Latest Releases
U.S. Senator Tina Smith’s Statement on Trump Administration’s Move to Abandon Minneapolis Police Reform
WASHINGTON, D.C — Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) issued the following statement on the Department of Justice’s decision to withdraw the federal consent decree with the Minneapolis Police Department: “I am deeply disturbed by the Trump administration’s decision to abandon the federal consent decree with the Minneapolis Police Department. This decree was based on the Justice Department’s own investigation, which found a pattern of unconstitutional and discriminatory policing practices that have hurt our community, especially Black and Native American people and people with mental illness, for decades. “It’s especially painful that this decision comes on the eve of the fifth anniversary of George Floyd’s murder—the very tragedy that sparked this investigation and the urgent push for reform. I led the call for that federal civil rights investigation because Minnesotans deserve accountability and reform. Walking away from this agreement, after confirming the need for it, is unconscionable. “Thankfully, the City of Minneapolis and Minnesota state leaders continue to stand on the side of justice. I’m grateful that the state-negotiated consent decree remains in place to continue working toward meaningful reform. The Minneapolis Police Department has taken steps in the right direction and is committed to continuing that work even as the federal government walks away. “Every Minnesotan deserves to be safe in their homes and neighborhoods, and that safety must include freedom from unconstitutional and discriminatory policing. This work isn’t finished yet, and we will keep holding ourselves accountable.”
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 plans to address the youth mental health crisis. “This abrupt decision to cut critical funding that was enacted into law under the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act and annual appropriations acts and already planned to be used in states, communities, and schools is deeply troubling and not consistent with our intent of providing these funds to support the health and wellbeing of children across the nation,” wrote the Senators. “The uncertainty that is being created by the Department of Education is jeopardizing the work that has been done to increase comprehensive youth mental and behavioral health services, and the availability of school-based mental health professionals across the country.” “The termination of this grant is a big step backward,” Rochester Public Schools Superintendent Kent Pekel wrote in a letter. “Thousands of students who might have received counseling and support to address challenges to their mental health, such as depression, anxiety, and thoughts of suicide, will not receive
U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith Announce Funding from U.S. Department of Agriculture to Help Expand High-Speed Internet Access in Rural Areas
WASHINGTON, June 27th, 2024 – Today, U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith (both D-Minn.) announced $25 million in funding availability from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to increase high-speed internet access in rural and Tribal communities. The funding is made available through the USDA’s Broadband Technical Assistance (BTA) Program, part of the Biden Administration’s historic Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to connect every community in America with affordable, reliable, high-speed internet. “We should be able to bring high-speed internet to every family in Minnesota— regardless of their zip code,” said Klobuchar. “This funding will ensure that the broadband upgrades going on across our state also
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Announces Federal Investment to Foster Local Zoning Reform in Twin Cities
MINNEAPOLIS, MN – Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Chair of the Senate Housing Subcommittee, announced $4 million in funding to assist localities around the Twin Cities trying to update local ordinances to build more affordable housing. The award will provide technical support to cities and towns already in the process of updating their zoning codes to incentivize more housing construction. The announcement comes on the heels of a visit from the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen, who was in Minneapolis for a roundtable discussion on housing and a tour of a federally-funded affordable housing apartment made possible thanks
U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar, Tina Smith Join Colleagues in Introducing Legislation to Double Pell Grant Amounts
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Last week, U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith (both D-MN) joined their colleagues Senators Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), Patty Murray (D-WA), Jack Reed (D-RI), and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) to introduce the Pell Grant Preservation and Expansion Act of 2024, legislation that would nearly double the Pell Grant maximum award. During the 1975-76 school year, the Pell Grant was enough to cover three-fourths of the average cost of attendance at a four-year public college. Today, a Pell Grant covers less than 30% of tuition, fees, and living expenses. The Pell Grant program is the cornerstone of federal financial aid for higher education, serving over 6 million undergraduate students. Representatives
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Unveils Legislation to Repeal the Comstock Act
WASHINGTON, D.C. [6/20/24] —Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) introduced a bill to repeal an arcane 1873 law, called the Comstock Act, that Republicans and anti-choice extremists want to misuse to ban abortion nationwide. Comstock has been cited recently by Supreme Court Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas in oral arguments during the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine v. FDA and invoked in Project 2025 – broadly seen as a roadmap for a future Trump administration – as a way for an extremist, anti-choice administration to use unilateral executive action to effectively ban abortion nationwide. “The Comstock Act is a 150-year-old zombie law banning abortion that’s long been relegated to the dustbin of
English