WASHINGTON, May 7 -- Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vermont, issued the following news release: Report Finds Big Drug Companies Raked in Nearly $29 Billion in Profits & Spent Over $28 Billion Rewarding Shareholders In Just The First Three Months of 2024 Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.) and U.S. Representative Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.-06) joined Protect Our Care to call out big pharmaceutical companies for continuing to put profits over patients. During the call, Protect Our Care released a new report summarizi  more

WASHINGTON, May 10 -- Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, issued the following news release: Bipartisan, bicameral committee leaders in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives urged the Department of Education to prioritize the timely rollout of the 2025-2026 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form. FAFSA provides schools with the information they need to produce financial aid offers so students can determine if  more

WASHINGTON, May 7 -- Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vermont, issued the following news release: The Chamber of Progress recently released a new study analyzing the full costs of a lapse in Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) funding. The study found that lower-income families would not only lose access to high-speed internet but also to $10 billion in work opportunities, $1.4 billion in telehealth savings, and $627 million in student benefits. The Chamber of Progress found that, "accounting for lost eco  more

WASHINGTON, May 9 -- Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vermont, issued the following news release: Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.) yesterday delivered remarks on the Senate Floor calling for Congress to pass long-term disaster relief funding for communities impacted by natural disasters. Senator Welch highlighted the importance of delivering flexible funds like Community Development Block Grants-Disaster Relief (CDBG-DR), which gives communities the flexibility needed to rebuild and recover and help them to prep  more

WASHINGTON, May 10 -- Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vermont, issued the following news release: The Senate's bipartisan cosponsors of the Affordable Connectivity Program Extension Act today shared new letters of support for their bipartisan bill to extend the Affordable Connectivity Program from the American Hospital Association, which represents nearly 5,000 member hospitals and more than 270,000 affiliated physicians, andAmerica's Essential Hospitals, which represents more than 300 hospitals across the  more

WASHINGTON, May 8 -- Rep. Becca Balint, D-Vermont, issued the following news release: * * * Castleton, VT - Rep. Becca Balint (VT-AL) announced the winner for the 2024 Congressional Art Competition. This year, 90 high school students from 12 counties and 24 schools across Vermont sent in artwork for submission to the annual competition. The Congressional Art Competition was established in 1982 by Vermont Senator Jim Jeffords. This year's winner from Vermont is Cora Chivington, a junior at Gree  more

WASHINGTON, May 8 -- Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, issued the following news release on May 7, 2024: Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today rose on the floor of the Senate to offer a resolution condemning antisemitism, Islamophobia, and other forms of bigotry on college campuses across the country. Sanders introduced the resolution in response to one offered by Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.), that did not go far enough in protecting students from bigotry, violence, and the violation of their First Amendm  more

WASHINGTON, May 9 -- Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, issued the following statement on May 8, 2024: * * * Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today released the following statement responding to news that the Biden Administration has held certain arms transfers to Israel: Given the unprecedented humanitarian disaster that Netanyahu's war has created in Gaza, where hundreds of thousands of children face starvation, President Biden is absolutely right to halt bomb delivery to this extreme, right-wing I  more

WASHINGTON, May 10 -- Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, issued the following statement on May 9, 2024: * * * Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) on Thursday released the following statement regarding the threat of Israel's all-out assault on Rafah: Almost 35,000 Palestinians have already been killed in this war, and more than 78,000 have been wounded - 70 percent of whom are women and children. As we speak, hundreds of thousands more children face the possibility of malnutrition and starvation. An att  more

WASHINGTON, May 11 -- Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, issued the following statement on May 10, 2024: * * * Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today released the following statement outlining the disastrous humanitarian situation in Gaza and urging President Biden to make clear that further attacks on Rafah will result in the end of all U.S. military aid to the Netanyahu government: For five days, almost no humanitarian aid has gotten into Gaza. Israel's military operation in Rafah has displaced ano  more

WASHINGTON, May 9 -- Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, issued the following news release on May 8, 2024: Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), with Reps. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) and Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), today introduced legislation to eliminate all $220 billion in medical debt held by millions of Americans, wipe it from credit reports, and drastically limit the accrual of future medical debt. The medical debt crisis has exploded in recent years, decimating Americans' bank acco  more

WASHINGTON, May 8 -- Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, issued the following news release: Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai'i) today called on Congress to pass long-term disaster relief funding for impacted communities across the country, including on Maui and Vermont. Speaking on the Senate floor, Schatz underscored the need to pass funding for the Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) program in order to provide survivors with flexible assistance to rebuild their homes, small b  more

WASHINGTON, May 11 -- The Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee released the following testimony by Amy Brooks, executive director of the Early Care and Education Association, from a hearing dated April 10, 2024, entitled "The Role of Child Care Small Businesses in Supporting Parents and the American Workforce": * * * Good afternoon Chair Shaheen, Ranking Member Ernst, and members of the Committee, thank you for this opportunity to speak as a former child care business owner and  more

WASHINGTON, May 9 -- Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vermont, issued the following news release: The Vermont Congressional Delegation, Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.), and Representative Becca Balint (VT-AL) today called on Deanne Criswell, Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to work with Congress and the Delegation to improve disaster response ahead of future emergencies and address the serious challenges Vermonters have faced in accessing FEMA Indiv  more

WASHINGTON, May 9 -- Rep. Becca Balint, D-Vermont, issued the following news release: * * * The Vermont Congressional Delegation, Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.), and Representative Becca Balint (VT-AL) today called on Deanne Criswell, Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to work with Congress and the Delegation to improve disaster response ahead of future emergencies and address the serious challenges Vermonters have faced in accessing FE  more

WASHINGTON, May 10 -- Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vermont, issued the following news release: BURLINGTON, VT - Today, Vermont farmers and agriculture leaders, nutrition advocates working to end hunger, and climate champions applauded the introduction of the Senate's recently-unveiled Farm Bill, the Rural Prosperity and Food Security Act, which includes priorities for Vermont that were championed and led by Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.). Senator Welch serves as Chair of the Senate Agriculture Subcommitt  more

WASHINGTON, May 9 -- Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vermont, issued the following news release: Today, the Senate passed the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Reauthorization Act with bipartisan support. The bill contains several priorities Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.), a member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, fought for - including provisions to support Vermont's rural airports, strengthen protections for travelers, create jobs in the aviation and aircraft tech industr  more

WASHINGTON, May 8 -- Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vermont, issued the following news release: Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) today led a bipartisan group of colleagues in calling on the Senate Appropriations Committee to return to robustly funding the standard Community Facilities Program and the Water and Waste Disposal Program at the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development (USDA RD) Office. The letter was sent to the bipartisan leadership of the Appropriations Committee and was signed by Sen. Wel  more

WASHINGTON, May 10 -- Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vermont, issued the following news release: This week, Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee and the Senate's only former Public Defender, led a bipartisan group of his colleagues in calling on the Senate Appropriations Committee to fully fund the Federal Defender Services program in the upcoming Fiscal Year 2025 Financial Services and General Government Appropriations bill: "In FY24, Defender Services was appropriate  more

WASHINGTON, May 7 -- Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vermont, issued the following news release: Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt) this week led eight of his colleagues, including Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), and Tina Smith (D-Minn.) in calling on U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin to address concerns regar  more

WASHINGTON, May 9 -- Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vermont, issued the following news release: Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.) this week led his colleagues in calling on the Senate Appropriations Committee to bolster investments in federal programs that support organic infrastructure, as part of the upcoming FY25 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill. These organic-specific programs, including the National Organic Program (NOP), Organic Transit  more

WASHINGTON, May 6 -- Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vermont, issued the following news release: Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.) today released the following statement on Holocaust Remembrance Day: "On Yom HaShoah, we remember and grieve the 6 million Jews and other innocent victims who perished at the hands of the Nazis. We also honor the strength of the survivors and the incredible courage of those who fought against unspeakable evils. But prejudice and hate didn't end with the downfall of Nazi Germany. De  more

WASHINGTON, May 8 -- Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vermont, issued the following news release: D.C. -- Today, U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Chair of the Senate Agriculture Subcommittee on Rural Development and Energy, welcomed Protect Our Winters and professional athletes, outdoor recreation enthusiasts, and climate advocates to Capitol Hill to discuss the recently introduced Energizing Our Communities Act. Senator Welch was joined by Professional Snowboarder Bea Kim, Professional Mountainbiker Dillo  more

WASHINGTON, May 8 -- Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vermont, issued the following news release: Today, U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.), a member of the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Communications, Media, and Broadband, and Chair of the Senate Agriculture Subcommittee on Rural Development and Energy, joined Sens. Ben Ray Lujan (D-N.M.), JD Vance (R-Ohio), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), and Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) in filing an amendment to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Reauthor  more