Durbin, Duckworth Introduce Background Check Expansion Act To Reduce Gun Violence

WASHINGTON-U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today joined U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) and 26 of their Senate colleagues to announce the introduction of the Background Check Expansion Act, which will expand federal background checks to the sale or transfer of all firearms by private sellers, with certain reasonable exceptions. Under current law, unlicensed or private sellers are not required to conduct a background check prior to transferring a firearm. Research in… Continue Reading

Durbin: Republicans, Wells Fargo, Equifax, And Big Banks Teamed Up To Rig The System Against American Consumers

WASHINGTON - In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) called out Senate Republicans for voting to repeal a Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) rule that holds big banks and financial institutions accountable for fraud and other misdeeds. The CFPB mandatory arbitration rule, which was set to take full effect next March, would stop financial services companies from using forced arbitration clauses to block consumer class action suits. It also requires… Continue Reading

Durbin: Congress Has A Responsibility To Do Its Job And Make Dream Act The Law Of The Land

WASHINGTON-Following the Trump Administration's announcement on September 5, 2017 that it will rescind the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) came to the Senate floor today to call on Republican leaders in Congress to bring the bipartisan Dream Act to the floor for a vote. During his speech, Durbin shared the story of one Dreamer - William Medeiros, who was only six years old when his family moved to the United States from Braz… Continue Reading

Durbin, Colleagues Introduce Landmark Environmental Justice Bill

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) joined Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) and U.S. Representative Raul Ruiz (D-CA) to introduce a landmark bill that represents a major step toward eliminating environmental injustice. The Environmental Justice Act of 2017 requires federal agencies to address environmental justice through agency actions and permitting decisions, and strengthens legal protections against environmental injustice for communities of color, low-income communities, and indigenous … Continue Reading

Durbin Meets With VA Secretary, Continues To Press For Reforms At Marion VA

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today met with Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Secretary David Shulkin to discuss the steps being taken to ensure accountability at Marion VA Medical Center following reports of alleged incidents of prohibited personnel practices. Durbin also noted Marion VA Medical Center Director Jo-Ann Ginsberg's effort to address concerns among the top leadership team at Marion VA, but urged Secretary Shulkin to look into the concern that the middle managemen… Continue Reading

Durbin Presses VA Secretary To Protect Veterans From Predatory For-Profit Colleges

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today met with Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Secretary David Shulkin to discuss recent VA proposals related to the financial relationships of its employees with for-profit colleges and the for-profit college industry's shameful record of preying on veterans. In 2016, for-profit colleges received 34 percent of all VA GI Bill education funds or $1.7 billion - often using aggressive recruiting and misleading marketing to target veterans. "For-pr… Continue Reading

Durbin, Duckworth Call For $300 Million For Great Lakes Restoration Initiative In Next Year's Budget

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) joined a bipartisan letter to Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney calling for $300 million for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative to be included in the Fiscal Year 2019 budget request. The letter was signed by Great Lakes Task Force Co-Chairs Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) and Rob Portman (R-OH), along with Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Todd Young (R-IN), Joe Donnelly (D-IN), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Bob Casey (D-PA), A… Continue Reading

Durbin, Senators Request Update On Drug Enforcement Law

WASHINGTON-U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), and Ed Markey (D-MA) led a letter to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) requesting information on the impact of the Ensuring Patient Access and Effective Drug Enforcement Act of 2016 highlighted in a recent report from The Washington Post and "60 Minutes." The letter also calls upon the agencies to submit a long-overdue report to Congress providing both an overvie… Continue Reading

Durbin, Senators Press President Trump To Protect Utah National Monuments

WASHINGTON-U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today led 15 of his Senate colleagues in urging President Trump to maintain the current boundaries and management plans for the Bears Ears and Grand Staircase Escalante National Monuments in Utah. Durbin and his colleagues wrote President Trump today following reports by both The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal that Secretary of Interior Ryan Zinke recommended modifying certain national monuments, including shrinking the boundaries of… Continue Reading

Durbin, Duckworth Announce $3.8 Million In HUD funding To Support Northern Illinois Housing And Community Development

CHICAGO - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today announced that Northern Illinois communities will receive $3,880,550 in federal grant funding through three programs administered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). In total, Northern Illinois communities were awarded $2,957,019 through the Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) program, $182,521 through the Emergency Shelter Grants (ESG) program, and $741,010 through the HOME Investment P… Continue Reading

Durbin Releases Report on Trump's ACA Sabotage Efforts, Promotes November 1 Open Enrollment

CHICAGO - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today released a new report which details the Trump Administration's deliberate, year-long efforts to undermine the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and the impact of this sabotage on patients and families in Illinois. "1,000 Cuts: A Report on the Trump Administration's Health Care Sabotage" highlights the steps President Trump has taken since Inauguration Day to undermine and create uncertainty in our health care system, including last week's executive order a… Continue Reading

Durbin, Duckworth Announce $2.5 Million In HUD Funding To Support Peoria Area Housing And Community Development

CHICAGO - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today announced that Peoria area communities will receive $2,575,764 in federal grant funding through three programs administered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). In total, Peoria area communities were awarded $1,932,441 through the Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) program, $137,451 through the Emergency Shelter Grants (ESG) program, and $505,872 through the HOME Investment Partnerships p… Continue Reading

Durbin, Duckworth Announce $3.4 Million In HUD funding To Support Central Illinois Housing And Community Development

CHICAGO - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today announced that Central Illinois communities will receive $3,436,353 in federal grant funding through two programs administered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). In total, Central Illinois communities were awarded $2,679,744 through the Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) program and $756,609 through the HOME Investment Partnerships program. In addition to this funding, the Illinois Hou… Continue Reading

Durbin, Duckworth Announce $7.4 Million In HUD Funding To Support Metro East Housing And Community Development

CHICAGO - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today announced that Metro East communities will receive $7,429,063 in federal grant funding through two programs administered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). In total, Metro East communities were awarded $5,895,762 through the Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) program and $1,533,301 through the HOME Investment Partnerships program. In addition to this funding, the Illinois Housing Devel… Continue Reading

Durbin, Duckworth Announce $138.9 Million In HUD Funding To Support Chicagoland Housing And Community Decelopment

CHICAGO - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today announced that Chicagoland communities will receive $138,961,000 in federal grant funding through four programs administered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). In total, Chicagoland communities were awarded $99,228,739 through the Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) program, $8,773,255 through the Emergency Shelter Grants (ESG) program, $23,005,466 through the HOME Investment Partnership… Continue Reading

Durbin Backs Fix To Bill That Weakened DEA Opioid Oversight

WASHINGTON-Following a recent article by The Washington Post exposing the lobbying effort that led to a weakening of the Drug Enforcement Administration's (DEA) ability to go after pharmaceutical drug distributors at the height of our nation's opioid epidemic, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today joined Senator Claire McCaskill (D-MO) to co-sponsor legislation that would overturn two key provisions of the Ensuring Patient Access and Effective Drug Enforcement Act of 2016 that have made it more … Continue Reading

Durbin Introduces Bill To Curb Gun Violence From Stolen Firearms

WASHINGTON-U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today introduced legislation to reduce gun violence by cracking down on thefts from federally-licensed firearms dealers. A companion measure was introduced in the House by Congressman Brad Schneider (D-IL) in July. It is cosponsored in the Senate by Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Ed Markey (D-MA), Bob Casey (D-PA), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA). "The 96% of Americans who support backg… Continue Reading

Durbin Statement On Committee Approval Of John Lausch For U.S. Attorney For The Northern District Of Illinois

WASHINGTON-U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) released the following statement after voting in support of the nomination of John R. Lausch to serve as the United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois during today's Senate Judiciary Committee mark up. Mr. Lausch's nomination passed unanimously out of committee and will next be voted on by the full Senate. "From the outset, Senator Duckworth and I made clear to the White House that we expected Zach Fardon's successor to be selected… Continue Reading

Sessions Refuses To Deny He Colluded With Texas AG To Shut Down DACA

WASHINGTON-U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today pressed U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions to detail any communications with Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton or any other Attorneys General-who had threatened to file a partisan lawsuit challenging the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, prior to Sessions' announcement that the Trump Administration was ending the program. "That kind of legal discussions, I believe, would be part of the work product of the Att… Continue Reading

Durbin Calls Out AG Sessions For Attempting To Eliminate Vital Federal Funds From Chicago's Gun Violence Prevention Efforts

WASHINGTON-During today's Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) assailed U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions for threatening to cut off Chicago's access to federal Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (Byrne-JAG) funding unless local police forces commit to assist the Department of Homeland Security in its enforcement of federal civil immigration laws. Earlier this year, the Department of Justice placed new and onerous conditions on local law enforcement'… Continue Reading