Durbin Statement on Release of DOJ Guidance on Discharging Student Loans in Bankruptcy

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today released the following statement after the Department of Justice (DOJ) issued new guidance to Assistant U.S. Attorneys on the handling of undue hardship claims by student borrowers in bankruptcy proceedings: "For too long, Americans struggling with student loan debt have been effectively unable to use the bankruptcy system to seek a path to financial recovery. That needs to change. Today'… Continue Reading

Durbin Statement on Speaker Pelosi

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today released the following statement after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced her decision to not seek another term as the House Democratic Leader: "Our nation owes a debt of gratitude for all Speaker Pelosi has accomplished during her remarkable tenure as the first woman Speaker. She kept a diverse caucus united, and served as a fearless check-and-balance during the four years of the Trump presidency. She was instrumental in pushi… Continue Reading

Durbin, Duckworth Meet With Blessing Hospital System Leadership to Discuss Rural Health Challenges

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) met with Maureen Kahn, CEO of Blessing Health System located in Quincy, Illinois. In their meeting, Durbin, Duckworth, and Kahn spoke about the challenges rural hospitals face, including workforce shortages, the burnout health professionals are experiencing as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, and ongoing public health threats. "Day in and day out, we rely on our health care workers, who face in… Continue Reading

Judiciary Committee Advances Three U.S. Attorneys, One U.S. Marshal

WASHINGTON - The Senate Judiciary Committee today advanced the nominations of Peter D. Leary, to be United States Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia; McLain J. Schneider, to be United States Attorney for the District of North Dakota; and Leigha Simonton, to be United States Attorney for the Northern District of Texas, by voice vote. The Committee also advanced David Davis, nominated to be United States Marshal for the Southern District of Illinois, by voice vote. Ahead of the votes, U… Continue Reading

Durbin, Duckworth Statement on Judiciary Committee Advancing Nomination of David Davis to Serve as U.S. Marshal for the Southern District of Illinois

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today released the following statement after the Senate Judiciary Committee advanced the nomination of David C. Davis to serve as United States Marshal for the Southern District of Illinois. Based on recommendations made by the screening committee the Senators established in the Southern District, Durbin and Duckworth forwarded the names of individuals to P… Continue Reading

Durbin Highlights Strains on Families, Hospitals From Current RSV Surge

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) spoke on the Senate floor highlighting the dramatic new surge in Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV)-a respiratory virus that can be especially serious for young children and older adults. During his speech, Durbin called on Congress to provide the resources to get us safely through this current surge, including to address the workforce shortages faced by children's hospitals. He also highlighted an Illinois pediatrician, who had to trave… Continue Reading

Durbin Introduces Legislation to Incentivize Energy Reductions for Additional Consumer Savings

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Electrification Caucus, introduced the Responsive Energy Demand Unlocks Clean Energy (REDUCE) Act to eliminate states' ability to "opt out" of aggregated demand response. The legislation would allow consumers nationwide to sell their energy reductions into the wholesale market. "Allowing consumers to sell their energy reductions into the wholesale market is an important step toward decarbonizing our energy sector.… Continue Reading

Durbin Praises Senate Advancement of the Respect for Marriage Act

WASHINGTON - In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today told the story of Amanda, an Illinois social worker who will soon be celebrating her fifth anniversary as a married couple with her wife, Cally. "The two of them have actually been together for eight years, but after the Supreme Court's 2015 decision in Obergefell, they decided it was time to tie the knot," Durbin said. "That ruling affirmed their love-and, … Continue Reading

Durbin, Grassley Call on DOJ to Fully Implement Earned Time Credit for Eligible Prisoners As Part of First Step Act

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today sent a letter to the Department of Justice (DOJ) urging the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) to fully implement the Earned Time Credit (ETC) provisions of their bipartisan First Step Act of 2018 (FSA). The First Step Act is landmark bipartisan criminal justice reform legislation designed to make our jus… Continue Reading

Durbin Accepts Lifetime Achievement Award From American Bar Association President

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today met with Deborah Enix-Ross, the President of the American Bar Association (ABA). Durbin and Enix-Ross discussed the importance of enacting the bipartisan Daniel Anderl Judicial Security and Privacy Act, which would protect judges from physical threats by preventing their sensitive personal information from being shared online, and spoke further about ensuring that legal representation is aff… Continue Reading

Durbin, Duckworth Join Merkley In Introducing Legislation to Protect Consumers From Predatory Payday Lending Practices

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) joined U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR), along with U.S. Representatives Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR-01) and Pramila Jayapal (D-WA-07), in introducing the Stopping Abuse and Fraud in Electronic (SAFE) Lending Act. The SAFE Lending Act will protect consumers from deceptive and predatory practices that strip wealth from working families by cracking down on some of the worst abuses stemming from the payday … Continue Reading

Durbin Talks Renewable Energy for Rural Communities in Agriculture Committee Hearing

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today participated in a Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee hearing entitled "Farm Bill 2023: Rural Development and Energy Programs." During the hearing, Durbin spoke about benefits of expanding renewable energy into rural communities, including solar panels. "We just got our utility bill at our home in Springfield, Illinois, for the month of October. I'm pleased to report to you that we are not being charged for any el… Continue Reading

Durbin Questions Colleen R. Lawless, Nominated to the Central District of Illinois, In Judiciary Committee Hearing

WASHINGTON - During today's Senate Judiciary Committee nominations hearing, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, questioned Colleen R. Lawless, nominated to be United States District Judge for the Central District of Illinois. During the hearing, Durbin questioned Judge Lawless about her approach to maintaining an evenhanded and impartial courtroom if confirmed to the Central District of Illinois. Durbin previously worked as an attorney in the Se… Continue Reading

Durbin, Wicker Reintroduce Legislation to Promote Study Abroad

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Roger Wicker (R-MS), along with U.S. Representatives Cheri Bustos (D-IL-17) and John Katko (R-NY-24) who recently introduced companion legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives, today introduced the bipartisan Senator Paul Simon Study Abroad Program Act, which renames a competitive grant program run by the Department of State to the Senator Paul Simon Study Abroad Program. This grant helps institutions of higher e… Continue Reading

Durbin Delivers Opening Statement During Hearing on Latest Circuit And District Court 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 DeAndrea Gist Benjamin, to be United States Circuit Judge for the Fourth Circuit; Robert Stewart Ballou, to be United States District Judge for the Western District of Virginia; Todd E. Edelman, to be United States District Judge for the District of Columbia; Kymberly Kathryn Evanson, to be United … Continue Reading

Durbin: Young Voters Turned Out in Record Numbers to Keep Our Democracy Alive

WASHINGTON - In a speech on the Senate floor today, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, reflected on the recent 2022 midterm election results from across the country, which kept Senate Democrats in the majority. A record number of young voters turned out and voted to protect reproductive rights, address climate change, preserve our democracy, and much more. Durbin began his speech by highlighting President Lincoln's speech in 1862 in which he c… Continue Reading

Durbin Statement on New Report on Sexual Misconduct By Bureau of Prisons Staff

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today released the following statement in response to a new Department of Justice (DOJ) report assessing DOJ's response to sexual misconduct by Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) employees: "This week's DOJ report on pervasive sexual abuse in our nation's federal prisons is evidence of the desperate need for reform. The new Director, Colette Peters, needs to show resolve and Congress needs to back … Continue Reading

Durbin Visits FEMA Disaster Recovery Center in East St. Louis, Urges Residents Affected By Flooding to Apply for Federal Assistance by December 16th

EAST ST. LOUIS - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today visited the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) Disaster Recovery Center (DRC) to discuss relief efforts after historic storms caused widespread damage across the region in July. More than $5 million in federal assistance has already been approved for St. Clair County residents across several FEMA programs. Affected residents should submit an application to FEMA as soon as possible at DisasterAssistance.gov or by calling 1-800-621-3… Continue Reading

Durbin, Duckworth Announce $208 Million in Federal Funding to Help Illinoisans Heat Their Homes This Winter

SPRINGFIELD - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today announced $208,170,481 in federal funding through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) to help Illinoisans pay the rising cost of home heating bills this winter. For more than 40 years, LIHEAP has provided assistance to help low-income individuals and families maintain healthy indoor temperatures during the coldest months o… Continue Reading

Durbin Discusses $16.84 Million in Federal Funding for Decatur Public Transit System Electric Fleet Efforts

DECATUR - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today visited the Decatur Public Transit System (DPTS) to discuss the $16.84 million in federal funding he secured through the U.S. Department of Transportation's (DOT) Low-No Emissions and Bus Facilities Program for the City of Decatur's electric fleet efforts. DPTS will use this funding to replace four diesel buses with hybrid buses (with the goal to eventually transition to fully electric), make electrical upgrades to convert a new facility to a bus b… Continue Reading