Press Releases
Whitehouse Passes Law to Help Forgive Student Loans for Rhode Islanders in Public Service Professions
Providence, RI - A version of the bill introduced by Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Tim Kaine (D-VA) to fix a glitch in a federal loan forgiveness program was included in the omnibus federal spending bill that was signed into law last week. The provision will help relieve the financial burden for eligible Rhode Islanders working in public service fields, like teachers, social workers, and military personnel, who sought to use the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program but were n… Continue Reading
03.28.18
Whitehouse Statement on Delay in Termination of Deferred Enforced Departure for Liberian Refugees
Providence, RI - Senator Sheldon Whitehouse today issued the following statement regarding President Trump's decision to terminate Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) for Liberia, with an effective date of March 31, 2019 for Liberians living in the United States. "President Trump's decision to terminate the protected status for Liberians living in the United States will needlessly split apart families and send people who came here seeking safety back to a country that still faces serious challeng… Continue Reading
03.26.18
Whitehouse & Reed Announce Progress Protecting Funding for Bradley Hospital
Washington, DC - U.S. Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Jack Reed (D-RI) today announced that a provision they fought for to protect funding for children's psychiatric teaching hospitals, including Bradley Hospital in East Providence, is included in the bipartisan legislation to reauthorize the Children's Hospital Graduate Medical Education (CHGME) Program. Whitehouse and Reed joined Senators Bob Casey (D-PA) and Johnny Isakson (R-GA) to introduce the CHGME Support Reauthorization Act of 2… Continue Reading
03.23.18
Whitehouse Praises Passage of Rhode Island Priorities in Government Funding Measure
Washington, DC - Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) cheered a range of critical Rhode Island priorities included today in an omnibus spending bill that will keep the federal government funded through September 30: "I'm proud of what this bill achieves for Rhode Island. It puts billions behind the fight against the opioid crisis, including hundreds of millions of dollars for programs established under my bipartisan addiction and recovery bill. And it targets federal opioid dollars at the state… Continue Reading
03.23.18
Whitehouse-Kaine Legislation to Help Forgive Student Loans for Public Service Workers Clears Congress
Washington, DC - Included in the omnibus federal spending bill that cleared Congress tonight is a version of a bill offered by Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Tim Kaine (D-VA) to fix a glitch in a federal loan forgiveness program that is leaving teachers, soldiers, social workers, and other public servants with massive loan balances they thought would be forgiven. The provision will help to relieve the financial burden for eligible middle-class families who sought to use the Public Servi… Continue Reading
03.22.18
Whitehouse Statement on McMaster Stepping Down as National Security Advisor, Replacement with John Bolton
Washington, DC - Senator Sheldon Whitehouse issued the following statement on the departure of H.R. McMaster as President Trump's National Security Advisor and his replacement with former U.N. Ambassador John Bolton: "This is an unsettling choice for National Security Advisor. The president is best served by someone with a record of following the facts and sound advice from our leading national security and military experts. Mr. Bolton's record in the Bush administration and his pronouncement… Continue Reading
03.22.18
Whitehouse Applauds Inclusion in Omnibus of Bipartisan Legislation to Help Tech Companies Comply with Global Criminal Investigations
Washington, DC - Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) cheered inclusion in the omnibus spending bill of bipartisan legislation he cosponsored with fellow Senate Judiciary Committee members Orrin Hatch (R-UT), Chris Coons (D-DE), and Lindsey Graham (R-SC) to help put the U.S. and other countries on a path towards resolving the problem of cross-border data requests by law enforcement in the age of email and cloud computing. "Laws in the United States and abroad have struggled to keep up as more and … Continue Reading
03.20.18
Whitehouse, Cassidy Urge Azar to Focus on Reforming How Americans Pay for Health Care
Washington, DC - Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), have requested a bipartisan dialogue with Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar on continuing progress in reforming the way Americans pay for and are delivered health care. Even after improvements in recent years, America remains by far the most expensive health care system in the world, the Senators note in a joint letter. Whitehouse and Cassidy call on Azar to ensure that the U.S. health … Continue Reading
03.16.18
Whitehouse Calls for Action on Bipartisan Bill to Help Women, Babies Struggling with Opioid Addiction
Providence, RI - U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) today called on Congress to take action on his new bipartisan legislation, which would authorize $160 million for programs that support expectant and new mothers and babies who are struggling with opioid addiction. Whitehouse made the statement at Women & Infants Hospital, flanked by health care professionals and state leaders. "Some of the most heartbreaking images I have seen from this public health crisis are of babies who are born… Continue Reading
03.16.18
Reed, Whitehouse Join Markey, Colleagues in Calling for Gun Violence Research Funding at CDC
Washington, DC - U.S. Senators Jack Reed (D-RI) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) have joined Senator Edward J. Markey (D-MA) and twenty-three other colleagues in calling on leaders of the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee to immediately act on legislation to fund gun violence prevention research at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). "In the wake of the school shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, it has become increasingly clear that gun violenc… Continue Reading
03.14.18
Senate Clears Whitehouse’s Permanent Foreclosure Protections for Veterans and Servicemembers
Washington, DC - Today, the Senate passed Senator Sheldon Whitehouse's (D-RI) legislation to extend permanently vital foreclosure protection for servicemembers, veterans, and their families. Whitehouse's bill, which was included in a larger banking bill passed tonight, cements a one-year grace period protecting servicemembers leaving active duty from foreclosure. The grace period would otherwise expire in 2019. "Those who serve our country ought to be given a fair chance to get their financia… Continue Reading
03.13.18
Whitehouse Delivers 200th ‘Time to Wake Up’ Climate Speech
Washington, DC - On Tuesday evening, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) delivered his 200th weekly speech imploring the Senate to wake up to the threat of climate change. Since April 2012, Whitehouse has taken to the Senate floor week after week to deliver in-depth remarks on the science of manmade climate change, its effects felt throughout the country and around the globe, and the political forces that impede climate action in Congress. Whitehouse was joined Tuesday by 16 Senators, who also d… Continue Reading
03.09.18
Whitehouse Sponsors Bill to Hold Corporations in Bankruptcy Accountable for Treating Workers and Retirees Fairly
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Dick Durbin (D-IL), and Sherrod Brown (D-OH) have introduced a bill to protect employee and retiree earnings and retirement savings when businesses collapse. The Protecting Employees and Retirees in Business Bankruptcies Act would make several reforms to Chapter 11 bankruptcy law, putting workers' interests near the top when companies file for bankruptcy. "When a company goes into bankruptcy, workers on the assembly line or in the br… Continue Reading
03.08.18
Whitehouse Applauds Job-Creating Infrastructure Plan to Upgrade Roads and Bridges, Bolster Coastline
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse today applauded a trillion-dollar job-creating infrastructure proposal unveiled by Senate Democratic leadership, which would make major investments in upgrading crumbling roads and bridges and bolstering Rhode Island's coastline. The plan, which is estimated to create 15 million jobs, contains $25 billion for resiliency programs that include the National Oceans and Coastal Security Fund developed by Whitehouse. The proposal also includes the B… Continue Reading
03.07.18
Bipartisan Bill to Promote Collaboration Between Nuclear Industry and National Labs Clears Senate
Washington, DC - The Senate passed today the Nuclear Energy Innovation Capabilities Act to increase collaboration between private industry, universities, and national laboratories in developing and bringing to market advanced nuclear technologies. Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Mike Crapo (R-ID), and Cory Booker (D-NJ) led a bipartisan group of Senators in introducing the bill in January of last year. The legislation now goes to the House for consideration. "This legislation will help to… Continue Reading
03.07.18
Whitehouse Proposals Would Strengthen Economy, Create Jobs By Boosting Lending to Small Businesses, Protecting Borrowers
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse today offered two proposals to strengthen the local economy and encourage small businesses to hire more workers by boosting small banks and credit unions and protecting Rhode Island borrowers. The proposals were submitted as amendments to a bill currently before the Senate that would undo parts of the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act. Whitehouse voted against the legislation in a procedural vote allowing debate to begin on the bill. "Congress should be fo… Continue Reading
03.07.18
$20 Million TIGER Grant will Accelerate Efforts to Improve Route 37
WASHINGTON, DC - As part of its continuing effort to fix our bridges and roads, the Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT) has targeted Route 37, which connects Cranston and Warwick, for major improvements and repairs. Today the state's Congressional delegation joined with Governor Gina M. Raimondo in announcing $20 million in new federal funding from the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grant program to support and accelerate the State's efforts. RIDO… Continue Reading
03.06.18
Whitehouse, Carper Raise Red Flags About EPA Contract with Business Partner of Pruitt’s Security Chief
Washington, DC - Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Tom Carper (D-DE) raised concerns with Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt today about the side-business of Pruitt's head of security, Pasquale "Nino" Perrotta, whose business partner has received a security-related contract from the EPA. Perrotta, who lists himself as an "Acting Special Agent in Charge" at the EPA and has traveled on multiple occasions with Pruitt as part of his protective security detail, is … Continue Reading
03.02.18
Whitehouse, Baldwin Introduce Bill to Make Community College and Technical School More Affordable
Washington, D.C. - Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) has joined Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and twelve Democratic colleagues to reintroduce the America's College Promise Act. The legislation would create a new federal-state partnership to provide two years of tuition-free training in community or technical college programs that lead to a degree or industry-recognized credential. "Rhode Island's own Senator Claiborne Pell understood better than anyone that higher education is one of the most p… Continue Reading
02.28.18
Whitehouse Unveils Bill to End Tax Breaks for Exporting Jobs, Profits
Washington, D.C. - Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), along with Congressman Lloyd Doggett (D-TX), has introduced the No Tax Breaks for Outsourcing Act to level the playing field for American companies by ensuring that multinationals pay the same tax rate on profits earned abroad as they do in the United States. The legislation would end new tax incentives created by President Trump's tax law to outsource jobs and shift profits offshore. "President Trump promised the American people he'd end t… Continue Reading
