WASHINGTON, March 25 -- The Congressional Budget Office issued the following cost estimate for the Oregon Recreation Enhancement Act (S. 1589): Bill Summary S. 1589 would designate roughly 98,000 acres of federal land in Oregon as the Rogue Canyon Recreation Area and roughly 30,000 acres as the Molalla Recreation Area for recreational use. The bill also would add about 60,000 acres of federal land in Oregon to the Wild Rogue Wilderness. Some of that land would be permanently withdrawn from com more PR

WASHINGTON, March 25 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, issued the following news release: Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden, D-Ore., will convene a hearing on Wednesday, March 30, titled "Behavioral Health Care When Americans Need It: Ensuring Parity and Care Integration." The hearing will take place at 10:00 a.m. in Room 215 of the Dirksen Senate Office Building. The witnesses at Wednesday's hearing will be: * John Dicken, Director, Health Care-- more PR

WASHINGTON, March 26 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, issued the following news release on March 25, 2022: Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden, D-Ore., will convene a hearing on Thursday, March 31, on the President's 2022 Trade Policy Agenda. The hearing will take place at 10:00 a.m. in Room 215 of the Dirksen Senate Office Building. The witness at Thursday's hearing will be: * The Honorable Katherine C. Tai, United States Trade Representative, Exec more PR

WASHINGTON, March 22 -- The House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment issued the following testimony by Rep. Earl Blumenauer, D-Oregon, at a member day hearing on March 16, 2022, on water resources development projects: * * * Thank you for providing the opportunity to testify on behalf of priorities in the upcoming Water Resources Development bill. Continuing the recent successes of passing WRDA bills, this bill will help many states and localities more PR

WASHINGTON, March 22 -- The House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment issued the following testimony by Rep. J. Luis Correa, D-California, at a member day hearing on March 16, 2022, on water resources development legislation: * * * Thank you for providing the opportunity to testify on behalf of priorities in the upcoming Water Resources Development bill. Continuing the recent successes of passing WRDA bills, this bill will help many states and loca more PR

WASHINGTON, March 22 -- The House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment issued the following testimony by Rep. Kurt Schrader, D-Oregon, at a member day hearing on March 16, 2022, on Water Resource Development Act projects: * * * The success that WRDA has had during these divided times is a testament to the committee's willingness to work across the aisle and I hope that work will be just as successful for WRDA 2022. With the passage of the Infrastru more PR

WASHINGTON, March 24 -- The House Oversight and Reform Subcommittee on Environment issued the following testimony by Dominick A. DellaSala, chief scientist of wild heritage for the Project of Earth Island Institute, involving a hearing on March 16, 2022, entitled "Fighting Fire with Fire: Evaluating the Role of Forest Management in Reducing Catastrophic Wildfires": * * * I am a survivor of the 2020 Almeda Fire that destroyed half the downtown area of my home town of Talent and nearby Phoenix,  more PR

WASHINGTON, March 22 -- Rep. Peter A. DeFazio, D-Oregon, chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, issued the following news release on March 21, 2022: The following are opening remarks, as prepared for delivery, from Chair of the Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Salud Carbajal (D-CA) during today's field hearing titled, "A Review of Coast Guard Efforts to Improve Small Passenger Vessel Safety." Chair Carbajal: Good morning, and welcome to today more PR

WASHINGTON, March 25 -- Rep. Peter A. DeFazio, D-Oregon, chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, issued the following statement: * * * Chair of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Peter DeFazio (D-OR) issued the following statement after the acquittal of former Boeing 737 MAX chief technical pilot Mark Forkner. "As I have said many times, Boeing needs to be held accountable. Criminal prosecution is not the only form that can take. "FAA should  more PR

WASHINGTON, March 19 -- Rep. Peter A. DeFazio, D-Oregon, chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, issued the following statement: * * * Chair of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Peter DeFazio (D-OR) released the following statement on the passing of Rep. Don Young (R-AK): "Don was a force of nature--an historic and unique figure in a body of standouts. Early on we fought bitterly over environmental issues and wolf slaughter in Alaska. "Altho more PR

WASHINGTON, March 25 -- Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, issued the following statement on March 24, 2022: * * * Oregon's U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley released the following statement after meeting with Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson, who currently serves as a judge on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. "President Biden has done his part with a historic Supreme Court nomination, and now it's time for the Senate to fulfill its own constitutional obligation. Judge Jackson has wowed the na more PR

WASHINGTON, March 22 -- Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, issued the following statement on March 20, 2022: * * * Oregon's U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley--a member of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee and a leading voice on the Rohingya crisis--issued the following statement after reports that the U.S. State Department will make a formal determination that the Burmese military has been carrying out a genocide against the Rohingya people. "I applaud the Biden administration for finally recogni more PR

WASHINGTON, March 25 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, issued the following news release on March 24, 2022: U.S. Senator Ron Wyden today announced that the U.S. Senate unanimously approved bipartisan legislation to expand Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) mammogram screening eligibility. The Dr. Kate Hendricks Thomas Supporting Expanded Review for Veterans in Combat Environments (SERVICE) Act would require the VA to conduct mammograms for all women who served in areas associated with burn pits an more PR

WASHINGTON, March 26 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, issued the following statement: * * * Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., issued the following statement calling on Justice Clarence Thomas to recuse himself from any cases related to the January 6th investigation and, if former President Donald Trump runs again, the 2024 election. "In light of new reporting from numerous outlets, Justice Thomas' conduct on the Supreme Court looks increasingly corrupt. "Judges are obligated to recuse themselves when thei more PR

WASHINGTON, March 23 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, issued the following news release on March 22, 2022: U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., today introduced legislation to require public reporting and notice of the hundreds of thousands of criminal surveillance orders issued by courts each year, which are typically sealed, indefinitely, keeping government surveillance hidden for years, even when the targets are never charged with any crime. The Government Surveillanc more PR

WASHINGTON, March 23 -- Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), Chairman of the Senate East Asia and Pacific Subcommittee, and Senator Jeffrey A. Merkley (D-Ore.), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, led their colleagues in letters to the governments of Thailand and the United States asking leaders to address significant concerns with a proposed Thai Non-Government Organization (NGO) law which human rights groups have s more PR

WASHINGTON, March 24 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, issued the following news release on March 23, 2022: Oregon's U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden today announced a total of $46,017,563 in FY2021 Continuum of Care (CoC) Competition awards headed to seven Oregon counties and multiple organizations to help people experiencing homelessness. These awards from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) are part of approximately 7,000 renewed and new grants that will promote a c more PR

WASHINGTON, March 24 -- Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, issued the following news release on March 23, 2022: Oregon's U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden today announced a total of $46,017,563 in FY2021 Continuum of Care (CoC) Competition awards headed to seven Oregon counties and multiple organizations to help people experiencing homelessness. These awards from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) are part of approximately 7,000 renewed and new grants that will promote  more PR

WASHINGTON, March 23 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, issued the following news release on March 22, 2022: Oregon's U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden today announced a total of $1,524,951.53 in Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is headed to Oregon to help fund the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) acquisition of five properties in the floodplain. "I saw firsthand how the flood in February 2020 was devastating to the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla I more PR

WASHINGTON, March 23 -- Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, issued the following news release on March 22, 2022: Oregon's U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden today announced a total of $1,524,951.53 in Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is headed to Oregon to help fund the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) acquisition of five properties in the floodplain. "I saw firsthand how the flood in February 2020 was devastating to the Confederated Tribes of the Umatill more PR

WASHINGTON, March 22 -- Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, issued the following news release on March 21, 2022: Oregon's U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley, Ron Wyden and Representative Earl Blumenauer today announced that Portland's airport will receive a major federal investment to ensure its runway survives a major earthquake. The funding was among a range of federal investments in Oregon's emergency preparedness, public safety, and economic development included in the 2022 omnibus spending bill, which ha more PR

WASHINGTON, March 22 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, issued the following news release on March 21, 2022: Oregon's U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley, Ron Wyden and Representative Earl Blumenauer today announced that Portland's airport will receive a major federal investment to ensure its runway survives a major earthquake. The funding was among a range of federal investments in Oregon's emergency preparedness, public safety, and economic development included in the 2022 omnibus spending bill, which has n more PR

WASHINGTON, March 24 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, issued the following news release on March 23, 2022: U.S. Senators Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Roy Blunt, R-Mo., today announced that their bipartisan Low Power Protection Act has passed the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. The bill would strengthen spectrum rights for certain low power television (LPTV) stations, which fill important gaps in broadcast service, particularly in Oregon's rural communities outside the reac more PR

WASHINGTON, March 23 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, issued the following news release on March 22, 2022: U.S. Senators Ron Wyden, D-Ore, Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., and Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., today introduced legislation that would expand access to safe sanitation and clean drinking water for rural and underserved communities. "Between historic drought and increasingly outdated infrastructure, Western communities are in desperate need of federal help to shore up access to clean drinking water and sa more PR

WASHINGTON, March 23 -- Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, issued the following news release on March 22, 2022: U.S. Senators Ron Wyden, D-Ore, Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., and Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., today introduced legislation that would expand access to safe sanitation and clean drinking water for rural and underserved communities. "Between historic drought and increasingly outdated infrastructure, Western communities are in desperate need of federal help to shore up access to clean drinking water and more PR

WASHINGTON, March 22 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, issued the following news release on March 21, 2022: U.S. Senators Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., have sent a letter to the CEO and President of Wells Fargo, after a report found the bank was the only major lender in the United States to accept less than half of mortgage-refinancing applications from Black homeowners. Wells Fargo's acceptance rate for White homeowners was 25 percentage points higher than for Black homeowners.  more PR