Press Releases
HELP Committee Unanimously Passes Van Hollen and Burr’s Bill to Improve Safety in Child Care Facilities
WASHINGTON - Today, the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) unanimously passed U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and Richard Burr’s (R-N.C.) Child Care Protection Improvement Act. This bipartisan legislation would create a task force to assist states in the process of implementing background check requirements for child care workers. “As we work to make sure childcare is affordable, we must also ensure that it’s safe and that parents have peace of mind … Continue Reading
December 12, 2019
Van Hollen, Cardin Announce Over $550,000 in Federal Funding for Safety and Legal Support Programs on the Eastern Shore
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin have announced $550,415 in federal funding to boost safety and legal support programs on the Eastern Shore. The funding, provided through the U.S. Department of Justice, includes: · $14,233 for Cecil County through the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program. · $11,835 for the City of Cambridge through the Edward Byrne Memorial JAG Program. · $24,347 for the City of Salisbury … Continue Reading
December 12, 2019
Van Hollen, Cardin Announce Over $4 Million for Eastern Shore Airports
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin (both D-Md.) have announced $4,078,526 in federal funding from the Department of Transportation (DOT) for two airports on the Eastern Shore.The Crisfield Municipal Airport in Somerset County (W41) will receive $670,074 to remove obstructions from the field. The Salisbury Regional Airport (SBY) in Wicomico County will receive $3,408,452 to rehabilitate the taxiway and lighting, as well as the apron.“These airports are vital to … Continue Reading
December 12, 2019
Van Hollen, Democratic Senators Push Internal Revenue Service to Reverse Decision that Protects Dark Money
U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) joined Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and others to submit a comment to the Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) urging the agency to reverse their decision to rollback transparency requirements for dark money groups. For decades, the IRS and the Treasury Department have required 501(c)(4) groups that engage in issue advocacy to identify, confidentially, the names of individual donors who make significant financial contributions ($5,000 or … Continue Reading
December 11, 2019
Van Hollen, Cardin, Hoyer, Ruppersberger, Sarbanes, and Brown Announce $225,000 for Anne Arundel County Police Department for DNA Processing
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin and Representatives Steny H. Hoyer, Dutch Ruppersberger, John Sarbanes, and Anthony Brown (all D-Md.) have announced $225,000 in federal funding for the Anne Arundel County Police Department to process DNA samples. The funding, awarded through the Department of Justice’s DNA Capacity Enhancement and Backlog Reduction (CEBR) program, will be used to increase the capacity of the Department’s Crime Laboratory processing, in … Continue Reading
December 11, 2019
Van Hollen Secures Maryland Priorities in Final Defense Authorization Bill
Today, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) announced the inclusion of several Maryland priorities within the House and Senate-negotiated National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). “I’m pleased that House and Senate negotiators were able to come together on this bipartisan compromise to support our service members and federal employees, strengthen our national security, and invest in critical projects throughout Maryland,” said Senator Van Hollen. “On the home front, this legislation … Continue Reading
December 11, 2019
Van Hollen Applauds SFRC Vote on Sanctions on Turkey
Today, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) issued the following statement applauding the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (SFRC) vote in favor of sanctions against Turkey for their attacks on the Kurds in Northeast Syria. The bill, which passed on an 18-4 vote, closely aligns with the legislation Senator Van Hollen introduced with Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) in October: “I applaud the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on taking bipartisan action today to advance sanctions against … Continue Reading
December 11, 2019
Van Hollen, Blunt Secure Key Provisions of Valor Medals Review Act in Defense Authorization Bill
Today, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) announced that key provisions of the World War I Valor Medals Review Act have been included in the House and Senate-negotiated National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The Senators’ provisions would require the Department of Defense to undertake a review of valor medals awarded to minority Veterans during WWI to determine whether any should receive the Medal of Honor. The language encourages the Department to conduct this … Continue Reading
December 10, 2019
Van Hollen, Brown Announce Inclusion of Honorary Promotion for Bethesda Veteran Charles McGee in Defense Authorization Bill
Today, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen and Representative Anthony Brown (both D-Md.) announced the inclusion of their provision to authorize the honorary promotion of Colonel (Ret.) Charles E. McGee, United States Air Force to Brigadier General within the House and Senate negotiated National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). Col. McGee, a resident of Bethesda, Md., served with the Tuskegee Airmen in World War II, completing 136 combat missions. He completed an additional 100 combat missions in … Continue Reading
December 10, 2019
Van Hollen Announces Inclusion of Paid Parental Leave for Federal Workers in Defense Authorization Bill
Today, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) announced the inclusion of language to provide 2 million federal workers with 12 weeks of paid leave to care for a new child after birth, adoption, or the initiation of foster care. The provision was included within the House and Senate negotiated National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). “We have been fighting for years to provide paid family leave to workers throughout the country. With this agreement, the federal government will finally start to … Continue Reading
December 10, 2019
Van Hollen, Bipartisan Group of Senators Send Letter to UN Convention in Support of Global Efforts to Combat Climate Change
Today, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) joined Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and a bipartisan group of Senators in a letter to Patricia Espinosa, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), in support of its global efforts to thwart climate change. The 25th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 25) is underway in Madrid to convene a meeting on the historic Paris Climate Agreement. The Senators wrote, “Failing to address the worsening … Continue Reading
December 10, 2019
As UN Convention on Climate Change in Europe is Underway, Van Hollen, Democratic Senators Urge Trump to Reconsider Paris Climate Accord Withdrawal
Today, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) joined Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and a group of Democratic Senators in a letter to President Donald Trump, urging him to reconsider his decision to withdraw the United States from the Paris Climate Agreement. In their letter, the Senators sound the alarm on the crisis of climate change and the damage that will be inflicted on Americans for future generations unless immediate action is taken. The Senators warned the President against ceding U.S. … Continue Reading
December 09, 2019
Van Hollen, Blackburn, Durbin to Burmese State Counsellor: We Urge You to Fully Cooperate with the ICJ
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) and Richard Durbin (D-Ill.) and bipartisan group of their colleagues expressed their concerns that Burmese State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi will publicly excuse the actions of the Burmese military, or Tatmadaw, at a meeting before the International Court of Justice at The Hague, Netherlands. The military likely conducted “genocidal acts” against the Rohingya in 2017, according to Marzukri … Continue Reading
December 09, 2019
Van Hollen, Democratic Colleagues Demand Stephen Miller’s Removal from the White House
Today, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) and Kamala D. Harris (D-CA) and 24 of their colleagues wrote a letter to President Donald J. Trump, demanding the immediate removal of Stephen Miller from his position as a White House senior adviser. The letter follows recent reports detailing over 900 e-mails, sent from Mr. Miller to far-right Breitbart News between 2015 and 2016, which confirm that Mr. Miller worked to advance white supremacist, anti-immigrant ideologies. In the letter, the … Continue Reading
December 09, 2019
Van Hollen, Senators Defend Social Security Workers, Urge Reversal of Abrupt Cancellation of Telework
Today, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and Ben Cardin (D-Md.) sent a letter to Social Security Commissioner Andrew Saul questioning the recent unilateral decision to cancel telework for 12,000 employees of the Social Security Administration (SSA). After seven years of telework at SSA, which SSA’s own Inspector General determined has increased productivity, workers were initially given only two weeks to rework commutes, childcare, and other arrangements. SSA pushed the deadline back to … Continue Reading
December 05, 2019
Van Hollen, Cardin Announce $1.56 Million for University System of Maryland Sea Grant Program
U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin (both D-Md.) today announced the award of $1,564,898 for the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science’s Sea Grant Program through the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Maryland Sea Grant (MDSG) funds scientific research related to the Chesapeake Bay and Maryland’s coastal resources with practical applications benefitting Maryland industries, economies, and conservation groups. “The Maryland Sea Grant Program … Continue Reading
December 05, 2019
Van Hollen, Cardin Announce $38.4 Million for Water Infrastructure Projects in Maryland
U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin (both D-Md.) have announced $38.4 million in federal funding for the implementation of several key water infrastructure projects in Maryland. The funding, allocated through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF), will go towards Maryland’s Intended Use Plan - a $297 million plan, approved by the EPA, which aims to upgrade wastewater treatment plants and stormwater control measures throughout the … Continue Reading
December 05, 2019
Van Hollen, Maryland Congressional Delegation Lauds Funding for Howard Street Tunnel Project
Following a Maryland congressional delegation meeting with Maryland Secretary of Transportation Pete K. Rahn, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin and Congressmen Steny H. Hoyer, Dutch Ruppersberger, John Sarbanes, Anthony Brown, Jamie Raskin and David Trone released the following joint statement in response to the news that Maryland officials and CSX have identified additional funding to expand the Howard Street Tunnel. “We are pleased to hear that the State of Maryland and CSX have … Continue Reading
December 02, 2019
Van Hollen, Democrats Stand Up for Constitutionally Protected Right to Abortion; File Bicameral Amicus Brief in June Medical Services LLC v. Gee
Today, Senator Chris Van Hollen and members of the U.S. Senate led by Senators Chuck Schumer, Patty Murray, Dianne Feinstein and Richard Blumenthal, along with 161 members of the U.S. House of Representatives led by Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Representatives Frank Pallone, Jr., Jerrold Nadler, Diana DeGette, Barbara Lee and Judy Chu, filed an amicus brief in the case of June Medical Services LLC v. Gee, which is currently pending before the Supreme Court of the United States and represents a … Continue Reading
December 02, 2019
Van Hollen, Graham Urge Pompeo to Impose Sanctions on Turkey for Acquiring Russian S-400
Today, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) wrote to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo urging him to impose sanctions on Turkey for its acquisition of the Russian S-400 air defense system. Under current law - and per Secretary Pompeo’s own interpretation - the Administration must act. The letter follows reports that Turkey is now testing the S-400 system. “Both the Administration and the Congress have repeatedly warned President Erdogan that his decision to move … Continue Reading
