Press Releases

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine joined a bipartisan letter calling on Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Ajit Pai to support long-term funding that would make broadband and voice services more accessible and affordable in rural communities. In the letter, the Senators thank the FCC for its work to support rural broadband and request that it prevent upcoming funding cuts to smaller operators that deliver broadband to the country’s most rural communities, w...Continue Reading

~ Encourage HHS Secretary to work with Congress on bipartisan proposals to stabilize marketplace and address double-digit health insurance premium increases ~  WASHINGTON — Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Alex Azar, urging him to take swift action to stabilize the insurance marketplace. On May 4, the majority of health insurers filed initial rates with the Virginia Bureau of Insuran...Continue Reading

~ New gag rule would interfere with doctors' ability to provide patients information about reproductive care ~ *Click here to see a list of Va. health centers that receive Title X funding* WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) joined more than two hundred of their Senate and House colleagues in sending a letter to Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Alex Azar expressing opposition to the implementation of a domestic gag rule on Title X, the only f...Continue Reading

~ Senators say trading American security for jobs in China is a bad deal ~ WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) joined a group of 33 Senators calling on the Trump Administration to put American jobs and national security ahead of China. The Senators wrote a letter to the Administration in response to President Trump’s announcement that he has directed the Department of Commerce to look at easing penalties imposed on China-based company ZTE for viola...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. –U.S. Senator Tim Kaine has joined a bipartisan group of his colleagues to cosponsor the Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act—bipartisan, comprehensive legislation to narrow the scope of mandatory minimum prison sentences for nonviolent drug offenders, target violent and career criminals and save taxpayer dollars.  The legislation permits more judicial discretion at sentencing for offenders with minimal criminal histories and helps inmates successfully reenter ...Continue Reading

~ Funds will be used to place 33 new teachers in schools in Gloucester, New Kent, York, Williamsburg-James City, Newport News and Hampton ~ WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) announced that the College of William and Mary (W&M) will receive $1,199,858 in federal funding to recruit Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) students to become secondary school mathematics and science teachers. “This critical funding will support the rec...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations and Armed Services Committees released the following statement announcing his opposition to Acting Director Gina Haspel’s nomination for Director of the Central Intelligence Agency: “There have been many casualties of the war against terrorism; among them was the moral judgment by those in our government who were complicit in the use of torture. Gina Haspel has served this country with dedicatio...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations and Armed Services Committees, released the following statement after a Pentagon report outlined multiple failures that led to the deaths of four American troops in Niger last year: “Today’s report about the tragic deaths of American and Nigerien troops in Niger last October is deeply troubling. Our troops were in Niger to ‘train and equip’ the Nigerien military. They embarked...Continue Reading

Legislation would authorize 4,000 additional visas for individuals who risked their lives to protect Americans  WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations and Armed Services Committees, joined Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and a bipartisan group of colleagues to introduce legislation to further extend the Afghan Special Immigrant Visa program (SIV). The program allows Afghans who have supported the U.S. mission in Afghanistan and face th...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine announced $9,442,626 million in federal grant funding through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) for Head Start programs throughout Virginia. “We are thrilled to announce funding through Head Start to ensure young children in Virginia have the resources they need,” the Senators said. “We strongly believe in efforts to support early childhood development that can promote  kids&rs...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine praised the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works (EPW) for including his provisions to initiate new flood-resilience projects for Tangier Island and Coastal Virginia in its draft water resources bill. The EPW Committee’s draft of the America’s Water Infrastructure Act includes two provisions that will result in roadmaps for new resilient infrastructure—a broad plan for the entire coastal region of Virginia and a...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine announced $94,819,202 in federal funding to help Virginia communities with housing and infrastructure projects. The funding, which will go to more than 30 locations across Virginia, will be awarded through the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), Emergency Solutions Grants (ESG), Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA), HOME, and ...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations and Armed Services Committees, released the following statement today on the release of three Americans wrongly detained in North Korea: “I welcome the long-overdue release of these three Americans, including former Virginia resident Kim Dong-chul who has been wrongly detained for nearly three years. This is a positive development, but the North Korean regime must be held accountable for its appalling...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations and Armed Services Committees, released the following statement today on President Trump’s decision to break the U.S. commitment to the Iran nuclear agreement, despite Iran’s compliance with the deal: “President Trump showed us again today that when he says ‘America First,’ he actually means ‘America alone.’ By violating the Iran deal, the President is creating a ne...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine released the following statement after insurers filed initial rates that would lead to major premium increases for Virginians in 2019: “These proposed price increases are a painful consequence of the Trump Administration’s efforts to sabotage the health insurance market and dismantle the Affordable Care Act. After a series of unsuccessful attempts to repeal the ACA, President Trump and Republicans in Congress settle...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine released the following statement on the Trump Administration’s decision to end Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for approximately 57,000 Honduran immigrants displaced by natural disasters: “Throughout our history, America has opened our arms to people seeking refuge, and their contributions have strengthened our communities. But time and again, the Trump Administration has forced immigrants and refugees back int...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations and Armed Services Committees, released the following statement on reports that U.S. Special Forces have been secretly supporting Saudi Arabia as it battles Yemen’s Houthi rebels:   “The Trump Administration’s purposeful blurring of lines between train and equip missions and combat, from Niger to Yemen, is unacceptable. It runs afoul o...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine announced $2.1 million to preserve parts of the Yorktown and Appomattox Court House Battlefields in Virginia. These grants were awarded through the National Park Service’s American Battlefield Protection Program, funded through the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). “Virginia is home to some of America’s most historic sites, and the National Park Service and localities have worked hard to...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations and Armed Services Committees, released the following statement on the heightened tension and violence along the Gaza-Israel border: “I am deeply saddened by the cycle of violence and protests at the Gaza-Israel border. These events make clear the desperate need to alleviate this ongoing humanitarian crisis and actively pursue a political resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. &ldq...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine announced $61 million in funding for the construction of two 120-bed veterans homes in Virginia, $30 million for a state veterans home in Virginia Beach and $31 million for a state veterans home in Vint Hill. This funding, which is part of a $685 million package for state veterans homes across the country, can be used for repairs, renovation, or new construction. Wa...Continue Reading