Press Releases
Durbin, Rounds Introduce Legislation To Protect Rural Postal Processing Facilities
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Mike Rounds (R-SD) today introduced legislation that would require the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) to protect mail processing centers in rural communities by mandating a study on the consequences of downsizing or closing these facilities, which is already required before the closure of a storefront post office, but not for Processing and Distribution Centers (P&DCs). The Postal Processing Protection Act would ensure … Continue Reading
June 05, 2024
Durbin Questions District Court Nominees In Latest Judiciary Committee Nominations Hearing
WASHINGTON - During today’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, questioned Adam Abelson, nominated to be U.S. District Judge for the District of Maryland; Joseph Saporito Jr., nominated to be U.S. District Judge for the Middle District of Pennsylvania; and Meredith Vacca, nominated to be U.S. District Judge for the Western District of New York. Before questioning the second panel of nominees, Durbin first … Continue Reading
June 05, 2024
Durbin Delivers Opening Statement During Latest Judiciary Committee Hearing On Four Judicial Nominations
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today delivered an opening statement at the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on the nominations of Embry J. Kidd, nominated to be U.S. Circuit Judge for the Eleventh Circuit; Joseph Francis Saporito Jr., nominated to be U.S. District Judge for the Middle District of Pennsylvania; Adam Abelson, nominated to be U.S. District Judge for the District of Maryland; and Meredith Vacca, nominated to be … Continue Reading
June 05, 2024
Durbin Talks High Prescription Drug Prices, Children's Online Safety With FTC Chair Lina Khan
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, met with Lina Khan, Chair of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). The two discussed their efforts to prevent Big Pharma from exploiting patent policy to inflate its profit margins at the expense of delivering affordable and accessible medications to Americans. Pharmaceutical companies often improperly list patents the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Orange Book in an attempt to delay FDA … Continue Reading
June 04, 2024
Durbin, Duckworth Announce $11 Million In Federal Funding For Multiuse Cycling Trail In Energy, Illinois
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today announced that the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has awarded $11.145 million in federal funding to the Crab Orchard Greenway Multimodal Network at Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge. The grant, funded through the Fiscal Year 2023 National Significant Federal Lands and Tribal Projects Program, will go toward supporting the construction of 12 miles of a multiuse cycling trail … Continue Reading
June 04, 2024
Durbin, Duckworth Applaud Federal Approval Of Illinois As Participant In Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic Medicaid Demonstration Program
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today applauded the federal approval of Illinois as a participant in the Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic (CCBHC) Medicaid Demonstration Program. This program, created by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid (CMS) and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), provides sustainable funding to reimburse through Medicaid the full cost of services that … Continue Reading
June 04, 2024
Durbin Statement On President Biden's Southern Border Executive Action
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today released the following statement regarding President Biden’s executive action on the southern border: “Nearly four months ago, Congress had an opportunity to help secure the border with the bipartisan border bill. Instead, in a stunning reversal, my Senate Republican colleagues opposed this bipartisan agreement, refusing to address these pressing issues, completely disregarding their … Continue Reading
June 04, 2024
Durbin Urges His Colleagues to Support the Right to Contraception Act Ahead of Vote on Senate Floor
WASHINGTON - During the week marking the 59th anniversary of the landmark Griswold v. Connecticut decision, in which the Supreme Court ruled that all married Americans have a constitutional right to use contraception, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, urged his colleagues to support the Right to Contraception Act when it comes before the Senate tomorrow. This bill, which Durbin is a cosponsor of, would protect the rights of patients to … Continue Reading
June 04, 2024
Durbin Urges His Colleagues To Support The Right To Contraception Act Ahead Of Vote On Senate Floor
WASHINGTON - During the week marking the 59th anniversary of the landmark Griswold v. Connecticut decision, in which the Supreme Court ruled that all married Americans have a constitutional right to use contraception, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, urged his colleagues to support the Right to Contraception Act when it comes before the Senate tomorrow. This bill, which Durbin is a cosponsor of, would protect the rights of patients to … Continue Reading
June 03, 2024
Durbin Addresses The Supreme Court's Ethical Crisis In A Speech On The Senate Floor
WASHINGTON - In a speech on the Senate floor today, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, addressed the Supreme Court’s ethical crisis and cautioned that we cannot afford further erosion of public confidence in our courts. Durbin’s speech follows Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito’s refusal to recuse himself from cases concerning the 2020 election and the January 6th insurrection. The justice’s refusal comes in response to a letter Durbin and … Continue Reading
June 03, 2024
Durbin, Duckworth, Rep. Kelly Introduce Bicameral Resolution In Observance Of National Gun Violence Awareness Month
WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) joined U.S. Representative Robin Kelly (D-IL-02) in introducing a resolution to designate June 07, 2024, as “National Gun Violence Awareness Day” and June 2024 as “National Gun Violence Awareness Month.” Each year, more than 43,000 people in the United States are killed and 76,000 are injured by gun violence, depriving many of a promising future. Designating both a specific day and month … Continue Reading
May 31, 2024
Durbin, Duckworth Join Senate Democrats To Call On DOJ To Immediately Launch Full Court Press Against Big Oil To Prevent And Prosecute Collusion And Price Fixing
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today joined Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and 20 Democratic Senators in sending a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland and Assistant Attorney General for Antitrust Jonathan Kanter calling on the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to use every tool at its disposal to prevent and prosecute collusion and price fixing in the oil industry. The letter follows a Federal Trade … Continue Reading
May 30, 2024
Durbin Statement On Trump Guilty Verdict By Manhattan Jury
SPRINGFIELD - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today released the following statement regarding the conviction of former President Donald Trump on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records: “No one is above the law—not even a former president. Consistent with the rule of law, a jury of his peers found the former president guilty on all counts. Today’s verdict is another reminder that Donald Trump is unfit for public service.” … Continue Reading
May 30, 2024
Durbin Applauds Illinois State Legislature On Passing Budget That Contains Interchange Fee Prohibition Act
SPRINGFIELD - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today applauded the Illinois state legislature’s passage of a state budget that included the Interchange Fee Prohibition Act. This legislation, which—like Durbin’s Credit Card Competition Act—aims to curb the outrageous swipe fees on electronic transactions will prohibit credit card companies and financial institutions from charging merchants interchange fees on sales and excise taxes, as well as gratuities, added to electronic … Continue Reading
May 30, 2024
Durbin, Duckworth Announce That Illinois School Districts Will Receive $48.4 Million In Rebates For EPA Clean School Bus Program
SPRINGFIELD - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) announced that 28 Illinois school districts will receive significant rebates, a combined total of more than $48 million, from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) 2023 Clean School Bus Program (CSBP) rebate competition. The program, a $5 billion effort established under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, aims to convert the nation’s school bus fleets to low- or zero-emission … Continue Reading
May 29, 2024
Durbin Responds To Justice Alito's Refusal To Recuse Himself In 2020 Election Cases
SPRINGFIELD - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today released the following statement after Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito refused to recuse himself from cases concerning the 2020 election and the January 6th insurrection. The justice’s refusal comes in response to a letter Durbin and U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Chair of the Judiciary Subcommittee on Federal Courts, sent to Chief Justice John Roberts last week imploring the … Continue Reading
May 29, 2024
Durbin, Duckworth Announce $11.5 Million In Grant Funding For Head Start Projects
SPRINGFIELD - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today announced that the Carole Robertson Center for Learning in Chicago will receive $11,516,272 in U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) grant funding to support the center’s Head Start programming, which offers services for children under the age of five in receiving wrap-around support in early learning and development. “Providing a strong education is one of the greatest gifts … Continue Reading
May 29, 2024
Durbin, Duckworth Announce More Than $8.6 Million For Medical Research And Health Center Programs In Illinois
SPRINGFIELD - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today announced $8,602,005 in U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) grants to Illinois institutions. A large portion of the funding will be put toward research programs across the state to support medical advancement in various fields, ranging from neurological disorders to cancer research. This round of grant funding will also support the development of a program for Black … Continue Reading
May 29, 2024
Durbin Discusses Impact Of FAA Reauthorization Act On Decatur Airport And Additional Federal Funding For Local Infrastructure Projects
DECATUR - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today joined Mayor Julie Moore Wolfe to discuss the Federal Aviation Administration Reauthorization Act of 2024, which was recently signed into law by President Biden. The legislation, among other things, provides increased investment for Essential Air Service (EAS) program airports, like Decatur Airport. The EAS program was established to ensure that smaller communities maintain a sufficient level of air service. Durbin also discussed additional … Continue Reading
May 28, 2024
Senate Judiciary Democrats Push Bureau Of Prisons To Make Salaries Competitive For Critical Staff
CHICAGO - Led by U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, a group of Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats today pressed the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) to request a special pay rate for critical BOP staff, as well as share results of a study on staffing guidelines. A special pay rate would make salaries more competitive, which would help remedy issues exacerbated by understaffing, including otherwise preventable deaths in custody. In addition … Continue Reading