Latest Releases
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Urges Justice Department to Address the Use of AI in Wrongful Evictions
MINNEAPOLIS, MN – U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Chair of the Senate Housing Subcommittee, sent a letter to the Department of Justice urging them to address the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in eviction filings. The letter comes on the heels of a Minnesota lawsuit against a firm whose automated eviction filing system may have violated federal law by enabling them to file thousands of complaints without adequate investigation or accuracy controls, leading to wrongful evictions. Automated tools also allow corporate landlords to file serial evictions as a means of collecting rent, placing significant legal burdens on renters. Minnesota renters have reported paying hundreds of dollars in court fees and still having evictions on their record, making it even harder to repay their late rent or find more affordable housing. “Evictions have lasting, detrimental impacts on a family’s housing stability and overall well-being. Following an eviction, families are more likely to experience homelessness, a loss of earnings, lower credit scores, hospital visits, and mental-health concerns,” wrote Senator Smith. “While I recognize and appreciate the potential for these technologies to reduce bias, in this application, I remain concerned about a disparate impact of serial eviction filings, along with limited accountability for errors in automated eviction processes and the lack of recourse for tenants. […] I encourage the Civil Rights Division to apply their holistic approach to enforcement, education, interagency coordination, and policy to prevent unfair and erroneous evictions.” “Eviction actions haunt renters for many years, making it difficult, if not impossible, for them to
U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar, Tina Smith Announce Significant Biofuel and Clean Energy Expansion Projects Across Minnesota
INVER GROVE HEIGHTS, MN – Today, U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith (both D-MN), announced 71 farms and small businesses across Minnesota will receive federal funding to install clean energy technology and make energy efficiency improvements, in addition to 15 awards to build out the infrastructure businesses need to make domestic biofuels more accessible. These investments will lower Minnesota’s carbon emissions while saving consumers money on energy and gas. “Domestically produced biofuel and renewable power systems strengthen our energy independence, support our farmers, and boost rural economies,” said Senator Klobuchar. “These federal funds will also help families and businesses transition to clean energy, reducing their overall energy costs. And through the funding made possible by my bill with Senator Ernst, the Biofuel Infrastructure and Agricultural Product Market Expansion Act, Minnesotans will have better access to biofuels at local gas stations.” “The clean energy transition is happening, and I want us to lead it,” said Senator Smith. “As we make the switch to cleaner, cheaper energy, we need to make sure everyone benefits. That’s why we pushed to expand programs like REAP that help farmers and rural communities looking to install renewable energy systems or HBIIP, which helps businesses invest in the infrastructure they need to expand the use of biofuels. These grants will save farms and small businesses across Minnesota thousands of dollars per year in energy costs, and support producers who are the bedrock of our biofuel industry and reduce harmful emissions.” These projects are made possible through two programs, both of
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Teams up with Senate Colleagues to Introduce Justice for Black Farmers Act
WASHINGTON, D.C. [2/10/21]—This week, Senate Agriculture Committee member U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.)—along with Sens. Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), and Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.)—introduced landmark legislation aimed at addressing and correcting historic discrimination within the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in federal farm assistance and lending that has caused Black farmers to lose millions of acres of farmland, and has robbed these farmers and their families of the hundreds of billions of dollars of inter-generational wealth that land represented. Just over 100 years ago, there were nearly 1 million Black farmers
U.S. Senators Tina Smith & Dick Durbin, U.S. Rep. Brad Schneider Introduce Bill to Help State, Local Governments Provide Paid Leave to Employees During Pandemic
WASHINGTON, D.C. [02/9/21]—U.S. Senators Tina Smith (D-Minn.) and Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) introduced a key measure to help state and local governments provide paid leave to public employees who can’t work due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. A bipartisan House companion bill was introduced by U.S. Representative Brad Schneider (IL-10). The Families First Coronavirus Response Act, enacted last year, provided tax credits to private-sector employers to cover the costs of paid leave during the pandemic. Congress also extended those tax credits through 2021 in a bipartisan measure enacted in December 2020. But those measures did not make public-sector employers eligible for paid leave credits. The lack of access to the paid leave credits is putting
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Urges Amazon to Recognize Workers Seeking Union Representation Ahead of Key National Labor Relations Board Vote
WASHINGTON, D.C. [2/8/21]—Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.)—who has long been fighting for Amazon workers, including those at the Amazon fulfillment center in Shakopee, Minn.—and a group of her colleagues are urging Amazon to do right by its workers and support workers’ efforts to freely exercise their right to organize a union. In their letter sent to current Amazon CEO, Jeff Bezos, and his successor, Amazon Web Services CEO Andy Jassy, Sen. Smith and her colleagues expressed support for Amazon workers seeking to organize a union with the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU). The senators also pushed
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Says Congressional Passage of Budget Resolution Creates Pathway to Urgently Needed COVID-19 Relief in Minnesota
WASHINGTON, D.C. [02/05/21]—U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) said today that Congressional passage of a $1.9 trillion budget resolution early Friday morning sets the country on a pathway to urgently needed relief from the coronavirus pandemic that in the past year has killed hundreds of thousands of Americans and upended the economic well-being of families, businesses, and communities in Minnesota and across the country. Sen. Smith said the resolution creates a roadmap for Congressional committees to begin work on the wide-range of efforts needed to address the devastating impact the virus has already had on the country, including funding for vaccine distribution
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