Latest Releases
U.S. Senator Tina Smith on Release of Blatnik Bridge Replacement Funding
WASHINGTON, DC –Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) released the following statement after it was announced the U.S. Department of Transportation is releasing the funding necessary to begin construction to replace the Blatnik Bridge: “Any delay in the Blatnik Bridge replacement project would’ve been incredibly costly to Minnesota and Wisconsin, to the tune of millions of dollars,” said Senator Smith. “Releasing this funding now means this project can move forward on schedule – and Minnesota taxpayers won’t have to pay more for the same bridge. I’m grateful the Administration heeded our calls to release this money and I’m looking forward to seeing construction completed on time and within budget.” The announcement comes two weeks after Senator Smith joined Senators Klobuchar (D-MN) and Baldwin (D-WI) in pressing Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy to give final approval and release the $1.05 billion grant. The Blatnik Bridge is a vital connection between Duluth, Minnesota, and Superior, Wisconsin, with over 33,000 vehicles passing through daily and 265,000 trucks transporting nearly $4 billion in goods annually. ###
U.S. SENATOR TINA SMITH’S BIPARTISAN LEGISLATION INCLUDED IN LANDMARK HOUSING PACKAGE THAT PASSED THE UNITED STATES SENATE
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN), the top Democrat on the Senate Housing Subcommittee, announced that one of her major bipartisan bills aimed at combatting America’s housing crisis was included in a package that passed the Senate in an 89-10 vote. Senator Smith’s bipartisan Rural Housing Service Reform Act was included in the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, the first comprehensive housing supply legislation in 30 years. “Without a safe, affordable place to live, nothing else in your life works. The lack of decent housing in this country is a choice that we’re making, but with this package, we’re choosing a different path,” said Senator Smith. “For the first time in decades, the Senate is taking bipartisan action to cut red tape so we can build more housing and lower costs for Americans.” Senator Smith’s bipartisan Rural Housing Service Reform Act would preserve up to 400,000 affordable homes in small towns and rural communities across the country, and more than 9,000 units in Minnesota, by making commonsense updates to programs at the USDA’s Rural Housing Service for the first time in decades. The bill was included in the final package that passed the Senate. In addition to Senator Smith’s Rural Housing Service Reform Act, the package included a number of bills Senator Smith cosponsored and supported, including: The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act doesn’t just boost housing supply. The legislation also addresses big corporations’ stranglehold on America’s housing market by banning large institutional investors from purchasing
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Demands Answers from Department of Education on Cuts to Mental Health Programs
WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) joined 20 of her Senate colleagues in demanding answers on recent reports that the Trump Administration had cut approximately $1 billion in federal mental health grants to help schools hire more psychologists, counselors, and other mental health workers. Rochester Public Schools had nearly $2 million in mental health grant funding cancelled. The funding would have trained and licensed staff to provide counseling and other mental health services to students across the school district. Smith and her colleagues also expressed concern about how these cuts will affect schools’ ability to support students and their behavioral health needs and questioned how the Department
Senator Smith Joins Colleagues in Bipartisan Push to Boost Housing Supply
WASHINGTON, D.C – U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN), Ranking Member of the Senate Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation, and Community Development, joined her colleagues on a bipartisan, bicameral bill to provide resources to help communities rehaul their zoning and land use regulations. The Housing Supply Frameworks Act would provide a new framework to assist states and localities in breaking down barriers and increasing the supply of affordable housing across income levels. The federal government first laid the foundation for zoning in the 1920s with the Standard State Zoning Enabling Act, a model law for states to enable zoning regulations in their jurisdictions. This legislation provides
U.S. Senators Tina Smith, Majority Leader John Thune Reintroduce Bipartisan Legislation to Expand and Strengthen Local Meat Processing Capabilities
WASHINGTON, DC — U.S. Senators Tina Smith (D-MN) and Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) reintroduced the Strengthening Local Processing Act, legislation that would provide support to America’s small meat and poultry processors to help strengthen and upgrade their operations. The bill would provide training, education, and technical assistance grants to help small processing plants improve and streamline their operations. Additionally, it would open new markets by allowing inspector-approved meat products to be sold across state lines. Helping smaller, locally owned processing facilities be competitive in today’s market will help lower costs for consumers by spurring competition in an already consolidated meat industry.
U.S. Senators Tina Smith, Amy Klobuchar Press Forest Service on Boundary Waters Visitor Permit Disruptions
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Tina Smith and Amy Klobuchar (both D-MN) are pressing the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) over recent reporting about dramatic staffing and budget cuts at USFS that will negatively impact local economies across Minnesota and make it more difficult for visitors to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness to receive necessary permits. Specifically, the Senators probed USFS Chief Tom Schultz for more clarity on the full extent of the staffing cuts at USFS and the public safety, economic, and environmental impacts this will have on the Boundary Waters Canoe Area and the Superior and Chippewa National Forests. “In Minnesota, the Superior National Forest,
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