WASHINGTON, May 6 -- Rep. Jack Bergman, R-Michigan, issued the following news release: Rep. Jack Bergman joined Rep. Jen Kiggans and 54 colleagues writing a scathing letter condemning the dishonest, partisan use of the VA to spread fear and anxiety among America's Veterans regarding their benefits. In a recent misleading report, the VA falsely asserts that H.R. 2811, the Limit, Save, Grow Act of 2023, would cut 22% of Veterans' funding; that is untrue. Not only does H.R. 2811 not make any spec  more

WASHINGTON, May 6 -- Rep. John James, R-Michigan, issued the following news release: Congressman John James toured areas of concern and viewed initial data collection for the Army Corps of Engineers' 2-year-long study of the lyngbya growth in Lake St. Clair. The bacteria, whose origin is unknown, has wreaked havoc on Lake St. Clair and daily life in the region. Afterward, the congressman gave a press conference on the bacteria's impact on the local ecosystem as well as human activity. He was j  more

WASHINGTON, May 1 -- Rep. Daniel Kildee, D-Michigan, issued the following news release on April 30, 2023: Congressman Dan Kildee (MI-08) today announced Jake Bennett will serve as his next District Director. Bennett will succeed Chris Flores, who after five years of service in the Congressman's office will be retiring. "A fifth-generation Bay City resident, Jake Bennett knows mid-Michigan and has served our community in many ways, including in my congressional office over the last decade. As D  more

WASHINGTON, May 5 -- The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development and Related Agencies issued the following testimony by Alex Wesaw, treasurer of the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians, at an oversight hearing on April 28, 2023, entitled "Tribal Perspectives on Housing and Transportation": * * * Thank you for inviting me to testify on our Tribe's experience with HUD, NAHASDA funding and technical support that we have received over the years. The Pokag  more

WASHINGTON, May 5 -- Rep. Lisa McClain, R-Michigan, chairwoman of the House Oversight and Accountability Subcommittee on Health Care and Financial Services, issued the following news release on May 4, 2023: Health Care and Financial Services Subcommittee Chairwoman Lisa McClain (R-Mich.) today announced a hearing titled "FDA Oversight Part II: Responsibility for the Infant Formula Shortage." The hearing will continue the Oversight Committee's investigation into the 2022 nationwide infant formul  more

WASHINGTON, April 29 -- The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee issued the following testimony by Rep. Jack Bergman, R-Michigan, at an April 18, 2023, member day hearing on transportation and infrastructure priorities: * * * Thank you to the Chairman and Ranking Member for giving me the opportunity to testify this morning. As a lifelong aviator, I have seen firsthand the evolution of air travel in the United States. From the first commercial flight in 1914, to the dawn of the jet  more

WASHINGTON, April 29 -- The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee issued the following testimony by Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Michigan, at an April 18, 2023, member day hearing on transportation and infrastructure priorities: * * * Thank you, Chairman Graves and Ranking Member Larsen, for holding this hearing for members to highlight their priorities in the jurisdiction of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure for the 118th Congress. Today, I would like to focus sp  more

WASHINGTON, April 29 -- The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee issued the following testimony by Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Michigan, at an April 18, 2023, member day hearing on transportation and infrastructure priorities: * * * Dear Chairman Graves and Ranking Member Larsen, Thank you for the opportunity to share written testimony as the Committee works to reauthorize various transportation programs vital to our communities. PHMSA Field Operations and Hazardous Materials Enforcem  more

WASHINGTON, May 2 -- Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-Michigan, issued the following news release on May 1, 2023: Congressman Bill Huizenga (R-MI) and a bipartisan group of Michigan representatives, released a letter to Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas in opposition to the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) proposed fee increases for small business employers. The rule, proposed by the Biden Administration in January, would raise the cost of the H-2A petition fee for named workers from $460 to $1,090 and   more

WASHINGTON, May 6 -- Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-Michigan, issued the following news release on May 5, 2023: Yesterday, Congressman Bill Huizenga (MI-04) discussed the development of artificial intelligence (AI) and some of the challenges this poses for society as well as the need for policymakers to address concerns on the front end of development. Video of Congressman Huizenga's conversation on the "Evening Edit" as well as text highlights are available below. We must be forward-thinking on settin  more

WASHINGTON, May 6 -- Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-Michigan, issued the following news release: Congressman Bill Huizenga (MI-04), Co-Chair of the Great Lakes Task Force, helped announce the relaunching of the bipartisan House PFAS Task Force for the 118th Congress. PFAS, often referred to as "forever chemicals," poses serious dangers to human health and the environment. In recent years, communities in Michigan and across the nation have discovered PFAS contamination in soil, surface water, and groundw  more

WASHINGTON, May 5 -- Sen. Gary Peters, D-Michigan, issued the following news release on May 4, 2023: U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI) introduced Keweenaw Bay Indian Community (KBIC) President Doreen Blaker before the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs during a hearing to receive testimony on legislation, including the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community Land Claim Settlement Act of 2023. President Baker testified in support of the bipartisan, bicameral legislation, which would resolve a more than 150-ye  more

WASHINGTON, May 3 -- Rep. Daniel Kildee, D-Michigan, issued the following news release on May 2, 2023: Congressmen Dan Kildee (MI-08) and Randy Feenstra (IA-04) today introduced bipartisan legislation to improve the recruitment and retention of foster families. Across the country, there is a shortage of qualified foster parents. Most foster parents stop fostering after a year and many stop fostering after one or two placements. States are currently required to describe how they will recruit fo  more

FLINT, Michigan, May 6 -- Rep. Daniel Kildee, D-Michigan, issued the following news release on May 5, 2023: Congressmen Dan Kildee (MI-08) and Brian Fitzpatrick (PA-04) today relaunched the bipartisan Congressional PFAS Task Force for the 118th Congress. Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), also known as "forever chemicals," pose grave dangers to human health and the environment. They are a group of fluorinated compounds that have been used for several decades in products such as nonsti  more

WASHINGTON, May 2 -- Rep. John Moolenaar, R-Michigan, issued the following news release on May 1, 2023: Congressman John Moolenaar has cosponsored legislation to end a new Biden administration regulation that penalizes homebuyers with credit scores above 680. "The Biden administration is raising mortgage fees for families who played by the rules and saved to buy a home. It is wrong to penalize these hardworking families and make it harder for them to buy a home. That is why I support legislati  more

WASHINGTON, May 3 -- Sen. Gary Peters, D-Michigan, issued the following news release on May 2, 2023: During a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing with Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall, U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI) advocated for the long-term success of Selfridge Air National Guard Base and for the Department of Defense (DoD) to clean up perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination at the former Wurtsmith Air Force Base in Oscoda. The hearing comes after Peters conve  more

WASHINGTON, May 3 -- Sen. Gary Peters, D-Michigan, issued the following news release on May 2, 2023: U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI), Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, introduced a bipartisan bill to improve screening of vehicles and cargo entering the United States by increasing the use of non-intrusive inspection systems, which have enabled frontline U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Officers to more quickly and effectively screen vehicles and large am  more

WASHINGTON, May 5 -- Sen. Gary Peters, D-Michigan, issued the following news release on May 4, 2023: U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI) announced that he has reintroduced bipartisan legislation that would expand Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) burial benefits eligibility to terminally ill veterans who pass away at a non-VA facility while receiving hospice care. The legislation, called Gerald's Law Act, was named after late Michigan veteran Gerald "Jerry" Elliott of Kingsford who did not receive   more

WASHINGTON, May 4 -- Sen. Gary Peters, D-Michigan, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Gary Peters (D-MI) and John Cornyn (R-TX) led reintroduction of the bipartisan Project Safe Neighborhoods Grant Program Authorization Act of 2023 to reauthorize a nationwide law enforcement program that uses evidence-based and data-driven approaches to reduce violent crime. Peters and Cornyn previously authored legislation into law to authorize the Project Safe Neighborhoods program. "For over t  more

WASHINGTON, May 6 -- Sen. Gary Peters, D-Michigan, issued the following news release on May 5, 2023: During a Senate Appropriations Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Subcommittee hearing with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Michael Regan, U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI) secured commitments for increased efforts to prevent the spread of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination and advocated for continued investments to protect and restor  more

WASHINGTON, May 4 -- Rep. John Moolenaar, R-Michigan, issued the following news release on May 3, 2023: The Acton Institute, a Grand Rapids think tank, announced it was suspended by TikTok, a Chinese Communist Party-controlled social media app. The suspension came after the Institute posted videos about Jimmy Lai, the jailed journalist and pro-democracy activist in Hong Kong, who founded the Apple Daily newspaper there. "CCP-controlled TikTok just censored a West Michigan think tank for tellin  more

WASHINGTON, May 3 -- Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-North Dakota, issued the following news release on May 2, 2023: U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) at a Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) hearing questioned General Charles Brown, Chief of Staff of the Air Force, about bomber agile combat employment (BACE) capabilities in North Dakota, as well as the delivery status of MH-139A helicopters to Minot Air Force Base. Excerpts and full video are below. Senator Cramer first highlighted the only two remain  more

WASHINGTON, May 4 -- Sen. Gary Peters, D-Michigan, chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Gary Peters (D-MI), Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, convened a hearing to discuss challenges faced by governments and organizations in small and rural communities when applying for federal grants. The Committee examined how lawmakers can modernize, simplify, and streamline the federal  more

WASHINGTON, May 3 -- Sen. Gary Peters, D-Michigan, chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI), Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, is calling on the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to accept an interagency working group's recommended revisions to federal standards for collecting data on race and ethnicity. In particular, Peters urged OMB to adopt  more

WASHINGTON, May 4 -- Sen. Gary Peters, D-Michigan, chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI), Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, reintroduced bipartisan legislation that would require the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) to help protect commercial satellite owners and operators from disruptive cyber-attacks. Commercial satellites provide d  more

WASHINGTON, May 5 -- Sen. Gary Peters, D-Michigan, chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Gary Peters (D-MI), Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, and Josh Hawley (R-MO) reintroduced bipartisan legislation to ensure that the Department of the Homeland Security (DHS) is efficiently using existing resources and expanding available tools to stop the flow of deadly and illicit dru  more

WASHINGTON, May 5 -- Sen. Gary Peters, D-Michigan, issued the following news release on May 4, 2023: U.S. Senators Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow today applauded President Biden's nomination of Susan DeClercq to serve as the United States District Court Judge in the Eastern District of Michigan. DeClercq has previously served as an assistant U.S. attorney in the Eastern District of Michigan and as chief of the Civil Rights Unit in the Detroit U.S. Attorney's Office. "Susan DeClercq is an acco  more

WASHINGTON, May 4 -- Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Michigan, issued the following news release on May 3, 2023: U.S. Senators Debbie Stabenow and Gary Peters today applauded President Biden's nomination of Susan DeClercq to serve as the United States District Court Judge in the Eastern District of Michigan. DeClercq has previously served as an assistant U.S. attorney in the Eastern District of Michigan and as chief of the Civil Rights Unit in the Detroit U.S. Attorney's Office. "President Biden made   more

WASHINGTON, May 4 -- Rep. Daniel Kildee, D-Michigan, issued the following news release statement on May 3, 2023: * * * Congressman Dan Kildee (MI-08) issued the following statement after the U.S. Senate passed his legislation, H.J.Res. 39 to support Michigan and American workers and hold those who violate U.S. trade laws accountable: "I am pleased to see the U.S. Senate, in a strong bipartisan vote, pass my legislation that supports American workers. "We must hold those who violate U.S. trad  more

DETROIT, Michigan, May 5 -- Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Michigan, issued the following news release on May 4, 2023: Congresswomen Rashida Tlaib (MI-12) and Betty McCollum (MN-04) held a regional press conference on their work to prevent a default on the debt that would cause devastating impacts on working families in Michigan, and protect the social safety net by stopping Republican's cruel cuts to vital public programs. Last week, House Republicans passed a bill that inflicts cruel cuts on working   more