Latest Releases
U.S. Senator Tina Smith’s Statement on SCOTUS Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA) Decision
Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) released the following statement on the Supreme Court’s Decision on Moyle v. United States: “The Supreme Court ruled on process, not on policy. This is a reprieve, not a vindication. While Idaho can resume providing emergency reproductive care, this ruling does nothing to reassure women that their health and wellbeing is protected. “Let’s be clear: President Biden’s work to ensure access to emergency abortion care under EMTALA is not safe under this decision. There are other challenges to EMTALA pending in the ultra-conservative Fifth Circuit — challenges that could come before the Supreme Court soon. “But this chaos is the point. Patients will suffer while these lawsuits move forward. There should be no legal question when medicine is clear: Abortion is health care. Justice Jackson hit the nail on the head with her dissent: ‘While this Court dawdles and the country waits, pregnant people experiencing emergency medical conditions remain in a precarious position, as their doctors are kept in the dark about what the law requires.’” ###
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 reach our rural areas. As co-chair of the Senate Broadband Caucus, I’ll keep working across the aisle to make sure all Minnesotans can reliably access the high-speed internet they need.” “Internet access is not just a luxury in the 21st century, it’s a necessity,” said Senator Smith.“In Minnesota and across the country, people in rural areas, small towns, and Tribal communities need access to reliable, high-speed internet. Investing in broadband infrastructure with the Broadband Technical Assistance Program is a step in the right direction, helping connect communities in every part of the country to high-speed internet and strengthening communities from the ground up.” The program will support local governments, organizations, cooperatives, and Tribes as they work to expand broadband access in rural communities, delivering on President Biden’s promise to invest in infrastructure and strengthen the economy from the inside out. This includes funding infrastructure studies, network designs, hiring efforts, application assistance and more. The announcement marks the second round of funding for the program.
U.S. Senators Tina Smith & John Thune’s Bill for Continued School Funding During COVID-19 Passes the Senate
WASHINGTON, D.C. [12/14/21]—Yesterday, U.S. Senators Tina Smith (D-Minn.) and John Thune’s (R-S.D.) bipartisan legislation to help schools retain federal funding during the COVID-19 pandemic passed in the Senate. Smith and Thune’s Supplemental Impact Aid Flexibility Act will allow school districts participating in the Impact Aid Program to use previously reported student headcounts on their Impact Aid applications for the 2022-2023 school year, ensuring that they do not need to recalculate federally connected students due to prolonged uncertainty created by the COVID-19 pandemic. “As the pandemic continues to hit many Minnesota school districts hard, it’s important that districts receiving Impact Aid
U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar, Tina Smith, and U.S. Representative Angie Craig Announce Program to Deliver More Opportunities, Fair Prices to Farmers and Strengthen Food Supply Chain
WASHINGTON, [12.9.21] – Today, U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar, Tina Smith, and Representative Angie Craig (all D-Minnesota) announced a new program that will release approximately $1 billion in funding to shore up food supply chains and support farmers. The funding is available through the American Rescue Plan, which Senators Klobuchar, Smith, and Rep. Craig helped pass earlier this year. “Minnesota’s farmers play a key role in generating and protecting our nation’s food supply,” said Sen. Klobuchar. “The Food Supply Chain Guaranteed Loans are a step forward as we continue working to support them and bolster our food supply chain.” “Even before
U.S. Senator Tina Smith & U.S. Representative Gwen Moore Push to Empower Tribes to Pursue Justice for Native Survivors of Sexual Violence
WASHINGTON, D.C. [12/7/21] —Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) —a member of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee—and U.S. Representative Gwen Moore (D-WI) are pushing to make it easier to address violence against Native peoples by expanding Tribal jurisdiction over crimes of sexual violence. The “Justice for Native Survivors of Sexual Violence Act” aims to get justice for survivors of sexual violence by restoring Tribal jurisdiction to prosecute cases of domestic and sexual assault, sex trafficking, stalking, and other related crimes committed by non-Native offenders on Tribal lands. The Justice for Native Survivors of Sexual Violence Act is co-sponsored in the
U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith Urge FSA to Expand Help for Minnesota Livestock Producers Hit Hard by Drought
WASHINGTON — U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith (both D-Minn.) are urging the Farm Service Agency (FSA) to expand help for livestock producers in Minnesota and across the country who struggled to feed their herds this summer when severe drought made hay scarce and forced prices to skyrocket. In a letter Wednesday to FSA Administrator Zach Ducheneaux, Smith, Klobuchar, and a bipartisan group of 18 of their Senate colleagues pressed to address a gap in coverage under the Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees and Farm-Raised Fish Program (ELAP), which currently provides assistance for the cost of transporting feed to
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