Latest Releases
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Introduces Legislation to Help Child Care Providers Serve Nutritious Meals
Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Tina Smith (D-MN) and Bob Casey (D-PA) introduced legislation to help ease the financial stress on child care providers across the country. Providers such as family child care homes, child care centers, Head Start programs, and after-school programs provide meals to more than 4.2 million children each day with the support of the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP). The Child Care Nutrition Enhancement Act would increase the reimbursement rates child care providers receive for these meals. Not only would this help ensure millions of children receive nutritious meals, it would also ease the significant financial burdens for both child care providers and parents struggling to afford child care. Companion legislation has been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by Representative Greg Landsman (D-OH-1). “I have heard from too many childcare providers in Minnesota who have to dip into their own pockets to feed the kids in their care because of insufficient federal reimbursements. Investing more in childcare will help both families who are struggling to afford care and providers who are having trouble breaking even,” said Senator Smith. “This legislation would improve an effective, but under-resourced, existing program to ensure our kids are receiving nutritious meals and help ease the financial burden on childcare providers and parents.” “Every child deserves access to nutritious meals, especially during their formative years,” said Senator Bob Casey. “The research is clear: the CACFP improves the quality of meals in child care settings. By easing the
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Joins Elizabeth Warren, Banking Committee Democrats in Pressing SEC Chair to Require Disclosure of Corporate Lobbying Expenditures
Washington, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senators Tina Smith (D – Minn.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio.), Jon Tester (D-Mont.) and John Fetterman (D-Pa.) signed onto a letter led by Senator Elizabeth Warren (D – Mass.) urging Gary Gensler, Chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), to create new rules requiring public companies to disclose their spending on lobbying efforts. Public companies are not currently required to report information on the details of their lobbying to the SEC even as corporate lobbying expenditures reach record highs. “In 2022, total federal lobbying expenditures reached $4.1 billion – the highest since 2010. Amazon and Meta spent almost $20 million each to influence decision-making in Congress and across government agencies, while the U.S. Chamber of Commerce – which counts companies like JPMorgan Chase, Alphabet, and Chevron among its members – spent $79.4 million,” wrote the senators. “While these figures are staggering, they provide little insight into the interests that companies spend millions each year to advance. This lack of transparency erodes the ability of everyday investors to make informed decisions about where to invest their money – and where their money goes once they have invested.” Specifically, the senators are requesting that such rules require disclosure of lobbying strategy, the total amount of direct or indirect contributions to registered state and federal lobbyists and any material risks related to or arising from lobbying strategies and expenditures. The senators requested the SEC provide them with details on their plans to develop and issue such rules no later than
Strong standards projected to save consumers more than $1 trillion and nearly 2.5 million barrels of oil a day by 2030, reduce global warming pollution by six billion metric tons
Senators Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), and Tina Smith (D-Minn.) today introduced the Greener Air Standards Mean Our National Security, Environment, and Youth (GAS MONEY) Saved Act, legislation that would block Trump administration efforts to roll back the historic 54.5 fuel economy emissions standards. The legislation reaffirms the Final Determination made by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in January 2017 that stated that the 2012 fuel economy emissions standards are appropriate. The GAS MONEY Saved Act also would block EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt from issuing rules to weaken the emissions standards
Sen. Tina Smith Supports Bipartisan Bill to Protect Robert Mueller from Being Fired for Political Reasons
Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith said she supports a new legislative effort to insulate special counsel Robert Mueller—who’s in charge of the Trump-Russia investigation—from being fired by President Trump. By establishing an expedited judicial review process to scrutinize and even overturn the firing of a special counsel if such a dismissal happens without good cause, the Special Counsel Independence and Integrity Act would help ensure that the investigation into the Trump team’s ties to Russia remains free from political attacks. “Russia is a hostile foreign government that interfered in the 2016 presidential election with the goal of undermining our democracy. No
Sen. Tina Smith Introduces Bill to Deploy Broadband to Unserved Rural and Tribal Communities
Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith introduced legislation—the Community Connect Grant Program Act—to establish the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) program under law and make improvements to the grant program that makes funding available for broadband projects in tribal, low-income, and remote rural areas. The USDA Community Connect program through the Rural Utilities Service (RUS) helps fund broadband deployment into rural communities. In addition to authorizing the program and targeting areas that lack access across the nation, Sen. Smith’s bill would increase internet speed service under the program because she hears time and time again that this is a real concern for
Sen. Tina Smith Takes Stand for Minnesota Travelers Abandoned in Mexico by Sun Country Airlines
Today, U.S. Sen. Tina Smith took a stand for the Minnesota travelers who were effectively abandoned by Eagan-based Sun Country Airlines after the company cancelled return flights to the Twin Cities during the weekend snowstorm but failed to rebook or adequately refund the passengers. In a letter to the Department of Transportation sent today, she called on federal transportation officials to look into Sun Country’s failures and to explain what is being done to ensure that airline cancellation policies protect travelers. She also criticized Sun Country for how it mishandled the rebooking and refunding of passengers who have been forced
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