Press Releases
Save Our Seas 2.0 Act Passes Senate Unanimously
Washington, D.C. - The U.S. Senate has voted unanimously to pass the Save Our Seas (SOS) 2.0 Act, legislation introduced by Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), and Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) to address the plastic debris crisis threatening coastal economies and harming marine life. SOS 2.0 builds on the success of the Save Our Seas Act, introduced by Senators Whitehouse and Sullivan, and signed into law by President Trump in October 2018. "Today's vote is an important ste… Continue Reading
01.09.20
Whitehouse, Cassidy, Carper Seek to Double Funding for National Estuary Program
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), and Tom Carper (D-DE) today introduced legislation to reauthorize the National Estuary Program (NEP) at nearly double its previous annual funding levels. The NEP was first established in 1987 by the late Senator John Chafee (R-RI) to protect and restore estuarine habitats threatened by pollution and overdevelopment. "Estuaries like Rhode Island's Narragansett Bay are home to fisheries and wildlife, and are major … Continue Reading
01.09.20
Whitehouse, Brown, Dem Senators Introduce Comprehensive Legislation to Address Youth Tobacco Crisis
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), and Senate Democrats introduced the Reversing the Youth Tobacco Epidemic Act of 2020, comprehensive legislation to stop tobacco companies from targeting youth with marketing schemes, and to curb the rise in the use of tobacco and e-cigarette products among youth. Brown is leading the legislation, and the legislation is sponsored by Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT),… Continue Reading
01.09.20
Whitehouse Slams Trump CEQ’s NEPA Rollback
Washington, DC - Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), a senior member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, released the following statement on the Trump Council on Environmental Quality's proposal to gut the National Environmental Policy Act. "In her confirmation hearing, Chairman Neumayr agreed that climate change is real, that it's a major issue for coastal states like Rhode Island, and that some of our most important financial institutions are warning about the dire threats it… Continue Reading
01.07.20
Whitehouse Opposes United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse today voted against the proposed United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) in the Senate Finance Committee, citing the agreement's lack of urgency to address climate change and concerns about lost jobs in Rhode Island. Whitehouse issued the following statement after the vote: "NAFTA has utterly failed Rhode Island, with more than half of our manufacturing jobs gone since the agreement went into effect. While NAFTA 2.0 includes some welcom… Continue Reading
01.05.20
Providence Gets $375K Federal Grant for Woonasquatucket Adventure Park Phase II
PROVIDENCE, RI - In an effort to strengthen local conservation and recreation efforts, Rhode Island's Congressional delegation today announced that Providence's riverfront is getting a $375,000 infusion of federal funding for a series of long-planned improvements for Phase II of the Woonasquatucket Adventure Park. Located along the Woonasquatucket River Greenway, the Woonasquatucket Adventure Park, which officially opened to the public this fall, includes picnic areas, a bicycle pump track, a … Continue Reading
01.03.20
Whitehouse, Reed Slam U.S. Chamber Arguments in RI Climate Case
Washington, DC - U.S. Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Jack Reed (D-RI), and Ed Markey (D-MA) have filed a friend-of-the-court brief in a case brought by the state of Rhode Island seeking to hold fossil fuel companies accountable for costs associated with climate change. The brief counters arguments made by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in its own amicus brief claiming that state courts should not have an opportunity to rule on climate change cases. The Senators note in their brief that whil… Continue Reading
01.03.20
Whitehouse Statement on Airstrike Targeting Iranian General Soleimani
Providence, RI - Senator Sheldon Whitehouse today issued the following statement regarding the U.S. airstrike that killed Iranian General Qassem Soleimani: "We have not yet been contacted by the administration with anything beyond the public explanation of this action. It is hard to see how this contributes to the peace the President claims to want, without some exposition of our strategy or policy. I hope there will be a briefing soon to explain both the policy and the factual predicates jus… Continue Reading
12.23.19
Whitehouse, Warren, Brown Call on Government Watchdog to Probe Coal Tax Credit Program Exploited by Wall Street
Washington, DC - Today, Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and Sherrod Brown (D-OH) called on the top congressional watchdog, the Government Accountability Office (GAO), to audit the IRS's coal production tax credit, which has permitted coal refiners - many of them big Wall Street financial services companies - to claim roughly $1 billion annually in tax write-offs based on questionable pollution reduction data. In June, the senators called on the IRS to justify its a… Continue Reading
12.19.19
Opioid Crisis Response Programs Championed by Whitehouse Get Major Boost in Year-End Funding Bill
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse today announced that the year-end appropriations bill passed by the Senate includes $378 million for the Department of Justice's Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act grant programs, an increase of $31 million over the previous year's funding levels. Whitehouse partnered with Senator Rob Portman (R-OH) to write the sweeping Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act to tackle the opioid addiction crisis that continues to grip Rhode Island comm… Continue Reading
12.18.19
Whitehouse Statement on Trump Impeachment
Washington, DC - U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) released the following statement on House adoption of articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump: "The House has gathered a wealth of undisputed facts to support its articles of impeachment. Now, it is the constitutional duty of the Senate to consider these articles and the underlying evidence with all the seriousness and care the Founders intended. That means a process where the relevant evidence is aired, necessary witnesse… Continue Reading
12.18.19
Whitehouse Statement on Texas ACA Ruling
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) today issued the following statement about the ruling in the case of Texas v. United States regarding the Affordable Care Act: "Democrats in Congress are working to improve our health care system and lower costs, while President Trump and his party continue to try to sow chaos. This ruling enables the Trump Administration to continue its legal quest to strike down the law that made health insurance affordable for millions of Americans."… Continue Reading
12.18.19
Whitehouse, Portman, Senate Colleagues’ Tropical Forest Conservation Reauthorization Act Included in Final FY 2020 Funding Bill
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senators Rob Portman (R-OH), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Tom Udall (D-NM), Richard Burr (R-NC), and Brian Schatz (D-HI), announced that the final FY 2020 funding bill includes $15 million for their bipartisan Tropical Forest Conservation Reauthorization Act (TFCA). This program has saved more than 67 million acres of tropical forest by allowing developing countries that meet certain criteria to be relieved of debt owed to the United States in exchange for their conservation … Continue Reading
12.17.19
Bipartisan Bill to Improve Military’s Energy Security Included in NDAA
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) today announced that bipartisan legislation to improve the U.S. military's energy security and reduce carbon emissions has been included in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) conference agreement approved by the Senate. The Securing Energy for our Armed Forces Using Engineering Leadership (SEA FUEL) Act would direct the Departments of Defense and Homeland Security to pioneer new technologies that will capture carbon dioxide fr… Continue Reading
12.13.19
Reed, Whitehouse Call for Swift Passage of Violence Against Women Act
Warwick, RI - Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse today joined with women's advocates and survivors of domestic abuse to call on the U.S. Senate to swiftly approve the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act introduced by the Democratic senators last month. The bill preserves advancements made in previous reauthorizations of the landmark Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), and makes new strides to prevent domestic violence and sexual assault and to support survivors. Today's event was … Continue Reading
12.10.19
Senators Warn IRS against Weakening Dark Money Reporting
Washington, DC - Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R), Tom Udall (D-NM), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) are pushing back against a Trump administration regulatory proposal to weaken the IRS's ability to collect information on the special interest donors spending hundreds of millions of dollars to influence elections and the operation of government. The proposed rule would limit one of the remaining avenues for federal and state officials to collect the true identities of ma… Continue Reading
12.09.19
Whitehouse Statement on Inspector General Report on Russia Investigation
Washington, DC - U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, released the following statement on the Department of Justice Inspector General report released today on the FBI's inquiry into Russia's influence on the 2016 election: "This report shows there was a proper predicate for the FBI to investigate Russia's malign influence on the 2016 election and contacts with the Trump campaign. That puts to rest President Trump's accusations of a deep state cons… Continue Reading
12.09.19
Senators Whitehouse, Markey, Heinrich, and Cortez Masto Lead Push for Clean Energy Tax Extenders
Washington (December 9, 2019) - As committees in both the House of Representatives and the Senate continue to discuss a potential legislative package of tax extenders, Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) today led 18 of their colleagues in calling on Congressional leadership to prioritize clean energy extenders in any tax legislation. In their letter, the Senators call on leadership to extend, expand, an… Continue Reading
12.05.19
Senators Whitehouse & Warren Call for Reforms to Eliminate Big Pharma Kick-Back Schemes Via Patient Assistance Programs
Washington, DC - United States Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), member of the Senate Finance Committee, and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, wrote to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Acting Inspector General Joanne Chiedi raising concerns about abuse of charitable Patient Assistance Programs (PAPs) by pharmaceutical companies. PAPs are largely funded by pharmaceutical companies and set up as independent cha… Continue Reading
12.04.19
Whitehouse Recognized by American Society of Landscape Architects
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse was today recognized by the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) with the Olmsted Medal for environmental leadership. Representatives of ASLA's national and Rhode Island chapters presented the award to Whitehouse in his Washington D.C. office this morning. "It's an honor to accept the Olmsted Medal from the American Society of Landscape Architects," said Whitehouse, a leading champion in Congress for addressing climate change. "Lan… Continue Reading
