WASHINGTON, Dec. 10 -- Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, ranking member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, issued the following news release on Dec. 9, 2021: Aat a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing on their efforts in the federal government to address per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination, Mark Johnson, Deputy Director for Business and Regulatory Affairs at Ohio Environmental Protection Agency expressed appreciation for the Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act. U.S.  more PR

WASHINGTON, Dec. 10 -- Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Rob Portman (R-OH) delivered remarks on the Senate floor outlining his concerns with Democrats' massive tax and spending proposal. Portman noted that Democrats passing another stimulus bill would represent a doubling down of the policies that created this current state of inflation by raising taxes and stimulating consumer demand. He explained that the actual cost of this legislation could be more than $4.5 trillion, rather than the $1.75 trillion  more PR

WASHINGTON, Dec. 10 -- Rep. Troy Balderson, R-Ohio, issued the following news release on Dec. 9, 2021: Congressman Troy Balderson joined House colleagues today to introduce legislation requiring the Administration to develop a plan to increase oil and gas production on federal lands before they can tap the Strategic Petroleum Reserve for political purposes. "This legislation puts common-sense guardrails in place, ensuring steps are taken to boost energy production to meet the needs of consumers," said Congressman Balderson. "Releasing a 3-day more PR

WASHINGTON, Dec. 10 -- Rep. Brad Wenstrup, R-Ohio, issued the following news release: Congressman Brad Wenstrup (R-Ohio) announced that Seven Hills School 8th grader Kaavya Tatavarty has won the 2021 Congressional App Challenge for Ohio's 2nd Congressional District with her app, Habit Master. Tatavarty designed Habit Master to help people who struggle with organization skills and procrastination set goals for themselves and create healthier habits. "I congratulate Kaavya on her winning app design, which has the potential to do a lot of good  more PR

WASHINGTON, Dec. 10 -- Rep. Brad Wenstrup, R-Ohio, issued the following news release: Congressman Brad Wenstrup (R-Ohio) issued the following statement after the House passed three bills regarding the Chinese Communist Party's human rights abuses. "The United States should stand up for the rights to life, human dignity, and religious freedom around the world and lead the way in holding the Chinese Communist Party accountable for its egregious human rights abuses," said Congressman Wenstrup. "We cannot turn a blind eye to the genocide being pe more PR

WASHINGTON, Dec. 10 -- Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) announced that the U.S. Department of Justice's (DOJ) Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) has awarded a $750,000 grant to the Lima Urban Minority Alcohol and Drug Abuse Outreach Program (UMADAOP) through its Second Chance Act Community-Based Reentry Program ARISE Lima. Funding will support partnerships between correctional facilities and community agencies in Lima to support people as they transition away from incarceration. P more PR

WASHINGTON, Dec. 10 -- Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, issued the following news release on Dec. 9, 2021: Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) announced the U.S. Department of Justice's (DOJ) Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) has awarded a $421,126 grant to the City of Columbus through its Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program. Grant funding will go toward a project to aid individuals with mental illness or substance use disorders who come into contact with the justice system in Franklin County. Franklin County Municipal Court and Ohio Guidestone  more PR

WASHINGTON, Dec. 10 -- Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, issued the following news release on Dec. 9, 2021: U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) announced that the Department of Justice's (DOJ) Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) has awarded a $7,524 grant to the Village of Sabina for local crime prevention through its Rural Violent Crime Reduction Initiative for Law Enforcement Agencies Program. This funding will be used to help local law enforcement purchase security cameras to be placed around the village to combat drug and theft crime and track down p more PR

WASHINGTON, Dec. 10 -- Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, issued the following news release on Dec. 9, 2021: U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) announced that the U.S. Department of Justice's (DOJ) Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) has awarded a $94,113 grant to the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction (ODRC) through its Implementing the PREA Standards, Protecting Inmates, and Safeguarding Communities Program. Funding will be used to create safer facilities to enhance compliance with Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) standards though com more PR

WASHINGTON, Dec. 10 -- Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, issued the following news release on Dec. 9, 2021: Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) announced the U.S. Department of Justice's (DOJ) Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) has awarded a $548,885 grant to Summit County through its Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program. Grant funding will go toward a project to aid individuals with mental illness or substance use disorders who come into contact with the justice system in Summit County. The Summit County HOPE Mental Health Court and mental health  more PR

WASHINGTON, Dec. 10 -- Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, issued the following news release: U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) joined Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Farah Stockman in a virtual conversation to discuss her new book, "American Made: What Happens to People When Work Disappears." In American Made, Stockman gives an up-close look at the role work plays in our sense of identity and belonging. She follows three workers after their factory making steel ball bearings in Indiana closes down to move to Mexico. Stockman is a member of the New Yor more PR

WASHINGTON, Dec. 10 -- Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Rob Portman (R-OH) sent a letter Acting Social Security Administration (SSA) Commissioner Kilolo Kijakazi asking him to immediately reopen SSA Ohio field offices to the public. The closure of Social Security field offices is of particular concern because many areas of Ohio still lack access to high speed Internet, which is necessary to establish a My SSA.gov account and interact with the agency due to offices being closed. SSA suspended in-person s more PR

WASHINGTON, Dec. 10 -- Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, ranking member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, issued the following news release on Dec. 9, 2021: U.S. Senator Rob Portman (R-OH), Ranking Member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, delivered opening remarks at the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing to examine the federal government's efforts to address per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination. Portman expressed his concern about  more PR

WASHINGTON, Dec. 10 -- Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Rob Portman (R-OH) and Ron Wyden (D-OR) announced that their legislation to reform the federal government's Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER), a database of federal judicial filings, was reported favorably out of the Senate Judiciary Committee by voice vote. The PACER system is outdated and charges exorbitant fees to users. This bill will reform PACER to solve these problems and ensure easy and free public access to federal governm more PR

WASHINGTON, Dec. 10 -- Sen. Christopher Murphy, D-Connecticut, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), a member of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Rob Portman (R-Ohio), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), and Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) met with Oksana Markarova, Ambassador of Ukraine to the U.S., and Ukrainian Members of Parliament on Wednesday to discuss the recent uptick in Russian aggression towards Ukraine. The group discussed pressing national security issues including Russia's further escalation of troops at more PR

WASHINGTON, Dec. 10 -- Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, ranking member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, issued the following news release on Dec. 9, 2021: U.S. Senators Rob Portman (R-OH), Ranking Member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, Chris Coons (D-DE), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology, and the Law; and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) announced the Platform Accountability and Transparency Act (PATA), a new bipartisan bill that would require social media companies  more PR

WASHINGTON, Dec. 10 -- Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, ranking member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, issued the following news release on Dec. 9, 2021: U.S. Senators Rob Portman (R-OH), Ranking Member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Chairwoman of the Senate Rules Committee, sent a letter to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, and Postmaster General Louis DeJoy expressing concern about the nu more PR

WASHINGTON, Dec. 10 -- Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, ranking member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, issued the following news release on Dec. 9, 2021: U.S. Senators Rob Portman (R-OH) and Gary Peters (D-MI), Ranking Member and Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, announced that their bipartisan Civilian Reservist Emergency Workforce Act to protect Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Reservists from losing their full-time employment when they are called up to assist communi more PR

WASHINGTON, Dec. 10 -- Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Rob Portman (R-OH) and Jacky Rosen (D-NV) announced the introduction of the Helping Foster and Homeless Youth Achieve Act. The bipartisan legislation would improve access to educational opportunities by requiring that higher education institutions receiving federal assistance waive application fees for foster and homeless youth. "Kids facing homelessness, or in the foster care system, face an uphill battle when trying to pursue higher education.  more PR