Durbin Says House Cuts to Labs Would be Devastating; Vows to Continue Funding for Innovative Research in Illinois

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today sent letters to Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Energy & Water Appropriations Subcommittee, of which he is a member, warning that the funding cuts proposed by the House Republicans in their continuing resolution (H.R. 1) would have a devastating impact on our entire national laboratory system. Durbin vowed to work with the committee to ensure that labs - including Fermilab and Argonne National Laboratory which stand to los… Continue Reading

Durbin Meets with Metra CEO to Discuss Impact of Drastic Federal Spending Cuts

[CHICAGO] -U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today met with newly appointed Metra CEO Alex Clifford to discuss Metra's ongoing review of diesel locomotive emissions and federal spending cuts proposed by the House Republicans which would eliminate the $341,000 in federal funding Metra is using to reduce CO2 emissions by installing automatic shut-down and start-up systems in its fleet. In November, Durbin asked several federal agencies to work with Metra looking into the results of a Chicago Tribune… Continue Reading

Durbin, Snowe, Others Introduce Bill to Eliminate the Practice of Child Marriages Overseas

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - Assistant Senate Majority Leader Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Senator Olympia Snowe (R-ME) introduced legislation yesterday which seeks to end the harmful practice of child marriage oversees. The International Protecting Girls by Preventing Child Marriage Act would require the U.S. Government to develop an integrated, strategic approach to reduce, and ultimately end, the practice of child marriage. The bill is also cosponsored by Senators Boxer (D-CA), Cardin (D-MD) Brown (R-MA) a… Continue Reading

Durbin Responds to Chairman Bernanke on Interchange Fees

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - Assistant Senate Majority Leader Dick Durbin (D-IL) responded to criticisms of his new interchange law today, hours after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke questioned the effectiveness of the new law's small bank exemption at a hearing before the Senate Banking Committee. In a letter to Chairman Bernanke Durbin wrote: "I was disappointed that your testimony about interchange fee reform today before the Senate Banking Committee echoed the financial industry's ta… Continue Reading

Durbin on Senate Judiciary Committee Approves Federal Judicial Nominees in Central District

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today announced that the Senate Judiciary Committee, of which he is a member, has unanimously approved Sue Myerscough and James Shadid for federal judgeships on the U.S. District Court in the Central District of Illinois. Their nominations will now proceed to a vote by the full Senate. "Justice Myerscough and Judge Shadid will each bring a great depth of experience and legal acumen to the federal judiciary," said Durbin. "Three of the four di… Continue Reading

Durbin, Reed, Brown Introduce Bill to Ensure Long-Term Stability of Unemployment Insurance

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - To prevent a tax increase on small businesses and to ensure that cash-strapped states are able to continue providing a critical lifeline to struggling families as they search for work, Assistant Senate Majority Leader Dick Durbin (D-IL), Senator Jack Reed (D-RI) and Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) today introduced legislation to revamp the unemployment insurance program and ensure its long-term solvency. The Unemployment Insurance Solvency Act - which will likely be defi… Continue Reading

Durbin Stands With Wisconsin Workers

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - Assistant Senate Majority Leader Dick Durbin (D-IL) released the following statement today, standing with Wisconsin's workers as they fight budget cuts and an effort to strip them of their collective bargaining rights by Governor Scott Walker: "When Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker decided to refuse federal high speed rail money, I said I would welcome it with open arms in Illinois. Tonight, I say the same to the members of the Wisconsin State Senate who are fighting for … Continue Reading

Durbin Announces a More Than $325,000 FEMA Grant to Elgin Fire Department

[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 $327,557 grant to the Elgin Fire Department in Elgin, Illinois, for recruitment 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 mus… Continue Reading

Durbin Asks DOT to Send Unused Federal Rail Money to Illinois

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today sent a letter to the Secretary of Transportation, Ray LaHood, asking him to consider the Chicago Hub Network if he chooses to redistribute the high speed rail funding that the Governor of Florida rejected earlier today. Durbin wrote: "Almost one year ago, the entire Illinois Congressional delegation wrote to you communicating our belief that Illinois provides the best opportunity to invest in high speed rail. Since then, the Depar… Continue Reading

Durbin, Kirk, Costello, Shimkus Urge President to Include Levees in Efforts to Improve National Infrastructure

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Mark Kirk (R-IL) and Congressmen Jerry Costello (D-IL) and John Shimkus (R-IL) sent a letter to President Obama urging him to include levees and water infrastructure improvements in efforts to improve the nation's infrastructure. Noting the President's recent emphasis on infrastructure development as a key component in economic growth, they reinforced the need to include repairing and improving America's levees as a part of this pr… Continue Reading

Durbin, Lautenberg ask MLB Commissioner to Ban Tobacco Use

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - Citing the recent announcement by Washington Nationals pitcher Steven Strasburg about the dangers of smokeless tobacco in Major League Baseball (MLB), U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) today called on the Commissioner of the MLB, Bud Selig, and the MLB Players Association to ban the use of tobacco products on the field, in the dugout, and in the locker rooms at MLB venues. "It has been 28 years since the MLB ended tobacco use in its mino… Continue Reading

Durbin Expresses Support For Cape Air

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today expressed his support for Cape Air's application to provide long-term service at Quincy Regional Airport that would likely lead to the airline moving maintenance and other associated work to the region - a prospect that could add good paying jobs to Western Illinois. Late last week, the City of Quincy Aeronautics Committee voted unanimously to support Cape Air's proposal and the Mayor of Quincy, John Spring, relayed that support i… Continue Reading

Durbin Continues to Set the Record Straight on Interchange Fees

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - Assistant Senate Majority Leader Dick Durbin (D-IL) sent a letter to the American Bankers Association today, a week after it penned a letter to its membership and to members of Congress which continued the banking industry's practice of misleading, distorting, and using scare tactics when discussing the new interchange law. The Durbin-authored law directed the Federal Reserve to establish standards to ensure that debit interchange fees are "reasonable and proportional" to th… Continue Reading

Durbin: President Obama's Budget Will Help Create Jobs and Put Us On a Path Towards Reducing Our Debt

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - Assistant Senate Majority Leader Dick Durbin (D-IL) said the budget that President Obama delivered makes tough choices to get us back on a stable financial footing while investing in programs that encourage Americans to out-build, out-educate and out-innovate our rivals. Durbin, a member of the President's bipartisan fiscal commission, has been working with Senators from both parties to develop a responsible plan for reducing our debts in the future while promoting desperate… Continue Reading

Durbin: VA Suspends GI Bill Benefits From Some For-Profit Colleges

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today asked the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for a list of colleges and universities from which it has suspended or withdrawn GI Bill and education benefits after discovering questionable recruiting practices used by these institutions. In a response to a December 2010 letter from Durbin, VA Secretary Eric Shinseki explained that the VA had taken these measures after compiling information about erroneous, deceptive or misleading practi… Continue Reading

Durbin To Announce Nominees for Service Academies

[SPRINGFIELD, IL] - U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) today released the names of young men and women whom he has nominated to attend the nation's four service academies."I look forward to announcing my service academy nominations every year because the young men and women are some of their generation's most promising leaders in the State of Illinois," Durbin said. "This year's group meets that standard. I have no doubt that they will serve their country honorably and make their families proud."The a… Continue Reading

Durbin to Chair New Constitution, Civil Rights and Human Rights Subcommittee

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - Assistant Senate Majority Leader Dick Durbin (D-IL) made the following statement today after Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick J. Leahy (D-VT) announced the creation of the Constitution, Civil Rights and Human Rights Subcommittee and named Durbin as its Chairman: "Tahrir Square in Cairo, Egypt reminds us that many will risk their lives for the freedoms enshrined in our Constitution. As Chairman of this subcommittee, I will do my best to honor the Constitution wi… Continue Reading

Durbin Announces New Legislation to Ensure Long-Term Viability of Unemployment Insurance Program

[SPRINGFIELD, IL] - To ensure that Illinois and other cash-strapped states are able to continue providing a critical lifeline to struggling families as they search for work, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) announced today that he will introduce legislation in the Senate this week to revamp the unemployment insurance program and ensure its long-term solvency. The Unemployment Insurance Solvency Act will solidify the program's finances while giving states greater flexibility in managing the… Continue Reading

Durbin Praises Record Breaking Attempt of Lincoln "Farewell Address" Reading

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) commended the efforts of organizers in Springfield, Illinois who are kicking off the national Civil War Sesquicentennial observation by reading President Abraham Lincoln's "Farewell Address" on the 150th anniversary of its original delivery. In a statement submitted for the record in the U.S. Senate, Durbin said: "I urge my fellow Senators to join me in recognizing the 150th anniversary of President Lincoln's first inauguration, even… Continue Reading

Durbin Statement on the Situation in Egypt

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - Assistant Senate Majority Leader Dick Durbin (D-IL) released the following statement after Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak resigned, handing power to Vice President Omar Suleiman and Egypt's military: "For more than two weeks, tens of thousands of Egyptians have been peacefully calling for a voice in choosing a representative government. Today, with the departure of Mubarak, those calls have been heard. Egypt's future is now in the hands of the Egyptian people. … Continue Reading