Press Releases
Durbin: 'Move Over' To Save Lives Of Police & First Responders
WASHINGTON - In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today paid tribute to three Illinois State Troopers who have been killed after being struck by vehicles on the sides of roads and highways this year. Durbin honored Illinois State Troopers Brooke Jones-Story, Jerry Ellis, and Chris Lambert, and recognized the efforts of Lucy Kuelper, the daughter of an Illinois State Trooper who created a Facebook page to raise awareness about Scott's Law, which requires motorists to s… Continue Reading
04.05.19
Durbin Highlights Legislation To Address High Cost Of Child Care For Working Families
CHICAGO - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today hosted a roundtable discussion with child care providers, parents, and local leaders to discuss the high cost of child care for working families. Durbin has co-sponsored several bills aimed at helping Illinois families manage the increasing costs associated with raising a child. "High-quality, affordable and reliable child care is a necessity for Illinois' working families," Durbin said. "That's why I'm proud to support legislation that provides … Continue Reading
04.04.19
Durbin Hosts Illinois Members & CDC Director For Delegation Luncheon
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today hosted members of the Illinois Congressional Delegation and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Robert Redfield at an Illinois Congressional Delegation Luncheon to discuss public health issues in Illinois. The group discussed ethylene oxide emissions from medical device sterilization facilities in DuPage and Lake Counties, and veterans' safety at Illinois Veterans Homes. Started by the late U.S. Senator Alan J. Dixon, the I… Continue Reading
04.04.19
Durbin Meets With Jeffrey Rosen, President Trump's Deputy AG Nominee
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today met with President Donald Trump's nominee to be Deputy U.S. Attorney General, Jeffrey Rosen. In today's meeting, Durbin pressed Rosen, who has no prior Department of Justice (DOJ) experience, about his views on immigration, criminal justice reform, and voting rights. "Mr. Rosen has been nominated to serve as the number two person in the Department of Justice. He has no experience with… Continue Reading
04.04.19
Durbin, King, Smith, Sinema, Neguse Introduce Bicameral Legislation To Help Make College Textbooks More Affordable
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Angus King (I-ME), Tina Smith (D-MN), and Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), along with U.S. Representative Joe Neguse (D-CO-02), today introduced bicameral legislation designed to help students manage costs by making high quality textbooks easily accessible to students, professors, and the public for free. This bill, known as the Affordable College Textbook Act, would authorize a competitive grant program to support the creation of and expand the use of open c… Continue Reading
04.04.19
Durbin Presses Carson About Trump Administration's Cuts To Public Housing In East St. Louis
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today, in a Senate Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Services Appropriations Subcommittee Hearing, pressed U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Ben Carson about the Trump Administration's Fiscal Year 2020 budget, which calls for deep cuts in federal funding to HUD's affordable housing programs. Durbin specifically mentioned his concerns about the proposal to eliminate the Public Housing Capital Fund… Continue Reading
04.03.19
Durbin, Kaine Introduce Bill To Support Family Caregivers
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tim Kaine (D-VA) today introduced the Supporting America's Caregivers and Families Act, a bill that would increase funding, training, and support for the more than 34 million family caregivers in America. Each year caregivers provide more than $470 billion worth of unpaid care-more than the entire federal Medicaid budget. The average caregiver spends $7,000 of their own money every year to provide care to loved ones, with an average commitment … Continue Reading
04.03.19
Durbin Presses Carson About Trump Administration's Cuts To Public Housing In East St. Louis
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today, in a Senate Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Services Appropriations Subcommittee Hearing, pressed U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Ben Carson about the Trump Administration's Fiscal Year 2020 budget, which calls for deep cuts in federal funding to HUD's affordable housing programs. Durbin specifically mentioned his concerns about the proposal to eliminate the Public Housing Capital Fund… Continue Reading
04.03.19
Durbin Statement On NATO Secretary General's Address To Joint Meeting Of Congress
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) released the following statement today after attending an address to a Joint Meeting of Congress by the Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Jens Stoltenberg: "Even before he took office, President Trump was never a supporter of NATO. Every NATO insult he tweets encourages nations, like Russia, that have long sought to destroy the alliance. "Today's Joint Meeting of Congress reaffirmed NATO's importance as the foundati… Continue Reading
04.03.19
Durbin, Menendez, Rubio Lead Bipartisan Group Introducing Comprehensive Bill To Help Restore Democracy In Venezuela
WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Bob Menendez (D-NJ), and Marco Rubio (R-FL) introduced new comprehensive legislation to help restore democracy and address the humanitarian crisis in Venezuela. The most comprehensive effort to date to confront the crisis in Venezuela, the Venezuela Emergency Relief, Democracy Assistance and Development (VERDAD) Act drastically increases humanitarian assistance, expands current tools to address kleptocracy, formally recognizes and supports th… Continue Reading
04.03.19
Durbin, Duckworth Join Senate Democratic Caucus to Save Health Care For Millions Of Americans & Those With Pre-Existing Conditions
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today joined all 47 Senate Democrats to introduce a Senate resolution-led by Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH)-that would reverse the Department of Justice's (DOJ) recent decision to side with U.S. District Court Judge Reed O'Connor's ruling that deems health care protections enjoyed by hundreds of millions unconstitutional. This latest act of health care sabotage from the Trump Administration could result in 133 million Ameri… Continue Reading
04.03.19
Durbin, Harris, Cortez Masto Introduce Bill To Lift Ban On Dreamers Working For Congress
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Kamala D. Harris (D-CA), and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) introduced the American Dream Employment Act, legislation to rescind the current prohibition on Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients working or participating in paid internships in Congress. "Since I first introduced the Dream Act in 2001, I have met hundreds of Dreamers who are giving back to their communities as teachers, nurses, engineers, and soldiers. Many of them … Continue Reading
04.02.19
Durbin, Feinstein, Coons, Harris, Schatz Press GAO For Updated Study On Use Of Solitary Confinement In Federal Prisons
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Chris Coons (D-DE), Kamala Harris (D-CA), and Brian Schatz (D-HI) today requested that the Government Accountability Office (GAO) conduct a follow-up study on the use of restricted housing within the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP). GAO issued a study on the topic in 2013 that provided important insights into BOP's policies on restricted housing. In 2015, BOP released an independent assessment that Durbin had requested, wh… Continue Reading
04.02.19
Durbin Meets With CEO Of Corn Growers Association
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee, today met with Jon Doggett, CEO of the National Corn Growers Association, to discuss agriculture priorities in Illinois. "Today, I was pleased to meet with Mr. Doggett and hear how the National Corn Growers Association is supporting our farmers in Illinois, the importance of trade with Mexico and Canada, and their work on farmer-led soil health improvements," Durbin said. "We a… Continue Reading
04.02.19
Durbin: Senate Republicans Changing Rules To Pack Federal Courts With Ideological Nominees
WASHINGTON - In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today slammed Senate Republicans for their proposed Senate rules change, which would further erode the rights of Senators by limiting the debate time on most nominations. If Senate Republicans' attempt to change the rules is successful, most nominations, including lifetime appointments to the federal district court bench, would be subject to up to only two hours of post-cloture debate time on the Senate… Continue Reading
04.02.19
Durbin: End Forced Arbitration & Give Students Defrauded by For-Profit Colleges Their Day In Court
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), in a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing today, discussed the need to end the use of forced arbitration clauses, a legal strategy used by many industries, including the for-profit college industry, to restrict people's ability to pursue legal claims in court. Durbin, along with U.S. Representative Maxine Waters (D-CA-43), has introduced the Court Legal Access & Student Support (CLASS) Act, a bicameral bill designed to strengthen students' ability… Continue Reading
04.02.19
Durbin Joins Colleagues To Reintroduce Medicare-X To Provide Low-Cost, High-Quality Insurance To Every American
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) joined Senators Michael Bennet (D-CO) and Tim Kaine (D-VA) today to reintroduce legislation to create Medicare-X, a public health care plan that would offer families, individuals, and small businesses additional, low-cost health insurance choices and create more competition in the marketplace. The Medicare-X Choice Act of 2019 would further lower premiums and increase coverage for consumers and those in the individual market who opted into the plan. … Continue Reading
04.02.19
Durbin Statement On Trump Admin Attempt To Strip Disaster Aid Funds From Puerto Rico
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today released the following statement regarding the natural disasters aid package, in which the Trump Administration and Senate Republicans modified the House-passed version to strip away funds that Puerto Rico desperately needs as they continue to recover from Hurricane Maria: "It has been 18 months since Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico, yet our fellow Americans in Puerto Rico … Continue Reading
04.02.19
Durbin, Schatz, Feinstein, Gillibrand Introduce Constitutional Amendment To End Undemocratic Electoral College
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Brian Schatz (D-HI), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) today introduced a constitutional amendment to abolish the Electoral College system and restore democracy by allowing the direct election of presidents through popular vote alone. "Before the 2000 election, I introduced a bipartisan resolution to amend the Constitution and create a system of direct election for presidents. And I still believe today as I did then that the El… Continue Reading
04.01.19
Durbin, Duckworth Introduce Bill To Make Child Care More Affordable
WASHINGTON - In order to help reduce the burden placed on working families from high child care costs, U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), along with 19 Senate colleagues, introduced the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit Enhancement Act, legislation to make child care accessible and more affordable for working families. In Illinois, the average annual cost of child care for a toddler is $11,982 and $13,474 for infants. This amount exceeds what many families pay annual… Continue Reading