Latest Releases
U.S. Senator Tina Smith, Colleagues to Introduce Bipartisan Legislation Expanding Pell Grant Use to Job Training Programs
WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) joined her colleagues Susan Collins (R-ME), Tim Kaine (D-VA), and Roger Marshall (R-KS) to introduce the bipartisan Jumpstarting Our Businesses by Supporting Students (JOBS) Act, legislation allowing Americans to use federal Pell Grants—need-based education grants for lower-income individuals—to pay for shorter-term job training programs. Currently, Pell Grants can only be used for two- and four-year colleges and universities. The JOBS Act expands their applicability, allowing Pell Grants to be used for shorter-term, high-skill job training. “Some of the most in-demand, high-paying jobs don’t require a four-year college degree – jobs like welders, machine operators and medical technicians. We need to make it easier to get people into these careers, and letting students use Pell Grants to help make it happen just makes sense,” said Senator Smith. “This bill will open up more career opportunities for people and will help boost our economy.” Senator Smith regularly hears from students who are interested in technical education, but who face real financial barriers to paying for high-quality job training programs. And she also regularly hears from employers who have trouble finding qualified workers for available positions. Minnesota has five Metropolitan Statistical Areas with 3.2 percent unemployment rates or lower. Over the past four years, almost 15 million jobs were added to the American economy thanks to landmark legislation like the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Despite this, the United States is experiencing a skilled labor shortage, which is only expected to grow in the next few years. The JOBS Act will help to close that
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Named Top Democrat on the Senate Housing Subcommittee
WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) today was named Ranking Member on the Senate Housing, Transportation, and Community Development Subcommittee on the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs for the 119th Congress. The Chair of the Subcommittee is Senator Katie Britt (R-AL). Smith has long championed bipartisan solutions to lower the costs for families to rent or buy a safe, decent, affordable place to live. Today, in more than 90 percent of counties, minimum wage workers cannot afford to rent even a modest one-bedroom apartment. More than half of America’s 44 million renters are spending more than 30 percent of their income on rent, more than ever before. According to the Minnesota Housing Partnership, every county in Minnesota has a shortage of affordable and available rental homes for extremely low-income households. “Without a safe, decent and affordable place to live, nothing in your life works. It becomes nearly impossible to hold a job, go to school, or stay healthy,” said Senator Smith. “Our country is facing a housing crisis, with supply falling dramatically behind demand. I’ve spent my years in the Senate working with anyone who wants to work with me, regardless of party, to find ways to address the housing crisis. For several years, the Housing, Transportation and Community Development Subcommittee has been working in a bipartisan way on important measures to preserve affordable rural housing in small towns and Tribal communities, to cut red tape that hinders construction of more housing, and to make it easier to get around. I’m excited to keep working on solutions alongside new Chair Katie Britt.” “Our nation is facing
Klobuchar, Smith Announce Federal Funding for Glencoe Municipal Airport Infrastructure Improvements
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Tina Smith (D-MN) announced that that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will award $712,500 from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to the Glencoe Municipal Airport. The airport will use the money to design and construct a new general aviation terminal. This project will replace an existing facility outdated that was constructed in 1970. “Investments in our airports serve as a down payment on the long-term economic well-being of our state,” said Klobuchar. “This funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will improve the travel experience at the Glencoe Municipal Airport by supporting the construction
U.S Senator Tina Smith Applauds Biden Administration’s Rule Implementing Senate-Passed Pension Relief Stopping Drastic Cuts for Over 22,000 Minnesotans
WASHINGTON, D.C. [7/6/22]— Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) celebrated a key step in implementing pension relief funding to reverse pension cuts for thousands of Minnesotans who earned pensions through union jobs. The latest rule, issued by the federal Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation, marks the completion of multiemployer pension system fixes which will bolster the solvency of the multiemployer pension system and prevent drastic cuts to pensions. The multiemployer pension relief package included in the American Rescue Plan stems from Sen. Smith’s push to help the more than 1 million workers and retirees nationwide—including more than 22,000 Minnesotans—who had been facing deep cuts
Klobuchar, Smith Lead Entire Minnesota Congressional Delegation in Urging Biden Administration to Approve Minnesota Request for Disaster Declaration
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Tina Smith (D-MN) led the entire Minnesota Congressional delegation in urging the Biden administration to approve Minnesota’s requests for Major Disaster Declarations to assist communities recovering from historic storms and flooding. “We write to you in strong support of the state of Minnesota’s requests for Major Disaster Declarations under the Stafford Act to assist communities that are working to recover from severe weather this spring, including thunderstorms, tornadoes, high winds, and flooding. These natural disaster events have caused significant damage in our state, and we ask that you quickly grant approval
U.S. Senator Tina Smith’s Statement on West Virginia v. EPA Supreme Court Decision
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) issued the following statement in response to the West Virginia v. EPA Supreme Court decision: “For more than fifty years, the Clean Air Act has reduced pollution and improved air quality and health for families in Minnesota and across the country. Fifteen years ago, a conservative-majority court correctly ruled that this law could be the basis for regulating greenhouse gases—a decision that was reaffirmed in a unanimous opinion in 2011. “And yet, just 11 years later, this activist Supreme Court disregarded years of precedent and sided with large polluters and conservative special interests by
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