Press Releases

HONOLULU - President Barack Obama signed into law the Expanding Capacity for Health Outcomes (ECHO) Act, a bipartisan bill introduced by U.S. Senators Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) and Orrin Hatch (R-Utah). This law will increase access to high-quality health care in hard-to-reach regions. “Technology has the potential to transform the way we train doctors and deliver health care,” said Senator Schatz. “This law will help connect primary care providers in underserved areas...

WASHINGTON – On Saturday morning, the U.S. Senate unanimously passed the Ensuring Access to Fisheries Act. The bipartisan legislation, introduced by U.S. Senators Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), and Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), will implement treaties ratified by the Senate last year to better manage certain fisheries in the North and South Pacific, and to improve international fisheries management the North Atlantic. “Nations around the world look to the...

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Senate unanimously passed the Open, Public, Electronic and Necessary (OPEN) Government Data Act, legislation introduced by U.S. Senators Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) and Ben Sasse (R-Neb.). The bipartisan bill will require public data to be accessible at Data.gov so individuals, organizations, and other government offices can utilize it. “Public information belongs to the public, and it’s the government’s job to make sure that data is...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), and 18 other senators called on President-elect Donald Trump to protect Medicare and Medicaid and not cut it, as his recent actions have suggested he might do. In a letter to Trump, the senators raised concerns over his choice for U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, Rep. Tom Price, and language on the transition website that calls for changes to Medicare and Medicaid....

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) released the following statement regarding the Federal Transit Administration’s (FTA) approval of the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transit’s request for an extension to submit its Recovery Plan: “The city has developed a more clear-eyed, realistic plan to get the rail project back on track. More must be done in the coming months to ensure we can complete the project, but this extension is welcome news...

WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) released the following statement today regarding President-elect Donald Trump’s nomination of Scott Pruitt as Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). “Climate change is real, urgent, and caused by humans. It is a scientifically proven fact that any EPA Administrator should accept.  That’s why I cannot support Scott Pruitt, a denier of climate science, to lead the EPA. “The EPA has the...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), ranking member of the Senate Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, Innovation, and the Internet, issued the following statement in response to the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) announcement relating to Sandwich Isles Communications’ (SIC) improper use of Universal Service Funds.  “I fully support the FCC’s efforts to combat waste, fraud, and abuse of the Universal Service Fund by...

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Senate last night, approved H.R. 1561, the Weather Research and Forecasting Innovation Act of 2016, by unanimous consent with a Senate amendment. The bill as amended, which leaders of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the House Science Committee negotiated, adds other weather forecasting and research reform provisions from three bills (S. 1331, S. 1573, and H.R. 34), including reforms championed by U.S. Senator Brian Schatz...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) and Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) issued the following statements after the Expanding Capacity for Health Outcomes (ECHO) Act, legislation they introduced, passed in the Senate by a vote of 97-0. This legislation will increase access to high-quality health care in hard-to-reach regions. “We’re now one step closer to supporting new ways to train health providers and deliver health care,” said Senator Schatz, a member of...

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Senate today, by unanimous consent, sent bicameral legislation to the White House for the President’s signature that will outlaw the use of “gag clauses” in non-negotiable form contracts. Some businesses have attracted national scrutiny for using gag clauses to punish or silence honest criticism of products and services. The sponsors of the Senate version released the following statements: “Reviews on where to shop, eat, or stay on websites...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) issued the following statement in response to Carl Higbie’s comments on Fox News’ “The Kelly File” that World War II-era Japanese American internment camps could be used as “precedent” for a Muslim registry.  “The internment of Japanese Americans was a dark chapter in our history.  We should remember it and never repeat the same injustice.  Any suggestion that the...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), a member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, issued the following statement after University of Hawai‘i professor, Dr. Chien-Wen Tseng M.D., M.P.H., M.S.E.E., was appointed to the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. Senator Schatz nominated Dr. Tseng for appointment to the task force. “I congratulate Dr. Tseng on this appointment and for making history as the...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) issued the following statement on the passing of state Representative Clift Tsuji. “My deepest condolences to the family and many friends of Representative Clift Tsuji.  Rep. Tsuji was low-key in style but a firm fighter for the needs of the people of the Big Island.  He will be especially remembered for his advocacy of agriculture and its essential role in the economy and culture of Hawai‘i.  Clift was...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), a member of the Appropriations Committee and the Subcommittees on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Military Construction and Veterans Affairs announced that the U.S. Departments of Housing and Urban Development and Veterans Affairs awarded $330,960 to the Hawai‘i Public Housing Authority to help provide housing for 35 homeless veterans in our state. “One of the most basic obligations that we...

HONOLULU – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) issued the following statement in honor of Veterans Day. Senator Schatz will spend part of Veterans Day attending the Oahu Veterans Council’s Veterans Day ceremony at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.  “On this Veterans Day, we honor the dedication and sacrifice of our veterans and their families. Less than one percent of Americans shoulder the immense responsibility of defending our nation....

HONOLULU – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), ranking member of the Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, Innovation, and the Internet, issued the following statement in response to the Federal Communications Commission’s letter to AT&T raising questions about their zero rating practices implemented through the company’s sponsored data plan.   “I support the FCC’s approach to reviewing each of these zero rating practices on a...

HONOLULU – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) issued the following statement in honor of Filipino American History Month. “This month, we celebrate the vibrant culture, hard work, and strong values of the Filipino American community. For generations, Filipinos have made Hawai‘i and the United States their home.  From labor to business to arts and education, Filipinos have helped write the history of our state and our country. Some of the most...

HONOLULU – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) today commended the U.S. Department of Labor’s (USDOL) Wage and Hour Division for taking quick action to investigate and confirm the numerous employment violations occurring at Maile Sky Court, a 600-room hotel in Waikiki that is being renovated into a Holiday Inn Express. The USDOL fined R&R Construction Services, the Texas-based contractor doing the $25 million renovation, $371,376 for numerous violations including...

HONOLULU – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) issued the following statement after European Union lawmakers voted to ratify the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, providing the United Nations with the required commitments to apply legal force to the agreement. Senator Schatz attended the 2015 Paris Climate Talks as a representative of the U.S. Senate.  “This demonstrates what American leadership can accomplish. Without the Clean Power Plan, we would have...

HONOLULU – Today, U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), Ranking Member of the Senate Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, Innovation, and the Internet, released the following statement in response to a federal judge’s decision to dismiss a lawsuit issued by four state attorneys general to block the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) transition. “I’m glad the court found this lawsuit to be baseless, and appropriately threw it out. This decision is...