Press Releases

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Senate last week 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 will improve data collection on cybercrimes, giving law enforcement and policy makers more tools to understand the size and scope of cybercrime in the United States. “To protect people and fight online crimes, including scams and hacks like...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) today announced that the Hawai‘i Island Coalition was named a finalist for the Biden Administration’s Build Back Better Regional Challenge and will receive $500,000 to further develop a proposal for between $25 and $100 million in potential future grant funding. If successful, the coalition would use the funds to create jobs, train workers, and expand the market reach of Hawai‘i Island’s farmers. “This...

U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) today announced that the Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center will receive $472,834 in federal funding from the American Rescue Plan to establish a teaching health center primary care medical residency program on Oahu. “This new residency program will train more local doctors and help Hawai‘i families get the health care they need,” said Senator Schatz, a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee. “Where someone lives...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) released the following statement after the Navy disputed the Hawai‘i Department of Health’s analysis of water contamination at the Aiea Halawa well. “The EPA must be the lead agency in the collection, testing, analysis, and public communication for water quality of the Navy’s water system. EPA must take a more active role in addressing this crisis. We can’t afford another day of the Navy and state and...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Brian Schatz and Mazie K. Hirono, member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today voted to confirm Hawai‘i Attorney General Clare Connors to serve as U.S. Attorney for the District of Hawai‘i. The Senate voted unanimously to confirm her nomination. “Clare Connors is an excellent choice to serve as U.S. Attorney for the District of Hawai‘i, and her unanimous confirmation by the Senate is proof of that. With her strong background in public...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) and Mazie K. Hirono (D-Hawai‘i) and U.S. Representatives Ed Case (D-Hawai‘i) and Kaiali‘i Kahele (D-Hawai‘i) called on Governor David Ige to request that President Biden declare an emergency and direct the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to step in and assist with the water contamination crisis on Oahu. “The EPA’s direct intervention in your request is essential,” the delegation wrote...

HONOLULU – Gov. David Ige and Hawaii’s congressional delegation, U.S. Senators Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) and Mazie K. Hirono (D-Hawai‘i) and U.S. Representatives Ed Case (D-Hawai‘i) and Kaiali‘i Kahele (D-Hawai‘i), released the following statement calling for the Secretary of the Navy to immediately suspend operations at Red Hill following the contamination of drinking water at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam:“Test results confirming contamination of...

HONOLULU – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) released the following statement on his call with White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain and the President’s Homeland Security Advisor and Deputy National Security Advisor Dr. Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall to discuss the water contamination crisis at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam. “Today, I spoke with White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain and Homeland Security Advisor Dr. Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall to brief them on the water...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) and Mazie K. Hirono (D-Hawai‘i) and U.S. Representatives Ed Case (D-Hawai‘i) and Kaiali‘i Kahele (D-Hawai‘i) released the following statement after test results found petroleum contaminants in the Navy’s water system, which supplies water to thousands of Oahu families. “While the test results leave many questions, it is clear that the Navy has failed to manage its fuel operations, including Red...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) released the following statement on the passing of former Honolulu Mayor Eileen Anderson. “Mayor Anderson was a remarkable, trailblazing leader who helped inspire generations of women in Hawai‘i. While she will be greatly missed, her legacy of public service and work to move Honolulu forward will endure. My condolences and aloha go to Mayor Anderson’s ohana.” ###

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) and Mazie K. Hirono (D-Hawai‘i) and U.S. Representatives Ed Case (D-Hawai‘i) and Kaiali‘i Kahele (D-Hawai‘i) released the following statement after meeting with Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro to discuss fuel operations in Hawai‘i. “Today, we met with Secretary Del Toro to discuss our concerns with Red Hill and the Navy’s fuel operations in Hawai‘i. The Navy owes the community...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) today announced that the State of Hawai‘i will receive $1.5 million in new federal funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to modernize the Waianuenue Avenue Bridge and protect it from flooding and earthquakes. “This new federal funding will modernize the Waianuenue Avenue Bridge, making it safer for local families to use and get where they need to go,” said Senator Schatz, Chairman of the Senate...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) today announced that the Hawai‘i Public Housing Authority will receive $4.7 million from the American Rescue Plan to keep Hawai‘i families using housing vouchers from being evicted due to increased costs. “No one should lose their home during a pandemic,” said Senator Schatz, Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Housing and Urban Development. “This new federal funding will help make sure...

HONOLULU — U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) today released the following statement on the nomination of Nani Coloretti as Deputy Director at the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). When confirmed, Coloretti will become the highest ranking Filipino American in the Biden Administration. Coloretti hails from Kapahulu and graduated from Iolani School in 1987. “The Office of Management and Budget will gain an outstanding, well-qualified Deputy Director in Nani...

HONOLULU – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today announced that rural health care providers in Hawai‘i will receive more than $43 million in federal funding from the American Rescue Plan to provide health care for families across the state. The grants will support 240 Hawai‘i health care providers who serve rural Medicaid, Children's Health Insurance Program, and Medicare beneficiaries. “This new federal...

WASHINGTON – Last week, President Joe Biden signed the bipartisan infrastructure deal into law, which includes a provision authored by U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) that will extend the deadline for $493 million in grant funding for the Honolulu Rail Transit project. The federal funds, a portion of the $1.55 billion federal grant for the project, were set to expire at the end of the year if left unspent. As a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Schatz worked with...

WASHINGTON – Following an appropriations provision authored by U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) to designate Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument as a National Marine Sanctuary, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) today officially began the process for designation. Following this initiation, NOAA will begin public meetings and the formal legal process to complete the requirements to finalize an official designation. “Papahanaumokuakea is a...

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, announced that Hawai‘i will receive more than $2 million to fund coastal resilience projects and protect communities from flooding across the state. “These projects will restore or expand wetlands, beaches, and forests and will help keep homes and businesses safe from flooding and coastal erosion,” said Senator Schatz. The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, released the following statement today congratulating Suzanne Vares-Lum on her appointment to be the next president of the East-West Center. “I congratulate Suzanne Vares-Lum on this well-deserved appointment to be the next president of the East-West Center,” said Senator Schatz. “As a Native Hawaiian woman, a former major general in the Army, and a...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Brian Schatz (D-Hawai‘i) and Mike Braun (R-Ind.) today introduced the Build More Housing Near Transit Act. The bipartisan legislation continues Senator Schatz’s efforts to address America’s housing shortage by offering federal benefits and encouraging local governments to build more high-density housing near transit-oriented urban spaces, where options are especially lacking. “We have a national housing shortage crisis, and one thing is...