Durbin Meets Virtually With Illinois Farm Bureau President

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, today met virtually with Illinois Farm Bureau President Richard Guebert and members of the organization. On the call, Durbin discussed agriculture priorities for Illinois' farmers, including the importance of farmworker labor, ethanol production, international trade agreements, greater price transparency in the livestock markets, and the need for strong transportat… Continue Reading

Durbin, Duckworth Announce $121 Million In Federal Funding For Emergency Preparedness In Illinois

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today announced $121 million in federal funding to improve emergency preparedness across Illinois. The funding, awarded by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), will go to state and local authorities, nonprofit and religious institutions, transportation agencies, and port facility operators in Illinois to prevent, protect against, respond to, and recover from acts of terrorism and other disasters. "Illinois will … Continue Reading

Durbin Questions Witnesses At Hearing On Need For Path To Citizenship For Immigrant Farmworkers

WASHINGTON - During today's Senate Judiciary Committee hearing entitled, "Immigrant Farmworkers are Essential to Feeding America," U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, asked Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack to reflect on the state of agriculture in Secretary Vilsack's home state of Iowa as it relates to the issue of immigrant farmworkers. "We have a witness in the next panel, Linnea Kooistra-thank you for being here-she's from a dairy family… Continue Reading

Durbin Statement On Bipartisan Infrastructure Framework Vote

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) released the following statement today after the failed Senate vote on the motion to invoke cloture on the motion to proceed to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Framework: "For months, Senators negotiated this bipartisan infrastructure framework. It is unfortunate we could not agree to merely start debate today. "Illinois needs the federal funding promised in this bipartisan infrastructure framework right now. We are ready to put people t… Continue Reading

Agriculture Secretary Vilsack Delivers Opening Statement At Immigrant Farmworkers Judiciary Committee Hearing

WASHINGTON - Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack testified today during the "Immigrant Farmworkers are Essential to Feeding America" Judiciary Committee hearing, the first-ever appearance by an Agriculture Secretary before the full Senate Judiciary Committee. During his opening statement, Vilsack discussed the important role immigrant farmworkers have in the food and agriculture industry and the overall economy. He also voiced support for passage of the bipartisan, House-passed Farm Workforce M… Continue Reading

Durbin Delivers Opening Statement At Hearing On Need For Path To Citizenship For Immigrant Farmworkers

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today delivered an opening statement during the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing entitled "Immigrant Farmworkers are Essential to Feeding America." The hearing will examine the essential contributions of immigrant farmworkers to our food supply and highlight the need for the Senate to take up legislation to provide a path to citizenship for undocumented farmworkers. Key quotes: "During this p… Continue Reading

Durbin, Senators Welcome Belarusian Opposition Leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya To Senate

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) joined U.S. Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Dan Sullivan (R-AK) to welcome Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya to the U.S. Senate this afternoon to meet with a bipartisan group of lawmakers. The lawmakers were also joined by U.S. Senators Roger Wicker (R-MS), Tim Kaine (D-VA), and Lindsey Graham (R-SC), and Julie Fisher - the United States Ambassador to Belarus - for the discussion, where they highlighted U.S. support… Continue Reading

Senate Passes Critical Bipartisan, House-Passed Legislation To Strengthen The Victims Of Crime Act

WASHINGTON - Today, the U.S. Senate passed bipartisan, House-passed legislation to strengthen the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) by fixing how the Crime Victims Fund (CVF) is funded. This legislation, led by U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) will redirect monetary penalties from federal deferred prosecution and non-prosecution agreements into the CVF to increase funding for state victim compensation and assistan… Continue Reading

Durbin, Booker: We Should Not Force Individuals On Home Confinement To Return To Prison

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Criminal Justice and Counterterrorism, today responded to reports that the Biden Administration has decided that thousands of nonviolent inmates who were released on home confinement to reduce the spread of COVID-19 will be required to return to prison one month after the official state of emergency for the pandemic… Continue Reading

Durbin, Duckworth Urge Forest Service To Review Shawnee National Forest For Wilderness Designation

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Agriculture, Forestry, and Nutrition Committee, and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today sent a letter to the U.S. Forest Service requesting that the lands of the Shawnee National Forest be reviewed to determine if areas of the forest meet the requirements to be considered for wilderness protection. U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) and U.S. Representative John Curtis (R-UT-03) introduced the Shawnee Wilderness … Continue Reading

Durbin Speaks On Bipartisan & Bicameral Legislation To Sustain Crime Victims Fund

WASHINGTON - Ahead of a vote on the Senate floor, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today spoke in support of the bipartisan, bicameral VOCA Fix to Sustain the Crime Victims Fund Act, which strengthens the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) by fixing how the Crime Victims Fund (CVF) is funded. Specifically, the bill redirects monetary penalties from federal deferred prosecution and non-prosecution agreements into the CVF to increase funding for state… Continue Reading

Senate Confirms Kenneth Polite, Jr. To Be Assistant Attorney General For The Criminal Division

WASHINGTON - Today, the U.S. Senate confirmed Kenneth Allen Polite, Jr. to be Assistant Attorney General for the Department of Justice's (DOJ) Criminal Division. Ahead of the confirmation vote, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, spoke on the Senate floor in support of Mr. Polite, Jr.'s nomination. He was confirmed by the Senate on a bipartisan vote of 56-44. "As an experienced prosecutor who has served his community throughout his career, Mr… Continue Reading

Durbin Praises Expanded Child Tax Credit On Senate Floor

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today took to the Senate floor to emphasize the impact of the historic Child Tax Credit expansion included in the American Rescue Plan, which was made possible by the efforts of Democrats and President Biden. In his remarks, Durbin highlighted the importance of the automatic monthly payments and estimates that the expanded credit could cut child poverty by half this year. "Last week was an important day for literally millions of America… Continue Reading

Durbin: Republicans Must Drop Opposition To Emergency Supplemental Bill To Pay National Guard, Capitol Police

WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee and a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, urged Senate Republicans to support an emergency supplemental appropriations bill, introduced by Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Patrick Leahy (D-VT), that would address the urgent security needs facing the Capitol and the country. The $3.7 billion bill would address the violent insurrection that took place on January 6, provide fun… Continue Reading

Durbin: Gun Violence Has Become As American As Baseball

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today delivered a speech on the Senate floor decrying another weekend of mass gun violence across the country, including a shooting outside a Washington Nationals game and the shooting of more than 50 people in Chicago, including seven children. In his remarks, Durbin called out the continued normalization of gun violence in American life despite the unrelenting trauma and deaths caused by daily s… Continue Reading

Senate Confirms Tiffany Cunningham To The Federal Circuit On Bipartisan Vote

WASHINGTON - Today, the U.S. Senate voted to confirm Tiffany P. Cunningham to be United States Circuit Judge for the Federal Circuit by a bipartisan vote of 63-33. U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, released the following statement regarding Ms. Cunningham's confirmation: "This is a truly historic confirmation-Ms. Cunningham will serve as the first Black judge on the Federal Circuit. She will not only bring much-needed diversity to the bench… Continue Reading

Durbin: Senate Democrats Must Act On Permanent Legislative Solution For Dreamers

WASHINGTON-U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee and original author of the Dream Act, today slammed Friday's federal court ruling in Texas on the legality of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and pressed the Senate to finally give Dreamers a pathway to citizenship. "I cannot imagine what life would be like if I were a kid growing up in America, always wondering if something I said, something I did, some action that was taken by some m… Continue Reading

Durbin Meets With U.S. EPA Administrator Michael Regan About Region 5 Priorities

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today met virtually with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Michael Regan to discuss Durbin's priorities for EPA's Region 5, which includes Illinois. On the call, Durbin followed up on his March request that EPA update the Lead and Copper Rule (LCR) using the best available science and that any stakeholder outreach include Chicago or Illinois to ensure that all Illinoisans have access to clean, lead-free water. Durbi… Continue Reading

Durbin Statement On Texas Court DACA Ruling

CHICAGO-U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee and original author of the Dream Act, released the following statement regarding a federal court ruling in Texas on the legality of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA): "This cruel and misguided act of judicial fiat is the culmination of a longstanding Republican campaign to deport Dreamers. Congress will now act quickly - with or without the party of Donald Trump - to allow these Americans … Continue Reading

Senate Judiciary Committee To Hold Oversight Hearing On FBI's Dereliction Of Duty In Larry Nassar Case

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee; Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee; and Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) today announced that the Senate Judiciary Committee will hold an oversight hearing on the Federal Bureau of Investigation's (FBI) dereliction of duty in the Larry Nassar case, which enabled the continued abuse of dozens of victims. "The FBI's failure … Continue Reading