Latest Releases
U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar, Tina Smith Announce Grant to Strengthen Workforce in Waseca County
MINNEAPOLIS, MN – Today, U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Tina Smith (D-MN) announced an award for Waseca County to strengthen workforce training and development. The award will be used to develop a new manufacturing workforce training facility in Waseca, Minnesota. The new center will house classrooms, a mechatronics skills training area, and a computer numerical control (CNC) training area. The project will create 50 jobs and once completed, help increase the region’s capacity to create and grow new businesses in the manufacturing industry, in turn attracting private investment and strengthening the regional economy. “Skills training strengthens our local economies by helping people succeed in the workforce,” said Klobuchar. “In addition to the 50 new jobs this project will create, this funding will enable the Waseca County Workforce Development Center to build classrooms and provide important hands-on training so more Minnesotans can gain the skills they need to find good-paying, in-demand jobs.” “Now more than ever we need educated, skilled workers entering trades in Minnesota,” said Smith. “This investment will provide Waseca County with important resources to train future workers and prepare them for high-wage, high-demand fields. This is exactly the type of project the federal government should be a partner in and I’m proud of the work we did with local leaders to make it possible.” The award totals $2.1 million and comes from the Economic Development Administration. ###
U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith Announce Award to Improve Infrastructure in Polk County
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Tina Smith (D-MN) announced an award for the city of Crookston to upgrade infrastructure in the city’s east side industrial park. The new infrastructure will include a roadway, water, and wastewater lines that will add 73 acres of developable lots to the industrial park. The project will create 75 jobs and once completed, provide the city with resources to spur their economic growth. “Improving infrastructure is essential for fostering community and economic growth,” said Klobuchar. “This new road and water and wastewater lines will increase the size of the industrial park and significantly boost Crookston’s economy.” “Revitalizing our infrastructure is about more than just fixing roadways, bridges and water treatment facilities, it’s about improving people’s lives and promoting economic growth, which is precisely what these projects will do,” said Smith. “These projects are going to support businesses and strengthen the economy for people in Crookston and Polk County.” The project comes from the Economic Development Administration and totals $3.3 million. ###
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Celebrates 4th Year of Juneteenth Being Recognized as a Federal Holiday
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith celebrated the fourth year that Juneteenth was officially recognized as a federal holiday in the United States. The annual holiday celebrates the date that news of emancipation of slaves in the South reached Galveston, Texas, two years after President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation. Senator Smith’s bill establishing the holiday was signed into law by President Biden in June, 2021. Smith helped introduced a bipartisan Senate resolution this week for the legislative body to commemorate the date. She celebrated Juneteenth in Minnesota at the Northside Juneteenth Festival Celebration on June 15th. “The end of slavery in this country is
U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar, Tina Smith, Minnesota Fire Chiefs Celebrate Passage of the Fire Grants and Safety Act
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Tina Smith (D-MN) issued the statements below after the Senate passed the Fire Grants and Safety Act, bipartisan legislation to continue providing federal funding for the Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) and the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Grant programs. This bill now goes to the President’s desk to be signed into law. The Assistance to Firefighters Grant program helps firefighters and other first responders obtain critically needed equipment, protective gear, emergency vehicles, training and other resources. The SAFER Grants program provides direct funding to fire departments and volunteer firefighter organizations to
U.S. SENATOR TINA SMITH’S STATEMENT ON NOMINATION OF CHRISTY GOLDSMITH ROMERO TO CHAIR THE FDIC
WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) , a member of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, applauded President Biden’s decision to nominate Christy Goldsmith Romero to be Chair of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC): “Christy Goldsmith Romero is a widely respected, principled financial regulator with extensive federal experience, and I applaud President Biden’s decision to nominate her as Chair of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). This nomination comes at a pivotal time at the FDIC, and Goldsmith Romero’s track record of holding bad actors accountable at the Troubled Asset Relief Program and advancing consumer interests at the CFTC is exactly
U.S. Senator Tina Smith, Lt. Governor Peggy Flanagan Celebrate First-Ever Trade Mission Focused on Indigenous Products
MINNEAPOLIS, MN – Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) and Minnesota Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan (DFL) announced the first-ever trade mission by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) focused solely on Indigenous products. Lieutenant Governor Flanagan will join Red Lake, Inc. in representing Native producers from Minnesota on this historic trade mission to Canada from June 17-20 alongside 15 Tribal agribusinesses and 13 Native agricultural leaders from across the country. “This is a historic opportunity for Native farmers and producers and Tribal businesses to access a new market for their goods. Native farmers and producers face unique and challenging barriers, and this market