Latest Releases
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Celebrates Red Lake, Inc. Trade Mission to India
WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN), a member of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee, celebrated that Red Lake Nation’s Red Lake, Inc. will be participating in a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) agribusiness trade mission to New Delhi, India at the end of the month. 47 diverse businesses and organizations will join Under Secretary Alexis M. Taylor on the mission, and Red Lake will be the only representative from a Native or Tribal community. “We need to support all farmers—and that includes making sure we’re advocating for Native farmers who may face unique and challenging barriers to successfully owning and operating farms,” said Sen. Smith. “This trade mission to India will be a great opportunity for Red Lake to cultivate new markets for their agriculture products.” While on the trade mission, participants will engage in targeted meetings and site visits to build new trade linkages, strengthen existing partnerships, observe U.S. products in the marketplace, and discover the latest Indian consumer food trends. Participants will also receive in-depth market briefings from USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service and industry trade experts. Dating back to 2018, Senator Smith has pushed for Tribal inclusion on USDA trade missions. She joined colleagues from New Mexico, Montana, and North Dakota to send a letter to then Secretary Sonny Perdue to more fully incorporate tribes into these trade missions. ###
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
Klobuchar, Smith, Cramer, Colleagues Introduce Bill to Sustain Rural Broadband Connectivity During Coronavirus Pandemic
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Kevin Cramer (R-ND), along with Tina Smith (D-MN), Dan Sullivan (R-AK), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Steve Daines (R-MT), Doug Jones (D-AL), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Jon Tester (D-MT), John Barrasso (R-WY), Pat Roberts (R-KS), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Todd Young (R-IN), and Gary Peters (D-MI) introduced the Keeping Critical Connections Act to help small broadband providers ensure rural broadband connectivity for students and their families during the coronavirus pandemic. “Access to high speed internet is critical for students and their families during the coronavirus outbreak,” Klobuchar said. “The Keeping Critical Connections Act would help small broadband providers continue offering free
Members of the Minnesota Congressional Delegation Urge Administration to Expedite Delivery of Critical Medical Supplies
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith, and Representatives Angie Craig (MN-02), Dean Phillips (MN-03), Betty McCollum (MN-04), Ilhan Omar (MN-05), and Collin Peterson (MN-07) wrote a letter to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) calling on the Administration to expedite the delivery of personal protective equipment from the Strategic National Stockpile (SNS) to Minnesota as the state confronts the coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19). State officials have made several requests for items from the SNS, however health care professionals are still waiting for the majority of these critical supplies. “HHS has rightly mobilized the SNS in response to the current unprecedented need for medical
U.S. Senator Tina Smith Presses to Sustain Rural Hospitals and Providers Amid Coronavirus Pandemic
WASHINGTON, D.C. [03/22/2020]—U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) helped introduce the bipartisan Immediate Relief for Rural Facilities and Providers Act, which would stabilize rural hospitals and provide resources to health care providers as coronavirus (COVID-19) strains health care systems in Minnesota and across the country. “As we all work to combat the coronavirus, I think about how important rural hospitals and providers are as public health experts in Minnesota and across the country, and I’m grateful for the care they’re providing to keep millions of people healthy. We need to provide relief to these rural hospitals and providers, and we need to
U.S. Senators Smith, Warren, Casey, Hirono, Kaine & Booker Urge Senate Leaders to Support Child Care in Coronavirus Stimulus Package
WASHINGTON, D.C. [03/21/20]—Today, U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) led a number of her Senate colleagues—including Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Bob Casey (D-Pa.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Tim Kaine (D-Va.) and Cory Booker (D-N.J.)—in urging Senate leadership to support child care as part of the third coronavirus stimulus package. “Child care providers are struggling to stay afloat and may be forced out of business permanently. If providers are closed, they do not have revenue coming in to pay their staff and other operational costs. They cannot survive without public investment to cover these costs,” wrote Sen. Smith and her colleagues. “In fact, a survey from
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