Press Releases
Van Hollen, Cardin, Trone Announce $11 Million in Federal Funding for the Appalachian Development Highway System in Maryland
Today, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin and Congressman David Trone (all D-Md.) announced $11,072,956 in federal funding for Maryland to continue construction of the Appalachian Development Highway System (ADHS) including the last remaining section of "Corridor N" that runs through Western Maryland. Funding comes from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which included a $1.25 billion investment over five years towards the completion of the ADHS. The ADHS is comprised of … Continue Reading
January 25, 2022
Van Hollen, Warnock Press Defense Department to Protect Servicemembers, Military Families from Inadequate Private Base Housing
Following a recent $65 million settlement between the U.S. government and a private housing company guilty of fraudulent and untruthful monetizing practices, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) joined Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) in a new oversight effort to protect the nation's servicemembers from unsanitary, unsafe living conditions at military base housing facilities operated by Balfour Beatty Communities (BBC) LLC. In a new letter to the Department of Defense, the Senators … Continue Reading
January 25, 2022
Van Hollen, Cardin, Colleagues Urge Biden Administration to Require Medicare to Cover Costs for At-Home Rapid COVID-19 Tests
U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin (both D-Md.) joined Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), Chairwoman of the Senate Finance Committee Health Care Subcommittee, and a group of their Senate colleagues in urging the Biden Administration to extend their guidance requiring insurance companies to pay for rapid tests to include Medicare. Currently, most private insurance companies are required to cover the cost of up to eight over-the-counter at-home COVID-19 tests per person, per month, … Continue Reading
January 20, 2022
Van Hollen, Durbin, Bipartisan Colleagues Urge President Biden to Include Funding for Emergency International Food Aid in Any Supplemental Request to Congress
U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) joined Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) in a bipartisan letter to President Biden urging him to include funding for emergency international food aid in any upcoming supplemental request to Congress. Recently, the Biden Administration provided an additional $308 million in aid and eased procedures for humanitarian groups. However, the Senators noted in their letter that both the United Nations and World Food Programme (WFP) indicate far more is needed to … Continue Reading
January 20, 2022
Van Hollen, Menendez, Colleagues Sound Alarm Following Reports of High Denial Rates for At-Risk Afghans Seeking Humanitarian Parole into U.S.
United States Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) joined Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) in writing to Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas to express concern over reports of high denial rates for Afghans seeking humanitarian parole into the United States in the wake of the Taliban's takeover and the use of an untenably high standard of proof to determine eligibility for the more than 35,000 Afghans who … Continue Reading
January 20, 2022
Van Hollen, Warren, Murphy, Khanna Call on President Biden to Overhaul U.S. Counterterrorism Policy
United States Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), and Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and Representative Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) sent a letter to President Biden expressing concern about the United States' targeting criteria for drone strikes that has led to the deaths of thousands of civilians, with little accountability. In the letter, the lawmakers call on the President to overhaul U.S. counterterrorism policy to center human rights and the protection of civilians, only using … Continue Reading
January 20, 2022
Maryland Congressional Delegation Members Support Expansion of Patuxent Research Refuge
Today, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin and Congressmen Steny H. Hoyer, Dutch Ruppersberger, John Sarbanes, and Jamie B. Raskin urged the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to allow the proposed transfer of a 105-acre parcel of land currently owned by the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service so it can be added to the adjacent Patuxent Research Refuge. Touting the lasting environmental benefits to the Chesapeake Bay and future generations of … Continue Reading
January 20, 2022
Van Hollen, Scott, Warnock, Lummis Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Protect Seniors from Fraud
Today, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Tim Scott (R-S.C.), Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), and Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.) introduced bipartisan legislation to help better protect seniors from fraud. According to a report from the Senate Special Committee on Aging released last Congress, older Americans lose approximately $3 billion each year to financial scams and abuse. A separate survey from the Investor Protection Trust found that approximately seven million Americans have reported being … Continue Reading
January 20, 2022
Van Hollen, Cardin Praise Judiciary Committee Approval of Judge Julie Rubin for Maryland U.S. District Court Seat
Today, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin (both D-Md.) praised the Judiciary Committee's bipartisan approval of Judge Julie Rubin to serve as U.S. District Court Judge for the District of Maryland. "We are pleased that the Judiciary Committee favorably recommended Judge Julie Rubin," the senators said. "Judge Rubin brings tremendous experience to the federal bench having served as a Baltimore City Circuit Judge for nearly a decade, where she handles a busy and diverse caseload in … Continue Reading
January 19, 2022
Van Hollen Statement on Voting Rights Legislation, Filibuster Reform
Today, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) released the following statement regarding the future of voting rights legislation and filibuster reform in the United States Senate: "While I'm deeply disappointed, tonight's vote is not the end of this fight. We will redouble our efforts and push forward. As my colleague Senator Warnock said tonight on the Senate floor, just as John Lewis ultimately persevered in the march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge - we will keep fighting until we get … Continue Reading
January 19, 2022
Van Hollen, Cardin Applaud U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for Including Over $42 Million for Maryland in Infrastructure Bill Work Plan
Today, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), a member of the Appropriations Committee, and Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Chair of the Environment and Public Works Transportation & Infrastructure Subcommittee, applauded the inclusion of $42.15 million in Maryland projects in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act Work Plan. The plan includes a major victory for the health of the Chesapeake Bay and the economic vitality of the Port of Baltimore with the inclusion of … Continue Reading
January 19, 2022
Maryland Delegation Members Announce Nearly $400 Million in Federal Support for Water Infrastructure Modernization in Baltimore City
Today, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin and Congressmen Dutch Ruppersberger, John Sarbanes, and Kweisi Mfume (all D-Md.) announced $396 million in Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) loans for the City of Baltimore, Md., to help the city upgrade aging water infrastructure, including in low-income communities and communities of color. Project construction and operation are expected to create an estimated 2,700 jobs. "No Marylander should have to worry about … Continue Reading
January 18, 2022
Van Hollen, Cardin Introduce Legislation Removing the Name of Segregationist from Chevy Chase Circle
Today, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin (both D-Md.) introduced legislation to remove the name of Francis G. Newlands from Chevy Chase Circle. Newlands, a former U.S. Senator from Nevada, held racist views and worked to keep working class, Black, and Jewish families out of the Chevy Chase community but is currently memorialized on a fountain and plaque in the circle. Chevy Chase Circle is located partially in the District of Columbia and partially in Maryland but is under federal … Continue Reading
January 18, 2022
Van Hollen Statement on WMATA General Manager & CEO Paul Wiedefeld Announcing Retirement
Today, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) released the following statement on Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) General Manager & CEO Paul Wiedefeld's announced retirement: "Paul Wiedefeld was dealt a difficult hand, but in his six years at WMATA he has worked hard to navigate the many challenges facing the agency. I have appreciated his efforts to collaborate with Metro's federal partners in the process as we worked to secure critical federal funding with the goal … Continue Reading
January 14, 2022
Maryland Delegation Members Announce Over $400 Million in Infrastructure Law Funding to Improve Bridges Across the State
Today, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin and Congressmen Steny H. Hoyer, Dutch Ruppersberger, John Sarbanes, Kweisi Mfume, Anthony G. Brown, Jamie Raskin, and David Trone (all D-Md.) announced that Maryland will receive $409,507,880 over the next five years to improve bridges and create good-paying jobs across the state. This historic federal funding is one the single largest investments ever made to repair and reconstruct our state's bridges, including city and county-owned … Continue Reading
January 14, 2022
Van Hollen Statement on Biden Nominations of Sarah Bloom Raskin, Lisa Cook, and Philip Jefferson to Serve on Fed Board
Today, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) released the following statement regarding President Biden's nomination of Sarah Bloom Raskin, Lisa Cook, and Philip Jefferson to serve on the Federal Reserve Board of Governors: "As our nation continues to face a range of economic challenges - including the impact of COVID-19, the need to create more shared prosperity, and the accelerating financial and other threats of climate change - we need wise and strong leadership at the Federal Reserve. … Continue Reading
January 12, 2022
Van Hollen, Gillibrand, Colleagues Call on Biden Administration to Continue and Make Permanent Osha’s Emergency Covid-19 Protections for Health Care Workers; Protections have Been Allowed to Lapse
As the rise of the Omicron variant continues to threaten the safety of our nation's health care workforce, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) sent a letter calling on the Biden administration to continue and make permanent the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's (OSHA) emergency COVID-19 protections for health care workers. The letter addresses OSHA's announcement at the end of 2021 that it would allow the Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) to … Continue Reading
January 12, 2022
Van Hollen Statement on Passing of Former Maryland Attorney General Stephen H. Sachs
Today, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) released the following statement on the passing of Stephen H. Sachs, former Maryland Attorney General and U.S. Attorney for Maryland: "Steve Sachs loved our state and leaves a long legacy of service to Maryland and the law - as Maryland's Attorney General, U.S. Attorney, and a private citizen. Over the years I valued Steve's counsel, his commitment to our democratic system, and his friendship. His legacy lives on and serves as an example of the … Continue Reading
January 12, 2022
As Threat of Russian Invasion of Ukraine Looms, Van Hollen, Menendez, Senate Democrats Introduce the Defending Ukraine Sovereignty Act of 2022
Today, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) joined Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) in introducing the Defending Ukraine Sovereignty Act of 2022, critical legislation to impose steep costs in the event of a renewed Kremlin invasion of Ukraine. As the Kremlin continues to engage in an unjustified military build-up along Ukraine's border, the proposal by Senate Democrats to deter a military escalation sends a clear message that the United States is prepared to impose devastating consequences for … Continue Reading
January 12, 2022
Maryland Congressional Delegation Shares Top Environmental Priorities During Virtual Meeting with EPA Regional Administrator Adam Ortiz
Members of Maryland's congressional delegation gathered virtually Tuesday for their first official meeting with the newly appointed regional administrator for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region III, Adam Ortiz. U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin and Congressmen Steny H. Hoyer, John Sarbanes, Kweisi Mfume, Jamie Raskin and David Trone (all D-Md.) met with Ortiz to discuss Chesapeake Bay Program oversight, implementation of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs … Continue Reading
