Press Releases
As Helicopter and Airplane Noise Continue To Plague Long Island and Queens Communities, Schumer, Gillibrand Call on Nominee for FAA Administrator to Prioritize Reducing Aircraft Noise for New Yorkers before Senate Considers His Nomination
Washington, DC - Today, U.S. Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer and U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand called on Steve Dickson, President Trump's nominee to serve as the next administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), to commit to addressing the problem of overhead aircraft noise in New York. New York residents, particularly in areas of Queens, Nassau, and Suffolk Counties, suffer year-round from excessive noise caused by helicopter and airplane traffic. This problem … Continue Reading
June 27, 2019
Gillibrand and Schatz Announce “Restore Honor to Service Members Act” To Clear Discriminatory Records of Service Members Discharged Due To Sexual Orientation
Washington, DC - U.S. Senators Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and Brian Schatz (D-HI) today announced legislation to correct the military records of service members who were discharged solely due to their sexual orientation. The Restore Honor to Service Members Act would clear the records of LGBT service members whose discriminatory discharges range from "other than honorable" to "general discharge" to "dishonorable," depending on the circumstances. These discharges can disqualify service members … Continue Reading
June 27, 2019
Gillibrand Announces That Following Her Push, Nuclear Regulatory Commission Will Host Public Meeting At Indian Point in Westchester
Washington, DC - U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand today announced that following her push, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) will host a public meeting in Westchester on the decommissioning of Indian Point Energy Center. This meeting will advise the public on efforts by community advisory panels to inform best practices and lessons learned associated with the decommissioning plant activity, ensuring that local voices are heard by the NRC. With Indian Point scheduled to shut down … Continue Reading
June 26, 2019
Schumer, Gillibrand Announce Over $7.9 Million In Federal Funds For A New SUNY Pre-Apprenticeship Program To Help Train New Yorkers For Good Advanced Manufacturing Jobs
Washington, DC - U.S. Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer and U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand today announced $7,999,226 in federal funds for the Research Foundation for The State University of New York System (SUNY). The funding will be used to create the SUNY New York College Apprenticeship Network (NYCAN), a pre-apprenticeship and on-the-job training program in advanced manufacturing. NYCAN will prioritize services for unemployed and underemployed New Yorkers, with a focus on … Continue Reading
June 25, 2019
After Her Bipartisan Push, Gillibrand Announces Major Victory For Thousands Of Veterans After Legislation She Championed To Ensure Blue Water Navy Vets Get The Benefits They Have Earned Has Been Signed Into Law
Washington, DC - U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) today announced President Trump has signed the Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act into law. Gillibrand has championed this bipartisan legislation for nearly a decade, which will ensure Blue Water Navy Veterans have access to the benefits and care they have earned and deserve. "Today is a huge victory for thousands of veterans who served our country in the Vietnam War and have been waiting for the VA health care and benefits they … Continue Reading
June 25, 2019
Senator Gillibrand Announces 9/11 Bill Has Reached Filibuster-Proof Support of Bipartisan Coalition of 60 Senators
Washington, DC - U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand today released the following statement after the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund permanent funding bill reached 60 cosponsors: "A bipartisan, filibuster-proof majority of the Senate has now cosponsored our bill to make the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund permanent. We have the votes for this bill to pass as soon as it comes to the floor. I urge Senator McConnell to not stand in the way and commit to a standalone, up-or-down vote on this legislation … Continue Reading
June 25, 2019
Schumer and Gillibrand Joint Statement on the Issuance of a Humanitarian Visa for Benjamin Barragan, Man With Young Children and Terminally Ill Wife in Brooklyn
"After working with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Embassy in Mexico to ensure that they prioritized Mr. Barragan's urgent case, we are relieved to learn that he has been issued a temporary humanitarian visa to care for his children and terminally ill wife in Brooklyn. This was the humane and right thing to do; it made no sense to separate him from his family in the first place. Now they will have an opportunity to comfort and support one another during this difficult … Continue Reading
June 24, 2019
Senator Gillibrand Statement On 9/11 First Responders’ Meeting With Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell
Washington, DC - U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand released the following statement on tomorrow's meeting between 9/11 first responders and U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell: "While I appreciate that Senator McConnell is meeting with the 9/11 responders, I hope that it will be the last time they have to come down to Washington, period. They are sick, they are dying, and they have already had to spend too much of their precious time walking the halls of Congress and fighting to … Continue Reading
June 24, 2019
Schumer, Gillibrand Announce Over $1.5 Million in Federal Funds for Ogdensburg International Airport in St. Lawrence County
Washington, DC - U.S. Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer and U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand today announced $1,534,000 in federal funding for the Ogdensburg International Airport in St. Lawrence County. The funding was allocated through the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) Airport Improvement Program (AIP). Specifically, the funding will be used to install a new approach lighting system for the airport's runway. "Keeping our … Continue Reading
June 21, 2019
Gillibrand, Senate Colleagues Introduce Legislation to Require Alternatives to Detention for Asylum Seekers, Migrant Children, and Families Entering the Country
Washington, DC - Today, U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), along with U.S. Senators Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Ed Markey (D-MA), and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), announced the Alternatives to Detention Act of 2019, legislation that would take important first steps toward reforming the nation's detention-based immigration system. With unprecedented levels of immigrants being detained around the country and alarming reports of mistreatment at immigrant detention centers, this legislation … Continue Reading
June 21, 2019
Gillibrand, Murkowski Announce Bipartisan Bill to Give More Kids Access to Healthy Meals When School Is Out For the Summer
Washington, DC - U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) today announced a bill to expand access to healthy meals for kids when school is out for the summer. During the summer months, children who rely on school meals to eat face the risk of going hungry. Gillibrand and Murkowski's legislation, the Summer Meals Act of 2019, would improve the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Summer Food Service Program, which provides low-income children who would … Continue Reading
June 20, 2019
Gillibrand Announces Legislation to Block Proposed HUD Rule Prohibiting Families with Mixed Citizenship Status from Receiving Federal Housing Aid
Washington, DC - Today, U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand announced legislation to block a Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) rule that would prohibit families from receiving federal housing aid if there is at least one member who is undocumented living in the household. This rule proposed by HUD last month would require families receiving federal housing aid, such as those that live in public housing or receive Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers, to provide evidence of citizenship … Continue Reading
June 20, 2019
As Alarming Reports Emerge That Trump Administration Is Risking Unnecessary and Unauthorized War with Iran, Gillibrand Sends Urgent Letter to President Trump, Demands That No U.S. Armed Forces Are Sent To War with Iran without an Explicit Congressional Authorization per the Constitution
Gillibrand's Letter to Trump Comes as Members of Administration and Congress - Including Advocates of the Iraq War - Are Urging the President to Send Americans to Fight in a War with Iran; Trump Administration Has Already Begun Sending More U.S. Troops and Weapon Systems to Gulf Region; Latest Escalation Follows Increased Nuclear Risks Exacerbated by President Trump's Ill-Considered Unilateral Withdrawal from Iran Nuclear Agreement; Gillibrand: Such a War is Not Authorized, Would Unnecessarily … Continue Reading
June 20, 2019
Gillibrand Announces Bipartisan Bill To Improve Adoption And Foster Care Standards Nationwide
Washington, DC - U.S. Senators Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and James Lankford (R-OK) today announced bipartisan legislation to improve the placement of children with families in the foster care and adoption system in the United States. The National Adoption and Foster Care Home Study Act would establish a national standard for home studies, which provide child welfare agencies with the information they need to determine the best placement for a child, and create a database to achieve greater … Continue Reading
June 18, 2019
With Report After Report Detailing The Mistreatment Of Migrant Children At Detention Facilities, Gillibrand Calls On Congress To Restrict Funding For Facilities That Do Not Meet Minimum Standards Of Care To Protect Unaccompanied Children
U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand today announced that she is calling on Senate Appropriators to restrict federal funding for government facilities housing unaccompanied migrant children that do not meet minimum standards of care meant to protect children. This comes as the Trump Administration requests emergency supplemental funding for the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) Unaccompanied Alien Children Program, which oversees facilities housing unaccompanied migrant children. However, with … Continue Reading
June 17, 2019
Gillibrand Calls For Sans Historic District in Suffolk County to Be Placed On the National Register of Historic Places
U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand today called on the National Park Service to place the Sag Harbor Hills, Azurest, and Ninevah Beach Subdivisions (SANS) Historic District in Suffolk County on the National Register of Historic Places. The SANS neighborhoods were among the very few beach communities on the East Coast founded by African Americans, and are one of the last African American beachfront communities remaining in the United States. Founded following World War II, the SANS communities … Continue Reading
June 14, 2019
Gillibrand and Delgado Introduce Legislation to Help Communities in New York and Across the Country Repair Their Aging Water Infrastructure
Washington, DC - U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and U.S. Representative Antonio Delgado (D-NY-19) today announced legislation to help repair the nation's aging water infrastructure. The Promoting Infrastructure and Protecting the Economy (PIPE) Act would create a new grant program to help communities in New York and across the country invest in critical water system upgrades. The bill would authorize $5 billion over 10 years to provide discretionary grants to state and local … Continue Reading
June 13, 2019
Schumer, Gillibrand Announce Over $1.2 Million In Federal Head Start Funding For Early Childhood Learning Center Of Greene County
Washington, DC - U.S. Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer and U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand today announced $1,291,614 in federal funding for Early Childhood Learning Center of Greene County. The funding was provided by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Head Start Program and will be used to support child care and support services for low-income families in Greene County. "Study after study shows that the better we prepare our young children, through programs like Head … Continue Reading
June 13, 2019
Gillibrand Announces “Every Child Deserves a Family” Legislation to End Discrimination Against LQBTQ Adoptive Parents, Foster Parents and Children in the Federal Foster Care System and Help Give More Children a Loving Home
Washington, DC - U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) today announced she has introduced the Every Child Deserves a Family Act to help give more children a loving home by ending current discriminatory laws that allow organizations to discriminate against prospective adoptive and foster parents based on sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, or religion. This legislation would also prohibit discrimination against children and youth in the foster care system on the basis of … Continue Reading
June 13, 2019
After Recent Department of Defense Report Highlights Its Continued Failure to Address Crisis of Military Sexual Assault, Gillibrand Leads Bipartisan Group of Senators to Reintroduce Military Justice Improvement Act and Calls On Congress to Act
Washington, DC - U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), the ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Personnel Subcommittee, today led a bipartisan group of Senators to reintroduce the Military Justice Improvement Act, which would professionalize how the military prosecutes serious crimes by moving the decision over whether to prosecute them to independent, trained, professional military prosecutors. According to the Department of Defense's own data in this year's Sexual Assault Prevention … Continue Reading
