 2026 announcement that it intends to reconsolidate BOEM and BSEE into a new Marine Minerals Administration (MMA) raises serious concerns about whether Interior is collapsing the firewall between resource development and independent safety oversight that was established after Deepwater Horizon. Interior has asserted that the reorganization will improve coordination, but the Department has provided little detail explaining how combining these functions would strengthen independent environmental review and safety enforcement, particularly at a time when offshore development activities are becoming increasingly complex and risky.

These concerns are compounded by the fact that Interior is pursuing this reorganization amid significant workforce reductions, including staffing losses resulting from the 2025 Deferred Resignation Program and additional proposed cuts in the fiscal year 2027 budget request. The Department is simultaneously expanding the scope of its responsibilities to include offshore critical minerals leasing and other new activities. Together, these developments raise significant questions about whether the proposed consolidation would undermine the independent oversight and institutional capacity necessary to protect offshore workers, coastal communities, marine ecosystems, and taxpayers from another preventable disaster.

To help Congress better understand the potential implications of establishing MMA, we request that GAO examine the following:

To what extent has Interior defined specific, measurable objectives that support its broader goals for reconsolidating BOEM and BSEE into MMA?

To what extent has Interior engaged in transition planning to ensure that MMA meets its specific objectives while also maintaining the resources needed to maintain the oversight functions currently managed by BOEM and BSEE?

To what extent has the agency taken steps to ensure it will have the needed resources and capacity, including the scientific expertise, for effective oversight of the development of the nation’s offshore energy and marine mineral resources?

To what extent did Interior take steps to ensure that the new agency’s processes and decision-making—including as they pertain to permitting—will be based on sound science that is independent of undue outside influence?

What steps did Interior take to ensure the new agency has developed a framework for consultation and stakeholder engagement, specifically, on the agency’s expanded scope of authorities for offshore minerals leasing? How will MMA’s processes uphold Tribal trust responsibilities and states’ authorities for consistency review under the Coastal Zone Management Act?

Sincerely,

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Sen. Rick Scott Wages War on Scammers Amid Nationwide Fraud Crackdown

WASHINGTON, D.C – Amid President Trump’s broader federal efforts to fight fraud, U.S Senator Rick Scott is calling on Congress to pass a series of bills aimed at scammers who defraud and exploit Americans.

Senator Rick Scott said, “Whether it’s in the form of phone calls or sophisticated cybercrime, scammers are running rampant through our country. Criminals are weaponizing new technologies like artificial intelligence to swindle Americans out of their life savings. These criminals must be stopped and held accountable. These bills will go a long way to turn the tide on the scam epidemic. These are all commonsense solutions to a glaring problem; let’s get to work.”

These bills include:

Strengthening Targeting of Organized Predatory Scammers (STOP Scammers) Act

Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to identify and designate foreign entities engaged in financial fraud against U.S. citizens as ‘Foreign Financial Threat Organizations.’ Once designated, these organizations would be subject to asset freezes and restrictions similar to those imposed on global terrorist groups.

Secure America’s Finance Exchanges (SAFE) Act

Requires the SEC to implement specific disclosure requirements for Chinese-based companies seeking access into U.S.-based Exchanges through Initial Public Offering (IPOs).

Trusted Foreign Auditing Act

Requires Chinese companies to use independent auditors not controlled by the Communist Party to protect U.S. investors and capital.

ReportScams.gov Act

Creates the first centralized online hub for Americans to report scams and get assistance after being targeted by fraudsters.

BACKGROUND:

As Chairman of the Special Committee on Aging, Senator Rick Scott issued an annual fraud report, detailing how scams, many leveraging artificial intelligence, have cost seniors over $4.8 billion in 2024 alone. In response, Senator Rick Scott and his colleagues sent a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent, and U.S. Secret Service Director Sean Curran encouraging their agencies to prioritize coordinated efforts to dismantle any and all foreign networks behind international financial scams.

Reporting scams and fraud has become increasingly complicated, as there is currently no comprehensive strategy by the federal government to prevent and curb the massive rates of cybercrime and fraud. Instead, fraud reports are spread across 13 different agencies, leaving victims without a clear path to assistance and unsure of next steps.

Senator Rick Scott has been at the forefront of holding Communist China accountable for exploiting U.S. financial markets and protecting investors from bad CCP-linked actors. In April 2025, he released a bill package targeted at closing sanction loopholes and implementing disclosure requirements to keep Americans’ dollars out of the hands of Communist China.

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Schatz: $24 Million Heading To Hawai‘i To Replace Bridges On Hāna Highway

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) announced that the Hawai‘i Department of Transportation will receive $24 million in federal funding to rehabilitate and replace approximately six bridges within the Hana Highway Historical District with modern, resilient structures.

“This funding will help modernize our aging infrastructure and help people in East Maui get to where they need to go,” said Senator Schatz.

As a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Schatz has worked to ensure Hawai‘i receives its fair share of federal funding to improve infrastructure statewide.

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ICYMI: Sen. Schiff Talks Recent Supreme Court Rulings, Cost of Trump’s Corruption, and Democrats’ Path Forward on Lovett or Leave It

Los Angeles, CA — In case you missed it, U.S. Senator Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) joined Jon Lovett’s Lovett or Leave It for a wide-ranging discussion on recent Supreme Court rulings empowering President Trump, Trump’s repeated self-enrichment schemes and brazen corruption at the cost of the American people, and the consequences of the Trump administration’s abuse and politicization of agencies – including the Department of Justice and the office of the Director of National Intelligence.

Schiff also spoke about the Democratic Party’s path forward – emphasizing the need to hold the Trump administration accountable, work to bring down the cost of living for Americans, and reform the Supreme Court.

View the full interview here.

Key Excerpts:

On the Supreme Court’s rulings and the partisanship of the Roberts Court:

[…] I think it continues a dangerous trend of empowering a president, the president, any president. And the president was already hugely powerful, the office was. But this Court has made it even more so, and it has also taken down so many of the guardrails. I think, yes, it’s because they believe – many of these justices – in what had been a fringe theory of unitary executive power. But I also think that maybe even more than the president’s power, this is about the power of the Court itself, and it’s about the power of the chief justice. You can’t tell me that John Roberts didn’t understand how damaging his immunity decision would be. But I think, like I have seen with so many other people during the era of Trump, Roberts made the decision that it was more important to him to be at the center of power on that Court than to do the right thing by the country and the Constitution.

[…] It is interesting to parse the different decisions in all these cases, where there is concurrence and dissent. But one trend to me of all these decisions, which again I don’t find the least bit surprising, they track the money. They go where the money is. This is really the strongest common bond of this right-wing Court, is to go where the money is. So, I fully expected they would give the president the power to fire commissioners, except for the Federal Reserve, because that’s where the money is. And likewise, the Supreme Court decision to allow big donors to give to parties, and those parties to coordinate with campaigns, just unleashing more money. That’s also in big money’s interest. That’s the common denominator with this Court. And yeah, they’re partisan, mostly partisan, not conservative anymore, because they’ll throw out precedent at a drop of a hat. But the real glue that holds them together is big money. The money behind the Federalist Society, money behind their expensive trips and vacations, that is, I think, what unites this right-wing Court.

On the Democratic Party’s midterm agenda:

[…] I am squarely in the camp that thinks there has to be accountability. Because if we don’t hold the president and others accountable for their lawlessness, they will simply do it again whenever they take power back. And they will believe, and not without reason, that the Democrats are too weak and feckless to do anything about their abuses. It’s a get out of jail free forever card. So, there has to be accountability. Now, what that accountability should look like – should it include impeachment? We’ll have to make that kind of a tactical judgment at the time. An impeachment isn’t going to be successful in the Senate. Nevertheless, the president’s conduct certainly rises well beyond impeachable offenses. So, I think we’ll have to make a sort of a game-time decision.

[…] We do need to learn this from what Republicans have done: and that is, if you have the courage of your convictions, you can move the country far and fast in a particular direction. Now they’ve taken it in a horrible direction. But we should take it in the right direction. And both by holding the miscreants accountable, but also by proposing things that are bold. That are not just going back to the status quo before all this mess, that are willing to use all the tools of power to make that happen, including when it comes to the Supreme Court – expanding the Court, term limiting the Court, an enforceable code of ethics for the Court. We need to be prepared to outlaw gerrymandering, do whatever is necessary to get that done. We should have got that done in the first years of the Biden administration. So, we need to move far and fast.

On the cost of Trump’s corruption:

[…] You’re president 24 hours a day, although this guy spends a lot of time on the golf course after criticizing his predecessors for spending far less time on the golf course but never mind. There are limited time and attention as president to a lot of problems the country faces. When this president is spending so much time on the ballroom, on the State Fair, on a UFC fight, it means he’s not focused on the things that really matter to people. People can’t afford to fill up their gas tank right now. What is he doing about that? He’s not doing anything about that.

[…] The cost of this corruption – if these bribe payments or extortionary payments were paid to Trump in this litigation he had against CBS and ABC, etc. The cost of the corruption is that you have mergers going forward which may result in thousands of people losing their jobs, may result in consumers having to pay a lot more for what they stream and having fewer choices. This is the cost of that potential corruption. But whether it’s the crypto deals or meme coin stuff, or tungsten deal in Kazakhstan that the kids are profiting off of, or these sole source contracts, no-bid contracts – they’re wasting the money, the resources of the country to enrich Trump, his kids, their friends in true oligarchic fashion, while the rest of the country suffers.

On the politicization of intelligence at DNI under Bill Pulte and Tulsi Gabbard:

[…] In terms of Pulte, the Director of National Intelligence, the whole purpose behind that office – and what happens to our national security with people like Pulte and Kash Patel leading the bureau, and Tulsi Gabbard, while she was there at the DNI – it means you’re incompetent. It means that you, as Kash Patel often does, you shoot off your mouth, and you compromise investigations. It means that you fire a lot of the most experienced people. A lot of the people that Pulte is apparently firing are focused on national counterterrorism when we’re at war, it seems like kind of a stupid thing to do.

It means that Tulsi Gabbard is spending time in Fulton County, Georgia, looking at ballot boxes from an election that took place years ago. Bill Pulte, likely to do very much the same. It means that Pulte will carry on and perhaps make worse what Tulsi Gabbard was doing which is when the intelligence community came up with an analysis that contradicted one of the president’s false narratives, Gabbard basically told him to rewrite it through her chief of staff. To rewrite it or fired them. So, this is what we can expect. Now, when that happens it means that policymakers don’t get good information. It means that we’re unaware of threats we should be aware of because the intelligence is being politicized. We saw the politicization of intelligence in the run up to the Iraq War and the disastrous consequences there. There may be very well tragic consequences here if policymakers, including the president, don’t get good information.

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NEWS: Sen. Schiff Joins Murphy, Senate Dems in Demanding Answers on Misuse of Federal Resources After Rushed, Costly Retrofit Jet Job

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) joined Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), and Senate colleagues in demanding transparency from Troy E. Meink, Secretary of the U.S. Air Force, and Christopher Kubasik, CEO of L3Harris, into the taxpayer-funded modification of the $400-million luxury jet gifted to President Trump by the government of Qatar. Since Trump announced the gift in May 2025, the Trump administration has refused to provide Congress with basic details about the costs to taxpayers, national security risks, diversion of federal resources, and questionable decision-making process associated with sprinting to upgrade President Trump’s new luxury plane.

In their letter, the Senators note that available public reporting indicates the Trump administration dedicated as much as $1 billion dollars to rushing the sensitive Air Force One modification process, with hundreds working around the clock to condense a yearslong process into just ten months. The Senators also demand answers on this irresponsible use of federal resources.

“Americans deserve answers on how the administration has decided to spend their taxpayer dollars and assume new national security risks with the VC-25B Bridge aircraft and the rushed retrofit program contracted to L3Harris – all in service to President Trump’s interest in having a pretty, luxurious plane for himself,” the Senators wrote.

The Senators called out the Trump administration for withholding information from Congress, preventing oversight of the luxury jet and its upgrade program: “For over a year, the administration has stonewalled congressional requests for information about Qatar’s luxury jet gift to President Trump. Congress and the American public have expressed due outrage about this corrupt, illegal exchange, but Pentagon officials have mostly deflected questions or claimed inability to share classified details about the luxury jet, the memorandum of understanding with Qatar, and the program to modify it for use by the President. The Trump administration has refused to share the information Congress needs to conduct oversight of this foreign gift and the estimated $1 billion in taxpayer dollars spent to upgrade and outfit the luxury jet for President Trump’s use during – and reportedly after – his term in office.”

They highlighted new reporting that indicates the luxury jet project has been another hotbed for corruption and misuse of taxpayer dollars: “After months of limited public information about the jet, new reporting has deepened concerns about the administration’s irresponsible management of U.S. national security funding to prioritize President Trump’s personal interest in this jet. In a Breaking Defense interview on June 23, L3Harris executive Jason Lambert reported that the company was contracted by the Air Force to oversee the jet’s modifications, with a deadline of July 4, 2026, from the White House. This timeline drove L3Harris to scale back the usual Air Force One upgrade package while committing 400 employees to working around the clock to complete in ten months a process that would normally take years. This accelerated luxury jet upgrade required other large expenses, including building a 3D mockup of the plane’s interior and the leasing and purchase of additional 747 aircraft for pilot and crew training.”

The Senators objected strongly to the Trump administration’sdecision to shift resources away from national security priorities just so President Trump could enjoy luxury flying as soon as possible: “The Air Force seems to have committed to a rushed, expensive aircraft modification program in order to meet President Trump’s demand to fly on ‘the world’s most luxurious plane,’ with his favored paint job, during Independence Day festivities. Trump’s own statements – including his celebration of ‘a level of luxury that nobody’s ever seen before’ – make it clear that these decisions prioritized Trump’s personal comfort and tastes over U.S. national security.”

The Senators concluded by calling for a congressional briefing and demanding full transparency from the Secretary of the Air Force and the Pentagon contractor responsible for the project: “Congress needs full information about program costs, the diversion of resources away from other Pentagon priorities, and the national security and funding implications of upgrades skipped during the rush. The American public deserves transparency into this costly and questionable modification work – conducted with their taxpayer dollars on a luxury jet that President Trump reportedly plans to take with him after he leaves office.”

The letter was also signed by U.S. Senators Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.).

The full text of the letter can be found here and below.

Dear Secretary Meink and Mr. Kubasik:

We write to ask the U.S. Air Force and L3Harris to provide Congress full information on the modification work recently completed on the $400-million Boeing 747-8 luxury jumbo jet gifted by the Government of Qatar to President Donald Trump. Americans deserve answers on how the administration has decided to spend their taxpayer dollars and assume new national security risks with the VC-25B Bridge aircraft and the rushed retrofit program contracted to L3Harris – all in service to President Trump’s interest in having a pretty, luxurious plane for himself.

For over a year, the administration has stonewalled congressional requests for information about Qatar’s luxury jet gift to President Trump. Congress and the American public have expressed due outrage about this corrupt, illegal exchange, but Pentagon officials have mostly deflected questions or claimed inability to share classified details about the luxury jet, the memorandum of understanding with Qatar, and the program to modify it for use by the President. The Trump administration has refused to share the information Congress needs to conduct oversight of this foreign gift and the estimated $1 billion in taxpayer dollars spent to upgrade and outfit the luxury jet for President Trump’s use during – and reportedly after – his term in office.

After months of limited public information about the jet, new reporting has deepened concerns about the administration’s irresponsible management of U.S. national security funding to prioritize President Trump’s personal interest in this jet. In a Breaking Defense interview on June 23, L3Harris executive Jason Lambert reported that the company was contracted by the Air Force to oversee the jet’s modifications, with a deadline of July 4, 2026, from the White House. This timeline drove L3Harris to scale back the usual Air Force One upgrade package while committing 400 employees to working around the clock to complete in ten months a process that would normally take years. This accelerated luxury jet upgrade required other large expenses, including building a 3D mockup of the plane’s interior and the leasing and purchase of additional 747 aircraft for pilot and crew training.

The Air Force seems to have committed to a rushed, expensive aircraft modification program in order to meet President Trump’s demand to fly on “the world’s most luxurious plane,” with his favored paint job, during Independence Day festivities. Trump’s own statements – including his celebration of “a level of luxury that nobody’s ever seen before” – make it clear that these decisions prioritized Trump’s personal comfort and tastes over U.S. national security.

Congress needs full information about program costs, the diversion of resources away from other Pentagon priorities, and the national security and funding implications of upgrades skipped during the rush. The American public deserves transparency into this costly and questionable modification work – conducted with their taxpayer dollars on a luxury jet that President Trump reportedly plans to take with him after he leaves office.

To this end, we request that the Air Force and L3Harris coordinate to provide written answers to the following questions no later than July 27, 2026. Recognizing that some of this information is classified, we also request a joint classified briefing for all U.S. Senators no later than August 6, 2026, to discuss your answers and the upgrade program in greater detail.

What was the total cost of preparing the VC-25B Bridge aircraft for delivery? Provide a comprehensive breakout of costs of L3Harris’s upgrade work, as well as associated expenses by the Air Force (including new equipment, mockups, and training).

How were the work schedule and timeframe for this aircraft modification program developed? What were the Air Force’s stated priorities for this program? Who, formally or informally, played a role in setting requirements and finalizing the contract? Describe the contract negotiations in detail and release the contract text for review.

How did the surge of Air Force and L3Harris personnel and resources to support the program’s accelerated schedule impact overall cost?

How did the surge of Air Force and L3Harris personnel and resources to support the program’s accelerated schedule impact other Air Force efforts or other Pentagon work being conducted at L3Harris? How were resources diverted from other programs?

How would the Air Force and L3Harris have adjusted the program’s schedule and cost structure have changed without a July 4, 2026, deadline?

How did the program’s accelerated schedule impact the scope of the Air Force One upgrade package? Detail capabilities that were not added to the VC-25B Bridge aircraft and describe the national security implications.

What additional resources, personnel, and equipment will be necessary to make up for the neglected upgrades when operating the aircraft as Air Force One? What will the cost be?

How did the aircraft modification program account for President Trump’s stated plan to transfer the VC-25B Bridge aircraft to his Presidential library upon leaving office?

We urge you to answer these questions and arrange the briefing as soon as possible to shed much-needed light on Trump’s luxury jet upgrade program. We look forward to the opportunity to finally deliver answers to the American people about Trump’s foreign-gifted luxury jet and the federal resources poured into upgrading and delivering it in time for his July 4 celebrations.

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NEWS: Sens. Schiff, Curtis to Unveil Bipartisan Legislation to Modernize Small Business Technology, Support Small Business Owners

Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senators Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) and John Curtis (R-Utah), members on the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, will introduce bipartisan legislation to improve the Small Business Administration (SBA)’s ability to develop, implement, and manage future IT modernization projects – strengthening SBA operations to support entrepreneurs and small business owners.

“Small businesses are the engine of our economy, and we must ensure they can easily use the SBA resources and tools they need to succeed. My bill with Senator Curtis would support SBA’s efforts to modernize its technology and make it much simpler for small business owners to access the services SBA can provide,” said Senator Schiff.

“For too long, SBA has struggled with outdated and ineffective IT systems that are critical to helping small businesses compete for federal contracting opportunities,” said Senator Curtis. “This commonsense, overwhelmingly bipartisan legislation ensures the agency follows through on practical recommendations from the Government Accountability Office and helps modernize SBA operations to better serve the small businesses that drive our economy.”

The SBA IT Modernization Reporting Act requires:

The SBA Administrator to implement 11 recommendations made in the 2024 Government Accountability Office (GAO) report on SBA IT Modernization; and

Provide Congress with a detailed implementation plan and briefing regarding each SBA office’s actions and timelines for each recommendation within 180 days of the bill’s enactment.

U.S. House Representatives Gil Cisneros (D-Calif.-31) and Brian Jack (R-Ga.-03) introduced companion legislation, which passed the U.S. House of Representatives in December 2025.

The full text of the legislation can be found here.

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ICYMI: Acting ICE Director Thanks Senator Schmitt for Championing $350M ICE Fund to Arrest, Deport Criminal Illegal Aliens in Sanctuary Cities

The Secure America Act Included the Schmitt-Authored Provision to Give ICE Additional Resources to Protect American Communities

U.S. SENATE —Following President Donald J. Trump’s signing of the Secure America Act, Acting Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Director David J. Venturella thanked Senator Eric Schmitt (R-MO) for championing a $350 million fund in the bill that will help ICE agents arrest and deport criminal illegal aliens in sanctuary cities.

Acting ICE Director Venturella released the following statement on the initiative and Sen. Schmitt’s bold leadership:

“The Secure America Act provides ICE with critical resources to strengthen immigration enforcement, enhance public safety and support our officers as they carry out the agency’s mission. We appreciate Senator Schmitt’s leadership in securing $350 million to help ICE address one of the most persistent challenges facing immigration enforcement and thank him for his commitment to ensuring our officers have the resources they need to protect American communities.

“Sanctuary jurisdictions refuse to honor ICE detainers or coordinate safe transfers from local custody to federal custody. As a result, criminal illegal aliens who could have been transferred directly to ICE are instead released into our communities, forcing our officers to locate and arrest them in neighborhoods, businesses and other public locations. Taking custody of criminal illegal aliens in secure correctional environments is safer for everyone involved. It reduces the risk of flight, minimizes the potential for violence, and allows law enforcement to operate in a controlled setting rather than in an unpredictable public space. When jurisdictions refuse to cooperate, they force ICE to devote significant resources to tracking and locating criminal illegal aliens who were already in custody and could have been transferred safely and efficiently.

“The funding from this legislation will help ICE increase its capacity to monitor releases and arrest removable criminal aliens when sanctuary jurisdictions refuse to cooperate with federal immigration authorities. We look forward to using these resources to strengthen public safety, support our workforce, and advance the Secure America Act’s broader goals.”

Read ICE’s full release HERE.

Background:

The Schmitt-authored Fund provides dedicated ICE resources for detainer management, release monitoring, custodial transfer, transportation, arrests, and detention connected to criminal aliens released from local custody.

Senator Schmitt joined President Trump in the Oval Office for the signing of his provision and the Secure America Act. The Schmitt-authored Fund passed the Senate and the House as part of the reconciliation bill in early June.

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Tuberville Honors Leo Finn of Cullman as July “Veteran of the Month”

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) released a video honoring U.S. Army Sergeant First Class Leo Finn as the July “Veteran of the Month.”

Excerpts of Sen. Tuberville’s remarks can be found below, and complete remarks can be found here.

“The Book of Proverbs tells us that ‘without a vision, people perish.’ For Sergeant Leo Finn of Cullman, Alabama—he’s had a clear vision for his life from day one. Leo feels he was ‘born to serve in the military,’ and spent 36 years serving our country in the Army and Army National Guard. Leo’s conviction to serve has been an asset to our country during some of the most troubling times—including the Vietnam War and War on Terror.

Shortly after finishing college in Cullman, Leo enlisted in the Army. He quickly deployed to Vietnam where he spent the next two years in the fight against communism in Southeast Asia. Upon returning home, he married his wife of 54 years, Sandra, and relocated back to Cullman where they have spent the last five decades working and raising their family. […]

He deployed a second time in the early 2000s to Afghanistan where he served as a Platoon Sergeant—sharing this same sense of purpose with those in his company. From Alabama to Vietnam to Afghanistan, Leo has made the Yellowhammer State proud. Now, he stays involved in the Cullman community through his membership at the Sacred Heart Catholic Church and his local VFW Post.

Over the last few years, Leo has faced cancer head-on, but it hasn’t slowed him down or made him lose his vision. He faced his diagnosis with the same philosophy he faced our enemies abroad: with bravery and without fear. […]

I am thankful for Leo’s calling to serve our state and country through all the challenges he’s faced. It is my honor to recognize him as the July ‘Veteran of the Month.’”

Constituents can nominate an Alabama veteran and submit their information to Sen. Tuberville’s office for consideration in the 2026 “Veteran of the Month” series by emailing press_office@tuberville.senate.gov.

Senator Tommy Tuberville represents Alabama in the United States Senate and is a member of the Senate Armed Services, Agriculture, Veterans’ Affairs, HELP and Aging Committees.

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Ahead of 2023 and 2024 Flood Anniversaries, Welch Highlights Importance of Flexible Flood Recovery Funding for Vermont

Following push by Welch and the Congressional Delegation, Vermont has been awarded nearly $68 million in flexible Community Development Block Grant–Disaster Relief funds

MONTPELIER – U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.) today convened community and state leaders in Montpelier to highlight the importance of the Community Development Block Grant–Disaster Relief (CDBG-DR) program, flexible disaster recovery funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) dedicated to supporting housing reconstruction and rehabilitation, infrastructure redevelopment, and flood mitigation efforts. While in Montpelier, Senator Welch visited the location of a new housing project funded by the CDBG-DR program and discussed the importance of flexible funding for Vermont’s flood recovery.

In the aftermath of the 2023 and 2024 floods, Senator Welch championed a comprehensive disaster relief bill which provided more than $100 billion in relief for disaster-impacted states like Vermont. This bill included $12 billion in flexible CDBG-DR funds to help communities across the country recover from natural disasters. Vermont has received nearly $68 million in CDBG-DR funding.

“So many of FEMA’s recovery programs are too rigid—that’s why after the 2023 and 2024 floods I fought hard to secure dedicated funding for the flexible Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Relief program. This grant program puts more power in the hands of state and local leaders as they build back smarter, and that’s the key to true resilience. It’s only one tool in our toolbox, but this program will help us take a big step toward ensuring our communities are safer, stronger, and more prepared for whatever the future holds,” said Senator Welch. “I’m proud we secured more than $67 million in CDBG-DR funding for Vermont, and today we can see this funding at work. I look forward to touring this new housing and renovation project soon.”

Senator Welch was joined by Doug Farnham, State of Vermont’s Chief Recovery Officer; Nate Formalarie, Deputy Commissioner of DHCD; Angie Harbin, Executive Director of Downstreet Housing; Gus Seelig, Executive Director of VHCB; and Beth Sightler, CEO of Washington County Mental Health Services.

In December 2023, Senator Welch testified before a Senate Appropriations Subcommittee and advocated for the inclusion of CDBG-DR funding in the comprehensive disaster supplemental package. The comprehensive disaster relief bill, signed by President Biden in 2024, provided more than $100 billion total in disaster relief, and contained many of Senator Welch’s top priorities for Vermont: flexible spending through the Community Development Block Grant–Disaster Recovery fund; support for FEMA’s Disaster Relief Fund (DRF); dedicated help for flood-impacted farmers; and low-interest disaster loans from the Small Business Administration (SBA) to help businesses and homeowners recover, among many other resources.

Learn more about HUD’s Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Relief (CDBG-DR) program here.

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Whitehouse Returns from Bipartisan, Bicameral Delegation to OSCE Parliamentary Assembly in The Hague

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), the Senate Ranking Member of the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (the “Helsinki Commission”), returned today to the United States after co-leading a bipartisan, bicameral congressional delegation to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Parliamentary Assembly’s 33rd Annual Meeting in The Hague, Netherlands.

In The Hague, Whitehouse participated in committee meetings of the OSCE Parliament, where he introduced and passed two amendments, one to encourage OSCE member states to adopt a tougher stance on the maritime service providers that support the “shadow fleet” vessels that Russia uses to illegally export oil in violation of international sanctions, and one to condemn Russia’s policy of incentivizing its citizens to move into illegally-occupied areas of Ukraine.

Whitehouse also co-hosted a side event at the conference with other members of the American delegation entitled: “Prioritizing the Human Dimension of the Ukraine Ceasefire Talks: People First.” The event featured the esteemed Russian dissident Vladimir Kara-Murza, as well as Nobel laureates from Ukraine and Belarus. Whitehouse and the American delegation also huddled with delegations from Moldova and the Nordic and Baltic countries

Whitehouse released the following statement at the conclusion of the Annual Meeting:

“Despite being left for dead by Putin-loving Trump and the self-dealing ‘diplomats’ Witkoff and Kushner, Ukraine is winning the war against the murderous Russian invaders. Brave Ukraine’s response to Russian aggression makes me proud to be a human being.

“There is bipartisan consensus at home and among parliamentarians abroad that the pressure in negotiations should be on Russia’s war criminals, not Ukraine’s patriots. I’m very pleased the OSCE Assembly overwhelmingly adopted my amendments to crack down on the Russian Shadow Fleet and spotlight the systemic and illegal Russian resettlement operation in occupied Ukraine.”

Other members of the bipartisan, bicameral American delegation included Senator Roger Wicker (R-MS), the Senate Chairman of the Helsinki Commission, Senators John Cornyn (R-TX) and Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC-2), the House Chairman of the Helsinki Commission, and Reps. Lloyd Doggett (D-TX-37), Andy Harris, M.D. (R-MD-1), Marc Veasey (D-TX-33), Greg Murphy, M.D. (R-NC-6), and Jake Ellzey (R-TX-6).

In February, Senators Whitehouse and Wicker participated in the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly Winter Meeting in Vienna, Austria, where they pushed the U.S. and our European allies to cooperate to shut down Russia’s shadow fleet that fuels the Russian oil and gas economy.


Young Announces More Than $57 Million for Transportation Infrastructure Projects Across Indiana

WASHINGTON – Today, Senator Todd Young (R-Ind.) announced more than $57.8 million in federal funding through the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development (BUILD) Grant Program for four transportation infrastructure projects across Indiana.

The funding will support projects in Fort Wayne, Jeffersonville, Noblesville, and Whiting, improving roads, bridges, freight infrastructure, and transportation safety while supporting economic growth across the state. Senator Young wrote letters of support for each of the projects.

“These investments will strengthen Indiana’s infrastructure, improve safety, support commerce and help communities prepare for future growth,” said Senator Young. “From modernizing critical bridges and freight facilities to improving major transportation corridors, these projects will benefit Hoosiers for decades to come while keeping Indiana’s transportation network strong and our economy growing. I appreciate Secretary Duffy’s partnership in helping make these investments possible.”

Indiana BUILD Grant Awards:

Jeffersonville – Crane Terminal Project

Award: $25,000,000

Constructs a new dock at the Ports of Indiana – Jeffersonville.

Builds a 300-ton crane, a 25,000-square-foot craneway, warehouse, and supporting infrastructure.

Expands freight capacity and strengthens Indiana’s riverport infrastructure.

Fort Wayne – Ewing Street Bridge and Road Project

Award: $15,660,000

Repairs and reconfigures two compromised bridges over the St. Marys river.

Adds multi-use paths to improve pedestrian and bicycle connectivity.

Reconstructs approximately four blocks of Ewing Street between Jefferson Boulevard and Main Street to modern engineering and downtown design standards.

Noblesville – Revolutionize State Road 37 Project

Award: $12,000,000

Completes final design for reconstruction of a 1.6-mile segment of State Road 37.

Converts the corridor into a grade-separated highway.

Replaces three signalized intersections with continuous-flow roundabout interchanges featuring pedestrian facilities.

Includes an overpass bridge, bridge replacement, and additional access improvements.

Whiting – Rail Corridor Overpass Project

Award: $5,163,200