Latest Releases
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 history. But extremist Republicans and Trump judges have seized upon the idea of misusing Comstock to bypass Congress and strip women nationwide of their reproductive freedoms. When MAGA Republicans say they intend to use the Comstock Act to control women’s decisions and enact a backdoor national abortion ban, we should believe them. Now that Trump has overturned Roe, a future Republican administration could try to misapply this 150-year-old Comstock law to deny American women their rights, even in states where abortion rights are protected by state law. “This is why I’m introducing legislation to repeal Comstock. It is too dangerous to leave this law on the books; we cannot allow MAGA judges and politicians to control the lives of American women,” said Senator Smith. The Comstock laws are a set of 1800s laws meant to ban the mailing or shipping of every obscene, lewd, indecent, article, matter, thing or device, with the goal of restricting
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 a critical milestone in our history, and Juneteenth should be commemorated nationwide as a day of celebration, reflection, and rededication to the cause of racial justice,” said Senator Smith. “I am forever grateful to the generations of activists who made this possible. Commemorating Juneteenth as a federal holiday is an encouraging and deeply meaningful step – but we have much farther to go on the path towards justice. In the meantime, I hope Minnesotans find a time to celebrate the progress we’ve made and recommit themselves to the work that lies ahead.” Senator Smith gave a floor speech following the Senate’s passage of her bill in 2021. You can read her full remarks here or view/download them here. ###
Following Bipartisan Call for Action Led by U.S. Sen. Tina Smith, U.S. Trade Representative Launches Challenge to Unfair Canadian Trade Practices that Harm U.S. Dairy Producers
WASHINGTON, D.C. [12/09/20]— U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) said today that she was pleased U.S. Trade Ambassador Robert Lighthizer has taken the first step in challenging unfair Canadian trade practices that are harming dairy producers in Minnesota and across the country. In August, Sen. Smith led a bipartisan group of 25 Senators in pressing Ambassador Lighthizer and U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue to take action to ensure Canada abides by the dairy provisions of the USMCA. Sen. Smith helped secure stronger dairy trade provisions in the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Free Trade Agreement (USMCA). The agreement took effect in July, and Lighthizer’s action
After Push From U.S. Sen. Tina Smith, USDA Increasing Incentive Payments For Some Conservation Reserve Program Practices from 5 to 20 Percent
WASHINGTON, D.C. [12/09/20]— U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) said today that the U.S. Department of Agriculture has responded to her push to increase Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) incentive payments for certain CRP practices from 5 percent to 20 percent. In October, Sen. Smith pressed U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue to increase incentive payments to stop the enrollment decline in the CRP, which plays a key role in protecting environmentally-sensitive farm land, stopping soil erosion, improving water quality and preserving wildlife habitat. In an October letter to Perdue, Sen. Smith, a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, pushed him to significantly
Amid COVID Surge, U.S. Sens. Smith & Warren Share Findings From Investigation into National Testing Capacity & Pediatric Testing Availability
WASHINGTON, D.C. [12/09/20]—Today, U.S. Senators Tina Smith (D-Minn.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) shared a summary of the findings from their investigation into our nation’s testing capacity and the availability of pediatric testing. Sens. Smith and Warren—both members of the Senate Health Committee—sent their findings to Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Alex Azar and made recommendations to improve the nation’s testing infrastructure. “Together, our findings reveal significant gaps in COVID-19 testing capacity, exacerbating the ongoing public health threat. Addressing these problems will require aggressive federal government action,” wrote Sens. Smith and Warren in their letter to
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Leads Bipartisan Senate Effort to Reduce Greenhouse Emissions
WASHINGTON, D.C. [12/08/20]—U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) and a bipartisan group of senators have introduced legislation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by making tax credits that encourage carbon capture projects more available and easier to use. The measure, the 45Q Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage Tax Credit Amendments Act of 2020, was introduced recently by Sen. Smith and Sens. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), John Hoeven (R-N.D.) and Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.). It would reduce barriers to full utilization of the credit. The bill would extend the tax
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