Latest Releases
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Presses Postmaster General to Ensure Timely Deliveries, Safe Working Conditions Ahead of Busy Holiday Season
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) sent a letter to U.S. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy requesting information about how the Postal Service plans to ensure on-time deliveries and safe working conditions during the holiday season. Millions of Minnesotans depend of the Postal Service to pay bills, receive prescriptions, and conduct other essential business. When service is unreliable, Minnesotans can face serious consequences – from late payment fees and social security checks to days without critical prescription medications. Smith also pushed DeJoy to ensure Postal Service employees, who are often overworked during this busy time of year, are adequately supported. “The timeliness of deliveries and safety of workers are both critical issues in Minnesota, where severe weather adds a complicated dimension to the usual peak-season delivery challenges,” wrote Senator Smith. “I urge you to take every possible precaution and preparation to protect workers and ensure timely deliveries this holiday season.” In her letter, Smith requested responses to the following questions by November 23, 2023: You can find a full copy of the letter here.
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Co-Leads a Bicameral Push to Renew Expired Funding for Childcare
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Tina Smith (D-MN), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and Bob Casey (D-PA), along with members of the House of Representatives, led a bicameral group of their colleagues in urging congressional leadership to renew expired funding for childcare in any supplemental funding package. Funding from the American Rescue Plan Act expired in September, and the state of childcare continues to be in crisis mode. Without this funding, many childcare providers have either closed or struggle to keep their doors open for working families. The letter comes on the heels of President Biden’s request to Congress for $16 billion to address the childcare crisis, which the members called for in August. “We write today to urge you to include robust funding for child care in any supplemental funding package considered by the Appropriations Committee. Child care is unaffordable and hard to find for working families, and child care providers across the country are struggling to stay afloat,” wrote the lawmakers. “Child care providers in communities across the country are at risk of closure. The child care stabilization relief funds provided a much-needed lifeline to the child care industry, but it is crucial that, at minimum, we sustain that level of investment to ensure the industry’s survival and prevent a new emergency.” Smith, a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, has been a leader in pressing for expanding access to childcare. She is an original cosponsor of the Child Care Stabilization Act, which aims to
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
Klobuchar, Smith Demand Answers from Sun Country After Airline Cancels Flights and Strands Passengers in Mexico
WASHINGTON- U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Tina Smith (D-MN) sent a letter to Sun Country Airlines CEO Jude Bricker to demand answers from the company after the airline cancelled flights from Los Cabos and Mazatlán, Mexico to Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP) due to severe weather, leaving approximately 250 passengers in a foreign country without flight options. Because these flights were the last of the season, Sun Country consumers in Mexico had no alternative travel options. Consumers were forced to purchase last-minute, one-way tickets through alternative airlines in order to return to Minnesota. While consumers were compensated for the
Senator Tina Smith to Host 8th Annual Minnesota Congressional Delegation Hotdish Competition
On Wednesday, April 25, Senator Tina Smith will host the eighth annual Minnesota Congressional Delegation Hotdish Competition. Sen. Smith is taking up the helm of Al Franken’s annual hotdish-off to determine which Minnesota Congressional Delegation member makes the best hotdish—a dish similar to what other states call a casserole, but indisputably better. Sen. Smith will be joined by the entire Minnesota congressional delegation: Sen. Amy Klobuchar, Reps. Collin Peterson, Betty McCollum, Keith Ellison, Tim Walz, Rick Nolan, Erik Paulsen, Tom Emmer, and Jason Lewis. Sam Brodey of the publication MinnPost will host the event and give opening remarks. “I’m continuing Senator Franken’s tradition
Sen. Tina Smith Exploring Legislation to Prevent Another Sun Country Airlines Fiasco
Today, U.S. Sen. Tina Smith (D-Minn.) announced she is exploring a legislative fix to prevent another Sun Country Airlines fiasco. Over the weekend, the Eagan-based airline stranded travelers in Mexico and around the country, leaving them to rebook new flights on their own and deal with insufficient refunds. “Sun Country stranded thousands of travelers around the country and in Mexico, leaving them to rebook on their own and front the money—hundreds, even thousands of dollars—for hotels and car rentals and other unforeseen costs. This type of confusion isn’t just bad business. It’s deeply unfair to Minnesota families. I’ve already asked Sun
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