Latest Releases
U.S. Senator Tina Smith, Rep. Katherine Clark Reintroduce Legislation to Improve School Climates
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) and House Minority Whip Katherine Clark (D-MA5) reintroduced legislation to improve support for youth in schools. The bill, called the Trauma-Informed Schools Act, would support training for teachers and staff in the development of positive school culture and help schools support young people struggling with adversity. The bill is co-led by Congressmen Mike Quigley (D-IL5) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA1) and Congresswoman Andrea Salinas (D-OR6). “Young students are experiencing unique challenges in school as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, increased social media use, and lack of access to mental health care. More than 1 in 5 young people today struggle with their mental health, and that number is rising. We need to do more to provide them with the support they need to succeed,” said Senator Smith. “I’m proud to reintroduce this legislation, which will help schools address childhood trauma and build positive school cultures so that all students and adults are welcome and supported in school buildings.” “America is in the throes of a mental health crisis, and our kids are experiencing the worst of it,” said Democratic Whip Katherine Clark. “Overcoming this epidemic means equipping our schools with trained, trauma-informed professionals who can help students navigate whatever challenges they may encounter, both in and out of the classroom. The Trauma-Informed Schools Act makes that possible — giving the next generation a fair shot by providing the emotional and social support they need to succeed.” “Trauma is difficult for anyone to process, but for children and teens, it can be especially life-changing and impact their ability to succeed
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Leads 29 Colleagues in Push for Robust Rural Housing Funding
WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) led 29 of her Senate colleagues in a push for more funding for rural housing programs in the FY2025 Appropriations bill. In their letter, the Senators noted that rural communities saw only a 1.7% increase in the number of housing units between 2010 and 2020, with almost half of states seeing a decrease in the number of rural units. According to the Minnesota Housing Partnership, every county in Minnesota has a shortage of affordable and available rental homes for extremely low-income households. 79% of counties have a shortage that exceeds 100 homes, and 31% have a shortage exceeding 500 homes. “Without a safe, decent, affordable place to call home, nothing in your life works – not your job, your health, your education or your family,” said Senator Smith. “While the housing crisis is hurting communities across the country, the burden has been especially hard on small towns and rural communities. The severe shortage of affordable housing is hurting rural America’s ability to prosper, and it is imperative we direct more funding to address this housing shortage and finally bring our communities some relief. “Against this backdrop, federal rural housing programs have shrunk to the point that only about 3,500 direct loans are available for low-income families to purchase or build their own home, the lowest level since 1957. Funding to preserve rental and farm labor housing is meager by any standard and by no means adequate to provide new housing opportunities or preserve existing housing resources,” wrote the Senators. “In the coming years, the number of maturing Section 515 mortgages will
Klobuchar, Smith Announce $4.2 Million for Public Transit Infrastructure Funding
WASHINGTON — U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith announced that the Department of Transportation (DOT) has awarded the Metropolitan Council $2,800,000 on behalf of the Minnesota Valley Transit Authority (MVTA) and the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) $1,412,890 for public transit infrastructure to support buses and bus facilities statewide. This funding will be used to replace, rehabilitate and purchase buses and related equipment and to construct bus-related facilities and will include funding to modify low-emission vehicles and facilities. “The coronavirus pandemic has had a devastating impact on public transit infrastructure across Minnesota, including in our Tribal communities,” Klobuchar said.
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
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