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Category: US Senate

  • MIL-OSI USA: Ernst Urges USDA to Deliver Relief to Iowa Turkey Farmers

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA)

    WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) joined the entire Iowa delegation to urge U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins and the Acting Administrator of the Farm Service Agency Kimberly Graham to deliver critical financial relief for Iowa turkey farmers.
    In their letter, the lawmakers outlined the dire animal health crisis due to avian metapneumovirus (aMPV) that has caused flock losses from 30-50% since the fall of 2023, threatening producer stability and the broader national turkey supply.
    “Iowa’s sharp decline in turkey production is reflective of the national turkey industry at large. Despite devastating financial shortfalls and supply chain disruptions caused by aMPV, there are currently no federal assistance programs available to offset these devastating losses, leaving many family-owned operations at risk of closure. Without immediate support, the viability of these farms—and the stability of the U.S. turkey industry—is in jeopardy,” wrote the lawmakers.
    “To mitigate these losses and prevent future outbreaks, we urge the USDA Farm Service Agency (USDA-FSA) to consider determining aMPV as an eligible adverse event under the Livestock Indemnity Program so that our farmers can access much-needed financial relief to affected producers,” the lawmakers concluded.
    In 2024, an estimate of 569,700 turkeys in Iowa have been lost due to aMPV, and the ongoing spread of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) – a completely separate but deadly virus – has only been compounding the financial, physical, and mental strains on turkey producers.
    Read the full letter here.
    Background:
    Ernst has long been a champion of foreign animal disease prevention and preparedness efforts including the bipartisan Animal Disease and Disaster Prevention, Surveillance, and Rapid Response Act and her Beagle Brigade Act, which was recently signed into law.
    Following the increase in HPAI outbreaks in both Iowa poultry flocks and dairy herds, Ernst hasworked to hold federal agencies accountable to provide public and state agencies with coordinated, up-to-date, and accurate information on the spread of the virus.
    Last month, Ernst provided USDA with a blueprint for developing an effective plan to combat HPAI and protect Iowa poultry farmers. During a Senate Agriculture Committee hearing, Ernst directly raised the need for a vaccination strategy that takes trade into account and praised Secretary Rollins for hercomprehensive HPAI strategy. 

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Duckworth Reacts to Trump’s Plan to Fire More Than 80,000 VA Employees Which Would Further Jeopardize Veterans’ Access to Care

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Illinois Tammy Duckworth

    March 05, 2025

    [WASHINGTON, D.C.] – Today, combat Veteran and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL)—a member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee (SVAC)—issued the following statement in response to reporting on an internal memo from senior Trump Administration officials at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) detailing their plans to fire more than 80,000 VA employees this year, after the VA already fired over 2,400 VA employees last month:

    “Since the bipartisan PACT Act overhauled our VA to better care for our nation’s heroes, the VA has approved over one million claims from Veterans suffering from toxic-exposure—helping more Veterans than ever receive the care they’ve earned. And yet, by planning to fire more than 80,000 VA employees, Donald Trump is dooming not only our VA’s ability to handle the influx of claims, but also brave Veterans who will wait even longer to get the quality care they need. Let’s call this what it is: Republicans’ plan to dismantle the VA so they can justify privatizing the Department.

    “Trump’s all-out assault on the VA is a complete betrayal of our Veterans and has absolutely nothing to do with making our government more efficient. No, Trump and Elon Musk are kicking tens of thousands of devoted public servants to the curb—many of whom are Veterans themselves—in order to carve out tax cuts for billionaires. And it is our Veterans who will pay the price.”

    In the wake of Trump and Elon Musk’s mass federal layoffs, Duckworth has repeatedly expressed her outrage that many Veterans have been left jobless. After the first VA purge laid off workers with the Veterans Crisis Line—including several Veterans—Duckworth successfully pushed the Trump Administration to reinstate these devoted public servants that work to support our Veterans in their darkest moments.

    Additionally, at an emergency national town hall hosted by VoteVets, Duckworth called out Trump and Musk for inflicting needless pain and chaos on our nation’s Veterans. During the town hall, Veterans who have been fired by Musk’s DOGE bravely came forward to share how Trump’s cuts and layoffs have uprooted their lives.

    Additionally, Duckworth joined U.S. Senator and SVAC Ranking Member Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and a group of 34 Democratic Senators calling on VA Secretary Collins to immediately reinstate the more than 1,000 VA employees terminated last month who serve Veterans and their families nationwide.

    If you are a VA employee or Veteran impacted by Trump and Musk’s mass layoffs, please reach out to the Senate Veteran Affairs Committee by filling out this form.

    -30-

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Peters Reintroduces Bipartisan Bill to Reduce U.S. Dependence on China and Other Adversaries for Critical Minerals

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Michigan Gary Peters
    Published: 03.05.2025

    WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI), Ranking Member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee reintroduced bipartisan legislation to decrease the United States’ reliance on adversarial nations like China for critical minerals. China is currently the dominant supplier for more than half of America’s critical mineral imports. These minerals are essential for the manufacturing of electric vehicle batteries, military equipment, and other technology crucial to American economic competitiveness and homeland security. The Senators’ bill would address this threat to our manufacturing supply chains by creating an intergovernmental task force to find opportunities for increased domestic production and recycling of critical minerals. 
    “America’s economic and national security interests are at risk when we depend on foreign adversaries like China for materials that are vital to our manufacturing and defense industries,” said Senator Peters.“This task force will coordinate efforts across federal, state, and local governments to develop a unified approach to producing and recycling critical minerals here at home, creating American jobs while ensuring our manufacturers have reliable access to these important materials.”  
    The bipartisan Intergovernmental Critical Minerals Taskforce Act requires the President to create a task force and appoint representatives from federal agencies who must consult with state, local, and Tribal governments. The task force will work to determine how to address national security risks associated with America’s critical mineral supply chains and identify new domestic opportunities for mining, processing, refinement, reuse, and recycling of critical minerals. The legislation would also require the task force to publish a report to Congress and publish findings, guidelines, and recommendations to combat the United States’ reliance on China and other foreign nations for critical minerals. 
    The bill is endorsed by leaders from the Sierra Club, General Motors, Ford, and the American Automotive Policy Council.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Peters Reintroduces Bipartisan Legislation to Help Prevent Foreign Influence in U.S. Policy

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Michigan Gary Peters

    WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI), Ranking Member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, reintroduced two bipartisan bills to improve our nation’s ability to prevent foreign governments, including adversaries like the Chinese and Russian governments, from attempting to influence U.S. policy without making appropriate disclosures. The legislation would help close loopholes that foreign governments could exploit to conceal their roles in lobbying efforts.

    “The American people deserve complete transparency about who is trying to influence our political process,” said Senator Peters. “These bipartisan bills will help ensure foreign actors can’t exploit loopholes to hide their activities while attempting to shape policy in the United States. It’s a commonsense step to protect our national security and ensure our government is working in the best interests of the American people.” 

    The Lobbying Disclosure Improvement Act would improve transparency of the activities of lobbyists who represent foreign persons or organizations by requiring them to indicate whether they are taking advantage of an exemption under the Foreign Agent Registration Act (FARA) when they register under the Lobbying Disclosure Act. This would help the Department of Justice narrow the pool of registrants they are examining for potential violations, while not imposing any meaningful additional burden on registrants.

    The Disclosing Foreign Influence in Lobbying Act closes a loophole in the Lobbying Disclosure Act that foreign adversaries – including the Chinese government – can exploit to conceal their roles in lobbying efforts. Think tanks and law enforcement agencies have identified instances in which foreign adversaries exploited this loophole by using closely connected organizations and businesses to push their interests when lobbying the U.S. government. The bill makes clear that lobbying organizations must disclose when foreign governments and political parties participate in their lobbying efforts, regardless of any financial contribution to the lobbying effort.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Murray Presses NIH Nominee on Mass Firings, Trump Attempts to Cut Billions from Biomedical Research, Unprecedented Halt on NIH Advisory Council Meetings

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Washington State Patty Murray

    ICYMI: Senator Murray Statement on Meeting with NIH Nominee Jay Bhattacharya

    ICYMI: Republicans Block Murray Amendment to Reverse Devastating and Illegal Cuts to NIH Research

    *** VIDEO of Senator Murray’s FULL questioning HERE***

    Washington, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), a senior member and former Chairof the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, questioned Dr. Jayanta “Jay” Bhattacharya, President Donald Trump’s nominee to serve as Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) at a HELP committee hearing on his nomination. Murray pressed Dr. Bhattacharya on the state of crisis at NIH, with Trump and Elon Musk’s wide-ranging attacks on biomedical research and NIH’s mission—from the unprecedented grant freezes, to the halting of advisory committee meetings and clinical trials, and the indiscriminate and senseless mass firings being carried out by Musk’s “DOGE.” Murray also pressed Dr. Bhattacharya on the Trump administration’s recent attempt to illegally cap indirect cost rates at 15 percent—a move Senator Murray immediately and forcefully condemned, led the entire Senate Democratic caucus in a letter decrying the proposed change, and introduced amendments to Senate Republicans’ budget resolution to reverse it, which Republicans blocked. Senator Murray met with Dr. Bhattacharya last month.

    Murray began by pressing Dr. Bhattacharya on Elon Musk’s unprecedented influence on NIH and the massive, indiscriminate firings of skilled scientists and researchers—over 1,100 employees at NIH have already been fired, many of whom held critical research positions. “I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say that right now, President Trump and Elon Musk are really putting a lot of lifesaving research at risk,” Senator Murray said. “We’ve had grant freezes, pauses on  advisory meetings, pauses on clinical trials, mass firings being carried out by the so-called DOGE, and it is really threatening our ability to treat childhood cancers, to mitigate the effects of Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia, and to better understand and treat women’s health issues.”

    “Do you support the recent researcher firings and grant freezes that have been implemented by Trump and DOGE?,” Murray asked.

    Dr. Bhattacharya said he was not involved in those decisions and that, if confirmed, he would “fully commit to making sure that all the scientists at the NIH and the scientists that the NIH supports have the resources they need to meet the mission of the NIH.”

    “Do you support further cuts at NIH funding, or staff?,” Murray pressed.

    “I don’t have any intention to cut anyone at the NIH,” Bhattacharya responded.

    “How about all the grant freezes and the pauses on the all the advisory committee meetings, all the pauses that are now in effect on clinical trials that are happening there right now?” asked Murray.

    Bhattacharya responded that he had only read the press accounts of it and had “not interacted with people in the agency.”  

    “Well if you’re confirmed, Day One, what will you do about that?” Murray pressed. Bhattacharya said he would assess it and “understand what resources the whole NIH needs and make sure that the scientists that are working at the NIH have the resources to do the lifesaving work that they do… the personnel decisions are hard to talk about unless I’m actually confirmed.”

    “Well I’ll just tell you right now, I am deeply concerned about the funding there, the research that’s been stopped, and all that’s going on. And I want a very strong assurance that you will get that moving again, Day One,” Murray replied.

    “Absolutely, I’m going to be looking very carefully at the personnel decisions; I want the NIH to be staffed absolutely appropriately to match the mission of the NIH,” Bhattacharya replied.

    Next, Murray asked about the Trump administration’s illegal plan to cap indirect cost rates at 15 percent, which Senator Murray has forcefully decried. “It amounts to a massive funding cut for research institutions, large and small, red and blue states, everyone,” Murray explained. “And it brings a lot of lifesaving research to a screeching halt—sick kids wouldn’t get treatment, and clinical trials shut down.”

    Murray asked Dr. Bhattacharya about the effect a drastic 15 percent cap on indirect costs would have on critical research at Stanford—his own institution—and what he would say to his former colleagues, researchers in Washington state, and other scientists about the Trump administration’s attempt to illegally impose a 15 percent cap on indirect costs. In his response, Dr. Bhattacharya referred to indirect costs as “a tip” and claimed: “I don’t know where that goes, I think a lot of it likely goes to things that are worthwhile… But there’s a lot of distrust about where the money goes because the trust in the public health establishment has collapsed… I think transparency regarding indirect costs is absolutely worthwhile.”

    Finally, Murray pressed Dr. Bhattacharya on whether he would “get the research committees going again, the Advisory Councils immediately on Day One.” Bhattacharya replied: “yes, if I’m confirmed I want those Advisory Councils, I want all that to go.”

    “Well I think we should all recognize that NIH is the largest medical researcher in the world, they’re a global leader, we should be extremely proud of what they do. Nearly a third of all the Nobel Prizes to date have been awarded to scientists at NIH and supported by NIH funds,” Murray concluded. “I’m extremely concerned by the dramatic cuts and firings and stopping of the research that’s going on at NIH right now.”

    As a longtime appropriator and former Chair of the Senate HELP Committee, Murray has long fought to boost biomedical research, strengthen public health infrastructure, and make health care more affordable and accessible. Previously, over her years as Chair of the Labor-HHS Appropriations Subcommittee, Senator Murray secured billions of dollars in increases for biomedical research at the National Institutes of Health, and during her time as Chair of the HELP Committee she established the new ARPA-H research agency as part of her PREVENT Pandemics Act to advance some of the most cutting-edge research in the field. Senator Murray was also the lead Democratic negotiator of the bipartisan 21st Century Cures Act, which delivered a major federal investment to boost NIH research, among many other investments. 

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Murray, Colleagues Reintroduce Legislation to Protect Workers’ Right to Organize, Blast Trump and Musk for Attacks on Workers

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Washington State Patty Murray
    Murray helped author and introduce the PRO Act in the 116th Congress
    Murray: “Reintroducing the PRO Act is more important now than ever. This is about making sure we are not just pushing back—but also pushing forward, charting a positive vision for workers, and daring Republicans to make their actions match their words.”
    ***VIDEO HERE***
    Washington, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), a senior member and former Chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, joined a bipartisan group of lawmakers to reintroduce the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, comprehensive legislation to protect workers’ right to come together and bargain for fairer wages, better benefits, and safer workplaces. Joining Senator Murray at the press conference for the bill reintroduction today were Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D, NY-08), House Democratic Whip Katherine Clark (D-MA), HELP Committee Ranking Member Bernie Sanders (I-VT), House Education Committee Ranking Member Bobby Scott (D, VA-03), Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R, PA-01), and union worker Kieran Cuadras.
    Large corporations and the wealthy continue to capture the rewards of a growing economy while working families and middle-class Americans are left behind. From 1979 to 2023, annual wages for the bottom 90 percent of households increased just 44 percent, while average incomes for the wealthiest one percent increased more than 180 percent. Unions are critical to increasing wages and creating a strong economy that rewards hardworking people. Through the power of bargaining, the typical union worker earns 16 percent more than the typical non-union worker. According to a 2024 Gallup poll, 70 percent of Americans approve of labor unions—near record highs. But despite growing support for unions, billionaire- and special interest-funded attacks on workers’ unions and labor laws have eroded union density and made it harder for workers to organize. The share of American workers who are union members has fallen from roughly one in three workers in 1956 to a new low of 9.9 percent in 2024. The PRO Act restores fairness to the economy by strengthening the federal law that protects workers’ right to join a union and bargain for higher pay, better benefits, and safer workplaces.
    “Right now, Donald Trump and Elon Musk are attacking workers, including mass firing people by the tens of thousands, left and right, regardless of how important that work is,” said Senator Murray. “Reintroducing the PRO Act is more important now than ever. This is about making sure we are not just pushing back—but also pushing forward: charting a positive vision for workers, and daring Republicans to make their actions match their words. Who do you stand with—the billionaires like Elon Musk and Donald Trump—whose favorite two words are ‘you’re fired?’ Or, do you stand with hard working American women and men. People who just want fair pay, decent treatment, and a government that works to make their lives better, not worse? That should not be too much to ask! I’m going to keep fighting, come hell or high water, to make it easier for workers to join together and fight for the better pay and working conditions they deserve.”
    The PRO Act protects the basic right to join a union and:
    Holds employers accountable for violating workers’ rights by authorizing meaningful penalties, facilitating initial collective bargaining agreements, and closing loopholes that allow employers to misclassify their employees as supervisors and independent contractors.
    Empowers workers to exercise their right to organize by strengthening support for workers who suffer retaliation for exercising their rights, protecting workers’ right to support secondary boycotts, ensuring workers’ unions can collect “fair share” fees, and authorizing a private right of action for violation of workers’ rights.
    Secures free, fair, and safe union elections by preventing employers from interfering in union elections, prohibiting captive audience meetings, and requiring employers to be transparent with their workers.
    The PRO Act is supported by: AFL-CIO, American Federation of Musicians (AFM), American Federation of Teachers (AFT), Communications Workers of America (CWA), Department of Professional Employees, AFL-CIO (DPE), International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE), International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM), International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers (SMART), International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers (BAC), International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT), Laborers’ International Union of North America (LiUNA), National Nurses United (NNU), National Postal Mail Handlers Union (NPMHU), Service Employees International Union (SEIU), Transport Workers Union of America, AFL-CIO (TWU), United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America (UAW), and United Steelworkers (USW).
    Throughout her career, Senator Murray has championed workers’ rights and fought to protect their right to join and form a union in order to stand together and demand better pay, benefits, and working conditions. Senator Murray first introduced the PRO Act in the 116th Congress and she also leads the Wage Theft Prevention and Wage Recovery Act, comprehensive legislation to put hard-earned wages back in workers’ pockets and crack down on employers who unfairly withhold wages from their employees. Murray also introduced the CHILD Labor Act last Congress, new legislation to protect children from exploitative child labor practices and hold the companies and individuals who take advantage of them accountable. Among many other pieces of pro-worker legislation, Murray also leads the Paycheck Fairness Act to combat wage discrimination and help close the wage gap, and has helped lead the fight for paid family and medical leave since she first joined Congress.
    The full text of the PRO Act is HERE.
    A fact sheet on the PRO Act is HERE.
    A section-by-section summary of the PRO Act is HERE.
    Senator Murray’s full remarks, as delivered at today’s press conference, are below and video is HERE:
    “The difference in values between Democrats and Republicans, the difference in who we are fighting for, could not be more clear, or more stark.
    “Right now, Donald Trump and Elon Musk are attacking workers—including mass firing people by tens of thousands, left and right—regardless of how important their work is or the skill and pride with which they are doing it.
    “In fact, he fired NLRB Member Gwynne Wilcox—leaving workers in limbo simply due to President Trump’s unprecedented and illegal firing!
    “Meanwhile, I want you to know, Democrats are fighting for workers—we’re fighting to protect those who are being attacked by Trump and Musk and fighting to empower workers across our country to better advocate for themselves and wield their rights at this pivotal moment.
    “That is why reintroducing the PRO Act is more important now than ever. This is about making sure that we are not just pushing back—but also pushing forward, charting a positive vision for workers, and daring Republicans to make their actions match their words.
    “Who do you stand with—the billionaires like Elon Musk and Donald Trump—whose favorite two words are ‘You’re fired?’
    “Or do you stand with hard working American women and men—people who just want fair pay, decent treatment, and a government that actually works to make their lives better, not worse? That should not be too much to ask!
    “I’m very proud to be a leader of this bill, and I want you to know, I will keep fighting—come hell or high water—to make it easier for workers to join together and fight for the better pay and working conditions they deserve. Thank you.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Murray Statement on Trump & Elon Plans to Decimate the VA, Firing 80,000 Employees and Putting Veterans’ Care in Grave Danger

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Washington State Patty Murray

    Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee and a senior member and former Chair of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, issued the following statement on the Trump administration’s plans to fire 80,000 employees at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), seriously risking the medical care and benefits that veterans have earned and deserve.More than 25 percent of VA’s workforce are veterans themselves.

    “Donald Trump and Elon Musk are escalating their full-scale, no-holds-barred assault on veterans–and putting the health care and benefits they have earned in grave danger. It’s infuriating that two billionaires think they can fire tens of thousands of people responsible for administering the services and care that over nine million veterans across the country count on. It’s flat-out immoral and a breach of the sacred commitment we make to our veterans to take care of them when they return home.

    “Just yesterday, I spoke with a disabled veteran who worked at the Seattle VA helping homeless veterans. He told me how devastating it was when, without warning, without cause, and without explanation, he was suddenly terminated from a role that meant everything to him and was cast aside by the very system he had fought in combat to defend. Now, there will be thousands more stories like his and millions more veterans who will pay the price. Trump’s own attorney has said that this administration thinks veterans they laid off for NO REASON may not be ‘fit to have a job at this moment’ —it’s an astounding level of contempt for our veterans that’s reflected throughout this administration’s thoughtless mass firings.

    “These arbitrary mass layoffs, at the very least, are going to mean longer processing times for disability or education claims veterans are desperately waiting on, and longer wait times for veterans to see a doctor–to say nothing of the serious threat to patient safety or the threat of VA medical centers closing. Make no mistake: this will only empower Elon to privatize VA by breaking it first. The consequences of Trump and Elon’s sheer recklessness will reverberate for generations—in more veterans sick and unable to get their benefits, more veterans out of a job, and fewer men and women willing to sign up to serve a nation that shows it will not keep their promises to them.”

    ENDANGERING VETERANS’ ACCESS TO BENEFITS AND CARE—AND PATIENT SAFETY

    Firing VA employees will–among much else–likely force veterans to wait longer:

    • To see health care providers;
    • To have their disability claims adjudicated;
    • To have someone to pick up their calls at the Veterans Crisis Line;
    • To have burial and funeral expense reimbursement requests processed;
    • And much more.

    A number of staff supporting the Veterans Crisis Line–which provides 24/7, confidential crisis support for veterans and their loved ones–were among those fired by Trump and Musk.

    In 2022, Congress also passed the PACT Act, the largest expansion of veterans’ benefits in two decades, which requires a significant influx of resources and staff to deliver the benefits and care under the law. Trump and Musk’s firings–and hiring freeze–badly undercut VA’s ability to process claims under the law. The mass firings and the ongoing hiring freeze, which prohibits new disability claims raters from coming on board, will force the backlog of unprocessed claims to grow above 254,000.

    Firing long-time VA researchers also puts clinical trials that veterans are enrolled in at risk and jeopardizes research that could yield critical breakthroughs for veterans.

    • Ongoing VA research is examining treatment options for PTSD and opioid addiction, as well as for cancer that was caused by veterans’ exposure to toxic chemicals, among much else.
    • According to VA, in fiscal year 2024, there were 102 active research sites nationwide, with 3,685 active principal investigators who led 7,278 active funded research projects involving teams of researchers. In addition, VA investigators authored or coauthored 11,732 published research articles.

    Recent dangerous directives from VA last week, which they have already begun to walk back, cause more harmful chaos and confusion and also have detrimental impacts on the ability of veterans to receive their care and benefits.

    • VA issued a blanket cancellation last Tuesday of nearly 900 contracts–supporting patient safety efforts like chemical waste disposal and monitoring of hospital air quality, systems providing secure storage of veterans’ private records, clinical recruitment efforts, and more.
    • VA also implemented a decision to reduce purchase card limits to $1–curbing VA medical centers’ ability to purchase supplies and equipment they need to serve veterans or to provide lodging for transplant patients. 

    While the Trump administration tries to rehire clinical staff they have already fired and may ultimately walk back the purchase card limits and contract cancellations, it is clear that they are acting before thinking–and the people paying the price are veterans.

    BETRAYING VETERANS WITH ZERO JUSTIFICATION

    Beyond indiscriminately firing workers who help get veterans the benefits and care they have earned, Trump and Musk have also already indiscriminately fired thousands of veterans who have served our country in uniform. In firing probationary and other federal workers across government, Trump and Musk have fired scores of veterans.

    • Veterans make up 30% of the federal workforce, and the federal government is the largest single employer of veterans in the country.
    • Trump and Musk have already fired nearly 6,000 veterans, by one recent estimate.
    • Federal agencies uniquely work to hire and accommodate veterans with service-related disabilities. Longstanding law requires, for example, that veterans who are disabled or who serve on active duty in the Armed Forces in military campaigns are entitled to preference over others in hiring from a list of eligible, competitive applicants. In 2021, there were 337,000 disabled Veterans serving in the federal government, making up 16% of the federal workforce.

    As veterans working at VA in Washington state who were recently laid off through no fault of their own have told Senator Murray:

    “I swore an oath to serve our country—first in the U.S. Army and then at the VA—only to be abruptly terminated by the very institution that promised to care for those who have served. My termination isn’t just a personal tragedy; it’s a stark reminder that our federal government is dismantling essential support systems for veterans and vulnerable communities. When cost-cutting means sacrificing dedicated, disabled service members and committed federal employees, it isn’t about efficiency—it’s about eroding the trust and dignity that our nation owes to those who answer the call to serve.” — Raphael Garcia, former Management Analyst for VA, Seattle

    “Working at the VA gave me purpose. I understood the struggles veterans faced, whether physical, mental, or emotional. I took pride in being part of something bigger than myself, in continuing to serve even after taking off the uniform… The next chapter in my service led me to working with unhoused Veterans. Limiting roles like mine, means other VA employees will have to take on more and cutting into valuable clinical time directly serving veterans. That’s why it was so devastating when, without warning, without cause, I was terminated. No explanation, no justification just a cold dismissal from a role that meant everything to me. It felt like a betrayal, not just of my dedication but of the values I thought the VA stood for. I had fought through war, through cancer, and through every challenge life had thrown at me only to be cast aside by the very system I had believed in.” — Scott Olson, former Program Support for VA’s Community Housing Program, Seattle

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: VIDEO: Hickenlooper Defends American Consumers on Senate Floor as Trump Admin Guts CFPB

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Colorado John Hickenlooper
    Hickenlooper: “If the Trump administration gets its way, it’s clear who the winners will be: loan sharks, shady mortgage companies, junk fee merchants. And the losers will be the rest of America”
    WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator John Hickenlooper spoke on the Senate floor against the Trump administration’s effort to gut the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), the federal agency responsible for protecting American consumers from financial abuse. Hickenlooper spoke before a Senate vote on a Republican-led resolution to strip the CFPB’s power to supervise popular digital payment apps like Venmo and PayPal in order to prevent harms to consumers.

    “Today’s Republican-led resolution weakens the CFPB’s ability to protect consumers. And it’s part of a broader effort by the administration to shut down consumer protections entirely,” said Hickenlooper. “Bottom line: More money in the pocket of fraudsters, scammers, and the unscrupulous. Less for the little guy to save.”
    At the beginning of February, the Trump administration shut down the CFPB headquarters and ordered all employees to immediately stop all of the agency’s work. On Monday, a federal judge extended an order pausing mass firings at the CFPB.
    Since its founding, the CFPB has recovered $20 billion for Americans who have been taken advantage of by scams, junk fees, and high-cost loans. In Colorado, nearly 67,000 people have sought the help from CFPB, including more than 6,200 service members. Thousands of those complaints led to relief for consumers.
    To download a full video of Hickenlooper’s remarks, click HERE. A full transcript of his remarks is available below:
    “Mr. President,
    “The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is, at its core, a law enforcement agency.
    “Congress established the CFPB 15 years ago to protect Americans from fraud, from getting ripped off by banks, and credit card companies, financial institutions.
    “Today’s Republican-led resolution weakens the CFPB’s ability to protect consumers. And it’s part of a broader effort by the administration to shut down consumer protections entirely.
    “Let’s take a minute to go back in time to the time before the CFPB existed – right before the 2008 financial meltdown.
    “Back then, abusive fees and misleading disclosures meant that Coloradans paid more for mortgages. More for credit cards. More for student loans.
    “Fly-by-night lenders made massive profits by targeting vulnerable families with excessively high-cost loans – turning credit from a tool for opportunity into a tool for scams.
    “Financial scammers could all too easily slip through the cracks in oversight. There just wasn’t enough oversight. In some case, there was no oversight.
    “Our neighbors were getting hit with hidden fees and frauds when they took out a mortgage, when they used a credit card, or if they were just paying for school.
    “There was no cop on the beat. The result?
    “By 2008, years of this shady, abusive practice helped spark a devastating global financial crisis.
    “Six million households lost their homes to foreclosure. A quarter of our families lost 75% of their wealth.
    “Americans lost faith in our financial system.
    “In 2010, Congress created the CFPB to help make sure that this could never happen again.
    “Congress gave it a simple job: to protect Americans from getting ripped off.
    “The Bureau cleaned up mortgage markets, debt collection, student loans, and much, much more. It worked to protect veterans and other service members.
    “Fast forward to today and the CFPB’s results really speak for themselves. The Bureau has delivered 20 billion dollars – that’s billion dollars with a B –  back to Americans through its enforcement actions.
    “It’s brought relief to 200 million Americans and small businesses facing scams or abusive practices.
    “In Colorado, nearly 67,000 people have sought the help from CFPB, including more than 6,200 service members. Thousands of those complaints led to relief for consumers.
    “It really is a remarkable track record.
    “That is, until it’s been decided by Republicans that they wanted to eliminate many of these protections – if not all of them.
    “This vote today would unwind protections designed for the modern financial system – for the everyday payment apps we all use, like Venmo or PayPal. It would allow some of the largest financial firms in a consumer’s life to stay in the shadows, to operate outside of any oversight.
    “That’s exactly the approach to consumer protection we had 20 years ago, before the CFPB, before the 2008 financial crisis.
    “This is but the latest attempt to leave consumers vulnerable to scams. In fact, the Trump administration is trying, I think many people believe illegally, to abolish the CFPB entirely.
    “They fired dedicated staff who protect consumers. They cancelled the lease on the CFPB’s office. And they literally ordered a total shutdown of the agency – an unprecedented effort to defy Congress.
    “The administration believes that CFPB doesn’t deserve to exist. And maybe they think that scammers and fraudsters have finally hung it up and have gone to find honest work.
    “But I think the American people know better.
    “The administration wants to take our economy back to the time before the financial crisis of [2008] – with weaker protections and no one looking out for consumers.
    “If the Trump administration gets its way, it’s clear who the winners will be: loan sharks, shady mortgage companies, junk fee merchants.
    “And the losers will be the rest of America – any Coloradan that wants a fair deal on a credit card or a mortgage.
    “Bottom line: More money in the pocket of fraudsters, scammers, and the unscrupulous. Less for the little guy to save.
    “I urge my colleagues to stand up for American consumers and vote no on this resolution.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: ICYMI: Capitol Hill Highlights Key Pillars of President Trump’s Joint Address to Congress in Op-Ed Blitz

    US Senate News:

    Source: The White House
    America Is Back. President’s Joint Address Will Celebrate ItU.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL)
    The last four years were a dumpster fire—a total disaster. “Sleepy Joe” was worn slap out as soon as he got up in the morning. Thinking back on it now, I really don’t know how our country survived. It’s a miracle that we made it through those dark days. One thing is for sure: President Trump’s address will be nothing like the clown show we endured the last four years.
    But today, America is ready to usher in its golden age under President Donald J. Trump. We’re only a month and a half in, and President Trump is well on his way to renewing the American dream by reversing some of the Democrats’ most destructive policies. Most importantly, President Trump is keeping his promises to the 77 million Americans who voted for him and his “America First” agenda. A recent poll showed 70 percent of Americans believe President Trump is doing what he said he would do.
    Read full op-ed here.
    It’s Time To Take Trump’s Win On Women’s Sports To The Next LevelU.S. Senator Roger Marshall (R-KS)
    Democrat politicians and extreme woke ideologues have shrugged their shoulders at the humiliation and disenfranchisement of millions of young women and girls, even though 80% of Americans agree with President Trump’s view that biological boys should not compete in girls’ sports.
    I believe America’s women and girls deserve to know that someone is fighting to protect the integrity and fairness of their competitive sports and standing up for their right to safe and protected spaces like bathrooms and locker rooms.
    Thankfully, President Trump has taken up the mantle. Last month, he signed an executive order protecting women’s and girls’ sports.
    Read full op-ed here.
    Renewing the American Dream for the American WorkerU.S. Senator Jim Banks (R-IN)
    President Trump is renewing the hope of the American Dream from the ashes of an historic low point. Our nation has emerged stronger with a leader and an administration whose defining feature is their commitment to working families.
    Despite the downturn in prosperity and security America faced over the last four years, the American Dream is not an outdated ambition.
    Under President Trump, the possibility of achieving the American Dream is back and within the grasp of every hard-working American.
    Already, President Trump has made good on a range of his promises, reinvigorating American society across the board—an achievement that’s unheard of for a president only 44 days into his term.
    Read full op-ed here.
    President Donald Trump is keeping his promise to Jewish studentsHouse Committee on Education and Workforce Chairman, U.S. Congressman Tim Walberg (MI-05)
    Columbia [University] leaders have made public and private promises to Jewish students, faculty, and Members of Congress that the university would take the steps necessary to combat the rampant antisemitism on its campus. Columbia has failed to uphold its commitments. But that is coming to an end. Now, the Committee and Jewish students and faculty have a strong ally in the White House. During the campaign Trump promised his administration would combat antisemitism on American campuses.
    On day one, the Trump administration signed an executive order to combat antisemitism. As part of the executive order, the Department of Education has launched investigations into five universities for tolerating “widespread antisemitic harassment” in violation of Title VI.
    The disease of antisemitism must be rooted out before it spreads to the next generation. President Trump’s firm hand on this issue is the remedy we need. We owe it to our youth to ensure they never face harassment, threats, or violence because of their faith. This is a promise we should always honor because it goes hand in hand with the promise of the American Dream. Thankfully, President Trump is delivering on this promise.
    Read full op-ed here.
    America is backU.S. Congressman Richard Hudson (NC-09)Since his inauguration on Jan. 20, President Donald J. Trump has worked tirelessly to restore border security, enforce our nation’s laws and make clear that your constitutional rights shall not be infringed. Following four years of chaos, Trump has sent a clear message: America is back, and he’s just getting started.
    After just one month back in office, Trump reestablished the successful “Remain in Mexico” policy, restarted construction of the border wall, ramped up deportation flights of criminal illegals, and ended the dangerous Biden-era “catch-and-release” policy. These are just a few of the actions Trump has taken to regain control of our border and crack down on illegal immigration.
    Trump’s efforts to secure the border have been nothing less than historic, including sharply reducing illegal border crossings in just his first 11 days back in office. This is the “Trump Effect” in action, and it’s only just the beginning.
    Read full op-ed here.
    Under President Trump, America’s Borders Are Secure AgainU.S. Congressman Andy Biggs (AZ-05)
    In a few weeks, Donald Trump has done what his prevaricating predecessor declared to be impossible: he has brought the border under control.
    The policies of Joe Biden and Alejandro Mayorkas will forever be a stain on America. The border is now almost completely controlled by America, not Mexican drug and human trafficking cartels. That only has happened because President Trump has the will and leadership skills to allow our law enforcement to actually enforce the law. Trump said he would do it. He is doing it.
    America is safer now. Our borders are better now. Trump is delivering on one of his signature campaign promises. While the Left in America is face-melting, the majority of us recognize the success on the border of President Trump.
    Read full op-ed here.
    Trump Gives America A Much-Needed Shot Of OptimismU.S. Congressman Ralph Norman (SC-05)
    We’re now 44 days into President Donald Trump’s second term, and a renewed sense of optimism is sweeping across America, reminiscent of the enduring promise of the American Dream. Central to this resurgence is the administration’s policies aimed at reigniting prosperity for small businesses, particularly evident in South Carolina’s 5th Congressional District.
    President Trump has been keen on drawing back the red tape in the federal bureaucracy and reminding everyone in the swamp that our government is supposed to serve the American worker, not the other way around.
    Last night the president made it clear: ‘We have accomplished more in 43 days than most administrations accomplished in 4 years…and we are just getting started!’
    Read full op-ed here.
    Trump is Reviving the American Dream and Common SenseU.S. Congresswoman Diana Harshbarger (TN-01)
    Tuesday night, President Donald Trump did what he does best — he told it like it is. He reviewed his administration’s impressive accomplishments, laid out his action plan to put our economy back on track, urged Congress to deliver additional funding for the United States Border Patrol, and shared his bold vision to bring peace and stability around the world.
    Only weeks ago, the president signed an executive order keeping men out of women’s sports. I attended the signing, and it was a sight to see — the president with dozens of female athletes and young women who would now have a level playing field because of Republicans’ commitment to this cause — Trump’s commitment to this cause.
    The president reiterated this commitment Tuesday night when he spoke on this issue, highlighting the story of Payton McNabb, saying, “When her girls’ volleyball match was invaded by a male, he smashed the ball so hard in Payton’s face, causing traumatic brain injury … ending her athletic career.
    This story has become all too common. When Trump told Payton’s story, not a single Democrat stood in solidarity.
    Read full op-ed here.
    Ending Biden’s disgraceful erosion of American deterrence U.S. Congressman August Pfluger (TX-01) andU.S. Congressman Zach Nunn (IA-03)
    With Trump back in the White House, alongside Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and national security adviser Mike Waltz, we’re setting a clear path forward for the U.S.: rebuild the military, restore our warrior ethos, and reestablish American deterrence.
    Unlike his predecessors, who viewed the military through the lens of social experimentation, Hegseth recognizes that the Department of Defense has one primary mission: to produce the most lethal fighting force on Earth. Under his leadership, we’re already seeing a renewed focus on combat training, eliminating wasteful programs, and stripping away ideological distractions.
    Read full op-ed here.
    Congress Must Act to Solidify Trump’s Border WinsU.S. Congressman Mark Harris (NC-08)
    For the past four years, the most powerful nation in the history of the world has been under attack. Deadly cartels, gangs, human smugglers, and other criminal aliens flooded American communities and harmed our citizens. This chaos was an orchestrated attack led by the last administration not only on our nation, but on the American dream.
    But on January 20th, a new era of leadership began. After being sworn into office, President Trump wasted no time taking action to take back our country and set our nation back on course.
    Last night, President Trump said, “The media and our friends in the Democrat Party kept saying we needed new legislation to secure the border. But it turned out that all we really needed was a new president.” And he is exactly right.
    President Trump’s decisive action and bold leadership has drastically changed the state of our border for the better.
    Read full op-ed here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Senator Marshall Pens Op-Ed in The Daily Caller: It’s Time to Take Trump’s Win on Women’s Sports To The Next Level

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Kansas Roger Marshall
    Washington – U.S. Senator Roger Marshall, M.D. (R-Kansas) penned an op-ed in The Daily Caller highlighting the importance of protecting women’s and girls’ sports and calling out Senate Democrats for voting against the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act.  
    Click HERE or on the image above to read Senator Marshall’s full op-ed in The Daily Caller.
    Highlights from Senator Marshall’s op-ed include: 
    “As a doctor who has delivered over 5,000 babies, I can say with full confidence that boys are boys and girls are girls. This basic biological statement — that even third graders know as truth — should not be radical. But it’s sad that in 2025, we must even say it.  
    “Democrat politicians and extreme woke ideologues have shrugged their shoulders at the humiliation and disenfranchisement of millions of young women and girls, even though 80% of Americans agree with President Trump’s view that biological boys should not compete in girls’ sports.
    “The Biden-Harris Administration abused Title IX and forced its gender theory madness onto America. The result was confused men and boys unfairly competing against women and girls in sports and these biological males invaded protected personal spaces.
    “I believe America’s women and girls deserve to know that someone is fighting to protect the integrity and fairness of their competitive sports and standing up for their right to safe and protected spaces like bathrooms and locker rooms.
    “Thankfully, President Trump has taken up the mantle. Last month, he signed an executive order protecting women’s and girls’ sports. I was honored to attend President Trump’s ceremony and celebrate at the White House as he signed this critical order.
    “To expand on this effort in the Senate, I was proud to cosponsor my good friend Coach Tommy Tuberville’s Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act. On Monday evening, I joined all my Republican colleagues to vote in support of this common-sense legislation.
    “Even though this bill would have preserved Title IX protections for female athletes, every single Senate Democrat voted against it.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Senator Marshall to NIH Director Nominee Dr. Bhattacharya: We Need to Get to the Bottom of the Chronic Disease Epidemic

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Kansas Roger Marshall
    Washington – U.S. Senator Roger Marshall, M.D. (R-Kansas) today participated in the confirmation hearing for President Donald Trump’s National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director nominee, Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, in the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP).
    Dr. Bhattacharya, M.D., PhD, is a professor of health policy at Stanford University, where he directs the Center for Demography and Economics of Health and Aging. Having published 135 articles in top peer-reviewed scientific journals, Dr. Bhattacharya’s research has focused on the health and well-being of vulnerable populations with a particular emphasis on the role of government programs, biomedical innovation, and economics. Most recently, Dr. Bhattacharya focused on the epidemiology of COVID-19 and evaluated policy responses to the epidemic, advocating for focused protection over widespread lockdowns.
    Senator Marshall questioned Dr. Bhattacharya on scientific progress, the concept of ‘Food is Medicine,’ and his strategy to tackle the chronic disease epidemic America is facing.
    You may click HERE to watch Senator Marshall’s full remarks. 
    Highlights from Dr. Bhattacharya’s confirmation hearing include: 
    On humility as the key to scientific progress:
    Senator Marshall: “As I listen to the conversation today, I’m reminded that we all should doubt our own infallibility, and we should doubt the infallibility of the NIH as well. I’m flabbergasted as I listen to this conversation of people that really have never been involved in the scientific process and that they don’t understand infallibility.”
    Dr. Bhattacharya: “I agree with you about humility. That’s the key to scientific progress. We have to as scientists say we might be wrong, because when we meet data that disagrees with us, where we have ideas that we disagree with, maybe that other idea is right, and we’re the one that’s wrong. It’s only if I’m confirmed as NIH Director, I want to make sure that all the range of hypotheses are supported. That’s how you make progress. One of the reasons I think that we have not made progress in Alzheimer’s as much as we ought to have is because the NIH has not supported a sufficiently wide range of hypotheses.”
    On the chronic disease epidemic and the concept of ‘Food is Medicine’:
    Senator Marshall: “Let’s talk about chronic disease just for a second. The NIH has spent a disproportionate amount of money on research on diseases that impact a very small, minuscule amount of Americans. Meanwhile, 60% of Americans have a chronic disease. Speak a little bit about your vision of researching for figuring out the causes and treatments of chronic disease, specifically how food is medicine might be intertwined in your in your vision.”
    Dr. Bhattacharya: “Senator, I think the chronic disease problem is something that the NIH ought to have done a better job in the last several decades. The mission of the NIH is to address the health needs the American people have, and to expand life expectancy of the American people and we have not achieved that. It’s flat-lined.”
    “I think we should expand the set of ideas to address a problem that we don’t know how to address. The chronic disease problems in the United States are so broad. We need to have a lot more tolerance that the top scientists who control the ideas in their fields may be wrong. We need to allow other scientists who have other ideas, and food as medicine might be one of them, to have support.”
    Senator Marshall: “Are you committed to helping us figure out the causes of these chronic diseases?”
    Dr. Bhattacharya: “I absolutely am, Senator…That is the heart and soul of the Make America Healthy Again movement, and millions and millions of Americans have been looking to us to do that. If I’m confirmed, I absolutely commit to you.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Senator Reverend Warnock Statement on Extreme Tariffs on Everyday Goods, Agriculture

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock – Georgia

    Senator Reverend Warnock Statement on Extreme Tariffs on Everyday Goods, Agriculture

    Senator Reverend Warnock is the Ranking Member of the Senate Finance Subcommittee on International Trade, Customs, and Global Competitiveness
    Tariffs will impact cost of produce, canned soda, beer, lumber for housing, aluminum for cars and manufacturing equipment, fertilizer for producers, and more
    Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-GA), ranking member of the Senate Finance Subcommittee on International Trade, Customs, and Global Competitiveness, issued the following statement on the newly announced 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico.
    “When I hear from ordinary Georgians, they tell me the cost of everything from housing to prescription drugs to groceries are too expensive. Georgians feel like their dollar isn’t going far enough, and these tariffs only make the problem worse.”
    “These sweeping tariffs and this impending trade war will hurt our farmers, who are now seeing a hike in fertilizer prices going into planting season. With retaliatory tariffs already being implemented, I fear that my years of bipartisan efforts to open up international markets for our farmers will be erased. This will make produce in the grocery stores more expensive and producers losing their farms more likely.”
    “I’m not opposed to all tariffs. They can be a useful tool to protect American jobs and coerce bad actors like China to play by the rules. But these chaotic and impulsive tariffs do nothing but punish Georgians who are just trying to balance their checkbook and save for the future. I will continue to speak out against policies that hurt Georgia families and farmers.”  

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Ricketts Celebrates Senate Passage of His CRA Resolution to Overturn CFPB’s Regulatory Overreach of Consumer Payment Companies

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Pete Ricketts (Nebraska)
    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Pete Ricketts (R-NE) celebrated Senate passage of his Congressional Review Act resolution to overturn the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)’s latest overreach in the digital consumer payment market. The legislation would nullify the CFPB’s burdensome “Defining Larger Participants of a Market for General-Use Digital Consumer Payment Applications” rule, which took effect on January 9, 2025. Ricketts introduced the resolution last week.
    “It’s great to see the Senate acting first to reverse this eleventh-hour Biden administration rule that expands the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s authority unnecessarily,” said Ricketts on the Senate floor. “This will be an early victory for President Trump. I am hopeful that the House will take up my CRA, with my Nebraska colleague Congressman Mike Flood leading, and give it a vote soon. This is an opportunity for us to ease the regulatory burden the previous administration placed on the American people. That’s what President Trump was elected to do. Now, we’re helping him deliver on his campaign promises.”
    Bill text can be found here.
    BACKGROUND
    On November 21, 2024, the CFPB finalized a rule entitled “Defining Larger Participants of a Market for a General-Use Digital Consumer Payment Applications”— one of the Biden Administration’s many midnight rulemakings at the end of the year. Effective Jan. 9, 2025, the rule stretches CFPB’s powers to establish new supervision and examination authority over nonbank entities identified as “larger participants” in the general-use digital consumer payment applications market. These entities include payment apps, digital wallets, peer-to-peer payment apps, and other entities. “Larger participants” are entities that facilitate at least 50 million consumer payment transactions annually.
    Many payment companies are already regulated at the federal and state level. Consumers are having positive experiences in engaging with these services. Despite minimal consumer complaints about payment services—accounting for only 1% of the CFPB’s 1.3 million complaints in 2023—the CFPB chose to layer additional oversight on an already well-regulated industry.
    This one-size-fits-all solution in search of a problem expands CFPB’s authority without properly identifying a specific market it seeks to supervise or the risks within a specific market that pose harm to consumers that existing regulation doesn’t already mitigate. It will layer overreaching, duplicative regulation that could stifle innovation and lead to fewer services and increased costs.
    Further, the cost-benefit analysis supporting the rule is insufficient, unrealistic, and notably underestimates a CFPB exam to cost just $25,001.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Cortez Masto’s Bills Supporting Tribal Communities Pass Senate Indian Affairs Committee with Bipartisan Support

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Nevada Cortez Masto
    Washington, D.C. – Today, three of Senator Cortez Masto’s (D-Nev.) bills supporting Tribal communities passed the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs with bipartisan support. The Bridging Agency Data Gaps & Ensuring Safety (BADGES) for Native Communities Act, the Indian Health Service (IHS) Workforce Parity Act, and the Shoshone-Paiute Tribes of the Duck Valley Reservation Water Rights Settlement Act now all head to the Senate floor. Last Congress, each of these bills passed the Senate unanimously, but did not receive votes in the House of Representatives.
    “Whether it is by advancing public safety, expanding health care access, or ensuring the federal government pays the debts it owes, I will always fight to support Tribal communities,” said Senator Cortez Masto. “I am glad these commonsense bills were voted out of committee with bipartisan support, and I urge my colleagues in both the House and the Senate to swiftly pass them into law.”
    The BADGES for Native Communities Act would support the recruitment and retention of Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) law enforcement officers, bolster federal missing persons resources, and give Tribes and states tools to combat violence.
    The IHS Workforce Parity Act would improve health care in Tribal communities by allowing providers working part-time to access IHS scholarship and loan repayment programs.
    The Shoshone-Paiute Tribes of the Duck Valley Reservation Water Rights Settlement Act would allow the Tribes to collect over $5 million in interest they are owed for their 2009 water rights settlement, which left out commonplace interest payments.
    Senator Cortez Masto has long been a champion for Tribal communities. She repeatedly called on the Biden administration to do more to address the epidemic of violence against Native women and girls, including securing federal funding to protect Native communities, urging the administration to draft a plan to address this issue, and requesting the Government Accountability Office (GAO) investigate the federal response to this crisis.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Klobuchar, Marshall Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Help Americans Afford Skills Training

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Minnesota Amy Klobuchar
    WASHINGTON — U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Roger Marshall (R-KS) introduced the Freedom to Invest in Tomorrow’s Workforce Act, which would allow Americans to use 529 education savings accounts to pay for training programs. By broadening the scope of qualified expenses under 529 savings plans to include postsecondary training and credentialing, the bill would expand tax-advantaged resources to families, students, and workers who are pursuing career growth outside of a traditional four-year degree. This will expand Americans’ access to well-paying jobs that require training and credentialing such as licenses and certifications. 
    “Workforce training is key to expanding opportunity and strengthening our economy by providing workers with the tools and resources they need to succeed,” said Klobuchar. “By allowing Americans to use their ‘529’ educational savings to pay for training and certification outside of a four-year degree, our bipartisan legislation will enable more people to access these valuable programs and open doors to good-paying jobs.”
    “Back home, not a day goes by that I don’t hear about the workforce shortages across the state. We have high-paying jobs at the ready but struggle to find qualified employees. Our bill helps fill these workforce gaps and empowers Kansans to pursue non-traditional educational opportunities more easily,” said Marshall. “Allowing 529 funds to be used beyond a four-year education makes sense. Whether it’s a bachelor’s degree or an apprenticeship opportunity, 529 savings plans need to be flexible to meet the growing demands of our workforce.”
    The legislation is co-sponsored by Senators Peter Welch (D-VT) and Susan Collins (R-ME). Representative Rob Wittman (R-VA) leads companion legislation in the House. This bill has garnered the support of more than 800 trade associations, professional societies, and businesses.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Sen. Warner Slams Trump Administration Plan to Cut over 80,000 Employees from Veterans Affairs

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Commonwealth of Virginia Mark R Warner

    WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) released the following statement on Trump administration’s short-sighted plan to slash over 80,000 employees at the Department of Veterans Affairs:

    “Our nation’s veterans have served our country valiantly and we owe it to them to take care of them when they come home. The Department of Veterans Affairs serves nearly 10 million veterans nationwide providing quality health care, disability services, and financial and career counseling. In recent years, with legislation like the PACT Act, we have made significant improvements to delivering quality care to these heroes. This move by the Trump administration would completely erase that progress. Eliminating over 80,000 jobs would not only decimate our workforce, but would hurt the veterans who too often struggle to access the benefits they have earned. To put it simply: our veterans deserve better, and I’m going to fight this move tooth and nail.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Senator Collins Announces that Department of Commerce has Agreed to Renegotiate Maine Sea Grant

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Maine Susan Collins

    Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Susan Collins today announced that the Department of Commerce has agreed to renegotiate funding for Maine Sea Grant. At the urging of Senator Collins, Secretary Lutnick is directing NOAA to renegotiate the terms and conditions of the work to be performed by Maine Sea Grant to ensure that it focuses on advancing Maine’s coastal economies, working waterfronts and sustainable fisheries. The announcement comes following a conversation Tuesday between Secretary Lutnick and Senator Collins in which Senator Collins explained all that is at stake for Maine’s coastal communities with the loss of Sea Grant funding.

    “I appreciate the Secretary’s willingness to work together to ensure that Maine Sea Grant can continue to conduct research, support a robust pipeline of skilled labor, and ensure that our coastal economies remain profitable hubs for fishermen, lobstermen, and hospitality workers. It is important that Maine Sea Grant can continue to provide valuable services for communities across the state for years to come,” said Senator Collins.

    In a memo from the Department of Commerce, Vice Admiral Nancy Hann said, “After productive conversations with Senator Susan Collins and her staff, the Department of Commerce is committed to engaging in bilateral negotiations to modify the Year 2 award requirements and related funding of the Maine Sea Grant Omnibus Award.

                “Through these bilateral negotiations, the Department will ensure that the American people, including hardworking Mainers like lobstermen and fishermen, receive the benefit of the bargain consistent with the Administration’s priorities and continued relevance to program objectives.”

    Read the full memo here.

    “I am so grateful for Senator Collins’ unwavering dedication to sustaining our fisheries, working waterfronts, and local communities,” said Gayle Zydlewski, Director, Maine Sea Grant.

    “We deeply appreciate Senator Collins, the U.S. Department of Commerce, and NOAA for restoring funding to Maine Sea Grant. This investment ensures continued collaboration between scientists and fishermen, supporting sustainable fisheries and Maine’s coastal communities. UMaine remains committed to advancing research that strengthens our blue economy and marine industries,” said University of Maine President Joan Ferrini-Mundy.

    Maine Sea Grant is a direct investment in Maine’s coastal communities, driving economic growth, creating jobs, and supporting fisheries and the seafood industry, including local businesses like Ready Seafood:

    “Maine Sea Grant has been supporting Ready Seafood since we started as a small lobster company on Hobson’s Pier in Portland in 2004, and helped propel our business to become the largest lobster processing company in the world,” said Curt Brown, lobsterman and marine biologist for Ready Seafood. “Senator Collins’ tireless leadership has once again delivered a huge victory for Maine’s coastal communities. From Kittery to Cutler, Maine’s coastal economy is stronger today, thanks to her efforts!” 

    Senator Collins has been in contact with the Trump Administration and University of Maine leadership since the news broke Friday evening that the program was being defunded. Tuesday, Senator Collins met with the Director of Maine Sea Grant and other program advocates in her office. She spoke with Commerce Secretary Lutnick later that day.

    Facts about Maine Sea Grant:

    • Maine Sea Grant contributed to $23.5 million in documented economic benefits in 2023 alone. For every $1 of funding, there’s a $15 return.
    • Sea Grant has more than 700 established partnerships with businesses, researchers, community organizations, and local and county governments.
    • In 2023, Sea Grant created or supported 332 businesses and 565 jobs.
    • Sea Grant supports American Seafood Competitiveness by enhancing the sustainability and profitability of Maine’s $600 million lobster industry and growing aquaculture sector, helping maintain American leadership in global seafood markets.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Senator Collins Questions NIH Director Nominee on Cap on Indirect Research Costs

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Maine Susan Collins

    Click here to watch and here to download video of Senator Collins’ questioning.

    Washington, D.C. – At a Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee hearing on the nomination of Dr. Jay Bhattacharya to serve as Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), U.S. Senator Susan Collins questioned Dr. Bhattacharya on the Trump Administration’s decision to impose a cap on indirect costs for certain NIH funded research. Senator Collins, Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, released a statement in February opposing the decision, which could halt critical biomedical research like that taking place in Maine at the Jackson Laboratory, the University of Maine, Maine Medical Center Research Institute, the University of New England, and MDI Biological Laboratory. Senator Collins has also been in direct contact with Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., who committed to her that he would reexamine this directive.

    Today, a federal judge issued a nationwide preliminary injunction, blocking the implementation of this cap.

    Below is the transcript of their exchange:

    Senator Collins:

    I am strongly opposed to the Administration’s ill-conceived and completely arbitrary proposal to impose a 15% cap on indirect costs for NIH grants. Research labs and universities across the State of Maine have contacted me to describe the devastating impact that this cap would have on lifesaving and life-enhancing biomedical research, on ongoing clinical trials, and on Maine’s research-related jobs.

    In 2023, NIH supported 1,470 jobs in this field in the State of Maine alone. I think it’s important that we all acknowledge that a one-size-fits-all approach makes absolutely no sense, and that is why NIH negotiates with the individual grant recipient what the indirect cost cap should be. And it’s legitimate to say that we should take another look at that. Are we doing the right amount for Stanford versus Jackson Laboratories or the University of Maine? Those are legitimate questions. But to impose this arbitrary cap makes no sense at all.

    Furthermore, and I really want to stress this, this is against the law. Since 2018, we have had language in the Labor-HHS appropriations bill that specifically prohibits the indirect cost formula from being changed. And yet, that is what has been done without congressional intent, or agreement, or consent. And the language has been carried every single year, including in the continuing resolution that we’re now operating under. So, I’m not surprised that a judge has stayed the order.

    So, if confirmed, will you work immediately to rectify and reverse course on having a one-size-fits-all 15% cap on indirect costs?

    Dr. Bhattacharya:

    Senator, if confirmed, I absolutely commit to following the law, to addressing this issue very directly. I think that this is one of these issues—to me, it’s an indicator of distrust that some have of universities and of the scientific process. And so, I want to make sure that we address those concerns as well, but I absolutely commit to following the law. And I’ll consult with agency counsel immediately and work with you, Senator, as we spoke of in our meeting, to make sure that your concerns are addressed as well.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Baldwin Responds to Trump’s Commitment to “Resurrect the American Shipbuilding Industry”

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Wisconsin Tammy Baldwin

    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) released the following statement in response to President Trump’s commitment to “resurrect the American shipbuilding industry” during his joint address to Congress.

    “I take great pride in representing Wisconsin’s shipbuilding industry, and in his speech last night, the President acknowledged something I’ve been long fighting for – the need to revitalize the American shipbuilding industry and support American workers and companies,” said Senator Baldwin. “America used to lead the world in shipbuilding, but for too long, China has cheated the rules, threatening our national security and jobs across the country. I’ve always said I’d work with anyone to deliver for Wisconsinites – so, Mr. President, let’s get to work. The first step is cracking down on China for cheating and holding them accountable – like I have long fought for – so we level the playing field for workers and support Made in America shipbuilding.”

    Senator Baldwin has been leading the charge to level the playing field for Wisconsin workers. Last March, Senator Baldwin joined USW and other labor leaders in support of the American shipbuilding industry and to call on Trade Representative Tai to conduct a full investigation. In April, the USTR announced they were heeding that call and launching an investigation into China, resulting in a report that lays the groundwork for the Trump Administration to impose appropriate penalties on China to support American workers. In January, Senator Baldwin applauded the United States Trade Representative report outlining China’s unfair trade practices to undercut American shipbuilding and called on the President to act. In February, Baldwin led a group of her colleagues in calling on the Trump Administration to act on the results of the investigation and take immediate action to level the playing field for American workers, businesses, and national security.

    Senator Baldwin has long championed Buy America policies to support American businesses and workers. She fought to advance her American Made Navy Act in last year’s annual defense legislation, which would ensure by 2033 any new Navy ship purchased uses 100% domestically produced materials, like propulsion systems, shipboard components, couplings, shafts, support bearings, and more. She also worked to include strong Buy America standards in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

                   

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: WATCH: Baldwin Presses Trump Nominee for NIH on Stalled Cancer, Alzheimer’s Research

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Wisconsin Tammy Baldwin

    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) questioned President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, on this Administration’s continued efforts to stop funding for research into cures for cancer and Alzheimer’s disease. The halt on funding for this research comes as the NIH continues to cancel necessary meetings to approve funding, cut grant specialists, and fire doctors, scientists, and nurses who support clinical trials for patients.

    “Donald Trump and Elon Musk are slashing research for Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes, and cancer so billionaires don’t have to pay their fair share,” said Senator Baldwin. “The NIH does truly lifesaving work, and the world’s premier biomedical research agency needs a leader who will help keep people healthy and find the cures for diseases – not one who will take away families’ hopes and dreams of having a cure for diseases that take their loved ones too soon.”

    On Monday, Senator Baldwin called out the Trump Administration for stopping $65 million in funding for Alzheimer’s disease research at 14 research institutions across the country. 14 of the 35 Alzheimer’s Disease Research Centers (ADRCs) have had their funding halted by the NIH because the Trump Administration continues to cancel NIH Advisory Council meetings, which are the final required step in the grant approval process. She also slammed the Trump Administration for halting all grant funding through NIH for ten days last month, despite two court orders directing the Trump Administration to end its unlawful efforts to freeze all federal grants.

    In addition to frozen funding for critical research, Senator Baldwin also has raised alarms on staffing cuts to 1,200 research scientists, nurses, pharmacists, ethics specialists, police officers, data scientists, budget analysts, and patient care technicians at the agency, including critical patient care specialists at the NIH Clinical Center. The NIH Clinical Center is the nation’s largest hospital devoted entirely to clinical research, treating about 10,000 patients with rare and severe diseases every year. Mass firings of Clinical Center staff threaten patient safety and may shut down ongoing clinical trials, cutting off access to treatments and cures for patients who have nowhere else to go.

    These impacts are being directly felt in Wisconsin, where research institutions and patients are dealing with the fallout from this administration arbitrarily capping indirect cost rates at 15%, which will slash funding that helps research institutions, like the University of Wisconsin, conduct research, operate their facilities and labs, pay staff, and buy equipment needed for groundbreaking work to find cures for diseases and treatments for patients.

    A full recording of Senator Baldwin’s questions is available here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: PREPARED REMARKS: Sanders, Democratic Senators Force Republicans to Confront Hypocrisy on Ukraine and Putin

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Vermont – Bernie Sanders

    WASHINGTON, March 5 – Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), alongside Sens. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.) and Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), today asked for unanimous consent on the Senate floor to pass a series of straightforward resolutions condemning Russia’s illegal, unprovoked invasion of Ukraine. The senators offered six resolutions clarifying that the United States stands with the people of Ukraine in defense of their democracy and condemns the dictator Vladimir Putin’s crimes against humanity. Republicans rose in opposition to every one. 

    The senators’ resolutions are statements of fact and principle, backed by evidence and long-standing American foreign policy, including:

    • Clarifying that Russia started the war against Ukraine.
    • Condemning Putin and Russian forces for their widespread war crimes and crimes against humanity in Ukraine.
    • Condemning Russia’s forcible abduction of at least 20,000 Ukrainian children and calls for their return to their families.
    • Reaffirming the support of the United States for Ukraine’s sovereignty in the face of Russia’s invasion.
    • Restating a simple but fundamental principle of international law and global stability: that you do not take the territory of another country by force.
    • Demanding that Putin immediately withdraw Russian forces from Ukraine, cease his attacks, and end this terrible war.

    Sanders’ remarks on the Senate floor were livestreamed here and are available below. 

    I am here tonight with colleagues who have worked extremely hard to protect the sovereignty of Ukraine and to defend democracy in that country and, in fact, throughout the world. 

    And I thank my colleagues for getting on the floor this evening and for the resolutions that they will be bringing forth. 

    M. President, I am not a historian. But I do know that for the last 250 years, since the inception of our great country, despite our imperfections, the United States has stood in the world as a symbol of democracy. And all over the world people have looked to our country as an example of freedom and self-governance to which the rest of the world could aspire. People have long looked to our Declaration of Independence and Constitution as blueprints for how to establish governments of the people, by the people and for the people. 

    M. President, tragically, all of that is now changing. As President Trump moves this country towards authoritarianism, he is aligning himself with dictators and despots who share his disdain for democracy and the rule of law. 

    Just last week, in a radical departure from long-standing U.S. policy, the Trump administration voted against a United Nations resolution which clearly stated that Russia began the horrific war in Ukraine. 

    That U.N. resolution also called on Russia to withdraw its forces from occupied Ukraine, in line with international law. The resolution was brought forward by our closest allies, including the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Japan and dozens of other democratic nations. Ninety-three countries at the U.N. voted YES on that resolution. 

    Rather than side with our long-standing allies to preserve democracy and uphold international law, President Trump voted with authoritarian nations like Russia, North Korea, Iran and Belarus to oppose the resolution. Many of the other opponents of that resolution are undemocratic nations propped up by Russian military aid. 

    But it wasn’t just the U.N. vote. Pathetically, President Trump also told an outrageous lie, claiming that it was Ukraine that started the war, not Russia. He also called President Zelensky a dictator, rather than the leader of a democratic nation, as he is. 

    M. President, as we discuss Ukraine tonight, it is terribly important that we not forget who Vladimir Putin is and why he is no friend of the United States, and why we should not be in an alliance with him against Ukraine. 

    Putin is the man who crushed Russia’s movement towards democracy after the end of the Cold War. Putin is a man who steals elections, murders political dissidents and crushes freedom of the press. He has maintained control in Russia by offering the oligarchs there a simple deal: If they grant him absolute power and share the spoils, he would let them steal as much as they wanted from the Russian people. The result: while the vast majority of the Russian population struggles economically, Putin and his fellow oligarchs stash trillions of dollars in offshore tax havens. 

    And so today, 26 years after he took power, Putin is the absolute ruler of Russia. And I think as everyone knows, Russia’s elections are blatantly fraudulent. A sham. 

    And Putin is the man who sparked the bloodiest war in Europe since World War II. 

    More than three years ago, on February 24, 2022, Putin ordered a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, in clear violation of the Charter of the United Nations and international law. Russian land, air and naval forces have attacked and occupied territory across Ukraine. 

    Since that terrible day, more than a million people have been killed or injured because of Putin’s war. Putin’s forces have massacred civilians and kidnapped thousands of Ukrainian children, bringing them back to Russian “re-education” camps. These atrocities led the International Criminal Court to issue an arrest warrant for Putin in 2023 as a war criminal. That’s who we are allying ourselves with. 

    And still, today, Russia continues its attacks, raining down hundreds of missiles and drones on Ukrainian cities. Russian forces illegally occupy about 20 percent of Ukraine’s sovereign territory. 

    M. President, this war could end today if Putin gave up his outrageous effort to conquer a neighboring country. The war could end today. The killing could stop right now, if Putin gave that order. 

    And that, simply, M. President, is what my resolution says to Vladimir Putin: Stop the killing. Obey international law. Withdraw your forces and cease your attacks on Ukraine. And I, honestly, don’t understand how anyone in the United States Senate could object to that simple demand. 

    M. President, now, more than at any time in recent history, it is imperative that the Senate come together in a bipartisan manner to make it clear that we stand for democracy, not authoritarianism; that we stand for international law, not conquest by force; and that we stand with Ukraine and fellow democracies throughout the world, and not with the murderous dictator of Russia. 

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Sen. Mike Lee and Rep. Chip Roy: Kick International Criminal Court Out of NYC!

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Utah Mike Lee
    WASHINGTON –Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) and Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) have introduced the ICC Out of NYC Act, legislation that would forbid United Nations properties in New York, NY from being used, leased, or occupied by representatives or employees of the International Criminal Court, which has long worked against America and her allies.
    “The United States is not a signatory to the International Criminal Court, a body outside of American law that has repeatedly threatened the sovereignty of America and her allies across the globe,” said Sen. Lee. “We have our own laws, and we can enforce them on criminals ourselves. Americans should not play host to an organization that pretends to have made-up power over them.”
    “The ICC should be sanctioned and – at the very least – shouldn’t have an office at the United Nations,” said Rep. Roy. “Congress needs to take swift action to deport them from New York.”
    You can read the ICC Out of NYC Act HERE.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: PHOTO: Cornyn Meets with City of Del Rio Leaders

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Texas John Cornyn

    WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) met yesterday with leaders from the City of Del Rio including Mayor Al Arreola and City Manager Shawna Burkhart, to discuss increasing legitimate trade and travel, easing congestion at ports of entry, improving safety, and expediting presidential permits for key bridge expansion projects in the region, specifically for the Del Rio-Acuña International Bridge. See photo below.

    This image is in the public domain, but those wishing to do so may credit the Office of U.S. Senator John Cornyn.

    Senator John Cornyn, a Republican from Texas, is a member of the Senate Finance, Judiciary, Intelligence, Foreign Relations, and Budget Committees.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Cornyn Statement on Passing of Rep. Sylvester Turner

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Texas John Cornyn

    WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) released the following statement on the passing of U.S. Representative Sylvester Turner (TX-18):

    “Sandy and I are saddened to hear of the passing of our friend, Representative Sylvester Turner,” said Sen. Cornyn. “Congressman Turner was a statesman who dedicated his life and career to serving the people of Texas, and although we had ideological differences, I was honored to work alongside him throughout his decades of public service on things like supporting law enforcement and survivors of abuse. I encourage Texans to join Sandy and me in praying for the entire Turner family during this time.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Cornyn, Markey Reintroduce Legislation to Fund Sea Turtle Research and Rescue Assistance

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Texas John Cornyn

    Senators John Cornyn (R-TX) and Edward J. Markey (D-MA) reintroduced their bipartisan and bicameral Sea Turtle Rescue Assistance and Rehabilitation Act, legislation to establish funding at the Department of Commerce for the rescue, recovery and research of sea turtles in Texas and across the United States. Text of the bill can be found, here.

    “Sea turtle strandings are rising at an alarming rate along the Texas Gulf Coast,” said Sen. Cornyn. “This bill would help identify the causes of these strandings and invest in rescue and recovery efforts to better protect Texas’ endangered and storied sea turtle population.”

    “Sea turtles are the canaries in the coal mine. Right now, every known species of sea turtles found in US waters is either threatened or endangered and faces extinction and environmental wipeout due to the human-caused climate crisis. We have the responsibility to act,” said Sen. Markey. “I am reintroducing the Sea Turtle Rescue Assistance Act to financially support ongoing rescue and rehabilitation efforts of our shelled friends.” 

    The legislation is co-sponsored by Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Cory Booker (D-NJ, and Tom Tillis (R-NC). In January, Representative Bill Keating (MA-09) introduced companion legislation in the House of Representatives.
     

    Background:

    In 2000, fewer than 50 sea turtles were found stranded on the beaches of Cape Cod; by 2022, that number had skyrocketed to 866. During the 2021 cold snap in Texas, more than 12,100 turtles were cold-stunned, and rescue organizations were able to save and return only 4,000 of the stranded turtles to the wild. Rescue efforts are predominantly volunteer led and underfunded despite sea turtles facing increasing environmental and human-caused threats that make strandings more likely, including rapid temperature changes, red tide events, and entanglement in marine debris. This bill would provide stability and support to efforts that rehabilitate and aid in the recovery of sea turtles along the coastal US. Specifically, the Sea Turtle Rescue Assistance Act would create a new grant program to fund rescue, recovery, and research of sea turtles in the U.S., and authorize $5 million annually for awarding of grants to further that purpose from 2025 through 2030. 

    The Sea Turtle Rescue Assistance and Rehabilitation Act is endorsed by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, the New England Aquarium, the National Aquarium, ABQ BioPark, Acadia Institute of Oceanography, Adventure Aquarium, Allied Whale – College of the Atlantic, Assateague Coastal Trust, Atlantic Marine Conservation Society, Aquarium of the Pacific, Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, Audubon Nature Institute, Bird River Beach Community Association, Blank Park Zoo, Brevard Zoo / East Coast Zoological Park, Brookfield Zoo Chicago, Buttonwood Park Zoo, Central Florida Zoo & Botanical Gardens, Chattanooga Zoo at Warner Park, Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden, Citizens Campaign for the Environment, Clearwater Marine Aquarium, Cleveland Metroparks Zoo, Coastal Research and Education Society of Long Island, Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo, Conservation Council For Hawaii, El Paso Zoo and Botanical Garden, Fort Wayne Children’s Zoo, Georgia Aquarium, Georgia Sea Turtle Center / Jekyll Island Authority, Georgia Wildlife Federation, Gladys Porter Zoo, Gulf World Marine Institute, Healthy Ocean Coalition, Houston Zoo, International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), Jenkinson’s Aquarium, John Ball Zoo, John G. Shedd Aquarium, Kansas City Zoo, Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue & Rehabilitation Center, Loggerhead Marinelife Center, Louisiana Wildlife Federation, Marine Education – Research & Rehabilitation Institute, Inc. (MERR), Marine Conservation Institute, Marine Mammal Alliance Nantucket, Maryland Zoo in Baltimore, Mass Audubon, Maui Ocean Center Marine Institute, Monterey Bay Aquarium, Mystic Aquarium, National Marine Life Center, National Wildlife Federation, Natural Resources Defense Council, Newport Aquarium, New York Marine Rescue Center, North Carolina Aquariums, North Carolina Wildlife Federation, OdySea Aquarium, Oregon Coast Aquarium, Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium, Racine Zoo, Roger Williams Park Zoo, Saint Louis Zoo, SEA LIFE Aquariums, Sea Turtle Recovery, Inc., Seattle Aquarium, Seatuck Environmental Association, SeaWorld Parks, Sociedad Ornitologica Puertorriquena Inc., South Carolina Aquarium, South Carolina Wildlife Federation, Sunset Zoo, Surfrider Foundation, Texas Conservation Alliance, Texas Sealife Center, Texas State Aquarium, The Florida Aquarium, The Institute for Marine Mammal Studies, The Living Desert Zoo and Gardens, The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk, The Ocean Project, The Turtle Hospital, Upwell Turtles, Vancouver Aquarium, Virgin Islands Conservation Society, Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center, Whitney Lab for Marine Bioscience at University of Florida, WIDECAST: Wider Caribbean Sea Turtle Conservation Network, Wildlife Restoration Foundation, and Woodland Park Zoo. 

    “We are grateful for Sen. Markey’s continued partnership as he reintroduces the Sea Turtle Rescue Assistance and Rehabilitation Act of 2025 in the U.S. Senate. Each year, the New England Aquarium rescues and rehabilitates hundreds of cold-stunned sea turtles that wash onto the beaches of Cape Cod Bay. This bill would help fill a critical gap in sea turtle conservation efforts by providing much-needed financial support to organizations across the country like ours that help return these endangered animals to the ocean,” said Vikki N. Spruill, President and CEO of the New England Aquarium. 

    “The National Aquarium applauds the reintroduction of the bicameral, bipartisan Sea Turtle Rescue Assistance and Rehabilitation Act. We are proud to be part of the nationwide network of organizations engaged in sea turtle conservation and in educating the public on the challenges facing these threatened and endangered species. Sea turtle strandings are on the rise, as are the expenses related to rescuing, rehabilitating and releasing them back to their ocean home. The level of voluntary contribution from stranding network partners is not sustainable. We thank the champions in the House and Senate for their leadership in creating a much-needed federal grant program to support this important work,” said John Racanelli, President & CEO of the National Aquarium. 

    “Each year, aquariums, zoos and other organizations selflessly rescue and rehabilitate thousands of stranded and injured sea turtles with little to no federal support. They do it because it is the right thing to do,” said Dan Ashe, President and CEO of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. “This bipartisan Sea Turtle Rescue Assistance and Rehabilitation Act would help to fill a critical gap in support for these federally protected sea turtles.” 

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: VIDEO: Cornyn Debunks Media Attacks on DOGE

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Texas John Cornyn

    WASHINGTON – Today on the floor, U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) praised President Trump, Elon Musk, and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) for their work to root out fraud and put an end to the federal government’s frivolous spending of taxpayer dollars and called out the media for spreading falsehoods about DOGE’s efforts. Excerpts of Sen. Cornyn’s remarks are below, and video can be found here.

    “Right now the U.S. national debt—that’s like our credit card—sits at over $36.4 trillion.”

    “Washington, D.C. is addicted to spending and has been for a long, long time, and we have no responsible choice but to address it. So I’m glad that Mr. Musk and his team have stepped up, and while DOGE may not erase that national debt overnight, they are certainly highlighting the problems that those taxpayer expenditures present.”

    “There are many in Washington who want nothing to change. I think we saw some of them last night sitting on their hands during the President’s… speech.”

    “Some in the media have created, for their own reasons, misperceptions that Mr. Musk and his team are going in and making personnel and financial decisions on their own or forcing these decisions on the respective agencies that they are researching, but that’s simply false.”

    “The reality on the ground is that DOGE employees are reviewing systems, processes, data, personnel, and making recommendations to the agency heads. Then the agency head, in most cases a cabinet member appointed by President Trump and confirmed by the Senate, is the one with the authority to make those discretionary calls.”

    “To have someone like Elon Musk and DOGE come in and shake things up is just exactly what Washington needs.”

    “We know there’s always been waste, fraud, and abuse within the government, but it does not have to be that way.”

    “I support the efforts that the Department of Government Efficiency are undertaking, and I look forward to continuing to work with Mr. Musk and President Trump as a member of the Senate Caucus for DOGE, the Department of Government Efficiency, so that we can get our nation’s fiscal trajectory back on track. It’s absolutely essential that we do so.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Tribal Water Rights Settlements Legislation Passes Unanimously Out of Senate Committee

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Ben Ray Luján (D-New Mexico)
    Washington, D.C. – A slate of Tribal water rights settlement bills introduced by U.S. Senators Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) and U.S. Representatives Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.), Gabe Vasquez (D-N.M.), and Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.) passed unanimously out of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs today. The legislation next heads to the Senate floor for consideration.
    The full slate of Tribal water rights settlements legislation includes:
    The Rio San José and Rio Jemez Water Rights Settlements Act;
    The Ohkay Owingeh Rio Chama Water Rights Settlement Act;
    The Zuni Indian Tribe Water Rights Settlement Act; and
    The Navajo Nation Rio San José Water Rights Settlement Act.
    Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project Amendments;
    The Technical Corrections to the Northwestern New Mexico Rural Water Projects Act, Taos Pueblo Indian Water Rights Settlement Act, and Aamodt Litigation Settlement Act;
    “I’m proud to fight for these bills to finally unlock critical water infrastructure funding from these water rights settlements and ensure Tribes have the resources to use the water they own,” said Heinrich. “These settlements are supported by all parties involved, including Tribal and non-Tribal communities. Congress should pass these urgently needed bills to help communities manage their precious and limited water resources.”
    “Water rights are part of the federal trust responsibility for our Tribal communities,” said Luján, a member of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee. “I’m proud to have helped advance this critical legislation, allowing our Tribal communities to promote water security and complete much-needed water infrastructure projects. I’m particularly proud that my legislation to amend the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project has advanced, ensuring the resources and time needed to deliver clean drinking water to communities in northwestern New Mexico. These pieces of legislation will help fulfill our trust responsibility and promote water security for Tribes and Pueblos, as well as non-Tribal users, in New Mexico.”
    “This legislation upholds our trust responsibility to Tribes and helps bring certainty to disputes about water across the Southwest. The settlements included in these bills secure clean, reliable water for Navajo Nation, Jicarilla Apache Nation, 11 pueblos, and the rural communities that are their neighbors across New Mexico,” said Leger Fernández. “It is with great expectation that I reintroduce this legislation which reflects decades of negotiation and collaboration. We must pass these bills so the scarce water resources our communities need to thrive for generations to come are available to all.”
    “In New Mexico, we know water is life,” said Stansbury. “That’s why these Tribal Water Settlement bills are so important. These pieces of legislation will give water rights back to our Tribes and Pueblos, ensuring the federal government upholds our Trust and Treaty Responsibilities. Indigenous people have been stewards of the land and water since time immemorial, and now is the time for them to lead these efforts.”
    “New Mexicans know the importance of safe and reliable water access, and today’s progress brings us one step closer to securing these fundamental resources for our Tribal communities. I’ll continue to honor my commitment to our Tribes and Pueblos to ensure they have the water infrastructure they need to thrive,” said Vasquez.
    The Rio San José and Rio Jemez Water Rights Settlements Act is led by Heinrich and Leger Fernández. Luján, Stansbury, and Vasquez are original cosponsors. The bill would implement two fund-based water settlements: one between the Pueblos of Jemez and Zia, the United States, the State of New Mexico, and non-Tribal parties; and another between the Pueblos of Acoma and Laguna, the United States, the State of New Mexico, and non-Tribal parties. The settlements are strongly supported by all parties involved.
    Heinrich and Leger Fernández previously introduced this legislation in March 2023. The bill received a hearing and was reported out of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee in December 2023. The House version of this bill received a legislative hearing in the House Water, Wildlife and Fisheries Subcommittee in July 2024.
    Read the full bill text here.
    The Ohkay Owingeh Rio Chama Water Rights Settlement Act is also led by Heinrich and Leger Fernández. Luján and Stansbury are original cosponsors. The bill establishes a trust fund to implement the negotiated settlement between the United States, the State of New Mexico, the City of Española, the Asociación de Acéquias Norteñas de Rio Arriba, El Rito Ditch Asociación, La Asociación de las Acéquias del Rio Tusas, Vallecitos y Ojo Caliente, the Rio de Chama Acéquia Association, and Ohkay Owingeh to settle the Pueblo’s water claims in the Rio Chama Basin. The funding will be used for Ohkay Owingeh’s development of water resources to ensure the Pueblo has appropriate water infrastructure to use the water that they have claim to in the basin.
    Heinrich and Leger Fernández initially introduced the bill in June 2024. The bill then received a key hearing before the Senate Indian Affairs Committee in July 2024.
    Read the full bill text here.
    The Zuni Indian Tribe Water Rights Settlement Act is led by Heinrich and Vasquez. Luján, Stansbury, and Leger Fernández are original cosponsors. The bill authorizes $685 million to support a trust for sustainable water management and infrastructure development that upholds the federal government’s trust responsibility while protecting the sacred Zuni Salt Lake. The bill ratifies the settlement between the federal government, State of New Mexico and Zuni Tribe that affirms their water rights for irrigation, livestock, storage, and domestic and other uses.
    Heinrich and Vasquez initially introduced the bill in July 2024. The bill received a key hearing before the Senate Indian Affairs Committee in September 2024.
    Read the full bill text here.
    The Navajo Nation Rio San José Water Rights Settlement Act is led by Heinrich and Leger Fernández. Luján, Stansbury, and Vasquez are original cosponsors. This bill would approve the water rights settlement for the Navajo Nation as well as participating non-Tribal parties in the Rio San José watershed.
    Heinrich and Leger Fernández initially introduced this bill in September 2024. The bill then received a key hearing before the Senate Indian Affairs Committee that same month.
    Read the full bill text here.
    The Navajo Gallup Water Supply Project Amendments is led by Luján and Leger Fernández. Heinrich and Stansbury are original cosponsors. The bill amends the Navajo Gallup Water Supply Project to ensure it has the resources and time needed to reach completion to deliver drinking water to northwestern New Mexico communities.
    The Navajo Gallup Water Supply Project was first authorized as part of the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009, which settled the Navajo Nation’s water rights in the San Juan Basin of New Mexico and funded the design and construction of the waterline to reach an estimated 250,000 people by the year 2040. Upon completion, the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project will provide a long-term, sustainable water supply from the San Juan River to roughly 43 Chapters on the eastern Navajo Nation, the southwestern portion of the Jicarilla Apache Nation, and the City of Gallup, which currently rely on a rapidly depleting groundwater supply of poor quality.
    Luján, Leger Fernández, and Heinrich initially introduced the bill in June 2023. The bill was passed out of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee in November 2023.
    Read the full bill text here.
    The Technical Corrections to the Northwestern New Mexico Rural Water Projects Act, Taos Pueblo Indian Water Rights Settlement Act, and Aamodt Litigation Settlement Act is led by Luján and Leger Fernández. Heinrich and Stansbury are original cosponsors. This bill authorizes the appropriation of $6.3 million for the Navajo Nation Water Resources Development Fund; $7.8 million for the Taos Pueblo Water Development Fund; and $4.3 million for the Aamodt Settlement Pueblos’ Fund, which covers Nambé, Pojoaque, San Ildefonso, and Tesuque Pueblos. It will support water resources development projects for the Tribes.
    Luján and Leger Fernández initially introduced this bill in December 2023.
    Read the full bill text here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Luján Presses Budget Office Nominee on Firing FBI Victim Specialist, Attacks on Social Security

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Ben Ray Luján (D-New Mexico)
    Luján Helped Lead Opposition to Project 2025 Chief Architect to Serve as OMB Director

    Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), a member of Senate Committee on the Budget, pressed Dan Bishop, the nominee to be Deputy Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), on firing career civil servants and Elon Musk’s attacks on Social Security following President Trump’s Joint Address to Congress.  
    Senator Luján shared the story on behalf of a New Mexican who was fired as an FBI victim specialist, saying, “I am not waste, fraud, and abuse. I am not the enemy. I’m not expendable. For more than 22 years, it has been my greatest honor to be with people in their darkest hour, to bring light into the darkness at the cost of my own well-being. I do not deserve to be forced out under fear or duress or discarded.”
    “When Elon Musk is calling the shots, firing people across the country, cutting budgets, cutting programs, putting people on the chopping block using chainsaw as a tool who says Social Security is a Ponzi scheme, I think that requires us to take notice,” Senator Luján said, in part, in the hearing. “Elon Musk was described by President Trump last night at the address to the American people as being in charge. There’s been a lot of questions over the last eight weeks if he is in charge or not, but Elon Musk is calling the shots right now.”
    “I’m not sitting this one out. I’m going to stand up and fight for my constituents,” concluded Senator Luján.
    Video of Senator Luján’s exchange with Dan Bishop is available HERE.
    An excerpt of Senator Luján’s questioning is available below:
    Sen. Luján: I’m going to accept the challenge of my colleague. I’m going to read you a note, Representative Bishop, from a constituent that was fired:
    “I am an FBI victim specialist, civil servant, a career government employee. I am there when your loved one is killed by an actual shooter, when your child is sexually exploited online, when your family member is kidnapped and held for ransom, when your mother, sister, daughter is the victim of interstate domestic violence or stalking. When the federal agent is injured or killed in the line of duty. When your elderly parent is defrauded of their life savings, when your child is kidnapped by the other parent. When you or someone you love is victimized in so many ways. I am not waste, fraud, and abuse. I am not the enemy. I’m not expendable. For more than 22 years, it has been my greatest honor to be with people in their darkest hour, to bring light into the darkness at the cost of my own well-being. I do not deserve to be forced out under fear or duress or discarded. For if I am, you and those you love will have to walk in that darkness alone. There are so many of us throughout the United States with stories just like this, examples of how they responded to crime victims.”
    I agree. Let’s root out waste, fraud, and abuse. But we should both agree, when there is a victim of a sexual crime or someone from across the border that is going to kill someone or do something to them, they don’t deserve to be fired. That is the nonsense going on here.
    I accept this responsibility, but I’m not sitting this one out. Not on behalf of my constituents. There’s a better way for us to do these things.
    As Deputy [Director] of the Office of Management and Budget, Representative, it seems like you will be working in lockstep with Elon Musk and DOGE. I appreciate the conversations we have had on both sides of the aisle, speaking about what Elon Musk and others are doing here.
    Over the weekend, Elon Musk said something. He said, “Social Security is the biggest Ponzi scheme of all time.” Do you believe that Social Security is a Ponzi scheme?
    Mr. Bishop: It really isn’t my place. What I’m doing is sitting to be the Deputy Director of OMB, to implement President Trump’s policies. I’m not in a position to comment on every comment that Elon Musk makes. But I know President Trump has said he is not touching Social Security or Medicare, he will ensure those benefits. That is the policy I’m going to be seeking to work with Director Vought to implement.
    Sen. Luján: Elon Musk was described by President Trump last night at the address to the American people as being in charge. There’s been a lot of questions over the last eight weeks if he is in charge or not, but Elon Musk is calling the shots right now. President Trump is going to Daytona, and golfing. I believe in finding balance. But I believe the president is able to do those things because the other president [Elon Musk] is calling the shots.
    When Elon Musk is passing things down to Director Vought and others, some of which were documented, and these ideas came from Director Vought which are part of Project 2025, and you have someone who is calling the shots, firing people across the country, cutting budgets, cutting programs, putting people on the chopping block using chainsaw as a tool who says Social Security is a Ponzi scheme, I think that requires us to take notice. Your responsibility, sir, is going to be making decisions with Director Vought to the president about these budgets. You said you want to get to a balanced budget. That will require cuts. This notion that Medicaid and Medicare are not on the chopping block–
    I would ask voters, Democrats and Republicans, look at the votes cast last week. Read the document. Go back and read the document that Speaker Paul Ryan put together when he was Speaker of the House that described going after this program. Go back when Paul Ryan was the chairman of the Ways and Means Committee and went after that program. Look in 2017 when Republicans were trying to eliminate all aspects of Medicaid, eliminating the Affordable Care Act, and took John McCain coming to the floor — may he rest in peace, the great hero that he is — and said no. Fighting brain cancer. This is not new. It is not some secret. These are the facts. Look them up.
    Representative Bishop, We did not vote the same a lot, but I appreciate you being here and stepping up, and I pray for you and the president because we have got to do better for the American people.
    And I’ll close the way I started: I’m not sitting this one out. I’m going to stand up and fight for my constituents.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Rosen, Cortez Masto Urge Interior Department to End Funding Freeze for Colorado River Water Savings Projects

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Jacky Rosen (D-NV)
    Washington, DC – Today, U.S. Senators Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Alex Padilla (D-CA.), Adam Schiff (D-CA.), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ.), and Mark Kelly (D-AZ.) urged the Department of the Interior to immediately cease its freeze of Inflation Reduction Act funding for the Lower Colorado River System Conservation and Efficiency Program. The Senators, representing the three Lower Colorado River Basin states, criticized the Trump Administration’s day-one executive order halting all Inflation Reduction Act disbursements, including pausing the $4 billion Senator Cortez Masto helped secure for water management and conservation efforts in the Colorado River Basin and other Western areas experiencing drought.
    The Colorado River Basin, which supports 40 million people and 5.5 million acres of agricultural land across seven states, depends on a stable and reliable water supply from Lake Mead. The Lower Colorado River System Conservation and Efficiency Program being threatened by the Trump Administration directly adds water to the lake, contributing 1.2 million acre-feet of water in the past two years and raising the lake’s elevation by 15 feet. Projects planned for this year were set to conserve 734,000 more acre-feet and add another nine feet to the lake’s elevation.
    These savings were pivotal in securing the historic seven-state consensus agreement last year for interim operations of Lake Powell and Lake Mead through 2026, in which the Lower Basin States committed to conserving 3 million acre-feet of water to stabilize the Colorado River System. The Trump Administration’s funding freeze jeopardizes these critical conservation goals while undermining similar multistate agreements in the future.
    “This Program, funded with an initial allocation through the Inflation Reduction Act and managed through the Bureau of Reclamation, has been instrumental in increasing water conservation, improving efficiency, and preventing the Colorado River system’s reservoirs from reaching dangerously low levels that threaten water deliveries and power production,” wrote the Senators.
    “The need for this water is more urgent than ever. This year’s water outlook is dry, with forecasts predicting below-average supply. Project recipients need certainty that the federal funding they were promised — whether formally under contract or not — will be available so they can plan accordingly,” they continued. “Without continued support from Interior, efforts to conserve water and sustain the communities, economies, and ecosystems that rely on the Colorado River are in serious jeopardy.”
    In light of the Office of Personnel Management’s memo last week calling for significant further reductions to the federal workforce, the Senators also pushed the Department of the Interior to make sure that any cuts do not further impact the Bureau of Reclamation, which manages the Lower Colorado River System Conservation and Efficiency Program. Reclamation staff are essential to Western water management, where water systems are extremely complex and are closely coordinated with state, tribal, and local authorities.
    The full letter is available HERE.
    Senators Rosen and Cortez Masto have been leaders working to support conservation efforts and combat drought. The Senators passed critical legislation to permanently fund the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), which protects public lands in Nevada and across the U.S. They recently announced $10 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to enhance the safety and functionality of the Marlette Lake Dam. The Senators also secured $60 million for water conservation in Southern Nevada and $30 million from the Bureau of Reclamation for the Truckee Meadow Water Authority to make Northern Nevada’s water supply more drought-resilient.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Rosen Helps Introduce Legislation to Ban High-Capacity Gun Magazines

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Jacky Rosen (D-NV)
    WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Jacky Rosen (D-NV) helped introduce legislation to reinstate a nationwide ban on the sale, transfer, possession, import, or manufacture of high-capacity gun magazines that hold more than ten rounds. The Keep Americans Safe Act would also authorize a high-capacity magazine buyback program and authorize law enforcement to seize and destroy high-capacity magazines possessed illegally.
    “High-capacity magazines like those used on 1 October in Las Vegas allow those who commit mass shootings to kill more innocent people faster,” said Senator Rosen. “This commonsense legislation will help decrease gun violence, prevent future tragedies, and keep our communities safe.”
    Senator Rosen has been a leader in the fight against gun violence. Following last year’s Supreme Court decision to reverse the bump stock ban implemented during President Trump’s first term, Senator Rosen joined bipartisan legislation to permanently ban bump stocks. She helped introduce the Resources for Victims of Gun Violence Act to provide all victims of gun violence and their loved ones with the resources to help meet medical, legal, financial, and other needs. She also helped pass the historic Bipartisan Safer Communities Act to enhance background checks on firearm purchases for individuals under 21, fund the implementation of red flag laws, combat firearms trafficking, and invest in school safety and mental health programs. 

    MIL OSI USA News –