Press Releases
As September Rent Comes Due, Whitehouse Again Calls for Senate to Reconvene to Help RI Renters and Homeowners in Crisis
Providence, RI - With September rent due today for millions of American families who can't afford to pay it, U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) is once again calling on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) to pass a robust relief bill that includes help for Rhode Island renters and homeowners thrown into crisis by the COVID-19 pandemic. In early August, McConnell withdrew from bipartisan negotiations for a new relief package and sent the Senate into recess until September 8. "Havin… Continue Reading
08.26.20
RI Delegation Announces Federal Backing for National Expansion of RI Marine Trades Association’s Innovative Boat Recycling Program
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse and Congressmen Jim Langevin and David Cicilline today announced that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Marine Debris Program has awarded a $105,452 grant to the Rhode Island Marine Trades Association (RIMTA) Foundation to expand Rhode Island's innovative fiberglass boat recycling program across New England and to the state of Washington. "This federal funding will help clean the Bay, which has important … Continue Reading
08.26.20
Whitehouse, Colleagues Unveil Key Climate Report Featuring Chapter on Dark Money Obstruction of Climate Action
Washington, DC - Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) joined Chairman Brian Schatz (D-HI), Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), and members of Senate Democrats' Special Committee on the Climate Crisis to release a comprehensive report titled "The Case for Climate Action: Building a Clean Economy for the American People." The report offers a path forward for climate action in Congress, including a chapter to address the fossil fuel industry's dark money influence campaign blocking action o… Continue Reading
08.21.20
Senators Call for GAO Investigation of Trump Politicization of Immigration Courts as COVID-19 Crisis Rages
Washington, DC - Today, Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Dick Durbin (D-IL), and Mazie Hirono (D-HI) led a Senate request to the top congressional watchdog to investigate the practices of the Executive Office of Immigration Review (EOIR) under President Trump, including its management of immigration courts during the current COVID-19 pandemic. In a letter to the Government Accountability Office (GAO), the senators raise concerns first voiced to the Justice Department in February about mismana… Continue Reading
08.21.20
RI Delegation Announces Nearly $3.9 Million for Local Fire Departments
PROVIDENCE, RI - Today, U.S. Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse and Congressmen Jim Langevin and David Cicilline announced $3,884,710 in new federal funding for seventeen fire departments across the state. The delegation says the cities, towns, and fire districts are receiving federal funds to purchase vital equipment, including fire hoses, trucks, high-tech breathing equipment, and personal protective equipment (PPE). The federal funds are made available through the Federal Emergency Ma… Continue Reading
08.19.20
Senators Hassan, Whitehouse Continue to Press for 2006 Purdue Pharma Prosecution Memo Following New Guardian Reporting
WASHINGTON - Today, The Guardian published additional details about a 2006 Department of Justice memo laying out federal prosecutors' strong criminal case against Purdue Pharma. The Guardian's reporting discusses crimes that Purdue Pharma allegedly committed, the evidence that the Department of Justice had against Purdue Pharma, and the Department of Justice's decision to settle instead of prosecuting Purdue Pharma. Senators Maggie Hassan (D-NH) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) have repeatedly cal… Continue Reading
08.17.20
RI Delegation Demands Trump Administration End Sabotage of Postal Service
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse and Congressmen Jim Langevin and David Cicilline are demanding that the Trump administration end its sabotage of the United States Postal Service (USPS). In a letter sent today to U.S. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, the members of Rhode Island's congressional delegation call any action to undermine the operations of the USPS "unacceptable," including efforts reported in Rhode Island that affect hardworking postal workers and the … Continue Reading
08.14.20
RI Delegation Announces $2.3 Million Grant for ‘401 Tech Bridge’ Facility to Propel Textiles, Composites, Undersea Technology Industries
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse and Congressmen Jim Langevin and David Cicilline today announced that the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) has awarded Polaris Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) a $2.3 million grant to open a new facility in Rhode Island that will support the growth of the local textiles, composites, and undersea technology industries. The grant from the EDA's Public Works Program will fund the construction of a new Advanced … Continue Reading
08.13.20
Reed, Whitehouse Call for Extension of Census Deadlines to Ensure Full, Accurate Count
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse joined a bipartisan group of 46 U.S. Senators in calling for the extension of the statutory deadlines for the delivery of apportionment data and redistricting files following the 2020 Census. The 48 Senators urged Congress to include the extension in a COVID-19 relief package. The U.S. Constitution requires a population census every ten years and the census count to be reported to the President by December 31 of that year. A change… Continue Reading
08.11.20
RI Delegation Delivers $8.9M to Upgrade RIPTA Bus Fleet
PROVIDENCE, RI - The Rhode Island Public Transit Authority (RIPTA) will be able to upgrade its bus fleet thanks to a new federal grant that was secured with the help of U.S. Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse and U.S. Representatives Jim Langevin and David Cicilline. The four members of the Rhode Island Congressional delegation today joined with RIPTA CEO Scott Avedisian in announcing the federal grant, which will help RIPTA replace 17 high-mileage, outdated buses with newer, more fuel-e… Continue Reading
08.10.20
RI Delegation Announces Over $2.5M to Help RIers Access Housing During COVID-19 Crisis
WASHINGTON, DC - In an effort to help low-income families shelter in place safely and connect to essential health and educational services amid the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, U.S. Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse and U.S. Representatives Jim Langevin and David Cicilline today announced $2,552,658 in federal funding for 24 Rhode Island public housing agencies (PHAs) and two behavioral health centers through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) Housing … Continue Reading
08.09.20
Whitehouse Statement on President Trump’s COVID-19 Announcements
Providence, RI - U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) has issued the following statement regarding President Trump's announcements yesterday evening: "Some 'art of the deal.' Almost three months after House Democrats passed a good relief bill with a $600 unemployment benefit, President Trump reverts to toothless executive orders to cover up his own party's failure. Millions of American families teetering on the brink - what's the Republican answer? A unilateral cut to unemployment benefits; f… Continue Reading
08.06.20
Whitehouse, Smith, & Murphy Introduce Bill to Address Effects of Social Inequities on Health in Communities of Color
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) has teamed up with U.S. Senators Tina Smith (D-Minn.) and Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) to introduce legislation to study the role of social determinants in exacerbating health inequities and to make investments in reducing those disparities. The Senators note that unemployment, hunger, lack of affordable housing, and education have a significant effect on Americans' health, especially in communities of color. Medical treatment accounts for o… Continue Reading
08.01.20
Reed & Whitehouse Reject Conditioning Federal Education Funds to Schools Reopening In-Person
Washington, DC - U.S. Senators Jack Reed (D-RI), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Dick Durbin (D-IL), along with 27 Senate colleagues, today urged U.S. Senate leadership to reject the Trump Administration's desire to condition education funds in the next novel coronavirus (COVID-19) relief package on the reopening of elementary and secondary schools for in-person instruction. In a letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Appropriations Committee… Continue Reading
07.31.20
Reed & Whitehouse Call for Extension of School Meal Flexibilities for Upcoming School Year
Providence, RI - U.S. Senators Jack Reed (D-RI) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) have joined U.S. Senators Maggie Hassan (D-NH) and Susan Collins (R-ME), and 32 of their colleagues in urging the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to continue flexibilities that have allowed students to keep receiving daily meals throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, even as schools transitioned to distance learning. If extended through the 2020-2021 school year, children would maintain access to nutritious m… Continue Reading
07.31.20
Whitehouse Statement on Tabling of Key Judicial Ethics Guidance
Washington, DC - Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) released the following statement today on the decision by the federal courts' Committee on the Codes of Conduct not to move forward with draft guidance that would bar judges from membership in the Federalist Society and American Constitution Society: "The Committee bowing to pressure from Mitch McConnell and a horde of Federalist Society members on the bench demonstrates the power of the partisan donor interests packing our courts. The Federal… Continue Reading
07.30.20
Whitehouse Statement on Trump Floating Delay of 2020 Election
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) released the following statement on President Donald Trump's tweet today on delaying the 2020 presidential election: "A president cannot legally move the election without approval from Congress, and the end of the president's term is spelled out in the Constitution. President Trump is sowing confusion about bedrock principles of our democracy to distract from an accelerating pandemic, a massive economic contraction, and his campaign's s… Continue Reading
07.29.20
Whitehouse, Reed, & Feinstein Seek to Undo Trump Administration Move to Cut CDC Out of COVID-19 Data Collection
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Jack Reed (D-RI), and Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) are taking action to reverse the Trump administration's new directive forcing hospitals to withhold data about the COVID-19 pandemic from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The Senators today introduced the Transparent Reporting and Use of Statistics in the Transmission of Coronavirus Data Collection, or the TRUST CDC Act. The TRUST CDC Act would require hospitals to repor… Continue Reading
07.29.20
Reed, Whitehouse, & Cicilline Announce $230K Grant to Support Joint Economic Development Plan for Pawtucket and Central Falls
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Jack Reed, U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, and Congressman David Cicilline today announced that the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) has awarded the cities of Pawtucket and Central Falls a $230,000 grant to create a joint economic development action plan. "Under the leadership of Mayors Diossa and Grebien, Central Falls and Pawtucket have worked together for years to advance the economies of both of their cities. This federal funding, which I was … Continue Reading
07.28.20
Whitehouse: GOP Pandemic Aid Proposal Buoys Corporations at the Expense of Workers
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) today issued the following statement regarding the pandemic aid proposal Senate Republicans unveiled yesterday evening: "Leader McConnell squandered two and a half months while families across the country grappled with twin health and economic crises. Now, with urgent deadlines approaching for millions of Americans pushed to the financial brink, Senate Republicans have hastily slapped together another corporate welfare proposal that fall… Continue Reading
