Press Releases
Durbin Statement On California State Approving Agency Denying Ashford University's Application For Approval
CHICAGO-U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today released the following statement after the California State Approving Agency for Veterans Education (CSAAVE) denied Ashford University's application to be approved in the state of California - a requirement for maintaining its eligibility to receive GI Bill benefits nationally: "Ashford University has a long history of exploiting the men and women who have served our country in uniform in order to pocket millions in federal GI Bill education … Continue Reading
February 21, 2018
Durbin: Congress Must Stand Up to Gun Sales Lobby & Act to Prevent the Next Mass Shooting
CHICAGO - In the wake of the tragic mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today joined local gun safety advocates to call on Congress to act on common sense gun reforms and stop turning a blind eye to the deadly toll of gun violence in our schools and neighborhoods. The only vote the U.S. Senate has held this Congress on guns has been to overturn a regulation to keep guns out of the hands of individuals with mental … Continue Reading
February 20, 2018
Durbin, Rock Island Leaders Discuss Initiatives to Combat Opioid Epidemic
ROCK ISLAND - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today met with Rock Island County Sheriff Gerry Bustos and other local leaders for a briefing about Rock Island County's new program designed to help people addicted to opioids get the treatment they need without facing arrest or prosecution. The Safe Passage Program began in January and the first person to use it is now going through treatment. "Every day, more than 100 Americans die from an opioid overdose. Tackling this crisis requires a … Continue Reading
February 16, 2018
Durbin, Duckworth Press IDPH For Additional Information On The Latest Three Cases Of Legionnaires' At IVH Quincy
CHICAGO - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today urged the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) to once again take every available precaution and pursue every available option in order to prevent and mitigate further outbreaks of Legionnaires' disease at the Illinois Veterans' Home (IVH) Quincy. Durbin and Duckworth also pressed IDPH to uphold a commitment to transparency so that residents, families, and staff at IVH Quincy, as well as the public, can have … Continue Reading
February 16, 2018
Durbin Calls On EPA To Update Dangerous Lead Hazard Standards
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Bob Menendez (D-NJ) have sent a letter urging the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to revise its lead-based paint and dust-lead hazard standards without delay. The letter is in response to a December 2017 decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit Court requiring the agency to update its current standards within 90 days. "It is widely known and accepted that lead hazards present an urgent health and safety threat to … Continue Reading
February 16, 2018
Durbin, Dem Senators Press Interior Secretary To Postpone Development Of Management Plans For Bears Ears & Grand Staircase Escalante National Monuments
WASHINGTON-U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today led 12 Democratic senators in pressing the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to postpone the development of management plans for the Bears Ears and Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument areas in Utah until legal challenges regarding the President's authority to reduce the size of the monuments have been resolved. The Senators also requested that the Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument management plan remain in effect for all lands … Continue Reading
February 15, 2018
Given Failure By Rauner Administration, Durbin, Duckworth Urge CDC To Take Greater Leadership Role In Mitigating Legionnaires' Disease At IVH Quincy
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today pressed the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to take a greater leadership role in helping to address the public health crisis at Illinois Veterans' Home (IVH) Quincy. Since 2015, more than 60 people have contracted Legionnaires' disease at IVH Quincy and 13 people have died as a result. Just this week, three more laboratory-confirmed cases of Legionnaires' disease were confirmed among IVH … Continue Reading
February 15, 2018
Durbin Statement On Senate's Failure To Pass Bipartisan Protection For Dreamers
WASHINGTON-U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) released the following statement after the Senate failed to advance bipartisan legislation to protect young immigrants known as Dreamers: When the President ended DACA five months ago, he set in motion a crisis jeopardizing the lives of hundreds of thousands of young people and their families. He then demanded his entire anti-immigrant wish-list as ransom to restore these young people's protections. Democrats made enormous concessions … Continue Reading
February 15, 2018
Judiciary Committee Advances Sentencing Reform And Corrections Act
WASHINGTON-The Senate Judiciary Committee has voted 16-5 to advance comprehensive legislation aimed at reducing mandatory minimums for certain non-violent offenders to help law enforcement devote their resources to targeting drug kingpins, manufacturers and violent criminals. Under this bill, judges would be better able to take individual circumstances into account at sentencing so that they can make sure that the appropriate punishment fits the crime. But it also preserves mandatory minimum … Continue Reading
February 14, 2018
Durbin Meets With VA Secretary, Offers VA Expert Assistance To Help Mitigate Legionnaires' From Illinois Veterans' Home Quincy
WASHINGTON - One day after two new cases of Legionnaires' disease were confirmed at the Illinois Veterans' Home (IVH) Quincy, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today met with U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Secretary David Shulkin to discuss the ongoing legionellosis outbreaks at IVH Quincy. Secretary Shulkin offered VA expert assistance - those who have a history of addressing Legionnaires' outbreaks across the country - to help mitigate legionellosis outbreaks at IVH Quincy. Durbin … Continue Reading
February 13, 2018
Durbin, Duckworth Statement On new Legionnaires' Disease Cases Confirmed At illinois Veterans' Home Quincy
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today released the following statement after two new cases of Legionnaires' disease were confirmed at the Illinois Veterans' Home (IVH) Quincy: "Last month, the Governor stated that his goal was 'zero instances of Legionella infection' at IVH Quincy. However in the month that has passed, we have seen nothing from the Governor's office - no final plan of action, no formal funding request, just more publicity stunts and … Continue Reading
February 13, 2018
Durbin, Duckworth, Members Of Illinois Congressional Delegation Urge Army Corps To Include Funding For McCook
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and U.S. Representatives Mike Quigley (D-IL-05), Jan Schakowsky (D-IL-09), Dan Lipinski (D-IL-03), Peter Roskam (R-IL-06), Danny Davis (D-IL-07), Bill Foster (D-IL-11), Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL-08), and Bobby Rush (D-IL-01) today requested $34.7 million in construction funds for the McCook Reservoir Project be included in the Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) Fiscal Year (FY) 2018 Work Plan. They also requested that the … Continue Reading
February 13, 2018
Durbin: President Trump Created A Dreamer Crisis, Now Congress Must Act
WASHINGTON-Five months since the Trump Administration terminated the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program and called for Congress to come up with a legislative solution, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today called on his Senate colleagues to come together and pass the bipartisan Dream Act. This week on the Senate floor, the Senate began debating immigration for the first time in five years. "We are in the midst of a debate on the floor in the United States … Continue Reading
February 12, 2018
Durbin: It's Time For The Senate To Do It's Job And Pass The Bipartisan Dream Act
WASHINGTON-Five months since the Trump Administration terminated the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program and called for Congress to come up with a legislative solution, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today called on his Senate colleagues to come together and pass the bipartisan Dream Act. This week on the Senate floor, the Senate will debate immigration for the first time in five years. "After a lot of negotiating back and forth, Senator McConnell agreed that … Continue Reading
February 12, 2018
Durbin Statement On President Trump's Fiscal Year 2019 Budget Request
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today released the following statement after President Donald Trump submitted his fiscal year 2019 budget request to Congress: "We knew this was coming. After blowing a massive hole in the budget with a colossal corporate tax giveaway, President Trump now wants seniors and working families to pay for it with huge cuts to Medicare and Medicaid. The wealthy get a massive tax cut and our … Continue Reading
February 12, 2018
Durbin, Duckworth Statement On Nomination Of Michael Scudder & Amy St. Eve For The 7th Circuit Court Of Appeals
CHICAGO-U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) released the following statement after the White House announced the nomination of Michael Y. Scudder, Jr. and U.S. District Judge Amy St. Eve to serve as Circuit Judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, based in Chicago: "We are pleased that the President has nominated Judge St. Eve and Mr. Scudder. They both have the experience, integrity, and judgment that we look for in federal judges, and we expect … Continue Reading
February 08, 2018
Durbin & Duckworth Demand Answers On Reports Of CFPB'S Stalled Investigation Into Equifax Breach
WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) joined Brian Schatz (D-HI) and a group of 28 senators in demanding answers on reports that, under the Trump administration, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has halted its investigation into how credit reporting agency Equifax failed to protect the personal data of over 145 million Americans. More than 5.45 million Illinois residents were affected by the breach. "We are deeply troubled by recent … Continue Reading
February 08, 2018
Durbin Announces Spring 2018 Recipient Of The Ed Greelegs Scholarship Program
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today announced Angie Hines, a college senior from the Southside of Chicago, as the second recipient of the Ed Greelegs Scholarship Program. This scholarship, open to students from Illinois or those studying in Illinois, is an opportunity for the students to receive financial assistance while obtaining a first-hand experience in Senator Durbin's Washington, D.C. office. The program was created in honor of Durbin's former Chief of Staff who passed … Continue Reading
February 08, 2018
Durbin: Budget Deal Delivers For America, Provides Path Forward For Dream Act
WASHINGTON-U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) released the following statement on the agreement reached between Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY): I applaud the leaders for coming together to reach a budget agreement that secures critical investments in children's and community health, our national security, and a host of America's other priorities. It's the first glimmer of bipartisanship that I hope will end the destructive cycle … Continue Reading
February 06, 2018
Durbin: With President Trump Failing To Lead, Congress Must Pass The Bipartisan Dream Act Now
WASHINGTON-Five months since the Trump Administration terminated the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program and called for Congress to come up with a legislative solution, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today once again came to the Senate floor to call on Republican leaders in Congress to pass the bipartisan Dream Act now. In his speech, Durbin noted that just four weeks ago-in a nationally televised White House meeting-President Trump himself acknowledged … Continue Reading