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WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden today signed into law the Better Cybercrime Metrics Act, legislation authored by U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) that will help fight cybercrime and keep people safe from online scams. The bipartisan bill, which will improve data collection on cybercrimes and give law enforcement and policy makers more tools to combat cybercrime in the United States, passed the Senate in December and the U.S. House of Representatives in March. “By...
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WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) today led a group of ten senators in introducing a resolution to support the designation of April 2022 as “Preserving and Protecting Local News Month.” The resolution recognizes local news as a public good that serves an essential function in the democracy of the United States. “People across the country rely on local news to stay informed, fight disinformation, and strengthen their communities. As the industry...
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HONOLULU – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) today released the following statement on the Department of Defense’s decision to withdraw its lawsuit challenging the State of Hawaiʻi’s emergency public health order on the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility. “This is the right thing to do, and I worked very hard to push the DoD to make this decision. The legal challenge to the order made it difficult for the state to work cooperatively with the DoD, and...
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WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) today voted to confirm Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to serve as an associate justice on the U.S. Supreme Court. Judge Jackson, who was confirmed by a vote of 53-47, becomes the first Black woman to serve on the Supreme Court. “Judge Jackson has the legal expertise, record of fairness, and extensive experience – both professional and personal – that will make her an excellent addition to the Supreme Court....
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WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) today met with Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, President Joe Biden’s nominee to serve as associate justice on the U.S. Supreme Court. The two met in Senator Schatz’s office on Capitol Hill to discuss her record and judicial philosophy. “I heard from Judge Jackson directly and it is clear that she is exceptionally qualified to serve on the Supreme Court. Throughout her years of public service, she has demonstrated a...
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HONOLULU – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) today announced that the Honolulu Community Action Program will receive $7,142,204 in federal grant funding to support its Head Start and Early Head Start programs. These programs provide comprehensive early childhood education and development services to low-income children and pregnant mothers. “No single program has taught us more about how important early childhood development programs are to a child’s education and...
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WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) secured $367,000 in congressionally directed spending, also known as an earmark, in this year’s appropriations bill for the Domestic Violence Action Center (DVAC). The funds will be used to support its Immigrant Triad Program, which provides legal and advocacy services for immigrant or limited English proficiency survivors of family violence and their children. “This new earmark funding will help expand services for...
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WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) led a group of 17 senators in introducing a resolution to recognize the achievements and courage of the transgender, nonbinary, gender-nonconforming, and gender-diverse communities around the world, and to celebrate International Transgender Day of Visibility. “International Transgender Day of Visibility is about celebrating the transgender, nonbinary, gender-nonconforming, and gender-diverse communities around the world...
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WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) voted to confirm Nani Coloretti as Deputy Director at the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Confirmed by a vote of 57-41, Coloretti is now the highest ranking Filipino American in the Biden Administration. Coloretti hails from Kapahulu and graduated from ‘Iolani School in 1987. “This is a proud moment for Hawai‘i. Nani will bring strong leadership experience and the ability to inspire the next generation...
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WASHINGTON – The U.S. House of Representatives today passed the Better Cybercrime Metrics Act, legislation authored by U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) that would help fight cybercrime and help keep people safe from online scams. The bipartisan bill, which will improve data collection on cybercrimes and give law enforcement and policy makers more tools to combat cybercrime in the United States, previously passed the Senate in December and is expected to be signed into law by the...
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WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) today announced that 18 health care providers in Hawai‘i will receive $1,182,796 in federal COVID-19 relief funding to cover pandemic-related costs and continue providing health care for kids and families throughout the state. The funding supports smaller health care providers, with a specific focus on those serving Medicaid, Children's Health Insurance Program, and Medicare beneficiaries. “This new federal funding will...
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WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, released the following statement on the inclusion of $1 billion to defuel the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility in the president’s annual budget request. Schatz worked closely with senior Biden Administration officials to ensure the new funding was included in the president’s annual budget request. “The president’s budget proposal signals the...
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WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) secured $100,000 in congressionally directed spending, also known as an earmark, in this year’s appropriations bill for the YWCA of Hawai‘i Island. The money will be used to help fund technology upgrades, supplies, and teacher training for the nonprofit’s Developmental Preschool Program. “Early childhood education is incredibly important to a child’s development, health, and successful future,”...
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WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) today released the following statement on the passing of former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright. “Madeleine Albright is a towering figure in American and world history, but I knew her as family. She is my oldest brother’s mother-in-law, and when I came to Washington, we became friends. Actual friends. She was thrilled to have a politician in the family, and wanted to be helpful without casting a long shadow, so...
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WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) today announced that Ho‘āhu Energy Cooperative Moloka‘i, a local group developing Moloka‘i’s first community-owned renewable energy resource project, will receive federal support, including technical assistance, from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). “This kind of hands-on federal support will help us expand clean energy production on Moloka‘i as the community moves to take its energy...
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WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) released the following statement on the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) new proposed rule requiring publicly traded companies to disclose their climate risk exposure. “The SEC took a crucial first step to protect investors from material risks related to climate change. Investors need to know exactly how exposed individual companies are to climate risks. For that, they need consistent, comparable, and...
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WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. Senate unanimously passed the Safe Connections Act, bipartisan legislation authored by U.S. Senators Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) and Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), that will help survivors of domestic violence and other crimes cut ties with their abusers and separate from shared wireless service plans, which can be exploited to monitor, stalk, or control victims. “Giving domestic violence abusers control over their victims’ cell phones is a terrifying...
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WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) today announced that 14 community health centers across Hawai‘i will receive $23,749,447 in federal funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to continue providing health care services to underserved communities. “Community health centers provide quality, affordable health care to Hawai‘i families every day,” said Senator Schatz, a member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on...
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WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) secured $23 million in congressionally directed spending, also known as an earmark, in this year’s appropriations bill for highway improvements on Maui. The new earmark funding will be used to realign 4.5 miles of Honoapi‘ilani Highway from Ukumehame to Launiupoko to make it safer and more resilient to the impacts of coastal erosion and climate change. “This $23 million earmark will directly benefit Maui and help...
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WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) secured $350,000 in congressionally directed spending, also known as earmarks, in this year’s appropriations bill for the Molokai Land Trust. The new earmark funding will be used to support construction of predator-proof fencing to protect threatened and endangered species within the Mokio Preserve. “This new earmark will protect dozens of threatened and endangered species on Molokai,” said Senator Schatz, a senior...
