WASHINGTON, June 16 -- Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, issued the following news release on June 14, 2023: On Flag Day 2023, U.S. Senator Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) joined Senators Steve Daines (R-Montana) and Kevin Cramer (R-North Dakota) in introducing a constitutional amendment to prohibit the physical desecration of the American flag. "The American flag is one of the most visible and enduring symbols of our nation's great history, our struggle for independence and the continued belief in liberty and j  more

WASHINGTON, June 15 -- Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, issued the following news release on June 14, 2023: U.S. Senator Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) joined Senator Roger Marshall, M.D. (R-Kansas) in introducing bipartisan legislation that amends the Richard Russell National School Lunch Act to allow schools participating in the program to serve whole milk as part of the National School Lunch Program. Fellow Idaho U.S. Senator Jim Risch is also a co-sponsor. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) reports  more

WASHINGTON, June 15 -- Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, issued the following remarks on June 14, 2023: * * * U.S. Senator Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Finance Committee, delivered the following remarks at a hearing entitled "Anti-Poverty and Family Support Provisions in the Tax Code." As prepared for delivery: "Thank you, Mr. Chairman. "Today we focus on anti-poverty and family support provisions in the tax code. It is important to have a conversation about existing prov  more

WASHINGTON, June 13 -- Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, issued the following news release: Nine interns have joined U.S. Senator Mike Crapo's (R-Idaho) Washington, D.C., Boise and Lewiston offices for the summer 2023 term. "Interns in my Washington, D.C., and state offices gain real-world skills in policymaking, public service and communications," Crapo said. "It is exciting to see so many young people take an interest in public service and foster their skills as they prepare to head into the America  more

WASHINGTON, June 17 -- Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, issued the following news release and a letter: U.S. Senator Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) joined U.S. Senator Rick Scott (R-Florida) and 12 additional colleagues in sending a letter to U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken urging him to take immediate action to resolve the massive backlog of passport applications. In the letter, the Senators note countless reports from Americans in their states regarding issues and concerns with delayed wait times, lack  more

WASHINGTON, June 13 -- Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Mike Crapo and Jim Risch (both R-Idaho) and Roger Wicker (R-Mississippi) introduced the Military Merit, Fairness, and Equality (MERIT) Act, which would prohibit the Department of Defense from prioritizing the demographic characteristics of service members above individual merit and demonstrated performance. The legislation would define "equity" for the Pentagon as "the right of all persons to have  more

WASHINGTON, June 13 -- Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, issued the following news release: U.S. Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) and U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Washington) announced a bicameral Request for Information (RFI) to subject matter experts and stakeholders regarding the increase in drug shortages. From the request: For American families, these trends can pose dire consequences, from life-threatening delays in treatme  more

WASHINGTON, June 14 -- Rep. Russ Fulcher, R-Idaho, issued the following news release on June 13, 2023: The Treating Tribes and Counties as Good Neighbors Act, legislation introduced by Congressman Russ Fulcher (R-ID), passed the Committee on Natural Resources today with bipartisan, unanimous support. H.R. 1450 extends eligibility for the Good Neighbor Authority (GNA) program to counties and Tribes, giving them the ability to reinvest receipts in authorized restoration projects. Congressman Ful  more

WASHINGTON, June 17 -- Rep. Mike Simpson, R-Idaho, issued the following statement on June 16, 2023: * * * "I often hear about people's frustration that Congress is not working on their behalf, and with all the political grandstanding and bickering going on, I get their point. But one way in which Congress is working on your behalf is through Community Project Funding (CPF). Opponents of CPFs have mischaracterized them as wasteful and irresponsible, but in reality, this process restores Congres  more

WASHINGTON, June 15 -- Sen. James Risch, R-Idaho, issued the following news release on June 14, 2023: U.S. Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho) and Roger Marshall (R-Kansas) introduced bipartisan legislation that amends the Richard Russell National School Lunch Act to allow schools participating in the program to serve whole milk as part of the National School Lunch Program. Senator Crapo (R-Idaho) is also a cosponsor. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) reports that nearly 90% of Americans do n  more

WASHINGTON, June 15 -- Sen. James Risch, R-Idaho, issued the following news release on June 14, 2023: Today, U.S. Senators Jim Risch (R-Idaho) and John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) introduced legislation to lower energy prices for American families by repealing the $10.5 billion "Superfund Tax" on American energy production. "President Biden's vendetta against fossil fuels continues to cost Idahoans more every day," said Risch. "Last year the president revived an expensive excise tax on crude and importe  more

WASHINGTON, June 13 -- Sen. James Risch, R-Idaho, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Jim Risch and Mike Crapo (both R-Idaho) and Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) introduced the Military Merit, Fairness, and Equality (MERIT) Act, which would prohibit the Department of Defense from prioritizing the demographic characteristics of service members above individual merit and demonstrated performance. The legislation would define "equity" for the Pentagon as "the right of all persons to have the   more

WASHINGTON, June 13 -- Sen. James Risch, R-Idaho, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Jim Risch and Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) and Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) introduced the Water and Agriculture Tax Reform (WATER) Act, which would reform outdated tax provisions hindering investment in important infrastructure advances. This legislation would allow mutual water storage and delivery companies to maintain their tax-exempt status, even if they receive more than 15 percent of their revenue from  more

WASHINGTON, June 13 -- Sen. James Risch, R-Idaho, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Jim Risch and Mike Crapo (both R-Idaho) joined 21 Senators to reintroduce the Federal Firearms Licensee (FFL) Protection Act of 2023. The legislation addresses the high number of "smash-and-grab" thefts targeted at federally licensed gun dealers by enhancing penalties for criminals who steal firearms from federally licensed firearms and ammunition dealers. "Serious crimes require serious punishme  more

WASHINGTON, June 17 -- Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Mike Crapo and Jim Risch (both R-Idaho) announced 44 local governments in Idaho will receive a total of $38.2 million in Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) funding for 2023. Since local governments cannot tax federal lands, annual PILT payments help cover the costs associated with maintaining community services. "PILT payments are critical to rural Idaho counties that rely on the funds for essential  more

WASHINGTON, June 13 -- Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, issued the following column on June 12, 2023: * * * IRA Green Energy Tax Provisions Hurt America and Help China Members of Congress on both sides of the aisle have long recognized the need to reform our energy tax laws. But rather than work on stakeholder-informed, bipartisan energy tax policies that would support a technology-neutral approach, Democrats pursued a partisan path through their misnamed Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Republicans w  more

WASHINGTON, June 15 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, issued the following news release: Senate Finance Chairman Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Senate Finance Ranking Member Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) alongside U.S. Senators Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Jon Tester (D-Mont.), Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), today introduced the Patients Before Middlemen (PBM) Act to delink the compensation of pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) from drug price and utilization in o  more

WASHINGTON, June 16 -- Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, issued the following remarks at a hearing on June 8, 2023, entitled "Consolidation and Corporate Ownership in Health Care: Trends and Impacts on Access, Quality and Costs": * * * "Thank you, Mr. Chairman "Competition has the potential to drive down costs, improve quality and increase options for consumers. In recent years, entrepreneurs and innovators have introduced new health care products, serv  more

WASHINGTON, June 16 -- Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, issued the following remarks at a joint roundtable discussion with the Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee on June 7, 2023, entitled "Tackling Tax Complexity: The Small Business Perspective": * * * "Thank you, Chairman Wyden and Chairman Cardin, for holding this roundtable. "And a big thank you to Ms. Camarillo, who flew out from Idaho to join us today. Stephanie and I go back a l  more

WASHINGTON, June 15 -- Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, issued the following news release: U.S. Senator Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Finance Committee, delivered the following remarks at a hearing entitled "Anti-Poverty and Family Support Provisions in the Tax Code." As prepared for delivery: "Thank you, Mr. Chairman. "Today we focus on anti-poverty and family support provisions in the tax code. It is important to have a con  more

WASHINGTON, June 13 -- Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, issued the following news release: U.S. Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) and U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Washington) announced a bicameral Request for Information (RFI) to subject matter experts and stakeholders regarding the increase in drug shortages. From the request: For American families, these trends can pose dire cons  more

WASHINGTON, June 17 -- Sen. James Risch, R-Idaho, ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following news release on June 16, 2023: U.S. Senators Jim Risch (R-Idaho) and Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), ranking member and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, yesterday introduced the Safeguarding Tunisian Democracy Act, legislation to foster Tunisia's democratic institutions, limit funds until Tunisia restores checks and balances, and authorize the creation of a   more

WASHINGTON, June 14 -- Sen. James Risch, R-Idaho, ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following news release: U.S. Senators Jim Risch (R-Idaho), ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), chairman of the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, introduced the Civil Nuclear Export Act of 2023 (CNEA). The bipartisan legislation would enhance the ability of the United States to compete in existing and emerging nu  more

WASHINGTON, June 16 -- Sen. James Risch, R-Idaho, ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following news release on June 15, 2023: U.S. Senators Jim Risch (R-Idaho), ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), in conjunction with U.S. Representatives Michael McCaul (R-Texas), chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio), co-chair of the Congressional Ukraine Caucus, today introduced the Reb  more

WASHINGTON, June 17 -- Sen. James Risch, R-Idaho, ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued the following news release and letter: U.S. Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho), ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, yesterday joined Senators Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), vice chairman on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, and 16 of their colleagues in a letter to President Biden ca  more

WASHINGTON, June 16 -- Sen. Christopher Coons, D-Delaware, issued the following news release on June 15, 2023, and a letter: U.S. Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.), Jim Risch (R-Idaho), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Ben Cardin (D-Md.), and Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) led 28 of their colleagues in writing an open letter to wrongfully detained Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich. The letter condemns his unjust detention by the Russian government and shows him their supp  more

WASHINGTON, June 15 -- Sen. Robert Menendez, D-New Jersey, issued the following news release on June 14, 2023: U.S. Senators Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) and Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), alongside Senate Finance Chairman Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Senate Finance Ranking Member Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Senator Jon Tester (D-Mont.), and Senator Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), today introduced the Patients Before Middlemen (PBM) Act to delink the compensation of pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) from drug price and utiliza  more

WASHINGTON, June 16 -- Rep. Mike Simpson, R-Idaho, issued the following statement on June 15, 2023: * * * Idaho Congressman Mike Simpson today issued the following statement after voting with 19 other House Republicans to table a resolution to censure Representative Adam Schiff (D-CA) for his previous actions as the House Intelligence Committee Chairman to push false allegations of Russian collusion in the 2016 election: "I take serious issue with Representative Schiff's previous actions to p  more

WASHINGTON, June 15 -- Rep. Mike Simpson, R-Idaho, issued the following news release on June 14, 2023: Idaho Congressman Mike Simpson today voted in favor of H.R. 277, the Regulations from the Executives in Need of Scrutiny (REINS) Act of 2023. This legislation would reassert Congress' legislative authority and prevent executive overreach in the federal rulemaking process by requiring congressional approval for new "major rules" proposed by federal agencies before they go into effect. "America  more

WASHINGTON, June 16 -- Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Maryland, issued the following news release and a letter: U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) joined Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.), Jim Risch (R-Idaho), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), and Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) in writing an open letter to wrongfully detained Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich. The letter condemns his unjust detention by the Russian government and shows him their support during his wrongful imprisonment. The lawmakers write, "We   more