Durbin, Kirk, Costello, Shimkus: Restarting Surgeries at Marion VA is Good News for Southern Illinois Veterans

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Mark Kirk (R-IL) joined Representatives Jerry Costello (D-IL) and John Shimkus (R-IL) today in saying that the announcement by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) that inpatient surgeries at the Marion VA Medical Center in (VAMC) are restarting is good news for veterans in Southern Illinois. In a letter to the Illinois Members, VA Secretary Eric Shinseki expressed confidence that all necessary reviews to ensure safety and quality o… Continue Reading

Durbin, Kirk, Polis, Paulsen Introduce Bill to Expand Successful Charter Schools

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Mark Kirk (R-IL) joined Representatives Jared Polis (D-CO) and Erik Paulsen (R-MN) today to introduce legislation that would expand the Charter School Program at the Department of Education (DOE) making the expansion and replication of successful charter school models eligible for federal funding. The bill - the All Students Achieving through Reform (All-STAR) Act - also takes several steps to strengthen public charter school accountabil… Continue Reading

Durbin: $400 Million in Illinois Transportation Funding Protected in Budget Agreement

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today announced that the agreement reached on funding the government through the end of FY2011 protects nearly $400 million in federal funding for eight transportation projects in Illinois that were targeted for rescission in the House Republican's FY2011 Budget plan (H.R.1). For over a month, Durbin has been travelling the state to draw attention to the negative impact these rescission would have on Illinois jobs and economic development. … Continue Reading

Durbin Holds Hearing on Fair Elections Now Act

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - Assistant Senate Majority Leader Dick Durbin (D-IL) chaired a hearing today on his Fair Elections Now Act, a bill that will dramatically change the way we finance Congressional elections. Under the new law, qualified, legitimate candidates will receive grants, matching funds, and television vouchers to run competitive campaigns based on small dollar donors, not special interest money from lobbyists and corporations. Today's hearing was held before the Senate Judiciary Commit… Continue Reading

Letter to JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon Regarding Interchange Fees

TO: Jamie Dimon, Chief Executive Officer and President JPMorgan Chase & Co. 270 Park Avenue New York, NY 10017 Dear Mr. Dimon: In your recent annual letter to your company's shareholders, you wrote a lengthy and dismissive critique of the debit interchange fee reform legislation that I drafted and that Congress enacted last year. You have also been quoted describing my amendment as "counterproductive," "price fixing at its worst," and "downright idiotic." I am compelled t… Continue Reading

Durbin Urges Postponement of International Hockey Tournament Over Concerns About Belarusian Human Rights Record

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - Assistant Senate Majority Leader Dick Durbin (D-IL), Congressman Mike Quigley (D-IL) and Peter Stastny, National Hockey League Hall of Famer and Member of European Parliament sent a letter to the International Ice Hockey Federation today, urging them to postpone the 2014 Ice Hockey Championship in Minsk, Belarus over human rights concerns. "We write to urge the International Ice Hockey Federation to suspend its 2014 Ice Hockey Championship in Minsk, Belarus until that co… Continue Reading

Durbin Statement On Budget Agreement

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - Assistant Senate Majority Leader Dick Durbin (D-IL) released the following statement after House and Senate negotiators reached an agreement on funding the federal government for the remainder of the fiscal year:"With an hour to spare, we have reached an agreement to avert a government shutdown. This agreement is the largest budget cut in our nation's history and it still preserves the investments needed to help our economy continue to recover. While these cuts will be painf… Continue Reading

Durbin: DOT Approves Cape Air as Essential Air Service Carrier for Next Four Years

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today announced that Cape Air's application to provide long-term service at Quincy Regional Airport for the next four years was accepted by the Department of Transportation. This move will likely lead to the airline moving maintenance and other associated work to the region which could add good paying jobs to Western Illinois. Cape Air will also continue providing service from to Marion, Illinois to Lambert-St. Louis International Airport."C… Continue Reading

Durbin Joins Bipartisan Group of Senators to Introduce Bill to Help Prevent Youth Suicide

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - In an effort to prevent youth suicide and reach out to young people who need mental health services, U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Jack Reed (D-RI), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Tom Udall (D-NM) today introduced the Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act Reauthorization of 2011. Included in today's legislation are portions of Durbin's Mental Health on College Campuses Act which calls for the creation of a competitive grant program that would provide funding to colleges to focus on … Continue Reading

Durbin Announces a Nearly $250,000 FEMA Grant to Park Forest Firefighters

[WASHINGTON, DC] - U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) announced today that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), part of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), has awarded a $198,183 grant to the Park Forest Fire Department for hiring initiatives aimed at increasing the number of frontline firefighters. "Our nation's firefighters are called upon day after day to protect America's citizens," Durbin said. "As these brave men and women put themselves in harm's way, we must ensure that t… Continue Reading

Durbin Announces More Than $150,000 in FEMA Grants to Chicago Area Fire Departments

[WASHINGTON, DC] - U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) announced today that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), part of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), has awarded two grants totaling $179,763 to fire departments in the Chicago Metro area. "Our nation's firefighters are called upon day after day to protect America's citizens," Durbin said. "As these brave men and women put themselves in harm's way, we must ensure that they are equipped with the best tools possible to do their… Continue Reading

Durbin, Larson Introduce Fair Elections Now Act, Durbin Announces Hearing on Campaign Finance Reform

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - Assistant Senate Majority Leader Dick Durbin (D-IL) and House Democratic Caucus Chairman John Larson (D-CT) introduced the Fair Elections Now Act today, a bill that will dramatically change the way we finance Congressional elections. Under the new law, qualified, legitimate candidates will receive grants, matching funds, and television vouchers to run competitive campaigns based on small dollar donors, not special interest money from lobbyists and corporations. "American… Continue Reading

Durbin Statement on the Ryan Budget Proposal

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - Assistant Senate Majority Leader Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the President's fiscal commission, released the following statement today on Congressman Ryan's budget proposal: "The Ryan Republican budget has three pillars: reduce Medicare benefits by more than half; reduce Medicaid benefits for seniors in nursing homes; and reduce taxes on the wealthiest Americans. America can resolve its budget crisis without punishing the elderly and poor while rewarding the very ric… Continue Reading

Durbin Chairs Hearing on Treasury Department's Budget

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - Assistant Senate Majority Leader Dick Durbin (D-IL) chaired a hearing today reviewing the FY12 budget request for the Department of the Treasury and the impact of the FY11 Continuing Resolutions. The President's FY12 budget request for the Treasury Department is $1.39 billion, excluding the Internal Revenue Service and the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund, and would fund expanding staff focused on improving the Department's analytical capacity and for im… Continue Reading

Durbin: DOT to Obligate $1 Million in Funds for Peoria Warehouse District

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today announced that Secretary of Transportation, Ray LaHood, has obligated $1 million in funding - 10% of the federal funding that was awarded - for the Peoria Warehouse District project. This move to begin obligating funds as soon as possible comes in response to Durbin's request to obligate $10 million in funding for the Peoria Warehouse District project - and the nearly $400 million funding for other Illinois transportation projects - to … Continue Reading

Durbin: Obama Administration will not Transfer Prisoners from Guantanamo Bay to Thomson

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - In a letter to U.S. Senator Dick Durbin, Attorney General Eric Holder clearly stated that the Obama Administration has no intention of transferring prisoners from Guantanamo Bay to Thomson Correctional Center, a move that is already prohibited by federal law. Today's letter was sent in response to a February letter that Durbin had sent to Holder outlining the bipartisan support for the purchase of Thomson prison and a March letter from Durbin and Senator Mark Kirk (R-IL)… Continue Reading

Durbin Introduces Bill to Regulate Online Puppy Sales

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - Assistant Senate Majority Leader Dick Durbin (D-IL) introduced the Puppy Uniform Protection and Safety Act yesterday - a bill which would require all breeders that sell more than 50 dogs a year to be licensed and to undergo inspections to ensure dogs are receiving proper care. "The media regularly reports stories about dogs rescued from substandard facilities -- where dogs are housed in stacked wire cages and seriously ill dogs are routinely denied access to veterinary c… Continue Reading

Durbin Meets with Fellowes, Inc CEO to Discuss Dispute in China

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today met with the CEO of Illinois-based Fellowes, Inc., Jamie Fellowes, to discuss the company's effort to recover hundreds of millions of dollars worth of capital assets and intellectual property that were stolen by the company's onetime Chinese business partner. Late last night, Durbin sent a letter to the Secretary of Commerce, Gary Locke, asking him to intervene in order to help resolve the dispute. In his letter to Secretary Locke, … Continue Reading

Durbin Asks National Urban League to Support Effort to Protect Students and Taxpayers from Abuses in the For-profit College Industry

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - In a speech to the National Urban League, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today asked the organization to support the effort by the Obama Administration and members of Congress to protect students and taxpayers from abuses within the for-profit college industry. Acknowledging that many for-profit colleges are good actors and do important work, Durbin noted that the bad actors could cause us to repeat the mistakes of the subprime mortgage crisis by saddling a generation of y… Continue Reading

Durbin Questions Nuclear Experts at Senate Hearing

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today questioned the Chairman of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Gregory Jaczko, and the Department of Energy's Acting Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy, Dr. Peter Lyons, about the safety of nuclear power plants in the United States and the prospect of renewing the U.S.'s interest in research into the reprocessing of nuclear fuel - as is being done in countries like France, Britain and Russia. Last week, Durbin and Senator Mark K… Continue Reading