Press releases
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519 rows where party = "Democrat", state = "VT" and year = 2015 sorted by date descending
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| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/leahy-local-advocates-announce-expansion-of_charitable-deductions-of-food-donations | Leahy, Local Advocates Announce Expansion of Charitable Deductions of Food Donations | 2015-12-30 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 12.30.15 Leahy, Local Advocates Announce Expansion of Charitable Deductions of Food Donations BURLINGTON, Vt. (WEDNESDAY, Dec. 30, 2015) Joined by local advocates to end hunger and food insecurity, Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) Wednesday announced at the Chittenden Emergency Food Shelf in Burlington that a provision incentivizing donations of surplus food to local food pantries was recently signed into law, helping efforts to cut back on food waste and supporting communities help those in need across the country. During this congress, Leahy successfully led a bipartisan effort to expand and make permanent tax deductions for businesses and farms for donated food to community food shelves this year. As much as 40 percent of food that is produced, grown and transported in the United States will never be used because some businesses find it too costly to donate. This amounts to an estimated 70 billion pounds of wasted food each year. Leahy said: The burden of hunger threatens the livelihood and wellbeing of communities across Vermont. Hunger leads to malnourishment, obesity, diabetes and academic and social difficulty among children, and we all know a hungry child cannot learn.Vermont is a leader in the fight against hunger, and I was proud support this common sense provision to cut down on food waste and redirect resources to those in need. The Chittenden Emergency Food Shelf serves over 12,000 Vermonters each year, and continues to see an increase in visitors seeking food assistance. Rob Meehan, Executive Director of the Chittenden Emergency Food Shelf said, Many of the people we serve face difficult choices including skipping meals so their children will have enough to eat, choosing between food and medicine, food and housing, food and healthcare simply because they do not have enough money. We need more help from our federal government to feed vulnerable Vermonters and this is a valuable step in that direction. The provision, the House companion of Leahy's Senate legislation the Good Samaritan … | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/leahy-sharper-focus-on-americas-middle-class-needed-in-the-new-year | Leahy: Sharper Focus On Americas Middle Class Needed In The New Year | 2015-12-18 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 12.18.15 Leahy: Sharper Focus On America's Middle Class Needed In The New Year . . . Congress Clears Budget Bill, Ending The Sequester Straightjacket And Lifting Caps To Fund Key Priorities [Late Friday morning, the U.S. Senate approved legislation to fund the federal government through fiscal year 2016 and extend tax credits for millions of low- and middle-income class families. The final budget bill, which Leahy voted for and is expected to be signed by the President TODAY, includes a wide variety of funding investments that reflect Senator Patrick Leahy's priorities for Vermont. Leahy holds the most seniority on the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee, which handled the Senate's work in writing the bill.] Hardworking Americans deserve more than living paycheck to paycheck, worrying about having to choose between paying an electric bill or putting healthy food on the table. This appropriations law ends a year of continuing budget uncertainty and extends tax credits for millions of hardworking families. We have kept out harmful riders that would have undermined everything from Wall Street reform to clean air and water laws. There are many steps forward in this bill for Vermonters and all Americans, but we need stronger steps. We need to carry this into the new year and strengthen it, to help lift the middle class and to protect the most vulnerable among us. We need much more progress in creating well-paying jobs in rural areas like Vermont, not just in the nation's urban centers. We need to do more to protect Social Security and Medicare and other programs in the safety net. We need to do more to make college affordable for students and families. This bill will let Congress begin the new year with focusing on America's middle class, taking stronger steps to help working families. By standing together, Senate Democrats have made it possible to cancel the harmful sequester and to lift caps to make investmen… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/a-look-back-at-the-first-year-of-the-us-cuba-relationship-december-17-2014_-present | A Look Back at the First Year of the U.S.-Cuba Relationship December 17, 2014 - Present | 2015-12-17 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 12.17.15 A Look Back at the First Year of the U.S.-Cuba Relationship December 17, 2014 - Present Key Actions and Accomplishments December 17, 2014: President Obama moves to normalize relations with Cuba. Decision follows 18 months of secret negotiations between U.S. and Cuba and the release of American aid contractor Alan Gross. Announcement of plans over the coming months to ease travel and financial restrictions on Cuba. Paves the way for U.S.-Cuba to restore diplomatic ties, reopen embassies, and potentially lift the embargo. January 16, 2015: Departments of Commerce and Treasury announce regulatory changes to Cuba sanctions. The amendments implement the changes President Obama announced on December 17, 2014. March 31, 2015: U.S. and Cuba hold first formal talks on human rights. April 8, 2015: A public opinion poll of Cubans on the island is released; shows that an overwhelming majority of Cubans support an end to the embargo. Nearly all Cubans (97 percent of those polled) believe normalization of the relationship between Cuba and the United States is good for Cuba. April 11, 2015: Presidents Obama and Castro meet at the Summit of the Americas in Panama. Marks the first time the two nations' top leaders have sat down for substantive talks in more than 50 years. Both presidents agree it is time to end the embargo. The inclusion of Cuba in the Summit of the Americas comes after Latin American countries pressured the United States to allow Cuba to participate. April 20, 2015: Governor Andrew Cuomo leads delegation to Cuba. Governor Andrew Cuomo leads a delegation of New York business owners and politicians to Havana. His visit marks the first time a U.S. governor has travelled to the island since the U.S. and Cuba normalized relations. The trip includes officials from JetBlue Airways, the Plattsburgh International Airport, Pfizer, MasterCard, and the founder of Chobani. The trip leads to an agreement between Cuba's Center for Molecular Immunology and Roswell… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/comment-of-senator-patrick-leahy-d-vt-ranking-member-senate-judiciary-committee-on-the-need-to-combat-straw-purchasing-and-illegal-gun-trafficking | Comment of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On the Need To Combat Straw Purchasing & Illegal Gun Trafficking | 2015-12-17 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 12.17.15 Comment of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On the Need To Combat Straw Purchasing & Illegal Gun Trafficking We must do everything we can to ensure that deadly weapons like the rifles used in the San Bernardino shootings do not fall into the hands of terrorists, violent criminals, and drug traffickers. Law enforcement officials have complained for years that they lack effective tools necessary to investigate and deter straw purchasers and gun traffickers. Today's arrest of the individual who provided the rifles for the San Bernardino shooters is a reminder that we need to strengthen our laws to give law enforcement agents and prosecutors the tools they need to fight terrorism and violent crime. I will soon reintroduce the Stop Illegal Trafficking in Firearms Act, which had broad bipartisan support last Congress. My legislation will make it a Federal crime to serve as a straw purchaser' of firearms, and establish tough penalties for those who skirt existing laws and traffic firearms to terrorists and criminals. In light of reports that the rifles used in the San Bernardino shootings may have been acquired through a straw purchaser, it is all the more important for Congress to take action to fix this problem. # # # # # Press Contact Press Contact David Carle: 202-224-3693 Next Article Previous Article | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/leahy-expansion-of-charitable-deductions-of-food_included-in-legislation-poised-to-clear-congress-by-end-of-this-week | Leahy: Expansion Of Charitable Deductions Of Food Included In Legislation Poised To Clear Congress By End Of This Week | 2015-12-17 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 12.17.15 Leahy: Expansion Of Charitable Deductions Of Food Included In Legislation Poised To Clear Congress By End Of This Week WASHINGTON (THURSDAY, Dec. 17, 2015) U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) praises the inclusion of a provision aimed at fighting hunger by incentivizing donations of surplus food to local food shelves in a legislative package set to pass the U.S. Senate this week. Leahy has long been the leading advocate for the bipartisan Good Samaritan Hunger Relief Tax Incentive Extension Act, dating back to his time working with former Senator Richard Lugar (R-Ind.). The soon-to-be enacted provision, which was the House companion of Leahy's Senate legislation, expands and makes permanent incentives for farmers and businesses to donate excess food to nonprofit organizations like local food banks and pantries. As much as 40 percent of food that is produced, grown and transported in the United States will never be used because some businesses find it too costly to donate the excess food. This amounts to 70 billion pounds of wasted food each year. Leahy said: In Vermont, far too many families struggle to make ends meet, and a major factor continues to be the rising cost of nutritious food. Our food pantries play a crucial role in bridging the gap for families, and this commonsense step helps empower communities to help meet the need for healthy, affordable food. No one in our country should go hungry, especially as we send billions of pounds of food to landfills. This is a responsible solution that helps farmers, businesses and those in need. The CEO of the Vermont Foodbank, John Sayles, said, "The Vermont Foodbank is thrilled with Senator Leahy's leadership to secure a permanent enhanced tax deduction for food donations. Everything we can do to support our food donors puts food on Vermont tables, keeping our kids ready for school, parents ready for work and our seniors free from worry." The tax deduction expands upon a proven and effective tax incentive to encourage businesses and farms … | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/statement-of-senator-patrick-leahy-d-vt-ranking-member-senate-ju2diciary-committee-on-judicial-nominations | Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On Judicial Nominations | 2015-12-17 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 12.17.15 Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On Judicial Nominations As we close the book on the first session of the 114th Congress, our attention is on the thousands of pages in the omnibus spending bill. But as the Republican leadership rushes to spin the press about what the Senate has accomplished in their twelve months in the majority, there is one Senate responsibility that should not get lost in the noise. That is our responsibility to equip our coequal branches of government, the Federal judiciary and the Executive branch, with the confirmed public servants that both branches need to serve the American people. Senate Republicans began the year by filibustering the nomination of the first black woman to be nominated for the position of Attorney General of the United States. No other Attorney General nominee in our history has been met with a filibuster. That did not stop Republicans from holding up Loretta Lynch's nomination longer than the last seven Attorneys General combined. Our nation's top law enforcement official deserved better treatment, but the fight to get her a confirmation vote previewed how difficult it would be to get votes scheduled on other crucial nominees. Republicans have blocked confirmation votes for the people nominated to serve as ambassadors to some of our closest allies. They have blocked consideration of nominees who would help keep our country safe from terrorist threats, including a Treasury Department nominee who would lead an office that investigates terrorist financing. By the end of this week, Senate Republicans will have also earned the dubious distinction of matching the record for confirming the fewest annual number of judicial nominees in more than half a century. Too many Americans who have sought justice in our Federal courts this year have instead found delays and empty courtrooms because of Senate Republicans' obstruction on judicial nominees. I am concerned that Republicans' treatment of our Third B… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/statement-of-senator-patrick-leahy-on-the-one-year-anniversary-of-the-release-of-alan-gross | Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy On The One Year Anniversary of the Release of Alan Gross | 2015-12-17 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 12.17.15 Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy On The One Year Anniversary of the Release of Alan Gross Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, today marks the one-year anniversary of the release of Alan Gross from a Cuban prison where he spent five years. During that time he lost more than 100 pounds, lost five teeth, his mother died, his mother-in-law died, a brother-in-law died, and he missed his daughter's wedding. I worked for three years to help obtain Alan Gross' release and the return of the remaining members of the so-called Cuban Five who had served more than 15 years in U.S. prisons. Scott Gilbert, Alan Gross' lawyer, did an outstanding job, traveling countless times to Cuba and skillfully advocating on Alan's behalf with Cuban and U.S. officials. My larger purpose, like that of my good friend from Arizona, Senator Flake, who has been a real partner in this, was to finally put the Cold War behind us and to start looking forward to a new era. Like Senator Flake and many others, I was convinced that such a step would be widely embraced by the U.S. business community, by religious groups, by academia, by the scientific community, the media, and Americans across the political spectrum. I also knew that it would be welcomed around the world, including in countries whose people believe in democracy and human rights as strongly as we do. Alan Gross' release ushered in a new day in U.S.-Cuba relations, poignantly demonstrated on August 14th by the raising of our flag at the U.S. Embassy in Havana. It was a deeply moving experience to be there on that swelteringly hot day, to hear both national anthems played, and especially to hear the cheers of the Cubans who were inside and outside of the Embassy grounds. After 54 years of a failed, punitive policy that had achieved none of its objectives, President Obama and President Raul Castro wisely decided it was time to chart a new path. The reaction of the people of the United States and Cuba has been overwhelmingly positive. Even some of Cuba's most vocal critics… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/leahy-senate-republicans-must-prioritize_judicial-nominees-in-new-year- | Leahy: Senate Republicans Must Prioritize Judicial Nominees In New Year | 2015-12-16 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 12.16.15 Leahy: Senate Republicans Must Prioritize Judicial Nominees In New Year WASHINGTON (Tuesday, December 15, 2015) The Republican-controlled Senate confirmed just 11 judicial nominees this year, matching the fewest number of nominees confirmed by any Senate in more than half a century. But under a bipartisan agreement negotiated by Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Republican Chairman Chuck Grassley (Iowa), the Senate next year will vote on five judicial nominees before the February recess. Four of these nominees are nominated to fill emergency vacancies, and three are nominees of color. Leahy said the bipartisan nominations agreement is a positive first step toward filling vacancies next year. After a year in which the Senate broke records for its inaction on judicial confirmations, I am glad that Republicans have consented to a bipartisan plan to confirm these well qualified judicial nominees, Leahy said. Because of this agreement, the Senate will be on pace in the first two months of next year to confirm almost half the number of nominees it took us this entire year to confirm. The Senate must continue to build on this progress so that we reduce judicial vacancies. The five nominees the Senate is poised to confirm early next year are: Judge Luis Felipe Restrepo of Pennsylvania to the Third Circuit Court of Appeals; Justice Wilhelmina Wright to the District of Minnesota; John Vazquez to the District of New Jersey; Judge Rebecca Ebinger to the Southern District of Iowa and Judge Leonard Strand to the Northern District of Iowa. In addition to the five nominees in the agreement, there are 14 more judicial nominees pending on the executive calendar, all of whom were approved by the Judiciary Committee by voice vote. These nominees will not be returned to the White House at the end of the session but rather will remain on the Senate calendar. # # # # # Press Contact Press Contact David Carle: 202-224-3693 … | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/statement-of-senator-patrick-leahy-on-lourdes-tiban | Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy On Lourdes Tiban | 2015-12-14 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 12.14.15 Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy On Lourdes Tiban Mr. President, I want other Senators to be aware of information I received about Ecuadorian National Assembly member Lourdes Tiban, a prominent and respected leader of Ecuador's indigenous people. As an indigenous leader, Ms. Tiban has become one of the most outspoken advocates for freedom of expression, indigenous rights, and social rights in Ecuador. Not surprisingly, this has made her the target of verbal attacks by President Rafael Correa. Earlier this year, Ms. Tiban was beaten by unidentified assailants as she was walking to work. The assault was filmed and then shared online by government supporters who posted humiliating comments. This isn't the first time that Ms. Tiban has been physically assaulted. She is the victim of two other similar incidents which, I am told, have not been properly investigated. It is regrettable that, instead of vigorously investigating this latest attack against Ms. Tiban, a National Assembly member from President Correa's political party has brought a criminal case for libel against her. This is believed to be in retaliation for Ms. Tiban's claim that government supporters were responsible for targeting her, presumably in an attempt to silence her and remove her from the National Assembly. Ecuador is a country where judicial independence is seriously compromised. I have spoken about this several times, and it has been well documented by the Department of State, the United Nations, and human rights organizations. It is also illustrated by the fact that the Council of the Judiciary, with the power to appoint and remove judges, is comprised of five former officials of the Correa administration. It is likely that the criminal investigation against Ms. Tiban could result in an unjust conviction. We should condemn these attacks on freedom of expression, political rights, and the rights of indigenous people, and we should defend judicial independence which is fundamental to democracy in Ecuador and thr… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/four-years-after-irene-renewal-in-waterbury | Four Years After Irene, Renewal In Waterbury | 2015-12-11 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 12.11.15 Four Years After Irene, Renewal In Waterbury By Patrick Leahy, Bernie Sanders and Peter Welch This past August, we marked the four year anniversary of Tropical Storm Irene. Memories of communities besieged by flood waters, houses knocked from their foundations and families forever changed are still fresh for each of us, and for so many other Vermonters. But just as Vermont rebuilt from the historic 1927 floods, Vermonters have pulled together to build back stronger, smarter and better after Irene. This has required new and creative thinking, and significant collaboration between communities, the State of Vermont and the federal government. Nowhere in Vermont is that story better told than in Waterbury. On August 29, 2011, the Winooski River jumped its banks and inundated the iconic Waterbury State Office Complex and state psychiatric hospital.When the floodwaters receded, it was clear the office complex and hospital were a total loss. Even before Irene hit, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) helped Vermonters prepare for the storm.The agency helped coordinate first responders across the state during and immediately after the floods. And in the end, it would provide individual assistance to more than 7300 Vermonters who lost property. But, as communities across Vermont would soon learn, FEMA generally only helps pay to rebuild infrastructure if it is rebuilt in the same place and restored to its pre-flood condition. Ideas like moving the state hospital and power plant out of the flood plain were nonstarters. This made no sense to us, to use taxpayer money to rebuild in a manner likely to fail again in the next flood, rather than building back stronger. So we crafted legislation and steered it through the Appropriations process and into law to ensure that FEMA could pay for smarter, more resilient projects. We met with FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate and his leadership team, and urged them … | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/leahy-welcomes-long-delayed-sec-draft-rule-on-oil-and-mining-transparency | Leahy Welcomes Long-Delayed SEC Draft Rule On Oil And Mining Transparency | 2015-12-11 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 12.11.15 Leahy Welcomes Long-Delayed SEC Draft Rule On Oil And Mining Transparency WASHINGTON (FRIDAY, Dec. 11, 2015) -- U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) Friday welcomed action by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to propose a rule on a long-delayed extractive industries transparency provision of the Wall Street reform law enacted in 2010. The transparency provision was authored by Leahy and became Section 1504 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. Leahy as a conferee worked closely with former Senator Dick Lugar (R-Ind.) and Senator Ben Cardin (D-Md.) when he successfully offered the amendment during the Dodd-Frank conference negotiations that created Section 1504. The transparency reforms require transparent reporting of payments made to governments for the extraction of oil, natural gas and minerals by companies that otherwise must file disclosures with the SEC. Once fully implemented, Section 1504 will help empower investors with a more complete view of the value of their holdings, encouraging capital formation. The reforms will bring more information to global commodities markets, contributing to price stability. Leahy notes that the reforms also will help citizens in holding governments accountable for the decisions made in managing valuable oil, gas, and minerals resources and revenues. A final rule on Section 1504 had been adopted by the agency on August 22, 2012, but it was subsequently vacated by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Since then, the European Union and Canada have both adopted transparency initiatives similar to the rule the SEC had initially adopted in 2012. Leahy said: I look forward to reviewing the proposed rule, but after the SEC's latest action it is clear that the commissioners have made an important step in the right direction and in following congressional intent by finally proposing this long-awaited rule for U.S. investors and citizens in resource-rich countries to hold their leaders accountable. # # # # … | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://welch.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/welch-introduces-bipartisan-authorization-military-force-against-isil | Welch Introduces Bipartisan Authorization Of Military Force Against ISIL | 2015-12-10 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Peter Welch | W000800 | welch.house.gov | legacy | WASHINGTONAt a Capitol Hill press conference this afternoon, Rep. Peter Welch (VT-AL), joined by Rep. Scott Rigell (R-VA), announced the introduction in the House of bipartisan legislation that would authorize the use of American military force against ISIL. Joining Welch and Rigell at the press conference were Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Senator Jeff Flake (R-AZ), the sponsors of identical legislation in the Senate. Under the U.S. Constitution, it is the responsibility of Congress to authorize the use of military force," said Congressman Welch. "Since August 8, 2014 when military action against ISIL began, Congress has been absent. Since then, our military has delivered 8,573 airstrikes in Syria and Iraq at a cost to the American taxpayer of $5.2 billion. One American service member has been killed. It is time Congress did its job by debating and deciding on America's role in defeating ISIL. The failure of Congress to do its job is an abdication of its Constitutional responsibility and an indefensible transfer of power to the executive. The War Powers Resolution states that apart from an attack upon the United States, its territories or possessions, or its armed forces, Congress must either declare war or authorize the proposed military action. The bipartisan, bicameral Authorization of the Use of Military Force (AUMF) introduced today would authorize the President to take specific, strategic military action and to provide support to our allies and regional partners in the battle to defeat ISIL. Key provisions include a sunset after three years unless reauthorized; a repeal of the 2002 Iraq AUMF; and a clause that defines this authorization as the sole statutory authority for the war on ISIL, as opposed to the 2001 AUMF. The text of the AUMF is available here. ### | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/new-england-senators-call-for-federal-funding-to-support-conte-refuge-and-connecticut-river-watershed- | NEW ENGLAND SENATORS CALL FOR FEDERAL FUNDING TO SUPPORT CONTE REFUGE & CONNECTICUT RIVER WATERSHED | 2015-12-10 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 12.10.15 NEW ENGLAND SENATORS CALL FOR FEDERAL FUNDING TO SUPPORT CONTE REFUGE & CONNECTICUT RIVER WATERSHED WASHINGTON Today, U.S. Senators Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) called on the U.S. Department of the Interior to provide federal funding to support the protection of the diverse plant, fish, and wildlife species in the Silvio O. Conte National Fish and Wildlife Refuge. In a letter to Secretary Sally Jewell of the Department of the Interior, the senators urged the Department to continue funding the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and to prioritize the Conte Refuge which is of great environmental and recreational importance but is in need of more than $14 million for necessary upkeep and improvement projects. The Silvio O. Conte National Fish and Wildlife Refuge spans more than 36,000 acres throughout the Connecticut River watershed in Connecticut, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Massachusetts. As elected representatives of the four states encompassing the boundaries of the Connecticut River Watershed and the Silvio O. Conte National Fish and Wildlife Refuge, we write to urge you to provide sufficient funding in your FY17 budget to support the Refuge. The current need for the Refuge is acute: Fish and Wildlife Service staff and the non-governmental partner groups composing the Friends of Conte have identified over $14 million in projects as current and available priority opportunities within the Refuge, wrote the senators. These land trusts have added a combined total of more than 350,000 acres to the conservation estate basin-wide, providing recreational opportunities to the more than 2.3 million people who live in the basin and another 70 million who live within a day's drive of these properties. While we continue to work to reauthorize and for full funding for LWCF, we hope you will continue to put forward adequate funding for the Conte R… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/senate-judiciary-committee-adopts-leahy-amendment-confirming-that-the-us-must-not-bar-individualsbased-on-their-religion | Senate Judiciary Committee Adopts Leahy Amendment Confirming That The U.S. Must Not Bar IndividualsBased On Their Religion | 2015-12-10 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 12.10.15 Senate Judiciary Committee Adopts Leahy Amendment Confirming That The U.S. Must Not Bar IndividualsBased On Their Religion WASHINGTON (THURSDAY, December 10, 2015) The Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday approved an amendment authored by Ranking Member Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) confirming that the United States must not bar individuals from entering into the United States based on their religion. Leahy's amendment was adopted by a vote of 16-4. Consideration of his amendment came after some made demands earlier this week to shut the nation's borders to all Muslims. Leahy spoke out against this hateful rhetoric earlier this week. Many top Republicans and Democrats have condemned this reprehensible proposal. Many on this committee have rightfully expressed their outrage about the call earlier this week to shut our borders to Muslims. Now we need to formally go on the record to reject this reprehensible position, Leahy said. Leahy also asked FBI Director James Comey at an oversight hearing Wednesday whether such anti-Muslim rhetoric serves as a recruiting tool for ISIS. Director Comey confirmed: The notion that the U.S. is anti-Muslim is part of ISIL's narrative and al Qaeda's narrative and other terrorist groups. On Thursday, Leahy said the Senate should heed the call of our national security leaders and send a clear and direct message that America welcomes people from all countries and of all faiths. Our strength comes from our commitment to the principles of freedom, equality, and liberty. Results and a webcast of Thursday's executive business meeting can be found online. # # # # # Press Contact Press Contact David Carle: 202-224-3693 Next Article Previous Article | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/statement-of-senator-patrick-leahy-d-vt-ranking-member-senate-judiciary-committee-on-consideration-of-the-s1318-nuclear-terrorism-conventions-implementation-and-safety-of-maritime-navigation-act | Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee On Consideration of the S.1318, Nuclear Terrorism Conventions Implementation and Safety of Maritime Navigation Act | 2015-12-10 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 12.10.15 Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee On Consideration of the S.1318, Nuclear Terrorism Conventions Implementation and Safety of Maritime Navigation Act Given recent events, Americans are concerned about protecting the country against terrorism. I am glad that the Committee was able to hear from the FBI Director yesterday, and I hope that Congress will ensure that law enforcement has the tools and resources necessary to fight terrorism. Unfortunately, the bill that we will be marking up today is not the answer. I agree with Chairman Grassley that we must protect against nuclear terrorism. That is why Senator Lee and I worked in a bicameral way to pass legislation earlier this year that does just that. As the Chairman acknowledges,the vast majority of his bill was already enacted into law as part of the USA FREEDOM Act in June. This was language that we negotiated with the leaders of the House Judiciary and Intelligence Committees, to ensure that it could pass in the House. And the provisions that Senator Grassley is now trying to resurrect with his bill particularly the death penalty provision were deliberately excluded because the House told us that they could not pass it. So this appears to be an attempt to rehash a death penalty debate that is unnecessary. I have made clear that I would not oppose the other provisions in the bill related to material support and wiretap predicates. But I cannot and will not support expanding the scope of the Federal death penalty. I will not endorse the application of such an irreversible punishment when we still have an imperfect criminal justice system that is so susceptible to racial biases, procedural flaws, and simple human error. In fact, Senator Grassley and I are working togetherright nowon oversight of the FBI's flawed hair and fiber analysis which may have resulted in the conviction of innocent people sentenced to death.We know with certainty that our system makes mistakes. Unless the death p… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/opening-statement-of-senator-patrick-leahy_--sjc-oversight-hearing-with-fbi-director-comey | Opening Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy -- SJC Oversight Hearing With FBI Director Comey | 2015-12-09 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 12.09.15 Opening Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy -- SJC Oversight Hearing With FBI Director Comey WASHINGTON (Wednesday, December 9, 2015) Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) is attending an oversight hearing this morning of the Federal Bureau of Investigation withDirector James Comey. Testimony, member statements, and a webcast of the hearing are available online. Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing On Oversight Of The Federal Bureau Of Investigation December 9, 2015 The Federal Bureau of Investigation is entrusted with the enormous responsibility of enforcing our laws and protecting the nation. No matter what the threat, and no matter what the motivation, the FBI is tasked with helping to keep us safe. On any given day, FBI agents around the country are investigating cases involving not only terrorism, but violent crime, gangs, cybercrime, identity theft, fraud, human trafficking, hate crimes, and child exploitation. The events of the past six months have underscored the varied nature of the threats the FBI faces, and the key role it plays in protecting against terrorist acts. This past June, nine African American churchgoers were murdered by a white supremacist during a bible study in Charleston. The day after Thanksgiving, three individuals including a police officer were shot to death inside a women's health clinic in Colorado Springs. Last week, 14 county workers in San Bernardino were murdered in a shooting rampage. Director Comey may not be able to share all of the details about these investigations today, but I believe we can all agree that there is one common motivating factor behind each of these heinous crimes: hateful extremism. These attacks remind us that we need to be vigilant against all forms of violent extremism. No one underestimates the incredibly difficult job of protecting the country from terrorist threats. So we have to support the law enforcement and intelligence officials who … | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://welch.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/vermont-delegation-calls-more-public-scrutiny-meetings-vermont | Vermont Delegation Calls for More Public Scrutiny, Meetings in Vermont on Decommissioning Regulations | 2015-12-08 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Peter Welch | W000800 | welch.house.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON, Dec. 8 The Vermont congressional delegation Sen. Patrick Leahy (D), Sen. Bernie Sanders (I) and Rep. Peter Welch (D) announced Tuesday that they have called upon the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to improve public input on proposed changes to nuclear plant decommissioning regulations. Sen. Bernie Sanders, who serves on the Senate energy and environment committees, led the effort which urged the NRC to hold public meetings in each state where a nuclear power plant is currently being decommissioned and to extend the deadline for public comments. While we commend the NRC for proposing these long overdue regulations, we believe the short public comment period and the plan to have a single public meeting will not give local and state stakeholders sufficient opportunities to participate meaningfully in the rulemaking process, the Vermont congressional delegation wrote in a letter sent to NRC Chairman Stephen Burns on Monday. The letter was also signed by Sens. Edward Markey (D-Mass.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), and Rep. William Keating (D-Mass.). To read the letter to the NRC, click here. Contacts: David Carle (Leahy): 202-224-3693 Michael Briggs (Sanders): 202-224-5141 Kirsten Hartman (Welch): 202-225-4115 ### | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/at-hearing-on-merger-of-two-largest-us-beer-companies_leahy-emphasizes-importance-of-level-playing-field--for-craft-brewers-to-compete | At Hearing on Merger of Two Largest U.S. Beer Companies, Leahy Emphasizes Importance of Level Playing Field for Craft Brewers to Compete | 2015-12-08 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 12.08.15 At Hearing on Merger of Two Largest U.S. Beer Companies, Leahy Emphasizes Importance of Level Playing Field for Craft Brewers to Compete WASHINGTON (Tuesday, December 8, 2015) During a hearing Tuesday of the Senate Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and Consumer Rights to consider the proposed merger of beer companies AB-InBev and SAB Miller, Ranking Member Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) emphasized the importance of a level playing field so that craft brewers can compete. Noting concern that the large brewing companies can use their power over distributors to squeeze out smaller craft brewers, Leahy called on the companies participating in the merger to commit that they would not increase their ownership of distributors or adopt further exclusionary practices at the expense of craft breweries. Vermont was one of the earliest incubators of craft brewing, Leahy said at the hearing. Our 40 breweries make some of the best, award-winning beers in the world. They contribute to our economy and have helped make Vermont a destination state. We want to ensure that these craft brewers and the brewers of tomorrow can continue to competeand that consumers continue to have choices. Addressing the CEOs of companies participating in the merger, he added: [G]iven the size of these companies, we need to look closely at this transaction. One way for large brewers to influence distribution is by buying up distributors. AB InBev has indicated that, following this merger, it will not increase its ownership of distributors above its current level of ten percent. Mr. Brito, at a minimum, I ask you to make a formal commitment to that today. For its part, Molson has indicated that, after it gains 100 percent ownership of MillerCoors, it will not increase its ownership of distributorsnor change its current practice of giving distributors leeway to showcase competitors' brands. Mr. Hunter, I ask you to make a formal commitment to that today. The pathway from brewer to buyer is critical if … | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/statement-of-senator-patrick-leahy-on-the-conference-report-to-the-every-student-succeeds-act | Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy On the Conference Report to the Every Student Succeeds Act | 2015-12-08 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 12.08.15 Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy On the Conference Report to the Every Student Succeeds Act Today the Senate will approve landmark legislation to reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965. Since 2001, the failed policies of No Child Left Behind have unfairly burdened students, families, educators and administrators by holding students accountable for snap-shot academic progress. The overwhelming support in Congress for these reforms will reverse the one-size-fits-all approach to education that did not work for Vermont and so many schools across the nation. This bill gives States more flexibility to ensure that schools are supporting every student, while maintaining the Federal Government's responsibility to ensure that students everywhere have access to the resources they need for lasting academic success. Since 2001, I have heard from parents, teachers, students, policymakers, and administrators about the negative impacts of No Child Left Behind. I voted against the legislation, as I did not agree, and still do not agree, with a one-size-fits-all approach to education. I was also disappointed with the bill's rigid Federal accountability measures, as I truly believe States and local education agencies deserve flexibility when it comes to how schools operate. The conference report we will consider today reflects the positive changes to the law that the Senate overwhelmingly supported in July. The agreement restores educational flexibility to the states, while safeguarding student access to resources, regardless of race, gender, financial status, and learning level. I am pleased that the bill takes into account the greater needs of students in rural areas, increases funding for early childhood education programs, and improves school safety measures. I am especially pleased with the bill's innovative assessment and accountability demonstration authority provision, which will allow Vermont to adopt competency and performance-based assessments that prove far more than how… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/vermont-delegation-calls-for-more-public-scrutiny-meetings-in-vermont-on-decommissioning-regulations | Vermont Delegation Calls for More Public Scrutiny, Meetings in Vermont on Decommissioning Regulations | 2015-12-08 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 12.08.15 Vermont Delegation Calls for More Public Scrutiny, Meetings in Vermont on Decommissioning Regulations WASHINGTON, Dec. 8 The Vermont congressional delegation Sen. Patrick Leahy (D), Sen. Bernie Sanders (I) and Rep. Peter Welch (D) announced Tuesday that they have called upon the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to improve public input on proposed changes to nuclear plant decommissioning regulations. Sen. Bernie Sanders, who serves on the Senate energy and environment committees, led the effort which urged the NRC to hold public meetings in each state where a nuclear power plant is currently being decommissioned and to extend the deadline for public comments. While we commend the NRC for proposing these long overdue regulations, we believe the short public comment period and the plan to have a single public meeting will not give local and state stakeholders sufficient opportunities to participate meaningfully in the rulemaking process, the Vermont congressional delegation wrote in a letter sent to NRC Chairman Stephen Burns on Monday. The letter was also signed by Sens. Edward Markey (D-Mass.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), and Rep. William Keating (D-Mass.). To read the letter to the NRC, click here. Contacts:David Carle (Leahy): 202-224-3693 Michael Briggs (Sanders): 202-224-5141 Kirsten Hartman (Welch): 202-225-4115 ### Press Contact Press Contact David Carle: 202-224-3693 Next Article Previous Article | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/leahy-statement-on-americas-history-of-religious-tolerance-and-respect-for-personal-freedoms | Leahy Statement On America's History of Religious Tolerance and Respect for Personal Freedoms | 2015-12-07 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 12.07.15 Leahy Statement On America's History of Religious Tolerance and Respect for Personal Freedoms Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Committee On The Judiciary, On Religious Tolerance and Respect for Personal Freedoms December 7, 2015 [NOTE: Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) will be joined by faith leaders Tuesday at 11:30am in the Capitol for a press conference on the need to support refugees fleeing persecution and violence throughout the world.] I am appalled that some are espousing the hate-filled view that a country as great as ours should have a religious litmus test. For more than 235 years, the United States has upheld the freedom of religion as one of its founding principles. We have been a confident nation unafraid to welcome newcomers. Our willingness to take in the outsider who yearns for freedom and opportunity in America is a source of tremendous strength, whether opening our doors to Jews fleeing persecution, Catholics including my ancestors seeking a new life, or countless other groups, including Muslims. I am stunned that some, appealing to fear and intolerance, want to end this legacy and are launching direct assaults on these American values. To reject those of a particular faith is unwise, and it is un-American. Leaders should appeal to the best in us by embracing the shared ideals of tolerance and diversity that bind Americans together. Jockeying for attention by spouting ignorant rhetoric that seeks to divide us for personal political gain is unworthy of anyone who truly deserves to lead this great nation. # # # # # Press Contact Press Contact David Carle: 202-224-3693 Next Article Previous Article | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/statement-of-senator-patrick-leahy-d-vt-ranking-member-senate-judiciary-committee-on-judicial-nominationssd | Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On Judicial Nominations | 2015-12-07 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 12.07.15 Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On Judicial Nominations Today, we will vote on the nomination of Travis McDonough to be a Federal district judge in the Eastern District of Tennessee. He was nominated over a year ago, and his nomination was voted out of the Judiciary Committee by unanimous voice vote nearly five months ago. Despite having the support of his home state Republican Senators, Mr. McDonough's nomination has nevertheless been held up by Republican leadership for no good reason. I will further note that while Mr. McDonough's vote is long overdue, Republican leadership has skipped over Judge Luis Felipe Restrepo who is ahead of Mr. McDonough on the Executive Calendar. I recall Republican leadership promising regular order when they took over the majority, so they should explain how skipping over a consensus and eminently qualified nominee with bipartisan support is following regular order. Judge Restrepo was nominated to a judicial emergency vacancy in the Third Circuit over a year ago. If confirmed, he would be the first ever Hispanic judge from Pennsylvania on the Third Circuit. Judge Restrepo has the strong support of the Hispanic National Bar Association, and has bipartisan support from his home state Senators, Senator Toomey and Senator Casey. Senator Toomey has said not only that he strongly supports Judge Restrepo's confirmation, but that he also recommended him to the President. I hope that the Republican leadership or Senator Toomey can explain to the people of Pennsylvania why Judge Restrepo is not being confirmed today. As we approach the end of the year, the Senate Republican majority is coming closer and closer to matching the record for confirming the fewest number of judicial nominees in more than half a century. While most Senators I have served with over the last 40 years would shudder at this fact, the current Republican leadership seems content to accomplish as little as possible when it comes to confirming… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://welch.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/welch-leahy-sanders-challenge-fda-new-fda-cheese-standard | Welch, Leahy, Sanders Challenge FDA on New FDA Cheese Standard | 2015-12-04 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Peter Welch | W000800 | welch.house.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Rep. Peter Welch (D-VT), Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) are leading a bicameral, bipartisan coalition in Congress challenging a new U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) standard that could ban many age-old recipes for raw milk cheese and severely harm artisan cheese producers in Vermont. In a December 3rd letter sent to FDA Deputy Commissioner Michael Taylor, the lawmakers express their concerns about FDA's non-toxigenic E. coli standard for raw milk cheeses, and insist that the agency listen to feedback from cheese producers who would be harmed by the more stringent standard. In addition, they question whether a new FDA standard calling for a thousand-fold decrease in the presence of non-toxigenic E. coli in raw milk cheeses would actually benefit public health, whether the standards are scientifically sound, and if they were adopted in an open and transparent way. The implementation of a more stringent non-toxigenic E. coli standard for raw milk cheeses is inconsistent with internationally-recognized standards. Non-toxigenic E. coli are typically not harmful to humans. The legislators believe that this new standard seriously threatens the artisan cheese industry in Vermont and across the country without evidence of risk to public health. Welch, Leahy, Sanders and their colleagues wrote: Cheese production is an important, and growing, component of our nation's value-added agricultural economy. It is an economic driver in rural areas across the country, producing good jobs, internationally-recognized brands, and award-winning cheeses. We are concerned that this standard could have a detrimental effect on cheese producers in our districts, and we ask that you carefully consider their feedback and that of the scientific community, and whether there is a commensurate risk and public safety benefit with a more stringent standard. The letter can be read in its entirety here. The FDA standard specifically seeks to limit the level of non-tox… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/days-before-program-expires-leahy-and-grassley-urge-support-for-legislation-to-reform_extend-job-creating-foreign-investment-program | Days Before Program Expires, Leahy & Grassley Urge Support For Legislation To Reform & Extend Job-Creating Foreign Investment Program | 2015-12-04 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 12.04.15 Days Before Program Expires, Leahy & Grassley Urge Support For Legislation To Reform & Extend Job-Creating Foreign Investment Program WASHINGTON (Friday, December 4, 2015) The job-creating immigrant investor visa program, known as the EB-5 Regional Center program, is set to expire in just one week if Congress does not move to reauthorize it. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Ranking Member Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) are urging Congressional leaders to support a bipartisan, bicameral proposal that would provide much-needed reforms to the program and reauthorize it for four years. The EB-5 program is not working how it was intended to by Congress. The EB-5 program has serious vulnerabilities, is loaded with fraud and abuse, and isn't nearly the job-creator it has been purported to be. We need to be sure that the EB-5 Regional Center program is not only creating economic stimulus and jobs in areas that need it the most, but also not jeopardizing the nation's security or harming U.S. investors, Grassley said. The program needs an overhaul with the common sense reforms that we've put together in a bipartisan, bicameral way. The status quo is unacceptable. The EB-5 Regional Center program has generated investment and created jobs in distressed communities, but the program is facing some pressing challenges. Reports of rampant fraud and abuse raise serious concerns and threaten the program's mission. The incentives Congress established to spur investment in high unemployment and rural communities are also routinely abused, undermining a core objective of the program, Leahy said. The Regional Center should be reauthorized, but only if reformed. There is now bipartisan consensus around these reforms, and we cannot squander this opportunity. Since launching in 1993, this program has generated capital investment and created jobs across the country. But the program has also experienced significant problems in recent years, underscoring the need for Congress to rest… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/in-late-night-vote-senate-passes-five-year-transportation-funding-package | In Late-Night Vote, Senate Passes Five-Year Transportation Funding Package | 2015-12-04 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 12.04.15 In Late-Night Vote, Senate Passes Five-Year Transportation Funding Package . . . Bill Will Bring More Than $1 Billion To Vermont For Critical Infrastructure Projects [WASHINGTON (FRIDAY, Dec. 4, 2015) On the eve of an expiration deadline, the Senate Thursday night passed legislation to fund America's transportation and highway programs, bringing stability to help Vermont plan critical infrastructure projects for the next five years. Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) voted for The Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act), which authorizes $305 billion in federal surface transportation funding over the next five years. The legislation is now on the President's desk, and he is expected to sign it into law today. The current authorization runs out tonight at Midnight. Following is Leahy's statement on the bill.] Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) On Supporting The Highway Trust Fund Vermonters take great pride in our historic downtowns and small communities. In our cities and towns, we have a culture of getting things done and finding a way to accomplish our shared goals. That is why, like many Vermonters, I have been frustrated with the back-to-back short term patches to keep our highway trust fund afloat. I have consistently advocated for a long-term solution that will give States the ability to move forward with building and repairing roads, bridges, and byways; to promote rail safety and transit, and to invest in the critical infrastructure that supports our cities and towns; to enable interstate and intrastate commerce; and to create jobs for American workers. The time to pass a plan for long term transportation funding has finally come. The FAST Act will bring stability where for too long there has been uncertainty. This bill ensures that Vermont will receive the funding it needs, more than $1.1 billion over the next five years, to allow Vermonters to move forward on infrastruct… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/welch-leahy-sanders-challenge-fda-on-new-fda-cheese-standard | Welch, Leahy, Sanders Challenge FDA on New FDA Cheese Standard | 2015-12-04 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 12.04.15 Welch, Leahy, Sanders Challenge FDA on New FDA Cheese Standard Bipartisan, bicameral coalition warns of threat to Vermont's artisan cheese industry WASHINGTON Rep. Peter Welch (D-VT), Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) are leading a bicameral, bipartisan coalition in Congress challenging a new U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) standard that could ban many age-old recipes for raw milk cheese and severely harm artisan cheese producers in Vermont. In a December 3rd letter sent to FDA Deputy Commissioner Michael Taylor, the lawmakers express their concerns about FDA's non-toxigenic E. coli standard for raw milk cheeses, and insist that the agency listen to feedback from cheese producers who would be harmed by the more stringent standard. In addition, they question whether a new FDA standard calling for a thousand-fold decrease in the presence of non-toxigenic E. coli in raw milk cheeses would actually benefit public health, whether the standards are scientifically sound, and if they were adopted in an open and transparent way. The implementation of a more stringent non-toxigenic E. coli standard for raw milk cheeses is inconsistent with internationally-recognized standards. Non-toxigenic E. coli are typically not harmful to humans. The legislators believe that this new standard seriously threatens the artisan cheese industry in Vermont and across the country without evidence of risk to public health. Welch, Leahy, Sanders and their colleagues wrote: Cheese production is an important, and growing, component of our nation's value-added agricultural economy. It is an economic driver in rural areas across the country, producing good jobs, internationally-recognized brands, and award-winning cheeses. We are concerned that this standard could have a detrimental effect on cheese producers in our districts, and we ask that you carefully consider their feedback and that of the scientif… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/statement-of-senator-patrick-leahy-d-vt-on-supporting-the-highway-trust-fund- | Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) On Supporting The Highway Trust Fund | 2015-12-03 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 12.03.15 Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) On Supporting The Highway Trust Fund Vermonters take great pride in our historic downtowns and small communities. In our cities and towns, we have a culture of getting things done and finding a way to accomplish our shared goals. That is why, like many Vermonters, I have been frustrated with the back-to-back short term patches to keep our highway trust fund afloat. I have consistently advocated for a long-term solution that will give States the ability to move forward with building and repairing roads, bridges, and byways; to promote rail safety and transit, and to invest in the critical infrastructure that supports our cities and towns; to enable interstate and intrastate commerce; and to create jobs for American workers. The time to pass a plan for long term transportation funding has finally come. The FAST Act will bring stability where for too long there has been uncertainty. This bill ensures that Vermont will receive the funding it needs, more than $1.1 billion over the next five years, to allow Vermonters to move forward on infrastructure projects that have been waiting in the wings. In Vermont, the construction season is short and the need is great, and a series of stopgap measures to kick the can down the road was never the right answer. I am pleased there will finally be the stability needed for Vermont, and all states, to move forward to bolster our country's infrastructure. This legislation also reverses changes made to the Federal Crop Insurance program, which was a careful balance first struck in the Farm Bill, sending a clear message that we should not thoughtlessly tamper with the Farm Bill until its next expiration in 2018. And while I'm glad that the harmful Freedom of Information Act exemptions that we eliminated in the Senate bill remain out of this conference report, I am concerned that a new exemption was added. Nowhere is the free flow of information more important than when the safety of every Vermonter, and every American… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/leahy-urges-senate-to-protect-vermont-businesses-from-trade-secret-theft | Leahy Urges Senate To Protect Vermont Businesses From Trade Secret Theft | 2015-12-02 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 12.02.15 Leahy Urges Senate To Protect Vermont Businesses From Trade Secret Theft WASHINGTON (WEDNESDAY, Dec. 2, 2015) The Senate Judiciary Committee Wednesday held a hearing on the impact of trade secret theft on American businesses. At the hearing, Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) noted that Vermont businesses rely on trade secrets to protect their intellectual property and emphasized the importance of those protections. In Vermont, trade secrets protect the specialized knowledge of woodworkers and artisans who have been crafting heirloom products for generations. They protect the secret recipes for Vermont craft brews and closely guarded customer lists for our top tourist services. They protect cutting-edge technologies that Vermont businesses are developing in plastics, complex manufacturing, software and green technology, Leahy said. He added: Trade secrets are especially important to small businesses, which often lack the resources to seek patent protection for their inventions. In the United States, trade secret law is the one form of intellectual property protection that currently lacks a federal civil remedy. Carefully written legislation will fill this gap in the law and provide businesses in Vermont and across the country with an improved tool to protect their intellectual property. Testimony, member statements, and a webcast of today's hearing are available online. # # # # Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing on Protecting Trade Secrets: the Impact of Trade Secret Theft on American Competitiveness and Potential Solutions to Remedy This HarmDecember 2, 2015 Today's hearing focuses on a topic that is essential to our Nation's economy and our status as the leading source of innovation around the world. In Vermont, trade secrets protect the specialized knowledge of woodworkers and artisans who have been crafting heirloom products for generations. They protect the secret recipes for Vermont craft brews and closely-guarded customer… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/leahy-urges-action-as-cola-deadline-approaches-for-seniors-veterans | Leahy Urges Action As COLA Deadline Approaches For Seniors, Veterans | 2015-12-01 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 12.01.15 Leahy Urges Action As COLA Deadline Approaches For Seniors, Veterans Legislation Would Boost Social Security By Closing Multi-Million Dollar Corporate Bonus Loophole WASHINGTON (TUESDAY, Dec. 01, 2015) -- With one month to go until seniors and veterans face a rare zero Cost-Of-Living Adjustment (COLA), Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and other senators Tuesday urged action on the Senate Floor to pass the SAVE Benefits Act. Cosponsored by Leahy, the bill would boost Social Security and veterans benefits by ending tax subsidies for multi-million dollar corporate bonuses. If Congress does not act, seniors and veterans will face a zero COLA on January 1st. The Seniors and Veterans Emergency Benefits Act (SAVE Benefits Act) would provide about 70 million seniors, veterans, people with disabilities and others an emergency supplemental payment of about $581. This payment is equal to 3.9 percent of the average annual Social Security benefit -- the same percentage raise that CEOs at the top 350 firms received last year. The cost of the bill would be covered by closing a tax loophole allowing corporations to write off executive bonuses as a business expense for "performance pay." Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) also supports the bill, whose chief sponsor is Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.),On the Senior and Veterans Emergency (SAVE) Benefits Act December 1, 2015 I want to thank Senator Warren for her leadership on a matter of great importance to millions of Americans. In October, Social Security beneficiaries received some upsetting news. For the third time in 40 years, the Social Security Administration announced that, in 2016, Social Security payments will not include a cost-of-living increase. Unless Congress Acts, seniors and others who receive Social Security benefits will not see an additional dime in payments in the new year. For the nearly two-thirds of beneficiaries … | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/statement-of-senator-patrick-leahy-on-recognizing-past-crimes-against-humanity-in-indonesia | Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy On Recognizing Past Crimes Against Humanity in Indonesia | 2015-12-01 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 12.01.15 Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy On Recognizing Past Crimes Against Humanity in Indonesia Mr. President, the realignment toward Asia has focused our attention on partnerships with countries in the region. We share political, economic, security, and humanitarian interests, creating complex and multi-dimensional relationships. But our commitment to the protection and promotion of human rights must continue to be a foundation for our relations with these countries, as with others around the world. We must continue to advocate for open societies where dialogue and dissent are encouraged and where security forces are professional and accountable. At the same time, we cannot ignore history. Fifty years ago, under the guise of a state-sanctioned communist purge, hundreds of thousands of Indonesian men, women, and children were murdered. Many more were rounded up and led to concentration camps where they were imprisoned and many were tortured by the security forces of a dictatorial and brutal regime that had the backing of the United States. It has been widely recognized as one of the worst mass atrocities of the 20th Century, but efforts to establish a truth and reconciliation commission to come to terms with these crimes have stalled at every turn. The atrocities are still not recognized or discussed by the Indonesian government and the perpetrators were long celebrated as heroes for their actions. The United States should lead by example in acknowledging this tragic history and reaffirm that human rights are at the forefront of our strategic relationships, in Indonesia and beyond. As the most senior member of the Appropriations Committee, I have supported conditions on foreign assistance, including requiring recipient countries to protect freedoms of expression and association, respect the rule of law and due process, reform their judicial systems and security forces, and strengthen other key elements of a democratic society. Through the Leahy Law, I have sought to encourage reform of Indone… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://welch.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/lawmakers-congress-must-act-ethanol-mandate | Lawmakers: Congress Must Act on Ethanol Mandate | 2015-11-30 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Peter Welch | W000800 | welch.house.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON, D.C. Following the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) release of the final rules for the 2014-2016 Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), Reps. Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Steve Womack (R-Ar.), and Jim Costa (D-Calif.) released the following statement: The EPA's decision to funnel more ethanol into the fuel supply is terribly disappointing. The RFS requirements announced today will push ethanol volumes beyond the blendwall in 2016, leaving American consumers and our economy to feel the negative effects. While well-intentioned, it's now abundantly clear the RFS is a broken policy that is having drastic impacts on families, small businesses and retailers, the agriculture community, and the environment. Neglecting the concerns of 184 bipartisan Members of the House of Representatives over increasing ethanol requirements, the EPA proceeded anyway. And since the EPA refuses to keep RFS volumes below the blendwall, Congress must act to fix this broken ethanol mandate. A growing majority in Congress has recognized the real-world limitations' of this bungled policy, and a recent survey found 70 percent of Americans oppose it. The RFS Reform Act is a solution to the problems created by the ethanol mandate, and our bill would finally provide much-needed, long-term relief for those impacted by the failures of this policy. Recently, 184 bipartisan Members of the House of Representatives joined in sending a letter to EPA Administrator McCarthy expressing concerns regarding the proposed 2016 RFS requirements. In February 2015, Goodlatte, Welch, Womack, and Costa introduced the RFS Reform Act (H.R. 704), which eliminates corn-based ethanol requirements, caps the amount of ethanol that can be blended into conventional gasoline at 10 percent, and requires the EPA to set cellulosic biofuels levels at production levels. ### | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://welch.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/hoyer-welch-house-democrats-send-letter-speaker-ryan-need-robust-long | Hoyer, Welch, House Democrats Send Letter to Speaker Ryan on Need for Robust, Long-Term Surface Transportation Funding | 2015-11-27 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Peter Welch | W000800 | welch.house.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON, DC - House Democratic Whip Steny H. Hoyer (MD) joined Congressman Peter Welch (VT) and 60 Democrats in sending the following letter to Speaker Ryan on Wednesday about the need for robust, long-term funding for infrastructure repairs and improvements that will strengthen America's economic competitiveness. To read the letter, click here or see below. November 25, 2015 Hon. Paul D. Ryan Speaker U.S. House of Representatives H-232, The Capitol Washington, DC 20515 Dear Mr. Speaker: As the House and Senate work to finalize a long term surface transportation conference report, we urge you to support the higher funding levels needed to strengthen our surface transportation infrastructure and improve our competitiveness. There is bipartisan agreement that our transportation infrastructure is crumbling because the federal investment has failed to keep pace with our growing transportation needs. A quarter of our bridges are deficient; more than half our road are rated below good condition, and congestion increasingly burdens commerce. The American Society of Civil Engineers gives our infrastructure a nearly failing grade of D+. Prior to MAP-21, successive surface transportation bills consistently provided significant increases in funding. Unfortunately, while the Senate bill does contain small increases above the current inadequate baseline spending levels, neither the House nor the Senate version of H.R. 22 identifies or guarantees the funding sources sufficient to maintain our current transportation infrastructure, let alone the upgrades that are so urgently needed to expand and modernize that infrastructure. Given this shortfall in funding, we urge you to join us in supporting a conference report that packs the most punch by shortening the duration of the reauthorization perhaps to three or four years instead of six -- and increasing the transportation investment in each of those years. This is not a novel idea: the Chamber of Commerce recently wrote, The Chamber urges you to ensure that the co… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/-with-gratitude-in-our-hearts-lets-resolve-to-end-hunger | With Gratitude In Our Hearts, Lets Resolve To End Hunger | 2015-11-23 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.23.15 With Gratitude In Our Hearts, Let's Resolve To End Hunger By Patrick Leahy This week we gather with family and friends to celebrate Thanksgiving and rekindle some of the most important relationships in our lives. All of us in this great and good land have things to be thankful for. Some of us will give special thanks for good health or good fortune over the past year. We are always grateful when we can spend time with our loved ones. As we express thanks for the bounty that we enjoy, it can be easy to take for granted the comfortable shelter and the full tables that help make homecoming comfortable. For the 48 million Americans struggling with food insecurity, Thanksgiving can be a time of great stress and need as they grapple with the challenges of affording enough food for their families. Each and every day, millions of Americans face the uncertainty of not knowing when they and their families will have their next meals. Hunger and malnourishment are not confined to developing nations; they exist across the nation, and in our own communities. Nearly one in seven Vermonters receives 3SquaresVT help, and about 13 percent of all Vermont households face food hardship each year. One in five children faces hunger each day in Vermont, while more than 150,000 Vermonters each year rely on the safety net of food shelves, meal sites, senior centers and after-school programs for nutritional resources that they would not otherwise have without the support of the people of their communities. Across the nation, the costs of everyday essentials like food, heat, housing and medicine continue to rise, straining families' budgets. Americans should not have the impossible dilemma of having to choose between heat and food, but far too many must do that. Hunger can take its biggest toll on children. Kids who live in food-insecure homes are at greater risk of developmental setbacks, poor academic performance, nutrient d… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/our-enemy-is-isis-not-refugees-fleeing-isis | Our Enemy Is ISIS, Not Refugees Fleeing ISIS | 2015-11-20 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.20.15 Our Enemy Is ISIS, Not Refugees Fleeing ISIS Last Thursday, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to make it almost impossible for people from Syria and Iraq, fleeing the brutality of ISIS and Bashar al-Assad, to find refuge in the United States. It is worth reflecting on what this means for our country. Just a few weeks ago the world came together, stunned and heartbroken over the image of a three-year-old Syrian child's lifeless body washed up on a Turkish beach. His tragic death focused our attention on the desperate plight of so many Syrians who have fled the horror of ISIS and Assad's army. We called it the humanitarian issue of our day. We called forth images of the Statue of Liberty and our proud history as a safe haven for those fleeing persecution and war. Just days later, we hear calls to slam the door. To shut down our borders. To ignore that great symbol of refuge standing in New York Harbor. We should remember that the people we will shut out are those very children who touched our hearts just weeks ago. We watched in horror as desperate mothers and fathers loaded their infants into precarious rafts, awestruck that the risk of death was preferable to whatever terror they were fleeing. We are a country of immigrants. In the past year, about 70,000 refugees from almost 70 countries have resettled in the United States. Fewer than 2000 were Syrians mostly children, women, and the elderly who have been the victims of horrific violence and acts of terrorism, like ISIS's victims in Paris. By contrast, some nations have accepted hundreds of thousands of these desperate people. They have come here only after passing the most rigorous screening procedures for any population of travelers, which involve multiple federal law enforcement agencies and require anywhere from 18 months to two years to complete. Vermont has a proud and compassionate history of welcoming refugees, as Governor Shumlin has demonstrated in upholding our legacy, in the face of the knee-jerk retreats signaled by … | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/statement-of-senator-patrick-leahy-d-vt-ranking-member-senate-judiciary-committee-on-the-need-to-reform-the-eb-5-regional-center-program- | Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On the Need To Reform the EB-5 Regional Center Program | 2015-11-20 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.20.15 Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On the Need To Reform the EB-5 Regional Center Program I have championed the EB-5 Regional Center program for many years. I have done so because I have seen its ability to generate investment and create jobs in distressed communities. But the program is facing some pressing challenges. Reports of rampant fraud and abuse raise serious concerns and threaten to cripple the program's integrity. The incentives Congress established to invest in high unemployment and rural communities are also routinely abused, undermining a core objective of the programto spur growth and create jobs in underserved areas. The Regional Center program is set to expire on December 11. It should be reauthorized, but we should not extend it blindly. There is bipartisan consensus that the program is in dire need of reform, and we cannot squander this opportunity. I have long sought reforms to the Regional Center program. Last Congress, my EB-5 amendment to Comprehensive Immigration Reform provided the Department of Homeland Security additional authority to revoke suspect regional center designations or immigrant petitions. It also provided for increased reporting, background checks, and securities oversight. My amendment was unanimously approved in the Judiciary Committee, but unfortunately the improvements it contained have all had to wait, as the House of Representatives failed to allow a vote on the bipartisan immigration reform bill that passed the Senate last Congress. In the past year, only more concerns have emerged. In January, I joined Senators Grassley, Corker, Johnson, and others in requesting that the Government Accountability Office (GAO) audit the EB-5 program. The GAO report, released in August, detailed fraud vulnerabilities within the program and questioned its economic impact. Separate reports from the Department of Homeland Security's Office of Intelligence and Analysis and Office of the Inspector General highligh… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/leahy-continues-leading-role-in-bipartisan-push-to-reauthorize-and-fund-the-nations-premier-conservation-fund | Leahy Continues Leading Role In Bipartisan Push To Reauthorize And Fund The Nations Premier Conservation Fund | 2015-11-19 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.19.15 Leahy Continues Leading Role In Bipartisan Push To Reauthorize And Fund The Nation's Premier Conservation Fund . . . Land And Water Conservation Fund Is Under Attack In The House WASHINGTON (THURSDAY, Nov. 19, 2015) Ratcheting up a bipartisan effort to reauthorize a longstanding conservation program, Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) this week joined a coalition of 14 senators calling on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Minority Leader Harry Reid to move to permanently reauthorize the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), and provide full mandatory funding for the program. Leahy also led a separate bipartisan letter to the chair and ranking member of the Senate Appropriations Committee's Subcommittee on Interior, Environment and Related Agencies urging strong funding for the LWCF and the Forest Legacy Program in Fiscal Year 2016. The authorization for the LWCF expired in September after 50 years of funding conservation work in communities in Vermont and across the nation. Leahy and other senators wrote Leader McConnell and Minority Leader Reid: For the economy, sportsmen, veterans, wildlife and our kids and grandkids, we must permanently reauthorize LWCF it is America's most successful conservation program. We also strongly request that you include mandatory full funding in any must-pass year end legislation. The Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1964 established one of America's most successful conservation programs. Using funds primarily derived from oil and gas receipts paid to the federal government by energy companies that extract publically owned resources not using tax dollars -- the program supports the nation's land, water, historic and recreational heritage. The program also supports America's outdoor recreation, conservation and preservation economies, which contribute more than $1 trillion to the nation's economy each year and support 9.4 million American jobs. Leahy, the … | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/senate-floor-remarks-of-senator-patrick-leahy-d-vt-as-he-and-senator-richard-durbin-d-ill-object-to-the-sudden-bid-by-senator-cruz-to-bring-his-anti-refugee-bill-to-an-immediate-senate-vote | Senate Floor Remarks Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) As He And Senator Richard Durbin (D-Ill.) Object To The Sudden Bid By Senator Cruz To Bring His Anti-Refugee Bill To An Immediate Senate Vote | 2015-11-19 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.19.15 Senate Floor Remarks Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) As He And Senator Richard Durbin (D-Ill.) Object To The Sudden Bid By Senator Cruz To Bring His Anti-Refugee Bill To An Immediate Senate Vote [Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Senator Richard Durbin (D-Ill.) on Thursday spoke on the Senate Floor to object to a bid by Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) to force an immediate vote on his anti-refugee bill, introduced an hour earlier. Leahy for decades has been a leader in honoring America's commitment to help refugees seeking safety from atrocities abroad and is the coauthor of the bipartisan legislation to respond to the refugee crisis the Middle East Refugee Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act which he introduced with Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.). Recalling the heartbreak felt the world over on seeing the image of a three-year old Syrian child's lifeless body washed up on a Turkish beach, Leahy said that ISIS is our enemy, NOT the Syrian refugees fleeing ISIS atrocities.] I thank the distinguished chair. I'm worried in this country that we hear rhetoric that is dangerous, and it's time to stop. It shames the very nature of what America is. We hear ideas that are wrong. I would say they are deeply anti-American. My Italian grandparents and my Irish great great-grandparents heard some of this rhetoric when some in this country said they shouldn't come here. Don't allow these papists into the United States. Don't allow these Irish that are opposed to the rule of Great Britain in their island that actually stood up and fought against Great Britain. And the words back then, like some of the words today, come from a place of fear and hatred. I don't want to stand by quietly and see the victims of terrorism and torture be demonized just so people will have a talking point for the local evening news. We are better than this. The bill that my colleague, the junior senator from Texas, introduced an hour ago would prevent virtually all nationals of Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Syria, and Yemen from re… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/statement-of-senator-patrick-leahy-d-vt-ranking-member-senate-judiciary-committee-on-the-anniversary-of-executive-action-on-immigration | Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On The Anniversary Of Executive Action On Immigration | 2015-11-19 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.19.15 Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On The Anniversary Of Executive Action On Immigration A year ago today, in a nationwide address, President Obama announced a series of measures to improve our broken immigration system. He outlined efforts to focus scarce resources on identifying and deporting those people who pose a danger to our communities, to modernize our legal immigration system, and to provide temporary relief from the threat of deportation forhardworking, law-abiding members of our communities. For many, the President's announcement offered, at last, a hope for stability. It acknowledged the longstanding presence and contributions of immigrants to our country. But the President's announcement also underscored the real human consequences of the House of Representatives failing to allow a vote to reform our immigration laws. Importantly, it highlighted the impracticality of deporting 11 million undocumented immigrants. Many of them have strong family ties in the United States and a deep desire to become fully integrated in our country. They are mothers and fathers, sisters and brothers, sons and daughters. To suggest that we can simply remove them is unrealistic and it would conflict with fundamental American values. The President's executive action is no substitute for legislation. He reminded critics of that very fact during his address, pointing out that the commonsense, responsible solution to the problems in our immigration system is to pass a comprehensive reform bill. A year later, the Republican-led Senate has failed to debate, let alone pass meaningful immigration reform. Instead, it has repeatedly taken up divisive and partisan proposals that do not reflect a desire to fix what we all agree is a broken system. These political gimmicks are not serious attempts to address an issue as important as immigration and could not be more different from what the Democratic-led Senate accomplished in 2013 when we passed a bipartisan… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/chamberlin-school-south-burlington-vt | Chamberlin School, South Burlington, VT | 2015-11-18 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.18.15 Chamberlin School, South Burlington, VT On November 18, 2015, Senator Leahy hosted an online chat with the Chamberlin School of South Burlington. The Senator was impressed with the engagement of the fifth grade classrooms, and enjoyed their rendition of their school song. The Senator also enjoyed answering their questions on his long term projects in the Senate, like his work on the USDA Farm to School grant program. Press Contact Press Contact David Carle: 202-224-3693 Next Article Previous Article | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/comment-of-senator-patrick-leahy-d-vt-on-the-need-to-support-refugees-fleeing-violence | Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) On the Need to Support Refugees Fleeing Violence | 2015-11-18 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.18.15 Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) On the Need to Support Refugees Fleeing Violence [Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) issued the following comment Wednesday on the need to support Syrian refugees. Leahy, who is also the Ranking Member of the State Department's budget committee the State Department and Foreign Operations Appropriations Subcommittee has long led efforts to support assistance for refugees. He is the coauthor of the bipartisan Graham-Leahy Middle East Refugee Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act to respond to the refugee crisis resulting from conflict in the Middle East.] Just a few weeks ago the world came together stunned and heartbroken over the image of a three year old Syrian child's lifeless body washed up on a Turkish beach. His tragic death focused our attention on the desperate plight of so many Syrians who have fled the horror of ISIS and Bashar al-Assad. We called it the humanitarian issue of our day. We called forth images of the Statue of Liberty and our proud history as a land of refuge for those fleeing persecution. Those who call now to slam our doors on even properly vetted Syrian refugees should remember that the people we will shut out are those very children who touched our hearts just weeks ago. We are all horrified by what happened in Beirut and Paris. We need an effective, thoughtful strategy for countering ISIS and other terrorist organizations. That is something we should be debating, because what we have done so far is not working. ISIS is our enemy. The Syrian people fleeing ISIS are not. # # # # # Press Contact Press Contact David Carle: 202-224-3693 Next Article Previous Article | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/senator-leahy-invites-vt-family-to-testify-at-hearing-on-international-adoption | Senator Leahy Invites VT Family To Testify At Hearing On International Adoption | 2015-11-18 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.18.15 Senator Leahy Invites VT Family To Testify At Hearing On International Adoption WASHINGTON (Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2015) Christine Hutchins and her family from Cambridge, Vt., Wednesday came to the Senate Judiciary Committee to share their story of adopting their son James from Sierra Leone. Hutchins was invited to testify by the committee Ranking Member Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) at the hearing, just days before National Adoption Day. Leahy said: The Hutchins' journey to parenthood is one of courage and perseverance. They represent many other Vermont families who have similarly opened their hearts to a child in need through international adoption. I have been inspired by each Vermont family my office has helped through the adoption process. Hutchins testified during the hearing about her experience adopting her new son James in May, 2015. She and her husband Jonathan have been married for 11 years. Christine and Jonathan live in Cambridge, Vt., where Jonathan was raised. Christine was raised in Georgia, Vt. Hutchins' sister-in-law, Jennifer Smithers, and her husband Gregory Smithers, who adopted James' twin sister Grace were also at the hearing. Both families represent many other Vermont families who have similarly opened their hearts to children in need through international adoption. Leahy's full statement is available here, and Hutchins' statement is available here. # # # # # Press Contact Press Contact David Carle: 202-224-3693 Next Article Previous Article | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/statement-of-senator-patrick-leahy-d-vt-ranking-member-senate-judiciary-committee-hearing-on-national-adoption-month-stories-of-success-and-meeting-the-challenges-of-international-adoptions | Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, Hearing on National Adoption Month: Stories of Success and Meeting the Challenges of International Adoptions | 2015-11-18 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.18.15 Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, Hearing on National Adoption Month: Stories of Success and Meeting the Challenges of International Adoptions Next week, millions of families in this country will gather around a table to give thanks for the many blessings they have received. For proud parents and grandparents, this of course includes their children and grandchildren. It is fitting that this month we also recognize National Adoption Month, which honors the adoptive families who selflessly open their hearts and homes to children from the United States and around the world who are in need of a safe and loving family. Today we raise awareness about some of the barriers to international adoption and recommit ourselves to work together to improve the international adoption system. We must unite as families, communities, and policy makers, to find permanent, loving homes for all children. We will hear inspirational stories of international adoption. I am honored to welcome Christine Hutchins from Cambridge, Vermont. She and her husband, Jonathan Hutchins, welcomed their son James from Sierra Leone last year. I would also like to welcome Christine's sister-in-law, Jennifer Smithers, and her husband Gregory Smithers, who adopted James' twin sister Grace. Their journey to parenthood is one of courage and perseverance. They represent many other Vermont families who have similarly opened their hearts to a child in need through international adoption. I have been inspired by each family my office has helped through the adoption process. These families include Rabbi Joanie Chase and her husband Harley Parry from Rutland, Vermont, who adopted their son Ezra, from Ethiopia. My office helped to expedite the adoption process due to Ezra's health issues at the time. Ezra is now four years old. He is very healthy, active and much loved by his family, especially by his 10-year old sister, Arielle. Sarah and Paul Messenger of Townshend, Vermont, adopte… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://welch.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/welch-statement-speaker-shap-smith | Welch Statement on Speaker Shap Smith | 2015-11-17 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Peter Welch | W000800 | welch.house.gov | legacy | WASHINGTONRep. Peter Welch (D-VT) today issued the following statement on Speaker Shap Smith's decision to suspend his gubernatorial campaign. The challenges of life arrive on their own timetable, never convenient and always disruptive. Melissa has a thriving career as a much loved community physician. And Shap is a respected attorney, legislative leader, and strong gubernatorial candidate. For them, the timing could not have been worse. But that was beyond their control. What was within their control was how they responded. They are both fully engaged parents to Eli and Mia. They are both deeply committed to each other. And, together, they made a decision that reveals their strong character. We all support them and wish them well. ### | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/comment-of-senator-patrick-leahy-on-speaker-shap-smith | Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy On Speaker Shap Smith | 2015-11-17 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.17.15 Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy On Speaker Shap Smith I spoke with Speaker Smith today and conveyed the heartfelt hopes, wishes and prayers that Marcelle and I have for him, Melissa and their family. Throughout his career in public service, Shap has worked to keep his priorities in order, striving to do the right things, for the right reasons. That has been a mark of his character, and a reason for the deep respect he has earned across our state. In this difficult decision, he has done that again. Press Contact Press Contact David Carle: 202-224-3693 Next Article Previous Article | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/leahy-vermont-nets-125000-to-connect-schools-and-local-farms_ | Leahy: Vermont Nets $125,000 To Connect Schools And Local Farms | 2015-11-17 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.17.15 Leahy: Vermont Nets $125,000 To Connect Schools And Local Farms WASHINGTON (Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2015) A program long championed by Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) will invest $125,000 in bolstering efforts to bring local agriculture into the classrooms and cafeterias of schools across Vermont. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced the Farm to School grants Tuesday to connect child nutrition programs with local farmers. Leahy said: Tying local agriculture to our schools not only provides our children with healthy meals and improved nutrition, it encourages a long standing connection to the farms that are so iconic of our Green Mountain State. Every student deserves equal access to healthy meals, and I am proud that our school nutrition leaders will use these funds to help all children gain a better understand about where their food comes from. Today's announcement is another example of how Vermont continues to lead the nation in implementing this winning strategy. The Burlington School District received a $100,000 grant to expand hands-on food and garden-based education. The district has several gardens, which schools use to integrate nutrition education into the curriculum. Through the use of hands-on food science students are gaining heightened awareness of the importance of cultivation and nutrition. The funds will also be used to increase the availability of local beef in school meals. Farm to School is a valuable tool in creating food access for students and providing them with the ability to learn about their food, where it comes from, and the farmers growing it, said Doug Davis, Director of Food Service for the Burlington School Food Project. Knowing where your food comes from is one of the most important aspects of creating a sustainable food system. Burlington has been working in Farm to School for well over 10 years, and this grant will help us to move our program forward and allow us to create a model that can be replicated around our state. I am grateful to… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/statement-of-senator-patrick-leahy-d-vt-in-support-of-the-administrations-clean-power-plan | Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), In Support of the Administrations Clean Power Plan | 2015-11-17 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.17.15 Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), In Support of the Administration's Clean Power Plan [WASHINGTON (Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2015) The Senate Tuesday passed two resolutions disapproving the Environmental Protection Agency's Clean Power Plan, an historic initiative led by the administration to combat the effects of climate change and benefit public health by reducing carbon emissions and encouraging a cleaner energy future. Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) has long warned that the threat of climate change is now at our doorstep and called the resolutions an attempt to roll back one of the most meaningful environmental initiatives of our time.] Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.),In Support of the Administration's Clean Power Plan November 17, 2015 There is irrefutable evidence, with more accumulating all the time, that humans have altered not just the weather of a region, but the climate of our entire planet. From flooding felt across the country to extreme temperatures from north to south and east to west, these severe events are happening more and more frequently. Droughts are proliferating, wildfires are bigger and more expensive, tropical storms and hurricanes are more intense. You can look no further than the damage wrought in Vermont in the wake of Tropical Storm Irene a storm that had greatly weakened since first making landfall, but still so powerful as to deliver hundreds of millions of dollars in damage to our small state. It was enough to convince many Vermonters of the reality of climate change, as they watched roads washed away and iconic covered ridges yanked out of the footings that had supported them for generations. The science and the data by now are clear that human activities are a factor in the climate change that is unfolding all around us and in every corner of the globe. But common sense alone should tell us, as we look about us and see all of the carbon and pollution that is being pumped into our thin and fragile atmosphere, that all of these human activit… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/statement-of-senator-patrick-leahy-d-vt-ranking-member-senate-judiciary-committee-on-judicial-nominations321 | Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On Judicial Nominations | 2015-11-16 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.16.15 Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On Judicial Nominations Today, we will vote on the nomination of LaShann Hall to be a Federal district judge in the Eastern District of New York. She was nominated over a year ago, and her nomination was voted out of the Judiciary Committee by unanimous voice vote more than five months ago. Ms. Hall is an outstanding African American attorney who will fill a judicial emergency vacancy. There is no reason Senate Republicans should have delayed her confirmation for this long. The Senate this week should also vote on the next nominee on the calendar, who was nominated on the same day over a year ago as Ms. Hall. Judge Luis Felipe Restrepo will be the first ever Hispanic judge from Pennsylvania on the Third Circuit. Judge Restrepo has strong bipartisan support from his home state Senators, Senator Toomey and Senator Casey, and there is an urgent need to fill the emergency vacancy on the Third Circuit to which he has been nominated. I have heard no objection to his nomination, and Senator Toomey has said he not only strongly supports Judge Restrepo's confirmation but he also recommended him to the President. I hope the Majority Leader will finally schedule his vote this week. In the eleven months that the Senate has been under Republican control this year, the Senate has only voted to confirm 9 judges. This obstruction has resulted in needless delays for hard-working Americans who seek justice in our Federal courts. Currently pending on the Senate floor are nominees who would fill judicial emergency vacancies in Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Minnesota, New Jersey, Iowa, New York, and California. Senate Republicans have refused to alleviate the urgent needs in those states. It does not have to be this way. When Senate Democrats were in the majority during the last two years of the Bush presidency, we had already confirmed 36 judges by this same time. We made sure that we fulfilled our constitutional duty to provide… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://welch.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/welch-responds-ethanol-industry-attack-ad-airing-vermont-press | Welch Responds to Ethanol Industry Attack Ad Airing in Vermont; Press Availability Monday Morning in Barre | 2015-11-14 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Peter Welch | W000800 | welch.house.gov | legacy | BURLINGTON, Vt.Representative Peter Welch today released the following statement in response to a misleading television attack ad being aired in Vermont this weekend by the corn ethanol industry. The ad attacks Welch for his leadership of a broad, bipartisan House coalition fighting to reform the federal mandate to blend corn ethanol into the gasoline used to fuel cars, trucks, motorcycles, ATVs and snowmobiles, as well as the small engines that power boats, chainsaws and lawnmowers. The mandate is known as the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). Previously, Welch and his colleagues worked to successfully repeal two federal subsidies to the corn ethanol industry. Rep. Welch first learned of the harmful impact of corn ethanol policy on Vermonters several years ago when he visited Franklin County Field Days and was approached by a small group upset that corn ethanol in gasoline had ruined their chainsaw engines. Next he heard from Vermont dairy farmers who reported that the diversion of corn to produce ethanol was driving up feed and food prices. Soon after, Welch's own chainsaw stopped running. He was told by his local repair shop that the engine damage was caused by corn ethanol in the gasoline used to power the chainsaw. On Monday morning at the Vermont Food Shelf in Barre, Rep. Welch will be joined at a press conference by Vermonters affected by federal corn ethanol policy. The press conference will begin immediately following Welch's previously scheduled tour of the Vermont Foodbank where he will urge Vermonters to help those in need, especially during the holiday season. Welch's statement in response to corn ethanol industry attack ad: The corn ethanol industry is spreading a Washington-sized load of manure across Vermont. There is simply no place for this kind of corporate-funded deceptive attack ad in Vermont. These out-of-state subsidized corporations are entitled to their opinion but they cannot ignore the facts. The fact is that corn ethanol is ruining the small engines that power lawnmowe… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/statement-of-senator-patrick-leahy-d-vt-on-the-terrorist-attacks-in-paris | Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) On The Terrorist Attacks In Paris | 2015-11-14 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.14.15 Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) On The Terrorist Attacks In Paris Vermonters and all Americans, and people of goodwill the world over, stand shoulder to shoulder and heart to heart with the people of France in sorrow and solidarity. The repugnant and perverse impulses that misguided movements use to degrade human beings to commit such acts of barbarity have no place in the civilized world. Press Contact Press Contact David Carle: 202-224-3693 Next Article Previous Article | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/nyt-editorial_senate-republicans-are-undermining-the-justice-system | NYT Editorial: Senate Republicans Are Undermining The Justice System | 2015-11-13 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.13.15 NYT Editorial: Senate Republicans Are Undermining The Justice System WASHINGTON (Friday, November 13, 2015) Senate Republicans are on pace to confirm the fewest number of judges in more than a half century. The Republicans' poor record has led to increased vacancies in courts throughout the country, and a backlog of judicial nominees pending on the floor. In an editorial Friday, the New York Times noted this obstruction undermine(s) the justice system, and the biggest victims are ordinary Americans who cannot count on fully functioning courts. Among the nominees pending on the executive calendar is Judge Luis Felipe Restrepo, who was nominated exactly one year ago to fill an emergency vacancy on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in Pennsylvania.Restrepo was unanimously confirmed two years ago by the Senate to serve as a district court judge, and his nomination to the circuit court has the support of both Pennsylvania Senators. Yet despite that backing, Republicans have yet to schedule a vote on Restrepo and his confirmation before the end of the year may be in jeopardy. Earlier this week, Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) urged Republicans to quickly schedule a confirmation vote on Restrepo and all pending judicial nominees before the end of the year. Although there is an urgent need to fill the emergency vacancy on the Third Circuit, the Republican leadership has refused to hold a confirmation vote, Leahy said. All Democrats support this nominee. I hope Senator Toomey will seek a firm commitment from his Republican leadership to schedule a vote this week for Judge Restrepo. The Senate will vote Monday on the confirmation of LaShann Hall, an African American woman who also was nominated exactly one year ago to fill an emergency vacancy on the Eastern District of New York. This will be the Senate's first vote on a judicial nominee in three weeks. Currently there are 21 judicial nominees pending, including 10 to fill emergency vacancies. Read the fu… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/sens-franken-leahy-urge-president-obama-to-take-action-against-forced-arbitration-clauses-that-strip-away-americans-rights | Sens. Franken, Leahy Urge President Obama to Take Action Against Forced Arbitration Clauses That Strip Away Americans Rights | 2015-11-12 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.12.15 Sens. Franken, Leahy Urge President Obama to Take Action Against Forced Arbitration Clauses That Strip Away Americans' Rights Both Senators Have Long Fought to Limit Forced Arbitration; This Month, New York Times Ran Investigative Series on This Unfair Practice WASHINGTON, D.C [11/12/15]Today, U.S. Sens. Al Franken (D-Minn.) and Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) pressed President Obama to take action against forced arbitration, which is when companiesfrom cell phone carriers to banksslip fine print into consumer and employment contracts that strip away rights from millions of Americans. Earlier this month, the New York Times ran a several-part series exposing the dangers of this practice. In a letter sent Thursday, Sens. Franken, Leahy, and 14 others asked the President to do everything he can to help ban the practice of forced arbitration. The Senators called for an Administration-wide effort to address this growing problem and asked the President to support steps that some federal agencies are already taking to limit forced arbitration. The [New York] Times' reporting revealed how forced arbitration deprives Americans of one of their most fundamental constitutional rights: the right to have their claims heard in a court of law, wrote the lawmakers. These clauses, which are often buried in the fine print of employment and consumer contracts, severely restrict Americans' access to justice. We strongly support legislative and regulatory efforts to eliminate forced arbitration clauses, and commend your own advances on this critical issue. But we believe that more must be done. Sens. Franken and Leahy, the leading Senate authors of the Arbitration Fairness Act, have long focused on the problem of forced arbitration clauses that waive individuals' rights to bring a claim in court or to join other litigants in a class action. The two have highlighted the issue in hearings of the Senate Judiciary Committee in 2007, 200… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://welch.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/rep-welch-co-leads-bipartisan-coalition-demanding-house-vote-use | Rep. Welch Co-Leads Bipartisan Coalition Demanding House Vote on Use of Military Force Against ISIS | 2015-11-10 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Peter Welch | W000800 | welch.house.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Rep. Peter Welch (D-VT) is the co-leader of a new bipartisan coalition of 35 House lawmakers demanding the House of Representatives debate and vote on U.S. military involvement in the campaign to defeat ISIS. Following the recent announcement by President Obama of a deepening entanglement in Syria and Iraq, Rep. Welch and his colleagues sent a letter on Friday to House Speaker Paul Ryan demanding House action on an Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF). Joining Welch in leading the letter were Representatives Jim McGovern (D-MA), Tom Cole (R-OK), Barbara Lee (D-CA), Walter Jones (R-NC), and John Lewis (D-GA). Click here to view the letter. Last week, the president announced [that] the U.S. will deploy a U.S. Special Operations contingent into northern Syria to be embedded with and to advise opposition militant forces in that region; and U.S. military advisors and special operations forces already in Iraq will be embedded with Kurdish and Iraqi forces on the front lines of combat, the letter reads. A significant escalation in U.S. military operations in the region that places U.S. military personnel on the front lines of combat operations. We do not share the same policy prescriptions for U.S. military engagement in the region, but we do share the belief that it is past time for the Congress to fulfill its obligations under the Constitution and vote on an AUMF that clearly delineates the authority and limits, if any, on U.S. military engagement in Iraq, Syria and the surrounding region, the lawmakers added. Congress can no longer ask our brave service men and women to continue to serve in harm's way while we fail in carrying out our constitutional responsibility in the area of war and peace, the lawmakers concluded. As long as the House fails to assert its constitutional prerogatives and authority, the Administration may continue to expand the mission and level of engagement of U.S. Armed Forces throughout the region. We strongly urge you, Mr. Speaker, to bring an AUMF to the floor of the … | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/leahy-senate-republicans-should-confirm-all_consensus-judicial-nominees-before-end-of-year | Leahy: Senate Republicans Should Confirm All Consensus Judicial Nominees Before End Of Year | 2015-11-10 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.10.15 Leahy: Senate Republicans Should Confirm All Consensus Judicial Nominees Before End Of Year WASHINGTON (Tuesday, November 10, 2015) Senate Republicans are on pace to confirm the fewest number of judges in more than a half century, and yet, the Republican majority will once again not hold a confirmation vote this week for any one of the 21 consensus nominees pending on the executive calendar. Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) on Tuesday urged Republicans to reverse course and quickly schedule confirmation votes on these nominees before the end of the year. The American people and the entire Federal justice system depend on the members of this body to fulfill our constitutional duty of providing advice and consent on judicial nominees, Leahy said. This Senatorial duty is one we cannot neglect. We should be supporting the judiciary by confirming qualified nominees to fill vacancies in courts throughout the country. All 21 judicial nominees pending in the Senate were reported unanimously by the Judiciary Committee. This includes 5 nominees from the U.S. Court of Federal Claims that were nominated a year and a half ago, as well as 10 judicial nominees to fill emergency vacancies. This week marks the one-year anniversary of the nomination of two outstanding nominees who continue to be held up without explanation. One of these nominees is LaShann Hall, an African American woman who was nominated last year to fill an emergency vacancy on the Eastern District of New York. The next nominee pending after her is Judge Luis Felipe Restrepo, who was nominated last year to fill an emergency vacancy on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in Pennsylvania. While both nominees have the strong support of their home state Senators and were reported by the Judiciary Committee unanimously, they have waited for months on the Senate floor. Leahy warned that if the Republican majority does not pick up the pace, even nominees with Republican supportlike Restrepowill not be confi… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/statement-of-senator-patrick-leahy-d-vt-ranking-member-senate-judiciary-committee-on-judicial-nominations321- | Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On Judicial Nominations | 2015-11-10 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.10.15 Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On Judicial Nominations After finally scheduling a few confirmation votes on Federal judges last month, Senate Republicans have reverted back to holding up the confirmation process for no good reason. The American people and the entire Federal justice system depend on the members of this body to fulfill our constitutional duty of providing advice and consent on judicial nominees. This Senatorial duty is one we cannot neglect. However, that is exactly what has happened since Senate Republicans took over the majority this year. I had hoped that last month's judicial confirmation votes were an indication that Senate Republicans were finally ready to make progress on the backlog of well-qualified and uncontroversial nominees awaiting their confirmation vote. But again this week there is no sign of when the next judicial nominee will receive a vote. This is no way to lead the Senate. When Senate Democrats were in the majority during the last two years of the Bush presidency, we had already confirmed 34 judges by this same time. I have heard Republicans trying to justify their slowdown on judicial nominations by claiming they should somehow receive credit for 11 judges confirmed at the end of the last Congress. That excuse holds no water. It is well-established Senate precedent that all pending consensus nominees should be confirmed before the end of a year. And even if we added those 11 judges to the 9 confirmed this year, that would still bring us to only 20 which is a far cry from the 34 Democrats confirmed in the last two years of the Bush administration. The process of confirming judges is about ensuring that the American people have a fully functioning judiciary. Instead, because of Republican obstruction, judicial vacancies have increased by more than 50 percent since they took over the majority and caseloads are piling up in courts throughout the country. Equally alarming is the fact that the number o… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/statement-of-senator-patrick-leahy-on-the-detention-of-hossam-bahgat | Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy On The Detention of Hossam Bahgat | 2015-11-10 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.10.15 Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy On The Detention of Hossam Bahgat [On Monday, November 9, a statement by Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) on the detention of Egyptian journalist and human rights defender Hossam Bahgat, and on the continuing attacks on freedom of expression in Egypt, was published in the Congressional Record. Upon learning of Bahgat's release earlier today (Tuesday), Leahy said: I am pleased that the Egyptian government has decided not to proceed with its attempt to silence Hossam Bahgat. I hope this is a sign that the government recognizes it has a responsibility to protect the fundamental right of its citizens to access to a free press. Senator Leahy's Monday statement is below.] Mr. President, there is no right that is more fundamental to a democracy than freedom of expression. When this right, enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, is threatened or curtailed, dictatorship is the predictable result. Regrettably, that is what we see happening in Egypt today. Like others here I received word this morning that Hossam Bahgat, an Egyptian journalist and one of that country's prominent human rights defenders, has been detained and may be charged in military court. He is apparently accused of publishing false news related to an article about an allegedly foiled military coup. According to information I have received, an October 13th article by Mr. Bahgat described the military prosecution of 26 officers and two Muslim Brotherhood members for allegedly planning to overthrow the government. The next day, the same publication printed the article in English under the title A coup busted? For this, Mr. Bahgat is being investigated by military prosecutors and could face one or more years behind bars. According to Mr. Bahgat's article which was based on the indictment in that case, authorities had summoned or arrested most of the defendants in April. Some of the detained officers alleged that they were tortured during interrogations inside military intelligence headq… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/veterans-day-message-from-senator-patrick-leahy | Veterans Day Message From Senator Patrick Leahy | 2015-11-10 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.10.15 Veterans Day Message From Senator Patrick Leahy It is fitting that on the eve of Veterans Day, the Senate passed an annual VA funding bill that takes further steps toward fulfilling our commitment to those who have served and sacrificed for this nation, for each of us. There is much that is good in this bill. These budget gains are not enough, but they are an improvement, and they will make a difference. Budgets are a reflection of our priorities. Honoring our commitments to America's veterans must always be a top priority every year, and always. On Veterans Day, and on every other day, let us always pause to remember. Let us strive to honor and thank these brave men and women and their families for their sacrifices. And let us fulfill our own sacred obligation to care for them when they have returned home to us. # # # # # [Senator Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., is co-chair of the Senate National Guard Caucus and the most senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee.] Press Contact Press Contact David Carle: 202-224-3693 Next Article Previous Article | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/reaction-of-senator-patrick-leahy-d-vt-to-the-presidents-decision-on-the-keystone-xl-pipeline | Reaction Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) To The Presidents Decision On The Keystone XL Pipeline | 2015-11-06 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.06.15 Reaction Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) To The President's Decision On The Keystone XL Pipeline This has been a long time coming, but the President has made the right decision. Taking either a long view or a short one, this misguided project is not in the national interest of the United States. Keystone XL represents the energy past. This inherently dirty tar sands project would be a wasteful diversion from the cleaner and more sustainable energy future and energy security that we want for ourselves and our children. It has no place in the energy future and the energy economy that we want. And it has no place in any strategy to avert the disastrous effects of climate change. This timely action also sets another strong example to other nations, ahead of the upcoming climate negotiations in Paris, that the United States is willing to walk the walk when it comes to tackling climate change. # # # # # Press Contact Press Contact David Carle: 202-224-3693 Next Article Previous Article | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/leahy-franken-press-arbitration-agencies-for-answers-following-nyt-report-highlighting-harmful-impact-of-forced-arbitration-on-consumers | Leahy, Franken Press Arbitration Agencies For Answers Following NYT Report Highlighting Harmful Impact Of Forced Arbitration On Consumers | 2015-11-04 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.04.15 Leahy, Franken Press Arbitration Agencies For Answers Following NYT Report Highlighting Harmful Impact Of Forced Arbitration On Consumers WASHINGTON (Wednesday, November 4, 2015) Following a three-part investigation series by the New York Times highlighting the impact on consumers and workers of forced arbitration clauses that prevent individuals from seeking justice in court, Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Senator Al Franken (D-Minn.) are calling on the leading providers of arbitration services to address concerns about the use of such agreements. We have grave concerns that forced arbitration thrusts consumers into a shadow justice system that operates with little transparency or oversight, the Senators wrote in a letter to four leading arbitration service providers. The New York Times investigation showed alarming evidence that forced arbitration favors big corporations and repeat players over individuals seeking to vindicate their rights. Highlighting the broad scope of forced arbitration clauses that are frequently included in consumer contracts and employment agreements, the Senators expressed deep concern about a system that consumers are involuntarily forced into, that lacks transparency and is not subject to meaningful appeal. They also raised concerns that forced arbitration clauses undermine the ability of consumers to bring class action lawsuits to protect consumer rights, jeopardizing the rule of law and forcing consumers into a privatized justice system that operates without the predictability, transparency, or consistency of the court system. Leahy and Franken, the leading Senate author of the Arbitration Fairness Act, have long focused on the problem of forced arbitration clauses that waive individuals' rights to bring a claim in court or to join other litigants in a class action. The two have highlighted the issue in hearings of the Senate Judiciary Committee in 2007, 2008, 2011, and 2013, and in letters supporting administrative effo… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/leahy-joins-effort-to-block-expansion-of-unwanted-robocalls | Leahy Joins Effort To Block Expansion Of Unwanted Robocalls | 2015-11-04 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.04.15 Leahy Joins Effort To Block Expansion Of Unwanted Robocalls WASHINGTON (WEDNESDAY, Nov. 4, 2015) Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) Wednesday joined Senator Ed Markey (D-Mass.) and others in introducing The HANGUP Act, which would repeal changes to the federal statute that limits automated telephone calls to consumers without their consent. Recent changes exempted robocalls made for federal debt collection from the consent requirements of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). In June, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) took steps to clarify consumers' rights under the TCPA to control the types of calls they receive. The FCC receives more complaints about unwanted phone calls than about any other issue, totaling more than 215,000 complaints in 2014. Vermonters are sick and tired of getting unwanted robocalls, Leahy said. At a time when the FCC has been working to limit these kinds of disruptive and harassing calls, the last thing Congress should be doing is adding more corporate loopholes to laws that are designed to protect consumers. We should quickly pass the HANGUP Act and say goodbye to allowing more unwanted calls. Press Contact Press Contact David Carle: 202-224-3693 Next Article Previous Article | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/sanders-merkley-leahy_introduce-bill-to-ban-new-drilling-on-public-land- | Sanders, Merkley, Leahy Introduce Bill to Ban New Drilling on Public Land | 2015-11-04 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.04.15 Sanders, Merkley, Leahy Introduce Bill to Ban New Drilling on Public Land WASHINGTON, Nov. 4 Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) and Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) introduced legislation today to help accelerate the transition to clean energy by ending all new federal leases for oil, gas or coal extraction on public lands and waters. Worry less about your campaign contributions and worry more about your children and grandchildren," Sanders told Republicans who continue to deny the science on climate change. We are taking on the Koch brothers and some of the most powerful political forces in the world who are more concerned with short-term profits than the future of the planet. I've got four kids, and I've got seven beautiful grandchildren. We have a moral responsibility to leave our kids a planet that is healthy and inhabitable. Climate change is already impacting our world through greater forest fires and droughts, with serious effects on our farming, fishing and forest economies. The main cause is carbon pollution, and the impacts will only get worse in the coming decades if we keep burning fossil fuels unchecked, said Merkley. One key part of the solution is lying literally beneath our feet. A major contribution to this challenge would be stopping new fossil fuel leases on our public lands that lock in oil, gas and coal extraction for decades into the future. Our public lands should be managed for the public good, not for private profit. We have a moral responsibility to confront the reality of climate change, and the science is clear that the cost to our land, our communities and our climate of continued federal fossil fuel leasing is far too high, Leahy said. We cannot tackle our carbon emissions if we continue to violate our public lands and our climate with more drilling for fossil fuels. This is a commonsense step forward to addressing a global crisis that is at our doorstep. The Keep It in the Ground Act would stop corporations from start… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/leahy-leads-bipartisan-group-of-13-senators-in-introducing-resolution-on-political-oppression-by-government-of-the-maldives | Leahy Leads Bipartisan Group of 13 Senators In Introducing Resolution On Political Oppression By Government Of The Maldives | 2015-11-03 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.03.15 Leahy Leads Bipartisan Group of 13 Senators In Introducing Resolution On Political Oppression By Government Of The Maldives WASHINGTON (TUESDAY, November 3, 2015) Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) Tuesday led a bipartisan coalition of 13 senators in calling on the Government of the Maldives to release former President Mohamed Nasheed and all other political prisoners in the country. The bipartisan bill expresses the sense of Congress that the Government of the Maldives should guarantee due process for all the people of the Maldives and respect their human rights. Leahy is the senior most member of the Senate Appropriations Committee and is the ranking member of its subcommittee on the Department of State and Foreign Operations. Leahy's statement on the legislation is available here, and the bill can be found here. # # # # # Press Contact Press Contact David Carle: 202-224-3693 Next Article Previous Article | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/statement-of-senator-patrick-leahy-on-senator-chuck-grassley-casting-his-12000th-vote | Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy on Senator Chuck Grassley Casting His 12,000th Vote | 2015-11-03 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.03.15 Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy on Senator Chuck Grassley Casting His 12,000th Vote I've had the privilege of serving with several hundred Senators in this body over the years I have been here. And Senator Grassley has been a very special friend during that time. He has represented the voices of Iowans for nearly three and a half decades. I think we have been friends for that three and a half decades. When I think of Senator Grassley - 12,000 votes, hundreds of hearings, countless Tweets, and probably four dozen sweater vests later he's the same, down to earth Iowa farmer who visits every one of the state's 99 counties, every year. He is also the Iowa farmer who, when Vermont was hit with terrible flooding a few years back, was the first person to contact me to say, Vermont stood with Iowa when we were hit with a natural disaster. Iowa now stands with Vermont. He and I have worked together, and we have had a productive relationship that spans those decades. On the Judiciary Committee, we take our leadership responsibilities seriously. We have both made sure that both as Chairman and Ranking Members, that every Senator has a chance to be heard. We have found ways to come together on meaningful legislation. We enjoy each other's company. We are able to kid each other, as I did on his recent birthday. But more importantly, we do what I was told to do when I first came to the Senate, and I'm sure what Senator Grassley was told when he did - we keep our word. We've always keep out word to each other. It also helps that we both married above ourselves. His wonderful wife Barbara and my wife Marcelle are very close friends. They sometimes say that they belong to that special club that nobody wants to join, that of cancer survivors. Senator Grassley's willingness to listen and hard work was most recently on display in the Judiciary Committee, as we hammered out an important compromise on sentencing reform which brought the left and the right together both parties together. I think every sing… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://welch.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/welch-shumlin-announce-grant-help-businesses-hit-defense-cuts-diversify | Welch, Shumlin Announce Grant to Help Businesses Hit by Defense Cuts Diversify | 2015-11-02 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Peter Welch | W000800 | welch.house.gov | legacy | ESSEX JUNCTION, Vt. Rep. Peter Welch (D-VT) and Gov. Peter Shumlin today announced a federal grant to help Vermont businesses reliant on defense contracts diversify into new markets as defense spending declines.The $386,325 Department of Defense (DOD) grant was awarded to the Vermont Agency of Commerce and Community Development to work directly with Vermont businesses looking to adjust their business plans. Many Vermont businesses provide high-quality products and services to our military, Congressman Welch said.They also provide good jobs for Vermonters and represent a key component of our economy. As federal defense spending declines, it's important that these businesses diversify into new markets so that they and their employees continue to thrive. It is a good thing that defense spending is decreasing as America winds down its involvement in overseas conflicts, Gov. Peter Shumlin said. As that happens, there is an opportunity for us to work with companies like Revision to help them diversify and access new markets for continued growth right here in Vermont. This money will help us do that and I am thankful to Congressman Welch for helping us secure the funds to do this important work. The grant will be used to help businesses that directly contract or subcontract with the Department of Defense, or that exist anywhere along the supply chain. The Agency will work with eligible businesses on strategies to diversify and tap into new markets, as well as create workforce development plans to carry out new lines of business. In Vermont, impacted businesses are dispersed throughout the state with the majority in Chittenden, Franklin, Washington, and Orange Counties. We appreciate the Congressman and Governor working together on this grant opportunity, said Jonathan Blanshay, CEO of Revision Military. We know that other defense companies are challenged and may not have had the resources to diversify their market. Therefore, this grant will offer critical resources to these companies and assure they continue to exist … | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/comment-of-senator-patrick-leahy-on-the-passing-of-barbara-snelling | Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy On The Passing Of Barbara Snelling | 2015-11-02 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.02.15 Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy On The Passing Of Barbara Snelling Like her late husband, Barbara loved Vermont. She brought that spirit to every office she held, working to make life better for families and communities in Chittenden County and across our state. Marcelle and I join all Vermonters in offering our appreciation and best wishes to her entire family and their friends and to all who knew or worked with her. # # # # Press Contact Press Contact David Carle: 202-224-3693 Next Article Previous Article | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/comment-of-senator-patrick-leahy-d-vt-ranking-member-sen-ate-judiciary-committee-on-the-need-to-pass-the-arbitration-fairness-act | Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Sen ate Judiciary Committee On the Need to Pass the Arbitration Fairness Act | 2015-11-01 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 11.01.15 Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Sen ate Judiciary Committee On the Need to Pass the Arbitration Fairness Act [The New York Times recently released a three-part investigative series highlighting the impact on consumers and workers of forced arbitration clauses. These agreements, often included in the fine print of employment contracts or consumer receipts, require individuals to waive their right to sue in court or their ability to pursue complaints against the corporation in a class action. Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) has long raised concerns about the practice of forced arbitration, including in hearings of the Senate Judiciary Committee he convened in 2007, 2008, 2011, and 2013. Leahy is also a long-time co-sponsor of the Arbitration Fairness Act, S. 1133.] We cannot allow consumers to be forced into a shadow justice system that consistently favors big corporations and repeat playersa system that operates without transparency or clear precedent. Hearings I convened when I chaired the Senate Judiciary Committee demonstrated that forced arbitration undermines the rights of hardworking Americans and guts key statutes, like our employment discrimination laws, by making them virtually impossible to enforce in court. Congress must act now to stop the injustice of forced arbitration. I call on the Senate to take up and pass the Arbitration Fairness Act. # # # # # Press Contact Press Contact David Carle: 202-224-3693 Next Article Previous Article | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://welch.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/statement-rep-welch-response-white-house-announcement-syria | Statement of Rep. Welch in Response to White House Announcement on Syria | 2015-10-30 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Peter Welch | W000800 | welch.house.gov | legacy | Statement of Rep. Welch in Response to White House Announcement on Syria: "This announcement raises serious questions about the Administration's strategy in the region. There may be credible answers but, without the engagement of Congress consistent with the requirements of the Constitution, the American people will not get the answers to which they are entitled. The biggest question raised by today's announcement is, When will Congress finally accept its responsibility?' The Constitution is clear that only Congress can authorize war. Make no mistake about it, this is a war. Yet, the legal framework justifying this war is loosely tied to the fumes of a Congressional authorization approved in response to the 9/11 attack on America over 14 years ago. A civil war in Syria did not exist 14 years ago. ISIS did not exist 14 years ago. Neither the United States nor Russia were conducting military operations in Syria 14 years ago. Every Member of Congress should debate and vote on the Administration's strategy. No more bobbing and weaving. We need to do our job." | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/comment-of-senator-patrick-leahy-d-vt-ranking-member-senate-committee-on-the-judiciary-on-the-need-to-close-the-detention-facility-at-guantanamo-bay | Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Committee On The Judiciary, On the Need to Close the Detention Facility at Guantanamo Bay | 2015-10-30 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 10.30.15 Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Committee On The Judiciary, On the Need to Close the Detention Facility at Guantanamo Bay The detention facility at Guantanamo is a stain on our national reputation and it should be closed. The Administration should continue expediting the transfer of the 52 cleared detainees, and accelerate the Periodic Review Board process to determine if additional detainees can be transferred. Members of Congress must also reject bumper-sticker politics and remove the onerous and unnecessary restrictions contained in this year's National Defense Authorization Act that stand in the way of finally bringing this terrible chapter to a close. # # # # # Press Contact Press Contact David Carle: 202-224-3693 Next Article Previous Article | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/comments-of-senator-patrick-leahy-d-vt-on-the-bipartisan-budget-act-of-2015 | Comments Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), On The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 | 2015-10-30 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 10.30.15 Comments Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), On The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 For months, Democrats have called on Republican leaders in both the Senate and the House to work with us to avert the economic crisis that default would have wrought on this country. With our backs against the wall, congressional leaders and the White House have reached an agreement to not only raise the debt ceiling ensuring that our government can pay its bills but to limit the devastating impacts of sequestration for the next two years. This agreement is far from perfect. This deal uses funding identified and supported by the Senate to extend the critical Highway Trust Fund. The Trust Fund has limped along, one short-term extension after another, for far too long. Despite the progress made on advancing a six-year authorization, we will now have to move back to square one to find a way to pay for it. I am as concerned now as I was in July that we are stealing from ourselves by selling off strategic oil preserves at a time of low prices, when we purchased at a time of high prices. And I am deeply concerned that this deal raids the Crime Victims Fund of $1.5 billion dollars. Democrats and Republicans alike have long supported the Crime Victims Fund unique in that it comes not from taxpayer dollars, but from penalties and fines paid by the criminals themselves. This fund was set up to be a dedicated resource to help victims of crime. Given the ongoing level of unmet need in that community, it is simply unacceptable that this Fund was raided to pay for unrelated things. This one-time rescission must not become a new precedent. We cannot turn our back on the victims of crime. Nonetheless, I support the Bipartisan Budget Act. It is the product of compromise that will offer a measure of stability and help pave the way for an omnibus appropriations bill to keep our government open past December 11. But this is only the first step. While we will avert a calamitous default next week, we now must undertake the difficu… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/statement-of-senator-patrick-leahy-d-vt-ranking-member-senate-judiciary-committee-on-judicial-nominations43 | Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On Judicial Nominations | 2015-10-30 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 10.30.15 Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On Judicial Nominations Republicans continue to object to requests for unanimous consent on basic things we should be able to do in a bipartisan manner here in the Senate. In addition to my request about gender discrimination, Republicans have previously objected to unanimous consent requests to allow votes on noncontroversial judicial nominees with bipartisan support to fill vacancies in our Federal judiciary. These requests are not remotely controversial, and yet, the Republicans continue to obstruct for obstruction's sake. Since the Republicans took over in January, their leadership has allowed only 9 judges to be confirmed. A few district court judges have been confirmed in the last few weeks, but this recent increase in activity is in sharp contrast to their inaction all year. When Senate Democrats were in the majority during the last two years of the Bush presidency, we had already confirmed 34 judges by this point nearly four times more judges than Republicans have confirmed this year. Republicans have tried to justify their poor record by accusing Senate Democrats of scheduling votes for 11 judges during the lame duck session last December. They suggest that those 11 confirmations under last year's Democratic majority should somehow be counted towards this year's confirmation numbers. First, it is well-established Senate precedent to approve all pending consensus nominees before the end of a year. And second, even if we did ignore reality and count these 11 judges towards the Republicans majority's record, that would only bring their count up to 20 confirmations this year. That is still far behind the 34 nominees that Democrats confirmed in the last two years of the Bush administration. The glacial pace in which Republicans are currently confirming uncontroversial judicial nominees is a failure to carry out the Senate's constitutional duty of providing advice and consent. We should be respondin… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://welch.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/rep-welch-statement-rep-paul-ryan-s-election-speaker-house | Rep. Welch Statement on Rep. Paul Ryans Election as Speaker of the House | 2015-10-29 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Peter Welch | W000800 | welch.house.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Congressman Peter Welch (D-VT) today issued the following statement following the election of Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) as Speaker of the House. Upon his election, Welch congratulated Speaker Ryan with a gift of cheese from Cabot Creamery and maple syrup from Maverick Sugarbush. Today the House of Representatives elected a new Speaker of the House Paul Ryan from Wisconsin.I know Paul well.We worked closely together to help Vermont's artisan cheesemakers threated by a dumb FDA rule and then he helped me save VSAC jobs threatened by a provision in the budget.While we disagree on many policy issues, I can confirm that at least he loves Vermont cheese from Cabot and maple syrup from Maverick Sugarbush in Sharon! He is a good, decent, and honest man.Paul's election gives me hope -- hope that we can fix a broken House and hope that we will get back to work for the American people. ### | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/leahy-and-grassley-press-treasury-irs-on-the-use-of-cell-phone-tracking-technology | Leahy & Grassley Press Treasury, IRS on the Use of Cell Phone Tracking Technology | 2015-10-29 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 10.29.15 Leahy & Grassley Press Treasury, IRS on the Use of Cell Phone Tracking Technology WASHINGTON (Thursday, October 29, 2015) Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Ranking Member Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) are once again pressing a top cabinet official about a government agency's use of cell-site simulator technology, which can sweep up the cell phone signals of innocent Americans. Following news reports that the Internal Revenue Service is using cell-site simulators, or Stingrays, the Senators sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Lew on Thursday seeking information about the Department's legal justification for using the technology and what privacy controls are in place. The Senators also asked about which other agencies within the Department use the technology. We were surprised to learn that IRS investigators may be using these devices, the Senators wrote. While the devices can be useful tools for identifying the location of a suspect's cell phone or identifying an unknown cell phone, we have previously expressed concerns about the privacy implications of these devices, as well as the inconsistent practices and policies across the federal, state and local agencies that employ them. The devices indiscriminately gather information about the cell phones of innocent people who are simply in the vicinity of the device. Senators Grassley and Leahy have long raised concerns regarding the use of cell-site simulators, and their oversight has led to the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security implementing new rules requiring agents to obtain a search warrant in many cases before employing the technology. A copy of the October 29 letter to Secretary Lew can be found online and below. ##### October 29, 2015 VIA ELECTRONIC TRANSMISSION The Honorable Jacob J. Lew Secretary U.S. Department of the Treasury Washington, D.C. 20220 Dear Secretary Lew, According to a report this week in The Guardian, in 2012 the Internal Revenue Service spent more th… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/senate-republicans-block-leahy-resolution-calling-for-equal-pay-for-female-soccer-athletes | Senate Republicans Block Leahy Resolution Calling For Equal Pay For Female Soccer Athletes | 2015-10-29 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 10.29.15 Senate Republicans Block Leahy Resolution Calling For Equal Pay For Female Soccer Athletes WASHINGTON (Thursday, October 29, 2015) Senate Republicans on Thursday blocked a commonsense resolution authored by Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) calling on the Fdration Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) to eliminate gender discrimination between male and female athletes. Leahy first introduced the resolution in July, after the United States women's soccer team was awarded just $2 million after beating Japan in the Women's World Cup championship. By comparison, the 2014 Men's World Cup winner, Germany, was awarded $35 million for its win over Argentina. Leahy's resolution calls for FIFA to end its discriminatory prize structure and provide equal awards for male and female athletes. The Republicans' move to block passage of the resolution came just days after the U.S. women's soccer team was recognized at the White House for their World Cup victory. It is a shame that in the Senate, we cannot even agree to pass a resolution that calls for the equal treatment of male and female athletes. If we cannot even pass a non-binding resolution, how can we ever achieve real pay equity for women? Leahy said. He added: The United States women's soccer team and all World Cup champions should be rewarded for their performance, for their grit, and for their teamwork, rather than devalued for their gender. We should stand together in support of these athletes and all female athletes. Leahy pointed out that FIFA's policy is not just discriminatory; it is far outdated compared to other sports championships. Wimbledon tennis's top prize finally implemented an equal prize payment structure for all athletes in 2007, and as a result, male and female players are awarded the same prize money for winning their respective championships. Leahy urged Republicans to reconsider their unfounded objection and to support legislation that promotes pay equity. Taking an overdue but important step toward pay equity w… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/breaking-leahy-comments-on-the-milestone-of-his-15000th-vote-in-the-us-senate_-- | [BREAKING] Leahy Comments On The Milestone Of His 15,000th Vote In The U.S. Senate -- | 2015-10-27 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 10.27.15 [BREAKING] Leahy Comments On The Milestone Of His 15,000th Vote In The U.S. Senate -- [As the dean of the Senate (its most senior member) Vermont's U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy (D) Tuesday morning passed a U.S. Senate milestone when he cast his 15,000th vote. Only five senators in history have cast more votes. The vote occurred during a series of votes late this morning during Senate debate on the cybersecurity bill. According to the nonpartisan website GovTrack, Leahy has sponsored more bipartisan bills than any other current member of this Senate: Sixty-one percent of his bills have had both Democratic and Republican cosponsors, reflecting his longtime MO of building coalitions and getting things done, helping to make him one of the Senate's most effective legislators. In the previous Congress he was one of the youngest senators in recent times to rise to the level of President Pro Tem. Following are some of Leahy's reflections about the milestone:] Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) On Casting 15,000 Votes In The U.S. Senate October 27, 2015 What a great opportunity and responsibility the Senate affords this senator from Vermont, day after day, to make things better for Vermonters, and for all Americans. To strengthen our country and ensure its vitality on into the future. To forge solutions in the unending quest to make ours a More Perfect Union. Over the last 40 years, I have been blessed to be able to serve with some of the giants of the Senate: Mike Mansfield. Howard Baker. Walter Mondale. Hubert Humphrey. Bob Dole. Vermont's own Bob Stafford. And many, many others. Marcelle and I have made close friendships, on both sides of the aisle. Like Senator John Glenn and his wife Annie, Democrats, and Senator Cochran and Senator Lugar, both Republicans. More than 370 Senators in all, from different walks of life and every corner of this Nation. These different backgrounds, different stories, and different life experiences have helped make this institution the greatest deliberative b… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/comment-of-senator-patrick-leahy-d-vt-ranking-member-senate-judiciary-committee-on-the-library-of-congresss-anti-circumvention-rulemaking | Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee On the Library of Congresss Anti-Circumvention Rulemaking | 2015-10-27 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 10.27.15 Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee On the Library of Congress's Anti-Circumvention Rulemaking [The Library of Congress Tuesday released the results of its triennial review to establish exemptions to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act's (DMCA) prohibition on circumventing technological measures that control access to copyrighted works. The exemptions announced today cover a range of activities, from repairing farm equipment to using motion pictures in film studies classes. Among the exemptions granted are those that allow unlocking of wireless telephones and other wireless devices to allow consumers to use their devices on the networks of their choice; a move urged by Congress in legislation authored by Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and signed into law by President Obama in 2014. Leahy joined with Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) last week to request the Copyright Office undertake a comprehensive study of the role copyright law plays in defining how software-enabled products can be used.] Copyrighted software plays an ever-increasing role in our daily lives. Consumers rightly want to know how they can use software-enabled products without running afoul of the law, which is why Senator Grassley and I have asked the Copyright Office to study this critical issue. Today's announcement recognizes several important exemptions that will help users access technologies and content in a way that works for them. The rule also builds on the work we did last Congress and will enable consumers to connect not only their smartphones, but also their tablets and devices, to the network of their choice. ##### Press Contact Press Contact David Carle: 202-224-3693 Next Article Previous Article | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/save-the-bats | Save The Bats | 2015-10-27 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 10.27.15 Save The Bats by U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) Bats have not always had a good press.' They can seem scary, especially at Halloween time, and they have not been adequately understood, let alone appreciated. Today our bat populations are being decimated by the spread of a deadly fungus that causes white nose syndrome. An essential ingredient in saving America's bats is in better understanding them and the key roles they play in agriculture and in the ecosystem. Vermont's conservation ethic is deeply instilled in me, as it is in other Vermonters. I've long been fascinated by the vital roles that bats play on our farms and in our protected lands. When Vermont became one of the first states to face the decimation of white nose syndrome, I worked on the Senate Appropriations Committee, partnering with the late Sen. Frank Lautenberg of New Jersey, to make white nose syndrome a budget priority. I've been a Batman fan since I was a boy. Folks sometimes are amused to learn that we live not far from a bat cave that is near our farm in Middlesex, in rural Central Vermont. As bat populations have declined in recent years, we see (and feel) an immediate correlation in the swarms of mosquitos we cope with on warm Vermont evenings. As bats disappear, mosquitos increase. My staff and I spent time with our State of Vermont bat scientists, including Scott Darling, a pre-eminent expert on bats, and saw the devastating impacts of white-nose syndrome on North American bat populations. More than even before, I've become an advocate for these amazing mammals. Bats are vital to the sustainability of natural ecosystems, national economies, and human health by controlling damaging insect pests, pollinating plants including fruits and vegetables, and dispersing seeds to ensure healthy functioning ecosystems. Research suggests that bats save U.S. farmers at least $3 billion a year in pestcontrol, and some years the value m… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/leahy-government-transparency-will-take-a-step-back-under-cyber-bill | Leahy: Government Transparency Will Take a Step Back Under Cyber Bill | 2015-10-26 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 10.26.15 Leahy: Government Transparency Will Take a Step Back Under Cyber Bill Urges Senators to Defeat Bad FOIA Provisions Considered In Secret WASHINGTON (Monday, October 26, 2015) The cybersecurity legislation pending on the Senate floor includes an unnecessary provision that would weaken the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), the government's premier transparency law. Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), a champion of government transparency, is calling on all Senators to support his amendment to remove this provision and to support the overall mission of FOIA. For nearly half a century, FOIA has translated our great American values of openness and accountability into practice by guaranteeing access to government information. We should not be passing legislation that weakens this critical law. Instead, those Senators who talk about their pro-transparency records should support my amendment to strike the harmful FOIA provisions in the cybersecurity bill, and we should be working together to pass the bipartisan FOIA Improvement Act that the Judiciary Committee approved months ago, Leahy said. Leahy's amendment, which is supported by 27 groups that advocate for government transparency, would strike a completely unnecessary FOIA exemption for information that is already protected from disclosure under existing FOIA law. Leahy successfully led a similar effort earlier this year during Senate consideration of the surface transportation bill, which included several unnecessary FOIA carve outs that were ultimately removed. Not only is the carve out in the cyber bill unnecessary, it was not considered in the Judiciary Committee which has primary jurisdiction over FOIA. Instead, it was considered in a closed markup of the Senate Intelligence Committee. Leahy noted that changes to FOIA should not be enacted without full and careful consideration by the Judiciary Committee. The Senate must have an open and honest debate a… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/leahy-sanders-welch-shumlin-announce-10-million-federal-grant | Leahy, Sanders, Welch, Shumlin Announce $10 Million Federal Grant | 2015-10-26 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 10.26.15 Leahy, Sanders, Welch, Shumlin Announce $10 Million Federal Grant Funds Clear Path for Restoring Passenger Rail Service to Burlington WASHINGTON (MONDAY, Oct. 26, 2015) Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Representative Peter Welch (D-Vt.) and Gov. Peter Shumlin Monday announced a $10 million federal grant from the Department of Transportation to improve rail service along the state's Western Corridor. The improvements will remove the final hurdle for restoring passenger service between Rutland and Burlington. In a joint statement, Leahy, Sanders, Welch and Shumlin -- who have vigorously supported this rail investment program -- said: Vermont's rail links were important to our past development, and rail service is an important ingredient in our transportation future. There is an overwhelming need here and across the country to improve our infrastructure for the 21st Century. We are glad that this grant will make those upgrades to the rail line along the Western Corridor to drive our economy forward. This investment is a win-win scenario for improving both freight and passenger service. The grant will be matched by state funds for the Western Vermont Freight-Passenger Rail Project. The project will improve service on the state-owned rail line between Rutland and Burlington by replacing track with new rail, ballast and ties; rehabilitating the Rutland Wye; adding new gates for public crossings, a new passing siding in Pitsford and a crossover in Leicester to allow for operational flexibility. The project will also include installation of new passenger platforms. The grant was awarded to the Vermont Agency of Transportation as part of $500 million in Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grants released across the country for rail and transportation improvements. The project will completely upgrade the track to all for safer and faster movement of freig… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/statement-of-senator-patrick-leahy-d-vt-ranking-member-senate-judiciary-committee-on-judicial-nomination56s | Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On Judicial Nominations | 2015-10-26 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 10.26.15 Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On Judicial Nominations Today, we will vote on the nomination of Lawrence Vilardo to be a Federal district judge in the Western District of New York in Buffalo. He was first nominated in February and his nomination was voted out of the Judiciary Committee by unanimous voice vote over five months ago on May 6. There is no reason why this highly-qualified nominee should have waited so long for a vote. Despite having one of the busiest caseloads in the country, with more criminal cases than Washington, D.C., Boston, or Cleveland, there is not a single active Federal judge in that district. The court has been staying afloat only through the voluntary efforts of two judges on senior status who are hearing cases in their retirement. It is about time that we confirmed Mr. Vilardo to this vacancy. Next week marks the eleventh month that Republicans have been in the majority in the Senate. During that time, only nine judicial nominees have been confirmed. When Senate Democrats were in the majority during the last two years of the Bush presidency, we had already confirmed 34 judges by this same time. The glacial pace at which Republicans are currently confirming judicial nominees is an inexcusable failure to carry out the Senate's constitutional duty of providing advice and consent. It also has real and dire consequences for hardworking Americans who seek justice, but instead, encounter lengthy delays in the federal court system due to empty courthouses and overburdened courts. We can and should take action right now to alleviate this problem by holding confirmation votes on the rest of the 13 judicial nominees pending on the floor. A number of these pending nominees have the support of their Republican home state Senators, and yet they continue to languish on the calendar without a vote. If Republican obstruction continues, and if home state Senators cannot persuade the Majority Leader to schedule a vote for the… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://welch.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/welch-leads-190-house-democrats-demand-clean-debt-ceiling-extension | Welch Leads 190 House Democrats in Demand for Clean Debt Ceiling Extension | 2015-10-23 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Peter Welch | W000800 | welch.house.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON With just eleven days remaining before a November 3 deadline for Congress to raise the debt ceiling to avoid a government default, Rep. Peter Welch (D-VT), joined by Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer and Assistant Democratic Leader James Clyburn, announced today the support of the House Democratic Caucus for a clean extension of the debt ceiling. 190 Democrats signed Welch's letter to House Speaker John Boehner which demands a vote on a clean extension of the debt ceiling so that America continues to pay its bills. The letter reiterates that doing so will not authorize any new federal spending. Since 2011, Welch has been the House leader of the effort to ensure that America pays its bills and that the debt ceiling be raised without conditions or unrelated demands. He led a similar effort in 2103. The text of the letter follows: October 23, 2015 The Honorable John Boehner Speaker of the House United States House of Representatives H-232, The Capitol Washington, DC 20515 Dear Mr. Speaker, Congress will soon be faced with the question of raising the debt ceiling. The solvency of the federal government requires Congress to act in a timely fashion. Failing to do so will plunge the nation into default for the first time in American history, risking economic catastrophe. Raising the debt ceiling will ensure that America pays its bills for expenses already incurred, and does not authorize any new spending. When the House takes up this issue, we will support a clean extension of the debt ceiling which will allow America to continue to pay its bills as they come due. We categorically reject the view that it would be acceptable for America to default if unrelated demands are not met. As you will recall, when this irresponsible tactic was employed in 2011, it cost the American taxpayer $19 billion in higher interest costs. Sincerely, ### | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/leahy-sanders-welch-17-million-to-be-released-to-vermont-for-families-seeking-home-heating-assistance | Leahy, Sanders, Welch: $17 Million To Be Released To Vermont For Families Seeking Home Heating Assistance | 2015-10-23 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 10.23.15 Leahy, Sanders, Welch: $17 Million To Be Released To Vermont For Families Seeking Home Heating Assistance Delegation continues to fight for additional funding to be included in Fiscal Year 2016 spending bill (FRIDAY, Oct. 23, 2015) Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Congressman Peter Welch (D-Vt.) -- who have long championed the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) -- Friday announced $17 million in funds to assist Vermonters seeking help to meet their home heating needs this winter, only days after the first snowfall of the season. In a joint statement, Leahy, Sanders and Welch said: LIHEAP is a lifeline to more than 25,000 Vermonters who need energy assistance to stay warm in the winter. Seniors on fixed incomes, people with disabilities, and low-income families spend a growing portion of their income heating their homes. Without this bridge of assistance, many Vermonters must choose between heating and other vital necessities, including food and costly prescription drugs.LIHEAP is a program that proves, year after year, to be one of the most effective expenditures of taxpayer dollars, and successfully leverages investments from all stakeholders in keeping Vermont families safe and healthy. This federal funding, granted by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), is part of a nationwide release of $3 billion in LIHEAP funds to help low income households pay for heating and/or cooling their homes. The funds represent about 90 percent of the funding approved for LIHEAP under the Continuing Appropriations Act signed into law last month. HHS will release the remaining funds for the program following the completion of Fiscal Year 2016 appropriations bills. LIHEAP is administered by the State of Vermont Office of Economic Opportunity, with support from Vermont's five community action agencies. Earlier this month, Senators Leahy and Sanders sent … | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/leahy-and-grassley-call-for-copyright-study | Leahy & Grassley Call For Copyright Study | 2015-10-22 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 10.22.15 Leahy & Grassley Call For Copyright Study Senators Seek Copyright Review to Provide Clarity for Consumers WASHINGTON (Thursday, October 22, 2015) In order to help the public navigate a world in which software makes virtually everything function, from refrigerators to tractors, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Ranking Member Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) joined together Thursday to request the Copyright Office undertake a comprehensive study of the role copyright law plays in defining how software-enabled products can be used. This is a complex field, and how we interact with software in our products touches on numerous important policy arenas, including intellectual property, privacy, consumer protection, public safety, cybersecurity, competition, and the evolution of the digital marketplace. Our laws should work together to promote the public interest in each of these areas, including the interests of consumers, creators, and technology companies wishing to engage in lawful behavior, Grassley and Leahy wrote in a letter to Maria Pallante, the Register of Copyrights. Grassley and Leahy have long been interested in these issues, introducing legislation last year to ensure that our copyright law would not stand in the way of consumers wishing to transfer their cell phones to other wireless carriers. Their bipartisan bill was signed into law last year. Now, the Senators are requesting the study in an effort to better understand and evaluate how our copyright laws enable creative expression, foster innovative business models, and allow legitimate uses in this software-enabled environment. They added: To help us make informed policymaking choices in this area, we request that the Copyright Office undertake a comprehensive review of the role of copyright in the complex set of relationships at the heart of these issues. The Office's longstanding interest and expertise in the inters… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/leahy-senate-judiciary-committee-approves-historic-bipartisan-legislation-to-reform-criminal-justice-system | Leahy: Senate Judiciary Committee Approves Historic Bipartisan Legislation To Reform Criminal Justice System | 2015-10-22 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 10.22.15 Leahy: Senate Judiciary Committee Approves Historic Bipartisan Legislation To Reform Criminal Justice System WASHINGTON (THURSDAY, Oct. 22, 2015) In a long-awaited breakthrough for federal sentencing reform, the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Thursday approved bipartisan legislation to reduce some mandatory sentences and apply those changes retroactively to inmates currently serving unfair sentences. Ranking Member Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), a former prosecutor who has long advocated for reform, praised the committee's work. I would like to see an end to all mandatory minimums, but the reforms in this bill represent real progress that I can support, Leahy said. A critical component is the opportunity for judges to apply our reforms retroactively on a case-by-case basis. Our concerns with proportionality and racial disparity require that these reforms apply to old sentences as well as to new ones. The Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act, which was approved on a bipartisan 15-5 vote, expands an existing safety valve that allows judges to impose a sentence below the mandatory minimum sentence. This approach is also part of the Justice Safety Valve Act, bipartisan legislation which Leahy coauthored to restore judicial discretion and end the use of mandatory minimum sentences. Leahy also held a hearing on that legislation and front-end sentencing reform last Congress. Many of the provisions in the bill approved by the Judiciary Committee today will apply retroactively for those currently serving long sentences, something Leahy has long called for. In a September Washington Times op-ed with Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, Leahy noted that Applying these reforms retroactively will ensure that those currently serving unfair sentences can be reunited with their families. Leahy also outlined his goals for criminal justice reform in a major speech before the Coalition for Public Safety in July. The package also includes expanded provisions for the compassionate release of older and very ill federal pri… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://welch.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/welch-bipartisan-group-urge-hhs-release-home-heating-assistance-funding | Welch, Bipartisan Group Urge HHS to Release Home Heating Assistance Funding | 2015-10-21 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Peter Welch | W000800 | welch.house.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON--Representatives Peter Welch (D-VT), Alma S. Adams (D-NC), Lou Barletta (R-PA), James P. McGovern (D-MA) along with 71 other Members of Congress sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Sylvia Burwell to urge for the swift release of Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) funding. Releasing the funding will allow families in need to access critical resources to heat their homes during cold winter months. As another Vermont winter grows near, federal officials should release LIHEAP funding now so that Vermonters who depend on it to stay warm are assured it will be there when they need it, said Rep. Welch. In addition, we should redouble our efforts to fully fund this vital safety net program in the federal budget. More than 120,000 North Carolinians rely on critical home heating assistance to keep warm during the winter, saidRep.Adams. This funding is particularly important for many low-income households, children, seniors and veterans who are struggling to pay their bills. With winter fast approaching and temperatures quickly dropping, I urge HHS to release this funding so that our families are not left out in the cold. As the winter months approach us, too many people in my district will have to make the impossible choice between paying for food or keeping warm, saidRep.Barletta. That just isn't acceptable in America. Time is already running short, as the cold weather has already begun in many places, so these funds should be released as soon as possible to protect people among us, particularly seniors and veterans, who depend on it for their very safety. Hundreds of thousands of Massachusetts families, including many seniors who are on a fixed income, rely on LIHEAP funding to help pay for their home heating costs, saidRep. McGovern. With these heating costs becoming a larger and larger share of many families' budgets, this is a critical lifeline that we must protect. Temperatures are already dropping in many parts of the country and after last yea… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://welch.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/welch-continues-lead-debt-ceiling-demands-return-fiscal-responsibility | Welch Continues to Lead on Debt Ceiling, Demands Return to Fiscal Responsibility | 2015-10-21 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Peter Welch | W000800 | welch.house.gov | legacy | WASHINGTONRep. Peter Welch (D-VT), the leader of House efforts to prevent a default on America's obligations, today spoke on the House floor in advance of a looming November 3rd deadline to raise the debt ceiling. Mr. Speaker, let's be clear. Raising the debt ceiling has nothing to do with increasing government spending, it only has to do with whether America will pay its bills for expenses already incurred, Congressman Welch said. A confident nation keeps its word. A confident nation pays its billsnot some of them, it pays all of them. Running from our creditors and picking and choosing who to pay among them is as fiscally reckless as it is dishonorable. This new theory that America can actually consider it feasible as an option to default is extremely dangerous and very costly.We cannot now and we cannot ever default on our obligations and our commitment to the American taxpayer to be fiscally responsible by paying our bills. ### | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/comment-of-senator-patrick-leahy-d-vt-on-president-obamas-steps-to-address-opiate-and-heroin-abuse | Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) On President Obamas Steps To Address Opiate and Heroin Abuse | 2015-10-21 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 10.21.15 Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) On President Obama's Steps To Address Opiate and Heroin Abuse I applaud President Obama and Director Botticelli for taking important steps to curb addiction to powerful prescription opioids and heroin. The plan unveiled today, with commitments from such a wide array of public and private partners, represents a thoughtful, comprehensive approach to break the cycle of addiction. It also reflects how devastating opioid addiction has become. Communities across the country have seen the over-prescription of opioids result in a wave of debilitating addiction, too often leading to drugs once-thought unimaginable, like heroin, seeping into and crippling our families. The President's plan appropriately treats addiction as an illness a public health challenge and marshals significant resources to prevent and confront the problem. In particular, I believe that the massive prescriber education initiative, along with a commitment to expand access to evidence-based treatment and the overdose-reversing drug Naloxone, will help to stop addiction in its tracks and save lives. In Vermont we have confronted this problem head-on. We learned that it takes an all-hands-on-deck approach, such as the plan unveiled today, involving prevention, treatment, and smart criminal justice policies, to begin to get ahead of addiction. While there are no easy answers, today our nation is making real progress. # # # # # Press Contact Press Contact David Carle: 202-224-3693 Next Article Previous Article | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/comment-of-senator-patrick-leahy-d-vt_ranking-member-senate-judiciary-committee-on-the-department-of-homeland-securitys-policy-regarding-the-use-of-cell-site-simulators | Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On the Department of Homeland Securitys Policy Regarding the Use Of Cell-Site Simulators | 2015-10-21 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 10.21.15 Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On the Department of Homeland Security's Policy Regarding the Use Of Cell-Site Simulators [The Department of Homeland Security on Wednesday issued new guidelines governing the use of cell-site simulators. The announcement comes weeks after Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), joined by Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), pressed DHS to safeguard Americans' privacy when it comes to the use of these devices, which can sweep up the cell phone signals of unknowing and innocent Americans.] The Department of Homeland Security's new policy on cell-site simulators is a positive first step in responding to the very serious privacy implications posed by cell phone tracking technology, but it raises additional questions that must be answered. Chairman Grassley and I called on DHS to establish a default warrant requirement, and to apply that rule to all agencies within the Department. I am disappointed that DHS has included the same problematic exception to the warrant requirement that is in the Justice Department's policy. Additionally, this policy is limited to criminal investigations, and it is not clear what rules will apply to any use of cell-site simulators for other DHS missions. We must ensure stronger protections for the privacy rights ofinnocent Americans who are not the targets of an investigation. # # # # # Press Contact Press Contact David Carle: 202-224-3693 Next Article Previous Article | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/news-backgrounder-even-after-benghazi-attack-house-leaders-continued-to-block-embassy-security-funds | NEWS BACKGROUNDER: Even After Benghazi Attack, House Leaders Continued To Block Embassy Security Funds | 2015-10-21 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 10.21.15 NEWS BACKGROUNDER: Even After Benghazi Attack, House Leaders Continued To Block Embassy Security Funds Leahy: . . . pure, distilled hypocrisy Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt., and then-chairman of the State Department's budget committee the State Department and Foreign Operations Subcommittee of the Appropriations Committee), pushed for more embassy security funding than House Republicans were willing to provide both before and after the Benghazi attack. Leahy said: House Republicans have wasted millions of taxpayer dollars on a partisan exercise. For that, and for blaming the Administration for failing to protect our diplomats, without acknowledging their own efforts to slash resources for embassy security, is pure, distilled hypocrisy. BEFORE BENGHAZI: After Republicans took over the House in January 2011 -- before the Benghazi attack -- they proposed deep cuts for U.S. embassy operations and State Department programs across the board, including for diplomatic and embassy facility security. The House Republican Appropriations Committee cut $1 billion from the embassy security budget proposed by the Obama Administration in the two years prior to the Benghazi attack. For FY12, the House State Department and Foreign Operations (SFOPS) Bill was $596 million below the Administration's request of $3.83 billion for diplomatic and embassy facility security (including Diplomatic Security, Worldwide Security Protection and Embassy Security, Construction, and Maintenance). The counterpart Senate SFOPS bill was $319 million below the request. For FY13, the House was $434 million below the Administration's request of $4.04 billion for these security programs. The Senate SFOPS bill was $70 million below the request. Thus, over these two years immediately before Benghazi, the House SFOPS bills included cuts totaling more than $1 billion for these security programs. Both the Senate and House SF… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/remarks-of-senator-patrick-leahy-cato-surveillance-conference | REMARKS OF SENATOR PATRICK LEAHY CATO SURVEILLANCE CONFERENCE | 2015-10-21 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 10.21.15 REMARKS OF SENATOR PATRICK LEAHY CATO SURVEILLANCE CONFERENCE Good afternoon. Two years ago at a Cato conference on NSA surveillance Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner announced our introduction of the original USA FREEDOM Act. It is great to be with you, two years later, to celebrate the enactment of the USA FREEDOM Act of 2015, and the end of the NSA's bulk collection of American's phone records. The USA FREEDOM Act marks the first major reform of surveillance laws in decades. This sort of reform does not come quickly, or easily. But Republicans and Democrats finally came together and passed this bill because it was the right thing to do. And because the American people demanded it. When the public learned that the government had secretly relied on a deeply flawed interpretation of Section 215 of the USA PATRIOT Act to engage in the indiscriminate, bulk collection of our telephone records, the response from the American people was clear. They were shocked that the phone records of innocent Americans were being swept up, regardless of any connection to terrorist activity. They lost trust in the intelligence community, and became skeptical of existing legal protections. They demanded meaningful limits on executive authority. They demanded more transparency, more accountability, more checks and balances. And they rallied behind an end to the NSA's dragnet collection of their phone records. Despite these powerful calls for reform, some leaders in the Senate defended the program and resisted even modest reforms. They claimed that the phone records program was necessary to keep our country safe, and resorted to the same fear-mongering tactics we have seen all too often. But they did not work this time. Through multiple hearings in the Senate Judiciary Committee and the tireless advocacy of many in this room, we were able to demonstrate that the effectiveness of the program had been grossly overstated. And there was another factor at play, one that turned out to be critical. The sunset. When the … | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/statement-of-senator-patrick-leahy-d-vt-ranking-member-senate-judiciary-committee-regarding-the-cybersecurity-information-sharing-act-of-2015-october-21-2015 | Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, Regarding the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act of 2015 October 21, 2015 | 2015-10-21 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 10.21.15 Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, Regarding the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act of 2015 October 21, 2015 It seems as though every week, the American people learn of yet another data breach in which Americans' sensitive, private information has been stolen by cybercriminals or foreign governments. This is a critical national security problem that deserves action by Congress. But our actions must be thoughtful and responsible, and we must recognize that strengthening our Nation's cybersecurity is a complex endeavor with no single solution. According to security researchers and technologists, the most effective action Congress can take to improve our cybersecurity is to require better and more comprehensive data security practices. That is why earlier this year, I introduced the Consumer Privacy Protection Act. That bill requires companies to utilize strong data security measures to protect our personal information and to help prevent breaches in the first place. Companies that benefit financially from gathering and analyzing our personal information should be obligated to take meaningful steps to keep it safe. But rather than taking a comprehensive approach that addresses the multiple facets of cybersecurity, the Republican Majority appears to be focused entirely on passing the Senate Intelligence Committee's cybersecurity information sharing bill. While legislation to promote the sharing of cyber threat information could, if done right, be useful in improving our cybersecurity, it is a serious mistake to believe that information sharing alone is the solution. Information sharing alone would not, for example, have prevented the breach at the Office of Personnel Management, nor would it have prevented other major breaches, such as those at Target, Home Depot, Anthem, or Sony. Instead of ensuring that companies better safeguard Americans' data, this bill goes in the opposite direction, giving large corporations more liability protecti… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://welch.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/congressman-engel-and-congressman-welch-introduce-offending-oil | Congressman Engel and Congressman Welch Introduce the Offending Oil Polluters Act to Prevent American Taxpayers from Subsidizing Corporate Wrongdoing | 2015-10-20 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Peter Welch | W000800 | welch.house.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Congressman Eliot Engel and Congressman Peter Welch, members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, have introduced H.R. 3760, The Offending Oil Polluters Act, legislation aimed at preventing companies from deducting losses that result from spilling oil or hazardous substances. Federal tax law currently prevents companies from deducting penalties paid as a result of breaking the law from their corporate taxes. However, money classified as something other than a penaltyincluding restitution, reimbursement, or compensatory payments to damaged partiesis deductible as an ordinary cost of doing business. Earlier this month, BP and the Justice Department reached a $20.8 billion settlement for damages caused by the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill. But under the current law, up to 75 percent of BP's bill is tax deductible, thus forcing the American taxpayer to cover more than $5 billion of the settlement's cost. The Offending Oil Polluters Act would prevent companies from deducting losses that result from spilling oil or hazardous substances, including deductions for the direct costs of clean-up, legal fees resulting from the discharge of oil or hazardous substances, payments or restitution related to the discharge, and any cost penalties that are required by Federal law, regulations, or certified in a settlement by Federal courts. Allowing a financial institution that has damaged the environment and harmed consumers the benefit of writing off related penalties is offensive and adds insult to injury to the taxpayer, Congressman Welch said. This legislation is a no brainer and Congress should act on it promptly to protect the American taxpayer. BP made an absolute mess in the Gulf, and the idea that they can somehow pawn the bill off on the American taxpayer is disgusting, Congressman Engel said. Those who do significant harm to our environment need to be held accountable to the public for their actions, not the other way around. The current laws provide too many escape hatches for polluters to use in or… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://welch.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/richmond-school-welch-highlights-bipartisan-legislation-improve-call | At Richmond School, Welch Highlights Bipartisan Legislation to Improve Call Completion in Rural America | 2015-10-20 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Peter Welch | W000800 | welch.house.gov | legacy | RICHMOND, Vt.Rep. Peter Welch (D-VT) today visited Camels Hump Middle School in Richmond to highlight his bipartisan legislation to address the frequency of dropped telephone calls in rural America. In Vermont, rural school administrators regularly experience dropped calls while notifying parents of school cancellations due to inclement weather. In some rural areas of the country, nearly one in five inbound calls to landline phones are not completed or are of poor quality. Poor call completion in rural areas often stems from the use by retail long distance providers of third parties to deliver calls at reduced rates. As a member of the powerful House Energy and Commerce Committee, Welch has been a strong advocate for improving rural call completion and connectivity in rural America and holding third party providers accountable. At the Richmond school, Welch highlighted his bipartisan legislation to tackIe the problem. The Rural Call Quality and Reliability Act would hold providers accountable by requiring them to register with the FCC and meet quality standards ensuring rural Americans can rely on their phone service. The bill explicitly prohibits providers from using any intermediary routing service that is not registered with the FCC. In April, Rep. Welch reintroduced a bipartisan resolution that outlines steps the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) should take to improve telephone service in rural areas. "Reliable telephone service is a lifeline for residents, businesses, and schools in rural parts of Vermont and the country. Vermonters living and doing business in rural parts of our state should have the confidence that every call they make and every call they receive are completed without disruption," Welch said."It is simply unacceptable in the 21st Century for rural Americans to be frustrated by dropped calls due to telecom provider connection issues." Today's event with Rep. Peter Welch at Camels Hump Middle School in Richmond, Vt., demonstrates yet again why it is so important to address the ongoing… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/leahy-senate-must-pass-comprehensive-immigration-reform_not-partisan-legislation | Leahy: Senate Must Pass Comprehensive Immigration Reform, Not Partisan Legislation | 2015-10-20 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 10.20.15 Leahy: Senate Must Pass Comprehensive Immigration Reform, Not Partisan Legislation WASHINGTON (Tuesday, October 20, 2015) The Senate is poised to cast a procedural vote Tuesday on partisan immigration legislation that would harm communities and is staunchly opposed by law enforcement. A broad range of groups representing domestic violence victims, housing and low-income advocates, mayors, faith and civil rights leaders, labor groups, and immigrant rights organizations also oppose the bill. Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) urged Republican leaders Tuesday to instead work to pass comprehensive immigration reform, just as Democrats did in the last Congress. For the first time in more than two years, the Senate is turning its attention to an issue related to our broken immigration system. But in stark contrast to the comprehensive, hopeful legislation last reported by the Senate Judiciary Committee, the majority is simply scheduling a show vote today on a divisive, partisan proposal that has not even been considered in the Judiciary Committee. What a difference a change in leadership makes, Leahy said. Leahy served as chairman of the Judiciary Committee last Congress when the Senate approved the bipartisan Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act. That bill was considered in committee over a three-week period and had extensive process on the floor. In contrast, the legislation being considered in the Senate today was removed from the agenda in the Judiciary Committee last week so that it would not be the subject of a markup. Leahy said: Rather than marking this legislation up in Committee with input and amendments from both sides, the bill before us was yanked off of the Judiciary Committee agenda once the Majority Leader decided to bring it straight to the floor. # # # # # Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, on the Stop Sanctuary Cities Policies and Protect Americans Act, S… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/statement-of-senator-patrick-leahy-d-vt-ranking-member-senate-judiciary-committee-on-the-stop-sanctuary-cities-policies-and-protect-americans-act-s2146- | Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, on the Stop Sanctuary Cities Policies and Protect Americans Act, S.2146 | 2015-10-20 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 10.20.15 Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, on the Stop Sanctuary Cities Policies and Protect Americans Act, S.2146 For the first time in more than two years, the Senate is turning its attention to an issue related to our broken immigration system. But in stark contrast to the comprehensive, hopeful legislation last reported by the Senate Judiciary Committee, the majority is simply scheduling a show vote today on a divisive, partisan proposal that has not even been considered in the Judiciary Committee. What a difference a change in leadership makes. There are few topics more fundamental to who we are as a Nation than immigration. A consistent thread through our history is the arrival of new people to this country seeking a better life. Immigration has been an ongoing source of renewal for America -- a renewal of our spirit, our creativity, and our economic strength. Two years ago, the Senate reaffirmed its commitment to these ideals when we approved S. 744, the Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act. That legislation, which was supported by 68 Senators from both parties, would have meaningfully improved our great country by making our communities safer, strengthening our economy, improving border security, and keeping families together. It was a remarkable, bipartisan effort that was made better through the extensive amendment process in the Senate Judiciary Committee. It was an example of all that we can accomplish when we actually focus on the hard job of legislating. The bill we are considering today could not be more different. This legislation is not bipartisan. It does not reflect a desire to meaningfully improve what we all agree is a broken immigration system. Instead, this bill is, as the New York Times editorialized on Saturday, a class-action slander against an immigrant population that has been scapegoated for the crimes of a few, and left stranded by the failure of legislative reform that would op… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://welch.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/bipartisan-group-legislators-applaud-epa-looking-flawed-renewable-fuel | Bipartisan Group of Legislators Applaud the EPA For Looking Into Flawed Renewable Fuel Standard | 2015-10-19 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Peter Welch | W000800 | welch.house.gov | legacy | Washington, D.C. Representatives Jim Costa (D-CA), Bob Goodlatte (R-VA), Peter Welch (D-VT), and Steve Womack (R-AR) released the following statement regarding the Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Inspector General research into lifecycle impacts of the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS): We are pleased that the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Inspector General (IG) is looking into the effectiveness of the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). While we believe the RFS was implemented with good intentions, the reality is that, given current conditions, the policy is flawed and is in need of reform. The current RFS has surpassed a sustainable state and is hurting American consumers, energy producers, livestock and poultry producers, food manufacturers, and retailers. The negative impacts of the RFS are known, and it is our hope that the IG's report provides much-needed clarity to the conflicting information the EPA has shared regarding the benefits of the RFS. In February 2015, Reps. Costa, Goodlatte, Welch, and Womack introduced H.R. 704, theRFS Reform Act. TheRFS Reform Acteliminates the corn-based ethanol requirement, caps the amount of ethanol that can be blended into conventional gasoline at 10 percent, and requires the EPA to set cellulosic biofuels levels at production levels. ### | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/at-sjc-hearing-leahy-urges-senators-to-support-criminal-justice-reform | At SJC Hearing, Leahy Urges Senators To Support Criminal Justice Reform | 2015-10-19 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 10.19.15 At SJC Hearing, Leahy Urges Senators To Support Criminal Justice Reform This is an historic opportunity, and we must not squander it. WASHINGTON (Monday, October 19, 2015) The Senate Judiciary Committee is holding a hearing today on the bipartisan Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act of 2015, a bill to reduce some mandatory sentences and reform the criminal justice system. Ranking Member Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), a former prosecutor who has long advocated for comprehensive criminal justice reform, urged all Senators to support the legislation, noting that The problems facing our criminal justice system simply cannot continue to go unaddressed. When we lock up too many people, for longer than is necessary to keep our communities safe, it comes at an extraordinary price. We have fewer resources to support public safety efforts that actually work. And we are left with a criminal justice system that is anything but just,' particularly for many communities of color, Leahy said. He added: To solve complex problems in our communities, like addiction, Congress has too often resorted to simple, yet deeply flawed mandatory minimum sentences. It is time we fix our mistakes. And it is essential that this fix apply retroactively so that those currently paying the price for our mistakes are given a second chance. This is an historic opportunity, and we must not squander it. The Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act expands an existing judicial safety valve that allows judges to impose a sentence below the mandatory minimum sentence. This approach is also part of the Justice Safety Valve Act, bipartisan legislation coauthored by Leahy to restore judicial discretion and end the use of mandatory minimum sentences. Many of the provisions in the bill will apply retroactively for those currently serving long sentences, something Leahy pushed in a Washington Times op-ed with Cardinal Theodore McCarrick.In that September … | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/feinstein-and-leahy-call-on-chinese-leaders-to-release-nobel-laureate-liu-xia-and-his-wife | Feinstein & Leahy Call On Chinese Leaders To Release Nobel Laureate Liu Xia And His Wife | 2015-10-15 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 10.15.15 Feinstein & Leahy Call On Chinese Leaders To Release Nobel Laureate Liu Xia And His Wife Feinstein, Leahy Call for Release of Chinese Nobel Laureate, Wife Five-year anniversary of Liu Xia's arrest (THURSDAY, Oct. 15, 2015) -- Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) today released the following statement marking the five-year anniversary of the arrest of Liu Xia, the wife of Chinese democracy activist and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Liu Xiaobo: This week marks the five-year anniversary that Liu Xia was placed under house arrest in China. She has never been charged with a crime and remains confined to her apartment because her husband, respected democracy activist Liu Xiaobo, won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2010. Over the past five years, Liu Xia's health has sharply deteriorated. She suffers from anxiety, depression, severe back pain and had a heart attack last year. Her repeated requests to leave the country for medical treatment have been denied. We urgently request the Chinese government allow Liu Xia to seek medical treatment abroad and release Liu Xiaobo, the world's only jailed Nobel Peace Prize laureate. Such action would be a welcome humanitarian gesture. # # # # # Press Contact David Carle (Leahy), (202) 224-3693 Dean Lieberman (Feinstein), (202) 224-9629 Next Article Previous Article | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://welch.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/welch-sends-letter-nrc-demanding-seat-table-vermont-yankee | Welch Sends Letter to NRC Demanding Seat at Table for Vermont in Yankee Decommissioning | 2015-10-14 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Peter Welch | W000800 | welch.house.gov | legacy | Washington Following up on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's (NRC) testimony before key House subcommittees in September, Rep. Peter Welch (D-VT) today sent a letter to the NRC demanding Vermont have a seat at the table in decommissioning Entergy's Vermont Yankee plant in Vernon, Vermont. The lack of meaningful stakeholder participation in decisions related to Vermont Yankee's decommissioning is unacceptable. It is essential that Vermonters have a seat at the table throughout this process. The NRC has failed to substantively engage state and local officials and appears to be increasingly relying on the perspective of the nuclear energy industry. I request that you creatively engage local stakeholders in a manner that goes beyond standard regulatory procedures to ensure that their concerns are heard and addressed, Rep. Welch wrote. Welch first challenged the NRC in a joint hearing of the House Energy and Commerce subcommittees on Energy and Power, and Environment and the Economy. The letter can be found in its entirety below. October 14, 2015 The Honorable Stephen Burns Chairman U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Washington, DC 20555-0001 Dear Mr. Chairman: Thank you for your testimony at the September 9, 2015 joint hearing of the House Energy and Commerce subcommittees on Energy and Power, and Environment and the Economy. I want to reiterate the concerns I raised at the hearing regarding the decommissioning of Entergy's Vermont Yankee plant located in Vernon, Vermont. Specifically, I am deeply concerned about: 1) the lack of state and local stakeholder involvement in the decommissioning process; 2) questionable uses of the Decommissioning Trust Fund by Entergy; and 3) the reality that the use of the SAFSTOR decommissioning procedure will effectively delay the full cleanup and redevelopment of the Vermont Yankee site for decades. In addition, subsequent to that joint hearing, I have become very concerned about significant new developments in relation to Vermont Yankee emergency programs. The lack o… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/joined-by-vermont-victims-advocates-leahy-announces-87-million-for-states-crime-victims-and-victims-of-domestic-and-sexual-assault | Joined By Vermont Victims Advocates, Leahy Announces $8.7 Million For States Crime Victims And Victims Of Domestic And Sexual Assault | 2015-10-09 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 10.09.15 Joined By Vermont Victims' Advocates, Leahy Announces $8.7 Million For State's Crime Victims And Victims Of Domestic And Sexual Assault . . . Tripling Of Support For Crime Victims Follows Leahy's Efforts To Lift Cap On Crime Victims Fund BURLINGTON, Vt. (FRIDAY, Oct. 9, 2015) Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), a former prosecutor and longtime champion for crime victims and victims of domestic violence, Friday announced that Vermont will receive more than $8.7 million from the U.S. Department of Justice to support victims of crime and enhance programs that serve survivors of domestic and sexual violence. The funding includes a three-fold increase to the Vermont Center for Crime Victims Services (VCCVS), which will receive $4.8 million in Victims of Crime Awards in Fiscal Year 2015 appropriations. Leahy, the Ranking Member and previous Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and also the senior-most member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, led the effort to substantially increase such funding by raising the cap on the Crime Victims Fund within the Omnibus Appropriations Bill. These funds provide direct aid to crime victims, helping with emergency shelter, transportation and legal assistance, as well as compensation for expenses such as hospital bills, burial costs and other restitution. The fund is financed by criminal fines and penalties, not taxpayer dollars. While the fund's reserves have significantly grown in recent years, the previous cap on the distribution of such funds limited their reach. Leahy said: This funding honors our commitment to ensuring that Vermonters victimized by crime are treated with the help, the care, and the dignity and respect that they need and deserve. Victims should not have to worry about how to pay for medical or dental expenses, or how to cover for lost wages when they are injured. They should not be victimized twice. The funding announced Friday by Leahy also in… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://welch.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/welch-we-ve-got-volkswagen-customers-red-states-and-blue-states-and-they | Welch: Weve got Volkswagen customers in red states and blue states, and theyre mad as hell | 2015-10-08 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Peter Welch | W000800 | welch.house.gov | legacy | WASHINGTONRep. Peter Welch (D-VT) today challenged Volkswagen United States CEO Michael Horn to explain how and why his company duped hundreds of thousands of Americansincluding 3,000 Vermontersinto buying the so-called clean diesel cars that are spewing up to 40 times the legal limit of harmful nitrogen oxide into the air. Earlier this week, Welch asked Vermonters what questions they would ask of Mr. Horn. At the hearing today, Welch requested that Mr. Horn provide an answer to each of the questions posed. I have some questions that came to me from Vermonters Let me give you a reflection of what these say. Number one, What will you, VW, be reading when you're in jail?' Number two, I just wonder what the hell you were thinking?' Three, How can we help out Vermonters who got these lemons?' Four, Why should the US allow you to sell vehicles in this country?'. These questions go on and on and reflect the white-heat anger that folks have about the deception. Rep. Welch asked. Welch is a member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. His questioning of Mr. Horn occurred at a hearing of its subcommittee on Oversight and Government Reform. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/comment-of-senator-patrick-leahy-d-vt-ranking-member-senate-judiciary-committee-on-the-introduction-of-bipartisan-sentencing-reform-legislation-in-the-house- | Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On the Introduction of Bipartisan Sentencing Reform Legislation in the House | 2015-10-08 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | VT | Patrick Leahy | L000174 | www.leahy.senate.gov | legacy | 10.08.15 Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On the Introduction of Bipartisan Sentencing Reform Legislation in the House [Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) issued the following comment Thursday after House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) and Ranking Member John Conyers (D-Mich.) announced an agreement on bipartisan criminal justice reform legislation. The announcement comes one week after a bipartisan group of Senators including Leahy introduced the Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act of 2015 to reduce the impact of some mandatory minimum sentences and apply those changes retroactively to inmates currently serving unfair sentences.] I commend Chairman Goodlatte and Ranking Member Conyers for introducing legislation to reform our nation's criminal justice system. The bipartisan nature of the House bill, coupled with our bipartisan introduction of broader legislation in the Senate last week, marks a new chapter in criminal justice reform. With the support and leadership of the Chairman and Ranking Member in both chambers, I have great hope that Congress will pass legislation this year to improve our criminal justice system by focusing on the most serious offenders, allowing us to ease the pressure on our over-crowded prisons and reinvest the savings in keeping our communities safe. I look forward to reviewing the House bill and working with all members on this most important issue. # # # # # Press Contact Press Contact David Carle: 202-224-3693 Next Article Previous Article | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z |
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