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.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=B6BF6C33-92F6-4587-8F5C-F59D674DF378,Klobuchar and Local Duluth Business Owners Advocate to Change Federal Hemp Ban,2025-12-30,2025,2025-12,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"DULUTH, MN — U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar was joined by Ryan Kopperud, Vice President of Growth for Birdie at Wild State Cider, and Adam Ruhland, CEO of Wild State Cider, to advocate to change the recently enacted federal ban on hemp. Klobuchar is working across the aisle to change it. “A one-size fits all approach to hemp regulation doesn't work for states like Minnesota that already have strong safety standards in place,” said Klobuchar. “We can protect our kids and support our small businesses — Minnesota’s model proves that’s possible. Under current state rules, small businesses like Wild State Cider are licensed, meet labeling and packaging standards, and ensure their products are available only to adults. I want our state’s small businesses and farmers to know: I’ve got your back.” “What’s at stake here is not just one business. Not just one taproom. It’s manufacturers, distributors, retailers, farmers, labs—the entire system behind these hemp products people already trust. Responsible, compliant, transparent businesses, and the jobs, revenue, and tax base that come with them. This is what happens when policy meets reality. And that reality—for us and for thousands of Minnesota businesses—is frankly terrifying,” said Ryan Kopperud, Vice President of Growth for Birdie at Wild State Cider. Wild State Cider is a well-known cidery based in Duluth that was founded in 2019. The cidery specializes in producing ciders made with natural ingredients. In 2023, Wild State Cider launched a successful line of THC-infused products called “Birdie.” However, a recent bill signed into law includes provisions that could severely impact Minnesota’s hemp industry by banning many products currently manufactured in the state. Senator Klobuchar voted against the bill and voted for an amendment by Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) to remove the provision impacting Minnesota’s hemp businesses. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T20:09:11Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=082A36F7-1B14-44EB-81D7-6852ADCB2B2F,"Klobuchar, Sullivan and Colleagues Introduce VISIT USA Act to Promote U.S. Tourism",2025-12-26,2025,2025-12,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON — U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Dan Sullivan (R-AK), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), and Jacky Rosen (D-NV) —all members of the Senate Commerce Committee – introduced the bipartisan Vital Investment in Sustaining International Tourism to the USA (VISIT USA) Act to fully restore Brand USA’s funding in Fiscal Years (FY) 2026 and 2027. Brand USA is a public-private partnership charged with promoting America as a premier international travel destination and clearly communicating U.S. visa and entry policies abroad. This legislation will fully fund Brand USA to promote the United States as an international travel destination ahead of several significant events hosted in the U.S., including the 250th anniversary of America’s independence, the FIFA World Cup, and the 2028 Olympic games. President Trump’s FY 2026 budget request also calls for fully funding Brand USA. “Travel and tourism powers economic growth in communities in Minnesota and across our country,” said Sen. Klobuchar. “Our bipartisan legislation will restore funding for Brand USA, providing the resources it needs to continue to support an additional 1.6 million visitors, $6 billion in spending, and nearly 80,000 jobs every year—all at no cost to taxpayers.” “The United States is the third most visited country in the world. As we prepare to host several once-in-a-generation global events—from America250, to the FIFA World Cup, to the 2028 Olympic Games—there has never been a better moment to showcase all that our country has to offer,” Sen. Sullivan said. “Restoring Brand USA’s full funding will help us welcome more international visitors, strengthen our tourism economy, and support the thousands of small businesses that make America and Alaska such remarkable places to experience.” This legislation is endorsed by the U.S. Travel Association. Representatives Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) and Kathy Castor (D-FL) have introduced companion legislation in the House. “This legislation is an important step forward, and we are grateful for Senators Sullivan and Klobuchar for leading this effort,"" said Geoff Freeman, president and CEO of the U.S. Travel Association. ""With the World Cup, America 250 and the 2028 Olympics on the horizon, the U.S. has a pivotal chance to capture global attention. By restoring Brand USA’s resources, Congress can help drive new visitors, support jobs nationwide and ensure the United States stands out on the world stage.” ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T20:09:11Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=2CE5D131-E44C-43C6-9E0D-612C6495AFBC,Klobuchar Announces Federal Funding for Minnesota Broadband Infrastructure,2025-12-23,2025,2025-12,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), a senior member of the Senate Commerce Committee and co-chair of the Senate Broadband Caucus, announced that the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has approved Minnesota’s Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Final Proposal. Minnesota received $652 million in funding to implement its BEAD proposal. “I’m thrilled to announce that Minnesota’s broadband funding proposal has been approved, which will bring fast, affordable, reliable internet to families in every corner of our state,” said Senator Klobuchar. “This funding is available thanks to my bipartisan legislation that I fought to pass so that Minnesota families—regardless of their ZIP code—have access to high-speed internet.” “This BEAD milestone represents a major step forward in our commitment to ensuring every Minnesotan — regardless of geography — has access to reliable, high quality broadband,” said Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) Commissioner Matt Varilek. “Minnesota extends its sincere appreciation to the many Internet service providers and partners across the state who worked alongside us to shape this proposal. Their dedication, expertise and willingness to engage deeply in this effort have been essential to reaching this point. With this BEAD approval, Minnesota is one step closer to closing the digital divide and building a more connected future for all.” This development advances Minnesota’s affordable broadband rollout to unserved and underserved areas of the state. Klobuchar has long led efforts to expand broadband access, support rural broadband, and bridge the digital divide. Klobuchar’s Accessible, Affordable Internet for All Act was incorporated into the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and has delivered significant federal funding to Minnesota for expanding high-speed internet access statewide. In June 2023, Klobuchar announced that the U.S. Department of Commerce had awarded major federal funding through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to bring reliable, affordable, high-speed internet access to every household in Minnesota. The Accessible, Affordable Internet for All Act, Klobuchar’s legislation with then-House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn (D-SC) to expand high-speed internet nationwide, served as the basis for the program created by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. In March 2023, Klobuchar and Senators John Thune (R-SD), John Hickenlooper (D-CO), and Jerry Moran (R-KS) reintroduced bipartisan legislation to expand broadband access to rural communities. The Reforming Broadband Connectivity Act would strengthen funding mechanisms for the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) Universal Service Fund (USF), which promotes universal access to broadband and other telecommunications services. Currently, the USF is primarily funded through landline fees, disproportionately impacting seniors, who are more likely to use landlines than other Americans. In February 2023, Klobuchar introduced bipartisan legislation with Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) to strengthen broadband access for rural communities. The Rural Broadband Protection Act would ensure that providers applying for federal funding can reliably deliver broadband to underserved, rural communities. In July 2021, Klobuchar introduced bipartisan legislation with Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) to expand rural broadband access by streamlining the funding process and removing barriers for broadband connectivity in hard-to-serve rural areas. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T20:09:11Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=5FFA1D8D-0F75-4EC2-B3AF-F28835728882,Klobuchar Statement on Instacart Ending Dynamic Pricing,2025-12-22,2025,2025-12,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Ranking Member on the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology, and the Law, released the following statement on Instacart announcing it will end its practice of charging some customers more than others for the same products. This follows Klobuchar leading a group of seven other Senators in calling for the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to investigate Instacart’s dynamic pricing. “Grocery prices are already too high—Americans shouldn’t be forced to pay even more because companies use artificial intelligence to inflate prices. I called on the FTC to investigate Instacart’s use of dynamic pricing to charge customers more for the same product because it is wrong and deceptive. Customers deserve fair prices and real competition to lower costs.” ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T20:09:11Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=E3DCCC10-4427-49D9-9EC2-9436FD12A89F,"Klobuchar, Firefighters and Advocates Celebrate Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act Being Signed Into Law",2025-12-22,2025,2025-12,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"ST. LOUIS PARK, MN — U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar was joined by Minnesota Professional Firefighters Association President Scott Vadnais, IAFF Saint Paul Local 21 President Kyle Thornberg, IAFF Minneapolis Local 82 President Mark Lakosky, St. Louis Park Fire Chief Peter Hanline, Julie and Meghan Paidar, St. Louis Park Mayor Nadia Mohamed, and St. Louis Park firefighters to celebrate the passage of Klobuchar’s bipartisan Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act and honor the memory of Captain Michael Paidar, who died in 2020 from an aggressive form of Acute Myeloid Leukemia while serving with the Saint Paul Fire Department. “Passing this bipartisan legislation was a critical victory for our firefighters who put their lives on the line every day to keep us safe, and their loved ones,” said Senator Klobuchar. “With the Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act now signed into law, we are ensuring that the Public Safety Officers’ Benefits Program covers service-related cancers—honoring the memory of Captain Paidar and their families who made the ultimate sacrifice.” “I’m grateful to Senator Klobuchar for leading the bipartisan Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act. Every day, our nation’s first responders selflessly serve and protect their communities. Unfortunately, through exposures on the job, many are also fighting occupational cancer. As our family knows firsthand, the lives of the first responder and their family are forever changed upon the cancer diagnosis. Mike loved being a career firefighter and paramedic. Losing him to Leukemia in 2020 was devastating not only for our family, but also for his fire family and our communities. This important legislation will honor his legacy and recognize the sacrifices of our fallen, allowing first responders and their families to receive the PSOB benefits they rightly deserve,” said Julie Paidar, widow of St. Paul Fire Captain Michael Paidar. “Minnesota's firefighters and their families are better protected than ever today because of the passage of the Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act,” said Scott Vadnais, President of the Minnesota Professional Fire Fighters Association. “Thanks to Senator Klobuchar's steadfast leadership of the bipartisan effort to pass this bill, firefighters who perish in the line of duty from job-related cancer will get the benefits they deserve. Cancer is by far the greatest threat to firefighter safety, and the Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act recognizes the constant risk for contracting cancer taken by our firefighters every day when they show up for work, in the same way we recognize the other risks of the dangerous nature of firefighting.” The Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act expands access to federal support for the families of firefighters and other first responders who pass away or become permanently disabled from service-related cancers. Last week, the President signed the bill into law. Previously, firefighters were only eligible for support under the Public Safety Officer Benefits (PSOB) program for physical injuries sustained in the line-of-duty, or for deaths from duty-related heart attacks, strokes, mental health conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder, and 9/11 related illnesses. In 2021, after strong advocacy from the Paidar family, the Minnesota Department of Public Safety awarded line-of-duty benefits to Captain Paidar’s widow Julie. This was the first time that a firefighter’s family had received benefits for cancer incurred in the line-of-duty through Minnesota’s state Public Safety Officer Benefits program. The Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act extends similar benefits to firefighters and other first responders across the country as a part of the federal PSOB program. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T20:09:11Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=32F88312-3D29-475D-81D7-DB21363C1FF9,"Klobuchar, Booker, Colleagues Press the FTC to Investigate Instacart’s Dynamic Pricing",2025-12-19,2025,2025-12,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"Letter urges for investigation to determine if the use of dynamic pricing violates the FTC Act WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Ranking Member on the Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology, and the Law, and Cory Booker, Ranking Member on the Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy, and Consumer Rights, led their colleagues in pressing Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chair Andrew Ferguson to investigate Instacart’s use of dynamic pricing. Citing a recent study, the letter urges the Commission to investigate whether Instacart’s pricing strategy violates the FTC Act’s prohibitions on unfair methods of competition and unfair or deceptive acts and practices; to reopen its market study on surveillance pricing; and to determine whether the FTC needs additional authority to protect consumers from potential harms that stem from these pricing practices. “We write to express our deep concern after a recent study found that Instacart was offering substantially different prices to different consumers for the same items, from the same stores, purchased at the same time. If true, such practices may result in higher overall prices, deter competition, and potentially run afoul of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Act’s prohibitions on unfair methods of competition and unfair or deceptive acts and practices,” wrote the Senators. “In competitive markets, retailers should be incentivized to reduce prices to draw customers from their competitors. But dynamic and surveillance pricing—especially models built on sensitive personal or competitive information—upend this foundational principle of the free market, allowing firms to set prices based on a person’s willingness to pay instead of market factors.” the Senators concluded. Along with Klobuchar and Booker, the letter was signed by Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Peter Welch (D-VT), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), and Jeff Merkley (D-OR). The full text of the letter is below and can be found here. Dear Chair Ferguson: We write to express our deep concern after a recent study found that Instacart was offering substantially different prices to different consumers for the same items, from the same stores, purchased at the same time. If true, such practices may result in higher overall prices, deter competition, and potentially run afoul of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Act’s prohibitions on unfair methods of competition and unfair or deceptive acts and practices. We urge the Commission to investigate this potential use of dynamic pricing to determine if it violates the FTC Act and whether the FTC needs additional authority to protect consumers from potential harms that stem from dynamic or surveillance pricing practices. A recent study found that some prices for the same products on Instacart varied by over 20 percent despite being purchased at the same store and under the same circumstances. For example, the study found that prices for everyday staples like sliced turkey, cornflakes, apples, crackers, and peanut butter all varied in price by more than 20 percent. Instacart’s dynamic pricing strategy reportedly affected nearly three-quarters of the products tested and was applied to each person who participated in the study. The study concluded that “corporate practices like these increase prices for American families.” In July 2024, the FTC sought information from eight companies as part of a market study on “surveillance pricing” to better understand how firms use personalized data and algorithmic tools to set individualized prices. In January 2025, the FTC issued a “staff perspective” on its ongoing study, noting that the practice of personalized pricing is becoming widespread and merits additional study. Unfortunately, the FTC appears to have shuttered further work on that market study, depriving the policymakers—and the public—of information vital to understanding the implications of this practice. We are concerned that surveillance pricing, like that described by the FTC’s market study, and dynamic pricing, like that found in the recent study of Instacart, can make pricing information more opaque to consumers and raise barriers for price competition and comparison shopping. These practices also incentivize companies to collect sensitive personal user data to aid in setting personalized prices. Additional antitrust concerns are raised if Instacart is setting or recommending prices for multiple companies that should be competing on price. Instacart has said that some of its retail partners use its algorithmic pricing product to optimize online pricing for its clients. Competitors should not be outsourcing pricing decisions to common algorithmic tools, especially those that have access to a competitor’s sensitive data. In competitive markets, retailers should be incentivized to reduce prices to draw customers from their competitors. But dynamic and surveillance pricing—especially models built on sensitive personal or competitive information—upend this foundational principle of the free market, allowing firms to set prices based on a person’s willingness to pay instead of market factors. We are deeply concerned that Instacart’s pricing tactics may result in higher food prices, less competition, fewer opportunities to comparison shop, more incentive for companies to collect sensitive personal data, and increased customer confusion—potentially in violation of the FTC Act. In light of these concerns, we urge the Commission to re-open its previous market study on surveillance pricing issues and investigate whether Instacart’s dynamic pricing violates the FTC Act. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T20:09:11Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=77BDFBC4-95FA-4A09-B36C-59CD53B58D4D,Klobuchar and Cramer’s Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act Signed into Law,2025-12-18,2025,2025-12,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON—U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Kevin Cramer (R-ND) announced that their bipartisan Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act has been signed into law. The bipartisan legislation expands access to federal support for the families of firefighters and other first responders who pass away or become permanently disabled from service-related cancers. Klobuchar introduced this legislation in honor of Michael Paidar, a St. Paul fire captain who died of an aggressive form of Acute Myeloid Leukemia on August 26, 2020 while still working for the fire department. In 2021, after strong advocacy from the Paidar family, the Minnesota Department of Public Safety awarded line-of-duty benefits to Captain Paidar’s widow Julie. This was the first time that a firefighter’s family had received benefits for cancer incurred in the line-of-duty through Minnesota’s state Public Safety Officer Benefits (PSOB) program. The Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act ensures that firefighters and other first responders across the country are eligible to receive similar benefits under the federal PSOB program. “This is a critical victory for our firefighters who put their lives on the line every day to keep us safe, and for their loved ones,” said Klobuchar. “This bipartisan legislation will ensure that the Public Safety Officers’ Benefits Program covers service-related cancers—honoring the commitment we make to our firefighters like Captain Paidar and other first responders who made the ultimate sacrifice. ” “Our first responders epitomize courage and selfless sacrifice, confronting both the immediate perils of their duty which are extreme and the lingering health risks associated with their service,” said Cramer. “Their exposure to dangerous carcinogens happens on our behalf. When these heroes make the ultimate sacrifice, their families should not have to bear these burdens alone. I’m grateful my Senate colleagues passed this important legislation.” Currently, firefighters are only eligible for support under the PSOB program for physical injuries sustained in the line-of-duty, or for deaths from duty-related heart attacks, strokes, mental health conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder, and 9/11 related illnesses. “I’m grateful to Senators Klobuchar and Cramer for leading the bipartisan Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act. Every day, our nation’s first responders selflessly serve and protect their communities. Unfortunately, through exposures on the job, many are also fighting occupational cancer. As our family knows firsthand, the lives of the first responder and their family are forever changed upon the cancer diagnosis. Mike loved being a career firefighter and paramedic. Losing him to Leukemia in 2020 was devastating not only for our family, but also for his fire family and our communities. This important legislation will honor his legacy and recognize the sacrifices of our fallen, allowing first responders and their families to receive the PSOB benefits they rightly deserve,” said Julie Paidar, widow of St. Paul Fire Captain Michael Paidar. This legislation is co-sponsored by the following 58 Senators: Senators Banks (R-IN), Barrasso (R-WY), Blackburn (R-TN), Blumenthal (D-CT), Coons (D-DE), Cornyn (R-TX), Cruz (R-TX), Duckworth (D-IL), Durbin (D-IL), Fetterman (D-PA), Fischer (R-NE), Graham (R-SC), Hirono (D-HI), Hoeven (R-ND), Justice (R-WV), Kelly (D-AZ), Markey (D-MA), Padilla (D-CA), Rounds (R-SD), Schiff (D-CA), Shaheen (D-NH), Sheehy (R-MT), Smith (D-MN), Warner (D-VA), Warren (D-MA), Welch (D-VT), Whitehouse (D-RI), Wyden (D-OR); Hoeven (R-ND); Ossoff (D-GA); Capito (R-WV); Cantwell (D-WA); Gallego (D-AZ); Moreno (R-OH); Kennedy (R-LA); Merkley (D-OR); Kim (D-NJ); Rosen (D-NV); Moody (R-FL); Gillibrand (D-NY); Kaine (D-VA); Hassan (D-NH); Van Hollen (D-MD); Tillis (R-NC); Marshall (R-KS); Murkowski (R-AK); Alsobrooks (D-MD); Hawley (R-MO); McCormick (R-PA); Risch (R-ID); Moran (R-KS); Crapo (R-ID); Sanders (I-VT); Schmitt (R-MO); Cortez Masto (D-NV); Hyde-Smith (R-MS); Collins (R-ME);Heinrich (D-NM); and Husted (R-OH). The legislation is endorsed by the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF), as well as the Association of State Criminal Investigative Agencies (ASCIA); Congressional Fire Services Institute (CFSI); Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association (FLEOA); Fraternal Order of Police (FOP); International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC); Major County Sheriffs of America (MCSA); Metropolitan Fire Chiefs Association (Metro Chiefs); National Association of Police Organizations (NAPO); National Fallen Firefighters Foundation (NFFF); National Fire Protection Association (NFPA); National Narcotics Officers’ Associations’ Coalition (NNOAC); National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC); and Sergeants Benevolent Association of the NYPD. Klobuchar is a co-chair of the Congressional Fire Services Caucus and has long led efforts to support firefighters and first responders. Klobuchar co-led bipartisan legislation, the Firefighter Cancer Registry Act, to create a national cancer registry for firefighters diagnosed with deadly cancers, which was signed into law in 2018 and reauthorized last year. The Firefighter Cancer Registry Act calls on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to monitor and study the relationship between career-long exposure to dangerous fumes and toxins and the incidence of cancer in firefighters. Klobuchar worked to pass the bipartisan Fire Grants and Safety Act which was signed into law in 2023 and provides funding for the Assistance for Firefighters Grant and the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Grant programs. The Assistance for Firefighters Grant program helps firefighters and other first responders obtain critically needed equipment, protective gear, emergency vehicles, training, and other resources. The SAFER Grant program provides direct funding to fire departments and volunteer firefighter interest organizations to increase or maintain the number of trained ""front line"" firefighters and enhance their capacity to comply with staffing, response, and operational standards. Klobuchar also worked to pass the Protecting America’s First Responders Act, which was signed into law in 2021. This legislation improves the PSOB program by allowing benefit amounts to be calculated based on the date of the award and account for cost of living increases. Klobuchar co-led legislation to retrofit older high-rise apartment buildings with sprinkler systems and help prevent future tragedies like the Cedar High Apartments fire, which took place in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 2019. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T20:09:11Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=D6EECC12-C808-4059-B39D-039F0B6E5A57,Legislation to Bolster Support for Identifying and Returning Kidnapped Ukrainian Children Signed into Law,2025-12-18,2025,2025-12,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"Russia has abducted thousands of Ukrainian children – attempting to erase their cultural identity and heritage WASHINGTON — U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA) announced that their bipartisan Abducted Ukrainian Children Recovery and Accountability Act has been signed into law. The Abducted Ukrainian Children Recovery and Accountability Act increases support for Ukraine’s efforts to investigate and track the thousands of Ukrainian children who have been abducted during Putin’s brutal invasion, assist with the rehabilitation and reintegration of children who are returned, and advance justice and accountability for perpetrators of these abductions. “This is an important step to bring home the thousands of Ukrainian children who have been kidnapped by Russia. We cannot accept a world where children are abducted during wartime and used as a form of hostage-taking for negotiations. Now that our bipartisan bill is law, our country will provide necessary support to track these children, support those who return home, and hold the perpetrators accountable,” said Klobuchar. “After he started the largest war in Europe since World War II, Putin kidnapped thousands of Ukrainian children to brainwash and Russify them, trying to destroy their cultural identity and heritage. These children should be returned home as soon as possible. I’m glad to see our measure become law to support critical tools to identify and track the location of these children and reintegrate them into their homeland. We’re also helping hold perpetrators accountable for their atrocities to ensure justice is served,” said Grassley. Last month, Klobuchar met with His Holiness Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican along with a delegation from Ukraine working to return the thousands of Ukrainian children abducted by Russia during Putin’s brutal invasion. Klobuchar testified at a Senate Appropriations Subcommittee hearing on the abduction of Ukrainian children earlier this month where she discussed her meeting with the Pope and rescued Ukrainian children, and bipartisan efforts to bring the Ukrainian children home. The Abducted Ukrainian Children Recovery and Accountability Act is complementary to the Designating the Russian Federation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism Act, which was introduced in September by Klobuchar and Senators Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), and Katie Britt (R-AL) to designate Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism under U.S. law if it fails to return the thousands of Ukrainian children who have been kidnapped during the course of the war. In March, Klobuchar and Grassley were joined by Senator Durbin in leading a bipartisan letter calling for the State Department to continue supporting efforts to investigate Russia’s abduction and deportation of Ukrainian children. To date, Ukrainian authorities have received thousands of confirmed reports of unlawful deportations and forced transfers of Ukrainian children to Russia, Belarus or Russian-occupied Ukrainian territory. The abductions aim to erase the children’s Ukrainian names, language, and identity. As of today, Ukraine and its partners have managed to return about 1,900 abducted children. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T20:09:11Z https://www.smith.senate.gov/u-s-senators-tina-smith-majority-leader-john-thune-introduce-bipartisan-legislation-to-support-american-honey-producers-harmed-by-chinas-unfair-trade-practices/,"U.S. Senators Tina Smith, Majority Leader John Thune Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Support American Honey Producers Harmed by China’s Unfair Trade Practices",2025-12-18,2025,2025-12,Democrat,Senate,MN,Tina Smith,S001203,www.smith.senate.gov,tinasmith,https://www.smith.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, DC – Today, U.S. Senators Tina Smith (D-MN) and Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) introduced the Trade Cheating Restitution Act of 2025, legislation that would support American honey producers and producers of other commodities, like crawfish, garlic, and mushrooms, who have been harmed by unfair trade practices, primarily by China. For decades, Minnesota honey producers harmed by unfair Chinese trade practices have been waiting for relief they were entitled to by law. This legislation would return wrongfully withheld interest from duties that were imposed for cheating American trade rules back to qualifying producers, including beekeepers. “Minnesota farmers produce some of the highest quality honey in the world, and they shouldn’t be unfairly harmed because China doesn’t play by the rules and engages in illegal dumping,” said Senator Smith. “I’m proud to lead this bipartisan bill to give Minnesota apiaries the relief they are owed so they can remain competitive and strong for years to come.” “South Dakota is one of the top honey-producing states in the country,” said Senator Thune. “The unfair practice of circumventing U.S. trade laws, which jeopardizes honey producers’ financial security, should be met with strict enforcement and increased protections. South Dakota honey producers deserve a level playing field. This bipartisan legislation helps ensure fair treatment for affected domestic producers and strengthens their ability to compete globally.” “On behalf of Minnesotan beekeepers, I want to thank Senator Smith for introducing the Trade Cheating Restitution Act of 2025 along with other members of Congress that will provide long-overdue relief,” said Burt Honl of Honl’s Honey, a third-generation beekeeper based in Winthrop, MN. “Our industry has been harmed over the last two decades by unfair foreign competition and this legislation will make sure that all collected duties and interest that has erroneously been withheld will finally be distributed to qualifying Minnesotan beekeepers who need these funds to compete. We are grateful for your leadership, Senator Smith.” “U.S. beekeepers, as both honey producers and crop pollinators, are a critical component of American food security and the U.S. agriculture economy, supporting workers and communities around the country and right here in Minnesota,” said Ryan Lamb, a beekeeper from Minnesota. “On behalf of Minnesotan beekeepers, we want to thank Senator Smith for joining Senator Thune and Grassley in introducing the Trade Cheating Restitution Act of 2025 that will once and for all ensure we receive payments to which we are entitled that will help us compete in what has become a very challenging landscape for beekeepers.” “American honey producers were severely harmed by unfairly traded imports,” said Steven Coy, President of the American Honey Producers Association. “The Trade Cheating Restitution Act of 2025 finally provides producers the funds taken from duties related to interest on unfairly traded imports that they are entitled to in order to help our members reinvest and rebuild. We thank Senators Thune, Grassley, and Smith for introducing this important legislation that will finally get American honey producers what they deserve.” The Trade Cheating Restitution Act of 2025 builds on a provision that was signed into law in 2015 as part of the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act that required CBP to distribute the interest realized on duties collected since 2014. The legislation is co-sponsored by Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Gary Peters (D-MI), and Bill Cassidy (R-LA). ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T20:09:11Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=5E8E2534-612A-4BB5-BFA5-1ACFDD82D920,Klobuchar and Cramer’s Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act Heads to the President’s Desk,2025-12-17,2025,2025-12,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON—U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Kevin Cramer (R-ND) announced that their bipartisan Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act passed the Senate. The legislation now heads to the President’s desk to be signed into law. The bipartisan legislation will expand access to federal support for the families of firefighters and other first responders who pass away or become permanently disabled from service-related cancers. Klobuchar introduced this legislation in honor of Michael Paidar, a St. Paul fire captain who died of an aggressive form of Acute Myeloid Leukemia on August 26, 2020 while still working for the fire department. In 2021, after strong advocacy from the Paidar family, the Minnesota Department of Public Safety awarded line-of-duty benefits to Captain Paidar’s widow Julie. This was the first time that a firefighter’s family had received benefits for cancer incurred in the line-of-duty through Minnesota’s state Public Safety Officer Benefits (PSOB) program. The Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act would ensure that firefighters and other first responders across the country are eligible to receive similar benefits under the federal PSOB program. “Our firefighters put their lives on the line every day to keep us safe, often exposing themselves to carcinogens that can have lethal long-term effects. It’s unacceptable that firefighters who succumb to cancer from work-related exposure don’t receive the same treatment as others who die in the line of duty,” said Klobuchar. “This bipartisan legislation will ensure that the Public Safety Officers’ Benefits Program covers service-related cancers—honoring the commitment we make to our firefighters like Captain Paidar and other first responders who made the ultimate sacrifice. We must uphold our promise to care for their families.” “Our first responders epitomize courage and selfless sacrifice, confronting both the immediate perils of their duty which are extreme and the lingering health risks associated with their service,” said Cramer. “Their exposure to dangerous carcinogens happens on our behalf. When these heroes make the ultimate sacrifice, their families should not have to bear these burdens alone. I’m grateful my Senate colleagues passed this important legislation.” Currently, firefighters are only eligible for support under the PSOB program for physical injuries sustained in the line-of-duty, or for deaths from duty-related heart attacks, strokes, mental health conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder, and 9/11 related illnesses. “I’m grateful to Senators Klobuchar and Cramer for leading the bipartisan Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act. Every day, our nation’s first responders selflessly serve and protect their communities. Unfortunately, through exposures on the job, many are also fighting occupational cancer. As our family knows firsthand, the lives of the first responder and their family are forever changed upon the cancer diagnosis. Mike loved being a career firefighter and paramedic. Losing him to Leukemia in 2020 was devastating not only for our family, but also for his fire family and our communities. This important legislation will honor his legacy and recognize the sacrifices of our fallen, allowing first responders and their families to receive the PSOB benefits they rightly deserve,” said Julie Paidar, widow of St. Paul Fire Captain Michael Paidar. This legislation is co-sponsored by the following 58 Senators: Senators Banks (R-IN), Barrasso (R-WY), Blackburn (R-TN), Blumenthal (D-CT), Coons (D-DE), Cornyn (R-TX), Cruz (R-TX), Duckworth (D-IL), Durbin (D-IL), Fetterman (D-PA), Fischer (R-NE), Graham (R-SC), Hirono (D-HI), Hoeven (R-ND), Justice (R-WV), Kelly (D-AZ), Markey (D-MA), Padilla (D-CA), Rounds (R-SD), Schiff (D-CA), Shaheen (D-NH), Sheehy (R-MT), Smith (D-MN), Warner (D-VA), Warren (D-MA), Welch (D-VT), Whitehouse (D-RI), Wyden (D-OR); Hoeven (R-ND); Ossoff (D-GA); Capito (R-WV); Cantwell (D-WA); Gallego (D-AZ); Moreno (R-OH); Kennedy (R-LA); Merkley (D-OR); Kim (D-NJ); Rosen (D-NV); Moody (R-FL); Gillibrand (D-NY); Kaine (D-VA); Hassan (D-NH); Van Hollen (D-MD); Tillis (R-NC); Marshall (R-KS); Murkowski (R-AK); Alsobrooks (D-MD); Hawley (R-MO); McCormick (R-PA); Risch (R-ID); Moran (R-KS); Crapo (R-ID); Sanders (I-VT); Schmitt (R-MO); Cortez Masto (D-NV); Hyde-Smith (R-MS); Collins (R-ME);Heinrich (D-NM); and Husted (R-OH). The legislation is endorsed by the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF), as well as the Association of State Criminal Investigative Agencies (ASCIA); Congressional Fire Services Institute (CFSI); Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association (FLEOA); Fraternal Order of Police (FOP); International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC); Major County Sheriffs of America (MCSA); Metropolitan Fire Chiefs Association (Metro Chiefs); National Association of Police Organizations (NAPO); National Fallen Firefighters Foundation (NFFF); National Fire Protection Association (NFPA); National Narcotics Officers’ Associations’ Coalition (NNOAC); National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC); and Sergeants Benevolent Association of the NYPD. Klobuchar is a co-chair of the Congressional Fire Services Caucus and has long led efforts to support firefighters and first responders. Klobuchar co-led bipartisan legislation, the Firefighter Cancer Registry Act, to create a national cancer registry for firefighters diagnosed with deadly cancers, which was signed into law in 2018 and reauthorized last year. The Firefighter Cancer Registry Act calls on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to monitor and study the relationship between career-long exposure to dangerous fumes and toxins and the incidence of cancer in firefighters. Klobuchar worked to pass the bipartisan Fire Grants and Safety Act which was signed into law in 2023 and provides funding for the Assistance for Firefighters Grant and the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Grant programs. The Assistance for Firefighters Grant program helps firefighters and other first responders obtain critically needed equipment, protective gear, emergency vehicles, training, and other resources. The SAFER Grant program provides direct funding to fire departments and volunteer firefighter interest organizations to increase or maintain the number of trained ""front line"" firefighters and enhance their capacity to comply with staffing, response, and operational standards. Klobuchar also worked to pass the Protecting America’s First Responders Act, which was signed into law in 2021. This legislation improves the PSOB program by allowing benefit amounts to be calculated based on the date of the award and account for cost of living increases. Klobuchar co-led legislation to retrofit older high-rise apartment buildings with sprinkler systems and help prevent future tragedies like the Cedar High Apartments fire, which took place in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 2019. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T20:09:11Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=63BC5442-A5CC-4FE9-987F-AA6B04A85F13,Klobuchar Questions Carr on Censorship and Free Speech at FCC Oversight Hearing,2025-12-17,2025,2025-12,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON — Today, during a Senate Commerce Committee hearing to conduct oversight of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) questioned FCC Chairman Brendan Carr about his conduct threatening free speech, citing his previous comments about Jimmy Kimmel, and about President Trump’s executive order which attempts to eliminate state AI safety standards. A rough transcript is available below and video is available HERE. Senator Klobuchar: I would prefer to be asking questions about the bipartisan work that needs to be done on universal service and broadband and spectrum, and I'll ask that in writing, but the events of this year moved me to focus on free speech and our democracy. Chairman Carr, in 2022, you tweeted, “Political satire is one of the oldest and most important forms of free speech. It challenges those in power while using humor to draw more people into the discussion. That's why people in influential positions have always targeted it for censorship.” Yes or no, do you still agree that political satire should be protected speech? Brendan Carr: Yes Senator and whenever that satire or any other programming is over the public airways. For broadcasters, there's a public interest standard, and there's a news distortion rule, a broadcast… Klobuchar: You answered it, you answered it, yes, and I'm just gonna go on. … You know, I believe, too, that there is no place in chilling political satire, but after Jimmy Kimmel's monologue, you went on a podcast and suggested that ABC should take Kimmel off the air, saying, “We can do this the easy way or the hard way.” Those were your words. Do you think it is appropriate to use your position to threaten companies that broadcast political satire? Carr: I think any licensee that operates on the public airwaves has a responsibility to comply with the public interest standard, and that's been the case for decades. Klobuchar: I asked if you think it's appropriate for you to use your position to threaten companies, and this incident with Kimmel wasn't an isolated event. You've launched investigations into every major broadcast network except FOX. Is that correct? Carr: I don't know if that's true or not. We do have investigations going on at NPR and PBS. We have a number of investigations that are ongoing. I think if you step back over the years, I think the FCC has walked away from enforcing the public interest standard, and I don't think that's a good thing. Klobuchar: Okay, you brought up social media. So do you think it's appropriate for after a horrific murder and the stabbing, the stabbing of Rob Reiner and his wife? Do you think it's appropriate for someone to say that it happened, when they know better, “reportedly due to the anger he caused others through his massive, unyielding and incurable affliction with a mind crippling disease known as Trump derangement syndrome, he was known to have driven people crazy by his raging obsession of President Donald J. Trump with his obvious paranoia reaching new heights.” Do you think that's appropriate for the president of the United States to do that? And if Jimmy Kimmel would have said that, would you have threatened to take him off the air? Carr: Senator, look, Democrats on this dais are accusing me of engaging in censorship, and now you're trying to encourage me to police speech on the internet. I'm simply not going to do it. Klobuchar: I’m just asking you. These are the kind of words, I think they are cruel, I think they hurt President Trump to say that kind of thing. I think it hurts him with trust from the American people. But this is the kind of stuff that's going on right now, and yet you are going after broadcast stations, except for FOX, and making threats. Carr: Senator, we are applying the law. Let's say broadcast TV is fundamentally different than any other forms of media, whether it's cable, podcasts, soapbox, or man on the street, there's a public trustee model that Congress has set up. When you go on a podcast… Klobuchar: But you think there should be no there should be no rules in place when it comes to tech platforms? Carr: I think there's no public-interest obligation; there is no license… Klobuchar: Do you think we should change the laws? Here's one. Last week, President Trump came out with this dangerous and likely illegal AI rule that preempts all the states from doing anything to try to save people, whether it is kids that are being exposed to content they shouldn't see, or fentanyl, or political videos that are lies. So, do you think Congress has the authority to preempt state laws, or do you think President Trump and the agencies like yourself have the authority to preempt state law when it comes to the internet and safety with AI? Carr: Well, when it comes to AI in particular, there's an executive order. It asks the FCC to initiate a proceeding. We're going to initiate a proceeding. We're open-minded on where that goes. But look, if you want to step back and talk about weaponization, we saw that for four years in the Biden Administration, Senate Democrats, including … Klobuchar: Joe Biden is no longer president. You are head of the FCC, and Donald Trump is the president. And I'm trying to deal with this right now. So I would ask you, Ms. Gomez, what are the risks of the commission trying to preempt state laws, particularly when there are no federal guardrails, because our colleagues, despite some good efforts, refuse to pass any kind of even minimal rules when it comes to AI, what are the risks of the commission or a president then trying to preempt state laws that can legally put state laws in place? Anna Gomez: Thank you, Senator. I believe that the FCC has very dubious authority to actually preempt state laws in this case, because without a comprehensive federal framework, there is nothing for the FCC to preempt. The Communications Act did not actually talk about artificial intelligence or provide authority to the FCC to do this preemption, so I'm very dubious of our authority to do so. That said, we have sought comment on this. Klobuchar: Okay. Thank you very much. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T20:09:11Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=6A74F38B-F3E3-4E87-977C-77318B08AAB6,"Klobuchar, Capito Introduce Bipartisan Artificial Intelligence Scam Prevention Act",2025-12-17,2025,2025-12,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON — U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) introduced the bipartisan Artificial Intelligence Scam Prevention Act, which would prohibit the use of artificial intelligence (AI) to impersonate any person with the intent to defraud. Last year, Americans lost nearly $2 billion in scams originating through calls, texts, and emails. When people spoke to scammers on the phone, they lost more money per person than through any other type of scam — $1,500 on average. The use of AI allows fraudsters to create more sophisticated scams and target more people, including by phone. “Artificial intelligence has allowed scams to become more sophisticated, making it easier for fraudsters to deceive people—especially seniors and children—into giving up their personal information or hard-earned money,” said Klobuchar. “Our bipartisan legislation will help take on scammers who use AI to copy someone’s voice or image.” “While there is incredible potential with artificial intelligence, we must also be vigilant in protecting against harmful uses of the technology, especially when it comes to fraud and scams. I’m proud to help introduce the Artificial Intelligence Scam Prevention Act, legislation that explicitly prohibits AI fraud, particularly impersonations and deepfakes, and empowers federal agencies to take greater action against these criminals,” said Capito. The Artificial Intelligence Scam Prevention Act would: Prohibit the use of AI to replicate any person’s image or voice with the intent to defraud Codify the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) ban on impersonating government or business officials. Update existing laws – that have not changed since 1996 – with definitions for text messages, video conference calls, and artificial or prerecorded voice Create an Advisory Committee to ensure inter-agency cooperation in enforcing scam prevention In addition, the bill also updates the Telemarketing and Consumer Fraud and Abuse Prevention Act and the Communications Act of 1934 by adding definitions for text messages, video conference calls, and artificial or prerecorded voice—ensuring that our laws reflect 21st century technology, and giving enforcers the tools they need to go after telemarketing and consumer fraud. Klobuchar has been leading efforts in Congress to create rules of the road for artificial intelligence. In May, Klobuchar and Senator Ted Cruz’s (R-TX) bipartisan TAKE IT DOWN Act, the first meaningful federal regulation on AI, was signed into law. This bill criminalizes the publication of non-consensual intimate imagery (NCII), including AI-generated NCII, and requires social media and similar websites to have in place procedures to remove such content within 48 hours of notice from a victim. In July, Klobuchar and Senators Susan Collins (R-ME), and Mark Kelly (D-AZ) reintroduced the bipartisan Preparing Election Administrators for AI Act to require the Election Assistance Commission (EAC), in consultation with the National Institute of Standards and Technology, to develop voluntary guidelines for election offices. These guidelines will address the use and risks of artificial intelligence (AI) in election administration, cybersecurity, information sharing about elections, and the spread of election-related disinformation. Last week, Klobuchar authored an op-ed in The New York Times on how, given the current lack of federal standards, it is essential for states to maintain and strengthen their own AI protections rather than override the few protections Americans have from the downsides of AI. In August, Klobuchar wrote another op-ed in The New York Times on the risks of AI-generated videos and the need to put in place rules of the road, including creating protections for those who have their voice and likeness replicated through AI without their permission. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T20:09:11Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=CFE712C7-C9FC-4347-9FDC-4D2C96CDA5F9,"Klobuchar, Grassley Legislation to Bolster Support for Identifying and Returning Kidnapped Ukrainian Children Heads to the President’s Desk",2025-12-17,2025,2025-12,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"Russia has abducted thousands of Ukrainian children – attempting to erase their cultural identity and heritage WASHINGTON — U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA) announced that their bipartisan Abducted Ukrainian Children Recovery and Accountability Act passed the Senate. The legislation now heads to the President’s desk to be signed into law. The Abducted Ukrainian Children Recovery and Accountability Act would increase support for Ukraine’s efforts to investigate and track the thousands of Ukrainian children who have been abducted during Putin’s brutal invasion, assist with the rehabilitation and reintegration of children who are returned, and advance justice and accountability for perpetrators of these abductions. “The mass kidnapping of Ukrainian children by Russia is an atrocity. We cannot accept a world where children are abducted during wartime and used as a form of hostage-taking for negotiations. Our bipartisan legislation will provide necessary support to track them and hold the perpetrators accountable,” said Klobuchar. “After he started the largest war in Europe since World War II, Putin kidnapped thousands of Ukrainian children to brainwash and Russify them, trying to destroy their cultural identity and heritage. These children should be returned home as soon as possible. I’m glad to see our measure included in the annual defense bill to support critical tools to identify and track the location of these children and reintegrate them into their homeland. We’re also helping hold perpetrators accountable for their atrocities to ensure justice is served,” said Grassley. Last month, Klobuchar met with His Holiness Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican along with a delegation from Ukraine working to return the thousands of Ukrainian children abducted by Russia during Putin’s brutal invasion. Klobuchar testified at a Senate Appropriations Subcommittee hearing on the abduction of Ukrainian children earlier this month where she discussed her meeting with the Pope and rescued Ukrainian children, and bipartisan efforts to bring the Ukrainian children home. The Abducted Ukrainian Children Recovery and Accountability Act is complementary to the Designating the Russian Federation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism Act, which was introduced in September by Klobuchar and Senators Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), and Katie Britt (R-AL) to designate Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism under U.S. law if it fails to return the thousands of Ukrainian children who have been kidnapped during the course of the war. In March, Klobuchar and Grassley were joined by Senator Durbin in leading a bipartisan letter calling for the State Department to continue supporting efforts to investigate Russia’s abduction and deportation of Ukrainian children. To date, Ukrainian authorities have received thousands of confirmed reports of unlawful deportations and forced transfers of Ukrainian children to Russia, Belarus or Russian-occupied Ukrainian territory. The abductions aim to erase the children’s Ukrainian names, language, and identity. As of today, Ukraine and its partners have managed to return about 1,800 abducted children. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T20:09:11Z https://www.smith.senate.gov/u-s-senators-tina-smith-john-hoeven-amy-klobuchar-and-kevin-cramer-send-bipartisan-letter-urging-postmaster-general-to-address-chronic-postal-delays-across-minnesota-north-dakota/,"U.S. Senators Tina Smith, John Hoeven, Amy Klobuchar and Kevin Cramer Send Bipartisan Letter Urging Postmaster General to Address Chronic Postal Delays Across Minnesota, North Dakota",2025-12-16,2025,2025-12,Democrat,Senate,MN,Tina Smith,S001203,www.smith.senate.gov,tinasmith,https://www.smith.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, DC – Yesterday, U.S. Senators Tina Smith (D-MN), John Hoeven (R-ND), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Kevin Cramer (R-ND) urged the Postmaster General to take action to improve postal services in the Minnesota-North Dakota Postal District. As the holiday season continues and the volume of mail increases, it’s especially important to ensure there aren’t delivery delays across the two states. “As our constituents prepare for the busy holiday season, we urge you to take actions to ensure that any performance issues are resolved in a timely manner so that Minnesotans and North Dakotans do not experience significant service disruptions this winter,” wrote the Senators. “For Minnesotans and North Dakotans, the Postal Service is an essential lifeline, delivering prescriptions, pay checks, and messages from loved ones. During the holiday season, it is even more essential. Any service disruptions within the MN-ND District create real consequences for the people who rely on your services, and as Postmaster General, we look to you to provide timely action to address these critical issues,” they concluded. You can read full text of the letter here or below. Dear Postmaster General Steiner, We write to highlight the importance of timely and reliable mail delivery within the United States Postal Service’s (USPS) Minnesota-North Dakota District, especially during this peak holiday season. As our constituents prepare for the busy holiday season, we urge you to take actions to ensure that any performance issues are resolved in a timely manner so that Minnesotans and North Dakotans do not experience significant service disruptions this winter. Thank you for your attention to this important matter. In recent years, our offices have received a significant number of concerns and complaints from constituents during the holiday and winter months. While we recognize that weather conditions during this time of year can often be unpredictable in our area of the country, solutions to address and overcome these challenges must be found. For Minnesotans and North Dakotans, the Postal Service is an essential lifeline, delivering prescriptions, pay checks, and messages from loved ones. During the holiday season, it is even more essential. Any service disruptions within the MN-ND District create real consequences for the people who rely on your services, and as Postmaster General, we look to you to provide timely action to address these critical issues. To this end, we ask that you provide answers to the following questions related to mail delivery service in the MN-ND District no later than Friday, December 19: What do you see as the greatest challenges for the district now and in the upcoming winter months? What, if any, actions has the district taken to improve on-time delivery performance this peak season? How is the USPS working to address any such challenges? How can our offices best assist and partner with you to strengthen mail delivery and postal services in Minnesota and North Dakota? We appreciate your prompt attention to this important matter and look forward to working with you to ensure timely and reliable mail service across Minnesota and North Dakota. Sincerely, cc: Angela Bye, Minnesota-North Dakota District Manager, U.S. Postal Service ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T20:09:11Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=0D64617D-C281-4BAC-A037-A1E4579A58C1,"Klobuchar, Cassidy, Jacobs Lead Bipartisan Bill to Help Families Claim the Child Tax Credit After a Natural Disaster",2025-12-15,2025,2025-12,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON — U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and Representative Sara Jacobs (D-CA-51) today introduced the Working Families Disaster Tax Relief Act to allow disaster-impacted working families to use the previous year’s income to claim the Child Tax Credit (CTC) and the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) after a presidential major disaster declaration. This will prevent families from losing access to these benefits due to temporary income loss. Congress has authorized similar temporary provisions for both the CTC and EITC following recent major disasters, and for all taxpayers nationwide during COVID-19 in 2020 and 2021. “In the wake of major disasters, Americans should not have to worry about their taxes increasing while at the same time losing pay that causes them to no longer qualify for the Child Tax Credit and Earned Income Tax Credit,” said Klobuchar. “Our legislation allows taxpayers in federally declared major disaster areas to use their prior-year earned income when calculating eligibility, ensuring they don’t get penalized for income drops that are caused by disasters and outside their control.” “When natural disasters hit, many working families lose their jobs, become furloughed, face business interruptions, or suffer property losses that can affect their ability to work. But unfortunately, existing law requires people to use their current year’s income to claim the Child Tax Credit, meaning those who’ve experienced natural disasters could suffer a double financial hit – losing both their income and their ability to claim the Child Tax Credit,” said Jacobs. “That’s why I’m proud to introduce the Working Families Disaster Tax Relief Act alongside Senators Klobuchar and Cassidy to change this and ensure families can use the previous year’s income to claim the Child Tax Credit and provide financial support for children’s well-being during a Presidential-declared major disaster.” The Working Families Disaster Tax Relief Act would: Amend the Internal Revenue Code to allow disaster-affected taxpayers to use a previous year’s income for the Child Tax Credit when the President declares a major disaster under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act. Designate disaster-affected taxpayers to include individuals whose principal place of abode or principal place of work is located in a disaster zone. The bill is endorsed by the First Focus Campaign for Children, Americans for Tax Fairness, AICPA & CIMA, MomsRising, CLASP, and Chamber of Mothers, National Women’s Law Center Action Fund, Network Lobby, Economic Security Project Action, Coalition of Human Needs, and Zero to Three. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T20:09:11Z https://www.smith.senate.gov/u-s-senator-tina-smith-calls-on-trump-administration-to-end-operation-metro-surge-in-twin-cities/,U.S. Senator Tina Smith Calls on Trump Administration to End “Operation Metro Surge” in Twin Cities,2025-12-15,2025,2025-12,Democrat,Senate,MN,Tina Smith,S001203,www.smith.senate.gov,tinasmith,https://www.smith.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, DC – Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) released the following statement: “I believe in protecting public safety and upholding the rule of law. ‘Operation Metro Surge’ is actively undermining both. There has been none of the necessary cooperation and trust between federal officials and local government, and zero transparency from the Trump Administration into ICE’s operations in the Twin Cities. Minnesotans are seeing their friends and neighbors, including U.S. citizens with no criminal records, abducted by masked agents, shoved to the ground, and sprayed with mace. The fear and violence that President Trump has unleashed on our home is destroying any sense of public safety. The Administration needs to put an immediate end to ‘Operation Metro Surge’.” ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T20:09:11Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=F5A66DA3-4332-4F2D-BFB2-2649EC2E4122,Miracle on Ice Congressional Gold Medal Act Signed into Law to Celebrate 45th Anniversary of the Hockey Victory at the Winter Olympics,2025-12-12,2025,2025-12,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"Congressional Gold Medals awarded to the Miracle on Ice U.S. Hockey Team, which defeated the four-time Olympic champion Soviet Union in 1980 WASHINGTON — Today, U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith (D-MN) announced that the bipartisan Miracle on Ice Congressional Gold Medal Act, which they cosponsor, has been signed into law, recognizing the 45th anniversary of the extraordinary victory of the U.S. Men’s Hockey at the 1980 Winter Olympic Games, where they defeated the Soviet Union. “In 1980, during a time of division, economic hardship, and global conflict, the U.S. Olympic hockey team made all Americans believe in miracles,” said Senator Klobuchar. “Congress and our country have now formally recognized this legendary team, which included 12 players and head coach Herb Brooks from Minnesota, for their ‘Miracle on Ice’ that brought hope and unity to our nation.” “More than half of the ‘Miracle on Ice’ hockey team was from Minnesota, the State of Hockey, and I’m incredibly proud to see their achievements honored,” said Senator Smith. “The iconic game was an upset nobody saw coming, and that win showcases American strength and resilience in the face of adversity.” In February 1980, the United States Olympic Men’s Ice Hockey Team defeated the Soviet Union 4-3 in the first game of the medal round of the 1980 Winter Olympic men’s hockey tournament in Lake Placid, New York. Team USA, which included 12 hockey players born in Minnesota and was coached by University of Minnesota championship-winning hockey coach Herb Brooks, defied expectations by defeating the four-time Olympic champion Soviet Union team in a game referred to as the “Miracle on Ice.” At a time when the United States was struggling with rampant stagflation, high gas prices, hostages held in Iran, and increased tensions with the Soviets after their invasion of Afghanistan, the Miracle on Ice was a welcome reprieve and a critical moment for American patriotism. Following the stunning victory against the Soviets, the Americans beat Finland 4-2 to secure the gold. The law awards three Congressional Gold Medals to members of the 1980 U.S. Olympic Men’s Ice Hockey Team, one of which will be displayed at the United States Hockey Hall of Fame in Eveleth, Minnesota. Click here for the full text of the bill. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T20:09:11Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=7D99B1E5-5124-4A35-9F79-026437983165,Klobuchar Statement on Vote to Extend the Health Care Tax Credit,2025-12-11,2025,2025-12,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) released the following statement after voting to extend the health care tax credit and prevent health insurance premiums from doubling for tens of millions of Americans. “Today, once again, I voted to extend the health care tax credits to prevent health insurance premiums from doubling for so many in our state. By refusing to act, Congress has put millions of Americans in an impossible position — forcing families, farmers, and small business owners to question whether they can even afford to keep their insurance,” said Klobuchar. “ I will keep fighting to end this health care crisis, lower costs, and increase access to quality care.” ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T20:09:11Z https://www.smith.senate.gov/u-s-senator-tina-smith-introduces-bipartisan-bill-to-improve-access-to-mental-health-clinics/,U.S. Senator Tina Smith Introduces Bipartisan Bill to Improve Access to Mental Health Clinics,2025-12-11,2025,2025-12,Democrat,Senate,MN,Tina Smith,S001203,www.smith.senate.gov,tinasmith,https://www.smith.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) introduced the Ensuring Excellence in Mental Health Act, which would improve access to mental health services nationwide. This bill would make it easier for seniors on Medicare to get care at Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics (CCBHCs), specialized clinics that provide mental health and substance use services. The bill would also ensure that these specialized clinics can continue to provide quality care to patients by ensuring that they receive adequate reimbursements from Medicaid. “Everybody deserves access to mental health care, regardless of their zip code,” said Senator Tina Smith. “Certified Community Behavioral Health Centers know the importance of treating the whole patient, and we need to do more to make this model of mental health care accessible and sustainable. I’m grateful to my former colleagues Senator Stabenow and Senator Blunt for laying the groundwork for this initiative. It’s an honor to be its new champion in the Senate.” Minnesota currently operates 22 Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics (CCBHCs) that use a recovery-oriented philosophy, supporting pathways to success for individuals recovering from mental illness and substance use disorders. CCBHCs ensure access to coordinated behavioral health, including through medication-assisted recovery – the combined use of medication and counseling – to provide effective support for recovery. The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2024 codified a permanent CCBHC option for states under the Medicaid program, but further action is now needed to establish CCBHCs in Medicare to allow comparable status and designated payment as other health care providers. Specifically, The Ensuring Excellence in Mental Health Act would: Establish Certified Community Behavioral Health Centers (CCBHCs) under the Medicare program; Authorize CCBHC expansion grants at a level that allows current grantees to continue their efforts and ensure availability of technical assistance to help the grantee clinics succeed; Create opportunities to better integrate physical and behavioral health care by giving CCBHCs the option to offer primary care services within their Prospective Payment System (PPS); Provide guidance for organizations primarily serving distinct populations, including youth, veterans, and our most vulnerable, to understand how they can meet CCBHC requirements while continuing to provide appropriate, high-quality care; And further enhance accountability measures for CCBHCs by establishing a national data infrastructure and repository that would expand the ability of Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and Congress to track program progress and outcomes. This legislation is also led by Senators John Cornyn (R-TX), Thom Tillis (R-NC), and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV). ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T20:09:11Z https://www.smith.senate.gov/u-s-senators-amy-klobuchar-and-tina-smith-cosponsor-legislation-requiring-airlines-to-reimburse-passengers-for-delays-rebooking-fees-related-expenses-after-trump-cancels-consumer-protections/,"U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith Cosponsor Legislation Requiring Airlines to Reimburse Passengers for Delays, Rebooking Fees & Related Expenses After Trump Cancels Consumer Protections",2025-12-11,2025,2025-12,Democrat,Senate,MN,Tina Smith,S001203,www.smith.senate.gov,tinasmith,https://www.smith.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith (both D-MN) helped introduce legislation to protect flyers by requiring airlines to provide cash compensation and free rebooking for passengers facing significant delays or cancellations caused by the airline. The bill comes just in time for the holiday season which is expected to see record numbers of travelers. Early estimates project a record 8.03 million travelers will take domestic flights this holiday season, a 2.3% increase compared to last year. This would mark the first time in history that number tops 8 million. “It’s simple: if your flight is canceled or significantly delayed and disrupts your travel plans, you should be compensated,” said Senator Klobuchar. “This legislation will ensure airlines reimburse passengers for the cost of hotels, meals, and transportation as a result of flight cancellations or delays.” “Traveling is already expensive, and the last thing Minnesotans need is an unexpected and expensive bill for rebooking a flight that was canceled because of an airline, especially as folks try to be with their families over the holidays,” said Senator Smith. “This legislation holds airlines accountable for their mistakes and fixes another Trump administration blunder.” People are flying now more than ever. With more Minnesotans flying, refunds and reimbursements for significant cancellations and delays that disrupt travel plans are crucial. In 2024, roughly 20% of all flights departing from MSP were delayed or canceled. Under the Flight Delay and Cancellation Compensation Act, the DOT would issue regulations that would set a baseline standard of compensation of at least $300 for a delay of more than 3 hours but less than 6 hours and at least $600 for a delay of 6 hours or more. The bill is led by Senators Mark Kelly (D-AZ), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Ed Markey (D-MA), and cosponsored by Senators Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), John Fetterman (D-PA), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), Jack Reed (D-RI), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Peter Welch (D-VT), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), and Ron Wyden (D-OR). Read the full text of the bill here. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T20:09:11Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=F79B7731-1D33-4711-B95F-D175F60616FC,ICYMI: Klobuchar Op-Ed in The New York Times: “State A.I. Laws Keep Us Safe. Trump’s Next Move Could Upend That.”,2025-12-09,2025,2025-12,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) published an op-ed in The New York Times on how, with the lack of federal standards, it is essential for states to maintain and strengthen their own AI protections rather than override the few protections Americans have from the downsides of A.I. Read the op-ed below. The New York Times: Amy Klobuchar: State A.I. Laws Keep Us Safe. Trump’s Next Move Could Upend That. By Amy Klobuchar We’ve all heard about the revolutionary breakthroughs that could result from the deployment of artificial intelligence, including cures for cancer, advances in energy and individually tailored education for every student. These benefits would be truly game-changing. Unfortunately for many Americans, these advantages remain distant. And because of the lack of sensible rules governing A.I. technology, we are more familiar with its darker side: the theft of people’s voices and visual likenesses; scams directed at seniors; political attack videos in which you can’t tell if what you’re seeing or hearing is actually the candidate you love (or hate); and worst of all, children committing suicide after turning to A.I. chatbots for help. These harms will only multiply. That’s why it has been critical for states to step up and pass desperately needed A.I. safety standards while Congress sadly continues to delay enacting federal standards. Now we risk going backward, with President Trump saying on Monday that he will sign an executive order that will replace state laws with “One Rulebook” that the public has never seen. That executive order should concern every American. Tech companies should not be allowed to use their lobbying power to undo the few protections Americans have from the downsides of A.I. — passed at the state level with bipartisan support. Congress urgently needs to stop delaying the passage of mutually agreed upon federal A.I. standards. But it remains paramount that states be able to protect people right now, before such rules are enacted. Despite a series of well-meaning and thorough bipartisan Senate meetings, Congress has been unable to overcome its own institutional inertia to pass comprehensive A.I. regulation. And tech leaders — who once warned that “mitigating the risk of extinction from A.I. should be a global priority” — are at best divided on what to do or, at worst, actively lobbying against proposals they think will thwart their short-term interests. The most serious federal A.I. protection that has passed Congress and been signed into law by Mr. Trump is a bill I led with Senator Ted Cruz and 20 others, the Take It Down Act. This legislation allows victims to remove intimate images — both authentic and A.I.-created deepfakes — published without their consent. While it is a good model in that it requires platforms to take down content, it doesn’t scratch the surface of the many privacy, economic and national security risks A.I. poses. Enter the states. After years of waiting on Congress, both Democratic and Republican governors and state legislatures have passed their own deeply needed A.I. laws. Tennessee’s ELVIS Act gives artists control over their A.I.-generated digital replicas so others cannot use their voices and likenesses without consent. New laws in Utah require some companies to disclose when people are interacting with A.I. And from Alabama to Minnesota, 28 states have laws to rein in deceptive political deepfakes. Former Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis once argued that states are the laboratories of democracy. Inspired by state action, many of us at the federal level are pressing for similar laws. Senator Chuck Schumer and a bipartisan group of senators have put forward a road map to support A.I. innovation and improve safeguards. Senator John Thune and I have come together to lead a bill that would promote innovation and transparency for A.I. systems in high-risk settings such as health care or public safety. Other federal bills would protect creators online, similar to Tennessee’s ELVIS Act. But as of now, these are just concepts and bills, not laws. States have no choice but to act. Tech lobbyists have frequently opposed even the most sensible federal standards and rules — such as labeling videos as produced by A.I. or taking down unauthorized content. In an act of total hubris, they are now arguing that states should be banned from regulating A.I., and pushing the president and Congress to override the states’ laws. That included a recent failed attempt to shoehorn a moratorium on state A.I. laws into Congress’s annual defense bill, and a similar failed attempt this summer as part of congressional Republicans’ budget bill, which the Senate rejected in a 99-1 vote. Details around the new executive order aren’t known yet, but a draft executive order that circulated last month directed the U.S. attorney general to sue states to overturn A.I. laws and withhold broadband grants and other funding from states with A.I. laws. Even if the executive order is challenged in court (as it should be), it’s clear the industry — which often says the right thing about wanting rules in place while actively working behind the scenes to scuttle major safeguards — and its allies in the White House and in Congress want to strip Americans of the few legal protections they currently have from A.I.-created harms, rather than work with lawmakers to ensure these technologies are deployed responsibly. This is wrong. We have seen the tragic consequences of the lack of enforceable safety standards, such as the young boy who died by suicide after confiding in ChatGPT about his emotional struggles and plans about ending his life. Though the chatbot suggested he seek help, it also provided feedback on a photograph of a noose that the boy had made. Repealing what standards exist at the state level will only make it worse. Once we actually have federal standards passed by Congress, it should be for Congress to decide whether to pre-empt state laws or allow them to go further. And as A.I. continues to evolve, there will always be new applications of the technology that spur states to act before the federal government does. That is something we should encourage — it is how our laboratories of democracy were intended to function. But we can’t supersede state protections until we have strong, enforceable federal standards in place. So A.I. companies should join us in putting meaningful safeguards spearheaded by Congress in place at the federal level — and stop pretending that in the meantime, state standards are too much of a burden to bear. After all, how can you expect us to believe you’re on the precipice of creating groundbreaking superintelligence if you can’t manage to comply with a handful of state laws? Tech leaders need to understand: There will be safety standards for these products. If they do not want a patchwork of state laws, they should work with Congress to pass comprehensive standards. Until then, states have a right — and a duty — to stand up for their citizens. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T20:09:11Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=8E237E61-66DB-4090-89E9-DCB9DC3FC7E4,Klobuchar and Hoeven Urge the CPSC to Strengthen Protections Against Carbon Monoxide Poisoning,2025-12-08,2025,2025-12,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON — U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and John Hoeven (R-ND), the leads of the Nicholas and Zachary Burt Memorial Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Prevention Act, are urging Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) Acting Chairman Peter Feldman to address the heightened risks of home carbon monoxide poisoning during the winter months and provide information on how the CPSC is working to combat this deadly risk, including the education and outreach being done to encourage people to install carbon monoxide detectors in their homes. Klobuchar and Hoeven’s bill was signed into law in 2022 and is named for two brothers from Kimball, Minnesota, who tragically died of carbon monoxide poisoning. The law established a grant program to fund initiatives to prevent similar tragedies in the future, which recently provided $200,000 to eight cities across Minnesota. “We write to express our concerns about the increased risks of home carbon monoxide poisoning during the winter months, and to inquire into actions the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is taking to ensure that Americans are kept safe from carbon monoxide poisoning this winter,” wrote the Senators. “More than 400 Americans die from carbon monoxide poisoning each year, and more than 14,000 are hospitalized.” “These risks increase during the winter as people use heating systems, water heaters, and fireplaces that use natural gas,” the Senators continued. “When used properly, these systems safely keep people warm during the coldest times of year, but improper use and faulty products put people at risk for carbon monoxide poisoning.” The full text of the letter is available here and below: Dear Acting Chairman Feldman: We write to express our concerns about the increased risks of home carbon monoxide poisoning during the winter months, and to inquire into actions the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is taking to ensure that Americans are kept safe from carbon monoxide poisoning this winter. More than 400 Americans die from carbon monoxide poisoning each year, and more than 14,000 are hospitalized. Infants, elderly people, and those with underlying health issues are most vulnerable. These risks increase during the winter as people use heating systems, water heaters, and fireplaces that use natural gas. When used properly, these systems safely keep people warm during the coldest times of year, but improper use and faulty products put people at risk for carbon monoxide poisoning. Just last month a couple in Garfield, Minnesota was airlifted for treatment after a carbon monoxide leak in their home. Carbon monoxide is colorless and odorless, which is why it is so critical that Americans are made aware of the importance of having carbon monoxide detectors in their homes. Our bill, the Nicholas and Zachary Burt Memorial Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Prevention Act, was signed into law in 2022. Named for two brothers from Kimball, Minnesota who tragically died of carbon monoxide poisoning, the law created a grant program to fund initiatives to prevent similar tragedies in the future. As you know, the law directs the CPSC to administer the grant program, which funds education and awareness campaigns about the need for carbon monoxide detectors, as well as the installation of these monitors. We respectfully request that you respond to the following questions by December 19, 2025: What steps is the CPSC taking to help prevent incidents of carbon monoxide poisoning at home? What steps has the CPSC taken to ensure states are aware of and taking advantage of the Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Prevention Grant Program? What challenges do you face in working with states? What changes to the Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Prevention Grant Program would increase the program’s effectiveness? What data has the CPSC collected on the number of carbon monoxide poisoning at-home incidents since the Grant Program went into effect? Does the CPSC need additional resources to investigate the increase in carbon monoxide poisoning in the winter and take appropriate measures to help educate the population? Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter. We look forward to your response. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T20:09:11Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=9D886678-DD7A-4D6A-BBEE-EEFDC37368FB,Klobuchar Statement on Supreme Court Oral Arguments in Trump v. Slaughter,2025-12-08,2025,2025-12,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), the only Democratic Senator on both the Judiciary and Commerce Committees, released the following statement on the Supreme Court hearing oral arguments in Trump v. Slaughter. “Congress has long used its power to establish independent agencies to protect consumers, workers, investors, and others without undue political pressure,” said Klobuchar. “Commissioner Slaughter’s unlawful firing goes against nearly a century of precedent that ensures these agencies remain independent and work for Americans, not the President’s friends and donors. It is deeply troubling that conservative justices appear ready to give the president even more unchecked power.” In November, Klobuchar and 207 of her congressional colleagues filed an amicus brief opposing President Trump’s unlawful attempt to remove Commissioner Slaughter without cause. Giving the President this power would jeopardize the integrity of independent federal agencies and undermine the FTC’s ability to protect the public from unfair methods of competition, fraud, and other deceptive practices. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T20:09:11Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=21A0456D-AD58-4EB2-8615-2CB008C6E327,"Klobuchar, McCormick Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Increase Access to Skills Training",2025-12-05,2025,2025-12,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Dave McCormick(R-PA) reintroduced a bill to enhance access to skills training. The Skills Investment Act would expand Coverdell Education Savings Accounts (ESAs)—tax advantaged savings accounts for educational expenses—so American workers can use the accounts to pay for skills training, career-related learning, adult education, and professional development. Companion legislation for the Skills Investment Act was introduced in the House of Representatives by U.S. Representatives Glenn “GT” Thompson (R-PA), Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR), Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), and Brad Schneider (D-IL). “Now more than ever, innovation is key to moving the American economy forward. With technological advancements in manufacturing and many other parts of our economy, it is critical that American workers are positioned for success. That means increasing access to the specialized training and education needed to pursue good-paying, high-demand careers,” said Klobuchar. “Our bipartisan Skills Investment Act will modernize tax advantaged savings accounts so workers can build skills for the 21st century economy.” “The energy and AI revolution is bringing demand for electricians, pipe and steamfitters, welders, and more skilled labor professions to levels we haven’t seen in decades. These are good paying jobs that lead to create stable, fulfilling careers,” said Senator McCormick. “This bill is an important step toward incentivizing more Americans to enter the skilled trades and fill these jobs while reinforcing that a four-year degree is far from the only path to the American Dream.” The Skills Investment Act transforms Coverdell ESAs into lifelong learning accounts, allowing workers to use tax-advantaged savings to pay for education and skills training programs throughout an account holder’s lifetime. The bill would eliminate the age-based contribution limit on Coverdell ESAs and expand the scope of allowable distributions to cover a broad array of career and technical education services. These savings accounts would now be eligible for pretax contributions and mid-career workers would be allowed to contribute up to $4,000 tax-free each year, with a maximum contribution limit of $10,000. Employers would receive a 25 percent tax credit for contributions to a worker’s account. Klobuchar has long led efforts to boost workforce development and skills training. In March 2025, Klobuchar and Senator Marshall (R-KS) introduced the Freedom to Invest in Tomorrow’s Workforce Act, bipartisan legislation to allow Americans to use ‘529’ education savings accounts for skills training, credentialing, and certification programs, which was signed into law earlier this year. Previously, ‘529’ accounts could only be used to pay for college, vocational school, K-12 education, and apprenticeship expenses. In March 2025, she and Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) reintroduced the American Apprenticeship Act, which would provide states with tuition assistance funding to support apprenticeship and pre-apprenticeship programs. She also partnered with Senator Jerry Moran (R-KS) to reintroduce the Apprenticeships to College Act, bipartisan legislation to allow workers to earn college credits for completed apprenticeships. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T20:09:11Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=105453FD-86CA-4AC6-8F45-E46109D4AACE,Klobuchar Testifies at Bipartisan Hearing on Ukrainian Children Abducted by Russia,2025-12-03,2025,2025-12,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"In Her Remarks, Klobuchar Discussed Her Recent Meeting with Ukrainian Children and Pope Leo Watch Klobuchar’s Full Remarks Here WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) testified at a Senate Appropriations Subcommittee hearing on the abduction of Ukrainian children by the Russian Federation. At the hearing, Klobuchar discussed her recent meeting in Rome with rescued Ukrainian children and Pope Leo XIV, and her bipartisan legislation to support efforts to return the thousands of other Ukrainian children who have yet to be reunited with their families. A rough transcript of the Senator’s statement is below and a video to download is linked here. “Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman Graham [and] Senator Schatz for leading this powerful subcommittee of people that have been leaders on this issue. You couldn’t think of a better time for this hearing as these negotiations are ongoing and we must stand with Ukraine, and I appreciated both of your words. I recently returned from Rome, where 12 days ago I had the honor of joining a Ukrainian delegation sent by President Zelenskyy to meet with Pope Leo at the Vatican. I was there alongside Maksym [Maksymov], who will testify today. It’s one thing to have the numbers that we all use, about the kids that are over there, some of them as old as teenagers, some of them as young as one-years-old, two-years-old, three-years-old. It’s another to actually sit across the table from them and their families. I met Sashko, who was taken from his home in Mariupol after being wounded in a Russian bombardment. At our breakfast he was there with his brave grandma, Liudmyl, who told me she eventually took matters into her own hands — this grandma — when he was able to get a cell phone and call her and she went into the occupied territory to rescue him. With the Pope, I stood next to Veronika, who was confined in Russia against her will for both her 13th and 14th birthdays — including periods of time in isolation — before she managed to escape. These are tragic stories of childhoods forever changed by brutality. But they are also stories of resilience and hope — the stories of the Ukrainian people who against all odds have continued to stand up to the brutality of Vladimir Putin. Veronika is attending school again in Kyiv, now in the 11th grade. And to see her big smile when she met the Pope and the tears coming out of her eyes as he gave her a rosary is something I will never forget. More than 1,800 children have been returned, some with the help of the Vatican, and we were there to urge the Pope to use his standing and strong moral authority in the world to help return more children through mediation. I believe the Pope plays a critical role, but in the end, children should never be pawns in a war. And that is why Senator Britt and I joined you Mr. Chairman and Senator Blumenthal on this important bill. But we must know, as you will hear today, how these kids are being moved in Russia through 200 sites, thanks to the incredible detective work of Yale researchers led by Nathaniel Raymond, who will testify today. His team has tracked the movements with biometrics and the like — of some kids that don’t even look like they looked when they were abducted because they were only babies. In addition to this important legislation that you’re talking about today that I hope advances to the Senate, Senator Shaheen and I were just discussing this, Senator Grassley and I have a bill that we thank all of you for supporting in the NDAA. That bill authorizes our federal agencies to continue supporting these tracking efforts. I want to thank Representative Fitzpatrick for co-leading the bipartisan companion legislation in the House, and Representative McCaul for leading a related resolution. The U.S. is not alone in assisting Ukraine with the tracking and recovery of our children. Our allies are stepping up. And in September, President Zelenskyy announced a new initiative among several countries to share data and build up the capacity of Ukraine’s own law enforcement. We all must do our part, and I'm pleased that First Lady Melania Trump joined us in this effort, but in the end, if we just sell out on some kind of an agreement that not only doesn’t bring the kids home, but literally gives Russia territory that they don’t even have right now, that’s the message we’re going to send to the world. So Chairman Graham, I want to thank you for at this really important time, having this hearing, and let's get these kids home. Thank you.” Last month, Klobuchar met with His Holiness Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican along with a delegation from Ukraine working to return the thousands of Ukrainian children abducted by Russia during Putin’s brutal invasion. Klobuchar has been a champion for legislative efforts to return the abducted Ukrainian children. Klobuchar leads the bipartisan Abducted Ukrainian Children Recovery and Accountability Act with Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA), which passed the Senate as part of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2026 in October. This legislation is complementary to the Designating the Russian Federation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism Act, which was introduced in September by Klobuchar and Senators Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), and Katie Britt (R-AL) to designate Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism under U.S. law if it fails to return the thousands of Ukrainian children who have been kidnapped during the course of the war. In March, Klobuchar and Grassley were joined by Senator Durbin in leading a bipartisan letter calling for the State Department to continue supporting efforts to investigate Russia’s abduction and deportation of Ukrainian children. To date, Ukrainian authorities have received thousands of confirmed reports of unlawful deportations and forced transfers of Ukrainian children to Russia, Belarus or Russian-occupied Ukrainian territory. The abductions aim to erase the children’s Ukrainian names, language, and identity. As of today, Ukraine and its partners have only managed to return about 1,800 abducted children. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T20:09:11Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=BA53359C-20D2-4924-8473-6B0FACCE0A1F,"Klobuchar, Murkowski Celebrate Passage of Bill to Support Individuals Living with FASD",2025-12-02,2025,2025-12,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) celebrated the signing of their legislation, the Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) Respect Act of 2025. The new law improves and reauthorizes programs and funding to support individuals and families impacted by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders. “Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders affect at least 1 in 20 people in the U.S., and too many lack access to diagnosis, treatment, and support services. Those impacted by FASD need access to care so they can be out on the best path forward towards a successful future,” said Senator Klobuchar. “Our bipartisan bill increases federal support for local, evidence-based services for people with FASD and their families. This progress is possible thanks to the tireless advocacy of former Minnesota First Lady Susan Shepard Carlson, who has led this fight for more than two and a half decades.” “Those affected by FASD need access to services across the board, including early intervention, medical resources, and tailored educational and behavioral support,” said Senator Murkowski. “It’s why Senator Klobuchar and I have been so persistent regarding the Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Respect Act of 2025 over the last two Congresses, and why we’re so pleased that it has finally crossed the finish line. This legislation will build a more informed and responsive system of care for those with FASD by strengthening prevention efforts, expanding diagnostic capacity, and improving coordination across states, Tribes, and local communities. Today belongs to the many advocates, families, and healthcare professionals who have worked tirelessly to improve outcomes for those with FASD.” “In the annals of FASD advocacy over the years, the signing of the FASD authorization into law is truly historic and a huge victory for the FASD field,” said Susan Shepard Carlson, past FASD United Board Chair, retired juvenile court justice, and former First Lady of Minnesota. “This would not have happened without the leadership of our lead co-sponsors, Senators Lisa Murkowski and Amy Klobuchar, and the united effort of so many advocates around the country.” The FASD Respect Act of 2025: Reauthorizes federal FASD programs by directing the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish or continue a comprehensive FASD prevention, identification, intervention, and services delivery program which may include: Educational and public awareness programs for professionals in systems of care Developing and expanding screening and diagnostic capacity for FASD Research on FASD as appropriate Building State and Tribal capacity for the identification, treatment, and support of individuals with FASD and their families Builds local, Tribal, State, and national capacities to prevent the occurrence of FASD and other related adverse conditions, and to respond to the needs of individuals with FASD and their families. Eligible activities include: Develop and support public awareness and outreach activities Act as a clearinghouse for evidence-based resources on FASD prevention, identification, and culturally aware best practices Disseminate ongoing research and developing resources on FASD to help inform systems of care for individuals with FASD across their lifespan. Increase awareness and understanding of evidence-based FASD screening tools and culturally- and linguistically appropriate evidence-based intervention services and best practices across systems of care Improve capacity for State, Tribal, and local affiliates dedicated to FASD awareness, prevention, and identification and family and individual support programs and services (technical assistance provided by FASD Center of Excellence). ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T20:09:11Z https://www.smith.senate.gov/u-s-senator-tina-smiths-statement-on-president-trumps-targeting-of-somalis-in-twin-cities/,U.S. Senator Tina Smith’s Statement on President Trump’s Targeting of Somalis in Twin Cities,2025-12-02,2025,2025-12,Democrat,Senate,MN,Tina Smith,S001203,www.smith.senate.gov,tinasmith,https://www.smith.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, DC – Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) released the following statement in response to reporting that President Trump is directing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to launch a raid targeting the Somali community in the Twin Cities: “When Donald Trump calls all Somalis ‘garbage’, he’s talking about the people who run your favorite deli in Minneapolis, the nurse who takes care of you at the hospital, the home health aide looking after your aging parent, the military veteran who served this country, your local and federal elected leaders, and hardworking patriotic American taxpayers who came to this country legally.",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T20:09:11Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=7C569F8C-54FA-48DF-83B8-0D04FA6ACAE0,Klobuchar Statement on Newly Released Prices for 15 Additional Prescription Drugs Subject to Medicare Negotiations,2025-11-25,2025,2025-11,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), who led the Empowering Medicare Seniors to Negotiate Drug Prices Act to end the nearly 20-year ban on Medicare negotiating lower prescription drug prices for consumers, released the following statement on today’s announcement of the negotiated prices for the second round of medications under the Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program. “For too long, pharmaceutical giants have put their profits ahead of the well-being of Americans who rely on life-sustaining medications. That is why I worked for years to end big drug companies’ sweetheart deal that artificially raised prices at the expense of our seniors and taxpayers. Today’s announcement is thanks to our historic law, passed by Democrats in Congress in 2022, that finally allows Medicare to negotiate lower prices for some of the most widely-used, costly medications. Across the country, this will save 5 million seniors hundreds or even thousands of dollars a year, and save American taxpayers tens of billions of dollars. We need to build on this progress by passing my bill to lower drug prices for more prescription drugs — for seniors and all Americans.” This second round of drugs selected for the Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program will have the following discounts off the 2024 list price, starting in 2027: 71% lower for Ozempic, Rybelsus, and Wegovy, which treat Type 2 diabetes and overweight/obesity with cardiovascular disease, and were taken by 2.3 million Medicare Part D enrollees last year; 48% lower for Xtandi, which treats prostate cancer and was taken by 35,000 Medicare Part D enrollees last year; 73% lower for Trelegy Ellipta, which treats asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and was taken by 1.3 million Medicare Part D enrollees last year. 60% lower for Pomalyst, which treats blood and bone cancers and was taken by 14,000 Medicare Part D enrollees last year; 50% lower for Ibrance, which treats breast cancer and was taken by 16,000 Medicare Part D enrollees last year; 50% lower Ofev, which treats lung disease including idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and was taken by 24,000 Medicare Part D enrollees last year; 75% lower for Linzess, which treats certain GI disorders and was taken by 627,000 Medicare Part D enrollees last year; 40% lower for Calquence, which treats certain blood cancers including leukemia and lymphomas, and was taken by 15,000 Medicare Part D enrollees last year; 38% lower for Austedo and Austedo XR which treat movement disorders like chorea in Huntington’s disease, and were taken by 26,000 Medicare Part D enrollees last year. 83% lower for Breo Ellipta, which treats asthma and COPD and was taken by 634,000 Medicare Part D enrollees last year; 84% lower for Tradjenta, which treats Type 2 diabetes and was taken by 278,000 Medicare Part D enrollees last year; 63% lower for Xifaxan, which treats certain gastrointestinal (GI) disorders and was taken by 104,000 Medicare Part D enrollees last year; 44% lower for Vraylar which treats Bipolar I, Major Depressive Disorder, and Schizophrenia, and was taken by 116,000 Medicare Part D enrollees last year; 85% for Janumet which treats Type 2 diabetes and was taken by 243,000 Medicare Part D enrollees last year; And 65% for Otezla which treats chronic inflammation such as plaque psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis, and was taken by 31,000 Medicare Part D enrollees last year. Klobuchar has long led efforts to lower drug prices. The Empowering Medicare Seniors to Negotiate Drug Prices Act, Klobuchar’s bill to end the ban on Medicare negotiating lower prescription drug prices for Medicare’s 51 million seniors and help lower drug prices for all Americans was signed into law in August 2022. In May, Klobuchar, Senator Peter Welch (D-VT), and 25 of their colleagues re-introduced the Strengthening Medicare and Reducing Taxpayer (SMART) Prices Act, which would expand the number of prescription drugs that HHS could negotiate lower prices for and increase the amount of savings Medicare could negotiate. Klobuchar also led the fight against big pharma’s lawsuits attempting to dismantle Medicare negotiations. In 2023 and 2024, Klobuchar and her Senate colleagues filed an amicus brief in Merck & Co. v. Becerra in the District Court for the District of Columbia, in Boehringer Ingelheim v. United States Department of Health and Human Services in the District Court for the District of Connecticut, and in urging the federal court to uphold the constitutionality of Congress allowing Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices for consumers. In cases so far, pharmaceutical companies have lost lawsuits against the Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program 16 times. In April, two of Klobuchar and Senator Chuck Grassley’s (R-IA) bipartisan bills to promote competition and reduce drug prices — the Preserving Access to Affordable Generics and Biosimilars Act and the Stop STALLING Act — passed the Senate Judiciary Committee by voice vote. Together these bills would save taxpayers $1.9 billion over 10 years. The Preserving Access to Affordable Generics and Biosimilars Act would limit anticompetitive “pay-for-delay” deals that prevent or delay the introduction of affordable follow-on versions of branded pharmaceuticals. The Stop Significant and Time-wasting Abuse Limiting Legitimate Innovation of New Generics (STALLING) Act would deter pharmaceutical companies from filing sham petitions with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in order to interfere with the approval of generic and biosimilar medicines that compete with their own brand products, a tactic that delays patient access to affordable medications. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:52:45Z https://www.smith.senate.gov/u-s-senator-tina-smith-statement-on-federal-operation-in-st-paul/,U.S. Senator Tina Smith Statement on Federal Operation in St. Paul,2025-11-25,2025,2025-11,Democrat,Senate,MN,Tina Smith,S001203,www.smith.senate.gov,tinasmith,https://www.smith.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"ST. PAUL, MN – Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) released the following statement on the federal operation in St. Paul: “We’re still gathering information about what happened in St. Paul, but what we do know is that once again, federal authorities provided no notice to local leaders or law enforcement. This is their playbook: no warning, no transparency, no coordination. Their goal here isn’t safety, it’s to sow chaos, fear, and intimidation. Minnesotans deserve answers.”",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:52:45Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=C5EAC4D9-00BE-4588-9721-5CFC7527417A,Klobuchar Statement on Meeting with Pope Leo XIV Alongside Ukrainian Delegation Working to Return Abducted Children,2025-11-21,2025,2025-11,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"VATICAN CITY — U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) issued the following statement on her meeting with His Holiness Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican along with a delegation from Ukraine working to return the over 19,000 Ukrainian children abducted by Russia during Putin’s brutal invasion. “Pope Leo is a true moral force for peace and justice and a champion for children around the world. It was an honor to meet him as part of our mission to bring home the Ukrainian children abducted by Russia and chart a path towards peace and healing for Ukraine,” said Klobuchar. “We cannot accept a world where children are abducted during wartime and used as hostages for negotiations. The United States must remain steadfast in our support for Ukraine’s fight for freedom, and we should all heed Pope Leo’s example of serving those in need, pursuing the common good, and calling for peace.” Klobuchar has been a leader in the Senate in supporting Ukraine after Russia’s brutal invasion and, as a former prosecutor, has led on human trafficking issues in the Senate. She was invited by the Ukrainians to join their delegation to the Vatican to advocate for the return of the abducted Ukrainian children and attend the meeting with the Pope. While in Rome, Klobuchar also spoke with Cardinal Matteo Maria Zuppi, Archbishop of Bologna, President of the Italian Episcopal Conference, and personal papal envoy for peace in Ukraine, to discuss efforts to bring home Ukrainian kids abducted by Russia. The Ukrainian delegation includes four Ukrainian children who were kidnapped by Russian forces and have since been reunited with their families, including: Mark Razvozov, a 14-year-old from the occupied city of Torez. He was 11 years old when his mother was imprisoned by the Russian forces on false charges of espionage and spent two years without her. At school, he faced constant exposure to Russian propaganda and was not allowed to speak the Ukrainian language, yet he managed to preserve his identity. In 2023, Mark and his brother were finally reunited with their mother in Kyiv. Today, Mark attends school again, studies Ukrainian, and is gradually returning to a normal childhood. Oleksandr “Sashko” Radchuk, now 15, was severely wounded during shelling in Mariupol in March 2022 when he was just 12 years old. He was separated from his mother and taken to a hospital in Donetsk, where he received inadequate medical care and faced the threat of being sent to an the Baltic states. Today, Sashko lives with his grandmother, continues his medical treatment, and tirelessly searches for any information about his mother, who he believes remains in Russian captivity. Klobuchar has been a champion for legislative efforts to return the abducted Ukrainian children. Klobuchar leads the bipartisan Abducted Ukrainian Children Recovery and Accountability Act with Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA), which passed the Senate as part of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2026 in October. This legislation is complementary to the Designating the Russian Federation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism Act, which was introduced in September by Klobuchar and Senators Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), and Katie Britt (R-AL) to designate Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism under U.S. law if it fails to return the more than 19,000 Ukrainian children that have been kidnapped during the course of the war. In March, Klobuchar and Grassley were joined by Senator Durbin in leading a bipartisan letter calling for the State Department to continue supporting efforts to investigate Russia’s abduction and deportation of Ukrainian children. To date, Ukrainian authorities have received at least 19,546 confirmed reports of unlawful deportations and forced transfers of Ukrainian children to Russia, Belarus or Russian-occupied Ukrainian territory. The abductions aim to erase the children’s Ukrainian names, language, and identity. As of October 9, Ukraine and its partners have only managed to return about 1,800 abducted children. The State Department’s 2024 Trafficking in Persons Report found Russia recruits or uses child soldiers, has a state-sponsored policy or pattern of human trafficking, and is among the worst hubs for human trafficking in the world. At the Vatican, Senator Klobuchar presented the Pope with a Senate resolution honoring the victims and survivors of the mass shooting at the Annunciation Catholic Church and School in Minneapolis. Photos of Senator Klobuchar with Pope Leo XIV and the delegation from Ukraine are beow: Photo credit: © Vatican Media. Photos to be used for news purposes, media & social: Authorization to publish the photos does not confer ownership rights or exclusivity (cf. Law CXXXII of 1 September 2017 on the protection of copyright on works of ingenuity and related rights, arts. 3§2 and 3§3). ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:52:45Z https://www.smith.senate.gov/u-s-senator-tina-smiths-statement-on-attorney-general-ellisons-settlement-with-nations-largest-landlord-for-artificially-inflating-rental-prices/,U.S. Senator Tina Smith’s Statement on Attorney General Ellison’s Settlement with Nation’s Largest Landlord for Artificially Inflating Rental Prices,2025-11-21,2025,2025-11,Democrat,Senate,MN,Tina Smith,S001203,www.smith.senate.gov,tinasmith,https://www.smith.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"MINNEAPOLIS, MN – Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN), top Democrat on the Senate Housing Subcommittee, released the following statement after Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison announced a $7 million settlement with the nation’s largest landlord, Greystar, as part of his ongoing litigation against property management software company RealPage. “When everything is already so unaffordable, cheating by artificially inflating rent adds insult to injury. These corporate landlords will do anything to pad their pockets and that’s why I’m so appreciative of Attorney General Ellison’s work to bring accountability for Minnesota renters,” said Senator Smith. “I’m pushing legislation to ban these practices nationwide and empower renters. Landlords should be competing on price, lease terms and amenities, not illegally colluding to keep prices high.” RealPage is accused of using confidential information from landlords such as Greystar in order to inflate rental prices and decrease competition in the free market. Minnesota is expected to receive approximately $500,000 in the settlement. Smith is a co-sponsor of the End Rent Fixing Act, legislation that would crack down on landlords that collude to set prices with software and price-setting algorithms. In addition to the monetary payment to the states as a result of Attorney General Ellison’s lawsuit, the proposed consent decree, if approved by the court, would require Greystar to: Refrain from using any anticompetitive algorithm that generates pricing recommendations using its competitors’ competitively sensitive data or that incorporates certain anticompetitive features; Refrain from sharing competitively sensitive information with competitors; Accept a court-appointed monitor if it uses a third-party pricing algorithm that is not certified pursuant to the terms of the consent decree; Refrain from attending or participating in RealPage-hosted meetings of competing landlords; and Cooperate with Minnesota and other plaintiffs in the ongoing litigation against RealPage and other landlords Earlier this year, Smith joined an effort to press RealPage to answer for its multi-million dollar lobbying campaign for a provision that would have shielded them from state or local laws regulating improper use of artificial intelligence. She has also pressed RealPage about its algorithmic pricing software and its role in driving up rents across the country. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:52:45Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=8A54914B-AD30-4C4A-BDB4-B9F50B37349E,"Klobuchar, Luján, Schumer, Merkley, Hayes, Craig Lead Congressional Democrats in Introducing Legislation to Reverse SNAP Cuts and Restore Food Security for Millions of Americans",2025-11-20,2025,2025-11,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Ranking Member of the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee; Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), Ranking Member of the Senate Agriculture Committee’s Subcommittee on Food and Nutrition, Specialty Crops, Organics, and Research; Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), and Jeff Merkley (D-OR) led the entire Senate Democratic Caucus in introducing the Restoring Food Security for American Families and Farmers Act of 2025. The legislation would repeal all the devastating Republican cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) made in the Republican Budget Betrayal. U.S. Representatives Jahana Hayes (D-CT) and Angie Craig (D-MN), Ranking Member of the House Committee on Agriculture introduced companion legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives. Congress has upheld a 50-year bipartisan commitment that Americans should not go hungry, but the Republican Budget Betrayal breaks that promise with the largest SNAP cuts in history. To fund tax breaks for the ultra-wealthy, Congressional Republicans approved cuts that the Congressional Budget Office estimates will eliminate $187 billion in food assistance over the next decade, even as grocery prices rise and President Trump’s tariff costs increase. These Republican cuts will take meals from millions of Americans, including children, seniors, veterans, workers, and people with disabilities, while harming farmers, ranchers, small businesses, and grocers who rely on SNAP dollars. Additionally, the Republican Budget Betrayal creates a massive unfunded mandate on state governments that could force deep cuts or even eliminate SNAP entirely. “From gutting SNAP in their Big Beautiful Betrayal of a bill to refusing to provide food assistance to families in need during the shutdown, this Administration has taken every opportunity to make it harder for Americans to put food on the table,” said Senator Klobuchar, Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry. “With this legislation, we will keep fighting every step of the way to restore food assistance to families in need and ensure the 42 million Americans — including veterans, seniors and children — who count on SNAP don’t go to bed hungry.” “For half a century, our nation has stood behind a bipartisan promise: that no child, no senior, no veteran, and no working family should go hungry. Republicans broke that promise and ripped meals away from millions of Americans in their Budget Betrayal,” said Senator Luján. “SNAP puts food on the table for 42 million people – including one in every five New Mexicans – yet the Trump administration spent the shutdown trying to block families from receiving food assistance and make it as difficult as possible to access their benefits. We have a responsibility to protect these families. That’s why I am leading Congressional Democrats in introducing legislation to fully repeal the Republican cuts to SNAP and ensure no American family goes hungry.” “SNAP isn’t an abstract policy or a number in a spreadsheet, it’s food, dignity and survival for 42 million Americans,” said Leader Schumer. “This summer, the Republican “Big, Ugly Bill” made the single largest cut to federal food assistance in our nation’s history. And during the Republican shutdown, the Trump administration weaponized hunger, blocking families from receiving SNAP benefits that Congress had already funding. Democrats are fighting back. Today, we introduced legislation to reverse these disastrous and deadly cuts and restore food security for millions of Americans. We will keep fighting until every family has the basic security and dignity of food on the table.” “Children, seniors, and low-income families will go hungry because of the Republican cuts to SNAP. This is yet another heartbreaking consequence of the Republican agenda to fund tax breaks for the ultrarich while working families struggle,” said Senator Merkley. “Under Trump, it is always the red carpet for billionaires and red tape for families. I’ll keep fighting to reverse these devastating cuts.” “At every opportunity, Republicans have chosen to target and decimate the programs that feed people. The Big Beautiful Bill implemented the largest cut to SNAP in history – putting the most vulnerable at higher risk of hunger,” said Congresswoman Hayes. “Republicans have proven that cruelty is the point. During the government shutdown, all of America watched as they once again chose to use hunger as a weapon and blocked emergency funding for SNAP – marking the first ever lapse in funding. With the Restoring Food Security for American Families and Farmers Act we can reverse the damage caused by this legislation and restore the nearly $200 billion eliminated from SNAP.” “President Trump has spent his first year in office repeatedly attacking our nation’s most effective anti-hunger program at a time when his tariffs are contributing to record food prices. His Big Ugly Bill cut SNAP – a basic needs food assistance program – by $187 billion, taking food away from millions of hungry American seniors, children, people with disabilities and veterans. I encourage my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to stand up for our vulnerable neighbors and help to pass the Restoring Food Security for American Families and Farmers Act,” said Representative Angie Craig, Ranking Member of the House Committee on Agriculture. Additionally, earlier this week, nearly 1,500 national, state, and community-based organizations joined a letter voicing support for this effort. SNAP is a lifeline for over 42 million Americans, including 16 million children, 8 million seniors, 4 million people with disabilities, and 1.2 million veterans. During the government shutdown, Klobuchar and Lujan led the Senate Democratic Caucus in introducing legislation that prevents the Trump administration from illegally withholding available funds for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC). In addition to Ranking Member Klobuchar, Senator Luján, Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, and Ranking Member Merkley, the legislation is cosponsored by U.S. Senators Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Chris Coons (D-DE), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Dick Durbin (D-IL), John Fetterman (D-PA), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), John Hickenlooper (D-CO), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Mark Kelly (D-AZ), Andy Kim (D-NJ), Angus King (I-Maine), Edward J. Markey (D-MA), Chris Murphy (D-CT), Patty Murray (D-WA), Jon Ossoff (D-GA), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Gary Peters (D-MI), Jack Reed (D-RI), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Brian Schatz (D-HI), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Tina Smith (D-MN), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Mark Warner (D-VA), Raphael Warnock (D-GA), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Peter Welch (D-VT), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), and Ron Wyden (D-OR). The full bill text of the legislation can be found here. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:52:45Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=A15EACD4-3470-41AB-B421-FAA482440AED,"Klobuchar, Britt, Colleagues Introduce Bipartisan ADOPT Act to Protect Adoptive Families from Exploitation",2025-11-20,2025,2025-11,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Katie Britt (R-AL) introduced the bipartisan Adoption Deserves Oversight, Protection, and Transparency (ADOPT) Act. This comprehensive legislation protects adoptive families, children, and expectant mothers from exploitation by unlicensed adoption intermediaries and ensures that adoption providers and attorneys operate only in states where they are licensed to do so. The legislation is co-sponsored by Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), and Jon Husted (R-OH). Companion legislation for the ADOPT Act was introduced in the House of Representatives by Representatives Robert Aderholt (R-AL), Danny K. Davis (D-IL), Laurel Lee (R-FL), and Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-CA). “Adoption changes lives — for kids and adoptive parents alike. Unfortunately, unlicensed ‘baby brokers’ prey on vulnerable mothers and families, hurting everyone in the process,” said Klobuchar, co-chair of the bipartisan Congressional Coalition on Adoption. “That’s why Senator Britt and I are introducing the bipartisan ADOPT Act, which protects expecting mothers and adoptive families from exploitation by ensuring that parents pursuing private, domestic adoption are working with trusted, licensed professionals.” “I believe it is incumbent upon Congress to ensure loving parents pursuing adoption to grow their families, expectant mothers working with adoption providers, and children are protected from bad actors seeking to take advantage of the adoption process,” said Britt. “This legislation does just that, establishing necessary oversight in the adoption process to promote transparency and uphold the integrity of adoption in our nation. I’ll always use my position on the federal level to fight for women, children, and families, and I’m proud to join my colleagues in this latest effort to defend those involved in the adoption process from exploitation.” The ADOPT Act protects adoptive families, children, and expectant mothers from exploitation by: Prohibiting adoption advertising and the provision of private adoption services for compensation by any entity not licensed as a child-placing agency or attorney; and Restricting payments to expectant mothers unless made through a provider licensed in the state where the expectant mother resides. The bill is supported by leading adoption organizations including the National Council For Adoption (NCFA), Academy of Adoption & Assisted Reproduction Attorneys (AAAA), Ethical Family Building, Adoptees United, and Families Rising. ""The ADOPT Act better ensures expectant mothers contemplating adoption have a trustworthy team around them, and that they have all the information and resources available to them before deciding whether to place their child for adoption,"" says Ryan Hanlon, president and CEO of National Council For Adoption. ""What's more, the ADOPT Act will spare prospective adoptive families—many of whom consider adoption after a painful infertility journey—time, resources and the heartbreak that so often accompanies signing with a predatory, unlicensed adoption intermediary."" “The Academy of Adoption and Assisted Reproduction Attorneys (AAAA) applauds efforts to protect adoptive families and children during the adoption process, by ensuring they are served by licensed adoption professionals, with appropriate oversight and transparency,” said Genie Miller Gillespie, Adoption Policy Director of AAAA. “Welcoming a child into a family through adoption is a tremendous and joyous event; the legal process behind that adoption must match the magnitude of the event. Ensuring the guardrails of the legal process are maintained and that all parties to an adoption are protected will help ensure that families do not have their hopes exploited. The ADOPT Act is an important step in protecting families and children.” “The ADOPT ACT delivers long-overdue safeguards for vulnerable women, families, and children by combatting the exploitation carried out by unlicensed adoption intermediaries, and by ensuring that both expectant parents considering adoption and families hoping to adopt receive compassionate, qualified support,” said Celeste Liversidge, Executive Director of Ethical Family Building. “The Bill further reinforces essential protections for adopted children, whose long-term well-being must remain at the center of every adoption decision.” ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:52:45Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=89107B12-4D42-4F7F-A2C3-1D1944BD54E6,Klobuchar Statement on Meta FTC Ruling,2025-11-18,2025,2025-11,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) issued the following statement in response to the D.C. District Court’s ruling against the Federal Trade’s Commission’s (FTC) monopoly suit against Meta. “I disagree with today’s ruling and hope the FTC will appeal. The court’s opinion makes clear that our laws are not keeping pace with advances in technology and that we must pass legislation to take on tech monopolists and return competition to digital markets,” said Klobuchar. “That’s why I’m fighting to modernize the law to stop dominant platforms like Meta from buying up competitors and creating monopolies that hurt consumers and entrepreneurs, put kids at risk, and stifle innovation. Now, there are no more excuses for not passing this legislation.” Klobuchar has long been a leading advocate for taking on Big Tech monopolies and championing antitrust efforts. In 2025, Klobuchar reintroduced the Competition and Antitrust Law Enforcement Reform Act to give federal enforcers the resources they need to do their jobs, strengthen prohibitions on anticompetitive conduct and mergers, and make additional reforms to improve enforcement. In 2023, Klobuchar and Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) reintroduced their American Innovation and Choice Online Act which would set clear, effective rules to protect competition and prevent self-preferencing by the most economically significant online platforms, while maintaining a secure online experience for users. In 2022, the bill passed out of the Judiciary Committee on a bipartisan vote. In December 2022, Klobuchar and Grassley’s Merger Filing Fee Modernization Act was passed into law. This legislation updated merger filing fees for the first time since 2001, lowering fees on smaller acquisitions and increasing them for the largest mergers, raising additional revenue that Congress can use to fund antitrust enforcement, and ultimately giving the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division the resources necessary to try and win cases against Big Tech. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:52:45Z https://www.smith.senate.gov/u-s-senators-amy-klobuchar-tina-smith-call-for-senate-vote-to-release-the-epstein-files/,"U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar, Tina Smith Call for Senate Vote to Release the Epstein Files",2025-11-18,2025,2025-11,Democrat,Senate,MN,Tina Smith,S001203,www.smith.senate.gov,tinasmith,https://www.smith.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith (both D-MN) have requested Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) immediately hold a floor vote on legislation to release the Epstein Files. Klobuchar and Smith requested that the Senate vote on the bipartisan Epstein Files Transparency Act, which passed the House of Representatives with nearly unanimous bipartisan support (427-1) – enough to overcome a Presidential veto. “The victims of Jeffrey Epstein and the American people deserve answers, accountability and the truth. So far, they have only seen empty promises from President Trump and his Administration. Now that a majority of the U.S. House of Representatives has responsibly acted to provide transparency on this matter we call on you to quickly hold a vote in the U.S. Senate to help deliver the accountability that was promised and that so many Americans are demanding,” wrote the Senators in their request. “This case is about exploitation and abuse, and these victims deserve justice. I will vote to release these files because this transparency is owed to the American people,” said Senator Klobuchar. “Given that the President has said he wants the files released, there is absolutely no reason Senate Republicans should delay calling for this vote tomorrow.” “These young girls were misled and abused by powerful men who thought that the rules didn’t apply to them, that they could get away with anything. They deserve justice, and many of Epstein’s victims have called for us to support them through voting yes on releasing the Epstein Files, and I stand with them,” said Senator Smith. “In my mind, there is no justification to vote to keep these files hidden. The Senate should pass this bill as soon as possible. Should the Trump Administration continue their efforts to hide documents from public view even after this legislation passes, Congress should seek further action. The American people deserve answers of who was involved in Epstein’s despicable crimes.” The request was signed by 47 Senators. You can read the full letter here. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:52:45Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=6FCE8700-D66D-4488-9DC4-C3F6F5B03E89,Klobuchar and Smith Announce Significant Federal Infrastructure Funding for Duluth International Airport,2025-11-17,2025,2025-11,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) announced they have secured significant federal funding for Duluth International Airport’s air traffic control tower replacement project. The grant provides $20 million to fund the relocation of the Duluth air traffic control tower, a non-standard tower commissioned more than 70 years ago. “Duluth International Airport’s air traffic control tower is one of the oldest in the country and urgently needs an upgrade, which is why I have worked across the aisle to secure this funding,” said Senator Klobuchar. “The Duluth Airport is a gateway for visitors from around the country and the world to visit Duluth, and is critical to the Northland’s economy. With this major federal investment, Duluth International Airport will be able to continue the vital work of relocating this tower, which will boost efficiency to help travelers arrive and depart on time.” “The Duluth International Airport provides critical service to northern Minnesota, from commercial service to cargo, military and medical flights. Yet it’s operating with a 70-year-old tower – the third oldest in the nation. It’s out of date, doesn’t meet national standards, and has needed replacing for a long time,” said Senator Smith. “Air traffic controllers have been doing a tremendous job making the outdated tower work and keeping our skies safe, but funding a new tower will make air travel in the Northland safer and more efficient. I’m glad to see this announcement, and I’ll keep pushing for the rest of the funding necessary to get the new tower built.” “With the continued growth of air travel and growing aviation cluster at DLH, investing in infrastructure that supports aviation in our region is more important than ever,” said Tom Werner, Executive Director of the Duluth Airport Authority. “We are thankful to the Federal Aviation Administration and our Congressional Delegation for their steadfast commitment to securing this essential funding for this shovel ready project.” This grant brings total federal investment secured by Klobuchar and Smith for this project to $37 million, including nearly $6 million secured earlier this year and $10 million secured in 2024. This funding comes from the Airport Terminal Program, one of three aviation programs created by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The Duluth air traffic control tower replacement project includes design, formulation, site preparation, line of sight obstruction removal, and other related actions. Klobuchar emphasized the need for further federal support for the project to Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Administrator Bryan Bedford during their nomination hearings before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. In 2023, Klobuchar and Smith, and Stauber led the entire Minnesota delegation in sending a letter to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) requesting that they expedite reviews and approvals required for Duluth International Airport to apply for grant funding to build a new air traffic control tower. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:52:45Z https://www.smith.senate.gov/u-s-senator-tina-smith-leads-fight-against-trump-administrations-cuts-to-housing-for-formerly-homeless-minnesotans/,U.S. Senator Tina Smith Leads Fight Against Trump Administration’s Cuts to Housing for Formerly Homeless Minnesotans,2025-11-17,2025,2025-11,Democrat,Senate,MN,Tina Smith,S001203,www.smith.senate.gov,tinasmith,https://www.smith.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"MINNEAPOLIS, MN — U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) led 41 of her colleagues in calling on the Trump Administration to immediately halt plans to cut housing funding for people who were previously homeless. 3,600 Minnesotans could lose their housing and be forced back into homelessness under the Trump Administration’s proposed changes to the Continuum of Care program. Minnesota received approximately $48 million in funding last year. Most of those funds are used to provide affordable housing with intensive, supportive services to people experiencing homelessness. The Senators requested that the Administration use existing authorities to renew grants and change course to prevent massive disruption to homelessness programs. A similar letter was led by House Republicans. “There are a lot of things we can do to combat homelessness in Minnesota. Taking housing and services away from people who have escaped homelessness is not a solution and kicking people out on the streets before winter is just cruel,” says Senator Smith. “More than 3,600 of our neighbors could lose their housing and services if the Trump Administration’s plans go through. It will pull the rug out from underneath every one of these Minnesotans when they have found some stability to try to get sober, take care of themselves, find work and turn their lives around. The Administration needs to reverse course immediately.” “In 2024, the federal government awarded funding that preserves housing and services for more than 3,661 Minnesotans. Losing those dollars would jeopardize proven solutions and put our neighbors at risk,” says Anne Mavity, Executive Director of Minnesota Housing Partnership. “We use Continuum of Care funding for critical rental subsidy and supportive services for 103 Minnesotans moving from homelessness to stability. Without these funds, rents will become unaffordable, and formerly homeless individuals will be back on the street,” says Jessie Hendel, Executive Director of Minneapolis-based Alliance Housing, which manages over 370 quality affordable housing units for people with very low incomes. “There is a better way forward… HUD’s current path risks causing a dangerous spike in street homelessness and creating chaos in urban, suburban, and rural communities alike by forcing nearly 200,000 chronically homeless Americans with disabilities and families back onto the streets. We implore you to make the better choice and expeditiously renew current CoC grants for fiscal year 2025 as authorized by Congress to protect communities and avoid displacing thousands of our nation’s most vulnerable individuals,” concluded Senators in their request. The proposed cuts come after the Trump Administration already reneged on $5.2 million in CoC funds promised to a Minnesota nonprofit developer to build 78 new units of supportive housing across two projects. Smith led the letter alongside Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee; Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee; Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Ranking Member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies; and 38 other Senators. You can read the whole letter here or below. Dear Secretary Turner: We write to express our deep concerns regarding the instability the entire homeless support system could face if funding delays, uncertainty, and rushed policy changes continue. Reports indicate that the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) intends to issue a new fiscal year 2025 Continuum of Care (CoC) Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) and make substantial changes to how funds are awarded. HUD must immediately reconsider these harmful and potentially illegal changes that could result in nearly 200,000 older adults, chronically homeless Americans with disabilities, veterans, and families being forced back onto the streets. As Secretary, you have the authority to avoid this worst-case scenario by carrying out the previously planned and Congressionally authorized two-year NOFO[1], and we strongly urge you to do so expeditiously. The Continuum of Care program is the largest source of Federal grant funds for providing a wide range of housing and services for individuals experiencing or at risk of homelessness that are responsive to local community needs. On September 29, 2025, Politico reported that the Department intends to make wholesale changes to the fiscal year 2025 CoC NOFO.[2] The most troubling of these changes is a new, arbitrary cap on the amount of funds that may be used for permanent housing. Currently, 87 percent of CoC funds support permanent housing, but the new NOFO reportedly limits the amount of funding for permanent housing to only 30 percent. This appears to be in contravention of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act[3], undermines local decision-making authority, and ignores decades of research that has proven that permanent supportive housing and rapid rehousing are less costly and more likely to be successful in providing long-term stability than other strategies, particularly for chronically homeless people and families. Today, CoC funds serve over 750,000 Americans experiencing homelessness each year, and every community will feel the impact of this dramatic cut. The cut will be largest for major cities in absolute terms, but rural communities—who experienced a 12 percent increase in homelessness between 2023 and 2024[4] and are more reliant on Federal funding—are likely to feel the impacts most severely[5]. In your written testimony for the June 2025 Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on HUD’s fiscal year 2026 budget request, you stated that your budget aimed to “better serve the American people while maintaining necessary assistance for the elderly and disabled.”[6] However, seniors are the fastest-growing demographic among people experiencing homelessness. The share of the homeless population aged 60 years and older in 2020 was 2.6 times higher than it was in 1990.[7] By dramatically cutting funding for permanent housing, tens of thousands of older adults and people with disabilities who currently reside in CoC funded permanent supportive housing could soon lose their homes and lose access to the supportive services they need to take care of their physical and mental health needs. Each new administration can make policy changes when they take office. While we may not always agree on those policy changes, we should never have to question whether agency officials will faithfully follow the law and work to minimize harm to our constituents and communities when implementing those new policies. Reports of HUD intentionally blocking staff from examining the legality of the fiscal year 2025 NOFO changes with its own attorneys are deeply troubling. We are also concerned by HUD’s lack of communication with grantees, especially as any new NOFO at this point in the year would not provide grantees with adequate time or opportunity to plan for sweeping changes before some projects begin to run out of CoC funds in January 2026. Over the past decade, HUD has always issued the annual CoC NOFO by mid-August and provided on average 82 days for CoCs to develop applications. Without a NOFO published as of November 12, 2025, thousands of CoC project grants that expire between January and June 2026 will be at risk of funding disruptions or shuttering operations. Further, HUD has taken several steps since January 20, 2025 to spark chaos and disrupt grantee operations, including applying new and likely illegal conditions to previously awarded CoC grants[8], repeatedly recompeting the fiscal year 2023 CoC Builds funding[9], proposing to eliminate the CoC program altogether[10], repeating rhetoric used by the President to villainize homeless people, and gutting the HUD workforce that implements the CoC and other community development programs[11]. All these actions raise serious questions and concerns about whether HUD is intentionally violating the law to prevent Congressionally appropriated funds from reaching the people and communities they were intended to support. For months, we have heard from countless front-line workers, faith-based and non-profit service providers, mayors, and governors who have been frantically attempting to navigate HUD’s actions and anxiously waiting for HUD to provide details around the fiscal year 2025 NOFO changes. For months, our staffs have sent HUD countless questions about its intents and actions around CoC funding that have remained unanswered, undermining Congress’s ability to carry out its legislative and oversight functions. Real people in every community across the country rely on these funds to address homelessness. The funding competition process for fiscal year 2025 has not begun, and with CoC project awards beginning to expire in less than two months, HUD is simply out of time. There is a better way forward. Congress already authorized HUD to compete CoC funds on a two-year basis for fiscal years 2024 and 2025, and communities already went through a two-year planning process. The shift to a two-year funding cycle had strong bipartisan support and aimed to reduce the burden on communities and provide greater predictability of funding, and members on both sides of the aisle support this approach.[12] HUD should make the responsible choice to renew current CoC grants, proactively work with communities to promote other proven strategies “based on research and after notice and public comment”[13], and work to ensure any policy changes meet all legal requirements to avoid more funding delays. HUD’s current path risks causing a dangerous spike in street homelessness and creating chaos in urban, suburban, and rural communities alike by forcing nearly 200,000 chronically homeless Americans with disabilities and families back onto the streets. We implore you to make the better choice and expeditiously renew current CoC grants for fiscal year 2025 as authorized by Congress to protect communities and avoid displacing thousands of our nation’s most vulnerable individuals. Thank you for your attention to this matter.’ ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:52:45Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=18FB7FBF-300E-449D-AF55-357F75FF923C,Klobuchar Once Again Visits All 87 Counties in 2025,2025-11-13,2025,2025-11,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"MINNESOTA — With stops this week in Pennington, Beltrami, Lyon, Kittson, Roseau, Lake of the Woods, and Koochiching counties, U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar has once again visited every one of Minnesota’s 87 counties in one year. “Meeting with people across our state is the best part of my job,” said Klobuchar. “That’s why I visit with Minnesotans in every corner of our state to discuss their concerns and priorities — from lowering costs, including for health care and groceries, to fixing the tariffs that are hurting our farmers, small businesses and local economies. I’ll keep putting Minnesotans’ ideas into action to make a difference for the people of our state.” The final leg of Klobuchar’s annual 87-county tour included visits to six family farms throughout northern Minnesota and concluded with a stop in International Falls, where the Senator was joined by Mayor Drake Dill to meet with nursing and engineering students, faculty, and community leaders on Minnesota North College’s Rainy River Campus. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:52:45Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=A07DF233-AC08-4214-A26A-575D4236A3FC,"Klobuchar, Curtis Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Support Child Care Providers",2025-11-13,2025,2025-11,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"Legislation is led in the House by Reps. Williams, Stauber, and Chu WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and John Curtis (R-UT) introduced the bipartisan Convening Operations Assistance for Childcare Heroes (COACH) Act in the Senate. This bipartisan bill aims to support child care providers by directing the Small Business Administration (SBA) to create and maintain an up-to-date resource guide specifically for small child care businesses, providing them with the necessary tools to establish and sustain their operations. Companion legislation in the House of Representatives was introduced by Representatives Nikema Williams (D-GA), Pete Stauber (R-MN), and Judy Chu (D-CA). “When we invest in child care, we invest in our future,” said Klobuchar. “Our bipartisan legislation will give child care providers resources to support their businesses and bolster their workforce, while making quality child care more affordable for working families and allowing more parents to enter the workforce. It’s a win-win.” “In Utah, we believe in investing in the next generation and that starts with making sure families have access to high-quality, affordable childcare,” said Curtis. “The COACH Act will help small childcare providers better serve hardworking parents in their communities and will give families more options to access the care they need.” “Childcare is infrastructure — and childcare professionals, many of whom are women of color, are essential workers. The COACH Act will make childcare more accessible to working families while delivering resources to hardworking childcare providers to help their businesses thrive,” said Williams. “As a working mama, I know that childcare is a must for parents who need to work with the confidence that their children are receiving the best care possible. As working families continue to face rising costs, we must do everything in our power to help parents get ahead of the curve and support the small businesses that best support them.” ""I am proud to co-lead the bipartisan, bicameral COACH Act with Rep. Williams. This bill empowers small child care providers with essential SBA resources on operations, finances, and compliance, supporting families and jobs in Minnesota and nationwide,” said Stauber. “As our nation faces a childcare crisis, I am proud to join Rep. Williams in reintroducing the COACH Act, to increase our investment in our childcare providers. By giving our nation’s small childcare businesses the tools and support they need to succeed, this bill will help bolster the childcare workforce and close the growing gap in childcare availability across America. Parents should be able to go to work knowing their children are safe, learning, and thriving, and the COACH Act will help ensure that more families can access reliable, high-quality childcare,” said Chu. Organizations including First Five Years Fund, Main Street Alliance, Save the Children, and Small Business Majority support the COACH Act. “Our research shows that small businesses are struggling to access affordable childcare, a growing concern that’s making it increasingly difficult for small businesses to thrive. We support legislation that would provide valuable resources to entrepreneurs and would help alleviate a problem plaguing small businesses throughout the United States,” said John Arensmeyer, Small Business Majority Founder and CEO. “Our research shows that small businesses are struggling to access affordable childcare, a growing concern that’s making it increasingly difficult for small businesses to thrive. We support legislation that would provide valuable resources to entrepreneurs and would help alleviate a problem plaguing small businesses throughout the United States,” said Shawn Phetteplace, National Campaigns Director of Main Street Alliance. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:52:45Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=7C1AE2EB-87DE-4C93-A736-C8D706CD7229,ICYMI: Klobuchar and Former CENTCOM Commander Gen. Votel in the Star Tribune: “Afghan Allies Sacrificed Alongside Our Troops; We Must Keep Our Promise to Them”,2025-11-11,2025,2025-11,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"MINNEAPOLIS — U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and retired General Joseph L. Votel, former commander of U.S. Central Command and the former commander of U.S. Special Operations Command, published an op-ed in the Star Tribune on the importance of standing with the Afghan allies who supported our servicemembers in wartime and the need to establish a clear pathway for those Afghans who have evacuated to the U.S. to apply for permanent legal residency through the bipartisan Fulfilling Promises to Afghan Allies Act. Read the op-ed below. Star Tribune: Klobuchar & retired general: Afghan allies sacrificed alongside our troops We must keep our promise to them. By Amy Klobuchar and Joseph Votel As senior leaders, one in Congress and the other previously in uniform, we both have witnessed the nobility and selflessness of those who have answered the call and served our nation in its time of need. As another Veterans Day arrives, we come together to honor the men and women who defended our nation. Their service, often quiet and unheralded, forms the foundation of our freedom. The highest duty of any American is to step forward for their fellow citizens and do the nation’s bidding, often at extreme risk and with little personal reward. Yet remembrance must go beyond words; it must inspire action to fulfill the promises we owe to our veterans and those who supported them on the battlefield. America’s longest war spanned two decades and four presidential administrations. In Afghanistan, 2,461 U.S. service members lost their lives and more than 20,000 were wounded. Thousands more carry the silent burden of unseen injuries and wounds that they contend with every day of their lives. This Veterans Day, we honor all who have served in uniform, whether in Afghanistan or elsewhere. As we continue our efforts, we must also honor the Afghan allies who stood with us. One such inspiring group is the Afghan Female Tactical Platoon, comprising approximately 50 Afghan women who defied cultural norms and overcame tremendous obstacles and doubts to support not only us but also their own citizens. They served us and their nation on the front lines of combat, and in doing so redefined our understanding of what it means to serve. Fortunately, many of these women were included in the 2021 evacuation. However, across America and around the world, Afghan families who supported America’s mission and stood by our troops are still in limbo, facing uncertain futures. These include interpreters who translated for our soldiers and diplomats, drivers who braved roadside bombs to deliver supplies, and engineers and medics who served alongside us. They risked everything — often at great personal expense to themselves and their families — to further America’s mission. And the U.S. promised not to forget them. Yet four years after the U.S. withdrew from Afghanistan, many of these wartime allies who resettled in the United States still live under a temporary status that does not offer long-term certainty. Others remain stuck in backlogs for permanent residency. We can do better. Our country and state have historically welcomed wartime allies, including after the Vietnam War ended. After Saigon fell 50 years ago, Minnesotans embraced tens of thousands of Hmong, Lao and other Southeast Asian allies who supported our troops. Fifty years later, we know what became of them — they became teachers, police officers, farmers, bakers, nurses, doctors, builders and inventors. They started families, launched businesses, enriched our communities and strengthened this country. If given the chance, our Afghan allies will step up and do the same. But for too many, America’s promise of a new beginning has still not been fulfilled. Congress has an opportunity to pass bipartisan legislation to establish a clear pathway for Afghans evacuated to the U.S. to apply for permanent legal residency. The Fulfilling Promises to Afghan Allies Act — led by Sen. Klobuchar — requires applicants to go through vetting as rigorous as the process they would face if they came to the U.S. as refugees, which eight former Trump and George W. Bush administration national security officials called the “ ‘gold standard’ of vetting.” Those who meet the requirements would gain the legal certainty to rebuild their lives here and pursue citizenship in the future. The coalition of four Republican and four Democratic senators supporting these reforms may not agree on everything. Still, they recognize the need for a smart legal pathway that strengthens vetting and helps our allies become lasting contributors to our society. Many veterans are also among the strongest supporters of our Afghan allies. This legislation is supported by organizations such as the American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, and Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, among others. They understand that honoring our Afghan allies is also about honoring American veterans, because their mission, often their lives, depended on that cooperation. They want to make sure that their allies’ sacrifice and loyalty are recognized. As we observe this Veterans Day, let’s remember Minnesota’s proud tradition of welcoming our wartime allies and calling them our neighbors. Our state is prepared to do so again. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., is a U.S. senator. Gen. Joseph Votel (ret.) is the former commander of U.S. Central Command and the former commander of U.S. Special Operations Command. Read the full op-ed here. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:52:45Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=86069694-7846-486D-B890-E5429167A26E,Klobuchar Delivers Remarks at State of Minnesota Veterans Day Celebration,2025-11-11,2025,2025-11,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"MANKATO — This morning U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) spoke at the State of Minnesota Veterans Day Celebration at the Mankato National Guard Armory. “We can never fully repay what our veterans have given our nation, but we can honor their service now,” said Klobuchar during her remarks. “Those who stood on the front line, through their sacrifice, built a future where liberty prevailed over tyranny, and we get to live in that future. To all our military veterans, service members, and military families: you represent the best of America.” Watch Klobuchar’s full remarks here. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:52:45Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=917F96D9-F4BE-4AD1-A05C-20180ACBEEC6,"Klobuchar, Banks Introduce Bill to Expand STEM Scholarships for Veterans",2025-11-11,2025,2025-11,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON — U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Jim Banks (R-IN) introduced the bipartisan Edith Nourse Rogers STEM Scholarship Opportunity Act to help veterans pursue degrees in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM), including agricultural science, computer science, information support services, and health care. The legislation would modify the requirements of the current Edith Nourse Rogers STEM Scholarship to make the program accessible to more veterans. ""Our veterans come from all walks of life to serve our nation — and they bring with them a wealth of experience when they return to civilian life,” said Klobuchar. “This legislation will help veterans enter good-paying jobs in science, health care, and technology and it will help employers meet their hiring needs. By supporting veterans through scholarships for education and career training, we not only help them succeed, but also strengthen our nation and our economy.” “Supporting our veterans means more than honoring their service. It means giving them real opportunities to turn their service and skills into high-demand careers that strengthen our economy and keep America competitive,” said Banks. The Edith Nourse Rogers STEM Scholarship Opportunity Act will assist veterans in their pursuit of degrees in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) by removing the requirement that applicants must first exhaust their Post 9-11/GI Bill benefits before they can apply, making it easier to cover continued studies in STEM subjects for veterans still using their GI Bill benefits. This bill also reduces the waiting period by allowing veterans to apply for the scholarship earlier in their studies than is currently allowed. Senator Klobuchar has long supported veterans pursuing further education and civilian careers in STEM fields. In 2020, Klobuchar partnered with Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) on the Supporting Veterans in STEM Careers Act, which was signed into law. That legislation assists veterans re-entering the workforce by directing the National Science Foundation to encourage veterans to pursue careers in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:52:45Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=A5C59DD6-2F88-4AAD-B70A-CFB75FD39B39,Klobuchar Statement on Veterans Day 2025,2025-11-11,2025,2025-11,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"MINNESOTA - U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) released the statement below in honor of Veterans Day. “On this and every Veterans Day, our nation honors those who served and the sacrifices they made to defend our nation. Since the founding of our democracy, each person who has worn the uniform has left their mark on our nation as they defended our freedom. As we pay tribute to all our veterans today, I am thinking about patriots like U.S. Army Captain Willibald Charles Bianchi of New Ulm, Minnesota, whose remains were identified on August 11, 2025 — more than 80 years after he died while serving our country. Captain Bianchi was born in New Ulm, grew up on a poultry farm, and quit high school after his father died in a farming accident. He resumed his schooling at the University of Minnesota Farm School in St. Paul and the South Dakota State University. When he graduated in 1940, he was immediately commissioned as an Army second lieutenant and the following year he was deployed to the Philippines. In February 1942, he volunteered to help clear a series of Japanese machine gun nests and continued leading the attack even when he was wounded multiple times, earning the Medal of Honor. He was later captured and held as a prisoner of war by the Empire of Japan until 1945, when he died aboard a Japanese Prisoner of War ship. His recovery reflects our nation’s commitment to bring our missing heroes home — no matter how much time has passed. We can never serve any veteran in quite the same way they served us. Whether they served many decades ago or in our more recent conflicts overseas, our obligation is to always strive to ensure they have the support and care they earned. That is why I have made it a priority to work with colleagues across the aisle to expand access to comprehensive care to those who were exposed to burn pits and other toxic substances during their service. And I will continue fighting to ensure all those who wore our nation’s uniform get the care and services they deserve when they return home. Today, as a new generation answers the call to serve in an ever-changing world, let us recommit ourselves to supporting them not only during their time in the uniform, but after they no longer wear it — with good jobs, educational opportunities, strong health care, and reverence for their service. To all of our Minnesota veterans, service members, and military families, you represent the best of America. Thank you for your dedication to our country.” ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:52:45Z https://www.smith.senate.gov/u-s-senator-tina-smiths-statement-on-tonights-vote-on-the-federal-government-shutdown/,U.S. Senator Tina Smith’s Statement on Tonight’s Vote on the Federal Government Shutdown,2025-11-11,2025,2025-11,Democrat,Senate,MN,Tina Smith,S001203,www.smith.senate.gov,tinasmith,https://www.smith.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON – Tonight, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) released the following statement after voting against a continuing resolution to fund the federal government: “I will not support this bill that completely fails to help Americans afford their health care. Trump and Republicans more than doubled Americans’ health care premiums, and for 40 days they have refused to lift a finger to do a thing about it. In fact, they’ve made it worse by taking food away from kids. Allowing this to pass is a mistake.”",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:52:45Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=444A45CD-F293-4124-A540-D7D8F797F353,Klobuchar Statement on Budget Bill,2025-11-09,2025,2025-11,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) released the following statement on her vote against the budget bill. “Lowering costs is the top priority for Minnesotans. I voted against this budget bill because it does not prevent health insurance premiums from doubling for so many in our state. The President and Congressional Republicans should have come to the table to work with us to lower these costs. In every other budget impasse or shutdown there were negotiations and compromise with the White House. I am committed to lowering health care costs and will do everything I can to get this done,” said Klobuchar. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:52:45Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=B155A942-7AB4-40BE-B2D0-95B0129886EF,Klobuchar Statement on Weight Loss Drug Pricing Announcement,2025-11-06,2025,2025-11,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) released the following statement in response to Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk’s newly negotiated prices for weight loss drugs for Medicare beneficiaries. “Today’s announcement of lower prices for Ozempic and other GLP-1 drugs is a direct result of the Medicare drug price negotiations bill that I led and was passed into law in 2022,” said Klobuchar. ""For too long, big drug companies have put profits ahead of the health and well-being of the American people. It’s welcome news that some of the most widely-used medications will now be more affordable thanks to Medicare’s drug price negotiations.” Klobuchar has long led efforts to lower drug prices. The Empowering Medicare Seniors to Negotiate Drug Prices Act, Klobuchar’s bill to end the ban on Medicare negotiating lower prescription drug prices for Medicare’s 51 million seniors and help lower drug prices for all Americans was signed into law in August 2022. In May, Klobuchar, Senator Peter Welch (D-VT), and 25 of their colleagues re-introduced the Strengthening Medicare and Reducing Taxpayer (SMART) Prices Act, which would expand the number of prescription drugs that HHS could negotiate lower prices for and increase the amount of savings Medicare could negotiate. In April, two of Klobuchar and Senator Chuck Grassley’s (R-IA) bipartisan bills to promote competition and reduce drug prices - The Preserving Access to Affordable Generics and Biosimilars Act and the Stop STALLING Act - passed the Senate Judiciary Committee by voice vote. Together these bills would save taxpayers $1.9 billion over 10 years. The Preserving Access to Affordable Generics and Biosimilars Act would limit anticompetitive “pay-for-delay” deals that prevent or delay the introduction of affordable follow-on versions of branded pharmaceuticals. The Stop Significant and Time-wasting Abuse Limiting Legitimate Innovation of New Generics (STALLING) Act would deter pharmaceutical companies from filing sham petitions with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in order to interfere with the approval of generic and biosimilar medicines that compete with their own brand products, a tactic that delays patient access to affordable medications. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:52:45Z https://www.smith.senate.gov/u-s-senator-tina-smiths-statement-on-faa-announcement-of-reduced-air-traffic-at-msp-airport-as-a-result-of-government-shutdown/,U.S. Senator Tina Smith’s Statement on FAA Announcement of Reduced Air Traffic at MSP Airport as a Result of Government Shutdown,2025-11-06,2025,2025-11,Democrat,Senate,MN,Tina Smith,S001203,www.smith.senate.gov,tinasmith,https://www.smith.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) released the following statement following an announcement by the Federal Aviation Administration that air traffic will be reduced by 10% across 40 ‘high-volume’ markets during government shutdown, including at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. On average, MSP Airport experiences 750 flights every day, with an estimated average of 60,000 daily departing passengers. “It’s long past time for President Trump and Speaker Mike Johnson to act like grown-ups and sit down and talk to us about how to get out of this shutdown so we don’t see impacts like the ones at MSP. Minnesotans are working hard trying to figure out how to afford their lives, especially health insurance. I won’t vote for a bill that hurts Minnesotans and does nothing to make life more affordable,” said Senator Tina Smith. “The only path forward is through negotiating, so air traffic in the skies above Minnesota and the country can keep operating safely and at full capacity and our government can finally open up again.” Senator Smith is a cosponsor of the True Shutdown Fairness Act, to pay all federal workers during the government shutdown, including air traffic controllers. That measure has been blocked by Senate Republicans.",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:52:45Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=03167D56-0ABF-451C-A8B5-451370C8F6BD,"Klobuchar, Kaine, Paul, Warner Bipartisan Bill Challenging President Trump’s Tariffs on Canada Passes Senate",2025-10-29,2025,2025-10,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WATCH A CLIP OF KLOBUCHAR’S REMARKS HERE. WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the U.S. Senate voted 50-46 to pass bipartisan legislation introduced by U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Rand Paul (R-KY), and Mark R. Warner (D-VA), as well as Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), to challenge President Donald Trump’s tariffs on Canada. The vote came shortly after newly released inflation data showed that consumer prices rose in September at their fastest pace in eight months. “Tonight, the Senate came together and sent President Trump a clear, bipartisan message: he cannot continue to abuse his power and unilaterally wage a trade war against one of our strongest allies. Canada is Minnesota’s top trading partner, but these chaotic tariffs are jeopardizing that relationship—and increasing costs for Minnesota families,” said Klobuchar. “We can’t afford to keep raising costs, hurting businesses, and eliminating jobs by attacking our neighbor and ally.” “In order to strengthen our weakening economy, we need stability and strong relationships around the world—not chaotic trade wars that raise prices, shut American businesses out of foreign markets, and decrease tourism to the U.S.,” said Kaine. “I’m glad a bipartisan majority in the Senate once again reaffirmed that principle and the value of America’s long-standing friendship with Canada tonight. Now it’s time for the House to stop playing procedural tricks to hide from its constitutional responsibility to stop President Trump from abusing his authority to unilaterally impose new taxes on the American people.” The National Emergencies Act states that the U.S. House of Representatives must vote on this legislation within 18 days. Specifically, the legislation would terminate the February 1 emergency declaration that President Trump used to launch his trade war with Canada, and would eliminate the tariffs on Canadian imports implemented as a result. President Trump’s order cited the IEEPA, an unprecedented use of IEEPA’s emergency provisions in the law’s nearly half-century history. The IEEPA tariffs are among the largest tax increases on American families in recent history. Public opinion surveys have overwhelmingly demonstrated that the American people do not support Trump’s trade wars. According to a recent survey by Public First, 43 percent of American adults opposed applying tariffs to Canada. An Economist/YouGov survey found a majority of U.S. adults, 52 percent, were opposed to Trump’s Canada tariffs. In 2024, Canada was Minnesota’s largest trading partner – exporting $7.5 billion in goods to Canada – accounting for 28 percent of the state’s exports. The legislation is supported by the AFL-CIO, United Steelworkers (USW), North America’s Building Trades Unions (NABTU), International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers (IFPTE), Conference of Mayors, Public Citizen, National Association of Women Owned Businesses (NAWBO), Mainstreet Alliance, Small Business Majority, National Taxpayers Union, U.S. Chamber of Commerce, American Apparel & Footwear Association, National Retail Federation, The Sheet Metal and Air Conditioning Contractors National Association (SMACNA), Consumer Technology Association, We Pay the Tariffs, Foreign Policy for America, and American Craft Spirits Association. In addition to Klobuchar, Kaine, Paul, Warner, and Schumer, the legislation is cosponsored by U.S. Senators Susan Collins (R-ME), Angus King (I-ME), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Peter Welch (D-VT), Chris Coons (D-DE), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Brian Schatz (D-HI), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), and Jack Reed (D-RI). Full text of the legislation is available here.",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:32:54Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=EDA37578-198F-4E3C-8C28-2C86BCE1B058,Klobuchar Delivers Floor Remarks Ahead of Senate Passage of the Bipartisan Canada Tariff Resolution,2025-10-29,2025,2025-10,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WATCH KLOBUCHAR’S REMARKS HERE. WASHINGTON — On the Senate floor, U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar delivered remarks advocating for bipartisan legislation to overturn President Trump’s tariffs on Canada imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEPPA). The legislation was passed with bipartisan support by a 50-46 vote. A rough transcript from the Senator’s floor remarks is below and a video for download is linked here. “It is one embassy, years ago, when America was disliked by a lot of countries that displayed on their embassy, huge banners that said: friend, ally, partner. For so many of our states, they’re our biggest trading partners. They fought alongside us in two world wars. They are our partners in NORAD and in NATO. They worked with us together on the supply chain and getting back working after the pandemic. They are setting new historic goals. Canada is to contribute to our collective defense planning, to triple defense spending over the next decade. But what does this administration do? Slap them with a 35% tariff, and then just because the president woke up in the morning and didn't like an ad that quoted a beloved Republican President Ronald Reagan. He said, ‘well, I'm going to give him 10% more.’ Yet, this is a country with which we share a trade agreement that this President negotiated with Mexico and Canada. If you want to make changes right for dairy or other things, do it in the review of that agreement. Don't do it like this to a neighbor and friend. Secondly, what do these tariffs mean to America? Mean to the people in our country combined? They've been changed over 100 times total payoffs, inflation is up. Manufacturing jobs are down. Small farm bankruptcies are at their highest level in five years, and every senator in this chamber has heard from their beef producers or heard from their soybean farmers. What is happening right now is one of my farmers called it a perfect storm of ugly. For an individual family right now, these tariffs mean a $2,000 tax per family. The cost of tools are up. Audio equipment costs more. This is the effect of this tariff policy on individual families in America. We can have high-minded debates here, but at home, they're looking at their grocery prices. They're looking at their markets, their family farms that they spent a century building, they're the next in line to take it over, and its drying up. That's what these tariffs are about. Then finally, the president cannot keep abusing his power like this. There is a reason, when you look at the numbers, who supports this resolution — United Steelworkers, International Association of Machinists, North America’s Building Trades Unions, AFL-CIO, The Chamber of Commerce , National Taxpayers Union, National Retail Federation have all endorsed this resolution. But unfortunately, with a few exceptions, our friends on the other side of the aisle are rubber stamping what this president wants. It's time for us to stand up. This vote is about reasserting congress' constitutional role. Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution, gives congress, not the president, the power to regulate commerce with foreign nations. We must stand up for American workers, businesses, and consumers, and remind our allies and ourselves that America keeps its word.” A video of her full remarks is available here. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:32:54Z https://www.smith.senate.gov/u-s-senator-tina-smith-colleagues-push-legislation-to-pay-all-federal-employees-service-members-and-contractors-during-shutdown/,"U.S. Senator Tina Smith, Colleagues Push Legislation to Pay All Federal Employees, Service Members, and Contractors During Shutdown",2025-10-23,2025,2025-10,Democrat,Senate,MN,Tina Smith,S001203,www.smith.senate.gov,tinasmith,https://www.smith.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) joined 24 colleagues to introduce the True Shutdown Fairness Act to pay all federal employees and the contractors supporting their work during the shutdown. The Senators’ legislation, the True Shutdown Fairness Act, would also prevent the Administration’s attempts at mass firings (Reductions in Force or RIFs) while the government is shutdown. The legislation was blocked from passage by Senator Ron Johnson (R-WI). “Our troops and federal workers shouldn’t be used as political pawns in this shutdown fight. They never signed up to have their paychecks used as leverage. They shouldn’t be punished because President Trump refuses to negotiate a deal with Congress to re-open our government and has refused to take any action to prevent massive health care cost increases for Minnesota families,” said Senator Smith. “This is a commonsense, straightforward bill that would take federal workers and troops out of the crosshairs of a shutdown fight without handing over more unchecked power to President Trump and his unelected lackey, Russell Vought.” The Senators’ legislation is endorsed by major labor unions that represent federal employees across the country, including: American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE) American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers (IFPTE) The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) Background on the True Shutdown Fairness Act: The True Shutdown Fairness Act would immediately restart pay for all excepted and furloughed federal workers, servicemembers, and federal contractors during the current shutdown. The Senators’ legislation also includes a prohibition on Reductions In Force while the federal government is shut down. Federal employees are ensured retroactive pay after a shutdown ends due to the Government Employee Fair Treatment Act – legislation that was signed into law by President Trump in 2019. The legislation is cosponsored by Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Gary Peters (D-MI), Patty Murray (D-WA), Mark Warner (D-VA), Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Andy Kim (D-NJ), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Brian Schatz (D-HI), Ben Ray Lujan (D-NM), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), Chris Coons (D-DE), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Ed Markey (D-MA), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE), Peter Welch (D-VT), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Mark Kelly (D-AZ) and Raphael Warnock (D-GA).",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:32:54Z https://www.smith.senate.gov/u-s-senators-tina-smith-amy-klobuchar-urge-trump-administration-restore-minnesota-energy-infrastructure-funding/,"U.S. Senators Tina Smith, Amy Klobuchar Urge Trump Administration Restore Minnesota Energy Infrastructure Funding",2025-10-16,2025,2025-10,Democrat,Senate,MN,Tina Smith,S001203,www.smith.senate.gov,tinasmith,https://www.smith.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"MINNEAPOLIS, MN – U.S. Senators Tina Smith and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) called on the Trump Administration to reverse their politically motivated cancellation of $645 million in funding for Minnesota energy projects. The letter comes after the White House announced it was canceling energy infrastructure awards only in states that did not support President Trump in the presidential election, including Minnesota. “Electricity bills have already jumped nearly 10% since the Trump administration took office. Your decision to cancel federal investment that is meant to upgrade our aging electric grid and help get new power sources connected to meet new demand is only going to punish households with even higher electricity bills in the months and years to come,” wrote Senators Smith and Klobuchar. “At a time when most Minnesotans and Americans are just trying to scrape together enough money to pay their bills and live their lives, this kind of politically motivated attack on our state is just going to make it that much harder for them to pay their utility bills every month. That is not securing American energy dominance, and it will not advance President Trump’s stated commitment to delivering affordable, reliable, and secure energy for the American people. We ask you to reverse course and reinstate these funds immediately,” the Senators concluded. Some of the Minnesota projects that had their funding canceled include: $464 million to build new electrical transmission lines connecting power sources across Minnesota, South Dakota, North Dakota, Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska and Kansas $50 million to upgrade an out-of-date, aging electrical transmission line connecting Minnesota and North Dakota so more power can flow efficiently $80 million for battery systems designed to run over multiple days to make sure power is running through Minnesota’s electrical grid at all times $1.7 million to research ways to ensure solar projects save people money and preserve local ecosystems You can read the full text of the letter here or below. Dear Secretary Wright, We urge you to reverse your announced termination of more than $600 million in Department of Energy grants for Minnesota projects. Losing these grants will mean higher electricity rates for Minnesotans. Cancelling these projects will also stifle American innovation, destroy jobs, and drive people’s electricity bills higher. Reporting also indicates that you are considering additional terminations, amounting to billions of dollars more in lost energy infrastructure funding across Minnesota and the country. We urge you to reverse course on those cancellations as well. Electricity bills have already jumped nearly 10% since the Trump administration took office. Your decision to cancel federal investment that is meant to upgrade our aging electric grid and help get new power sources connected to meet new demand is only going to punish households with even higher electricity bills in the months and years to come. The White House has signaled that these cancellations are targeted at states that did not support President Trump in the presidential election. Despite this blatantly partisan attack, the truth is, the Minnesota-led grants you have terminated will not just hurt Minnesotans. Terminating grants for these projects meant to help support grid reliability and lower energy costs will be felt nationwide, regardless of whether people live in a “blue” or “red” state. Americans in states like South Dakota, North Dakota, Iowa and Nebraska are going to feel the brunt of your decision to cancel these Minnesota-led projects. At a time when most Minnesotans and Americans are just trying to scrape together enough money to pay their bills and live their lives, this kind of politically motivated attack on our state is just going to make it that much harder for them to pay their utility bills every month. That is not securing American energy dominance, and it will not advance President Trump’s stated commitment to delivering affordable, reliable, and secure energy for the American people. We ask you to reverse course and reinstate these funds immediately. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:32:54Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=DADF3AC7-4AFD-4BE7-8F08-688A4F7B6A2B,"Klobuchar, Cramer, Kim, Daines Bipartisan Legislation to Provide Credit Monitoring Services for All Servicemembers Passes Senate",2025-10-14,2025,2025-10,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), along with Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Andy Kim (D-NJ), and Steve Daines (R-MT), announced their Servicemembers’ Credit Monitoring Enhancement Act passed the Senate as part of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2026. This legislation now goes to the House of Representatives for a vote. The bipartisan legislation provides free credit monitoring for all armed service members, including non-active duty reservists and National Guard members. Currently, only active duty servicemembers are eligible for free credit monitoring. “Servicemembers are heroes who put their lives on the line for our nation and we must support them in every way we can,” said Klobuchar. “By making free credit monitoring available for every single member of our armed forces, this bipartisan legislation will improve the financial security of military families and give them greater peace of mind.” “Our servicemembers put so much on the line and are frequently deployed or regularly moving, leaving them more vulnerable to financial fraud,” said Cramer. “The inclusion of the Servicemembers’ Credit Monitoring Enhancement Act in this year’s NDAA is an important step to protecting their financial security.” “I have supported this legislation since I was a member of the House of Representatives and first represented Guard and Reserve service members at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst who are unfairly cut out of the full benefits they deserve. All of our brave men and women in uniform and their loved ones should have peace of mind when it comes to their financial well-being and security. This legislation is a successful part of this year’s NDAA to have the backs of all who have volunteered to serve our nation in uniform,” said Kim. “Our servicemembers and their families have made countless sacrifices to protect our country and our freedom. The last thing they should have to worry about is identity theft or fraud issues. I’m thrilled to see our bipartisan legislation to expand free credit monitoring to our servicemembers pass the U.S. Senate and I’ll always support our military families in Montana and across the nation,” said Daines. “It is essential that financial protections be provided to all members of the uniformed services and we are grateful that this legislation has been passed to help expand these protections to the armed forces,” said Jimmy Santos, the Military Officers Association of America’s Director of Currently Serving Affairs. “The Military Officers Association of America is extremely appreciative of the work of Senators Klobuchar, Cramer, Carper, and Daines for providing protection to our servicemembers, irrespective of duty status. With financial stability and peace of mind, our armed forces are able to maintain mission-ready focus and keep our citizens safe” “Congress has long recognized that free credit reporting can offer active duty military some financial peace of mind while they serve our country. This legislation will help protect even more service members from fraud and cybercrime while offering important insights into their personal finances. We applaud the work to bring this legislation to fruition and thank the leaders in the Senate who made it possible,” said TransUnion. “We are grateful for the many sacrifices made by our military service members, and we are committed to helping them live their financial best by providing them with the tools they need to help minimize their risk of fraud or identity theft,” said Mark W. Begor, CEO of Equifax. The Servicemembers’ Credit Monitoring Enhancement Act makes free electronic credit monitoring that is currently available to active duty service members available to all armed service members, including non-active duty reservists and National Guard members.",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:32:54Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=796EC1B6-BCC3-4C87-A0D6-7B0AD601D9BB,Klobuchar and Cramer’s Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act Passes Senate,2025-10-10,2025,2025-10,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Kevin Cramer (R-ND) announced the Senate’s passage of the Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act as a part of the National Defense Authorization Act. This legislation now goes to the House of Representatives for a vote. The bipartisan legislation, which passed unanimously out of the Senate Judiciary Committee in May, will expand access to federal support for the families of firefighters and other first responders who pass away or become permanently disabled from service-related cancers. Klobuchar introduced this legislation in honor of Michael Paidar, a St. Paul fire captain who died of an aggressive form of Acute Myeloid Leukemia on August 26, 2020 while still working for the fire department. In 2021, after strong advocacy from the Paidar family, the Minnesota Department of Public Safety awarded line-of-duty benefits to Captain Paidar’s widow Julie. This was the first time that a firefighter’s family had received benefits for cancer incurred in the line-of-duty through Minnesota’s state Public Safety Officer Benefits (PSOB) program. The Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act would ensure that firefighters and other first responders across the country are eligible to receive similar benefits under the federal PSOB program. “Our firefighters put their lives on the line every day to keep us safe, often exposing themselves to carcinogens that can have lethal long-term effects. It’s unacceptable that firefighters who succumb to cancer from work-related exposure or become permanently and totally disabled don’t receive the same treatment as others who die in the line of duty,” said Klobuchar. “This bipartisan legislation will ensure that the Public Safety Benefits Program covers service-related cancers— honoring the commitment we make to our firefighters like Captain Paidar and other first responders who made the ultimate sacrifice. We must uphold our promise to care for their families.” “Our first responders epitomize courage and selfless sacrifice, confronting both the immediate perils of their duty which are extreme and the lingering health risks associated with their service,” said Cramer. “Their exposure to dangerous carcinogens happens on our behalf. When these heroes make the ultimate sacrifice, their families should not have to bear these burdens alone. I’m grateful my Senate colleagues passed this important legislation.” Currently, firefighters are only eligible for support under the PSOB program for physical injuries sustained in the line-of-duty, or for deaths from duty-related heart attacks, strokes, mental health conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder, and 9/11 related illnesses. “I’m grateful to Senators Klobuchar and Cramer for leading the bipartisan Honoring our Fallen Heroes Act through the Senate. Every day, our nation’s first responders selflessly serve and protect their communities. Unfortunately, through exposures on the job, many are also fighting occupational cancer. As our family knows firsthand, the lives of the first responder and their family are forever changed upon the cancer diagnosis. Mike loved being a career firefighter and paramedic. Losing him to Leukemia in 2020 was devastating not only for our family, but also for his fire family and our communities. This important legislation will honor his legacy and recognize the sacrifices of our fallen, allowing first responders and their families to receive the PSOB benefits they rightly deserve,” said Julie Paidar, widow of St. Paul Fire Captain Michael Paidar. This legislation is co-sponsored by the following 58 Senators: Senators Banks (R-IN), Barrasso (R-WY), Blackburn (R-TN), Blumenthal (D-CT), Coons (D-DE), Cornyn (R-TX), Cruz (R-TX), Duckworth (D-IL), Durbin (D-IL), Fetterman (D-PA), Fischer (R-NE), Graham (R-SC), Hirono (D-HI), Hoeven (R-ND), Justice (R-WV), Kelly (D-AZ), Markey (D-MA), Padilla (D-CA), Rounds (R-SD), Schiff (D-CA), Shaheen (D-NH), Sheehy (R-MT), Smith (D-MN), Warner (D-VA), Warren (D-MA), Welch (D-VT), Whitehouse (D-RI), Wyden (D-OR); Hoeven (R-ND); Ossoff (D-GA); Capito (R-WV); Cantwell (D-WA); Gallego (D-AZ); Moreno (R-OH); Kennedy (R-LA); Merkley (D-OR); Kim (D-NJ); Rosen (D-NV); Moody (R-FL); Gillibrand (D-NY); Kaine (D-VA); Hassan (D-NH); Van Hollen (D-MD); Tillis (R-NC); Marshall (R-KS); Murkowski (R-AK); Alsobrooks (D-MD); Hawley (R-MO); McCormick (R-PA); Risch (R-ID); Moran (R-KS); Crapo (R-ID); Sanders (I-VT); Schmitt (R-MO); Cortez Masto (D-NV); Hyde-Smith (R-MS); Collins (R-ME); and Heinrich (D-NM). The legislation is endorsed by the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF), as well as the Association of State Criminal Investigative Agencies (ASCIA); Congressional Fire Services Institute (CFSI); Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association (FLEOA); Fraternal Order of Police (FOP); International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC); Major County Sheriffs of America (MCSA); Metropolitan Fire Chiefs Association (Metro Chiefs); National Association of Police Organizations (NAPO); National Fallen Firefighters Foundation (NFFF); National Fire Protection Association (NFPA); National Narcotics Officers’ Associations’ Coalition (NNOAC); National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC); and Sergeants Benevolent Association of the NYPD. Klobuchar is a co-chair of the Congressional Fire Services Caucus and has long led efforts to support firefighters and first responders. Klobuchar co-led bipartisan legislation, the Firefighter Cancer Registry Act, to create a national cancer registry for firefighters diagnosed with deadly cancers, which was signed into law in 2018 and reauthorized last year. The Firefighter Cancer Registry Act calls on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to monitor and study the relationship between career-long exposure to dangerous fumes and toxins and the incidence of cancer in firefighters. Klobuchar worked to pass the bipartisan Fire Grants and Safety Act which was signed into law in 2023 and provides funding for the Assistance for Firefighters Grant and the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Grant programs. The Assistance for Firefighters Grant program helps firefighters and other first responders obtain critically needed equipment, protective gear, emergency vehicles, training, and other resources. The SAFER Grant program provides direct funding to fire departments and volunteer firefighter interest organizations to increase or maintain the number of trained ""front line"" firefighters and enhance their capacity to comply with staffing, response, and operational standards. Klobuchar also worked to pass the Protecting America’s First Responders Act, which was signed into law in 2021. This legislation improves the PSOB program by allowing benefit amounts to be calculated based on the date of the award and account for cost of living increases. Klobuchar co-led legislation to retrofit older high-rise apartment buildings with sprinkler systems and help prevent future tragedies like the Cedar High Apartments fire, which took place in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 2019. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:32:54Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=E96731B9-8A76-467D-AE36-E0AC17DB4FFC,"Klobuchar, Grassley Legislation to Bolster Support for Identifying and Returning Kidnapped Ukrainian Children Passes Senate",2025-10-10,2025,2025-10,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"Russia has kidnapped more than 19,000 Ukrainian children – attempting to erase their cultural identity and heritage WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA) announced that their bipartisan Abducted Ukrainian Children Recovery and Accountability Act passed the Senate as part of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2026. This legislation now goes to the House of Representatives for a vote. The Abducted Ukrainian Children Recovery and Accountability Act would increase support for Ukraine’s efforts to investigate and track the more than 19,000 Ukrainian children who have been abducted during Putin’s brutal invasion, assist with the rehabilitation and reintegration of children who are returned, and provide justice and accountability for perpetrators of these abductions. “The mass kidnapping of Ukrainian children by Russia is an atrocity. We cannot accept a world where children are abducted during wartime and used as a form of hostage-taking for negotiations. Our bipartisan legislation will provide the necessary support to track them and hold the perpetrators accountable,” said Klobuchar. “After he started the largest war in Europe since World War II, Putin kidnapped thousands of Ukrainian children to brainwash and Russify them, trying to destroy their cultural identity and heritage. These children should be returned home as soon as possible. I’m glad to see our measure included in the annual defense bill to support critical tools to identify and track the location of these children and reintegrate them into their homeland. We’re also helping hold perpetrators accountable for their atrocities to ensure justice is served,” said Grassley. This legislation follows a bipartisan resolution that Klobuchar and Grassley led in May condemning Russia’s abduction and forcible transfer of Ukrainian children and demanding their return before reaching a final peace agreement. The full text of the resolution here. This legislation is complementary to the Designating the Russian Federation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism Act, which was introduced in September by Klobuchar and Senators Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), and Katie Britt (R-AL) to designate Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism under U.S. law if it fails to return the more than 19,000 Ukrainian children that have been kidnapped during the course of the war. In March, Klobuchar and Grassley were joined by Senator Durbin in leading a bipartisan letter calling for the State Department to continue supporting efforts to investigate Russia’s abduction and deportation of Ukrainian children. To date, Ukrainian authorities have received at least 19,546 confirmed reports of unlawful deportations and forced transfers of Ukrainian children to Russia, Belarus or Russian-occupied Ukrainian territory. The abductions aim to erase the children’s Ukrainian names, language, and identity. As of October 9, Ukraine and its partners have only managed to return about 1,600 abducted children. The State Department’s 2024 Trafficking in Persons Report found Russia recruits or uses child soldiers, has a state-sponsored policy or pattern of human trafficking, and is among the worst hubs for human trafficking in the world. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:32:54Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=CCCD26C3-6FDE-446D-94C8-83420377A9B4,Klobuchar’s Bipartisan Bills Pass Senate as Part of the National Defense Authorization Act,2025-10-09,2025,2025-10,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) announced that five bipartisan bills she leads to advance our national security and support servicemembers, law enforcement, first responders, and their families, as well as Ukrainian children kidnapped by Russia, have passed the Senate as part of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2026. This legislation now goes to the House of Representatives for a vote before it can be signed into law by the President. “Every day, our servicemembers, law enforcement officers, and first responders put their lives on the line to protect their neighbors,” said Klobuchar. “These provisions will strengthen the National Defense Authorization Act and do right by those who sacrifice so much for our security.” Abducted Ukrainian Children Recovery and Accountability Act The Abducted Ukrainian Children Recovery and Accountability Act, led by Klobuchar and Grassley, will enhance support for Ukraine’s efforts to investigate and track the nearly 20,000 Ukrainian children who have been abducted during Putin’s brutal invasion, assist with the rehabilitation and reintegration of children who are returned, and provide justice and accountability for perpetrators of these abductions. Servicemembers’ Credit Monitoring Enhancement Act The Servicemembers’ Credit Monitoring Enhancement Act, led by Klobuchar and Cramer as well as Senators Andy Kim (D-NJ) and Steve Daines (R-MT) will provide free credit monitoring for all members of the U.S. armed forces regardless of duty status. Currently, only active duty servicemembers (and active duty members of the National Guard) are eligible for these free credit monitoring services. Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act The Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act, led by Klobuchar and Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) will expand access to federal support for the families of firefighters and other first responders who pass away or become permanently disabled from service-related cancers. Currently, firefighters are only eligible for support under the Public Safety Officer Benefits (PSOB) program for physical injuries sustained in the line-of-duty, or for deaths from duty-related heart attacks, strokes, mental health conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder, and 9/11 related illnesses. Klobuchar introduced this legislation in honor of Michael Paidar, a St. Paul fire captain who died of an aggressive form of Acute Myeloid Leukemia on August 26, 2020 while still working for the fire department. Retired Law Enforcement Officers Continuing Service Act The bipartisan Retired Law Enforcement Officers Continuing Service Act, led by Klobuchar and Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA), will support law enforcement agencies in hiring retired law enforcement officers to perform civilian law enforcement tasks. This includes helping with carjacking investigations by reviewing camera footage, with crime scene analysis as well as investigations into financial and cyber-crimes, and the training of new law enforcement officers. Protecting First Responders from Secondary Exposure Act The Protecting First Responders from Secondary Exposure Act, which Klobuchar also leads with Grassley, will support state and local emergency services with additional training and containment tools to guard against accidental exposure to lethal narcotics like fentanyl. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:32:54Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=9C0702E3-4FDF-4F58-8CB1-63DAE6D070BD,"Klobuchar, Boozman Lead Senate Recognition of 4-H",2025-10-08,2025,2025-10,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"Senate Adopts Resolution Designating October 5-11 National 4-H Week WASHINGTON?–?U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Ranking Member Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Chairman John Boozman (R-AR), co-chairs of the Senate 4-H Caucus, are celebrating National 4-H Week by leading a resolution recognizing the importance of the program on youth development. The Senate passed the resolution designating October 5-11, 2025 as National 4-H Week. “Minnesota 4-H is preparing over 40,000 young Minnesotans to lead in their communities,” said Klobuchar. “I am glad to partner with Senator Boozman to recognize the work of 4-H by designating this week as National 4-H Week. As co-chair of the 4-H Caucus, I will continue working with my colleagues to support opportunities for youth engaged in agriculture.” “4-H plays a vital role in preparing young people for the future. I’ve seen its impact on my three daughters, who discovered new interests and talents as active members. I’m proud to support this organization and look forward to continuing to celebrate its mission of shaping the next generation of leaders,”?Boozman said. 4-H is a youth development program of the Cooperative Extension System of land-grant universities, and it is the largest youth development organization in the country.?It?provides experiences for nearly six million young people through hands-on projects in health, science, agriculture and civic engagement annually including 40,000 in Minnesota and 130,000 in Arkansas. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:32:54Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=9CE95F35-F8E4-4ACE-90BA-49EE6EE5A9F2,Klobuchar Questions Bondi on Independence of Justice Department,2025-10-07,2025,2025-10,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) asked U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi about the Department of Justice’s investigations and prosecutions of President Trump’s enemies, including former Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Chris Krebs, Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, a sitting U.S. Senator, and former FBI Director James Comey. Bondi refused to directly answer critical questions about the independence of the Department of Justice under her leadership. A rough transcript is available below and video is available HERE. Senator Klobuchar: We saw this with the President directing an investigation, prosecution of Chris Krebs, the former head of cybersecurity; Lisa Cook, who is a current governor of the Federal Reserve; Director Comey. … I was going to ask you if you received advice, instruction, or requests from anyone at the White House to direct the department to engage in any investigations, prosecutorial actions, including decisions not to investigate or prosecute anyone. Pam Bondi: I am not going to discuss any conversations. Klobuchar: How about the Truth Social post on September 20th, 2025, in which the President said, “We can't delay any longer” Pam, using your name. Not bringing criminal charges are “killing our reputation” — his words — “and credibility.” And then goes on to tell you to prosecute a member of this committee, to prosecute the Attorney General of New York, and to prosecute James Comey. Do you consider that a directive to the Justice Department? Bondi: Senator Klobuchar, President Trump is the most transparent president in American history, and I don't think he said anything that he hasn't said for years. Klobuchar: It has been reported that you initially pushed back against report — against requests by senior Trump administration officials to push out or fire the acting U.S. attorney in Virginia, Erik Siebert, who's a conservative Republican who made the decision that the evidence was not there to prosecute Comey. What made you change your opinion? Bondi: I am not going to discuss personnel decisions. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:32:54Z https://www.smith.senate.gov/amid-government-shutdown-sen-smith-rep-pressley-introduce-bill-to-provide-back-pay-for-federal-contract-workers-including-low-wage-food-service-and-custodial-staff/,"Amid Government Shutdown, Sen. Smith, Rep. Pressley Introduce Bill to Provide Back Pay for Federal Contract Workers, Including Low-Wage Food Service and Custodial Staff",2025-10-03,2025,2025-10,Democrat,Senate,MN,Tina Smith,S001203,www.smith.senate.gov,tinasmith,https://www.smith.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, DC – Following the federal government shutdown, Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) and Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07) introduced legislation to secure back pay for the thousands of federal contract workers who face furloughs and missed paychecks when the federal government is shutdown. Unlike federal employees, the thousands of federal contract workers—including janitorial, food, and security services workers—have no assurances that they will receive back pay to make up for their loss of hours and pay during a shutdown. The bill is co-led by Senators Tim Kaine (D-VA), Mark Warner (D-VA), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) and Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD). The Fair Pay for Federal Contractors Act would ensure federal contract workers, including low-wage service workers providing security, food and janitorial services, are fairly compensated for the wages and benefits lost due to a lapse in appropriations, also known as a government shutdown. It is estimated that more than 327,000 federal contractors make under $15/per hour. “This is about fairness—contract workers and their families should not miss a paycheck because of a government shutdown they did nothing to cause,” said Sen. Smith. “Many federal contractors work in jobs that are important for government operations, providing security, food service and janitorial work. These are often lower-wage jobs, with many workers living paycheck to paycheck. These workers can’t afford to go without, and they shouldn’t have to. In past shutdowns, contract workers haven’t received back pay at the end of a government shutdown like regular government employees. And it’s time we right that wrong.” “Government shutdowns are destabilizing events with devastating consequences for everyone—especially for the thousands of low-wage service workers and their families. With Republicans choosing to shut down the government rather than work with Democrats to protect the lives and livelihoods of workers they represent, our bill would help ensure that federal contractors harmed by Republicans’ cruel games are made whole,” said Congresswoman Pressley. “As a former hospitality worker who knows what it is to live paycheck-to-paycheck, I’m proud to join my colleagues in pushing this bill forward.” “From cafeteria workers and maintenance staff to security and construction workers, federal contractor employees do essential jobs for our government. These employees do not deserve to lose their paychecks due to a political dispute they had nothing to do with. That’s why we’re fighting to ensure that these hardworking people be made whole after this Republican-driven shutdown ends,” said Senator Van Hollen. “From taking care of our nation’s parks to keeping our office buildings safe, federal contractors play vital roles in keeping our government running,” said Senator Kaine.“I was proud to successfully lead legislation in 2019—the last time Trump closed our government—to secure back pay for federal employees during government shutdowns. As Americans find themselves in yet another Trump shutdown, I’m working with my colleagues on this legislation to provide our dedicated federal contractors peace of mind when it comes to their finances.” “This Administration’s witch hunt against our patriotic civil servants continues. Republicans control the White House, Senate, and House. They shut down of the government because of their own incompetence – they haven’t brought down grocery costs, they haven’t brought down housing costs, they haven’t brought down health insurance costs. It’s an absolute disgrace. This Republican shutdown hurts our federal workers – my constituents – all of whom this Administration has cruelly targeted. This Republican shutdown also hurts the contractors in Maryland and across the country that help provide critical services for Americans. And most of all, it hurts the people they serve: the American people. Just like civil servants, federal contractors working on behalf of their government must be paid,” said Senator Alsobrooks. The Fair Pay for Federal Contractors Act would: Provide contract workers, including low-wage service workers, with back pay (and restored paid leave benefits, if used), after a government shutdown, Cover costs associated with back pay for workers in an amount equal to their weekly compensation up to $1,442, (250% of the federal poverty level for a family of four), and Require the Office of Federal Procurement Policy to submit a report on federal contractors accessing back pay. The legislation is cosponsored by Senators Kaine, Warner, Van Hollen, Alsobrooks, Padilla, Duckworth, Durbin, Baldwin, Warren, Heinrich, Blumenthal, Markey, Sanders, Rosen, Hirono, Klobuchar, Shaheen, Whitehouse, Wyden, Schatz, Gillibrand, Fetterman, Cortez Masto, Gallego, Booker, Schiff, Blunt Rochester, Lujan, King, Kim, Kelly, Merkley and Slotkin. The legislation is endorsed by the following organizations: Service Employees International Union (SEIU), AFL-CIO, International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM), Transport Workers Union of America (TWU), Communication Workers of America (CWA), Iron Workers International, National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE-IAM), American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), Laborers’ International Union of North America (LiUNA), International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT), Transportation Trades Department (AFL-CIO), UNITE HERE and American Federation of Teachers (AFT). “A government shutdown hurts every community. Federally contracted workers may never see backpay when Washington politicians turn their backs on them, including security officers protecting our monuments and janitors keeping courthouses clean,” said SEIU International President April Verrett. “Our leaders need to respect the essential workers who keep this country running in good times and bad. Congress should pass the Fair Pay for Federal Contractors Act of 2025 now so every government worker doesn’t have their lives turned upside down during another government shutdown.” “The IAM Union represents tens of thousands of federal contract workers who will be furloughed or forced to work without pay in the event of a government shutdown. These men and women work side-by-side with federal workers performing jobs that are absolutely vital to the government and to the people of the United States,” said IAM Union International President Brian Bryant. “We applaud Senators Smith, Kaine, Warner, Van Hollen, and Alsobrooks for leading the Fair Pay for Federal Contractors Act to ensure federal contract workers are compensated for wages lost during a shutdown. The IAM Union is proud to join the fight to ensure these contract workers are made whole should a government shutdown become a reality.” A copy of the bill text can be found here.",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:32:54Z https://www.smith.senate.gov/u-s-senator-tina-smiths-statement-on-president-trumps-political-attack-on-minnesotas-energy-infrastructure/,U.S. Senator Tina Smith’s Statement on President Trump’s Political Attack on Minnesota’s Energy Infrastructure,2025-10-03,2025,2025-10,Democrat,Senate,MN,Tina Smith,S001203,www.smith.senate.gov,tinasmith,https://www.smith.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, DC – Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) released the following statement after the Trump Administration announced it was cancelling energy infrastructure awards only in states that either did not support him in the presidential election or whose Senators are pushing to negotiate a bipartisan deal to re-open the federal government amidst the current shutdown, including Minnesota. “This is beyond stupid. At a time when most Minnesotans are just trying to scrape together enough money to pay their bills and live their lives, these politically motivated attacks on our state are just going to make it that much harder for Minnesotans to pay their utility bills every month,” said Senator Smith. “It’s not a coincidence he only canceled grants in states that didn’t support his Presidential election bid, even though this is going to hurt every single Minnesotan whether they’re a Republican, a Democrat or an Independent. It’s not even thought out well, because a lot of this infrastructure is shared with states that did vote for him like South Dakota, North Dakota, Iowa and Nebraska, so they’re going to feel the brunt of this too. He thinks using Minnesotans as political pawns will somehow bully me into abandoning my work trying to get a bipartisan deal to get out of this government shutdown. That’s not happening, and we’ll see if these cuts survive legal scrutiny. Some of the Minnesota projects cancelled include:",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:32:54Z https://www.smith.senate.gov/u-s-senator-tina-smiths-statement-on-the-federal-government-shutdown/,U.S. Senator Tina Smith’s Statement on the Federal Government Shutdown,2025-10-01,2025,2025-10,Democrat,Senate,MN,Tina Smith,S001203,www.smith.senate.gov,tinasmith,https://www.smith.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, DC – Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) released the following statement after Congressional Republicans and the White House refused to negotiate to lower health care costs for Americans, resulting in a federal government shutdown. “I’ll work with anyone who wants to work with me to bring down health care costs, but I won’t give Donald Trump a blank check and be bullied into voting for their partisan bill that will leave Minnesotans facing a near-doubling of their health insurance costs,” said Senator Smith. “Grocery bills are going up, utility bills are going up, and health care costs are skyrocketing, especially for health insurance premiums. President Trump and Republicans hurt rural hospitals and nursing homes with massive cuts to Medicaid. Some families are seeing health insurance premiums go up as much as 70 percent or more. Now, they’re shutting down the federal government because they refuse to work with Democrats to lower health care costs for Americans. I’m ready to get to work whenever Republicans want to work with me and other Democrats to fund important medical research and help Minnesotans afford their health care. That’s the only path forward, and I’m ready whenever they are.” According to MNSure, 89,000 Minnesotans will see their premiums increase by nearly $200 every month if Republicans refuse to extend subsidies for Americans. 20,000 Minnesotans will lose all financial assistance.",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:32:54Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=E18A9CFE-E508-4EC2-927B-12B77B808AB5,"Klobuchar, Smith, McCollum Press USPS to Maintain Retail Services at the Downtown White Bear Lake Post Office",2025-09-30,2025,2025-09,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON — U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Tina Smith (D-MN), and Representative Betty McCollum (D-MN) are pressing Postmaster General Steiner not to relocate retail services from the downtown White Bear Lake Post Office. The current location is convenient, allowing customers to access its services without relying on transportation, and is well situated for local businesses. “We write to express opposition to the U.S. Postal Service’s proposed relocation of retail services from the post office located at 2223 5th Street in White Bear Lake, Minnesota,” wrote the lawmakers. “Whether it is a small business owner sending time-sensitive documents, an entrepreneur delivering products to a new customer, or simply a person staying connected with family and friends, Minnesotans rely on retail services at their local post office every day.” “That is why it is important that these services—including a retail counter, PO boxes, and dropboxes—remain at the White Bear Lake Post Office,” the lawmakers continued. “The current location is centrally situated in downtown White Bear Lake, providing convenient access to residents, local businesses, and visitors alike. This convenient location is not only economically beneficial for the community, but also ensures a strong customer base for the Postal Service which relies on the sale of postage, products, and services to fund its operations.” The full text of the letter is available here and below: Dear Mr. Steiner: We write to express opposition to the U.S. Postal Service’s proposed relocation of retail services from the post office located at 2223 5th Street in White Bear Lake, Minnesota. Whether it is a small business owner sending time-sensitive documents, an entrepreneur delivering products to a new customer, or simply a person staying connected with family and friends, Minnesotans rely on retail services at their local post office every day. That is why it is important that these services—including a retail counter, PO boxes, and dropboxes—remain at the White Bear Lake Post Office. The current location is centrally situated in downtown White Bear Lake, providing convenient access to residents, local businesses, and visitors alike. This convenient location is not only economically beneficial for the community, but also ensures a strong customer base for the Postal Service which relies on the sale of postage, products, and services to fund its operations. Moving these services could disrupt area businesses and Postal Service revenue, while making it more difficult for customers to get assistance. We urge you to fully consider these concerns and those raised by local officials, businesses, and residents. In addition, we ask that you consider alternatives that ensure the White Bear Lake Post Office remains a valuable resource for its customers and community. Thank you for your attention to this matter.",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:10:29Z https://www.smith.senate.gov/u-s-senator-tina-smith-joins-colleagues-in-introducing-major-bill-to-reform-expand-head-start-and-early-learning-for-working-families/,"U.S. Senator Tina Smith Joins Colleagues in Introducing Major Bill to Reform, Expand Head Start and Early Learning for Working Families",2025-09-25,2025,2025-09,Democrat,Senate,MN,Tina Smith,S001203,www.smith.senate.gov,tinasmith,https://www.smith.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, D.C — As the Trump administration continues to attack early education opportunities like Head Start, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) joined her colleagues in working to expand early childhood education options and opportunities by introducing the Head Start for America’s Children Act. This bill would expand Head Start to ensure that more than 11 million young children from working class families can access high-quality early education and comprehensive services, while also ensuring Head Start educators earn the wages they deserve. “Access to childcare and early learning programs is essential – both for parents, to be able to go to work, and for the health and futures of our children. But the cost of childcare is crushing working families in Minnesota and across the country.” said Senator Smith. “Head Start helps hard working families care for and educate their young children, prepare them for kindergarten, provide health screenings and family support. When childcare works, everything else does, too—families thrive, the economy grows, and our communities get stronger. That’s why I’m glad to join my colleagues in introducing this legislation that would expand Head Start to more working families in Minnesota.” According to the Minnesota Head Start Association, students who had a high attendance rate in Head Start programs continued to have a high attendance rate through elementary school. Additionally, these students outperformed their K-3 peers in both reading and math. Specifically, The Head Start for America’s Children Act would: Fully fund Head Start to serve 11 million eligible young children and simplify enrollment. Align program hours with working families’ schedules so parents do not need additional childcare. Raise Head Start educator pay to at least $60,000 a year and establish salary scales and competitive benefits. Provide recruitment and retention incentives grants for up to 12,500 educators. Expand co-location of Head Start programs on college campuses and partnerships with childcare providers. Strengthen and diversify the early educator pipeline to prepare at least 3,000 teachers over five years. Improve mental health services for Head Start staff, families and children; and Invest in facility upgrades, including removing lead contamination in paint and water. This bill is cosponsored by Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), John Fetterman (D-Pa.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Andy Kim (D-N.J.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) and Ben Ray Lujan (D-N.M.). ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:10:29Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=5BABFF7C-F98C-495F-9C16-3106B3C65BEE,Klobuchar Completes 13-County Rural Economy Tour,2025-09-24,2025,2025-09,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"Klobuchar Made Stops in Southern Minnesota Focused on Agriculture, the Impact of Tariffs, and Rising Health Care Costs MINNEAPOLIS – This week, U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) visited farms and small businesses in 13 counties on her rural economy tour. Klobuchar’s stops included Big Stone, Chippewa, Cottonwood, Lac Qui Parle, Lincoln, Murray, Olmsted, Pipestone, Rice, Stevens, Swift, Traverse, and Wabasha counties. “This week, I visited farms and small businesses throughout rural Minnesota. I heard firsthand from Minnesotans about their concerns, particularly when it comes to rising costs – from health care to household essentials – and the impact of tariffs on the rural economy, especially our farmers. I will always stand up for rural Minnesota and will keep fighting to lower costs.” Every year, Klobuchar visits all 87 Minnesota counties. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:10:29Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=A19F6BCC-2C77-4609-AAE5-C67DF7CF2FF6,"Klobuchar, Cassidy, McBath, Thompson Introduce National Hazing Awareness Week Resolution",2025-09-24,2025,2025-09,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON — U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA) introduced a resolution to recognize this week, September 22–26, 2025, as “National Hazing Awareness Week.” The resolution recognizes the hundreds of students who have died or suffered severe, life-altering injuries as a result of collegiate hazing and promotes efforts to prevent hazing. The resolution is led by Representatives Lucy McBath (D-GA) and Glen “GT” Thompson (R-PA) in the House of Representatives. “When parents send their kids away to college, they expect they will get a good education and make new friends. Unfortunately, too many are also exposed to hazing, a dangerous—and at times deadly—problem,” said Sen. Klobuchar. “With this resolution, we honor the students who have died or been severely injured due to hazing and promote preventive efforts, at the same time that improve hazing reporting and prevention on college campuses with our bipartisan Stop Campus Hazing Act."" ""Hazing is unequivocally wrong. It causes physical and emotional damage to students who simply want to be accepted,"" said Dr. Cassidy. ""Thanks to the tireless work of the Gruver family and other advocates, we passed the Stop Campus Hazing Act last Congress to increase accountability and protect students from harm. With this new law, we ensure hazing is never ignored.” “I know what it's like to lose a loved one to violence, and no parent should ever have to bury their child. I have been honored to work with families and advocates to pass legislation to end campus hazing,” said Rep. McBath. “I’m glad to lead efforts once again to spread awareness about the pain of these incidents. I thank my colleagues for their continued commitment to protecting our students.” “Hazing is simply not an acceptable behavior. It can lead to great bodily harm, even death, leaving families struggling with the loss of their loved one, changing the trajectory of their lives forever. No family should ever have to experience the loss of a child due to hazing. I am proud to introduce this resolution with Congresswoman McBath to bring awareness, accountability, and transparency to help protect students nationwide from hazing,” said Rep. Thompson. In December, Klobuchar and Cassidy’s Stop Campus Hazing Act to improve the reporting and prevention of hazing on college campuses was signed into law. The bipartisan legislation requires colleges to include hazing incidents in their annual campus safety report and establish a campus-wide, research-based program to educate students about the dangers of hazing. In addition, the bill increases transparency and accountability by providing parents and students with better information about a student organization’s history of hazing incidents. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:10:29Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=EC33153D-2DFD-4471-9FBC-FD2D8B43FA87,Klobuchar Joins Metropolitan Airports Commission Leadership as MSP is Again Ranked the Top Airport in North America for 2025,2025-09-23,2025,2025-09,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"MINNEAPOLIS — U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) joined Metropolitan Airports Commission CEO Brian Ryks to celebrate Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP) earning the top ranking in the J.D. Power 2025 North America Airport Satisfaction Study. MSP has been ranked the top airport in North America by J.D. Power for two years in a row, and three out of the last four years. As a top member of the Senate Commerce Committee, Klobuchar has consistently supported airport improvement and safety funding for Minnesota airports. “When tourists land at MSP, it is often their first impression of our state – and they arrive to find a world-class facility and a staff dedicated to making their journey as easy as possible. That’s why I have consistently fought for airport funding for airports across Minnesota,” said Klobuchar. “I will continue to advocate for our state’s airports to ensure they can keep up with safety requirements, and passenger and economic demands.” “Federal funding is important as we continue to modernize, expand and improve operations to meet the growing demand at MSP Airport,” said Metropolitan Airports Commission CEO Brian Ryks. “Partnerships between the MAC and the federal government help us to better meet the expectations of our customers and continually achieve national and industry accolades.” Klobuchar worked to secure a major investment of federal funds to expand MSP’s facilities at Terminal 2, which was awarded last year. This project is expected to be completed in 2027. Additionally, over the last five years, Klobuchar has championed federal investments in MSP to improve taxiways, seating, walkways, and lighting; to add two new gates for lower-fare airlines; and to construct a new Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting facility. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:10:29Z https://www.smith.senate.gov/u-s-senators-amy-klobuchar-and-tina-smith-announce-award-to-improve-infrastructure-in-polk-county/,U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith Announce Award to Improve Infrastructure in Polk County,2025-09-22,2025,2025-09,Democrat,Senate,MN,Tina Smith,S001203,www.smith.senate.gov,tinasmith,https://www.smith.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Tina Smith (D-MN) announced an award for the city of Crookston to upgrade infrastructure in the city’s east side industrial park. The new infrastructure will include a roadway, water, and wastewater lines that will add 73 acres of developable lots to the industrial park. The project will create 75 jobs and once completed, provide the city with resources to spur their economic growth. “Improving infrastructure is essential for fostering community and economic growth,” said Klobuchar. “This new road and water and wastewater lines will increase the size of the industrial park and significantly boost Crookston’s economy.” “Revitalizing our infrastructure is about more than just fixing roadways, bridges and water treatment facilities, it’s about improving people’s lives and promoting economic growth, which is precisely what these projects will do,” said Smith. “These projects are going to support businesses and strengthen the economy for people in Crookston and Polk County.” The project comes from the Economic Development Administration and totals $3.3 million. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:10:29Z https://www.smith.senate.gov/u-s-senators-amy-klobuchar-tina-smith-announce-grant-to-strengthen-workforce-in-waseca-county/,"U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar, Tina Smith Announce Grant to Strengthen Workforce in Waseca County",2025-09-22,2025,2025-09,Democrat,Senate,MN,Tina Smith,S001203,www.smith.senate.gov,tinasmith,https://www.smith.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"MINNEAPOLIS, MN – Today, U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Tina Smith (D-MN) announced an award for Waseca County to strengthen workforce training and development. The award will be used to develop a new manufacturing workforce training facility in Waseca, Minnesota. The new center will house classrooms, a mechatronics skills training area, and a computer numerical control (CNC) training area. The project will create 50 jobs and once completed, help increase the region’s capacity to create and grow new businesses in the manufacturing industry, in turn attracting private investment and strengthening the regional economy. “Skills training strengthens our local economies by helping people succeed in the workforce,” said Klobuchar. “In addition to the 50 new jobs this project will create, this funding will enable the Waseca County Workforce Development Center to build classrooms and provide important hands-on training so more Minnesotans can gain the skills they need to find good-paying, in-demand jobs.” “Now more than ever we need educated, skilled workers entering trades in Minnesota,” said Smith. “This investment will provide Waseca County with important resources to train future workers and prepare them for high-wage, high-demand fields. This is exactly the type of project the federal government should be a partner in and I’m proud of the work we did with local leaders to make it possible.” The award totals $2.1 million and comes from the Economic Development Administration. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:10:29Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=DA07DC1C-0A85-4565-8E64-4BE0D4C6D908,Klobuchar Statement Honoring Army Captain Bianchi,2025-09-19,2025,2025-09,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) released the following statement on the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency’s announcement that the remains of U.S. Army Captain Willibald Charles Bianchi, a World War II veteran from New Ulm, Minnesota who earned the Medal of Honor for his actions fighting in the Philippine province of Bataan, have been identified. This announcement comes on National POW/MIA Recognition Day. “On this National POW/MIA Recognition Day, I join all Americans in honoring U.S. Army Captain Willibald Charles Bianchi of New Ulm, Minnesota, whose remains have been identified after more than 80 years. Captain Bianchi, a Medal of Honor recipient, showed valor during World War II and compassion for fellow prisoners during the Bataan Death March and aboard Japanese transport ships. His recovery reflects our nation’s commitment to bring our missing heroes home — no matter how much time has passed. I thank the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency for their tireless work to bring closure to families of our missing heroes, including the family of Captain Bianchi. Minnesotans look forward to honoring Captain Bianchi and finally bringing him home.” In 1942, Bianchi served as commander of Company D, 1st Battalion, 45th Infantry Regiment, Philippine Scouts, on the Bataan Peninsula in the Philippines. On Feb. 3, he volunteered to help clear a series of Japanese machine gun nests and despite being wounded multiple times, he continued leading the attack, earning him the Medal of Honor for his actions. On April 9, he was captured and held as a prisoner of war by the Empire of Japan in the Philippines until 1944 when the Japanese military moved POWs to Manila for transport to Japan aboard the transport ship Oryoku Maru. Unaware the allied POWs were on board, a U.S. carrier-borne aircraft attacked the Oryoku Maru, which eventually sank in Subic Bay. Bianchi was then transported to Takao, Formosa, known today as Taiwan, aboard the Enoura Maru. The Japanese reported that Bianchi was killed on Jan. 9 when U.S. forces attacked and sank the Enoura Maru. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:10:29Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=DB21549B-B868-4744-B273-712F7902E027,"ICYMI – Klobuchar, Grassley Fox News Op-Ed: America Can't Ignore Russia Kidnapping Ukrainian Children",2025-09-18,2025,2025-09,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON — U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA) published an op-ed in Fox News calling on Russia to return the nearly 20,000 Ukrainian children it has kidnapped. These children have been sent to “re-education” programs designed to erase their Ukrainian identity and even subjected to military-style training. Klobuchar and Grassley advocate for their bipartisan bill to help Ukraine track these abducted children, support the children who have made it home, and ensure those who commit these crimes are held accountable. From the op-ed: Last winter, a Ukrainian mother received the call she had been waiting for: her daughter, taken across the border to Russia months earlier, was finally coming home. When they embraced, the girl hugged tightly, afraid she might be pulled away again. She hardly spoke, afraid to use the Ukrainian language after being forced to speak only Russian. That reunion was a miracle for this mother, but thousands and thousands of parents are still waiting. Just 1,600 abducted children have returned home. In the three and a half years since Russian President Vladimir Putin’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, Russia has kidnapped an estimated 20,000 Ukrainian children. The real number is likely much higher, because Russia has targeted orphanages and vulnerable kids who may not be identified. It’s also difficult to trace everyone in the midst of war and occupation. Russia itself claims over 700,000 children have been so-called ""evacuated."" The more time that goes by, the harder it will be to find these kids. Their names and origins are being obscured. Their faces and voices change as they grow up, making them harder to identify. Some are so young they may entirely forget where they came from. A new report from Yale University’s Humanitarian Research Lab makes clear just how systematic this program has become. Researchers have identified at least 210 facilities where Ukrainian children have been held across Russia and occupied Ukraine — from summer camps and sanatoriums to cadet schools, a monastery and even a military base. At more than 130 of these sites, children undergo forced ""re-education"" programs designed to erase their Ukrainian identity and instill loyalty to Russia. And at nearly 40 locations, children are subjected to military-style training, including grenade-throwing, weapons assembly and drone operation. Disturbingly, this Yale report confirms that Putin’s government directly manages more than half of these facilities. Russia’s actions are right out of the KGB’s playbook, when the Soviets deported tens of thousands of women and children from the occupied Baltic countries in the 1940s and all native Crimean Tatars from the Crimean Peninsula. Today, these abducted children are given new names, forced into Russian citizenship and adopted into Russian families without consent. They are told to forget their language, their culture and their parents. Those who make it home carry invisible scars: disrupted education, broken trust and a trauma that can last a lifetime. We cannot accept a world where kids are being abducted during war and we cannot allow children to be used as a form of hostage-taking for negotiations. Protecting children in conflict isn’t optional. It’s our humanitarian obligation and it’s a legal requirement under international law. Allowing these abductions to stand emboldens future aggressors, undermines international norms and betrays America’s most basic values. That’s why we worked across the aisle to convene a bipartisan coalition of senators to introduce a resolution in May condemning Russia’s actions. Our measure also calls for the unconditional return of abducted Ukrainian children before any peace agreement is signed. The resolution has earned endorsements from faith-based, child protection and human rights organizations, showing that Americans of all backgrounds understand these children’s basic rights. Our work to support these kids shows how both parties can come together to speak in one clear voice. We believe this unity tells parents in Ukraine and all over the globe, that America stands with them when their children are in danger. After discussing the issue with EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, President Donald Trump was right to say that ""it is a subject at the top of all lists"" and that we must work to solve it. Alongside the resolution, we introduced the bipartisan Abducted Ukrainian Children Recovery and Accountability Act. This bill does three key things. First, it enhances support for Ukraine’s efforts to investigate and track the abducted children. Second, it helps those children who do make it back home and need psychological, social and educational support during that difficult transition. Third, it reinforces efforts to hold those who commit these crimes accountable, including through sanctions that are aligned with our allies. Ukraine’s prosecutors have opened tens of thousands of war crimes cases, and they need sustained support from us and our allies. No peace can be just and no agreement credible until every child is safely returned. As First Lady Melania Trump wrote in her letter to Putin ahead of the Alaska Summit: ""it is time"" to end these children’s suffering. It’s unacceptable that these kids are being treated like prisoners of war — used for Putin’s propaganda and forced to do military training and join the ranks of Russia’s army. They must not become pawns used in any negotiations. The mother who was reunited with her daughter was one of the lucky few. Tens of thousands of other parents are still waiting for that same call, for the day they can wrap their arms around their children again. Until then, the world must not look away. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:10:29Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=E50A8759-8897-4A34-9D56-761C7CB2F7D6,Klobuchar Statement on FTC Suing LiveNation-Ticketmaster,2025-09-18,2025,2025-09,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) released the following statement in response to the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) decision to sue LiveNation-Ticketmaster over its predatory practices. “I am glad the FTC is holding Live Nation-Ticketmaster accountable for failing to protect fans on their platform and using their monopoly power to charge more than $16 billion in hidden fees. Ticketmaster’s predatory practices — which have put tickets to see your favorite artist or cheer on your favorite team out of reach for too many Americans — must end. We need to put fans first.” Klobuchar has long led efforts to protect consumers and promote competition in the ticketing industry, including leading a hearing in January 2023, following the Taylor Swift’s Era’s Tour ticketing fiasco.",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:10:29Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=BC048244-97E4-4C82-A9A1-F533A7B3E073,Klobuchar and Colleagues Introduce Bill to Reverse Tariffs on Canada,2025-09-17,2025,2025-09,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) released the following statement on the reintroduction of her bipartisan bill with Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) to undo President Trump’s across-the-board tariffs on Canadian goods. As of August 1, the administration has imposed a 35 percent tariff on goods — a move that increases prices for American consumers and businesses, while straining the U.S.-Canada relationship. “The president cannot abuse his power to continue an unjustified trade war with one of our strongest allies. Canada is Minnesota’s top trading partner, but the President’s tariffs are jeopardizing that relationship—and adding costs for Minnesota families,” said Klobuchar. “We should not raise costs, hurt businesses, and eliminate jobs by attacking our neighbor and ally.” In April, this bill passed the Senate with bipartisan support. As the administration has raised tariffs on Canada, travel from Canada to the US has stalled, with a 20% drop in trips across the border so far this year compared to 2024. This bill is being called up again because these tariffs are subject to congressional review every six months. Along with Klobuchar and Kaine, the legislation is cosponsored by Senators Rand Paul (R-KY), Mark Warner (D-VA), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Angus King (I-ME), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Chris Coons (D-DE) and Susan Collins (R-ME) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK). ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:10:29Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=3E750F46-C1DA-4A8A-9C50-1EE448928DE5,"At FBI Oversight Hearing, Klobuchar Praises Law Enforcement Response in Recent Shootings",2025-09-16,2025,2025-09,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON — At a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Oversight of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) commended the local law enforcement and first responders who quickly responded to the assassination of Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark Hortman and the attempted assasination of Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette Hoffman, as well as the shooting at Annunciation Catholic Church. Klobuchar recognized the tragic loss of eight-year-old Fletcher Merkel and 10-year-old Harper Moyski, and noted that the first officer was on the scene just four minutes after the first 9-1-1 call and more than 20 people were transported to hospitals within 14 minutes. “I did want to focus on one local law enforcement moment that I'm not sure has made with all the news going on in Minnesota. When the first 9-1-1 call – and you've heard about other places where this waited and waited – the first 9-1-1 call was made at 8:27 AM. The first officer was on the scene just 4 minutes later, local Minneapolis police, at 8:31 AM,” said Klobuchar. “Chief O'Hara shared with me the actual numbers – listen to this: over 20 people were in ambulances in just 14 minutes, all of them, after the police got on the scene, 14 minutes after the first call, tourniquets, stretchers, and they got them all to Hennepin County Medical Center or Minneapolis Children's Hospital. And I think it is worth looking at what happened there because one of the dads whose daughter was severely injured, still in the hospital, that I met on Sunday, told me that there is absolutely no way his beautiful daughter would have survived if police hadn't been there.” A rough transcript of Klobuchar’s opening remarks and related questions are below, and the video can be found here. Senator Klobuchar: Mr. Chair, we have seen too much political violence in this country. We all know that. Just last week, Director, your friend Charlie Kirk was gunned down on a college campus. I'm sorry for your loss. In Minnesota, only two months ago, a madman took the life of my friends, Melissa and Mark Hortman, and shot Senator John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, a combined 17 times. And evidence indicates that he would have killed a lot more if law enforcement hadn't intervened. Just last month in my state, we were again shook to the core when little kids were shot down through stained glass windows in Annunciation Catholic Church in Minneapolis. And while the victims weren't politicians in this case, they were six-year-olds and eight-year-olds, the manifesto that the shooter left behind was political. But in the words of your own federal law enforcement, this person was an all-purpose hater. He went after Blacks, Hispanics, the President, Muslims, Jews, nearly everyone. And this happened during the first Mass of the year for these kids, they were excited to see their friends meet their new teachers, and two children, eight-year-old Fletcher Merkel, 10-year-old Harper Moyski,? were murdered. 21 other people injured, some of the kids, 18 kids, severely. Fletcher was just starting third grade. He loved his family, his friends. He loved fishing and cooking. In his dad's words, “any sport he was allowed to play.” Harper, the other child, we celebrated her life this Sunday, thousands of people. Her parents described her as bright, joyful, and a deeply loved 10-year-old whose laughter, kindness, and spirit touched everyone that she knew. We've heard the words of young children who were saved because 12-year-olds laid on top of them, or a kid with disabilities who was paralyzed, whose teacher pulled him out of the wheelchair, threw him under the pew, and laid on top of him. We do thank the local FBI Director and the local US Attorney's Office for their work in both of these cases, the Hortman case and this. But I did want to focus on one local law enforcement moment that I'm not sure has made with all the news going on in Minnesota. When the first 9-1-1 call – and you've heard about other places where this waited and waited – the first 9-1-1 call was made at 8:27 AM. The first officer was on the scene just 4 minutes later, local Minneapolis police, at 8:31 AM. Chief O'Hara shared with me the actual numbers – listen to this: over 20 people were in ambulances in just 14 minutes, all of them, after the police got on the scene, 14 minutes after the first call, tourniquets, stretchers, and they got them all to Hennepin County Medical Center or Minneapolis Children's Hospital. And I think it is worth looking at what happened there because one of the dads whose daughter was severely injured, still in the hospital that I met on Sunday, told me that there is absolutely no way his beautiful daughter would have survived if police hadn't been there. So it is worth looking at for all of us. So my focus, on behalf of these parents, because I promised I would do this on Sunday, was just to figure out how we can do anything to stop this from happening again. So expanded background checks, ghost gun bans – every shooting is different. Raising the minimum age to purchase assault weapons, even if we're not going to ban them, I favor banning them. But that's one idea that's out there. With so many of these shootings, people are 18, 19, 20, 21, the one at Annunciation Church was 23. Both shooters in Uvalde and Buffalo had just turned 18 when they purchased the assault weapon. I'm not saying any one of these things would prevent every single shooting, but I really ask everyone to look at these. We also need to tackle social media, and I really did appreciate Senator Graham's questions. I think we have to protect free speech and not engage in censorship. But for years, I have supported repealing Section 230, which was made when these companies were little companies starting up in garages. And I think it is one way to get at making this better environment online and preventing violence. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:10:29Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=BC6CA200-30A7-4140-8E3F-76BFB94B6118,"On National Voter Registration Day, Klobuchar Introduces Legislation to Make Registering to Vote Easier for All Americans",2025-09-16,2025,2025-09,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON – On National Voter Registration Day, U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) introduced two bills to make it easier for Americans to register to vote. The Same Day Registration Act would require states to offer same day registration at polling locations on Election Day and during early voting. The Register America to Vote Act would require every state to create a system to register all eligible citizens to vote when they turn 18 and ensure all eligible voters are covered by automatic registration through motor vehicle agencies. “Our democracy works better and our country is stronger when our laws make it easier for people to vote,” said Klobuchar. “These pieces of legislation will eliminate barriers that prevent people from voting – requiring states to provide same day registration at polling places and automatically registering all eligible voters. This will help ensure that every American has the opportunity to have their voice heard at the ballot box.” The Same Day Registration Act would: Require states to offer same day registration at polling locations on Election Day and during any early voting period; Require states to offer same day registration at all polling places by the 2028 general election, but create a waiver process to give states until the 2030 general election to comply if earlier compliance would be impracticable; Mandate that states have at least one location per 15,000 registered voters with same day registration by the 2026 general election; and Ensure that centralized same day registration locations are reasonably located to serve the voting population equitably. The Same Day Registration Act is cosponsored by Senators Alex Padilla (D-CA), Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Ed Markey (D-MA), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Andy Kim (D-NJ), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and Ron Wyden (D-OR). The Register America to Vote Act would: Require states to establish a system to automatically register all eligible voters when they turn 18; Ensure all eligible voters are covered by automatic registration through motor vehicle agencies while preserving the option to opt out of registering to vote during their interaction with the agency; Authorize $3 billion in grants for states to implement automatic voter registration; Allow voters to update their registration in the course of interaction with motor vehicle agencies; Create safeguards against registration of ineligible voters and protections for people who are erroneously registered; and Direct the National Institute of Standards and Technology to develop voter database management standards and security policies states can adopt. The Register America to Vote Act is cosponsored by Senators Alex Padilla (D-CA), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Michael Bennet (D-CO) Cory Booker (D-NJ), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Bernie Sander (I-VT), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Andy Kim (D-NJ), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and Ron Wyden (D-OR). ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:10:29Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=AD8FAA7E-2197-4CC4-95BB-B78050A5C7BB,Klobuchar Recognizes Family from Byron as 2025 Angels in Adoption,2025-09-15,2025,2025-09,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Co-Chair of the Congressional Adoption Caucus, spoke at the annual Angels in Adoption celebration hosted by the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute in Washington DC and recognized Tamara and Jeramy Lawson of Byron, Minnesota as this year’s Angels in Adoption Minnesota honorees, alongside their adopted sons Jiang Li and Liam. The Lawsons planned to adopt their son Jiang Li, a five-year-old boy with physical disabilities, from China but the pandemic stalled the adoption. After years of waiting, the Lawsons were finally approved to travel to China to complete Jiang Li’s adoption and were able to bring him home. By the time the new family was united, Jiang Li was already nine years old. “Every child deserves a loving home, a nurturing family and a bright future,” said Klobuchar. “Tamara and Jeramy Lawson waited years to be united with their son Jiang Li, and as he strived to become more independent they provided him with the support he needed – including adaptive equipment purchased with a grant from Children’s Home Adoption Support Fund. Since then, their son has gone from being 20% independent to about 80% independent. If that doesn’t show the power of a loving family, I don’t know what does.” In her role as Co-Chair of the Congressional Adoption Caucus, Klobuchar has been a leader in the fight to give every child a permanent home. To date, Senator Klobuchar’s office has assisted more than 1,500 Minnesota families with their adoption cases. In response to China’s pause on adoption cases during the pandemic and the country’s subsequent decision to end its intercountry adoption program, Klobuchar has advocated for the completion of pending adoption cases for the hundreds of children and American families matched prior to the pandemic. Many of these children have special health care needs, and some will soon age out of care systems without the support of a permanent family. In March, Klobuchar led a letter with her Adoption Caucus Co-Chairs, Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Rep. Robert Aderholt (R-AL), and Rep. Danny Davis (D-IL), as well as Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA), urging President Trump to act in the best interest of these children and press the Chinese government to finalize pending adoptions cases. This letter was signed by more than 100 members of Congress. Photos of the Lawsons and Klobuchar at the Angels in Adoption annual celebration can be found here and here. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:10:29Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=6D335DFB-43D2-478F-8D32-54C8B68A4080,Senator Klobuchar and Mayor Carter Join Saint Paul Firefighters to Honor Captain Michael Paidar and Advocate for the Passage of the Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act,2025-09-12,2025,2025-09,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"SAINT PAUL — Today, U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar was joined by Mayor Melvin Carter, Fire Chief Butch Inks, Assistant Chief Jeramiah Melquist, Minnesota Professional Fire Fighters Association President Scott Vadnais, IAFF Saint Paul Local 21 President Kyle Thornberg, IAFF Minneapolis Local 82 President Mark Lakosky, Julie Paidar, and Saint Paul firefighters at Saint Paul Fire Station 1 to honor Captain Michael Paidar and advocate for the passage of Klobuchar’s bipartisan Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act. Captain Paidar died in 2020 from an aggressive form of Acute Myeloid Leukemia while still serving with the Saint Paul Fire Department. The Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act would expand access to federal support for the families of firefighters and other first responders who pass away or become permanently disabled from service-related cancers. In May, the bill passed unanimously out of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Currently, firefighters are only eligible for support under the Public Safety Officer Benefits (PSOB) program for physical injuries sustained in the line-of-duty, or for deaths from duty-related heart attacks, strokes, mental health conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder, and 9/11 related illnesses. “With this bipartisan legislation, we are working to expand the Public Safety Benefits Program to cover service-related cancers— honoring the commitment we make to our firefighters like Captain Paidar and other first responders who made the ultimate sacrifice. We must uphold our promise to care for their families,” said Klobuchar. ""The Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act sends a clear message: we stand with every firefighter battling service-related cancer and will ensure they receive the honor, care, and support they deserve,” said Mayor Carter. “I urge Congress to join Senator Klobuchar in taking action—because honoring our heroes means standing with them in service, in struggle, and in legacy."" In 2021, after strong advocacy from the Paidar family, the Minnesota Department of Public Safety awarded line-of-duty benefits to Captain Paidar’s widow Julie. This was the first time that a firefighter’s family had received benefits for cancer incurred in the line-of-duty through Minnesota’s state Public Safety Officer Benefits program. The Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act would ensure that firefighters and other first responders across the country are eligible to receive similar benefits under the federal PSOB program. During today’s event, the Fire Station conducted onsite pre-cancer screenings for their firefighters, which are critical for early detection and prevention. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:10:29Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=84C17B11-0D72-4EE1-8A23-484D3D5940B7,"Klobuchar, Blackburn Bipartisan Bill to Enhance 9-1-1 Emergency Response System Passes Senate",2025-09-11,2025,2025-09,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"The legislation would improve Americans’ ability help when dialing 9-1-1, including during natural disasters, and make important updates to the classification of 9-1-1 dispatchers WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) announced that their bipartisan Enhancing First Response Act, which would make important updates to our 9-1-1 emergency reporting system to improve Americans’ ability to reach help when they dial 9-1-1, including during natural disasters, has passed the Senate. The legislation will also reclassify 9-1-1 dispatchers as protective service workers, ensuring their job classification appropriately recognizes the lifesaving nature of their work. This legislation is also co-sponsored by Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) and Senators Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Dan Sullivan (R-AK), Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Ed Markey (D-MA), Ted Budd (R-NC), Angus King (I-ME), Mark Kelly (D-AZ), Mike Crapo (R-ID) and Maria Cantwell (D-WA). This bill now goes to the House of Representatives for a vote. “Americans need reliable communications networks, especially 9-1-1, and this is a crucial step toward ensuring that reliability,” said Klobuchar. “Our bipartisan legislation will save lives by improving Americans’ abilities to connect to 9-1-1, including during major disasters, and strengthening the resiliency of our 9-1-1 system against outages and disruptions. It also recognizes 9-1-1 dispatchers for their critical roles during times of crisis by ensuring they are classified as the first responders that they are.” “Ensuring Americans can reach help when they dial 9-1-1 during natural disasters is paramount,” said Blackburn. “The Emergency Reporting Act takes necessary steps to prevent 9-1-1 service disruptions, properly recognize dispatchers for their lifesaving work, and further study how we can make improvements to the 9-1-1 emergency response system.” “America’s public safety telecommunicators are our ‘first’ first responders,” said Mel Maier, CEO and executive director of APCO. “They answer our calls for help and engage in skilled real-time decision-making that save lives. The Enhancing First Response Act recognizes that these 9-1-1 professionals play an essential role in protecting our communities. We are grateful to Senators Klobuchar and Blackburn for their leadership and commitment to public safety. We thank the Senate for passing this important legislation and urge the House to act so that public safety telecommunicators get the recognition they deserve.” “9-1-1 professionals in every community are critically important public safety personnel. They serve as America's first first responders every day. On behalf of the tens of thousands of 9-1-1 professionals nationwide, NENA applauds today’s action by the U.S. Senate. This long-overdue action will help ensure the nation's public safety telecommunicators are finally recognized as a protective service occupation,” said John Provenazano, CEO of NENA. “We are hopeful the House of Representatives will pass this common-sense change as soon as possible. I want to thank Senators Amy Klobuchar and Marsha Blackburn for their tireless efforts to recognize the important work of our 9-1-1 professionals.” Specifically, the Enhancing First Response Act would: Require the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to issue a report after major natural disasters on the extent to which people were unable to reach 9-1-1 during the disaster and subsequent recovery efforts, and make recommendations to improve the resiliency of 9-1-1 systems to prevent future service disruptions; Require the FCC to study the unreported 9-1-1 outages and develop recommendations to improve outage reporting and communication between mobile carriers experiencing network outages and 9-1-1 centers; Update the classification of 9-1-1 dispatchers from clerical workers to protective service workers in the Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) to better reflect the life-saving work they perform each day. The SOC is a tool used by federal agencies to classify the workforce into useful, occupational categories; and Require the FCC to report on the extent to which multi-line telephone system manufacturers and vendors have complied with Kari’s Law, which Senator Klobuchar worked to pass into law in 2018 to require the manufacturers of multi-line telephone systems to create systems that allow callers to reach 9-1-1 without dialing a prefix or postfix. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:10:29Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=7409F19A-A497-441A-9068-4C969C5245B3,Miracle on Ice Congressional Gold Medal Act Passes the Senate,2025-09-10,2025,2025-09,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith (D-MN) announced that the bipartisan Miracle on Ice Congressional Gold Medal Act, which they cosponsor, has passed the Senate. The legislation will award three Congressional Gold Medals to members of the 1980 U.S. Olympic Men’s Ice Hockey Team to recognize the 45th anniversary of their extraordinary victory at the 1980 Winter Olympic Games, where they defeated the Soviet Union. In April, the House of Representatives passed this legislation, which was led by Representative Peter Stauber (R-MN) and co-sponsored by the entire Minnesota Congressional Delegation. The amended bill now returns to the House for another vote before heading to the president’s desk. “The 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team made all Americans believe in miracles,” said Senator Klobuchar. “It's time for Congress to recognize this legendary team, which included 12 players and head coach Herb Brooks from Minnesota, for their Miracle on Ice and award them the Congressional Gold Medal.” “The ‘Miracle on Ice’ hockey game was an upset that nobody saw coming – but one that showcases the strength and resilience of Americans in the face of adversity,” said Senator Smith. “More than half of the team was from Minnesota, so I am proud this legislation to honor their achievement passed the Senate.” In February 1980, the United States Olympic Men’s Ice Hockey Team defeated the Soviet Union 4-3 in the first game of the medal round of the 1980 Winter Olympic men’s hockey tournament in Lake Placid, New York. Team USA, which included 12 hockey players born in Minnesota and was coached by University of Minnesota championship-winning hockey coach Herb Brooks, defied expectations by defeating the four-time Olympic champion Soviet Union team in a game referred to as the “Miracle on Ice.” At a time when the United States was struggling with rampant stagflation, high gas prices, hostages held in Iran, and increased tensions with the Soviets after their invasion of Afghanistan, the Miracle on Ice was a welcome reprieve and a critical moment for American patriotism. Following the stunning victory against the Soviets, the Americans beat Finland 4-2 to secure the gold. The three medals will be displayed at the United States Hockey Hall of Fame in Eveleth, Minnesota, the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Museum in Colorado, and the Lake Placid Olympic Center in New York. Click here for the full text of the bill. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:10:29Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=68D100EB-A9F4-4313-9143-57E666C13CC5,Klobuchar Opening Remarks at Hearing on Meta’s Neglect of Children’s Online Safety,2025-09-09,2025,2025-09,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology, and the Law, delivered the following opening statement at the subcommittee hearing titled “Hidden Harms: Examining Whistleblower Allegations that Meta Buried Child Safety Research.” Testifying at the hearing were former Meta Researchers Jason Sattizahn and Cayce Savage. “Meta has made changes, but not to protect kids. Instead, the company took steps to establish plausible deniability. Meta, blocked, manipulated, hid and deleted research that showed that its virtual reality products were frequently used by underage kids who were exposed to real and significant harm,” said Klobuchar. “In Meta’s ongoing tradition of ‘moving fast and breaking things’, it broke its repeated promise to parents and Congress to protect kids on their platforms.” A rough transcript of Klobuchar’s full opening statement is available below and a video can be found here. Senator Klobuchar: Thank you very much, Chair Blackburn, and thank you for your longtime leadership of this, as well as the very important bill that you and Senator Blumenthal, I have been proud to support it and be a co-sponsor, are pushing through, and have already passed the Senate once. So we're close. I have worked in this area for a long time myself, and have known the frustration of no matter what you seem to do, you get lobbied against and millions of dollars against you. And I just think we're reaching a moment where the time is up, and there are too many families and too many parents that are affected by this. I want to thank our two whistleblowers that are here. I'm sure you never, in your wildest dreams, imagined that you were going to be in front of a Senate panel in this way. But I want to thank you for doing the right thing. For too long, these companies have worked to attract kids to their platforms. They do so knowing that their platforms use algorithms that increase the risk of sexual exploitation, push harmful content, facilitate bullying, and provide venues, sadly, for dealers to sell deadly drugs like fentanyl. Meta cannot continue to turn a blind eye to these harms. It was in this very room, with this very committee. Maybe it was in a different room, but the same committee where Mark Zuckerberg actually turned to some families who had lost children to drugs, who said, “I'm sorry, I'm sorry this happened.” Well, sorry is not enough anymore, and we need to put in some rules of the road to stop this from happening. This is not the first time whistleblowers from Meta have come forward. In 2021, another whistleblower, Frances Haugen, testified that Meta knew that its products took a significant psychological toll on users, in that case, it was eating disorders. That testimony should have been a wake-up call for Meta, a chance to right the ship. Meta did make changes after her testimony, but not to protect kids. Instead, the company took steps to establish plausible deniability. Meta blocked, manipulated, hid, and deleted research that showed that its virtual reality products were frequently used by underage kids who were exposed to real and significant harm. I want to underscore that the entire appeal of the Metaverse is that it's supposed to feel like real life, and that can be fun; it's communication, it's entertainment. There's bells and whistles. But the problem is that the virtual reality platform, as it has been created, also allows adults to form relationships with unwitting children that can be exploited, as The Washington Post pointed out in their lengthy investigative piece yesterday. A 25-year-old man was convicted of kidnapping a 13-year-old after interacting with her through Meta’s virtual reality products. Despite this, Meta forged ahead, pushing new features to attract younger users and allowing younger and younger kids onto its virtual reality platforms without safety testing. One employee from Meta estimated that more than 80% of users were underage in one of the virtual rooms. Adult users frequently complained virtual reality spaces were overrun by children, I don't know what else you need to hear to know there's a problem, gleaning their presence by the sound of their voices. Yet Meta, using the code name Project Salsa, because allegedly, they knew it would be a spicy topic. Moved to lower the official age minimum for its virtual reality headsets from 13 to 10 In Meta’s ongoing tradition of moving fast and breaking things, it broke its repeated promise to parents and Congress to protect kids on their platforms. That's why a bipartisan coalition of 42 state Attorneys General with wildly different political views on a number of things decided to take this on, and that included my Attorney General in Minnesota, Keith Ellison. But Meta has continued to prioritize user engagement. It does that because the more time people, no matter how young, spend on their platforms, the more money it makes. We know the profits on kids' data, according to a recent study, social media platforms generated $11 billion in revenue in 2022 from advertising directed at kids and teens, including nearly $2 billion in AD profits derived from users aged 12 and under And while today's whistleblowers left the company before its current push to catch up in the generative AI space race. Their testimony raises serious questions about whether Meta is ignoring child safety issues related to AI products, especially in light of the recent reports that Meta allowed its chat box to engage children in “internal documents, romantic or sensual or Conversations.” That's why we must come together, Democrats, Republicans, to set up common-sense rules. We have worked on both the Judiciary and Commerce committees to do this. Senator Cruz and I basically, through a lot of hard work over many years, passed our Take It Down Act, when the President signed it into law, that would hold platforms accountable for taking down pornographic images of kids or adults that are either the actual images or AI-created within 48 hours. We must pass Senator Blackburn and Blumenthal's Kids Online Safety Act to ensure that platforms design their products to prevent and mitigate harm to kids. We also know that other industries do not enjoy this similar level of protection. If they have an appliance that blows up or they have a tire that blows up on the road, there's accountability. They get sued, and that's a major incentive to fix it. We don't have that with these social media platforms, and that is why I have long supported repealing Section 230, which was basically set up while these were little companies in the garage. That's not true anymore. They're the biggest companies the world has ever known. To end with this, one parent once told me that her trying to get her young kids, six and eight, off of these platforms, she'd have to resort to relying on her 12-year-old, 15-year-old to try to get it down. They couldn't figure out how to do it. They'd find another platform. It's just endless. Despite all her best efforts to be a mom, she said it was like a sink overflowing with a faucet she couldn't turn off, and she was just sitting out there with a mop. These parents need more than mops. They need us to pass this bill. Thank you, Madam Chair. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:10:29Z https://www.smith.senate.gov/u-s-senators-tina-smith-amy-klobuchar-lead-push-to-reinstate-energy-projects-for-farmers-small-businesses/,"U.S. Senators Tina Smith, Amy Klobuchar Lead Push to Reinstate Energy Projects for Farmers, Small Businesses",2025-09-09,2025,2025-09,Democrat,Senate,MN,Tina Smith,S001203,www.smith.senate.gov,tinasmith,https://www.smith.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"Sixteen Senators are demanding the Trump Administration reverse canceling the bipartisan Rural Energy for America Program WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) and Senate Agriculture Committee Ranking Member Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) led fourteen colleagues in demanding the Trump Administration re-commit to funding energy projects across rural America through the bipartisan Rural Energy for America Program (REAP). In 2022 alone, REAP projects saved enough energy and generated enough energy to power over 250,000 homes. Roughly 70% of those projects could be deemed ineligible under the Administration’s new arbitrary restrictions. “Unleashing American energy and supporting American farmers are stated priorities of the Trump Administration. But this change would stifle American energy and hurt our farmers, who are already dealing with increasing costs of operation and uncertain access to markets. At a time like this, it is unconscionable to discourage the use of cost- and energy-saving wind and solar technologies that help to keep their businesses afloat” wrote the Senators. “A REAP program that helps rural Americans invest in the best energy solution for them is a win for farmers’ bottom line and for the lands that they steward. We urge you to remove these new restrictions on REAP,” Senators concluded. On August 18th, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced they will be restricting assistance for wind and solar projects previously authorized under REAP. The move will hurt the deployment of cheaper, cleaner energy projects at a time when rural energy costs continue to rise. The REAP program was authorized in the 2008 Farm Bill and has been reauthorized on a bipartisan basis multiple times since its creation. Thousands of Minnesotan farmers, producers and entrepreneurs received REAP awards just last year, representing more than $50 million in investment for more than 470 energy projects that can help farms and small businesses save up tens of thousands of dollars per year. You can find examples of these projects and their projected savings here. The letter was also signed by Senators Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Angus King (I-ME), John Fetterman (D-PA), Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Jeff Merkley (D-OR) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL). You can read full text of the letter here or below. Dear Secretary Rollins, We are very concerned about your August 18th announcement that USDA’s Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) will be restricting assistance for cost-saving wind and solar technologies. We urge you to reverse course and maintain farmers’ and rural small businesses’ ability to deploy these critical technologies in the way that best suits their operations. REAP’s popularity and success is clear throughout its more than 20-year history. Since the components of the program were created in the bipartisan 2002 Farm Bill, REAP has helped more than 21,000 farms and rural businesses nationwide voluntarily access affordable, renewable energy and energy efficiency systems. In 2022 alone, REAP supported nearly 2,500 projects, helping farms and rural small businesses achieve combined estimated energy savings and energy generation to power more than 250,000 homes per year. In many cases, these energy savings come from installing solar panels, because they are a reliable, cost-effective technology that allows farmers and rural small business owners to save on electricity bills. Beyond saving costs, distributed solar diversifies rural America’s energy profile and sets up our rural communities to be resilient into the future. Whether energy infrastructure is at risk from natural disasters or national security breaches, these technologies help prepare rural communities for any scenario. It also puts more power directly into the hands of Americans and ensures a future of energy dominance. As an example, just last year, Minnesotans received REAP awards for more than 470 energy projects, representing more than $50 million in investments that help save each farm or rural small business operation thousands of dollars per year. It appears that your announcement – and the associated internal memo – could threaten up to 70% of these kinds of projects in the future. And there are many, many more cost-saving projects that farmers are hoping to pursue in the funding rounds to come. Unleashing American energy and supporting American farmers are stated priorities of the Trump Administration. But this change would stifle American energy and hurt our farmers, who are already dealing with increasing costs of operation and uncertain access to markets. At a time like this, it is unconscionable to discourage the use of cost- and energy-saving wind and solar technologies that help to keep their businesses afloat. REAP must continue to support all energy solutions farmers want, including distributed wind, rooftop solar, and ground-mounted solar, so that they can choose the right solution for their needs. We request you provide written answers to the following questions by September 19, 2025: Using REAP applications and awards issued since January 2020 as a sample of the breadth of applications USDA receives, how many awards issued in that timeframe would no longer be eligible or selected under the new criteria outlined in your announcement? For those projects that would not have been selected, please provide details on the total number of projects by state and the estimated lost energy- and cost-savings for the farmers and rural small businesses that would not have been able to deploy those projects under these new restrictions. Is USDA committed to ensuring that annual cost-savings to farmers through REAP is maintained or increased going forward? Please indicate how USDA will achieve this goal while putting these restrictions in place. How does USDA plan to clearly share information about these new restrictions with farmer and rural small business applicants? For example, how exactly will farmers be required to show “document[ed] historical energy usage” for a solar panel system to qualify for funding? Does USDA have a plan to work with farmers and rural small businesses that are seeking to implement solar and wind projects on their lands to make sure their proposed projects are both eligible and competitively prioritized for REAP funding? A REAP program that helps rural Americans invest in the best energy solution for them is a win for farmers’ bottom line and for the lands that they steward. We urge you to remove these new restrictions on REAP. Thank you in advance for your attention to this matter. We look forward to receiving your prompt responses to our questions.",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:10:29Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=87437868-7101-4061-8DE6-C4D315FAF47A,"On Senate Floor, Klobuchar Honors Victims and Survivors of Annunciation Catholic Church and School Shooting",2025-09-04,2025,2025-09,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WATCH KLOBUCHAR’S FULL REMARKS HERE WASHINGTON —On the Senate Floor, U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith (D-MN) delivered remarks honoring the victims and survivors of the Annunciation Catholic Church and School Shooting. “Change is possible, but it takes courage, and that courage isn't supposed to come from parents in mourning or from defenseless kids in Mass in the first week of school. Sixth graders should not have to protect first graders,” said Klobuchar. A rough transcript of Senator Klobuchar’s floor speech is below: Senator Klobuchar: Mr. President, I rise today with my colleague, Senator Smith, because once again, our state is in mourning. After a painful summer where we lost leader Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark in a horrific act of violence, we were once again shaken to our core by a deadly mass shooting at Annunciation Catholic Church in Minneapolis. It happened during the first Mass of the year, an exciting time for so many students back to school, meeting their new teacher, seeing new students. Right in the middle of that Mass, two children, Fletcher Merkel and Harper Moyski, were murdered. We mourn for their lost lives, their families, the 21 people injured, including 18 children ages 6 to 15. I think about the teachers and clergy who never imagined having to instruct children to duck under church pews to save their lives, and all the kids who were forced to grow up way too quickly; they will never forget that morning. On the day of the shooting, literally within an hour of the shooting, I found out that one of my former employees who worked in this building, whom I am very close to, Kate Nilan, she had three kids in that church [that] morning. She long left Washington, got married, had these three children, two of them twins, and they were all three in that church. Her daughter Cora, who's in middle school, saw two of her best friends get shot, one in the stomach, one in the neck, and she had to run out of that church when they could get to safety, and told one of their dads that his daughter had been shot. We have since heard about a teacher who got a kid out of a wheelchair, a child with disabilities, put him under the pew, and then shielded him with her own body. We've heard the words of a young, young child who is saved because his friend laid on top of him and got shot in the back. We heard the stories of the police officers who ran toward and not away from danger and saved lives, and we have heard the stories of the medics and the first responders and the doctors and the nurses in the operating rooms that somehow were able to save all those other lives at two fine hospitals, Hennepin County Medical Center, as well as at Children's Hospital in Minneapolis and I'm sure several others. You know, it is such a close-knit neighborhood that surrounds this beautiful church. Annunciation is a church on a hill, but it's not a church alone on a hill. It is a church that's attached to a school, and it's a church and a school that are right next to houses, literally a few yards away. And then next to the houses are more houses, and then next to the houses is a shop, and then next to that is a restaurant, and then next to that is another big high school, and then next to that are more houses. So many houses filled with families who, on that day, Wednesday, August 27, had to tell their own kids the horror of what happened in every single one of those houses. You can't hide from this as much as you want to shield your kids from these kinds of stories, but when they're six-year-olds that are in the mass shooting, that are in the church, who are the neighbors and friends of the kids in the other houses, every parent has to tell their kids about it. This church, this school, these people of faith, these neighbors, they've all been incredibly strong, and even on this horrific day, I saw hours after the shooting, neighbors sitting out on their lawn chairs with food for each other, neighbors hugging people they knew and hugging perfect strangers whose lives had been just turned upside down. But most of all, I've been thinking about that little eight-year-old Fletcher Merkel, 10-year-old Harper Moyski, and their families whose lives were taken that day. And I'm going to start by talking a little bit about them. Fletcher was just starting third grade. He loved his family, his friends. He loved fishing and cooking, and in his dad's words, “any sport that he was allowed to play.” His dad also said that Fletcher was on his way to becoming a wonderful young man. In light of his family's tragedy, the family has urged people to wear bright colors to his funeral this Sunday, to honor his memory, and he asks all parents to give their kids an extra hug. Harper Moyski, the other child we lost, had just begun fifth grade. Her parents described her as a bright, joyful, and deeply loved 10-year-old whose laughter, kindness, and spirit touched everyone who knew her. She was adored by her little sister. Like so many girls her age, she would have sleepovers with her friends. They would stay up late watching movies and doing each other's makeup. So I met that family just 10 hours after they lost Harper. They joined thousands of people at the Academy of Holy Angels nearby because they didn't want to be alone. They wanted to be with people from their community, whether they knew them or not. They were there to hear from the Archbishop. They were there to hear words of comfort, and I met Harper's little sister sitting quietly on her mom's lap, holding a teddy bear, knowing her life would never be the same. Harper's family was clear that they want to see us take action, in her parents' words, “change is possible and it is necessary, so that Harper's story does not become yet another in a long line of tragedies.” Change is possible, but it takes courage, and that courage isn't supposed to come from parents in mourning or from defenseless kids in Mass in the first week of school. Sixth graders should not have to protect first graders. You know, I'll never forget meeting several of the Sandy Hook parents in 2013, and I've shared the story with some of the parents at Annunciation. It was a day that we had the vote on the bipartisan background check bill. I remember Joe Manchin was trying to get that done. It was a strongly bipartisan bill. It was one of my worst days in the Senate because they were in my office, and I had to call Joe to get the latest because he was trying to get the bill done and tell the families that we weren't going to be able to get it passed. So we were just missing a few votes. And I remember that day because one of the moms in my office described how her son had severe disabilities, and he had a school aide that would be with him all the time, and every day before he went to school, he would point at the picture of the school aid that was on their refrigerator, because he loved her, and he did that that day. So she told me that was the last time she saw her son. He's autistic. Loved that aide, loved his family, and hours later, she sat with other parents in the firehouse in Connecticut, waiting as one by one kids would come in, and their families would cry and grab them and hug them and whisk them away. And pretty soon, the families left in that firehouse knew that they were the ones left. They knew they would never see their babies again. And that mom sat there in that fire house thinking, and the dad and they thought about the fact that that whatever happened to their child, which they now knew he was dead, would happen to the school aide too, and when they found them, she had her arms around him in a closet, they were both shot dead. And those families asked me that day in my office, “how come we have the courage to come here to advocate for background checks for something that wouldn't have even saved our babies?” Because in this case, as you recall, the guns were in the household that the parents had got, but we advocated for the background checks in closing the loophole, because we believe that it would save lives of other people's babies, and we believed it was the most likely thing that could pass. And we believe that despite some of us wanting an assault weapon ban or other things that this was the smartest thing we could do, and the people in this place didn't have the courage to stand up like we did for other people's kids. We can never give up, because it is impossible to believe when you look at what happens in other countries that still have legal guns and still allow for hunting. You know that we can be better. You know we can do better. You know that guns should not get into the hands of the people that have been doing these shootings. In 2018, after another horrific shooting, I worked across the aisle with Senator Hatch of Utah to pass a law which has provided over $400 million to support prevention programs to keep schools safe. We tried our best, but it's clearly not enough. In 2022, after our nation was rocked by mass shootings in Buffalo and at Robb Elementary in Uvalde, we passed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, led by Senators Murphy and Cornyn, negotiated with a group of Senators. It was an important first step in keeping our kids safe, providing more than $2 billion for things like school-based mental health services, violence prevention efforts. It kept hundreds of firearms out of the hands of some people that shouldn't have them, and it also included my legislation to close the boyfriend loophole and keep convicted, convicted domestic abusers from buying a gun. But it was just a first step, as this tragedy at Annunciation Catholic Church makes clear, there is still so much more that must be done. We cannot rest when gun violence remains the leading cause of death of kids and teenagers. We cannot rest when there have been over 90 school shootings in this country in 2025 alone. Congress needs to act with the courage and urgency this moment demands and pass common-sense gun violence prevention laws that will save lives. I come from a state with a time-honored tradition of hunting and fishing, like so many senators in this chamber. When I consider gun violence prevention measures in the past, I would always ask myself, did these reforms in any way hurt my Uncle Dick and his deer stand? My answer was always no. The shooter in Minneapolis used an AR-15-style weapon to fire nearly 120 of his shots. You don't have to have an assault weapon in a deer stand, but that's what he used that day in that church. So, that is why a majority of Americans, including many Republicans, support an assault weapons ban. We also need to expand background checks, which over 80% of Americans support, and they're messy; they take too long. I think there's a lot more we could do with the information that we have available to us online right now. Give me a break. We can't figure out that some of these people that have bought these guns, that have been involved in mass shootings shouldn't have these guns. In today's world, with all this stuff online, we're not able to put the resources into figuring that out. How do you tell that to the parents that eight-year-old and 10-year-old? How do you tell it to the parents of the kids that are still in the hospital right now, barely holding on to their lives? We should close dangerous loopholes to keep guns away from the people who we all know shouldn't have them. We need to ban ghost guns, bump stocks, and high-capacity magazines. It's never one size fits all. Each shooting is a little different, but if we just took these common-sense measures, which wouldn’t set us back on hunting or legal gun ownership, we would make a difference. And we must restore full funding for the ATF, the agency that enforces many of our nation's gun laws and plays a huge role in tracing crime guns. The Administration cut its budget by more than $400 million and rolled back critical gun violence prevention programs across the Justice Department. So, I'm not saying every one of these things would have prevented what happened in one shooting or the other. But I do know, especially when I look back at Uvalde and the Buffalo shooting, and the dad that was just simply going to get a birthday cake, never came back from the grocery store. I do know that some of these things, on assault weapons or age limits, or doing something when it comes to closing loopholes of who should be able to get these guns, they would have saved a whole bunch of lives if we got that done. This week, Senator Smith and I, and our entire Minnesota Delegation, Democrats and Republicans, put forward a resolution to honor the victims and survivors of the mass shooting. The resolution condemns the violence and commends the bravery and service of law enforcement, first responders, medical caregivers, school and church staff, and community members who acted swiftly to protect and help others. No one should have to fear this threat of gun violence, and I'm glad we came together across party lines to put that resolution forward, from our most liberal members over in the House to our most conservative, but we have to do more. In the wake of this senseless tragedy, the Archbishop of Minneapolis and St. Paul, Archbishop Hebda, shared something that stuck with me. He said, “We have to recognize that it's through prayer, but also through the prayer of the feet, through action, that we can indeed make a difference that has to be the source of hope.” And he read a letter from Pope Leo, who said, “We must stop the pandemic of arms which infects our world.” And the Pope prayed that we might fulfill the prophecy of Isaiah, “They shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks.” There are things we can do here. There's things that would make a difference, and we all know that it's just going to take the courage of those little sixth graders that laid on top of first graders, or the teacher that took the kid with disabilities out of the wheelchair and laid on top of that. That's real courage. We just have to have a little political courage to get this done. So let's honor the lives of these precious kids we lost by taking action to stop senseless acts of gun violence, by praying, yes, but also praying for action. Thank you, and I yield the floor. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:10:29Z https://www.smith.senate.gov/u-s-senator-tina-smith-delivers-floor-speech-remembering-annunciation-school-shooting-victims-pushes-for-congress-to-pass-gun-safety-legislation/,"U.S. Senator Tina Smith Delivers Floor Speech Remembering Annunciation School Shooting Victims, Pushes for Congress to Pass Gun Safety Legislation",2025-09-04,2025,2025-09,Democrat,Senate,MN,Tina Smith,S001203,www.smith.senate.gov,tinasmith,https://www.smith.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Tina Smith delivered a speech on the floor of the United States Senate after the tragic shooting at Annunciation Catholic School last week. You can watch Sen. Smith’s floor speech here. You can read Sen. Smith’s remarks as delivered below: Mr. President, I stand before this body trying to make sense of the terrible shooting at Annunciation Catholic School just a couple of miles from where Archie and I live in Minneapolis. And I can’t. I can’t make it make sense. You know, I know this neighborhood really well. I’ve lived in and around it for many, many years. And I also know Annunciation School. Mr. President, Annunciation School is one of those places where, whether your kids go there or not, it’s two degrees of separation from everybody that you would know. If it’s not your child, it’s someone you know — their niece, their nephew, their grandchild, their child. And here in Annunciation Catholic School on a fall morning, sweet children were gunned down when they went to mass to celebrate the beginning of the school year, and their sense of peace and safety was shattered like the church windows that the bullets flew through. Fletcher Merkel was eight years old. His dad said that Fletcher had an infectious smile, and he danced with every touchdown he scored in flag football. He loved his family and his friends, and he loved fishing and cooking. Harper Moyski was ten. Her parents say that she was a bright, joyful, and deeply loved child whose laughter and kindness and spirit touched everyone who knew her. There were 21 others shot that morning. There’s a twelve-year-old little girl in critical condition. Her mother, who’s a pediatric nurse at the ICU in Hennepin County Medical Center, she rushed to the hospital when she heard that there was a shooting, only to find her own daughter in the emergency room. Another supervising nurse rushed to the ER to help, even though it wasn’t her shift. And when she did, she found a little girl who was so scared and so terrified that she climbed into the CT scan with that little girl to stroke her hair and hold her hand so that she would not have to be alone. There’s another little girl whose dad is a gym teacher at Annunciation, and she is still in the hospital, recovering from surgery yesterday, but she seems to be moving in the right direction. She was hurt while she was shielding her little buddy, which is what she calls a therapy dog. A fifth grader recounted how after the shooting, he was worried that he had gotten some gunpowder on his neck. It turned out that he had been hit by a bullet fragment that lodged so close to his artery that he needed to have surgery to remove it. He said he had dived under a pew, and a friend of his had crawled on top of him to protect him from the gunfire, and that friend was shot in the back. So here we are — incredible bravery from these kiddos and their families. Heroic efforts of the teachers and first responders and law enforcement, and also of the doctors and nurses in the emergency rooms who saved their lives. And we have all of these feelings of grief, of rage, of frustration, I think even confusion. You know, these school shootings are searingly personal to people, and also they’re often so public, and they are not uncommon. Just in Minnesota, we remember the two students that were killed at ROCORI High School in Cold Spring, Minnesota, and we remember the nine students and seven injured at Red Lake Senior High School on the Red Lake Nation. And we ask ourselves all the time: How can this happen? How do we let this keep on happening? We are thrust into this tragic cycle of collective grief and frustration and anger, and our hearts are broken for the families and the loved ones whose lives and sense of security and safety have been stolen. Our voices call out for change to end the scourge of gun violence, and our anger and frustration grows when people feel like their voices are being ignored. And I’m angry because we keep choosing to protect the interests of this big gun lobby rather than the lives of our little babies, and we can do better than this. Only in this country do we see this toxic mix of hatred and guns cost so many lives. There are over 400 million guns in this country — more guns than people. The shooter in Minneapolis was able to buy these guns that they had legally and then fire all these rounds into a church sanctuary from a rifle that was designed not for hunting, not for self-defense, but for killing people. Now, Mr. President, you know, I have been in the Senate now for nearly eight years, and I’m a realist. I know how this goes — the hopes and the prayers and then the moving on. And I know how this goes. But I’m also an optimist, and I believe that if we don’t try, nothing will ever change. And so I ask this body to listen to the words of people — not political people — who are pleading for change, who are asking us to pray by moving our feet and to take action. As my colleague, my dear colleague Senator Klobuchar said, Pope Leo asked this past weekend for us to plead to God to stop the pandemic of arms, large and small, which infects our world. Annunciation Principal Matthew DeBoer said this. He said, “We can’t change the past, but we can do something about the future.” There’s an African proverb, Principal DeBoer said, that goes, “When you pray, move your feet. So I beg you.” He continued, “I ask you to please pray, but don’t stop with your words. Let’s make a difference and support this community and these children and these families and teachers, and never again can we let this happen.” A Minneapolis student wrote an opinion piece for our newspaper, the Star Tribune, and they said: “Do not offer thoughts and prayers as you systematically enable these tragedies. Do not claim prayers are sufficient when children die as they pray. Do not pretend you do not understand.” Sam Hasler has a four-year-old and a five-year-old children who were at Annunciation. And this is what he said: “I’m heartbroken this happened. That the third day of school was marred by something my kids may carry forever, even though they weren’t physically harmed. That the joy of a new school year gave way to fear almost instantly. I’m sad knowing this will happen again in another school, in another town, and we’ll do it all again. The GoFundMes. The social posts. The trauma interviews.” Sam continued, “It always comes back to the guns. We are not the only country with mental illness or social media, or divided politics. But we are the only one where this happens again and again, and we shrug and we stall because regulating weapons of war is somehow off the table. If the right to own these guns matters more than children’s right to live, then say that out loud.” That’s what this father said. “Let the rest of us decide how to live in a country like that. For me, though, that is not okay. It is not normal.” Harper Moyski’s grieving parents said, “While our immediate focus is on Harper and our family’s healing, we also believe it is important that her memory fuels action. No family should ever have to endure this kind of pain. We urge our leaders and communities to take meaningful steps to address gun violence and the mental health crisis in this country. Change is possible, and it is necessary so that Harper’s story does not become yet another in a long line of tragedies.” These are the words of people who have lived through this tragedy. Colleagues, this body has shown that we can take steps to keep our children safer. After the tragedy in Uvalde, my colleague Chris Murphy and Republicans joined together to write the Safer Communities Act, which invested billions of dollars to help Americans, and especially young people, get the mental health support that they need. And it took important, meaningful steps to make it harder for dangerous people to get guns. More work to do, but we showed that we could make progress. Today, I plead with my Republican colleagues to stand up to this administration as it is refusing to fund those local violence prevention initiatives — those grants that we funded in a bipartisan way through the Safer Communities Act. We should undo the cuts to Medicaid that just got pushed through with the Big Beautiful Bill, and it’s the number one source of insurance for people who are seeking mental health care in this country. We should condemn the Secretary of Health and Human Services when he says, with no basis, that somehow antidepressants cause school shootings. And then we should come together and negotiate in a meaningful way to keep assault weapons like the ones that killed and injured the students of Annunciation Catholic School out of the hands of dangerous people. Now we know there is no one answer to this terrible scourge of gun violence that is killing our children. There is no one thing that we can do to change the shameful statistic that the number one cause of death for children in this country are firearms. But because there’s no one answer doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t try. We have to try. And so, to any Minnesota children, especially those who go to Annunciation School, that are listening right now, I just want to say to you this: Your community loves you, your family loves you, and we’re going to do everything we can to keep you safe. I am in awe of your resilience, but you should never have to go through what you’ve been through this last week. I am so sorry that the adults have not done enough to keep you safe, and we need to do better. Mr. President, I yield the floor.",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:10:29Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=0BCEE66D-28C0-4D97-976C-FAC08BF3FAE9,Minnesota Delegation Introduces Bipartisan Resolution Honoring Victims and Survivors of Annunciation Catholic Church and School Shooting,2025-09-03,2025,2025-09,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON – Today, the entirety of the Minnesota congressional delegation introduced a resolution honoring the victims and survivors of the mass shooting at Annunciation Catholic Church and School in Minneapolis. The resolution condemns this senseless act of violence, honors the memory of those lost, and recognizes the courage of first responders, caregivers, and community members who acted swiftly in the face of tragedy. The Minnesota delegation stands united in honoring the lives cut short, supporting the survivors, and lifting up the Annunciation Catholic community, which has shown strength and resilience in the aftermath of this horrific attack. The resolution is supported by the full Minnesota delegation: Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Senator Tina Smith (D-MN), Representatives Brad Finstad (MN-01), Angie Craig (MN-02), Kelly Morrison (MN-03), Betty McCollum (MN-04), Ilhan Omar (MN-05), Tom Emmer (MN-06), Michelle Fischbach (MN-07), Pete Stauber (MN-08). Resolution Text: Whereas, on August 27, 2025, congregants gathered at the Annunciation Catholic Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota, for a mass to welcome back students for their first week of school; Whereas their sense of peace was shattered when a shooter opened fire while they were in prayer, killing 2 children and injuring 21 others; Whereas first responders, including members of the Minneapolis Police Department, emergency medical teams, hospital staff, and Federal law enforcement officers, community members, and volunteers responded with courage and compassion; and Whereas the Annunciation Catholic Church and School community, local schools, families, and neighbors have shown strength and resilience in the face of this tragedy: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Senate— (1) condemns this senseless act of violence and offers its condolences to the families and loved ones of those killed and injured in the tragedy; (2) honors the memory of the victims and stands in solidarity with survivors, the Catholic community, and the broader Minneapolis community; (3) commends the bravery and service of law enforcement, first responders, school and church staff, and community members who acted swiftly to protect and help others; (4) stands with the Annunciation Catholic Church and School community and all Minnesotans in the face of this terrible tragedy; (5) expresses hope that the Annunciation community, together with other communities scarred by gun violence across the country, will heal through unity, compassion, and shared faith; (6) declares that there is no place for violence in our communities, and that everyone deserves to feel safe in their sacred places of worship and schools; and (7) expresses solidarity with all faith communities and schools that have been scarred by such violence. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:10:29Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=73EB4F96-3786-4757-8459-32B0A52A7D1E,Klobuchar Statement on C-SPAN Being Added to YouTubeTV and Hulu + Live TV Streaming Services,2025-09-03,2025,2025-09,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) released the following statement applauding YouTubeTV and Hulu + Live TV’s announcement that the streaming services will begin to carry C-SPAN and its live coverage of congressional proceedings. This comes after Senator Klobuchar advocated for streaming platforms to carry C-SPAN. “C-SPAN has connected Congress with the American people for decades — providing the public an opportunity to see their government at work on the Senate and House floor and in committee meetings,” Klobuchar said. “Access to this live coverage on all platforms, including streaming services, is essential to keeping the American people informed and engaged in our democracy, and that’s why Senator Grassley and I worked to pass a resolution urging all television providers to carry C-SPAN. I’m glad YouTube and Hulu are taking this step, and I look forward to C-SPAN being available on these platforms for many years to come.” In June, Senator Klobuchar and Chuck Grassley (R-IA) introduced a resolution to mark the 39th anniversary of C-SPAN 2’s first Senate broadcast, which passed the Senate unanimously. The resolution urged all television providers, including streaming services, to carry C-SPAN. Senator Klobuchar also delivered remarks on the Senate floor highlighting C-SPAN’s contributions to American democracy and urging YouTube and Hulu + Live TV to carry C-SPAN. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:10:29Z https://www.smith.senate.gov/icymi-u-s-senator-tina-smith-blasts-wrongful-firing-of-duluth-epa-scientists-by-the-trump-administration/,ICYMI: U.S. Senator Tina Smith Blasts Wrongful Firing of Duluth EPA Scientists by the Trump Administration,2025-09-03,2025,2025-09,Democrat,Senate,MN,Tina Smith,S001203,www.smith.senate.gov,tinasmith,https://www.smith.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) blasted the news that scientists at the Great Lakes Toxicology and Ecology Division Laboratory were fired for signing onto a letter expressing concerns over cuts and changes at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that they argued would endanger the health and safety of Minnesotans. In a statement to the Duluth News Tribune, Smith decried the firings and expressed pride in the workers who had the guts to sign onto the Declaration of Dissent warning about the impacts of EPA cuts. “How is firing the people who keep Lake Superior and Minnesota’s waters clean and safe a good idea? How does that benefit anyone? The sole reason they got fired is because they exercised their freedom of speech and dared to disagree with the Trump administration. I’m proud they had the guts to do it, to warn all of us. I don’t care who you voted for, you didn’t vote to fire scientists who keep our waters safe.” Senator Smith has been vocally critical of the recent attacks on the Great Lakes Toxicology and Ecology Division Laboratory in Duluth. She and Senator Klobuchar (D-MN) pressed the EPA for answers after reports of staff layoffs at the lab in April and pressed for answers from EPA Administrator Zeldin. After employees were placed on leave for signing onto the Declaration of Dissent, Smith pressed the EPA to reinstate the workers, calling any threat of retaliation a violation of workers’ First Amendment rights as affirmed by the Supreme Court. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:10:29Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=B1692AE5-21E6-4899-BABE-D086F413BEAD,Klobuchar Statement on the Google Antitrust Remedy Decision,2025-09-02,2025,2025-09,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) released the following statement on the D.C. District Court’s remedies to Google’s online search monopoly: “Today’s ruling is a reminder of Google’s sweeping power over the online economy, but the limited remedies ordered by the court demonstrate why we need additional rules of the road for Big Tech. That’s why we must pass my bipartisan American Innovation and Choice Online Act to stop dominant platforms like Google from continuing to unfairly preference their own products over competitors’ — which hurts consumers and entrepreneurs, and stifles innovation,"" said Klobuchar. “Through three administrations, our antitrust enforcers have proven that Google’s tactics endanger the future of a free and open internet and risk choking off innovation in critical areas like artificial intelligence. I will continue to work across the aisle to ensure even the most powerful tech companies have to play by the rules.” Klobuchar has long been a leading advocate for taking on Big Tech monopolies and championing antitrust efforts. In 2023, Klobuchar and Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) reintroduced their American Innovation and Choice Online Act which would set clear, effective rules to protect competition and prevent self-preferencing by the most economically significant online platforms, while maintaining a secure online experience for users, including: Prohibiting dominant platforms from abusing their gatekeeper power by favoring their own products or services, disadvantaging rivals, or discriminating among businesses that use their platforms in a manner that would materially harm competition on the platform; and Prohibiting specific forms of conduct that are harmful to small businesses, entrepreneurs, and consumers, but that do not have any pro-competitive benefit, including: Preventing another business’s product or service from interoperating with the dominant platform or another business; Requiring a business to buy a dominant platform’s goods or services for preferred placement on its platform; Misusing a business’s data to compete against them; and Biasing search results in favor of the dominant firm. Give antitrust enforcers strong, flexible tools to deter violations and hold dominant platforms accountable when they cross the line into illegal behavior, including significant civil penalties, authority to seek broad injunctions, emergency interim relief, and potential forfeiture of executive compensation. In December 2022, Klobuchar and Grassley’s Merger Filing Fee Modernization Act was passed into law. This legislation updated merger filing fees for the first time since 2001, lowering fees on smaller acquisitions, and increasing them for the largest mergers, raising additional revenue that Congress can use to fund antitrust enforcement, and ultimately giving the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division the resources necessary to try and win cases against Big Tech. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:10:29Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=B4371F80-A38A-4E60-BFE6-2622D083E7AC,"Klobuchar, Cantwell, Blumenthal, Wasserman Schultz, Colleagues File Amicus Brief Urging Circuit Court to Protect the Independence of the Consumer Product Safety Commission",2025-09-02,2025,2025-09,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL) led 23 members of Congress in filing an amicus brief urging the Fourth Circuit to preserve the independence and effectiveness of the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) in response to President Trump’s illegal firing of the CPSC’s three Democratic Commissioners – Mary Boyle, Alexander Hoehn-Saric, and Richard Trumka. “For over 50 years, the Consumer Product Safety Commission has been free from politics so it can remain focused on its core mission of keeping Americans safe—from banning lead paint, to ensuring electronics aren’t fire hazards, to making swimming pools safe for kids. Last year alone, the Commission recalled 153 million unsafe items,” said Sen. Klobuchar. “By illegally firing the three Democratic commissioners, the President has undermined the independent structure of the Commission and its critical work— we can’t let that happen.” “For 53 years, the bipartisan, independent CPSC has put consumer safety first,” said Sen. Cantwell. “Now, President Trump has put politics first by illegally firing the three Democratic CPSC Commissioners. By injecting politics where it doesn’t belong, the President is undermining the safety of children, seniors, and everyone else. I’m proud to stand with Congressional Democrats in pushing back against this illegal and partisan power grab.” “The Trump Administration is laying waste to lives and taxpayer dollars by illegally dismantling the bipartisan, independent Consumer Product Safety Commission—the nation’s only watchdog tasked with protecting children and families from unsafe products. Our brief makes clear that the Trump Administration lacks the authority to do away with this critical, bipartisan agency and fire its Democratic Commissioners without cause. Independent agencies like the CPSC were established by Congress for the very purpose of ensuring unbiased, nonpartisan decision-making prioritizes the long-term interests of the public. President Trump’s actions to decimate the CPSC fly in the face of the law and threaten the health and safety of every American,” said Sen. Blumenthal. ""Every day, the Consumer Product Safety Commission stops unforeseen tragedies in homes across America. If Trump succeeds in taking a wrecking ball to the CPSC, dangerous products will endanger children’s lives, and more families risk horrible accidents,” said Rep. Wasserman Schultz. “I have had the pleasure of working with the CPSC closely, in a bipartisan manner, on drowning prevention and pool safety for over a decade. I’m proud to lead this amicus brief with Senators Klobuchar, Cantwell, and Blumenthal to fight for an independent CPSC."" The brief argues that, under the Constitution, Congress has the authority to structure federal agencies and create multimember, independent agencies whose board members are protected from removal without cause – highlighting the 90 years of Supreme Court precedent allowing Congress to enact for-cause removal protections. Under the laws creating the CPSC – and 30 other independent government agencies and boards – a commissioner can only be removed by the president “for neglect of duty or malfeasance in office.” The brief also details how maintaining the CPSC’s independence is critical to its ability to fulfill its Congressional mandate to protect Americans from unreasonable injury risk. Along with Klobuchar, Cantwell, Blumenthal and Wasserman Schultz, the brief was filed by Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Ed Markey (D-MA), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Jacky Rosen (D-NV) Dick Durbin (D-IL), and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), and Representatives Frank Pallone (D-NJ), Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), Sanford D. Bishop, Jr. (D-GA), Robin K. Kelly (D-IL), Kevin Mullin (D-CA), Doris Matsui (D-CA), Diana DeGette (D-CO), Debbie Dingell (D-MI), Yvette Clarke (D-NY), Jennifer McClellan (D-VA), Kathy Castor (D-FL) and Norma Torres (D-CA). ""For more than fifty years, the CPSC’s independence has enabled it to keep dangerous products out of our homes and protect our children from preventable harm. Preserving the Commission’s independence ensures public safety, not politics or industry pressure, comes first,"" said Courtney Griffin, Director of Consumer Product Safety at Consumer Federation of America. ""Senator Klobuchar and amici have sent a powerful message today: American families, especially American children, deserve nothing less than a strong, independent CPSC.” “The National Consumers League applauds Senator Klobuchar and her fellow amici for defending the spirit and letter of the law, decades of Supreme Court precedent, and the CPSC’s ability to carry out its lifesaving mission,” said Daniel Greene, Senior Director of Consumer Protection & Product Safety at the National Consumers League. “The CPSC’s independence ensures that the agency is mission-driven, guided by experts and science, and insulated from changing political tides. Silencing the voices of subject-matter experts with whom you politically disagree does not improve government efficiency. It just leads to more unnecessary deaths and more unnecessary injuries.” An excerpt from the brief is below. The full amicus brief is available here. Congress prioritized the CPSC’s independence because its decisions would “necessarily involve a careful meld of safety and economic considerations,” and Congress believed that the CPSC should strike this “delicate balance . . . as far removed as possible from partisan influence.” The text of the Consumer Products Safety Act and its legislative history make clear Congress’s intent to ensure the integrity and vigilance of the CPSC by safeguarding the CPSC’s independence through removal protections for its members. To ensure the CPSC’s independence Congress relied on the “traditional requirements relating to the appointment and organization of independent regulatory agencies.”",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:10:29Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=7CCDFE25-A109-49A0-9695-19A360671D58,Klobuchar Statement on the U.S. Appeals Court Rejecting President Trump’s Tariff Taxes,2025-08-29,2025,2025-08,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) released the following statement on the U.S. appeals court ruling on President Trump’s tariff taxes. “This reaffirms Congressional authority over tariffs. Instead of raising costs with tariff taxes, the President should be focused on bringing relief to the American people and lowering costs. As the court emphasized, ‘The core Congressional power to impose taxes such as tariffs is vested exclusively in the legislative branch by the Constitution.’ The President clearly overstepped his authority with these across-the-board tariffs.” In April, the Senate passed Klobuchar’s bipartisan resolution with Senators Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Mark Warner (D-VA) to reverse President Trump’s across-the-board tariffs on Canadian goods. Klobuchar joined Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA) to introduce the Trade Review Act of 2025, bipartisan legislation that would bring stability and accountability to U.S. trade policy by reasserting limits on the president’s ability to unilaterally impose tariffs without the approval of Congress. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:02:47Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=181883BB-3D73-47AD-9501-8ACDBB79C98F,ICYMI – Klobuchar Op-Ed in The New York Times: What I Didn’t Say About Sydney Sweeney,2025-08-20,2025,2025-08,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON — Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) published an op-ed in The New York Times chronicling her recent experience being deepfaked, the risks of AI-generated videos, and the need to put in place rules of the road, including creating protections for those who have their voice and likeness replicated through AI without their permission. From the op-ed: There’s a centuries-old expression that “a lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is still putting on its shoes.” Today, a realistic deepfake — an A.I.-generated video that shows someone doing or saying something they never did — can circle the globe and land in the phones of millions while the truth is still stuck on a landline. That’s why it is urgent for Congress to immediately pass new laws to protect Americans by preventing their likenesses from being used to do harm. I learned that lesson in a visceral way over the last month when a fake video of me — opining on, of all things, the actress Sydney Sweeney’s jeans — went viral. On Jul. 30, Senator Marsha Blackburn and I led a Senate Judiciary subcommittee hearing on data privacy. We’ve both been leaders in the tech and privacy space and have the legislative scars to show for it. The hearing featured a wide-reaching discussion with five experts about the need for a strong federal data privacy law. It was cordial and even-keeled, no partisan flare-ups. So I was surprised later that week when I noticed a clip of me from that hearing circulating widely on X, to the tune of more than a million views. I clicked to see what was getting so much attention. That’s when I heard my voice — but certainly not me — spewing a vulgar and absurd critique of an ad campaign for jeans featuring Sydney Sweeney. The A.I. deepfake featured me using the phrase “perfect titties” and lamenting that Democrats were “too fat to wear jeans or too ugly to go outside.” Though I could immediately tell that someone used footage from the hearing to make a deepfake, there was no getting around the fact that it looked and sounded very real. As anyone would, I wanted the video taken down or at least labeled “digitally altered content.” It was using my likeness to stoke controversy where it did not exist. It had me saying vile things. And while I would like to think that most people would be able to recognize it as fake, some clearly thought it was real. Studies have shown that people who see this type of content develop lasting negative views of the person in the video, even when they know it is fake. X refused to take it down or label it, even though its own policy says users are prohibited from sharing “inauthentic content on X that may deceive people,” including “manipulated, or out-of-context media that may result in widespread confusion on public issues.” As the video spread to other platforms, TikTok took it down and Meta labeled it as A.I. However, X’s response was that I should try to get a “Community Note” to say it was a fake, something the company would not help add. For years I have been going after the growing problem that Americans have extremely limited options to get unauthorized deepfakes taken down. But this experience of sinking hours of time and resources into limiting the spread of a single video made clear just how powerless we are right now. Why should tech companies’ profits rule over our rights to our own images and voices? Why do their shareholders and C.E.O.s get to make more money with the spread of viral content at the expense of our privacy and reputations? And why are there no consequences for the people who actually make the unauthorized deepfakes and spread the lies? This particular video does not in any way represent the gravest threat posed by deepfakes. In July, it was revealed that an impostor had used A.I. to pretend to be Secretary of State Marco Rubio and contacted at least three foreign ministers, a member of Congress and a governor. And this technology can turn the lives of just about anyone completely upside down. Last year, someone used A.I. to clone the voice of a high school principal in Maryland and create audio of him making racist and antisemitic comments. By the time the audio was proved to be fake, the principal had already been placed on administrative leave and families and students were left deeply hurt. There is no way to quantify the chaos that could take place going forward without legal checks. Imagine a deepfake of a bank C.E.O. that triggers a bank run; a deepfake of an influencer telling children to use drugs; or a deepfake of a U.S. president starting a war that triggers attacks on our troops. The possibilities are endless. With A.I., the technology has gotten ahead of the law, and we can’t let it go any further without rules of the road. As complicated as this technology is, some solutions are within reach. Earlier this year, President Trump signed the TAKE IT DOWN Act, which Senator Ted Cruz and I pushed to create legal protections for victims when intimate images, including deepfakes, are shared without their consent. This law addresses the rise in cases of predators using A.I. tools to create nude images of victims to humiliate or extort them. We know the consequences of this can be deadly — at least 20 children have died by suicide recently because of the threat of explicit images being shared without their consent. That bill was only the first step. That is why I am again working across the aisle on a bill to give all Americans more control over how deepfakes of our voices and visual likenesses are used. The proposed bipartisan NO FAKES Act, cosponsored by Senators Chris Coons, Marsha Blackburn, Thom Tillis and me, would give people the right to demand that social media companies remove deepfakes of their voice and likeness, while making exceptions for speech protected by the First Amendment. Read the full op-ed here. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:02:47Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=2E655365-D361-4C47-AFF5-C20C3CE9DBD3,"Klobuchar, Smith Visit 133rd Airlift Wing to Announce Funding Secured for the MN Air National Guard in Senate-Passed Legislation",2025-08-20,2025,2025-08,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"MINNEAPOLIS – Today U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith (D-MN) visited 133rd Airlift Wing to announce that the Senate approved $5,200,000 in funding for the Minnesota Air National Guard to design a C-130J Fuel Cell Maintenance Hangar, as part of the 2026 appropriations legislation. This legislation now goes to the House of Representatives for a vote. “I fought for this funding for the Minnesota National Guard’s 133rd Airlift Wing to ensure our brave servicemembers have the right resources and latest equipment to successfully carry out their missions, including aircraft and the facilities needed to maintain them,” said Klobuchar. “As the first federally-recognized Air unit in the National Guard, the 133rd Airlift Wing is a historic unit and is integral to our state, the National Guard, and our country's security. The men and women who put their lives on the line to serve our state and defend our country deserve our support.” “I fought to secure C-130Js for the Minnesota National Guard’s 133rd Airlift Wing and now we need to prepare the infrastructure to support them,” said Smith. “This funding is a key initial step toward the new hangar needed for these aircraft, which will keep Minnesotans safe and modernize our fleet.” The funding would help design a new C-130J Maintenance Hangar at 133rd Airlift Wing that will accommodate new, larger C-130J aircraft. For these funds to be delivered, the project will still need to be included in the final appropriations bill passed by the House as well and signed into law. Senators Klobuchar and Smith have been actively involved in securing this federal funding for projects benefiting communities across the state through a process called “Congressionally Directed Spending” (CDS). During the CDS process, Senators Klobuchar and Smith have considered project proposals and advocated for funding in close coordination with leaders from across the state. This funding was included in the Senate appropriation bills for Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies (MilCon-VA). Photos from today’s announcement can be found here and here. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:02:47Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=6E7249ED-641F-4CCE-88B0-FC36C7771D01,Klobuchar & Schmitt Introduce Bipartisan ABLE Employment Flexibility Act,2025-08-14,2025,2025-08,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Eric Schmitt (R-MO) reintroduced the ABLE Employment Flexibility Act, their bipartisan legislation which would allow employers to contribute to an employee’s Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) account – a tax-free savings account for people with disabilities and their families – in lieu of a traditional 401(k) or other defined contribution retirement plan. In the Senate, the bill is co-sponsored by Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) and Jerry Moran (R-KS). By permitting employer contributions to ABLE accounts, the bill helps workers with disabilities to save for their long-term needs and build financial security through employment while preserving flexibility for employers. “This bipartisan legislation will help people with disabilities and their families build a better life, save for the future, and invest without losing access to their federal benefits, like Medicaid, that they count on,” said Klobuchar. “Individuals with disabilities who work deserve the same access to employment benefits as their peers. This bipartisan legislation provides greater flexibility to employers and allows workers with disabilities to build secure financial futures without jeopardizing the federal benefits they need to live fulfilling and productive lives,” said Schmitt. “Since our passage of the ABLE Act more than a decade ago, it has empowered tens of thousands of people with disabilities to bolster their financial stability and support critical needs. Allowing employers to contribute to workers’ ABLE accounts offers these Americans another way to grow their savings and strengthen their economic independence – ensuring success in the workplace and security in retirement like everyone else,” said Van Hollen. “The savings plan we created through the Achieving a Better Life Experience Act in 2014 has expanded savings options for Americans with disabilities by removing burdensome barriers within federal entitlement programs,” said Moran. “By enabling employers to make retirement contributions directly into employees’ ABLE accounts, our legislation will build on the success of the ABLE program and help empower individuals with disabilities to more easily plan and save for their future.” Klobuchar has long advocated for individuals with disabilities. In 2014, Klobuchar fought to pass theAchieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Act to establish ABLE accounts, which allow people with disabilities and their families to save and invest through tax-free savings accounts without losing eligibility for federal programs like Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income (SSI). Since, Klobuchar has supported legislation to improve upon the ABLE Act, including the ABLE Age Adjustment Act, the ABLE Financial Planning Act, the ENABLE Act, the ABLE Awareness Act, and the ABLE MATCH Act. In 2020, the bipartisan Klobuchar-backed ALS Disability Insurance Access Act was introduced to eliminate the five-month waiting period before Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) patients receiving Social Security Disability Insurance benefits. In 2016, she fought to pass the Steve Gleason Act which amends Medicare to make permanent the elimination of a specified payment cap under the Medicare program with respect to speech generating devices. People with ALS quickly lose their ability to speak and rely entirely upon speech generating devices to live and communicate. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:02:47Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=08576358-943D-45FF-AF51-2C7ACB0F0D61,Klobuchar Statement on President Trump Revoking the Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy,2025-08-13,2025,2025-08,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology, and the Law, released the following statement on President Trump revoking the Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy. “President Trump’s decision is a step backward for consumers, entrepreneurs, workers, and family farmers. It will lead to higher prices, fewer choices, and less innovation. The Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission must vigorously enforce the antitrust laws, including by continuing to move forward cases brought under the last Administration. I will keep fighting in Congress to modernize our laws so competition flourishes, innovation accelerates, and American consumers are treated fairly.” ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:02:47Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=619A9603-731B-48D1-B484-543D56B45540,"Klobuchar, Slotkin, Ernst, Ricketts Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Strengthen American Biomanufacturing",2025-08-13,2025,2025-08,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON — U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Joni Ernst (R-IA), and Pete Ricketts (R-NE) introduced the Biomanufacturing and Jobs Act to create jobs and create new markets for our farmers by strengthening the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) BioPreferred program, a program designed to promote the use of domestic biobased products. Biobased products are derived from raw materials such as plants and other renewable agricultural materials and provide an alternative to conventional petroleum derived products like plastic. “Biomanufacturing is crucial for developing new commodity markets, driving economic growth, and creating jobs,” said Klobuchar. “I’m proud to lead this bipartisan effort to support our farmers while reducing our dependence on fossil fuels with Senator Ernst, Senator Ricketts, and Senator Slotkin.” “As our farmers deal with all kinds of changes, we must work to open up new markets and new opportunities for our farmers in Michigan to sell their products,” said Slotkin. “In Michigan, we grow things and we are really good at it. But forces beyond a farmer’s control often make reaching new markets difficult. Our bill works to strengthen USDA’s programs around biobased products so that we support our farmers and improve their ability to sell their products to biobased producers.” “Farms, ranches, and agri-businesses are the economic backbone of Nebraska and America. This bill strengthens markets and encourages innovation,” said Ricketts. “It promotes value-added agriculture. That’s a win for consumers, the environment, and for farmers and ranchers.” “For too long, we’ve allowed China and other foreign nations to eat our lunch in biomanufacturing,” said Ernst. “As leaders in corn and soybean production, Iowa’s farmers are uniquely positioned to supply the ag feedstocks used to make biobased products and play a key role in reshoring valuable manufacturing jobs. I’m proud to help lead this bipartisan effort to reduce our reliance on our adversaries while supporting our farmers and jobs in Iowa.” “As global demand grows for homegrown solutions, the Biomanufacturing and Jobs Act provides a critical opportunity to strengthen America’s leadership in the bioeconomy,” said James Glueck, Executive Director of the Plant Based Products Council. “By modernizing USDA’s BioPreferred Program, this legislation not only supports the adoption of plant-based products but also creates good-paying jobs, drives rural economic growth, and delivers meaningful environmental benefits.” “The Corn Refiners Association is proud to support this legislative effort and looks forward to working with Congress, industry stakeholders, and rural leaders to ensure the continued advancement of the U.S. bioeconomy,” said John Bode, President and CEO of the Corn Refiners Association. “This legislation responds to growing consumer demand for American-made, corn-derived bioproducts. It’s a smart investment in manufacturing, rural economies, and our national competitiveness.” “The American ag bioeconomy is poised to be a tremendous economic success story by offering new revenue streams for farmers and new product options for consumers,” said Ag Bioeconomy Coalition spokesperson Kent Roberson. “Strong policy to support the next generation of biobased products will ensure that the investments made in today’s industry are returned through tomorrow’s global leadership in this growing industry. ABC welcomes this legislation and stands ready to assist Congress in efforts to sign it into law.” This legislation is endorsed by, Agriculture Energy Coalition, American Farm Bureau Federation, American Soybean Association, Clean Fuels Alliance American, Corn Refiners Association, National Association of State Departments of Agriculture, National Corn Growers Association, National Farmers Union, National Industrial Hemp Council of America, National Hemp Association, Plant Based Product Council, National Oilseed Producers Association and Renewable Fuels Association. Specifically, this legislation would: Strengthen markets for farmers while also supporting good-paying manufacturing jobs. Strengthen the USDA BioPreferred label to improve consumer confidence in biobased product quality. Require each federal agency to increase their procurement of biobased-only product contracts or biobased volume purchased under those contracts. Improve reporting of biobased products that are purchased through online federal procurement systems. Read the bill’s full text here. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:02:47Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=47678873-141D-4C55-A8D3-AD84527CC016,"Klobuchar, Smith Secure Funding for Projects in Douglas County in Senate-Passed Legislation",2025-08-12,2025,2025-08,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith announced that the Senate approved $1,700,000 in funding to expand the Alexandria YMCA and other facilities as part of 2026 appropriations legislation. This legislation now goes to the House of Representatives for a vote. “When we invest in childcare and community spaces, we invest in the future of our state. That is why I fought for this funding for the YMCA expansion in Alexandria,” said Senator Klobuchar. “The people closest to an issue have the best solutions, and these projects were developed and designed to fit the specific needs of Alexandria and the surrounding community,” said Senator Smith. “From creating spaces for our older adults to building a brand-new childcare center, these projects will help strengthen our state.” The funding would expand and renovate the YMCA by adding and renovating 13,000 square feet to support older adult well-being programs and services, including a new kitchen for community gatherings and senior congregate dining. Additionally, the project includes construction of a 6,000-square-foot stand-alone childcare center in Brandon, MN, which will provide 42 infant, toddler, and preschool spots to rural Douglas County. This funding was included in the Senate appropriation bill for Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and Related Agencies. For these funds to be delivered, the project will still need to be included in the final appropriations bill passed by the House as well and signed into law. Senators Klobuchar and Smith have been actively involved in securing this federal funding for projects benefiting communities across the state through a process called “Congressionally Directed Spending” (CDS). During the CDS process, Senators Klobuchar and Smith have considered project proposals and advocated for funding in close coordination with leaders from across the state.",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:02:47Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=6E61C4A7-9F9D-434A-878A-0DEA3D488DDD,"Klobuchar, Smith Secure Funding for Project to Address Avian Flu in Senate-Passed Legislation",2025-08-12,2025,2025-08,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith announced that the Senate approved $1 million in funding to expand the University of Minnesota Veterinary Diagnostics Lab testing capacity in Willmar, as part of the 2026 appropriations legislation. This legislation now goes to the House of Representatives for a vote. “Preventing avian flu is critically important for farmers in Minnesota and for the stability of the food supply in our whole county. That’s why I fought for this funding that will improve the ability to stop the spread of avian flu and other animal diseases,” said Senator Klobuchar. “I hear from farmers all the time about the financial stress that avian flu outbreaks put on farm families and the economy. Animal disease outbreaks can unnecessarily disrupt trade and hurt our exporting ability,” said Senator Smith. “This funding would make a huge difference in our ability to stop avian flu in its tracks and protect our farmers and animals."" The funding would be used to address avian flu, a top issue in Minnesota and nationally, and prevent its spread by purchasing additional PCR testing devices for avian flu and other zoonotic diseases. The project will enable faster results and reduced wait times, while also upgrading the data and results management system. This funding was included in the Senate appropriations bill for Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and Related Agencies. For these funds to be delivered, the project will still need to be included in the final appropriations bill passed by the House as well and signed into law. Senators Klobuchar and Smith have been actively involved in securing this federal funding for projects benefiting communities across the state through a process called “Congressionally Directed Spending” (CDS). During the CDS process, Senators Klobuchar and Smith have considered project proposals and advocated for funding in close coordination with leaders from across the state. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:02:47Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=70C0C3CA-C9F9-4C2C-AA8C-3DBC8ECE3849,"Klobuchar, Smith Secure Funding for Childcare in Virginia in Senate-Passed Legislation",2025-08-12,2025,2025-08,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith announced that the Senate approved $1,000,000 in funding for the Apple Tree Learning Center in Virginia as part of the 2026 appropriations legislation. This legislation now goes to the House of Representatives for a vote. “When we invest in childcare, we invest in the future of our state. That is why I fought for this funding to provide more childcare options for families in and around Virginia,” said Klobuchar. “Access to childcare is essential, because it gives parents the freedom to pursue their careers and contribute to the economy, and it supports the safe and healthy development of our kids,” said Smith. “This investment in Virginia would make much needed improvements to Apple Tree Learning Center that will help hundreds of families get much needed childcare services.” The funding would bring a currently closed childcare center up to safety standards and address the childcare shortage on the Iron Range, restoring 127 childcare slots and supporting families and jobs. This funding was included in the appropriations bill for Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and related agencies. For these funds to be delivered, the project will still need to be included in the final appropriations bill passed by the House as well and signed into law. Senators Klobuchar and Smith have been actively involved in securing this federal funding for projects benefiting communities across the state through a process called “Congressionally Directed Spending” (CDS). During the CDS process, Senators Klobuchar and Smith have considered project proposals and advocated for funding in close coordination with leaders from across the state. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:02:47Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=9AE71D09-F55D-4BED-8CB3-FB1274201AC9,"Klobuchar, Smith Secure Childcare Funding for Grand Rapids in Senate-Passed Legislation",2025-08-12,2025,2025-08,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith announced that the Senate approved $315,000 for the KOOTASCA Community Action’s Early Childhood Hub and Community Center in Grand Rapids as part of the 2026 appropriations legislation. This legislation now goes to the House of Representatives for a vote. “When we invest in childcare, we invest in the future of our state. That is why I fought for this funding to make improvements to the KOOTASCA Early Childhood Hub,” said Klobuchar. “Access to affordable childcare is essential, because it gives parents the freedom to pursue their careers and contribute to the economy, and it supports the safe and healthy development of our kids,” said Smith. “This investment in Grand Rapids would make improvements to KOOTASCA’s community center that will help families get much needed childcare services.” The funding would be used to replace the deteriorating main water line, which is essential to ensuring the health, safety, and long-term sustainability of this regional childcare center. The center serves 174 children and their families. This funding was included in the Senate appropriation bill for Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and Related Agencies. For these funds to be delivered, the project will still need to be included in the final appropriations bill passed by the House as well and signed into law. Senators Klobuchar and Smith have been actively involved in securing this federal funding for projects benefiting communities across the state through a process called “Congressionally Directed Spending” (CDS). During the CDS process, Senators Klobuchar and Smith have considered project proposals and advocated for funding in close coordination with leaders from across the state. ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:02:47Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=B5E55D48-2464-4649-85E8-D11FC7689830,"Klobuchar, Smith Secure Funding for the Minnesota Air National Guard In Senate-Passed Legislation",2025-08-12,2025,2025-08,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith announced that the Senate approved $5,200,000 in funding for the Minnesota Air National Guard to design a C-130J Fuel Cell Maintenance Hangar, as part of the 2026 appropriations legislation. This legislation now goes to the House of Representatives for a vote. “I fought for this funding for the Minnesota National Guard’s 133rd Airlift Wing to ensure our brave servicemembers have the right resources and latest equipment to successfully carry out their missions, including aircraft and the facilities needed to maintain them,” said Klobuchar. “As the first federally-recognized Air unit in the National Guard, the 133rd Airlift Wing is a historic unit and is integral to our state, the National Guard, and our country's security. The men and women who put their lives on the line to serve our state and defend our country deserve our support.” “I fought to secure C-130Js for the Minnesota National Guard’s 133rd Airlift Wing and now we need to prepare the infrastructure to support them,” said Senator Smith. “This funding is a key initial step toward the new hangar needed for these aircraft, which will keep Minnesotans safe and modernize our fleet.” The funding would help design a new C-130J Maintenance Hangar at 133rd Airlift Wing that will accommodate new, larger C-130J aircraft. For these funds to be delivered, the project will still need to be included in the final appropriations bill passed by the House as well and signed into law. Senators Klobuchar and Smith have been actively involved in securing this federal funding for projects benefiting communities across the state through a process called “Congressionally Directed Spending” (CDS). During the CDS process, Senators Klobuchar and Smith have considered project proposals and advocated for funding in close coordination with leaders from across the state. This funding was included in the Senate appropriation bills for Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies (MilCon-VA).",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:02:47Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=05EB27CB-09EB-4014-8088-97B3CCBFE591,"Klobuchar, Smith Announce Federal Funding for St. Paul Unfrozen",2025-08-11,2025,2025-08,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Tina Smith (D-MN) announced that the U.S. Department of Education has unfrozen $1,556,791 in funding for St. Paul. This money will be distributed to fund 21st Century Learning Centers at St. Paul community programs, including the Hmong American Partnership, Keystone Community Services, and the Children's Defense Fund. “We must continue to support our community programs so that our children can thrive,” said Klobuchar. “I fought to restore this funding for St. Paul so families and students don’t lose out on vital programs.” “This funding never should have been frozen in the first place. It’s just another example of the administration’s attempt to make reckless cuts to funding, which put the success of kids and families at risk,” said Smith. “I’m glad we pushed to get the money flowing again, because kids in St. Paul and the educators who empower them shouldn’t come at the expense of tax cuts for billionaires.” ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:02:47Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=0DD2091A-2756-40D6-920C-02809EAF9550,"Klobuchar, Smith Announce Federal Funding for Northfield Schools Unfrozen",2025-08-11,2025,2025-08,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Tina Smith (D-MN) announced that the U.S. Department of Education has unfrozen $124,489 in funding for Northfield Public Schools. This money will be distributed to fund 21st Century Learning Centers throughout the district. “We must continue to support our schools and community programs so that our children can thrive,” said Klobuchar. “I fought to restore this funding for Northfield so families and schools don’t lose out on vital programs.” “This funding never should have been frozen in the first place. It’s just another example of the administration’s attempt to make reckless cuts to funding, which put the success of kids and families in Northfield at risk,” said Smith. “I’m glad we pushed to get the money flowing again. If this administration is going to shell out tax cuts for billionaires, the least they can do is follow through on funding that was already promised to our public schools.” ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:02:47Z https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=3AD625D2-D580-4256-A1EF-F5E014896231,"Klobuchar, Smith Announce Federal Education Funding for Rochester Unfrozen",2025-08-11,2025,2025-08,Democrat,Senate,MN,Amy Klobuchar,K000367,www.klobuchar.senate.gov,klobuchar,https://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases,scraper,"WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Tina Smith (D-MN) announced that the U.S. Department of Education has unfrozen $1,442,300 in funding for Rochester Public Schools. This money will be distributed to fund ten 21st Century Learning Centers at five Rochester district schools and community programs, including the Boys & Girls Club of Rochester, the Somali American Social Service Association, Pamoja Women, and the Sports Mentorship Academy. “We must continue to support our public schools and community programs so that our children can thrive,” said Klobuchar. “I fought to restore this funding for Rochester so families and schools didn’t lose out on vital programs.” “This funding never should have been frozen in the first place. It’s just another example of reckless cuts to funding that schools and communities rely on to support kids and families,” said Smith. “I’m glad we pushed to get the money flowing to Rochester again. If this administration is going to shell out tax cuts for billionaires, the least they can do is follow through on funding that was already promised to our public schools.” ###",1,2026-03-30T01:40:41Z,2026-04-06T19:02:47Z