Press releases
Data license: MIT · Data source: dwillis/congress-press
- url
- Link to the original release on the member's official site
- text
- Extracted body text (may be empty if the page could not be fetched)
- has_text
- 1 if body text was successfully extracted
- date_source
- How the publication date was determined
- bioguide_id
- Bioguide ID of the member
469 rows where state = "DE" and year = 2015 sorted by date descending
This data as json, CSV (advanced)
| url | title | date ▲ | year | month | party | chamber | state | member_name | bioguide_id | domain | scraper | source | date_source | text | has_text | collected_at | updated_at |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=53dfef5a-dbfd-405f-834d-a6447d4c64e4 | Carper Statement on DuPont's Announcement of Job Reductions, Specialty Products Division Headquarters | 2015-12-29 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WILMINGTON, Del. Today, U.S. Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) released the following statement on DuPonts announcement that approximately 1,700 Delaware-based positions will be eliminated and that its corporate headquarters for the post-merger Specialty Products division will remain in Delaware. The news of the Dow-DuPont merger was a shock to all of us, and todays announcement is very troubling. My heart goes out to everyone affected by the job losses here in Delaware. These DuPont employees are our longtime friends, our family, and our neighbors. At this time of hardship for so many Delaware families, we, as the states elected officials, cant sit back, wring our hands and bemoan our fate. Weve got to roll up our sleeves and work together, and I will continue to work with the Governor and Congressional delegation to do everything we can to help those affected and make sure good job opportunities are available here in the First State. For more than two centuries, the DuPont Company has made Delaware its home, and Delawareans have been responsible for many of its most successful and profitable products. From life-saving innovations to market-changing discoveries in research, these products have been sold under the DuPont name and made it one of the most respected American companies in the history of our country. The announcement made today that Dow-DuPonts Specialty Products division will remain in Delaware comes as a small but welcome break in the clouds. The fight, however, isnt over. Its also absolutely critical that the agriculture business is headquartered here in our state, and the Congressional delegation will work alongside Governor Markell, the Delaware legislature, and business and community leaders to do our part to ensure it is. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=35dd0548-5b06-4794-9163-7097c417a2fb | Senator Carper Calls on Agencies to Improve Implementation of IT Management Law | 2015-12-18 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON On the first anniversary of the enactment of the Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act (FITARA), Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, called on agencies across the federal government to improve implementation of the landmark information technology (IT) law. Congress passed FITARA with the goal of reducing waste in federal information technology (IT) spending and increasing agency accountability to the American taxpayer,said Sen. Carper.I am encouraged by the steps that the Office of Management and Budget and some agencies have taken to implement the law. Ive also heard positive feedback from many federal Chief Information Officers who feel that FITARA has empowered them with the clear authority and guidance they need to do their job.That being said, agencies still have a lot of work to do to realize the laws full potential. One year into FITARA, agencies across the federal government are still vulnerable to catastrophic IT failures, continue to struggle with tracking and managing data centers, and still fail to purchase software in a cost-effective manner. There is clearly room for improvement. But FITARA set a high bar for improving IT management and was always meant to be a multi-year effort. This first anniversary is a good time for the leadership of agencies to assess how they are meeting the goals of FITARA and redouble their efforts to make real changes in the way the federal government manages its IT. As the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) has repeatedly pointed out in recent years, the federal government spends approximately $80 billion annually on IT, yet those investments continue to underperform, often incurring considerable cost overruns and delays. FITARA works to improve how the federal government acquires, implements,and manages its information technology investments by giving agency Chief Information Officers (CIO) more authority over the budget, governance, and personnel processes for agenc… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=85298de8-426f-48a9-ab47-9ad9c50fb966 | Carper Votes to Approve Omnibus, Tax Extenders | 2015-12-18 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), top Democrat on the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, issued the following statement after voting to approve a legislative package that includes measures to fund the government through the end of the fiscal year and extend tax provisions that were set to expire at the end of this month. I am very pleased that the omnibus spending bill we approved today is consistent with the budget weve already adopted, and its a thoughtful balance of spending between our domestic and defense programs that honors our countrys values and principles. This legislative package, however, is extraordinarily large, and it combines policies that have diverse impacts not only on the federal government, but also our economy as a whole. While there are some serious shortcomings, ultimately, I believe the good outweighed the bad and therefore I voted to send it to President Obama for his signature. As the top Democrat on the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, Im pleased with the spending allocations for our Committee's priorities, especially the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Our national security is a paramount priority for our country, and this funding will better equip and enable the more than 200,000 men and women who work at DHS to better serve and secure our nation. This funding is a win for homeland security, and thats a win that all Americans can celebrate. I'm especially proud to have worked on the Cybersecurity Act of 2015. This legislation which would facilitate the sharing of cyber threat information among and between the private sector and federal government and authorize key cyber defense programs at the Department of Homeland Security, such as the cyber intrusion and detection system known as EINSTEIN, while maintaining privacy protections. Overall, this measure, which is the reflection of bipartisan collaboration and compromise, will strengthen our nations defenses online and help federal agencies, businesses and consumers better p… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=e99bdf8a-0285-41fa-94d8-a000b3e3fff0 | Senate Passes Bipartisan PRIME Act Provisions to Curb Medicare and Medicaid Waste and Fraud | 2015-12-18 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, the Senate passed major provisions of the bipartisan Preventing and Reducing Improper Medicare and Medicaid Expenditures (PRIME) Act (S. 861) to improve program integrity within Medicare and Medicaid.The PRIME Act, which has 17 bipartisan cosponsors, was introduced by Sens. Tom Carper (D-Del.) and Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.). Medicare and Medicaid provide access to quality healthcare to seniors, children and families across the country every day, said Sen. Carper. But each year, millions of dollars that should be going to our most vulnerable Americans are lost to waste and fraud. The common-sense measures within the PRIME Act are a win-win. They will help us fulfill our responsibility to make sure this vitally important program has the resources it needs, while working to make us better stewards of taxpayer dollars by reducing instances of waste, fraud, and abuse. I look forward to working with my colleagues in the House to get this legislation over the finish line and on to the President for his signature. We hear a lot about how Washington lacks common sense. People are usually right about that. This time, however, were using common sense, said Sen. Enzi. This bill does not affect coverage or benefits, but does make practical changes to the system. Weve used Government Accountability Office, HHS Inspector General and other expert findings and recommendations to build in better efficiencies. The provisions approved today will specify criminal penalties for fraudulently buying, selling or distributing Medicare and Medicaid patient information, specifically beneficiary identification numbers. The legislation will also facilitate information sharing between federally administered Medicare and state-administered Medicaid to prevent fraudulent activity in both programs, and incentivize accurate payments to Medicare providers in order to prevent improper payments. The PRIME Act provisions were included as part of a larger package of health care related legislation approved by the Senate by Unanimous Cons… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=9e13bada-c57e-489c-b25a-bf88d3ef8184 | Legislation to Modernize Federal Standards for Toxic Chemicals Passes the Senate | 2015-12-17 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), a senior Democrat on the Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee, released the following statement after the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act, a bill to overhaul the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) of 1976, passed the Senate by voice vote. The bill, introduced by Sens. Tom Udall (D-N.M.) and David Vitter (R-La.), and cosponsored by Sen. Carper, would modernize TSCA, an outdated law enacted nearly four decades ago that fails to adequately protect the public from harmful chemicals, and imposed outdated regulatory procedures that stifled business innovation and job creation. Bipartisanship is hard to come by in the Senate these days, especially on environmental issues. Today, the Senate took a historic step toward reforming our toxics laws to better serve both the public and businesses in Delaware and around the country. After too many years of failure, both sides of the aisle have worked together to compromise on policy, without ever compromising their principles, Senator Carper said. For nearly 40 years, a broken regulatory system for toxic substances has failed to adequately protect Americans from risks to their health, and hasn't worked for business either. Weve been negotiating TSCA reform for six years, and in the Senate theres been a lot of give and take by both sides of the aisle to get to todays vote. The final product is a testament to a robust and transparent committee process, and a textbook example of how we should legislate. And it's a proposal that's come leaps and bounds from its predecessor in its protections for public health and the environment. Communication, compromise and collaboration have made all the difference in this effort, and enabled Republicans and Democrats to find a way forward on a very challenging, but necessary, reform of our nation's chemical safety law. I thank Senator Udall for his leadership, determination, and tireless efforts alongside Senator Vitter and Senator Inhofe to produce this biparti… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=dabbd212-3657-40aa-a58e-3dd9ba393bb5 | Senator Carper Comments on Senate Confirmation of D.C. Superior Court Associate Judges | 2015-12-17 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, released a statement following the Senates unanimous confirmation of Robert A. Salerno and Darlene M. Soltys to be Associate Judges, D.C. Superior Court. Today, the Senate did the right thing and quickly approved these two well-qualified, non-controversial nominees for the District of Columbia Superior Court. Ms. Soltys and Mr. Salernos expertise and experience have prepared them well to serve the Districts Superior Court and its residents. I am confident they are ready to hit the ground running and get to work. Todays confirmations make progress in restoring the Courts bench which still suffers from numerous vacancies. I hope my colleagues continue to consider and confirm D.C. judicial nominees, including the four nominees currently pending before our committee, in a timely manner. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=77a839e2-a0d3-403f-84d0-a99d81efc198 | Senator Carper Highlights Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Priorities in FY16 Spending Bill | 2015-12-16 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, released the following statement reacting to the homeland security and governmental affairs priorities included in the FY16 appropriations bill: Given the number of threats facing our homeland today, I am encouraged by the number of provisions in the Fiscal Year 2016 spending measure crafted to fund the Department of Homeland Security and help ensure that our country is safe and secure. Cyber attacks present one of the biggest national security challenges we face. Congress has a responsibility to continue to strengthen our cyber defenses and help federal agencies, businesses, and consumers protect themselves online. I thank my colleagues on the Appropriations Committee for recognizing the magnitude of this threat and including the Cybersecurity Act of 2015 in the bill, legislation which would facilitate the sharing of cyber threat information among and between the private sector and federal government and authorize key cyber defense programs at the Department of Homeland Security, such as the cyber intrusion and detection system known as EINSTEIN, while maintaining privacy protections. As part of the effort to protect our homeland, Congress must make sure there is adequate coordination and collaboration across the Department of Homeland Security. To that end, I was encouraged by the funding that would support the consolidation of the Department of Homeland Securitys headquarters at the St. Elizabeths campus. Completion of this project will help the Department build a sense of cohesion across its many offices and save taxpayer dollars in the long run. It should also bolster efforts by Department leaders to improve employee morale. Moreover, I was pleased to see funding dedicated to countering violence extremism and supporting the Departments Office of Community Partnerships. This will help the Department continue its efforts to combat homegrown terrorism and self-radicalization. This bill me… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=ae7a7e07-a4a7-4e22-9c0d-941e71d3fb85 | Senate Approves Bill to Crack Down on Federal Charge Card Waste and Abuse | 2015-12-16 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, the Senate approved a bipartisan bill to curb waste, fraud and abuse in federal agency travel and purchase cards spending. TheSaving Federal Dollars Through Better Use of Government Purchase and Travel Cards Act of 2015(S. 1616),introduced by Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) with Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) and Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) now heads to the House of Representatives for further consideration. I thank Senators Grassley, McCaskill, and Johnson for their partnership on this bipartisan bill,said Sen. Carper.This common sense legislation would implement stronger and smarter controls to prevent potential abuse and misuse of government charge cards. Whilefederal agencies have made progress in strengthening financial controls over government travel and purchase cards,more needs to be done to eliminate wasteful charge card spending. Congress must continue to work across the aisle to ensure that federal agencies crack down on charge card abuse and taxpayer dollars are being spent responsibly across the federal government. I encourage my colleagues in the House of Representatives to approve this legislation and send it to the President for his signature. This bill builds on my Government Charge Card Abuse Prevention Act of 2012 by adding an additional layer of government-wide oversight to the work of individual agency inspectors general,said Sen. Grassley.Earlier this year, a Defense Department inspector general report, which was drafted in response to the 2012 law, highlighted some areas where the Defense Department was not properly implementing the required controls and flagged casinos as a high risk for misuse of charge cards. Our bill will make sure were looking for similar patterns of misuse across all federal agencies and that agencies are sharing best practices to prevent misuse and identify potential cost savings. What weve done here to help agencies find and end the waste, fraud, and abuse of government-issued charge cards is a no-brainer,said Sen. McCaskill, a forme… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=f8b4dda1-1632-4f6f-a3b6-6a43bcdd0d20 | Senator Carper Responds to Updates to National Terrorism Advisory System (NTAS) | 2015-12-16 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, reacted to updates the Department of Homeland Security has made to the National Terrorism Advisory System (NTAS). The National Terrorism Advisory System was created in 2011 to replace the color-coded alert system that wasput in place after 9/11. The system was developed to quickly communicate detailed information about terrorist threats to government agencies, first responders, transportation managers, and the American public. For more information on todays announcement, please visit:http://www.dhs.gov/news/2015/12/16/update-national-terrorism-advisory-system Given the terrorist threats our country faces, it is important for all Americans to continue to embrace the adage, if you see something, say something, said Sen. Carper. Today, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson announced updates to the National Terrorism Advisory System that will provide more information for Americans to help them to quickly report suspicious activity to law enforcement.Like all national security programs, theNational Terrorism Advisory System must be revisited and revised as the threats we face evolve. To that end, the Department must continue to work with community and government partners to make sure we are doing all that we can to keep our families and communities safe. Todays announcement is a small but needed step in that effort. Our Committee will continue to monitor the system and the implementation of these updated measures." | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=52f71ade-6a51-46ad-bd37-1f11777eb6bd | Carper Statement on Announcement of DuPont-Dow Chemical Merger | 2015-12-11 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WILMINGTON, Del. Today, U.S. Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) released the following statement on the news that DuPont and Dow Chemical are in advanced discussions to undergo a merger of equals. DuPont has been a Delaware company forover two hundred years, carrying with it a centuries-old tradition of success. It should come as no surprise that Dow has reportedly long been motivated to pursue a merger with DuPont. While the news certainly feels like a warning sign for turbulence ahead, I believe that in adversity lies opportunity. We can sit around, wring our hands and bemoan the hand that Delaware has been dealt or we can roll up our sleeves, join hands and get to work finding the opportunity within this perceived adversity. Ivealways believedthat one of the major roles of government is to create a nurturing environment for job creation and job preservation. Now, perhaps more than ever, our Congressional Delegation must immediately get to work with Governor Markell, the Delaware legislature, and business and community leaders across the First State to do all that we can to make the best out of this situation. Working together, Delaware can prove that if DuPont and Dow do merge, its the smart decision to locate a significant portion of their business here. Its not the time to sit back and accept our fate. Its time to seize the day. Carpe Diem! | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=1e9df6d9-9b3e-40ce-b901-96a5af1968eb | Senator Carper Recognizes DHS US-Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT) | 2015-12-10 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON In case you missed it, earlier today Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), ranking member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, took to the Senate floor to highlight the work of the United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT) that operates within the Department of Homeland Securitys (DHS) National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center (NCCIC). His speech, as prepared for delivery, is below: Mr. President, earlier this week, the Partnership for Public Service released its annual report ranking the best places to work in the federal government. The report is based on surveys conducted by hundreds of thousands of federal workers. This year, it showed an increase in overall employee morale for the first time in four years. Despite the progress that appears to have been made in many federal agencies, many components of the Department of Homeland Security continue to struggle to make its employees feel good about where they work and what they do. I know that Secretary Johnson and his team are taking significant steps to make the Department a better place to work for current and future employees. But Congress also has a responsibility to help improve morale at DHS. Considering the fact that we began 2015 with a fight in this body over whether or not we should even fund the Department, I dont believe we are doing all that we can. That is why I have come down to the Senate floor on several occasions throughout the year to highlight some of the extraordinary work being done every day by the dedicated men and women at the Department of Homeland Security. Today, I rise to recognize no one individual, but a whole team of people for the important work they do every day to defend our nation from the growing and evolving threats our country faces in cyberspace. It seems like we cant go a week without hearing about another major breach at a business or government agency. These past few years, weve seen major attacks on the Office of Personnel Management, Son… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=7a2d0e9b-fc53-4ed0-96ae-c21f76e6b6ba | Carper Votes to Approve Bipartisan Education Reform Package to Replace No Child Left Behind | 2015-12-09 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, U.S. Senator Tom Carper (D-Del.) voted to approve the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) bipartisan legislation negotiated by House and Senate conferees to reauthorize and improve the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). In July, the Senate overwhelmingly approved its version of ESEA reform legislation introduced by Senators Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.). The final measure was approved today by a vote of 85 to 12, and will now be sent to President Obama for his signature. Fifty years ago, President Lyndon Johnson signed the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, a landmark civil rights law that provides valuable federal funds to our nations poorest schools districts. Over the past five decades, the law has contributed to significant academic gains, particularly among students in our most vulnerable communities. But the last time Congress reauthorized ESEA was 14 years ago through the No Child Left Behind Acta law that actually expired eight years ago. Today, the Senate made much-needed improvements to our nations main K-12 federal education law. We finally replaced No Child Left Behind and the new law reflects the lessons weve learned since 2001. The Every Student Succeeds Act reaffirms the federal governments role in ensuring that states set rigorous academic standards across the board, so that our students truly are getting the highest quality education. This bill eliminates some of the overly prescriptive and punitive aspects of No Child Left Behind, while empowering states, school districts, educators, and parents to develop locally driven plans to continue raising student achievement. The federal government shares in the responsibility to make sure that all students no matter their zip code, their race, or their economic status have access to an education that prepares them to achieve success in the classroom and go on to meaningful careers. This bill goes a long way to making good on that promise. Critically, the Every Student Succeeds Act as… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=d75c65d2-518c-42d7-99e4-d2c24dd6594a | Senator Carper Sponsors National Security Proposals to Defeat ISIS and Keep America Safe | 2015-12-09 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Ranking Member Tom Carper (D-Del.) sponsored legislation to defeat ISIS abroad while enhancing efforts to protect Americans from terrorism at home. The first measure, S.2377, introduced by Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), is based on proposals from Senate national security committees, including provisions drafted by Sen. Carper in his role as the Ranking Member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. Sen. Carper also introduced his own bill, Community Partnership Act of 2015 (S. 2369), to combat the efforts by terrorist groups here in the United States and abroad to recruit and radicalize American citizens and encourage them to carry out attacks. The best way to combat the threat of ISIS across the globe is to continue to degrade and destroy their forces overseas and show the world that they are not as powerful as they claim to be, said Sen. Carper. Our success will not only rob them of their safe haven in the Middle East, but also undercut their recruitment narrative that ISIS is on the rise. While the international coalition in the fight against ISIS continues to make progress dismantling and degrading the terrorist group, we must also focus on defeating the threat ISIS and other terrorist groups pose here at home. As the recent tragedy in California underscores, one of the greatest threats we face is homegrown terrorism and self-radicalization. Thats why we must also work to destroy ISISs influence by countering their twisted message and inoculating against its efforts to radicalize our own people here in the United States. We must also strengthen our aviation security, enhance the capabilities of our first responders, and ensure that radiological material here at home does not end up in the hands of a terrorist. This bill will give the Administration the authorities and guidance they need to help destroy this threat and better secure our homeland. Sen. Carpers provisions in S.2377 would: Estab… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=dd709e9f-2316-43dd-8c81-34048245a90e | Johnson, Carper Question K-1 Visa Program Vulnerabilities Following San Bernardino Terrorist Attack | 2015-12-09 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Sens. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) and Tom Carper (D-Del.), chairman and ranking member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, sent letters to the departments of Homeland Security and State on Wednesday requesting documents and information on the K-1 visa program following the terrorist attacks in San Bernardino, Calif. One of the suspected terrorists, Tashfeen Malik, entered the United States under a fianc visa in July 2014. The San Bernardino attack has exposed the K-1 visa program as another potential vulnerability to our nations security, Sen. Johnson said. Despite undergoing background checks and reviews by both the Department of Homeland Security and the State Department, Tashfeen Malik gained lawful entry into the United States and brought terrorism to our shores. As Chairman of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, I will push for answers from the Homeland Security and State departments to find out how Ms. Malik slipped through the cracks and explore necessary reforms aimed at preventing terrorists from entering the United States via K-1 visas in the future. Following the attacks in San Bernardino, the threat of homegrown terrorism and self-radicalization has become all too real to Americans, Sen. Carper said. As the Committee with oversight over our nations homeland security, its critical that we learn all that we can from this tragedy to inform our fight against terrorism in all forms here at home and keep Americans safe. I realize that many Americans are concerned about terrorists traveling to our country. I am too and thats why I believe we must continue to examine any vulnerabilities in the various ways people are able to travel to and stay in our country. Given that one of the San Bernardino attackers came to the United States on a K-1 visa or fianc visa its important for us to get more information about that program in particular to determine if there are weaknesses and, if so, fix them to help prevent tragedies like this from happe… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=19e424c5-50fc-4037-96cf-8283424a74af | Senator Carper Responds to Annual "Best Places to Work in the Federal Government" Survey | 2015-12-08 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, reacted to the annual Best Places to Work in the Federal Government rankings released by the Partnership for Public Service. Each year, the Partnership for Public Service releases federal agency rankings based on surveys conducted by hundreds of thousands of federal workers. This year, the report shows that overall employee morale increased for the first time in four years; however, the Department of Homeland Security remains at the bottom of the list among large agencies. For the past several years, federal employees have borne undue costs as a result of the partisan gridlock in Washington,said Sen. Carper.From pay freezes to short-sighted budget cuts to government shutdowns, federal employees have at best felt unappreciated and at worst under siege. This is not the way to inspire or motivate a workforce. And this is not the way to attract and retain the best and brightest to serve their country. Like turning an aircraft carrier, improving morale at our federal agencies will take time. The results of this report show that we have begun to right this ship but there is much more to be done. Congress must stop using federal budgets and federal employees to make a political point. We must work together across party lines to make the federal government a better, more attractive place to work and that starts with providing adequate levels of funding to federal agencies under regular order. While this report shows that overall morale has improved across the federal government, I was disheartened to see that employee morale at the Department of Homeland Security remains the lowest among major federal agencies. Though considering we began 2015 with a fight over whether or not we should even fund the Department, I cant say Im surprised. That is why I have gone down to the Senate floor on several occasions to highlight some of the extraordinary work being done every day by the brave men and women at th… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=c9f22824-a5ec-4719-9e68-ad8e5490d2f2 | Senator Carper on USPS Board of Governors: "Congress Must Act Now to Restore Appropriate Oversight of U.S Postal Service." | 2015-12-08 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, due to Congressional inaction, the U.S. Postal Services (USPS) Board of Governors has lost another two of its nine Senate-confirmed members, leaving only one appointed official to do the work of managing USPS activity alongside the Postmaster General and her management team. There are currently five nominees pending before the Senate. Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, released the following reaction to the news: Because of Congress inability to come to consensus on postal reform legislation over the last five years, the Postal Service continues to twist in the wind, only able to address the financial challenges it faces by degrading its primary service, fast and efficient delivery of the mail. Customers and stakeholders are left with uncertainty about what the future holds for the Postal Service and how the Postal Service will transform itself to remain relevant in the digital age. Today, Congress made that uncertainty even worse.Obstruction in Congress has made it impossible to consider the five pending nominees for the Postal Board of Governors before the current board was rendered ineffective by term limits. This is negligence on the part of Congress.This would never occur in the private sector because shareholders would demand oversight from a strong board to protect their investment. Congress has failed to protect postal customers.Congress must act now to restore appropriate oversight to this vital $70 billion government-backed corporation and to enact reforms that will restore service and faith in this 200-year-old institution.This is particularly pressing as we enter the winter holidays where shipping and mail volume are expected to increase exponentially. Congressional inaction represents a failure to meet part of the Senates most basic responsibilities: to provide advice and consent on nominations in a thorough and timely manner and to provide agencies with the leadership they need to be successful. We can easily… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/e-newsletter?ContentRecord_id=eafb3917-4d1d-4e05-9d76-d0baec865b7c | Delaware Day: Celebrating the "Delaware Way" | 2015-12-07 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | Dear Friends, Two hundred and twenty-eight years ago, on December 7, 1787, a group of 30 elected delegates met at the Golden Fleece Tavern in Dover to decide the future of Delaware and our nation. On that day, Delawareans made the unanimous decision to ratify the U.S. Constitution and officially become the First State of our new nation. For about one week five days before our neighbors in Pennsylvania ratified the Constitution the state of Delaware composed the entire United States of America. A small wonder, indeed! Today is Delaware Day, a celebration of Delawares leading role to launch the greatest and most enduring experiment in democracy known to mankind. On Delaware Day, its especially important that we remember the Delaware Way the spirit of community that pulls Delawareans together, regardless of political party, race, creed or religion, and encourages us to do whats best for our state and fellow Delawareans. From Wilmington to Georgetown, and everywhere in between, Delawareans continue to work together regardless of our differences, and to build bridges across partisan divisions. Thats the Delaware Way. Over the past few months, I have been reminded of the message Pope Francis conveyed when he addressed a joint session of Congress in September.He called on each of us to follow the Golden Rule and treat others the way we would want to be treated. I believe the Golden Rule is embodied in the Delaware Way and I believe we should all try to invoke that spirit each and every day. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=11026ee1-0227-44e8-b8d4-324f7c520f0e | Carper, Johnson Bill to Curb Waste and Abuse in Federal Agencies Heads to Presidents Desk for Signature | 2015-12-07 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, the House of Representatives approved legislation co-authored by Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) and Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), ranking member and chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, that would strengthen coordination among federal agencies to identify and prevent improper payments.The Improper Payments Coordination Act of 2015 was unanimously approved by the Senate in July. The bill will now go to the President for his signature. Over the past several years, federal agencies have taken concrete steps and made significant strides to decrease wasteful spending, and increase accountability and transparency in government agencies,said Sen. Carper.Despite agencies efforts, improper payments continue to cost agencies billions of taxpayer dollars, undermining the effectiveness of the services that Americans rely upon. This legislation builds on past bipartisan efforts to implement stronger program integrity measures across the federal government, and provide agency officials with the tools they need to identify and prevent improper payments. I thank my colleagues in the House of Representatives for passing this common-sense, bipartisan legislation and look forward to continuing our efforts to ensure agencies are doing all they can to better manage the resources we entrust to them. Im pleased that my bill with Senator Carper to curb wasteful federal spending has passed the House and Senate and will be sent to President Obama. The federal governments efforts to stop improper payments have failed, as is clear from last years $19 billion increase in improper payments,said. Sen. Johnson.Taxpayers expect the federal government to ensure that it is paying the right people, in the right amount, for the right reason. Incremental improvements like this are important if we hope to reduce the $125 billion that was wasted last year. Improper payments are payments made by agencies in error or due to fraud. According to the Office of Management and Budget, federal agencies made an estima… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=224d37a1-1c6d-48d1-88fb-271067430b0d | Senator Carper Urges AFG Applicants to Submit Grant Requests for FY2015 | 2015-12-07 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), co-chair of the Congressional Fire Services Caucus and Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, highlighted the opening of the Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program (AFG) application process for Fiscal Year 2015 and encouraged applicants to submit their grant requests. The application period is open from December 7, 2015 through January 15, 2016. The Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program helps provide our firefighters and emergency service operators with the tools and resources they need to protect the public and save lives, Sen. Carper said. "Our firefighters and first responders across the First State put their lives on the line to protect our communities and families. Its important that they have the appropriate equipment, training, and resources necessary to do their job in a safe and effective manner. I urge our firefighters and first responders across Delaware to submit their applications and continue utilizing this program. The grant, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Homeland Securitys Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), provides funding for projects designed to enhance the safety of firefighters and the public. Since its creation in 2001, AFG aims to reduce injury and prevent death by directly fulfilling firefighting and emergency response capabilities of fire departments and nonaffiliated emergency medical service organizations. For the FY2015 application period, AFG grant applicants can find guidance and applications kit at www.grants.gov and http://www.fema.gov/assistance-firefighters-grant. FEMA has also offered a Get Ready Guide, which helps to clarify the process for potential applicants and provide additional direction. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=3c3ef103-17b0-44f4-9329-f1e10c791d3e | Senator Carper Releases New Report Addressing the Root Causes of the Migration Surge from Central America | 2015-12-07 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON The ongoingmigration surge from the Northern Triangle countries of Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador reflects troubled conditions in those countries that the United States has contributed to with its insatiable appetite for illegal drugs and should help combat, according to a new report, Stronger Neighbors Stronger Borders: Addressing the Root Causes of the Migration Surge from Central America, released by Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Ranking Member Tom Carper (D-Del.). In the spring of 2014, tens of thousands of children and families from the Central American countries of Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador, a region known as the Northern Triangle, arrived at the southwest border of the United States. These migrants werent avoiding the Border Patrol. They were often turning themselves in and seeking asylum. The minority staff report, which is based on a dozen hearings and briefings on the issue as well as multiple trips to the region over the past three years, found that most migrants were fleeing conditions of severe violence, poverty, and lack of economic opportunity. According to multiple experts who have testified to the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, these migrants will continue to come unless the societal and economic root causes of their desperate journey are addressed in a holistic, strategic manner. In fact, the report comes as the number of families and unaccompanied children arriving at the border is once more on the rise. During my time in the Northern Triangle, I have seen firsthand how the violence and lack of security, economic opportunity, and hope for the future there has led so many parents to do the unthinkable to put their children in the hands of smugglers to undertake a dangerous 1,500-mile journey to the United States, said Sen. Carper, who began studying the issue of Central American migration to the United States with a special focus on the migration of children and families -- shortly after becoming Chairman of the Home… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=d14097ce-17d8-4961-b781-6d98bf84bf83 | Chairman Johnson, Ranking Member Carper Continue Oversight of California Shooting | 2015-12-04 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) and Ranking Member Tom Carper (D-Del.) released this statement Friday regarding the committees ongoing oversight of the mass shooting in San Bernardino, Calif.: We grieve for those in San Bernardino and elsewhere who have been affected by Wednesdays tragedy, and are grateful for the efforts of first responders. What happened in San Bernardino was a horrible event that has become all too common in our world today. Whether these attacks were coordinated or inspired by ISIS or another terrorist group, it is critical that our federal, state and local law enforcement and intelligence agencies work together to get to the bottom of this attack and do everything possible to prevent another attack from happening. As part of our committees responsibility to oversee our homeland security, we will conduct a thorough examination of the federal governments knowledge and actions before and after the attack, and federal agency interactions with state and local government partners, to ensure that we as a nation are better able to anticipate, prevent and, if necessary, respond to the next terrorist threat. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=3d4af769-e4fc-44de-a10f-7ed1823a4dfe | HSGAC Hearing Statement: Nomination of Carol Waller Pope to be a Member, Federal Labor Relations Authority, and Robert A. Salerno and Darlene M. Soltys to be Associate Judges, D.C. Superior Court | 2015-12-03 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs held the hearing, Nomination of Carol Waller Pope to be a Member, Federal Labor Relations Authority, and Robert A. Salerno and Darlene M. Soltys to be Associate Judges, D.C. Superior Court. Below is the opening statement of Ranking Member Tom Carper (D-Del.), as prepared for delivery: Thank you Mr. Chairman. Before I read my opening remarks, Id like to offer my condolences to the loved ones of the victims of yesterdays tragic shooting in San Bernardino, California. I continue to closely monitor the developments as law enforcement conducts its investigation. I want to thank all of our nominees and their families for being here today. My thanks as well to Senator Lankford for chairing this hearing and for his work in helping us move forward in considering these nominees. First, I want to welcome Carol Waller Pope, who is no stranger to this committee nor to the position to which she is nominated. Chairman Pope has over 30 years of experience at the Federal Labor Relations Authority, or FLRA. She began as a career employee in 1980, was confirmed as a Member in 2000, and has served as its Chairman since 2009. Under Chairman Popes leadership, the FLRA has eliminated its case backlog, significantly reduced the average amount of time cases are pending, and vastly improved employee satisfaction and morale. In addition, the agency has increased the success of alternative dispute resolution to encourage parties to resolve differences without the need for costly and time-consuming litigation. I look forward to hearing more about the work Chairman Pope has done and also her vision for the FLRA going forward. Thank you again for being with us today. I am very pleased that we are also considering two nominees for the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. Robert A. Salerno has had a long career in private law practice, where he has worked on issues ranging from criminal investigations to commercial litigation to whistleblower p… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=5568867d-abd4-49ef-bb71-a3bffba99491 | Senators Carper, Johnson Seek Information on Threat of 'Ransomware' to Our Nations Cyber Defenses and to the American Public | 2015-12-03 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON In response to the recent growth of cyber-attacks using a type of malicious computer virus known as ransomware, Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Ranking Member Tom Carper (D-Del.) and Chairman Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) sent letters to Attorney General Loretta Lynch and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson asking for more information about efforts to address the growing threat posed by this new tool used by online criminals. Ransomware attacks are targeted at a wide range of victims, including individual consumers. After infiltrating a persons computer, the ransomware virus encrypts a users files until a ransom is paid, usually through difficult-to-track online payment methods. Infected users face the difficult choice of paying the ransom or losing their files forever. State and local government networks have also been targeted by ransomware attacks. Cyber-attacks remains one of our nations biggest security challenges. As the frequency and severity of cyber-attacks continues to increase, Congress has a responsibility to continue to strengthen our nations cybersecurity and encouraging Americans to protect themselves online,the Senators said.Only by staying a step ahead of the threat can we ensure the security of our citizens. While much attention is paid to what must be done to bolster the cyber defenses at federal agencies and large businesses, all of us is vulnerable to online scams and emerging dangers like the malicious computer virus known as ransomware. The text of both letters are below and pdfs can be foundhereandhere. Dear Madam Attorney General: The threat posed by cyber-attacks remains one of our nations biggest security challenges. As the frequency and severity of cyber-attacks continues to increase, Congress has a responsibility to continue to strengthen our nations cybersecurity. To address this evolving 21st century threat with a 21st century response, we must equip the federal government with the authorities and resources it needs. Only by staying a s… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=7187b12f-4a67-44cc-813e-60bd28ef39bf | Carper Statement on Senate Republicans' Attempt to Repeal Affordable Care Act | 2015-12-03 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, U.S. Senator Tom Carper (D-Del.) voted against Republican legislation to repeal the Affordable Care Act through budget reconciliation. It is unfortunate and disheartening that we wasted meaningful time this week trying yet again to repeal the Affordable Care Act even though this legislation has no chance of succeeding. Our time would be better spent addressing our most critical national priorities. We must continue our efforts to degrade, dismantle and destroy ISIS and other terror threats, we need to fund our government so it stays open for business, and we need to pass legislation to reform and improve our education system, among many, many, many other things. Instead, we are wasting Americans time by voting on legislation to repeal the health care law that has been passed by both chambers of Congress, signed by President Obama, upheld twice by the highest court in the land and, most important, has expanded health coverage to millions of Americans, including thousands of Delawareans, and driven down the rate of increase in health care costs to the lowest level in recent history. Its shameful. We have a moral obligation to the least of these in our society, and that includes trying to ensure all American families have access to the affordable health care they deserve. We have a fiscal obligation as a government to meet that moral obligation in a fiscally sustainable way. Doing that by expanding Medicaid, providing tax credits to Americans on a sliding scale, and strengthening our health care system to reward better health outcomes and reducing costs is a good idea that will stand the test of time. However, the legislation I voted against today would increase the number of people without health insurance by nearly 22 million, destabilize our health insurance markets, particularly in small states such as Delaware, and hurt millions of Americans, the majority of them being the poorest among us, including children. The Affordable Care Act is the law of the land and the federal government will co… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=e01953aa-36bf-4bcd-bedb-ea3368addaf2 | Carper on Transportation Bill: We Missed a Tremendous Opportunity to Do What's Right | 2015-12-03 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, U.S. Senator Tom Carper (D-Del.), a top Democrat on the Environment and Public Works committee, released the following statement after voting against the conference agreement for H.R. 22, the Fixing Americas Surface Transportation (FAST) Act of 2015. It would be difficult to find a member of the United States Senate who is more dedicated to responsibly investing in our countrys roads, highways, bridges, and transit systems. So my decision to vote against this bill should make a clear statement: I cannot support a piece of legislation that falls well short of the obligation Congress has to fix our broken Highway Trust Fund. Sadly, Congress has opted to pilfer tomorrows dollars to pay for todays need to rebuild and modern our countrys transportation system. While this bill includes some good transportation policies, the way we pay for these policies is unsustainable and irresponsible, offering little more than a grab bag of budget gimmicks that will actually increase our deficit in the long run. In fact, the Congressional Budget Office has already told us that when this bill expires, the Highway Trust Fund will be $100 billion in the hole Since its inception, the Highway Trust Fund has supported construction and upkeep of Americas transportation system with user fees paid by those who use it. Im deeply disappointed that this bill diverges from that principle, which has worked so well for more than half a century. Instead Congress demands that just about everyone in our country pay more for our transportation system, except for the people who actually use our roads and highways. This is absurd. Its not unfair to ask those who actually use our nations transportation system to pay a little more for its upkeep and expansion. To be clear, pickpocketing revenues from unrelated programs for years to come in order to pay for todays potholes and failing bridges is as cowardly as it is illogical. I know bipartisan agreement in Washington on just about anything these days is difficult to achieve, and so I… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=5caa881b-8681-4a36-807c-7853d63ac86f | Bipartisan Senators Join Bill to Stabilize, Modernize U.S. Postal Service | 2015-12-02 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, a bipartisan group of senators joined the effort to fix the serious, but solvable challenges facing the U.S. Postal Service. Sens. Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.), and Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) joined Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, as sponsors of theImproving Postal Operations, Service, and Transparency Act of 2015 (iPOST), which Sen. Carper introduced in September. iPOST reflects the views of a broad range of stakeholders and offers a compromise solution to the difficult issues that Congress and the Postal Service have struggled with for years. The bill includes a comprehensive package of reforms that would place the Postal Service on firm financial footing, stabilize and improve service performance, allow for the development of new products and services, and enhance transparency. Whether we come from rural, urban, or suburban communities, my colleagues and I all agree that now is the time to act on comprehensive legislation that will stabilize and modernize the U.S. Postal Service,said Sen. Carper.I thank Senators Moran, McCaskill, and Blunt for joining me in this effort. I know that their support will help make a great bill even stronger. Our economy still depends on a healthy and robust Postal Service. Its our duty in Congress to pave a fiscally sustainable path for the agency that will enable this American institution to return to solvency, improve service, and thrive in the digital age. I look forward to continuing to work with Senators Moran, McCaskill, and Blunt, our colleagues in the House and the Senate, Postal Service leadership and employees, stakeholders, and postal customers to refine this legislation and ensure the Postal Service thrives long into the future. The United States Postal Service has long been an important part of American communication and commerce, but its deteriorating financial condition threatens its future,Sen. Moran said.Weve also seen postal service quality across rural America de… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=9a00a43d-707c-4f27-98fc-f1c48ada2519 | Bipartisan Senators Join Bill to Stabilize, Modernize U.S. Postal Service | 2015-12-02 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, a bipartisan group of senators joined the effort to fix the serious, but solvable challenges facing the U.S. Postal Service. Sens. Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.), and Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) joined Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, as sponsors of the Improving Postal Operations, Service, and Transparency Act of 2015 (iPOST), which Sen. Carper introduced in September. iPOST reflects the views of a broad range of stakeholders and offers a compromise solution to the difficult issues that Congress and the Postal Service have struggled with for years. The bill includes a comprehensive package of reforms that would place the Postal Service on firm financial footing, stabilize and improve service performance, allow for the development of new products and services, and enhance transparency. Whether we come from rural, urban, or suburban communities, my colleagues and I all agree that now is the time to act on comprehensive legislation that will stabilize and modernize the U.S. Postal Service, said Sen. Carper. I thank Senators Moran, McCaskill, and Blunt for joining me in this effort. I know that their support will help make a great bill even stronger. Our economy still depends on a healthy and robust Postal Service. Its our duty in Congress to pave a fiscally sustainable path for the agency that will enable this American institution to return to solvency, improve service, and thrive in the digital age. I look forward to continuing to work with Senators Moran, McCaskill, and Blunt, our colleagues in the House and the Senate, Postal Service leadership and employees, stakeholders, and postal customers to refine this legislation and ensure the Postal Service thrives long into the future. The United States Postal Service has long been an important part of American communication and commerce, but its deteriorating financial condition threatens its future, Sen. Moran said. Weve also seen postal service quality across rural Ameri… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=208df5bd-8477-4575-be94-a2dbed77eb68 | Carper Statement on "Irresponsible" Transportation Conference Report | 2015-12-01 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTONToday, U.S. Senator Tom Carper (D-Del.), senior member of the Environment and Public Works committee, released the following statement after members of the House-Senate Conference Committee released a final multi-year transportation report. As a strong supporter of investment in our nations transportation systems, I deeply regret that I cannot support the final transportation conference report,Senator Carper said. While the proposal includes some good transportation policies, the way the bill is paid for is simply irresponsible. Rather than leading, Congress is passing the buck by using a grab bag of budget gimmicks and poaching revenues from unrelated programs for years to come in order to pay for todays transportation needs. This bill sets a terrible precedent. It sets bad transportation policy that undermines the user-pays principle, which has been the bedrock of investment in our nations highway and transit systems for more than half a century. And it sets bad fiscal policy that will actually increase our deficit in the long run. Congress has missed an opportunity to pay for this bill honestly by raising transportation user fees, simply because we lack the courage to ask those who use our nations transportation system to pay a little more for its upkeep and expansion. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=35518f23-39cc-4829-a4be-5b1a4f5db228 | Senate Passes Bipartisan Bill To Assist Eugenics Victims Receiving Compensation Payments | 2015-12-01 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON, D.C. Last night, the Senate unanimously passed The Treatment of Certain Payments in Eugenics Compensation Act, legislation introduced by Senators Thom Tillis (R-NC) and Tom Carper (D-DE) that excludes payments from state eugenics compensation programs from consideration in determining federal benefits. Senators Richard Burr (R-NC), Tim Kaine (D-VA), and Mark Warner (D-VA) are original co-sponsors of the legislation. State-run eugenics and compulsory sterilization laws victimized more than 60,000 Americans in 33 states from the 1920s to the early 1970s. State governments often targeted specific groups for sterilization, including unmarried women, African-Americans, and children from poor families. Victims were often sterilized without their consent or knowledge. In 2013, North Carolina became the first state in the nation to pass legislation to create a state fund to compensate the living victims of the state-run forced sterilization program. In 2014, more than 200 North Carolina victims were awarded their first compensation payment of approximately $20,000 each. Earlier this month, victims began receiving their second eugenics compensation payments, worth an additional $15,000. Earlier this year, Virginia became the second state to pass legislation compensating the victims of a state-run eugenics program. Virginia will award $25,000 to each individual who was involuntarily sterilized and is still alive as of February 1, 2015. The legislation will help assist living eugenics victims receiving compensation payments by excluding their payments from being used in determining eligibility for, or the amount of, federal public benefits such as Medicaid, Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program, Supplemental Security Income, and SSI-Disabled. Without this legislation, many eugenics victims who receive compensation payments could see their federal benefits reduced or even have their eligibility eliminated. I am proud that the Senate was able to come together to unanimously pass legislation that ensu… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/e-newsletter?ContentRecord_id=d3133982-2465-4c14-aafe-c3a925971995 | Giving thanks for all that we have | 2015-11-26 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | Dear Friends, Today, we take a break from our busy lives to give thanks. Each year on this day, I head down to the Emmanuel Dining Room in Wilmington and join former Governor and Congressman Mike Castle to make sure our neighbors are able to enjoy a hot and delicious Thanksgiving meal. This tradition is my way of keeping in touch with what I believe to be the spirit of this holiday. During the holiday season, I always ask the people I meetacross the First State what they are most thankful for. Overwhelmingly, the people I ask respond with two answers: their family and health. For tens of thousands of Delawareans who now have access to quality healthcare under the Affordable Care Act, this may be the first Thanksgiving where they can be thankful for health coverage for themselves and their family. The Affordable Care Act gives most Americans access to high-quality, dependable health insurance. For individuals in the First Statewho do not have coverage through their employer, Medicare, or Medicaid, the Delaware Health Insurance Marketplace was created as part of the Affordable Care Act to providenew coverage options that are available to everyone, regardless of anypreexisting conditions. By the end of its second year, more than 23,000 Delawareans have signed up for a health plan that works for them through Delawares Health Insurance Marketplaceat ChooseHealthDE.com. The Delaware Health Insurance Marketplace provides you with the information you need to make an informed decisionon what insurance will best meet the needs of you and your family, to keep you healthy, and be there in case of unexpected illness or injury. On the website, you can search among more thantwo dozenplans, find out what it costs, estimate out of pocket costs based on your expected health needs, see if you qualify for financial assistanceortax credits, and enroll in the appropriate plan for you and your family. You can also get help 24/7 by calling the hotline at 800-318-2596. One Delawarean who received quality, affordable healthcareth… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=9398ede6-65d6-42e4-9bad-4f11dd4b6a8b | Carper, Coons Urge Republican Leaders to Act Swiftly on Legislation to Stop Terrorists from Buying Firearms, Explosives | 2015-11-24 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, U.S. Senators Tom Carper and Chris Coons (both D-Del.) joined in sending a letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Speaker Paul Ryan urging them to act swiftly to schedule votes on legislation that would prohibit individuals on the Federal Terrorist Watchlist from purchasing firearms and explosives. The Denying Firearms and Explosives to Dangerous Terrorists Act of 2015 would grant authority to the U.S. Attorney General to deny a known or reasonably suspected terrorist from purchasing firearms or explosives, while protecting legitimate gun owners rights to acquire firearms or explosives. Under current law, a person known or reasonably suspected of being involved in terrorist activity can purchase firearms, including assault-style rifles, and explosives. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that between 2004 and 2014, suspected terrorists attempted to exploit this loophole and purchase guns at least 2,233 times, succeeding in 2,043 of those instances, or 91 percent of the time. In light of the horrific terrorist attacks in Paris, the need to pass such legislation is more imperative than ever so that the United States can address a serious national security and public safety weakness: the terrorist background check loophole that allows suspected terrorist to swiftly pass a background check and obtain a dangerous weapon, the Senators wrote. There is no reason why suspected terrorists who we consider too dangerous to board airplanes should be able to walk into any gun store in the United States and purchase a firearm or an explosive for the purpose of carrying out a terrorist act. TheDenying Firearms and Explosives to Dangerous Terrorists Act of 2015would: Allow the attorney general to deny the purchase or transfer of a firearm or explosive to a known or suspected terrorist if the prospective recipient may use the firearm or explosive in connection with terrorism. Maintain protections in current law that allow a person who believes he has been mistakenly prevented … | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=21433716-cd9f-4645-9363-913b41016763 | Carper, Coons Urge White House to Take Executive Action to Reduce Gun Violence | 2015-11-23 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, U.S. Senators Tom Carper and Chris Coons (both D-Del.) joined a group of 22 Senate Democrats led by Senators Chris Murphy and Richard Blumenthal (both D-Conn.) to call on on President Barack Obama to investigate and pursue all possible options under his executive authority to reduce gun violence. In a letter to the President, the senators specially urged him to eliminate a loophole that currently allows individuals without a federal license to conduct high volumes of gun sales at gun shows, over the internet, and elsewhere, all without conducting background checks. U.S. Rep. Mike Thompson (CA-5), Chair of the House Gun Violence Prevention Task Force, today sent a similar letter signed by 114 of his colleagues in the House. We stand with you determined to take action to reduce the terrible epidemic of gun violence plaguing this nation. All across the country, communities are ravaged and lives are senselessly cut short by gun violence. Following yet another horrific mass shooting in Roseburg, Oregon, it is unthinkable that our country can continue to turn a blind eye to these tragedies, the Senators wrote. We urge you to address an aspect of the high-volume gun seller loophole that allows guns to be sold without a background check by eliminating the ambiguity surrounding the term engaged in the business as it pertains to federally licensed firearms dealers. Updating the definition of engaged in the business to provide more explicit guidance as to which gun sellers are required to obtain a federal firearms license wouldhelp ensure that individuals are not able to continue to exploit ambiguity in the current regulation and sell guns at a high volume without any oversight by ATF and without conducting background checks This change would be a positive step forward in achieving universal background checks, a policy change that roughly 90 percent of Americans support. It would help ensure that those clearly holding themselves out as gun dealers are held to the same standard as the thousands of respons… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=a6b930b9-8a3b-4d01-b967-bee748a2ceb6 | Sen. Carper Presents Purple Heart Medal to Native Delawarean William Brady | 2015-11-23 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | GEORGETOWN, Del. Today, U.S. Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.)presented the Purple Heart to90-year-old United States Army and Navy veteranLt. William Bradyfor wounds he suffered during his service in the Korean War. Lt. Brady, a native of Delaware, was joined at the presentation at the Brick Hotel byhis wife Edith, and 26familymembersand friends. In May, Judge Jane M. Brady, former Attorney General in Delaware,requested assistance fromSen. Carperto locate military records that would identify her father, Lt. Brady, as a candidate to receive the Purple Heart.Sen. Carpers office was able to locate Bradys service records,which detailed the cause and extent of the injuries hesufferedwhile stationed in Korea, andverified that he should receive theaward. I am honored to present the Purple Heart Medal to Lt. Brady in front of his wife,friends and family today, said Sen. Carper, also a veteran of the Navy. Our veterans put their lives on the line to defend our nation, and I am proud we were able to finally delivertoLt. Brady the honor he deserves on behalf of the U.S. Army and the President of the United States. Born March 1, 1925, in Wilmington, Delaware, Lt. Brady attended Richardson Park Elementary School and Conrad High School. He served in the U.S. Navy from May 1943 to March 1946 as part of the amphibious force on the English Channel that prepared for the invasion of NormandyduringWorldWar II. Whenhe was honorably discharged from the Navy, he returned home to Delaware,enrolled in the University of Delawareandjoined the Army ROTC. In April 1952, just days after the birth of his son, Lt. Brady was deployed by the U.S. Army to Korea. On Oct. 21, 1952, Lt. Bradys platoon in the 40thInfantry Division was attacked by enemy fire. At the time of the attack, Lt. Brady was positioned near the top of a hillwherehe was spotted and fired upon. As Lt. Brady began to retreat down the hill, a mortar landed near enough to him to blow him off his feet, sending his body downhill where he landed on his back. Although Lt. Brady was badly hu… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=f7447d82-79fb-4847-848b-f7d6d08141e6 | Carper Questions VA Secretary About Safeguards to Prevent Troubling Employment Practices, Abuse of Taxpayer Dollars | 2015-11-23 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, U.S. Senator Tom Carper (D-Del.) sent a letter to U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Secretary Robert McDonald asking for more information about safeguards at the agency to prevent abuse of taxpayer dollars in employment and relocation processes. The Senators letter comes after a VA Office of Inspector General (OIG) report outlined instances of rigged employment decisions and payments of exorbitant relocation fees to employees who steered themselves into positions in other cities. Last month, Senator Carper sent letters about this issue to the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and U.S. General Services Administration (GSA), which have jurisdiction over the federal workforce. As a retired Navy captain and the former commander-in-chief of the Delaware National Guard, I understand well the obligation we have as Americans to honor our nation's veterans, Senator Carper wrote. I take the reports of misconduct at the VA very seriously, as Im sure that you do, and I believe appropriate action should be taken to hold accountable those responsible and address the incidents that led to these serious issues. We need to remain vigilant to ensure that the Department of Veterans Affairs is providing access to comprehensive, quality care for veterans throughout our country, he continued. We have a responsibility to ensure that they receive the help and benefits that they have earned, and that includes appropriate use of taxpayer resources provided to the VA. The text of the letter is below and a pdf can be found here. Dear Secretary McDonald: As a retired Navy captain and the former commander-in-chief of the Delaware National Guard, I understand well the obligation we have as Americans to honor our nation's veterans. I visited the Veterans Hospital near Wilmington, Delaware within a few weeks after enrolling in graduate school at the University of Delaware in September 1973 to find out what services were available to me as a veteran of the Vietnam War. The hospital, built shortly after the end o… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/e-newsletter?ContentRecord_id=291bba1e-1178-45c2-858b-0dded4546c6b | My Reflections in the Wake of the Paris Attacks | 2015-11-21 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | Dear Friend, Just over a week ago, terrorists struck at the heart of our nations oldest ally in Paris, France. I offer my deepest sympathies to the French people.Ournation mourns with the French people as they bury their loved ones and countrymen. The attack in Paris was not just an attack on France, but on the core values that we share with France freedom, democracy and respect for human life. This week, the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee held the hearing,The Impact of ISIS on the Homeland and Refugee Resettlement.Asthe committees ranking member, I questioned officials from the Departmentof Homeland Security and State Department about the implications of the Paris terror attacks onour national security, including the questions surrounding refugeeresettlement. You can watch my opening statement here. I understand the legitimate concerns many of my colleagues and many Americans have regarding the resettlement of Syrian refugees in our country. We face a moral dilemma here. In September, Pope Francis gave a historic address to Congress. During his remarks, he reminded us of the Golden Rule and called on all of us to treat other people the way we want to be treated. He also invoked the words of Matthew 25: When I was hungry, did you feed me; when I was naked, did you clothe me; when I was thirsty, did you give me drink; when I was a stranger in your land, did you take me in? We have a moral imperative to the least of these, and to treat otherpeople the way we want to betreated. And we have an equally strong moral imperative, anda duty by virtue of our oath of office, to make sure that we dont meet that moral imperative to the least of these by putting the citizens of this country at risk. The question is, can we do both? I am convinced that we can. I urge you towatch or read my speech on the Senate floorto learnmore about our two-year,rigorous screening process for all refugees, including those from Syria. Watch my speech on the Senate floor here. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=9db30d04-d0b6-4f4b-a0f4-dee8da2b8272 | Senator Carper Responds to U.S. Postal Service Fiscal Year 2015 Losses | 2015-11-20 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, responded to the U.S. Postal Services reported net loss of $5.1 billion for fiscal year 2015: Todays report makes it clear that, despite a growing revenue stream, the U.S. Postal Service continues to suffer significant losses that threaten its future. The Postal Services package delivery products continue to show great promise but given the institutions longstanding financial and legislative burdens, coupled with an ongoing decline in the volume of First Class mail, this welcome news just isnt enough to get the Postal Service out of the red. The only way to alleviate the Postal Services financial challenges and take advantage of the opportunities it has to grow in the digital age is for Congress to come together and pass comprehensive postal reform legislation as soon as possible. It is my hope that my bill, the Improving Postal Operations, Service and Transparency (iPOST) Act of 2015, will provide a blueprint for an agreement. iPOST would make comprehensive reforms to stabilize current postal operations, improve service performance, enhance transparency, and put the Postal Service on the path to sound financial footing for years to come. I will continue to work with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle, stakeholders, and the Postal Service to refine this legislation to right the Postal Service and ensure its viability long into the future. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=9ea181bb-00c4-4774-83c9-4e22d880856a | Senators Carper, Collins Respond to GAO Report on Implementation of the Federal Buildings Personnel Training Act of 2010 | 2015-11-20 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sens. Tom Carper (D-Del.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) highlighted a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report that found too many federal agencies have not taken steps to implement the Federal Buildings Personnel Training Act of 2010. The measure, originally sponsored by Sens. Carper and Collins along with Reps. Russ Carnahan (D-Mo.) and Judy Biggert (R-Ill.), requires that the General Services Administration (GSA) provide personnel who operate and maintain federal facilities the training and resources they need to safeguard the significant investment we've made in energy efficient buildings. The report, Additional Authorities and Accountability Would Enhance the Implementation of the Federal Buildings Personnel Training Act of 2010, found that while GSA has made progress with implementation, many federal agencies across the government have not followed through and should therefore increase efforts to fully comply with the law. By making the buildings we own more sustainable and energy-efficient, we can help shrink our carbon footprint, ease budgetary pressures facing our federal government, and save taxpayers billions of dollars, said Sen. Carper, ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. However, todays report shows that many agencies are lagging behind in providing building operators the tools and resources needed to perform their jobs effectively. I am concerned that agencies are not fully aware of this laws requirements and are not taking actions necessary to fully empower their federal building personnel. I will follow up with these agencies to learn why they are having challenges implementing the law and figure out how Congress can be helpful in furthering the goals of this law so we can ensure federal facilities are operating efficiently and in a cost-effective way. "The federal government is our nations largest energy consumer, and with 350,000 buildings we have a responsibility to improve efficiency to reduce emissions and save taxpayer dollar… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=4809e311-fccd-4b2c-95f6-7db58cf9a4a2 | Senator Carper on the Senate Confirmation of D.C. Superior Court Judges | 2015-11-19 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, released the following statement following the Senate confirmation of D.C. Superior Court Judges William Nooter and Steven Wellner, both of whom have been waiting since 2013 to be confirmed. Todays confirmation of both William Nooter and Steven Wellner to serve on the D.C. Superior Court is welcome news, albeit long-overdue. I thank my colleagues for doing the right thing and approving these well-qualified nominees. I am confident that Judge Nooter and Judge Wellner are ready to hit the ground running. Given the extraordinary amount of time it took these two, non-controversial and bipartisan nominees to get confirmed, I urge my colleagues to act in a more timely manner on the additional D.C. Superior Court and Court of Appeals nominees expected in the coming months. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=4d1839c8-a6c1-4132-acf3-a287cf8270c5 | Carper, Booker Urge Highway Bill Conferees to Maximize Investment in Transportation Programs | 2015-11-19 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, U.S. Senators Tom Carper (D-Del.) and Cory Booker (D-N.J.) sent a letter to House-Senate conferees negotiating a final Highway and Transportation Bill compromise, urging them to maximize investments to our nations crumbling roads, highways, bridges and transit systems by shortening the authorization period for the bill. Over the past 20 years, total federal, state, and local investment in transportation has fallen as a share of GDP, while population, congestion, and maintenance backlogs have increased. In fact, Americas investment in transportation as a share of GDP is at its lowest point in decades, falling more than 50 percent since 1962, the senators wrote. While the proposed Senate investment levels exceed baseline funding, they would still only be sufficient to cover expected increases in construction materials costs. These funding levels are certainly insufficient to rebuild and modernize our nations transportation infrastructure. With all this in mind, we strongly urge you to finalize a surface transportation conference report that can provide the maximum amount of benefits to American families and businesses by prioritizing increased investment for all surface transportation programs over the length of the authorization. Also signing the letter were U.S. Senators Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Bob Casey (D-Pa.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Al Franken (D-Minn.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Angus King (I-Maine), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), Tom Udall (D-N.M.), Mark Warner (D-Va.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.). The full text of the letter can be found here or below: Dear Conferees: As you begin conference negotiations t… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=fbb3f017-bdbb-4526-a686-89b344e55b9d | HSGAC Hearing Statement: "The Impact of ISIS on the Homeland and Refugee Resettlement." | 2015-11-19 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs held the hearing, The Impact of ISIS on the Homeland and Refugee Resettlement. Below is the opening statement of Ranking Member Tom Carper (D-Del.), as prepared for delivery: Thank you Mr. Chairman.First off, I want to express my deepest sympathies to the people of France. France is our oldest ally, and we mourn with them as they bury their countrymen.The tragedy in Paris is yet another reminder that ISIS, Al Qaeda and other terrorist groups have no regard for innocent civilians and will stop at nothing to terrorize the West and our core values of freedom, democracy and respect for human life. I want to commend the French people for their stoicism in the face of the attacks, and French and Belgian authorities for their valiant work in the days since. Their bravery and hard work has already apprehended or killed some of the terrorists, and quite possibly averted follow-on attacks. We have also seen encouraging progress in the larger fight to dismantle and degrade ISIS. Here at home, it is our job, the job of DHS, the FBI and the Intelligence Community to make sure that these kinds of attacks do not happen on US soil. The good news is that we have made it very hard for ISIS to do this.Over the past year, the FBI has arrested more than two dozen individuals on ISIS-related terrorism charges. DHS screens every single airline passenger coming to the United States and checks their data against our terrorism watchlist long before they ever get on a plane. Over the past year DHSs intelligence officein partnership with the FBIhas issued dozens of intelligence reports to state and local law enforcement units throughout the country about ISIS. These reports give them the information they need to know what it is that ISIS may be trying to do and to take the steps necessary to protect their communities. One report even warned about the capabilities of the alleged mastermind of the Paris attacks the man we now know was killed in y… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=a9865921-3662-49e1-8765-44bfa04119b1 | Sen. Carper's Statement on University of Delaware President Announcement | 2015-11-18 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WILMINGTON, Del. U.S. Sen. Tom Carper released the following statement following the news that the University of Delawares Board of Trustees voted today to name Dennis Assanis president of the university: I welcome Dennis and his wife, Eleni, to Delaware and congratulate him on becoming President of the University of Delaware. His predecessors have led the universitys students, faculty and staff to higher academic achievements, while strengthening the university community, which has in turn benefited the First State. Im excited to learn that Dennis has a strong background in clean energy along with a distinguished academic record. I look forward to working with him to ensure that the University of Delaware and the First State remain an attractive place to learn, live and work. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=ac099821-a965-45a1-98f8-877c79e4d104 | Senators Carper, Johnson Seek Information on Potential Security Threats Posed by Emerging Drone Technology | 2015-11-18 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON In response to a number of recent high-profile incidents involving unmanned aerial vehicles, Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Ranking Member Tom Carper (D-Del.) and Chairman Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) sent a letter to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson asking for more information about the Departments efforts to address the potential security threats posed by emerging drone technologies. While drone technology can be a valuable asset to help grow our economy and contribute to our way of life, in July, the Departments Office of Intelligence and Analysis released an intelligence assessment that noted over 500 suspicious drone encounters at sensitive sites since 2012. More recently, it was reported that the Federal Aviation Administration is aware of nearly 700 instances of drones interfering with airplanes or airport operations. As the availability and sophistication of new aerial systems have proliferated, recent high-profile incidents have raised public safety concerns related to the use of unmanned aerial vehicles, commonly known as drones, the Senators wrote. As the Ranking Member and Chairman of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, we write to gain a better understanding of the Department of Homeland Securitys efforts to address any potential emerging security threats posed by this technology. Drones have the capacity to make a number of positive contributions to our society and economy but also pose unique challenges to our law enforcement community, they continued. Indeed, there have already been multiple incidents of drones flying over restricted airspace and sensitive sites, including a small, commercially-available drone that accidentally crashed onto the White House grounds earlier this year. There is also a risk of rogue or malicious drone operators using unmanned aerial vehicles as a weapon. In January, the Department reportedly held a summit with Federal intelligence and security officials on the increasing security threat… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=d9567e27-2ac7-4575-97d5-fa87d93687ba | EPW Hearing Statement: Examining the International Climate Negotiations | 2015-11-18 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), a top Democrat on the Environment and Public Works Committee and ranking member of the Subcommittee on Clean Air and Nuclear Safety, released the following statement regarding the committees hearing on the upcoming climate negotiations in Paris: Madam Chairman, thank you for convening this hearing today, and thank you to our witnesses for joining us. I look forward to hearing your testimony. Were here to discuss our countrys efforts to fulfill the obligations required of us by signing and ratifying the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change under President George H.W. Bush in 1992. The treaty established a framework for international negotiationsbetweenits signatories todevise a plan to limitglobal carbon pollutionand the resultingimpacts toclimate change in order to preserve and protect our environment for future generations. Over the past 23 years, the United States and our treaty partners have held meetings, usually each year, to address these goals and, later this month, the 21stmeeting will take place in Paris. In order to effectively address climate change we have to take action on a global scale, working cooperatively with our neighbors around the world. Theres a host of scientific studies that underscore the urgent need for action but, for me, the most compelling factor in supporting efforts to address climate change is deeply personal. Being a parent has been a transformative experience in my life, and my love for my sons has inspired me to make the world a better place for them, their children, and their grandchildren. I have an absolute duty to fight for changes to our behavior not only in Delaware and across the country, but also around the world that will help stem the tide of climate change. After all, our children and the generations of children that will come after them will face no greater environmental threat. I know this issue is complicated. As someone who was born in coal country Beckley, West Virginia I know there are hard-w… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=e75c8973-5326-4c49-baf5-ce567549895a | Carper Requests More Information on Gun Safety Public Health Programs | 2015-11-18 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, U.S. Senator Tom Carper (D-Del.) joined 19 senators in sending a letter to Gene L. Dodaro, Comptroller General of the United States, to request a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report to assess the efficacy of public health and safety programs that are designed to impact gun safety, including the storage and security of guns in households. In the letter, the Senators stated that prevention of gun deaths and injuries should be an essential component of the federal governments commitment to public health and safety, and that previous federal campaigns on other challenges have helped to reduce dangerous behavior and improve public health and safety. With more than 300 million guns in American homes, we write to request that the Government Accountability Office (GAO) conduct a study to assess the efficacy of public health and safety programs designed to impact gun safety, including the storage and security of guns in households throughout our country, the Senators wrote in the letter. Too many families have suffered tragic losses and hardships as a result of gun deaths and injuries. This public health burden demands an assessment of potential actions by the federal government, including the possibility of robust partnerships with established nonprofits and provider organizations in the development of a public campaign aimed at informing physicians, clinicians, parents, and families about the public health need to address this urgent issue. The Senators requested a report that: analyzes the effectiveness of public health and safety programs at the federal, state, and local level that raise awareness and provide best practices for safe and secure storage of guns in households; identifies programs that seek to address unsafe gun access and ensure safe practices with regards to firearms; and details which federal agencies can influence public health or safety, childrens health, criminal justice, or violence prevention programs. Senators requesting the report: Patty Murray (D-WA), Richard J. D… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=47a5aeb1-dc02-43bf-9f98-9d59b4e9de04 | Sen. Carper Highlights Free Help to Enroll in Health Insurance | 2015-11-17 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | DOVER, Del. On Monday, U.S. Sen. Tom Carper stopped by the Dover Library to meet with health insurance enrollment navigators from Westside Family Healthcare and constituents enrolling in health insurance plans on the Health Insurance Marketplace. Westside is one of four Delaware organizations offering free assistance. Others include Chatman LLC, Henrietta Johnson Medical Center and La Red Health Center. In its third year, the health insurance market place provides Delawareans with the opportunity to secure affordable health insurance. During this open enrollment period there is free enrollment assistance available in all three counties of Delaware for the public, said U.S. Sen. Tom Carper. I encourage everyone to reach out to one of these health insurance market place navigators to look at their insurance options for 2016. When considering whether or not to secure health insurance, Delawareans should know that the penalties for choosing to go without health insurance have increased, and can be more costly than purchasing health insurance on the marketplace. I hope that all Delawareans take advantage of this opportunity to get covered. Open enrollment for health coverage in 2016 on the marketplace began on Nov. 1, 2015, and ends on Jan. 31, 2016. Individuals must sign up by Dec. 15, 2015, for coverage to be effective Jan. 1. Free help finding a plan and enrolling from trained specialists is available to everyone throughout the state. For locations, go to www.choosehealthde.com or call 2-1-1. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=69445b99-b7ef-46b4-9154-dcef8b10b321 | Carper Calls on Transportation Conferees to Preserve Top Policy Priorities in Final Bill | 2015-11-17 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, U.S. Senator Tom Carper (D-Del.) sent a letter to members of the House-Senate Conference Committee tasked with negotiating a final version of multi-year transportation legislation, asking them to preserve several critical policy priorities in the bill they send back to each chamber for approval. As a strong supporter of investment in our nations roads, highways, bridges, railroads and transit systems, I am pleased that, after too many years of short-term extensions, we now have the opportunity to make rebuilding and modernizing our countrys transportation system a long-term national priority in a way that will benefit nearly every American business and family, the Senator wrote. For months, Senator Carper has urged his colleagues to back away from a reckless funding scheme that would pay for our transportation system by seizing unrelated federal dollars from across the government. Instead, he has advocated for gradually increasing to the countrys gas and diesel taxes, which have provided revenue for the Highway Trust Fund since its inception, but have not been updated for more than two decades, rendering them worth about 40 percent less than in 1993. Unfortunately, both the House and Senate versions of the bill failed to do this. With this in mind, it is with regret that I must express my deep concerns for how Congress has decided to pay for these investments, he continued. That being said, there is much to commend in both the House and Senate legislation and I ask that you keep several policies in mind, which should be included to ensure the strongest possible bill to be sent to the president for his signature. Text of the full letter has been included below and can also be found here: November 17, 2015 Dear Chairman Inhofe, Chairman Shuster, Ranking Member Boxer, and Ranking Member DeFazio: Congratulations on the recent appointment of a House-Senate Conference Committee to produce a final proposal for a multi-year federal transportation bill. As leaders of this effort to reconcile … | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=8e04881d-ad15-456f-bf43-ab90135cfe4e | Senator Carper Commends Department of Homeland Security on Clean Financial Audit Opinion | 2015-11-17 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, commended the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) following its announcement that is has obtained a clean financial audit for the third year in a row: The mission of the Department of Homeland Security is one of the most difficult and complex of any federal agency, said Sen. Carper. They do everything from securing our ports of entry, to inspecting food, to defending our cyber networks, to keeping our cities and towns safe. It is no small or easy task for any agency to produce a clean financial audit, let alone one as large and complex as DHS. We need to look across the federal government, find whats working, and do more of that. It is clear that what the Department and its leadership are doing to ensure accurate and complete financial accounting is working, and could be used as a model for the Department of Defense, the only agency that has yet to meet its obligation to clean up its books. While the Department of Homeland Securitys independent auditor detailed some significant needs for further improvement, the Department is clearly making real progress. I commend them for their ongoing commitment to being a good steward of taxpayer dollars and encourage them to continue and build on these efforts. In 2012, Sen. Carper joined Sens. Scott Brown (R-Mass.) and Ron Johnson (R- Wisc.) in seeing passage into law of the DHS Audit Requirement Target (DART) Act, which requires DHS to obtain and pass full audits for its financial statements. By earning a clean bill of financial health from an independent auditor for the third year running, DHS continues to be in compliance with this law. The DHS is the third largest Department in the government, with 22 components, 240,000 employees, and a 60 billion dollar budget.The Department of Defense is the only remaining large federal department that is unable to conduct a full financial audit. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=10f10106-6107-4637-8c0b-4acad4f8e79c | Carper, Coons Work to Protect Bus Service Projects in Transportation Funding Bill | 2015-11-16 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON On Friday, Senators Tom Carper and Chris Coons (both D-Del.), joined in an urgent request to Senate leaders on the highway bill conference committee asking them to stand firm and preserve Senate language on critical funding for bus service in high density regions, citing the devastating impact of a House provision in the Surface Transportation bill on the most heavily travelled and densely populated corridor in the United States. The letter, led by Senator Ben Cardin (D-Md.) was signed by Senators Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand (Both D-N.Y.), Barbara A. Mikulski (D-Md.), Ed Markey and Elizabeth Warren (Both D-Mass.), Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy (Both D-Conn.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), , Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Bob Casey (D-Pa.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Mark Warner and Tim Kaine (Both D-Va.). At least $1.6 billion over six years could be cut from formula funding for states that have the greatest need for bus-related funding. Sudden and severe cuts in funding to these high density regions could have a serious impact on safety, capacity and reliability in communities that are most reliant on public transportation. Transit systems in this region account for approximately half of all trips taken nationwide, and the region supports 20 percent of the nations Gross Domestic Product. The urban areas negatively impacted by the House provision face unparalleled congestion that cannot be addressed by building new highway infrastructure alone, the Senators wrote. Continued access to high-quality transit alternatives is a necessary priority that requires the funding provided through the Section 5340 program [W]e urge Conferees to reject the short-sighted House provision. The letter can be downloaded here. The full text is below. November 13, 2015 The Honorable James M. Inhofe The Honorable Barbara Boxer Chairman Ranking Member Senate Committee on Environment Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works and Public Works 205 Russ… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=f2d3cd27-2ae0-491d-a487-7f521a42ea15 | Senator Carper Statement on the Attacks in Paris | 2015-11-14 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, released the following statement regarding the November 13 terrorist attacks in Paris, France: My thoughts and prayers are with the victims of these horrific attacks, their loved ones, the city of Paris, and the people of France. I am carefully monitoring this situation and will continue to do so as we gather more information from our partners overseas. France is our nations oldest ally, and we continue to stand together during this dark hour. No amount of violence and hatred is a match for our unity or the freedoms and liberties both of our nations cherish. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=9ffa72cb-1a8a-48ff-a386-abd394d6ba36 | Carper Urges Colleagues to Do Better on Transportation Bill | 2015-11-10 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, U.S. Senator Tom Carper (D-Del.) took to the Senate floor to urge his colleagues to step off a reckless path on transportation funding that threatens to seize federal dollars from across the government to pay for our countrys roads, highways, bridges and transit systems. Instead of raising and indexing the user fees that have supported the Highway Trust Fund since its inception, were putting all reason aside, and making reckless choices that stand to compromise the way we finance and pay for all government programs, Senator Carper said. We have a tradition in this country that things worth having are worth paying for, and asking the people and businesses that use our roads, highways, bridges and transit systems to pay for them is the right thing to do. This afternoon, the Senate sent legislation it passed this summer to conference with a version passed by the House last week. Both pieces of legislation authorize a multi-year transportation strategy, but pay for it by cobbling together funds that are unrelated to our surface transportation system, including a massive contribution of Federal Reserve capital, which former Chairman Ben Bernanke has warned is bad policy. Watch Senator Carpers remarks. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=fd1874a1-227d-4451-82df-442fff5989e1 | Sen. Carper Statement on the Nomination of Beth Cobert to be Director of the Office of Personnel Management | 2015-11-10 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, issued the following statement on President Obamas intent to nominate Beth Cobert to be Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM): In July, Beth Cobert stepped in as Acting Director to help the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) navigate the aftermath of a series of devastating data breaches of its own systems and those of its contractors. Under her guidance, the agency continues to address the serious consequences of these breaches, including the implications for our national security and for the more than 4 million individuals whose personnel data was stolen and the more than 21 million individuals whose sensitive security clearance information was compromised. Its critical that OPM continues to help the victims of the breaches and provide information in a timely and transparent manner. Given the magnitude of these breaches and the other challenges facing OPM, permanent, Senate-confirmed leadership at the agency is imperative. Thats why I welcome President Obamas intent to nominate Acting Director Cobert as the agencys permanent director. I have worked closely with Beth Cobert in her role as Deputy Director for Management at the Office of Management and Budget and as Acting Director at OPM. I find her to be someone who is impressive, decisive, and well-respected on both sides of the aisle in Congress. She is someone who can continue to help lead OPM through this challenging time. I urge my colleagues to act quickly on her nomination. But leadership isnt the only solution. Congress needs to provide federal agencies with the tools they need to stop the kind of attacks OPM experienced. Last month, the Senate passed critical cybersecurity legislation that would enable the sharing of information among the private sector and federal government and, among other things, require agencies to implement the cyber intrusion and detection program known as EINSTEIN. I hope the House and the … | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=ff35163a-fb8b-46b9-b345-83f5d6c859b0 | Sen. Carper's Statement on the National Defense Authorization Act and Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Act | 2015-11-10 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper, ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, issued the following statement after the Senate passed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) by a vote of 91 to three and the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations bill by a vote of 93 to zero. Today, I voted to approve an important piece of legislation, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which authorizes funding for the U.S. Department of Defense and the national security programs of the U.S. Department of Energy. The NDAA is critical to equipping and training our troops and keeping our country safe. This years bill authorizes some important investments in strengthening our military capabilities, providing needed support to the men and women of the Armed Forces, and enhancing our ability to counter emerging national security threats. There are also provisions in this bill that will make important reforms to our militarys compensation and retirement system, enhance our cyber security efforts, put an unequivocal prohibition on the use of torture for intelligence purposes and provide support for our allies around the world. It also includes an important amendment I offered with my friend, Senator Angus King (I-Maine), that will help the U.S. Army expeditiously dispose of unneeded property, which costs taxpayers billions of dollars in unnecessary maintenance costs each year. This afternoon, I also voted to approve the fiscal year 2016 Military Construction and Veterans Affairs appropriations bill, which provides critical services to our nations veterans and makes improvements to our military installations around the world. Im very pleased it contains funding to construct a hydrant fuel system at Dover Air Force Base, which will help to speed up the refueling process so that our planes can get in the air quicker and cargo can be moved through the base at a faster rate. Passing this bill is a direct result of the compromise found by Democrats and Republicans in both… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=8ae8955e-3dd4-4b6c-a615-110cb66f767d | Delaware, Georgia Senators applaud Obama Administration's actions to hold South Africa accountable for failure to resume import of U.S. poultry | 2015-11-06 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON U.S. Senators Tom Carper (D-Del.), Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.), Chris Coons (D-Del.) and David Perdue (R-Ga.) released the following statement after President Obama announced that he is issuing a 60-day notice to Congress of his intent to suspend certain trade benefits for South Africa under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) after South Africa failed to eliminate long-standing barriers to U.S. poultry, pork, and beef imports. Specifically, South Africa failed to meet a key deadline on October 15th toresume imports of U.S. poultry. As a result, the Administration will suspend duty-free treatment of all AGOA-eligible agricultural goods from South Africa. This includes citrus products, wine, and macadamia nuts, among other agricultural goods. The President's announcement comes after the completion of an out-of-cycle review of South Africas AGOA eligibility. Senators Isakson and Coons secured language in this years AGOA reauthorization requiring this review after pressuring the South African government for nearly a year to end the anti-dumping duties on U.S. poultry. The bipartisan amendment was introduced by Isakson and co-sponsored by Carper and Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.). We applaud the Obama Administration for holding South Africa accountable for failing to eliminate unwarranted barriers to exports of American poultry, as they agreed to do earlier this year, said the Senators. It is unfortunate that this action must be taken, but South Africa has repeatedly failed to implement the deal reached this summer and missed a key deadline last month to finalize the trade protocol and health certificate for U.S. poultry. South Africa does not deserve to receive benefits under AGOA as long as they refuse to drop unfairtrade policies that have effectively slammed the door on American chicken imports for over a decade. There is still time to address these issues, and we hope the President's action today spurs South Africa to open their market to American poultry immediately. On June 8, 2015, a settlem… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=6ec5c591-9ad3-47f7-ada1-6d9299dc829f | Carper Applauds Bipartisan Introduction of House Companion Legislation to Protect Veteran and Military Students | 2015-11-05 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON- Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) applauded the bipartisan introduction of the Military and Veterans Education Protection Actin the House of Representativesby Congresswoman Jackie Speier (D-Calif.), Congressman Mark Takano (D-Calif.), Congressman Walter Jones (R-N.C.), and 19 original cosponsors. The legislation is a companion toa piece of legislation introduced bySen. Carper with Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) in the Senate (S. 1664), which would close a loophole that allows for-profit schools to avoid having to secure at least 10 percent of their revenue from non-federal sources. Since 2009, more than1.4million service members, veterans, and their families have financed their higher education using the GI Bill, and millions more will take advantage of this benefit in the years to come. In the past five years, 40 percent of Post-9/11 GI Bill tuition benefits have gone to the for-profit sector, even as questions continue to be raised about these institutions graduation, default, and job placement rates. The recent collapse of the for-profit chain Corinthian Colleges which received $186 million in Post-9/11 GI Bill dollars due to financial problems is another glaring reminder that Congress must remain diligent to protect active-duty military, veterans, and taxpayers. After serving our country, our nation's veterans have earned the right to attain a high-quality, affordable education here at home with the help of the Post-9/11 GI Bill,Sen. Carper said.While not every for-profit college is a bad actor, one veteran mistreated is one veteran too many. We need to use common sense here. It doesnt make sense for taxpayers to send veterans to for-profit schools that can be 100 percent subsidized using taxpayers dollars. Closing the 90/10 loophole is a common sense approach that demonstrates were serious about improving education outcomes for our veterans and that were serious about protecting taxpayers. The 90-10 rule is an important safeguard that is intended to protect taxpayers by ens… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=78e26735-81e2-4322-a1d0-ceee7eda91ce | Budget Hearing Testimony: Reforming the Federal Budget Process: A Biennial Approach to Better Budgeting | 2015-11-04 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on the Budget for its hearing, Reforming the Federal Budget Process: A Biennial Approach to Better Budgeting. His testimony, as prepared for delivery, is below. Mr. Chairman, fellow senators, I would like to thank you for giving me the opportunity to testify at todays hearing. A great man named Albert Einstein once said, The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting different results. Unfortunately, we in Congress seem to struggle with embracing the logic of Mr. Einstein. We talk a great deal about making government more efficient and better able to serve the people of this country. Yet, in the past two decades, we have completed all the required actions to fund the government by the end of the fiscal yearSeptember 30exactly once. We cant expect better results until we address our inability to get the job doneon time. Passing twelve appropriations bills every year is something that Congress is simply unable to accomplish, particularly in light of all the other work that fills up the calendarincluding passing other crucial legislation, enacting authorization bills, conducting oversight, and so forth. At the same time, annual appropriations do little to foster longer-term planning either in Congress or among the agency decision-makers that make use of appropriated funds. Fortunately, Chairman Enziand other senators, particularly my colleague Senator Isaksonhave championed a common-sense solution that will help address these problems: a biennial appropriations process. Ive often referred to myself as a recovering governor. You might not know that Im a recovering state treasurer, too. And while my home state of Delaware doesnt use the biennial appropriations model, a majority of states do. Our states are true laboratories of democracy, and their experiences on this issue can be instructive. What Ive heard from state officials makes a powerful case for adopting biennial appropriations… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=902c9612-8494-4dad-8118-80f0dd52e0aa | Sussex County communities awarded more than $5 million from USDA | 2015-11-04 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WILMINGTON, Del. Today, Delawares Congressional Delegation announced that almost $5.3 million in federal grants and loans from the U.S. Department of Agriculture were awarded to various communities in Sussex County, Delaware. Delmar, Georgetown, and Lewes will all receive assistance from the USDAs Rural Development, Community Facilities grant program. Delaware's communities have benefitted greatly from the USDA's Rural Development's Community Facilities grants, which aim to help our small towns provide essential services to its residents, said U.S. Sen. Tom Carper. From patrol cars for police departments, to energy efficiency upgrades for town buildings, these grants are important taxpayer investments that help our smaller communities meet their needs. "This is great news for some of the quickly growing towns in Sussex County," said Sen. Coons. "As communities grow, so do the needs of the residents. We are thankful to USDA Rural Development for these invaluable loans and grants. I am confident that they will be put to good use to ensure greater public safety and much needed support for mental health services downstate." Sussex is the fasting growing county in Delaware, which requires that communities across the county have resources to upgrade and expand the services they provide to their residents, said Congressman Carney. These Rural Development grants will make a major difference in addressing those needs and improving the lives of Delawareans throughout Sussex County. The projects awarded funding include: The Town of Delmar was awarded $50,000 to purchase portable/mobile radios and to upgrade existing radios for its Police Department. The radios will enable Delmar officers to better communicate with the State Police and State Emergency Communications systems in both Delaware and Maryland. Connections Community Support Program received a $5.05 million loan to establish a Withdrawal Management Center serving Kent and Sussex Counties. The loan allows Connections to purchase an existing facility a… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=4d31faac-563c-4614-afaf-5b1bc1b7c8d7 | Carper, Ernst Ask VA to Give Veteran Students More Information about Flight Schools Prohibited from Enrolling Veterans Using the Post-9/11 GI Bill | 2015-11-03 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Senators Tom Carper (D-Del.), a retired Navy captain, and Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Lieutenant Colonel in the Iowa Army National Guard, sent a letter to Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Deputy Under Secretary Curtis Coy requesting that the department provide more information aboutthe status of flight trainingprogramsthat have been suspended by VAon theGI Bill Comparison Tool. Ten schools were found to have flight programs in violation of the 85/15 Rule, and VA suspended these programs from enrolling new veteran students until they become compliant with the law,theSenatorswrote.We believe that this information should be available to all prospective students who intend to use the Post-9/11 GI Bill to help finance their higher education. The GI Bill ComparisonTool offers important resources to veterans with Post-9/11 GI Bill education benefits who are seeking to pursue higher education programs. Its critical that veterans know when a program listed on the tool has violated federal regulations regarding veteran enrollment, and whether or not that program has been suspended from enrolling new students.Adding more information about these programs to the GI Bill Comparison tool will help ensure veterans can make smart choices about enrolling in educational programs. Last month,Senators Carper and Ernst sent a letterto VA Secretary Robert McDonald requesting more information aboutflightschools that contract with public colleges and universitiesafter news reports claimed that some schools were charging taxpayers over $500,000totrainveteransusingPost-9/11 GI Bill education benefits. The Senatorsrecentlyreceived a preliminary response from the department, identifying among other troubling findings that thePost-9/11 GI Billexpenditure on aviation-related degree programs at public institutes of higher learning (IHLs) has nearly doubled to $80 million per year for fewer than 2,000 students. A comprehensive summary can be foundhere. The text of the letter is below and a pdf can be foundhere. Dear Mr. Coy,… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=0f804a4c-abc1-4dc8-9d2f-35af6a44150e | Bipartisan Congressional Delegation Returns from Central America | 2015-11-02 | 2015 | 2015-11 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, along with Ranking Member Tom Carper (D-Del.), Sens. Heidi Heitkamp (D-N.D.) and Gary Peters (D-Mich.), and Rep. Reid Ribble (R-Wis.), traveled Friday through Sunday to Guatemala and Honduras on a bipartisan, bicameral congressional delegation to see firsthand the factors that incentivize migration from Central America to the U.S. Among the delegation's many stops were border crossings and checkpoints in both countries and a vocational training facility and model police precinct station in Honduras. The senators made these remarks upon their return: This weekend I was joined by Sens. Tom Carper, Heidi Heitkamp and Gary Peters and Congressman Reid Ribble on a fact-finding tour of Guatemala and Honduras, Johnson said. Witnessing the conditions in these Central American countries reinforced what we have been learning in 12 border security hearings held by the Senate committee I chair: that the root cause of America's insecure border is our insatiable demand for drugs. This demand has created drug cartels and conditions that have corrupted public institutions throughout Central America, leaving these countries incapable of providing sufficient security and the rule of law that are basic prerequisites of economic success. I was heartened to confirm that a sense of national pride still exists in these countries. The Guatemalan president-elect expressed a love for country that he knows must be shared by his fellow citizens. Children in Honduras talked about their future in Honduras. And Guatemalans just repatriated from the U.S. erupted in applause when welcomed back to their home country. The president of Honduras told the delegation that witnessing his people leave their country for opportunities in the U.S. was a 'slap in the face.' Although the landscapes of Guatemala and Honduras are stunningly beautiful, we found that the most beautiful part of both countries is their people. I return committed to set… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=77a4e4fd-7d89-4638-a161-980588281dc7 | Sen. Carper's Statement on News Journal Editorial Editor John Sweeney | 2015-10-30 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WILMINGTON, Del. Today, U.S. SenatorTom Carper (D-Del.) released the following statement onNews JournalEditorial Editor John Sweeneys decision tostepdown from his position aftermore than 26 years atDelawares only statewide newspaper. Today is truly bittersweet. John Sweeney has dedicated his long and distinguished career to delivering the news and serving as the voice of theNews Journaland the Delaware community. A native Philadelphian, Johnserved our nation in the Air Force and then attendedTemple University on the G.I. Bill. Not long after graduation, he started his career in news, eventually landing at the News Journal in 1989 as the Public Editor. Ihad the joy and privilege of working with him and gettingknow him better after he took over as Editorial Page Editorin 2005. Over the years, I have enjoyed our regular conversations about everything fromwhats happening here in the FirstState, tomy work in the Senate,to foreign affairs. I considerJohn Sweeneya partnerin public service.We serve ourstate in our very different roles, but with thesimilar missions todo the work of the people who call Delaware home.John believes thatthe friends and neighbors that make up the community that we are privileged to serve areentitled to hearmany points of viewin order for our democracy to truly thrive.While we didnt always agree on the issues, wealwaysagreed on that. I wish John and his family the best of luck in all that lies ahead,and as we say in the Navy, fair winds and following seas. Bravo Zulu. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=7f5d5525-fb10-4847-bcf7-0d912601451e | Sen. Carper on Recent OMB Cyber Announcement | 2015-10-30 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) announced a series of actions that aim to enhance the federal governments cybersecurity efforts, including a new strategy to secure federal networks and new reporting guidance. Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, made the following statement in reaction to the announcement: Cybersecurity is one of the greatest challenges we face in the 21st century, one that requires an all-hands-on-deck response. The results of the Office of Management and Budgets (OMB) 30-Day Cyber Sprint this summer were encouraging, and I am pleased that we are continuing to build on the momentum of those efforts through the Cybersecurity Strategy Implementation Plan. The strategy released by OMB puts into practice many of the lessons learned from this summers Cyber Sprint, including a focus on timely detection and rapid response to cyber incidents. It is essential that we have a long-term vision to get to an acceptable level of cybersecurity within the federal government. I am also pleased to see that this strategy comes on the heels of efforts to update OMBs Circular A-130 guidance, something that has not happened since 2000. The Federal Information Security Modernization Act (FISMA) of 2014, the bill I shepherded through last Congress alongside former-Senator Tom Coburn, required OMB to update this core guidance to cut back on unnecessary paperwork and move toward real-time monitoring of security by December of this year. The inclusion of these and other important provisions from FISMA 2014 in the recent OMB guidance sends a strong signal that progress is being made on a number of fronts toward securing our federal cyber networks. But there is still more work to be done. The threats we face in cyber space continue to grow and evolve each day, and we need to continue working to stay ahead of our adversaries. For more details on the announcement, please visit:https://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2015/10/30/modernizing-… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=9781d92d-3220-44be-ad43-2f92c0e5f3cf | Carper, Coons Join Majority of Senate in Bipartisan Effort to Save Student Loan Program | 2015-10-29 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Senators Tom Carper and Chris Coons (both D-Del.) joined a bipartisan letter sent by Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Robert Casey (D-Pa.) and Rob Portman (R-Ohio), and cosigned by a majority of the Senate, to Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Minority Leader Harry Reid urging them to take up and pass legislation to reauthorize the Perkins Loan Program. This critical lifeline for many low-income students expired on September 30, despite receiving a unanimous one-year, no-cost extension from the House of Representatives on September 28. Since its expiration, a bipartisan coalition of Senators have twice attemptedto reauthorize the program with a unanimous consent" request, but the Senate has yet to pass the bill. The Perkins Loan Program, the nations older federal student loan program, has existed with broad bipartisan support since 1958 and has provided more than $28 billion in loans through almost 26 million awards to students in all 50 states. In the last academic year alone, the program lent $1.1 billion to more than half a million students with financial need across more than 1,500 institutions of higher education. There are many students who will be disadvantaged by the Senates inaction and the programs expiration, the Senators wrote.For example, students who have previously received Perkins loans will lose their eligibility if they change institutions or academic programs. In addition, if the program is not reauthorized soon, students seeking Perkins loans for the upcoming winter and spring semesters in 2016 may be ineligible. The letter was also signed by:Senators Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Benjamin Cardin (D-Md.), Joe Donnelly (D-Ind.), Richard J. Durbin (D-Ill.), Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Al Franken (D-Minn.), Kirsten E. Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Heidi Heitkamp (D-N.D.), Mazie K. Hirono (D-H… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=6f6fa230-1cd7-4a1a-9839-9ad272d3258c | HSGAC Hearing Statement: "Assessing the State of Our Nations Biodefense" | 2015-10-28 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs held the hearing, Assessing the State of Our Nations Biodefense. Below is the opening statement of Ranking Member Tom Carper (D-Del.), as prepared for delivery: Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for holding this hearing on the state of our nations biodefense. Im delighted to welcome two of my former colleaguesJoe Lieberman and Tom Ridge. They have been and remain two of my very favorite people in the world, and here they are side by side! My heartfelt thanks to both of you for being here and for your extraordinary and continued service to our country on the issue well be discussing today and on many others, as well. In recent years, public officials and academic experts alike have sounded the alarm about our ability to deal effectively with biological threats. Since 2000, several commissions, including the 9/11 Commission, have affirmed the danger that the release of a biological agent poses to all of us. In doing so, theyve urged us to devote more attention and resources to detecting, preventing, and responding to such an incident. Our experience with Ebola over the last year serves as a fresh reminder that biological threats are real.Over 11,000 people world-wide lost their lives in this recent Ebola outbreak and a number of Americans were infected with the disease. The spread of this diseaseas well as the public alarm over the epidemicdemonstrate the importance of having the appropriate policies, public engagement plans, and resources in place ahead of time. Its important to remember, too, that biological threats dont just have an adverse impact on our health and our homeland security. They can also dramatically impact our economy. As some of us will recall, just a few months ago, parts of our country struggled with an outbreak of highly pathogenic avian flu. Though harmless to people so far, the virus devastated some parts of the poultry industry, leading to higher egg prices and the closure of some foreign markets for U… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=2150ac7d-3f4b-4651-b0c4-259efb7145cb | Finance Hearing Statement: "The Internal Revenue Service's Response to Committee Recommendations Contained in its August 5, 2015 Report" | 2015-10-27 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), a member of the Senate Finance Committee, released the following statement regarding the committees hearing on the Internal Revenue Services (IRS) response to the committees August report on organizations applying for tax-exempt status. I would like to thank IRS Commissioner Koskinen for being here today. His reaction to the August report released by this committee on the agencys handling of some organizations applying for tax-exempt status was swift and thorough. While the report clearly dispelled the notion that some of these organizations were handled with a political agenda, it did outline some areas of bureaucratic mismanagement. Commissioner Koskinen has agreed to accept all the recommendations made by this committee to improve this mismanagement, and that is good progress. I strongly believe that if something isnt perfect, we should work hard to make it better, and thats what were doing here today. But its important to look at the bigger picture. We must focus not only on the treatment of some organizations, but also on taxpayers as a whole. I think we can agree that taxpayer services at IRS can and should continue to improve. Taxpayers are waiting too long for responses to their calls and too few business returns are being examined. Its clear that Commissioner Koskinen is dedicated to working with Congress to make the agency better, so I look forward to hearing from him today about how we can be a good partner in effecting overall improvement. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=264bbf62-2954-4a9e-a6c8-9dc181d1952a | Senate Approves Bill to Enhance Cybersecurity, Protect Privacy | 2015-10-27 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | Earlier today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, spoke on the Senate floor to encourage his colleagues to pass the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act (CISA) of 2015. WASHINGTON Today, by a vote of 74 to 21, the Senate approved the bipartisan Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act (CISA) of 2015 (S. 754), which encourages the sharing of cyber threat information among and between the private sector and federal government. Two of the bills major provisions were based on legislation developed by Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee and a cosponsor of the bill. Those provisions would strengthen all federal agencies cyber defenses and give the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) clearer authorities to share cyber threat information while protecting privacy. Todays passage builds on years of legislative efforts on cybersecurity by Sen. Carper and his colleagues. Last year on Election Day, American voters sent Congress a clear message: they want us to work together in a bipartisan fashion, they want us to achieve real results, and they want us to take actions that help grow our economy, said Sen. Carper. By passing this bipartisan cybersecurity legislation, we do all three of those things. By sharing more cyber threat information, we can stay ahead of the threat, bolster our defenses, and better protect our critical networks from the growing threat cyber attacks pose to our economic security and our national security. This bill also underscores that we can have both strong cybersecurity and robust privacy protections. In fact, one of the provisions I championed ensures that the Department of Homeland Security, a civilian agency, scrubs cyber threat data of sensitive personal information before it is shared with any other agency. I commend Senators Burr and Feinstein for their leadership and tireless efforts to get this bipartisan legislation through the Senate. While we do not agree… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/e-newsletter?ContentRecord_id=01a6720d-d0e6-4b30-a6b3-1ab0184c019d | Making a Differece | 2015-10-24 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | Dear Friends, Today is National Make a Difference Day, an annual community service event celebrated nationwide on the fourth Saturday of October. National Make a Difference Day is the largest day of community service in the nation, with the mission to improve the lives of others through acts of service. I served for 23 years in the U.S. Navy five years in a hot war in Southeast Asia, and 18 years in a cold war on reserve duty and I deeply understand the value of service to our country. Throughout my career in public service, I have always considered myselfa servant, working on behalf of my constituents in an effort to improve their lives. A guiding principle throughout my life has been the notion that service to others is the secret to happiness. One of my favorite proverbs is something I borrowed from the Hindu faith: In the joy of others lies our own. Along with public service, Ive found abundant joy in my life as a mentor. Ive been personally mentoring students in Delaware for nearly two decades. I helped recruit thousands of mentors when I was Governor as part of a statewide effort to include individuals, churches, service clubs, students, and corporations in mentoring Delaware's at-risk children. Today, mentoring has become an integral part of our school system in Delaware and is one of the keys to improving academic achievement among at-risk students. There are thousands of students in our schools this year who would benefit greatly from having another positive role model in their lives, just like I did and very likely just like you did sometime in your life. Today, I invite you to join me in celebrating National Make a Difference Day, and take a minute to think about what you could do to make a positive difference in your community, or perhaps just in someone elses life. Even the smallest acts count and can make a difference. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=be5cbac4-163f-4f05-bbed-540f6b0265f2 | Carper, Johnson Seek Information on Troubling Employment Practices at VA | 2015-10-23 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON In light of a recent report by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Office of Inspector General, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, was joined today by Committee Chairman Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) to send letters to Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and U.S General Services Administration (GSA) leadership asking for more information about problematic employment practices at the VA. The September 2015 report outlined troubling instances of rigged employment decisions and payments of exorbitant relocation fees to employees who steered themselves into positions in other cities. Jurisdiction of issues regarding the federal workforce and federal employee relocation falls under the purview of OPM and GSA. A recently published Veterans Affairs (VA) Office of Inspector General (OIG) report has alleged that senior VA employees acted improperly by orchestrating job openings, steering themselves into the new positions at higher salaries than their predecessors, and reaping large relocation payments to move to begin employment in these new jobs, the Senators wrote. These are serious allegations, which led to the VA OIG making criminal referrals to the U.S. Attorneys Office regarding the actions of two VA officials. We ask your assistance in understanding what procedures are in place to prevent the abuse of taxpayer dollars in relocation expenses. Specifically, according to the OIG report, Diana Rubens arranged her own re-assignment from her post as Deputy Under Secretary for Field Operations in Washington, D.C. to that of Director of the Philadelphia and Wilmington VA Regional Offices in June 2014, they continued.During her transition to her new position, Ms. Rubens allegedly billed the VA $274,019 for her move to Philadelphia and to arrange for new housing. Additionally, the OIG found that Kimberly Graves, working in concert with Ms. Rubens, left her position as the Director of the Veterans Benefits Administrations Eastern Area Office in Phi… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=ec39f572-dad4-4a64-af31-f71e49f4b1c4 | Carper Signs Letter to Administration Urging Immediate Action to Stop For-Profit Education Companies from Defrauding Taxpayers | 2015-10-23 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) signed a letter led by Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and Richard Durbin (D-Ill.) along with Sens. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), and Jack Reed (D-R.I.) to U.S. Department of Education (ED) Secretary Arne Duncan and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Commissioner John Koskinen, calling on them to stop for-profit institutions from fraudulently converting to non-profit status in order to evade federal income taxes, EDs gainful employment regulation, and the 90/10 rule. These sham non-profits make a mockery of traditional non-profit governing and accountability structures with incestuous leadership arrangements, troubling debt structures, while continuing to make hefty profits for those in charge with questionable results for students, the senators wrote. As the agencies responsible for granting non-profit, tax exempt status and protecting students, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and U.S. Department of Education (ED) must work together to better assess these conversions based on the priorities and authority of both agencies. A recent report from The Century Foundation (TCF) highlighted the trend of companies that own and operate for-profit education institutions, selling those assets to a non-profit entity that is controlled by the same individuals. The for-profit education institutions undergo no substantial changes in their operations but the companies are then eligible to become non-profit, tax-exempt organizations. In order to qualify for federal student aid, for-profit education programs are required to prepare students for "gainful employment in a recognized occupation. Furthermore, under the 90/10 rule, for-profit education institutions can receive no more than 90 percent of their operating revenue from federal student loans and grants. By converting to non-profit status, for-profit education companies can avoid both of these regulations. Full text of the letter is below. October 22, 2015 The Honorable A… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=19759a15-3fce-4751-a9f1-51d40a04ec95 | Carper-Toomey Bill to Expand and Improve In-Home Care for America's Seniors Goes to President for Signature | 2015-10-22 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Yesterday evening, the House of Representatives passed legislation that would to allow providers to develop pilot programs using the PACE Model of Care to improve health outcomes for the elderly.TheProviding Programs of All Inclusive Care for the Elderly Act (PACE) Innovation Act, cosponsored by Senators Tom Carper (D-Del.), Pat Toomey (R-Pa.), Bob Casey (D-Pa.), Pat Roberts (R-Kan.), Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Mark Warner (D-Va.), would allow the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) to include PACE in demonstration programs that test how to improve health outcomes and reduce costs for seniors who are eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid. Earlier this year, the Senate passed the PACE Innovation Actwith bipartisan support. The bill now heads to the Presidents desk to be signed into law. "One of my guiding principles is to find what works and do more of it,"Sen. Carper said."ThisPACElegislation will give the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) the flexibility it needs to do just thatby allowing this physician-led, coordinated health care program to expand as efficiently as possible in Delaware and throughout the country. Weve begun to address the problem of rising health care costs, andbroadening the reach ofprograms like PACE will help uscontinue toprovideseniors with excellenthealthcare,while also reducing costs.Providing PACE programs with theroomthey need to grow and innovate will give more seniors the chance to remain in their homes,while receiving excellent health care and social services. In Pennsylvania, PACE, or LIFE, programs, have been extremely successful in helping seniors to remain in their own homes rather than having to go into a costly nursing home or institutional setting, Sen. Toomey said. The PACE Innovation Act builds on this successful approach. I urge the President to sign this bipartisan legislation into law so an even greater number of vulnerable and disabled individuals who wish to stay in their communities can access quality health care a… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=3155fc13-c435-4ad8-bf38-040d7e57379a | New GAO Report Finds Federal Agencies Can Achieve Significant Savings Through Improved Management of IT Acquisitions | 2015-10-22 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee members Tom Carper (D-Del.), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) and Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.), highlighted a new Government Accountability Office (GAO) report that found that federal agencies can achieve significant savings and avoid unnecessary costs through streamlining acquisitions of Information Technology (IT) services. The GAO report, Strategic Sourcing: Opportunities Exist to Better Manage Information Technology Services Spending, found that the Departments of Defense, Army, Navy, Air Force, Homeland Security and NASA have each initiated activities to leverage their buying power through an approach known as strategic sourcing. However, GAO found that the majority of dollars that these agencies spend on IT services flow through hundreds of duplicative contracts instead of through strategically sourced contracts. As a result, agencies pay varying rates for similar services with the same contractors, and are missing out on opportunities for savings. For example, GAO found that the Department of Defense was paying between $103 and $195 an hour for IT Project Management services under different contracts. The government is missing out on economies of scale when it buys information technology (IT) services in a fragmented manner, said Ranking Member Carper. This report highlights the fact that there can be a significant difference in the prices that agencies are paying for the same service, even within the same department. This is like one member of a family going to the grocery store and paying one price for a gallon of milk, while another family member goes to another store and paying twice as much.We must use some common sense and get a better result for the American taxpayer. The good news is that there are promising efforts underway to address this problem.The Federal Information Technology and Acquisition Reform Act (FITARA), signed into law last year, will help agencies identify duplicative contracts. The Administration is also working to make su… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=8642aa1b-b860-49f0-8869-16dd879c46e0 | Public Service Announcement: Challenge to End Veteran Homelessness | 2015-10-22 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WILMINGTON, Del. Today, U.S. Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) recorded this public service announcement to help spread the word about the Challenge to End Veteran Homelessness. This is a partnership between New Castle County, the City of Wilmington, the Delaware State Housing Authority, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Veterans Administration to house 84 homeless veterans by the end of 2015 in New Castle County. As a 23-year veteran of the Navy, I understand the sacrifices our service men and women make every day to protect our country, which is why I believe its important to make sure they have all of the opportunities they need once they return home, said Sen. Carper. Unfortunately, some of Delawares Veterans are without a home. As we head into colder months, lets think about our veterans. If you are a landlord interested in partnering in this important initiative to end veteran homelessness in Delaware, contact the Homeless Planning Council of Delaware at (302) 654-0126. The PSA can be downloaded by clicking the links below: AUDIO: https://s3.amazonaws.com/sdmc-media.senate.gov/Carper/102215_CARPER_1_RADIO.mp3? VIDEO: https://s3.amazonaws.com/sdmc-media.senate.gov/Carper/100815_CARPER_2_WEBHD_HD.mp4 | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=b01d10b2-7fb1-469a-839b-c4c2d8eef1ba | Sen. Carper Urges Colleagues to Pass Cybersecurity Information Sharing Legislation: | 2015-10-22 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON In case you missed it, earlier today Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, took to the Senate floor to urge his Senate Colleagues to pass the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act (CISA) of 2015. His speech, as prepared for delivery, is below: Mr. President, I rise today to speak in support of the cybersecurity information sharing bill introduced by our colleagues, Senators Burr and Feinstein. I would like to commend my colleagues and their staffs for their leadership and tireless efforts on this extremely important piece of legislation. As Ranking Member and former Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, I have been following cybersecurity and this information sharing proposal in particular for years. In fact, when Senator Feinstein first introduced an information sharing bill in 2012, it was referred to the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. This bill was ultimately folded into a comprehensive cybersecurity bill that I had the honor of cosponsoring along with Senators Lieberman, Collins, Rockefeller and Feinstein. We were not able to pass that bill, but it paved the way for other cyber legislation. Last Congress, I worked closely with my Ranking Member, Dr. Coburn, and our House counterparts to get four cybersecurity bills enacted into law. I believe these four bills laid a very strong foundation for some significant improvements in how the Department of Homeland Security carries out its cybersecurity mission. And really for this bill before us today, as well. What the legislation Dr. Coburn and I worked on during the last Congress did, in essence, was to better equip the Department to operate at the center of the kind of robust information sharing program that the Burr-Feinstein bill would set up. Mr. President, sharing more cyber threat information among and between the private sector and federal government players who are on the front lines in cybersecurity is critical to our… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=5776fa91-bd26-4bfa-a9e3-afff183cda32 | Senator Carper responds to GAO report on Post-9/11 G.I. Bill Overpayments | 2015-10-21 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, responded to a new Government Accountability Office (GAO) report that found the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) made $416 million in overpayments in fiscal year 2014, affecting one in four veteran students and roughly 6,000 schools utilizing the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill program. Currently, VA disburses tuition and fees to schools before the start of classes, but does not comprehensively account for veteran students enrollment changes throughout the semester. Therefore, if a student drops a class or withdraws altogether, the resulting overpayments to schools can result in veterans unknowingly owing a sizeable debt to the federal government. The GAO report, Post-9/11 G.I. Bill: Additional Actions Needed to Help Reduce Overpayments and Increase Collections, which Sen. Carper requested last Congress as part of his ongoing effort to shed light on the VA education payment system, found flaws in the VAs ability to track overpayments made to schools and to notify veterans using the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill when a payment needed to be returned to the VA. This Government Accountability Office report raises concerns regarding the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) current system for monitoring and collecting overpayments of Post-9/11 G.I. Bill benefits, said Sen. Carper. I am encouraged that VA has agreed to swiftly implement many of the GAOs recommendations for improvement. However, implementing these recommendations is just the first step. The report raises broader questions about the unnecessary complexity veterans and schools encounter when dealing with this program. I often say that we must use common sense in everything we do here in the Senate and across the federal government. Im concerned the VAs current system for administering Post-9/11 G.I. benefits is too confusing, and that the burden for repaying overpayments falls disproportionately on veterans, many of whom may be unaware that they may have… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=583fe9e3-d79e-4470-b424-2e5c967802ca | Carper Statement on Vice President Biden | 2015-10-21 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) released the following statement after Vice President Biden announced he would not make a presidential run. I know this was an extraordinarily difficult decision for the Biden family to make. Ive known Joe for many years as we worked together to serve the people of Delaware and our country, and I know he has everything it takes to make a great president. He and his family have decided this is not the right time, and its my sincere hope that they are at peace with his decision. In my conversations with Joe over the past several weeks, I encouraged him to listen to his family as they all continue to grieve the terrible loss of their beloved Beau. I know he heard from people across the country who urged him to run and offered to help, but the most important influences on his decision were his wife, Jill, their children and grandchildren, and God. There are still 15 months left in the Obama Administration, and a full time vice president will go a long way toward getting important things done for the American people. When his time in the White House concludes, Joe will certainly have the opportunity to serve as our ambassador to the world, and I know hell continue making a positive difference in all our lives. I also know Beaus memory and spirit will help him do it. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=8a68d1bd-6f75-4fbe-acce-f51d35703d3a | Statement of Ranking Member Tom Carper: Ongoing Migration from Central America: An Examination of FY2015 Apprehensions | 2015-10-21 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs held the hearing, Ongoing Migration from Central America: An Examination of FY2015 Apprehensions. Below is the opening statement of Ranking Member Tom Carper (D-Del.), as prepared for delivery: I want to thank Chairman Johnson for calling this hearing on the ongoing surge of Central American migration were experiencing at our southwest border. This is an important challenge for the region and for our country, as well. I look forward to working together with the Chairman and the rest of my colleagues toward lasting solutions. Last summer, we were shocked by the flood of migrants arriving here from Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador, particularly the thousands of unaccompanied children and families with young kids. When they arrived, most did not try to evade Border Patrol agents but instead sought them out for protection. Some of their stories and those of migrants who did not survive the journey were heartbreaking. Our government took emergency steps to shelter and process these individuals, but also put into place strategies to stem the flow. These included public information campaigns on the dangers of the journey, expedited court hearings, an increased focus on human smuggling and trafficking rings, and support for Mexicos efforts to better police its own southern border. I was pleased that these efforts had an impact for a time in slowing migration. But many observers warned that as long as the Northern Triangle countries remained mired in violence and poverty, migration would continue. And that is exactly what appears to have happened. This time, we should not be surprised. Although for a number of months significantly fewer Central Americans were apprehended at our southern border, the flow never really stopped. In fact, much of the decrease was due not to fewer people fleeing the Northern Triangle, but from unprecedented new enforcement efforts by Mexico on its southern border with Guatemala. Between July 2… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=03e449c5-5654-4666-a013-e111488be652 | Senator Carper Statement on the Stop Sanctuary Policies and Protect Americans Act | 2015-10-20 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), Ranking Member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, voted against the motion to proceed to S.2146, the Stop Sanctuary Policies and Protect Americans Act. The vote failed, 54-45. His statement below: Everything I do, I know I can do better. The same is true of the Department of Homeland Security. Until recently, the Department was using a well-intentioned but flawed program to track undocumented immigrants who had been arrested for crimes, in order to process them for possible deportation. It was a one-size-fits-all approach that ignored concerns raised by many state and local officials, often including local law enforcement. As a result, many cities opted out of the program and then were criticized for failing to help detain and deport undocumented immigrants who commit crimes. The legislation before us doesnt address these real conflicts. Instead, it would take us backwards, and seek to punish communities that dont go along with a one-size-fits-all approach that doesnt suit them or those they serve. As a former governor, I understand that many times, state and local officials know how to manage their communities and law enforcement better than those of us in Washington. I also understand that, on many occasions, we can better serve our constituents when all levels of government local, state, and federal work together to find solutions that give necessary authorities and resources without being overly burdensome or counterproductive. Fortunately, the Department of Homeland Security has heard the concerns of our state and local officials and has taken steps to implement a smarter, more effective approach that works with local jurisdictions to better focus resources on individuals who are enforcement priorities, such as public safety and national security threats. Congress should give this program a chance to work rather than imposing a coercive approach that has already proven unworkable. Many advocacy and law enforcement groups have voiced… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=c4147ccc-b665-439e-94ec-6b2830cb07df | Senator Carper Calls on Colleagues to Pass Cyber Information Sharing Bill | 2015-10-20 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, called on his Senate colleagues to continue to work together towards passage of the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act of 2015 (S. 754). This afternoon, Sens. Richard Burr (R-N.C.) and Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) offered the Burr-Feinstein amendment #2716 as a substitute to S. 754. The substitute includes modified language of two amendments filed by Sen. Carper that would strengthen all federal agencies cyber defenses and give the Department of Homeland Security clearer authorities to share cyber threat information while protecting privacy. Cyber threats represent some of the most dangerous and immediate threats that Americans face every day. Given the increasing number and severity -- of attacks on our federal agencies and private businesses large and small, there is no doubt that we must strive to strengthen our cybersecurity defenses.One way to do that is to improve the ability to share information about the threats coming from cyberspace between and among the private sector and the federal government.Thats why the work we are doing on the Senate floor this week is so important. As the top Democrat on the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, I have been closely following cybersecurity, particularly this cybersecurity information sharing bill for years. I would like to commend Senators Burr and Feinstein and their staffs for their leadership and tireless efforts to bring their cybersecurity information sharing bill to the floor. While we do not agree with everything in this legislation, I greatly appreciate the compromises that have been made to make the bill stronger. The compromises made in the substitute amendment include my measure to ensure that the Department of Homeland Security can apply privacy protections to cyber threat data as it sends information to other agencies. This privacy scrub would better protect sensitive personal information without slowing the s… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=cdcf129e-8a40-4fe7-a156-590b2ad1da32 | Senator Carper Calls on Colleagues to Pass Cyber Information Sharing Bill | 2015-10-20 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, called on his Senate colleagues to continue to work together towards passage of the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act of 2015 (S. 754). This afternoon, Sens. Richard Burr (R-N.C.) and Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) offered the Burr-Feinstein amendment #2716 as a substitute to S. 754. The substitute includes modified language of two amendments filed by Sen. Carper that would strengthen all federal agencies cyber defenses and give the Department of Homeland Security clearer authorities to share cyber threat information while protecting privacy. Cyber threats represent some of the most dangerous and immediate threats that Americans face every day. Given the increasing number and severity -- of attacks on our federal agencies and private businesses large and small, there is no doubt that we must strive to strengthen our cybersecurity defenses.One way to do that is to improve the ability to share information about the threats coming from cyberspace between and among the private sector and the federal government.Thats why the work we are doing on the Senate floor this week is so important. As the top Democrat on the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, I have been closely following cybersecurity, particularly this cybersecurity information sharing bill for years. I would like to commend Senators Burr and Feinstein and their staffs for their leadership and tireless efforts to bring their cybersecurity information sharing bill to the floor. While we do not agree with everything in this legislation, I greatly appreciate the compromises that have been made to make the bill stronger. The compromises made in the substitute amendment include my measure to ensure that the Department of Homeland Security can apply privacy protections to cyber threat data as it sends information to other agencies. This privacy scrub would better protect sensitive personal information without slowing the s… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=289183e3-366c-4b2c-bbef-9cf0ec637b19 | Senators Carper, Coons, Isakson concerned with South Africa's failure to meet key deadline for resuming import of U.S. poultry, urge immediate action | 2015-10-19 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON U.S. Senators Tom Carper and Chris Coons (both D-Del.) and Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.) today expressed concern after South Africa missed an October 15 deadline to allow U.S. poultry exports to South Africa to resume and urged South Africa to act immediately. A settlement was reached in the longstanding poultry dispute between the United States and South Africa on June 8, 2015, after negotiations in Paris led by the United States Trade Representative (USTR), the Department of State, U.S. Ambassador to South Africa Patrick Gaspard and trade experts from industry. The agreement was welcome news for the entire U.S. poultry industry, including the large poultry operations in the Senators home states Georgia and Delaware. Since the settlement was reached, South Africa has been slow to fulfill the obligations agreed to in Paris, including the commitment to resolve sanitary barriers to poultry hindering the successful implementation of the agreement. Last month, Senators Coons and Isakson called on President Zuma to act quickly to address the unresolved issues in the agreement. South Africa agreed to finalize both a trade protocol for avian influenza and a health certificate for U.S. poultry by October 15th.Despite assurances by high-ranking South African officials that those issues would be resolved by the deadline, they have not.Important differences remain on the health certificate and trade protocol. The U.S. has insisted that South Africa follow World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) guidelines to use a regional approach for avian influenza. We are concerned that South Africa has not followed through on its promise to address key issues by October 15, preventing full implementation of the deal, said the Senators. South Africa failed to finalize both the trade protocol and health certificate for U.S. poultry despite the Administrations intense engagement with South Africa over the past year to resolve these issues. We believe this inaction must be factored into the out-of-cycle review of South Afric… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/e-newsletter?ContentRecord_id=2226ec3d-6022-4f15-91db-37af7160f44d | Celebrating Delaware's wildlife | 2015-10-16 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | October 16, 2015 Dear Friends, This week is the 20thNational Wildlife Refuge Week, a special celebration of our nations vibrant wildlife and a reminder of the obligation we have to preserve and protect our shared home for future generations. Today, each of the 50 states has at least one refuge within its borders, with 563 across the country protecting more than 150 million acres of land. Delaware is lucky enough to have not one, but two National Wildlife Refuges Bombay Hook, between Smyrna and Dover, and Prime Hook, just south of Slaughter Beach. A few weeks ago, I visited Bombay Hook for the unveiling of the Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge Quarter one of five quarters issued in the America the Beautiful Quarters programthis year. The quarter design features a great blue heron with a great egret, standing among the refuges tidal salt marsh. That's because, in Delaware, Bombay Hook and Prime Hook serve as home to thousands of native plants and animals. Twice a year, millions of migrating birds take a pit stop on the Delaware coast much like many of us as we migrate up and down I-95 throughout the year to rest on their thousand mile journey for warmer climates. But more than just a home for birds, our wildlife refuges provide recreational spaces for hunters, fishermen and wildlife observers and photographers. They also serve an important environmental and ecological role by protecting against flooding and erosion and purifying our air and water. Just as important, they provide our children and grandchildren a place to connect with nature, to learn first hand about our planet and how they can preserve it for generations to come. The National Refuge system is dedicated to conserving, managing and, where needed, restoring wild lands and wildlife.Bombay Hook and Prime Hook are shining examples of that mission.But we still have more work to do to preserve and protect our shared home. We only get one planet, so in everything we do, we must use common sense to protect it and all its inhabitants. Have you … | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=f3b0cfdc-7c2e-4875-989d-b3029f2fffcb | Sens. Carper, Coons Join Senate Colleagues to Extend PTC Implementation Deadline to Avoid Rail Delays | 2015-10-16 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON As the Dec. 31, 2015, deadline for our nations freight and passenger railroads to implement positive train control (PTC) technology looms, U.S. Sens. Tom Carper and Chris Coons (both D-Del.) joined 41 of their Senate colleagues in a letter urging Senate leadership to extend the deadline for completing the implementation. A recent Government Accountability Office study reported that railroads are unable to meet the deadline at the end of this year, which could potentially cause disruptions to our national rail network. According to the Federal Railroad Administration, PTC is a system designed to prevent train-to-train collisions, derailments caused by excessive speeds and more. For example, PTC can force a train to a stop before it passes a signal displaying a stop indication, or before diverging on a switch improperly lined, thereby averting a potential collision. Full implementation of PTC is critical to the safety of the men and women who operate our nations trains, the millions of passengers that move around the country and the thousands of manufacturers, farmers and ranchers that depend on rails to move world-class products to market, the letter states. That is why it remains essential for Congress to hold railroads accountable to efficiently complete the PTC requirements set forth in RSIA (Rail Safety Improvement Act) Railroads play a vital role in our nations economy. We cannot afford a disruption of rail service, which could occur if Congress does not extend this deadline. RSIA, which was enacted on October 16, 2008, and the corresponding regulations issued by theFederal Railroad Administration (FRA) require passenger and major freight railroads to implement PTC on most major track lines by December 31, 2015. A pdf of the letter can be found here, and the text is included below: September 30, 2015 Dear Leader McConnell and Leader Reid: We write to address the approaching statutory deadline for the full implementation of positive train control (PTC) safety technology. As reported in a rec… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/e-newsletter?ContentRecord_id=b7ea1e7f-bda8-4617-9e0e-a34a74ebc8f0 | Unhappy birthday, TSCA! | 2015-10-10 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | October 10, 2015 Dear Friends, Earlier this week, I was proud to stand alongside a bipartisan group of senators and supporters to call for stronger chemical safety laws. Together, in a press conference outside the Capitol, we urged the Senate to pass a historic bill that would reform the broken Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976. The Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976 called "TSCA" was intended to give the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) the authority to monitor and test chemicals, and regulate the ones that pose a risk to human health or the environment. But over the past four decades, this law has never worked as intended, leaving the public at risk for toxic exposure and the private sector with a broken regulatory process that has undermined innovation. What's more, over the past 39 years, weve learned a lot more about toxic chemicals, the harm they can cause to our environment and public health, and how best to identify and protect against these risks. Written by Senators Tom Udall and David Vitter, the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act would reform TSCA and better protect the public, while creating a manageable regulatory framework for American businesses and innovators. The bill builds off the work done by the late Senator Frank Lautenberg, who was a true champion of chemical safety. His widow, Bonnie Lautenberg, has carried on his dedication to the cause and thanks much in part to her relentless efforts, the bill now has broad bipartisan support, with 60 Senate cosponsors representing 38 states. After the bill was introduced, I worked closely with Senators Udall and Vitter for more than a year, leading countless meetings and discussions to secure enhanced protections for public health and the environment including provisions that would protect children, pregnant women, and workers from toxic risks, ensure the EPA has access to information to assess safety risks, and allow states to enforce federal toxic safety while also ensuring that innovation in the private … | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=02788b4d-e616-4785-bc6c-f1ad489a4e02 | WhiteOptics Hosts Carper, Coons and U.S. Trade Representative Froman | 2015-10-09 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | NEW CASTLE, Del. Today, U.S. Sens. Tom Carper and Chris Coons (both D-Del.) joined U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman, thechief United States official on international trade, for a tour of WhiteOptics, a New Castle manufacturer that exportsits goods to countries aroundthe world. Founded in 2009, WhiteOptics manufactures and distributes high diffuse, high reflectance white metals, films and advanced coatings to the lighting industry. Carper,Coons and Froman discussed how American exports like the products made at White Optics are growingDelawares economy and howtradedeals that open up new markets to American goods and services can increase wages, boost productivity, and put people back to work. One of my top priorities as a member of Congress is to create a nurturing environment for jobcreation, saidSen. Carper.In Delaware, we know one of the keys to doing that is making sure oursmall businesses can compete and win in the global economy. We have to look outside our national borders to find 95 percent of the worlds markets, so we must negotiate trade deals that get us there. Manufacturing is a critical part of Delawares economy, and I want to thank Ambassador Froman for visiting with one of my favorite Delaware manufacturers, White Optics said Sen. Coons. We discussed a number of important issues today from trade and small business development to intellectual property protection. I also want to thank Ambassador Froman for his continued work on AGOA and efforts on opening up markets in Africa to Delawares poultry producers. Made-in-America exports, like the energy efficient lighting products that WhiteOptics sells around the world, support over 11 million high-paying jobs across the United States, said U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman. With 95 percent of the worlds consumers living outside our borders, its imperative that we do as much as we can to help American exporters break through into new, growing economies so that we can sell more exports and support more jobs right here in the United Stat… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=1d7f625b-2db5-4ea9-98d4-a86026c3459f | Statement of Ranking Member Tom Carper: "Threats to the Homeland" | 2015-10-08 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs held the hearing, Threats to the Homeland. Below is the opening statement of Ranking Member Tom Carper (D-Del.), as prepared for delivery: Thank you, Mr. Chairman and welcome to our witnesses. As this Committee has discussed at a number of hearings over the years, the threats our country faces have evolved significantly since 9/11. After 9/11, the most acute terrorist threats came from Osama Bin Laden's Al-Qaeda. Today, Bin Laden is dead. The core of Al-Qaeda as we knew it has been dismantled. Unfortunately, ISIS and Al-Qaedas affiliates in Yemen and Syria have filled the void. The tactics they use have changed, as well. ISIS in particular has perfected using social media to spread its online propaganda and recruit members to its ranks. These new tactics mean that we can no longer rely solely on military force to eliminate a terrorist threat. We must identify the root causes of why Westerners join the ranks of ISIS and tailor our counter terrorism tactics to meet this evolving challenge. That is no easy task. To do this, we will have to improve our ability to counter violent extremism. I know this is a priority for all of our witnesses, and I commend the Secretary for establishing a new office at the Department that will be focused countering violent extremism. Moreover, if we are to be truly successful in countering ISISs message, among other things, we must remind the world of the principals and values that the United States stands for. Our country has a long history of granting refuge to the war-weary. We have a moral obligation to continue this tradition by taking in our share of Syrian refugees. With that said, we also have an obligation to ensure those people coming from Syria are thoroughly vetted in order to confirm that these people are who they say they are. It is our jobas well as the job of the witnesses testifying todayto strike an appropriate balance between these two competing interests. I hope well ha… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=2cdacab2-42cf-4723-81d8-c0a2f1edbb97 | Carper, Coons urge passage of historic bipartisan chemical safety reform legislation | 2015-10-08 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON In a press conference today, U.S. Senators Tom Carper and Chris Coons (both D-Del.) joined a bipartisan group of their colleagues, Bonnie Lautenberg, widow of the late Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.), and other supporters of chemical safety reform to urge the Senate to act to pass a historic bill to reform the broken Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976 (TSCA). Written by Senators Tom Udall (D-N.M.) and David Vitter (R-La.), the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act would overhaul the 39-year-old law to better protect the public while still protecting American business and innovation. The proposal is based on a bill authored by chemical safety champion former-Senator Lautenberg before he passed away, which he wrote with Senator Vitter. It now has broad bipartisan support, with 60 Senate cosponsors representing 38 states. Our strategy to keep American families safe from toxic substances has failed for nearly four decades, and its time to fix the problem, said Senator Tom Carper. This legislation will, for the first time, require that every chemical used in consumer products is assessed for safety. At the same time, it will offer businesses a predictable and manageable review process for chemicals that do not pose a safety hazard. Bipartisanship is hard to find in the Senate these days, especially on issues that affect the environment. But in this case, Democrats and Republicans are coming together to improve a failed law that doesnt work for consumers and doesnt work for businesses. Today, we are closer than weve ever gotten to reforming our toxics law because both sides have compromised on policy without compromising their principles. We must now show the American people we can do whats right for this country and move this bill across the finish line. By failing to update our decades-old chemical safety laws, weve endangered public health and the environment for too long,said Senator Chris Coons.Before he passed away, Senator Lautenberg worked tirelessly to reach this groundb… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=d8e8a788-6885-4da6-9e67-37e8fec13e39 | Senator Carper Responds to Results of Committee Business Meeting | 2015-10-08 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), Ranking Member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, highlighted the bipartisan progress as well as unfinished work the Committee must tackle following the Committees business meeting. The Committee favorably reported The Fraud Reduction and Data Analytics Act of 2015 (S.2133), which was introduced by Sen. Carper earlier this week. The bipartisan bill, cosponsored by Sens. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), and Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), would require federal agencies to conduct regular fraud risk assessments and develop strategies to combat fraud within their programs. Specifically, the bill would require agencies to implement new financial controls to help them better identify and prevent fraud and push them to share anti-fraud best practices with each other. The bill would also promote the development and use of cutting-edge data analysis tools across the federal government that should help agencies, just like private sector business such as credit card companies, spot patterns of fraud. Finally, the bill would strengthen accountability by requiring regular reports to Congress about agency progress in combatting fraud. We have a responsibility to ensure that federal agencies do a better job managing federal programs and delivering services more efficiently and at a lower cost, said Sen. Carper. This bill would, among other things, require federal officials to determine what areas of government spending are at the greatest risk for fraud, develop an action plan to address vulnerabilities, and then share those solutions across agencies with similar programs. I thank my Committee colleagues for supporting this timely, common sense and bipartisan legislation. The Committee also considered several bills that would change various aspects of the regulatory procedures federal agencies follow. Sen. Carper joined his Committee colleagues in supporting S. 1817, the Smarter Regs Act of 2015, which would require retrospec… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=3a128a21-875a-430e-a419-9a68f92e4e13 | Senator Carper Highlights National Cyber Security Awareness Month | 2015-10-06 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del), Ranking Member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, highlighted National Cyber Security Awareness Month, which begins October 1. During the month of October, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the National Cyber Security Alliance, and the Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center raise awareness on cybersecurity in an effort to educate Americans about protecting themselves online. With so many Americans using the Internet for banking, shopping, and personal communication, it is critical that information online is protected from cyber intrusions. While the national awareness campaign encourages Americans to be more cautious online, it also reminds Americans to recognize the importance of cybersecurity in their daily lives. As Delawareans and Americans continue to share and store more personal information online, we must remain vigilant and make ourselves aware of the threats that exist in cyber space, said Sen. Carper. National Cyber Security Awareness Month serves as an important reminder for everyone to better understand the importance of cybersecurity and to take action to keep their personal information secure online, not just in October but every day. National Cyber Security Awareness Month also serves as an important reminder for Congress to meet our responsibility when it comes to securing cyber space. Last year, Congress made strides in bolstering our nations cyber defenses by passing four bipartisan cybersecurity bills that strengthen our national security and help modernize our nations cybersecurity and cyber workforce. But more must be done. I hope my colleagues act without further delay and pass a bill that helps the private sector and the federal government share more information about the threats coming from cyber space. This kind of information sharing bill is critical to our national security, as well as the security of many private companies across our country. Improving our cyber security practices must remai… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=45517554-c722-48b0-ab28-79876b7684d5 | Senator Carper Statement on Presidents Intent to Nominate Michael Missal as Department of Veterans Affairs Inspector General | 2015-10-06 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), a veteran and ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, released the following statement regarding President Obamas intent to nominate Michael Missal as the Department of Veterans Affairs Inspector General: As a veteran, I understand the sacrifices that our servicemen and servicewomen and their families have made to defend our country and the freedoms we cherish. We have a responsibility to ensure that our returning heroes have the support and the resources they need when they come home, and to make sure they are taken care of long after. Part of that responsibility includes making sure strong and effective leadership is in place at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The most important element in the success of any organization is leadership. Thats why the Presidents nomination of Michael Missal as the Inspector General for the Department of Veterans Affairs is such welcome news. Over the past several years, the VA and the oversight conducted by its Office of the Inspector General have come under scrutiny. For the past two years, the VA has been operating without a Senate-confirmed inspector general. I have long urged the President to nominate a qualified person to fill this critically important position. Veterans and taxpayers deserve strong and permanent leadership in place to reestablish trust at the Department. Mr. Missal brings a wealth of experience from the private and public sector, and I am eager to meet with him and discuss his qualifications and visions for the office. I look forward to working with my colleagues to consider his nomination in a thorough and timely manner. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=69c282b7-8830-4e00-b67d-888d3e8eb54d | Sen. Carper's Statement on Ellen Kullman's Resignation from DuPont | 2015-10-06 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WILMINGTON, Del. Today, U.S. Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) released the following statement on the news that DuPont Chair and CEO Ellen Kullman will resign on October 16th Its not often that Ifind myself at a loss for words, butIdo today.I am deeply saddened by Ellens decision to step down from her post at DuPont later this month. She is one of this countrys great business leaders, and she has worked tirelessly to continue the companys centuries-old tradition of success. "One of Delaware's very own, she deftly guided DuPont through theturbulence of the Great Recession and stayed the course during the tumultuous past yearall while repositioning the company to compete and win in the rapidly changing global economy. Most important, sheaccomplishedall of this whilebeinghonest and fair with the companys shareholders, customers, employees and the people inits surroundingcommunities.I admire Ellens strong leadership, and believe wholeheartedly that DuPont is better today because of herhard work over the past sevenyears. I wish her and her family all the best in this next chapter of their lives. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=e122faa2-8e78-4825-b66f-a7ed4e04ba1c | Carper Applauds EPA Rule to Better Protect Americans from Ozone Pollution | 2015-10-06 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), top Democrat on theSenateEnvironment and Public Works Subcommittee on Clean Air and Nuclear Safety, issued the following statement commending the Environmental Protection Agencys (EPA) announcement that it will implement stricter ozone air pollution health standards from 75 parts per billion to 70 parts per billion.Ozone air pollution poses a serious threat to public health and has been linked to asthma, heart disease and premature death. The Senator has been a long time champion of efforts to reduce dangerous emissions that contribute to ozone pollution. As medical science evolves, so too does our understanding of healthy air. For decades, we have known that ozone pollution caused by dirty power plants, automobiles, and other sources is linked to serious health problems like asthma, strokes, heart attacks, and even early deaths. Parents who have watched their kids with asthma suffer on high ozone days know this better than anyone. As a parent, I worry about my own childrens health. And as a U.S. Senator, I worry about every childs health. Thats why I applaud the president and the EPA for crafting a health standard that better protects our nations children. Through unprecedented outreach, the EPA collected broad input and developed this rule based on the most up-to-date science. Today, the EPA announced that our current ozone health standards are too weak and no longer adequately protect our health. Despite what many may say, todays announcement is purely a statement of fact to protect our health, we need less ozone pollution.Fortunately, the EPA has already implemented federal regulations to ensure every state does its fair share when it comes to air pollution.As a result of these federal regulations, very few states will need to do additional actions to meet this new health standard.In fact, less than fifteen counties outside of California are expected to be in nonattainment by 2025. Across the political spectrum, I know we can agree on many of the same things … | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=e8d0455f-51fe-413b-90f0-07de847b9812 | Senators Respond to GAO Report on U.S. Postal Service Delivery Performance Measurement | 2015-10-06 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Senators Tom Carper (D-Del.), Heidi Heitkamp (D-N.D.), Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.), and Jon Tester (D-Mont.), members of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, responded to a new Government Accountability Office (GAO) report that found the on-time mail delivery performance results provided by the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) and Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) are not complete and may not give an accurate assessment of service for many communities across the country. The report, Actions Needed to Make Delivery Performance Information More Complete, Useful and Transparent, outlines deficiencies in the Postal Services measurement capabilities and makes recommendations to Congress to direct USPS and the PRC to improve the completeness, analysis and transparency of delivery performance information. Specifically, GAO called on USPS and the PRC to include more detail on the Postal Services performance beyond the national level to include area and district performance. As my colleagues and I have heard through numerous committee hearings, round tables, and countless conversations with postal customers, stakeholders, and management, service across the country, particularly in rural communities, is suffering, said Senator Carper, Ranking Member on the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. In order to fix these service problems, we need to figure out their root causes. Unfortunately, the Government Accountability Office found that the delivery performance results that the Postal Service and Postal Regulatory Commission provide do not give Congress or postal customers an accurate assessment of service. While the Postal Service can and should take steps to address these serious shortcomings in performance and transparency, Congress must also help the Postal Service get better in this area. My bill, iPOST, would help put the service back in Postal Service by stabilizing operations and requiring measurable improvements to delivery performance across the country. It would a… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/e-newsletter?ContentRecord_id=7b41efed-57b0-4f0c-8ec7-13a1736444e1 | This October, Be Cyber Aware | 2015-10-03 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | October 3, 2015 Dear Friends, October is National Cybersecurity Awareness Month, and gives us a great opportunity to educate ourselves on the best ways to keep our personal information secure online. As we rely more and more on the internet to shop, pay bills or even access our bank accounts, we must remain vigilant and stay aware of the threats that exist in cyber space, not just in October but every day. In the 12 years since the first Cybersecurity Awareness Month, the amount of information that Delawareans and Americans share and store online has grown at a rapid pace. It is critically important that we do not let our ability to share information online outpace our knowledge of how to protect our information online. Here are some tips you can use to improve your cybersecurity practices: Set strong passwords and regularly changethem. Keep your operating system, browser, and other critical software optimized by installing updates. Maintain an open dialogue with your family, friends,and community about Internet safety. Limit the amount of personal information you post online and use privacy settings to avoid sharing information widely. Be cautious about what you receive or read onlineif it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. For more tips on what you can do to protect your information online, visit the Department of Homeland Securitys Cybersecurity Awareness Month webpage, or the National Cyber Security Alliances Stay Safe Online page. While each of us must remain vigilant in securing our personal information, Congress also has a responsibility to help secure cyber space for Delawareans and Americans in their daily lives. Nearly every day, we hear about cyber criminals probing our government agencies, universities, and critical infrastructure looking for weak spots in our defenses that would allow them to shut down our financial system or our electric grid, or steal our personal information. They also try to steal our ideas the lifeblood of the American economy and the driving forc… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=b96b304a-98c8-4529-876f-fb837ac36752 | Finance Hearing Statement: Improper Payments in Federal Programs | 2015-10-02 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) released the following statement on the Senate Finance Committees hearing on improper payments made by federal government programs. Federal improper payments can be an instructive symptom of a serious disease that should concern all of us, namely the misuse or mismanagement of taxpayer dollars. Throughout my time in public office, Ive focused on ways to improve our stewardship of taxpayer dollars, whether it is reducing errors in federal spending, inefficient spending, or fraudulent spending. That's why I am particularly pleased that the Finance Committee is holding a hearing on this important issue, because improper payments can serve as canaries in the coal mine, warning us of potential vulnerabilities in federal financial management. As my colleagues know, I like to focus on the root causes of a problem, instead of just treating its symptoms. I believe that approach is particularly important as we review why and how our federal agencies aremakingimproper payments, and I hope my colleagues share my point of view. In order to create an effective solution to a problem, we must first thoroughly understand whats happening. One big misconception about improper payments is that they are always a symptom of fraud. That is simply not the case. Quite often, improper payments are unintentional mistakes. For example, a legitimate payment that is issued for an accurate amount, but does not have adequate supporting documentation, is considered improper. That circumstance should be corrected, but its not a scam. An inefficient and inaccurate federal payment system, however, can certainly create a ripe opportunity for bad actors to commit fraud, and Congress has a duty to address these vulnerabilities. However, you cant manage what you cant measure. Thats why Congress took action to require all executivebranch agencies to identify programs that may be susceptible to significant improper payments, and then measure and reportany improper payments that occurred. Five years ago, Cong… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/featured-items?ContentRecord_id=8c2488ba-4552-497c-986e-e2c341515177 | 2015 Hurricane Joaquin Preparedness | 2015-10-01 | 2015 | 2015-10 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | Sen. Tom Carper wants to remind Delawareans to prepare for the upcoming stormapproaching the state. Below is information for constituents about hurricane preparedness and useful resources. Proper preparation for hurricanes can help save homes, property, and even lives. Hurricanes and other tropical disturbances can be unpredictable and can suddenly change course and intensity. As Hurricane Joaquin approaches the East Coast and theMid-Atlantic region, follow your local news and regularly visit theDelaware EmergencyManagement Agency websiteand theNational Hurricane Centers website. Both will provide the most updated information on the storm's trajectory, including its expected impact on Delaware. I strongly encourage everyone to think ahead and create emergency preparednesskits so that you and your family can be better prepared for this storm.VisitFEMAs emergency preparedness websiteto learn what to include in your kits. It is alwaysbetter to be over prepared in the case of an emergency. If you need help or have questions, pleasecontact my officesMonday - Friday, and we will do our best to assist you with your needs. Wilmington:(302) 573-6291 Dover: (302) 674-3308 Georgetown:(302) 856-7690 Washington, DC: (202) 224-2441 Find Information on Evacuation Routes and Preparation Measures for Each County Below: Sussex County New Castle County Kent County ADDITIONAL RESOURCES Hurricane Preparedness | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=3fcf1e80-91cc-4048-9c32-d76cf6d7922c | Carper Votes for Short Term Funding Measure to Keep Government Open | 2015-09-30 | 2015 | 2015-09 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), top Democrat on the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, released the following statement after the Senate voted 78-20 to fund the Government through Dec. 11, 2015: I have a friend who, when asked how hes doing, responds with a question Compared to what? Well, compared to a government shutdown, a continuing resolution sends the signal that sanity reigns in the Senate. But Im disappointed that our habit of crisis governing has desensitized us in a world where we are worried about even keeping the governments lights on, its no wonder we fail to recognize how much were failing on our bigger picture responsibilities. By lurching from one crisis to the next, our federal government becomes far less effective and far more expensive. The uncertainty of stopgap funding degrades the morale of our federal employees, hurts businesses ability to create jobs, and creates harmful ripple effects for state and local governments and economies. After all, its incredibly difficult to plan and budget effectively if you dont know what is, or is not, coming your way from Washington. Congress should be laser focused on continuing our economic recovery. We need to pass a comprehensive, bipartisan budget plan that gives government and business certainty, and shows the American people that we can lead. Then we need to translate those plans into timely appropriations bills that will let agencies and their partners spend their time trying to get better results for the taxpayer dollar, not hastily putting together contingency plans. I hope my colleagues in both the House and Senate will join me in saying that enough is enough, its time to come together, and do our jobs that the American people hired us to do. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=d850e053-8d98-455a-8639-e0554a61046c | Carper, Ernst Request Information to Protect Veterans and Taxpayers from Expensive Flight Training Programs | 2015-09-30 | 2015 | 2015-09 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON In light of troubling reports from national news outlets, U.S. Senators Tom Carper (D-Del.) and Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) sent a letter today to Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Secretary Robert McDonald to request more information about schools that contract with public colleges and universities to recruit veterans who are eligible for Post-9/11 G.I. Bill education benefits. Since 2009, more than 1.3 million service members, veterans, and their families have financed their higher education using the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill, and millions more will take advantage of this benefit in the years to come. We strongly support the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill.We also support allowing veterans to choose the educational programwhether it be college or career-trainingthats right for them. However, Congress has a moral and fiscal obligation to our veterans and to taxpayers to prevent abuse of the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill, the Senators wrote. We write today to seek more information regarding the costs of certain flight training programs and whether or not VA has the tools to protect veterans and taxpayers from bad actors. While Congress established a payment cap on the amount of Post-9/11 G.I. Bill benefits that can go toward tuition and fees at vocational flight training programs and private colleges and universities, there is no payment cap on tuition and fees for in-state tuition at public colleges and universities. As a result, flight schools that contract with public colleges are able to avoid both payment caps on private schools and vocational flight schools. The letter sent by Senators Carper and Ernst calls on the VA to provide additional data surrounding flight school training to determine whether or not the VA is protecting veterans and taxpayers from bad actors seeking to exploit the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill. According to an investigation by the Los Angeles Times, some for-profit flight schools that contract with public colleges and universities have been able to take advantage of the lack of a cap on benefits that can be p… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=ed2f49b6-8bce-485c-a2fa-583eb6dc9245 | Statement of Ranking Member Tom Carper: | 2015-09-30 | 2015 | 2015-09 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs held the hearing, A Review of the Department of Education and Student Achievement. Below is the opening statement of Ranking Member Tom Carper (D-Del), as prepared for delivery: I want to thank Chairman Johnson for holding this important hearing today. As a parent and as someone who has had the honor to serve Delawareans at both the federal and state level, few issues have been more important to meand continue to be more important to methan raising student achievement and improving the quality of our nations schools. Similarly, there are few issues more important to the future of the United States than equipping our nations students with knowledge and skills they need to compete successfully with the rest of the world. If we're serious about winning the competition for jobs in a global economy in the 21st Century, we need to start by out-educating other nations. Todays hearing offers us a gut check, particularly when it comes to higher education. We no longer lead the world in producing the highest percentage of college graduates. Total outstanding student loan debt has surpassed $1.3 trillion. And the ever-increasing costs of higher education have increasingly forced low- and middle-income students to take on oftentimes unnecessary amounts of debt just to stay competitive with their peers, both domestically and abroad. In my mind, we need urgent change. I look forward to hearing from each of our witnesses about what they think that change should look like. I mentioned out-educating other nations. That isnt limited to college education, though thats a big part of it. We also need to look at improving education every step along the way, beginning at the earliest years through high school and college graduation. We could benefit from taking a page out of the book I learned as head of the National Governors Association (NGA) Center for Best Practices. What my colleagues and I from around the country tried to do on educ… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=1f106ded-b457-4e3b-b9ce-88617714f51f | EPW Hearing Statement: Economy-wide Implications of President Obama's Air Agenda | 2015-09-29 | 2015 | 2015-09 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), top Democrat on the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Subcommittee on Clean Air and Nuclear Safety, issued the following statement on the committees hearing about the economic implications of President Obamas clean air agenda: Over the years, I've had a lot of different jobs newspaper boy, naval flight officer, treasurer and governor of my state, chairman of the National Governors Association just to name a few. But my most cherished job and the one most important in the end has been the role of father.A major motivator in my life has been my love for my sons and my desire to make the world a better place for them, as well as for their children and grandchildren. Today, I am reminded just how important our fight for clean air is for my children and for children across the country.Despite what we might think sometimes, our children actually listen to what we say.They hear us talk about chores, homework, and responsibility, but they watch to see if we actually pitch in and do our fair share. Much of our countrys ongoing efforts to clean up air pollution is about playing fair and doing our share. In my home state of Delaware, we've done our homework and worked hard to curb harmful emissions that create dirty air. As a result, we've made great strides in cleaning up our own air pollution. Unfortunately, a number of the upwind states to the west of us have not made the same commitment to reducing harmful pollution by investing in cleaner air.In fact, 90 percent of Delaware's air pollution actually comes from our neighboring states. This pollution is not only dangerous to our hearts, lungs and brains, it also costs us a great deal in medical bills, and in the quality of the lives we live.And some of this air pollution like carbon pollution impacts our climate, threatening the health of this generation and of generations to come. Fortunately, federal clean air protections established by the Clean Air Act have been created to right that wrong.These protect… | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=81244ec1-a095-4f64-92ea-06baac2eea33 | Senator Carper Responds to GAO Assessment of Security of Federal Agencies Networks | 2015-09-29 | 2015 | 2015-09 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), ranking member of the Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee, responded to a new Government Accountability Office (GAO) report that analyzed the security of federal agencies networks. The report found that until agencies correct longstanding security deficiencies, federal systems will remain at increased and unnecessary risk of attack or compromise. Todays report sheds light on a number of deficiencies in the security of federal agencies networks across the government, said Sen. Carper. At a time when threats in cyber space are growing at a rapid pace, it is unacceptable that so many agencies continue to fall behind in cyber defense and remain far out of compliance with the law. Simply put, agencies need to do a better job fully implementing basic security measures. While the Government Accountability Offices results are very disappointing, it is important to note that much of this audit took place before the enactment of the updated Federal Information Security Modernization Act (FISMA) of 2014 and Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act (FITARA). These laws represent two significant steps in empowering agencies to better protect their cyber networks, and I am optimistic that next years audit results will reflect those benefits. But in order to be successful, leadership at all agencies must make cybersecurity a top priority. Though its clear agencies have significant work ahead, we must not overlook the progress that has been made over the past year. I am encouraged by the increased oversight efforts currently being made by the Office of Management and Budget and the Department of Homeland Security. Efforts like the Administrations Cyber Sprint initiative are crucial in finding where we are most vulnerable and shoring up these weak links in the chain. Strong cybersecurity requires a team effort. While agencies have a responsibility to secure their cyber networks, we in Congress have a responsibility to provide agencies with the resources, … | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=bd8ee598-fea7-480d-ad27-d0365900f698 | Senator Carper Responds to GAO Assessment of Security of Federal Agencies Networks | 2015-09-29 | 2015 | 2015-09 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), ranking member of the Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee, responded to a new Government Accountability Office (GAO) report that analyzed the security of federal agencies networks. The report found that until agencies correct longstanding security deficiencies, federal systems will remain at increased and unnecessary risk of attack or compromise. Todays report sheds light on a number of deficiencies in the security of federal agencies networks across the government, said Sen. Carper. At a time when threats in cyber space are growing at a rapid pace, it is unacceptable that so many agencies continue to fall behind in cyber defense and remain far out of compliance with the law. Simply put, agencies need to do a better job fully implementing basic security measures. While the Government Accountability Offices results are very disappointing, it is important to note that much of this audit took place before the enactment of the updated Federal Information Security Modernization Act (FISMA) of 2014 and Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act (FITARA). These laws represent two significant steps in empowering agencies to better protect their cyber networks, and I am optimistic that next years audit results will reflect those benefits. But in order to be successful, leadership at all agencies must make cybersecurity a top priority. Though its clear agencies have significant work ahead, we must not overlook the progress that has been made over the past year. I am encouraged by the increased oversight efforts currently being made by the Office of Management and Budget and the Department of Homeland Security. Efforts like the Administrations Cyber Sprint initiative are crucial in finding where we are most vulnerable and shoring up these weak links in the chain. Strong cybersecurity requires a team effort. While agencies have a responsibility to secure their cyber networks, we in Congress have a responsibility to provide agencies with the resources, … | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | ||
| https://www.carper.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/pressreleases?ContentRecord_id=502de9c1-ba81-4c27-8c40-f0a7bbcd9130 | Carper Addresses Environment and Energy Study Institute's Briefing, Offshore Wind: Can the U.S. Catch Up with Europe? | 2015-09-28 | 2015 | 2015-09 | Democrat | House | DE | Thomas Carper | C000174 | www.carper.senate.gov | legacy | WASHINGTON Today, U.S. Senator Tom Carper (D-Del.), a long-time supporter of offshore wind technology, addressed participants in the Environmental and Energy Study Institutes (EESI) briefing on the status of offshore wind energy projects in the United States in comparison to our European neighbors, who have deployed more than 50 offshore wind projects since 1991. Industry has shown tremendous interest in developing offshore wind in the United States, and Congress should do all it can to encourage the adoption of this emerging clean technology. The briefing included apanel of experts who examined how the United States could continue building momentum for investments in offshore wind energy. Offshore wind energy means reliable, homegrown power, cleaner air, and good-paying American jobs it's a win-win-win, Sen. Carper said. I believe there is broad consensus in Congress that offshore wind can provide greater energy security and more opportunities for economic growth. To harness the clean power of offshore wind and reap its economic benefits, we need to provide a nurturing environment to get this industry off the ground. Earlier this year, Senator Carper wasjoined bySenator Susan Collins (R-Maine) to introduce the Incentivizing Offshore Wind Power Act, which would provide financial incentives to encourage investment in offshore wind energy. The legislation would create an investment tax credit that is redeemable for the first 3,000 megawatts of offshore wind facilities placed into service, amounting to approximately 600 wind turbines. Senator Collins and I introduced the Incentivizing Offshore Wind Power Act to help give theindustry the boost it needs to grow and thrive, Sen. Carper continued. A taxcredit for the first actors will encourage private sector development of offshore wind facilities across the country, and help move the United States closer to energy independence. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z |
Advanced export
JSON shape: default, array, newline-delimited, object
CREATE TABLE [releases] (
[url] TEXT PRIMARY KEY,
[title] TEXT,
[date] TEXT,
[year] TEXT,
[month] TEXT,
[party] TEXT,
[chamber] TEXT,
[state] TEXT,
[member_name] TEXT,
[bioguide_id] TEXT,
[domain] TEXT,
[scraper] TEXT,
[source] TEXT,
[date_source] TEXT,
[text] TEXT,
[has_text] INTEGER,
[collected_at] TEXT,
[updated_at] TEXT
);
CREATE INDEX [idx_releases_date]
ON [releases] ([date]);
CREATE INDEX [idx_releases_year]
ON [releases] ([year]);
CREATE INDEX [idx_releases_party]
ON [releases] ([party]);
CREATE INDEX [idx_releases_chamber]
ON [releases] ([chamber]);
CREATE INDEX [idx_releases_state]
ON [releases] ([state]);
CREATE INDEX [idx_releases_bioguide_id]
ON [releases] ([bioguide_id]);
CREATE INDEX [idx_releases_has_text]
ON [releases] ([has_text]);