Latest Releases
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Announces Clean Energy Projects for Minnesota Farms and Small Businesses
[MINNEAPOLIS, MN] – U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN), a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, announced funding awards for 27 farms and small businesses across rural and Greater Minnesota to install clean energy technology on their farms. This round of funding for Minnesota totals nearly $2 million. This initiative is possible through the more than $144 million in grant funding for underutilized renewable technologies through the Renewable Energy for America (REAP) program, which Senator Smith championed and strengthened in the Inflation Reduction Act. “The clean energy transition is happening, the question is whether we lead or follow. I want us to lead,” said Senator Smith. “But as we make the switch to cleaner, cheaper energy, we need to make sure everyone benefits. That’s one reason programs like REAP, which helps rural communities install renewable energy systems, are so important. These investments will save farms and small businesses across Minnesota thousands of dollars a year in energy costs while helping reduce harmful emissions.” “I applied and received a grant for my new mixed flow grain dryer,” said John Kapphahn, a farmer from Elbow Lake. “We had an older continuous flow dryer that was about 20 years old that was destroyed by a tornado. The new dryer has cut our operating expense for drying corn by at least 50% with better quality grain.” “The REAP grant funding helped us to add a rooftop solar array to our dairy farm,” said Alan Abrahamson from Lindstrom. “As a small dairy farm anything we can do to reduce our
U.S. Senators Tina Smith, Ron Wyden Re-Introduce Legislation to Strengthen Mental Health Care Coverage, Hold Insurance Companies Accountable
WASHINGTON — Last week, U.S. Senators Tina Smith (D-MN) and Ron Wyden (D-OR) introduced legislation to improve coverage for mental health and substance use disorder care. Specifically, the Behavioral Health Network and Directory Improvement Act would crack down on health insurance tactics of posting incomplete, inaccurate lists of providers – called “ghost networks”— and create stronger enforcement standards to protect those seeking mental health care. “Mental health needs to be treated with the same urgency as physical health, and that means making sure everyone has access to the mental health care they need without unnecessary delays and barriers,” said Sen. Smith. “By law, insurance companies should cover mental health just like they cover physical health, yet they’re still finding ways to dodge compliance and deny coverage to customers. By setting stricter standards and holding insurance companies accountable for inaccurate listings, this legislation will help ensure people have access to the mental health care coverage they deserve.” “Amid a nationwide mental health crisis, it’s outrageous how common it is for people in need of treatment to find that their health insurance is almost useless when they try to see a mental health provider,” said Sen. Wyden. “In the worst cases these ghost networks are essentially a fraudulent product, but health insurance companies continue to sell those policies for top dollar. In just about any other industry, the customer would be owed a refund. This bill is about closing gaps in federal law and establishing real accountability for health insurance companies that continue to sell these ghost network insurance policies.” Ghost health care provider networks are providers listed by private insurance companies as
U.S. Sens. Tina Smith, Elizabeth Warren, Patty Murray Seek Answers from Labor Department on Fake Public Comments Opposing Stronger Protections for Retirement Savers
WASHINGTON, D.C. [08/14/20]—Alarmed by the fact that much remains unknown about the rash of fake critical comments that flooded the public comment period for a key federal consumer protection rule for retirement savers in 2015, U.S. Senators Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Patty Murray (D-Wash.) sent a letter pressing Secretary of Labor Eugene Scalia to outline the actions he’s taken to prevent it from happening again. The Senators told Scalia that a Wall Street Journal analysis found that in the case of the 2015 rule on retirement investment advice, “40% of respondents didn’t write the comments attributed to them,” and that most of the 345 fraudulent comments analyzed were slanted in favor of financial industry views,
Congresswoman Angie Craig, Senator Tina Smith and Andy Slavitt Discuss Bill to Improve National COVID-19 Testing and Tracing
Today, U.S. Rep. Angie Craig, Sen. Tina Smith were joined by health expert Andy Slavitt during a briefing to discuss their bipartisan bill to create a national coronavirus (COVID-19) testing and contact-tracing strategy in partnership with states. The measure, the Suppress COVID-19 Act would provide federal support to states working to address the virus by helping them purchase tests and testing supplies. It would also allow states to work together in interstate compacts and regional agreements to overcome challenges with the testing supply chain, such as a lack of available tests and slow turn-around for test results. Republican Rep. Phil Roe of Tennessee is also a lead author and Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy, M.D. of
Minnesota Congressional Delegation Urges IRS to Address Backlog in Processing Tax Returns
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith, and Representatives Jim Hagedorn (MN-01), Angie Craig (MN-02), Dean Phillips (MN-03), Betty McCollum (MN-04), Ilhan Omar (MN-05), Tom Emmer (MN-06), Collin Peterson (MN-07), and Pete Stauber (MN-08) sent a letter to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) expressing concern about continued delays in the processing of paper tax returns and requesting further information on what the agency plans to do to address this issue. “We have heard from constituents all across the State of Minnesota who filed paper returns and have not yet received their refund or even been able to check
U.S. Senators Tina Smith, Amy Klobuchar Introduce Bill to Help K-12 Schools Improve Infrastructure
WASHINGTON, D.C. [8/12/2020]—U.S. Senators Tina Smith and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) joined Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-Hawaii), along with other colleagues in introducing a bill to help K-12 schools make infrastructure improvements. The Impact Aid Infrastructure Act (IAIA) would provide $1 billion in supplemental funding through the Impact Aid program. IAIA provides competitive and formula grants for school infrastructure projects, including school construction and facilities upgrades, in school districts with high percentages of children with military parents or children living on Tribal lands. With these grants, school districts would have the flexibility to focus on their specific renovation and repair needs, which could
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