Latest Releases
ICYMI: U.S. Senator Tina Smith Blasts Wrongful Firing of Duluth EPA Scientists by the Trump Administration
WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) blasted the news that scientists at the Great Lakes Toxicology and Ecology Division Laboratory were fired for signing onto a letter expressing concerns over cuts and changes at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that they argued would endanger the health and safety of Minnesotans. In a statement to the Duluth News Tribune, Smith decried the firings and expressed pride in the workers who had the guts to sign onto the Declaration of Dissent warning about the impacts of EPA cuts. “How is firing the people who keep Lake Superior and Minnesota’s waters clean and safe a good idea? How does that benefit anyone? The sole reason they got fired is because they exercised their freedom of speech and dared to disagree with the Trump administration. I’m proud they had the guts to do it, to warn all of us. I don’t care who you voted for, you didn’t vote to fire scientists who keep our waters safe.” Senator Smith has been vocally critical of the recent attacks on the Great Lakes Toxicology and Ecology Division Laboratory in Duluth. She and Senator Klobuchar (D-MN) pressed the EPA for answers after reports of staff layoffs at the lab in April and pressed for answers from EPA Administrator Zeldin. After employees were placed on leave for signing onto the Declaration of Dissent, Smith pressed the EPA to reinstate the workers, calling any threat of retaliation a violation of workers’ First Amendment rights as affirmed by the Supreme Court. ###
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Demands Answers from Trump Administration on Actions Purportedly Allowing Sulfide-Ore Copper Mining Near the Boundary Waters
[ST. PAUL, MN] – U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) is demanding answers from the Trump Administration regarding its recent announcement about planned executive actions to allow sulfide-ore mining in the Rainy River Watershed, where waters flow into the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW). The only sulfide-ore mine proposed in the area would be owned by Chilean mining conglomerate Antofagasta, a company with a questionable environmental record, and the minerals they intend to mine would be shipped overseas to be processed outside of the United States – most likely to China. In a letter to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Senator Smith questions whether the Administration allowed for public input, how rigorous their review of the scientific data and information was, and why the Department is seemingly contradicting its 2022 findings, which the U.S. Forest Service maintained as recently as December 2024, that mining in the area poses a serious risk to the integrity of the Boundary Waters. She requested a response from USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins no later than August 15th. “As you may know, significant majorities of Minnesotans believe the Boundary Waters should be protected from the risks of sulfide-ore copper mining, and the Trump Administration’s plan to allow this kind of mining in the Boundary Waters’ watershed is deeply unpopular. Also, long-standing scientific research and data – evaluated and reaffirmed by your own department – are overwhelmingly clear that sulfide-ore mining in this area poses a grave risk of polluting the Boundary Waters, potentially for generations,” wrote
U.S. Senator Tina Smith, Colleagues Urge the Department of Justice to Improve Public Safety on Tribal Lands
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) joined her colleagues in sending a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland inquiring about the high rates of criminal cases on Tribal land that U.S. Attorneys’ Offices decline to prosecute. The letter was led by Senator Ben Ray Luján (D-NM) and was signed by Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Mazie Hirono (D-HI) and Martin Heinrich (D-NM). The Senators ask a series of questions to better understand the reasons behind the high rates of declinations. Specifically, the letter asks about the lack of evidence in these cases and the Department’s “prioritization of
U.S. Senators Tina Smith, Debbie Stabenow, Reps. Paul Tonko, Brian Fitzpatrick, David Trone Reintroduce Legislation Expanding Mental Health Care Access, Increase Medicaid Reimbursement Rate
WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.), a member of the Senate Health Committee, joined by Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), a member of the Senate Finance Committee, to announce reintroduced legislation to expand access to mental health services for low-income families and children, the elderly, and people living with disabilities. The Medicaid Bump Act would increase the federal reimbursement rate for mental and behavioral health care services under Medicaid, which covers one fifth of all Americans with mental health disorders. A House companion bill was introduced by U.S. Representatives Paul D. Tonko (D-NY-20), Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA-01) and David Trone (D-MD-06). “Too many people don’t have access to the mental
U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar, Tina Smith Announce Funding for Meat Processing Facility in Waseca
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith (both D-MN), members of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, announced federal funding to increase the meat processing capacity of Morgan’s Meat Market LLC in Waseca. The grant funding will go towards adding a smokehouse and vacuum stuffer, which will increase worker safety, reduce cleaning time from 3 days to only 4 hours, and increase processing capacity while saving time. “Agriculture is key to our state’s economy and to stay ahead, we must continue investing in our farms and food businesses,” said Klobuchar. “This federal grant will go toward bolstering capacity, improving worker safety,
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Joins Colleagues in Urging Biden Administration to Address Humanitarian Crisis in Ethiopia
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator and Tina Smith (D-MN) joined her colleagues in sending a letter to the Biden administration regarding the mounting humanitarian crisis in Ethiopia. The letter was led by Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR) and was also signed by Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), John Hickenlooper (D-CO), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) and Tim Kaine (D-VA). The Senators urged U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Administrator Samantha Power to work with partners to ensure continued international humanitarian support for the people of Ethiopia as the country confronts an ongoing humanitarian crisis exacerbated by armed conflict
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