Latest Releases
Ahead of Likely Shutdown, Sen. Smith, Rep. Pressley Introduce Bill to Provide Back Pay for Federal Contract Workers
WASHINGTON — Ahead of a possible Republican government shutdown, Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) and Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07)introduced legislation to secure back pay for the thousands of federal contract workers who face layoffs without back pay during a potential shutdown. Unlike federal government employees, the thousands of federal contract employees—many of whom serve in modestly paid jobs like custodians and cafeteria workers—have no assurances that they will receive back pay to make up for the wages they miss during a shutdown. The bill is cosponsored by Senators Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Mark Warner (D-VA), Ben Cardin (D-MD), and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD). The Fair Pay for Federal Contractors Act seeks to ensure federal contract workers, including low-wage food service, janitorial and security service workers, are fairly compensated for the wages and benefits lost due to a lapse in appropriations. “This is about fairness—contractor workers and their families should not be penalized for a government shutdown that they did nothing to cause,” said Sen. Smith. “Contractor employees perform jobs that are critical to the operation of our government, providing food service, security, and doing custodial work. These are often low-wage jobs that mean workers are living paycheck to paycheck. In the past, these workers haven’t received back pay at the end of a government shutdown like the thousands of government employees. And it’s time we right that wrong.” “As a former hotel worker and unpaid Congressional intern who worked three jobs, I know all too well what it means to
Senators Smith, Lummis Seek Key Clarifications to Address Native American and Rural Homelessness, Overcrowding
U.S. SENATE – U.S. Senators Tina Smith (D-MN) and Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) sent a letter to Secretary Marcia Fudge urging the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to help address homelessness in Native and rural communities and to provide clarity on the federal definition of homelessness. The Senators are the Chair and Ranking Member, respectively, of the Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation, and Community Development. The letter follows a bipartisan hearing led by Smith and Lummis on the “State of Native American Housing” where witnesses described the severe homelessness and overcrowding issues facing rural and Native American communities. “The stories we heard at our hearing are not isolated examples. Many Native and rural communities officially report low rates of sheltered and unsheltered homelessness, but have high rates of doubling up and overcrowding,” wrote the Senators. “Doubling up and overcrowding are likely more prevalent in rural communities that have fewer emergency shelter options and limited transportation options, so people struggle to get to the shelters that do exist. Studies confirm that some of the highest rates of overcrowding are experienced by people who identify as American Indian or Alaska Native and on tribal lands. Although these situations differ from the ways homelessness is often found in non-Native and non-rural communities, we believe they warrant close attention.” Witness testimony described how some individuals are living in “fish houses” or “ice shanties,” in the face of not being able to find a safe, secure and affordable place to live. Witnesses shared that Native families
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Highlights Bill to Boost Mental Health Services for Students While Visiting Minnesota Elementary School
WASHINGTON, D.C. [04/25/19]—Today, U.S Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) announced she’s reintroduced her legislation to make sure students in schools across the nation are able to access the mental health services they need, where they are, while visiting Franklin Elementary School in Rochester. While hearing from Rochester area educators and mental health professionals, Sen. Smith discussed her Mental Health Services for Students Act, which would provide funding for comprehensive mental health services in schools. Young people experience mental health conditions about as often as adults—about 1 in 5 struggle with severe mental health problems—but they often have a hard time getting
U.S. Sen. Tina Smith Presses Nation’s Top Agriculture, Drug Enforcement, and Customs Officials to Clear Bureaucratic Hurdles for Minnesota Farmers Growing Industrial Hemp
WASHINGTON, D.C. [04/19/19]—After taking a leading role in making sure Minnesota priorities were included in the 2018 Farm Bill, this week U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.)—a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee—is once again standing up for Minnesota farmers by pressing top federal agriculture, drug enforcement, and customs officials to clear the bureaucratic hurdles that are preventing Minnesota farmers from obtaining hemp seed. Sen. Smith said last year’s Farm Bill established hemp as an agriculture commodity, and authorized the production, consumption, and sale of hemp in Minnesota and across the country. However, she said, a lack of coordination between federal
Klobuchar, Smith Join Colleagues to Introduce New Legislation to Tackle Nationwide Digital Equity Gap
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), co-chair of the bipartisan Senate Broadband Caucus, and Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) joined Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) to introduce new legislation aimed at closing the growing digital divide in communities across the country. The Digital Equity Act of 2019 creates new federal investments targeted toward a diverse array of projects at the state and local level that promote “digital equity”— a concept defined by the National Digital Inclusion Alliance as the “condition in which all individuals and communities have the information technology capacity needed for full participation in our society, democracy and economy.”
Klobuchar, Smith Join Colleagues in Calling for Full Funding of the Firefighter Cancer Registry
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Tina Smith (D-MN) joined Senators Bob Menendez (D-NJ), Deb Fischer (R-NE), and over 30 other senators in requesting full funding for the Firefighter Cancer Registry. The Firefighter Cancer Registry Act was signed into law in July 2018 and requires the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to collect the number and type of fire incidents in connection to firefighters who receive a cancer diagnosis—helping doctors and researchers to study the relationship between firefighting and an increased risk for the deadly disease. Although $2.5 million was authorized for the registry, the full
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