Press Releases

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Tim Kaine (D-VA) introduced the COVID-19 Mental Health Research Act to study the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the mental health of Americans, including health care workers, children and adolescents, older adults, and members of racial and ethnic minority groups. This legislation follows recent reports that U.S. cases of depression and anxiety have significantly increased during the pandemic. Companion legislation is led in ...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, Congresswoman Elaine Luria and Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine, sent a letter to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) urging them to expedite regulatory processes for offshore wind development in Coastal Virginia. “Virginia’s diverse maritime industry, workforce, port assets, deep, wide channels, and no overhead obstructions have positioned the Commonwealth to become a hub for manufacturing and ongoing operations and maintenance activities f...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine applauded Senate passage of the American Rescue Plan, a $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill that includes numerous critical wins for Virginia. The bill will now return to the House of Representatives.  “Because of this bill, millions of Virginians will receive a stimulus check, unemployment benefits will last through the summer, and 85,000 of the Commonwealth’s children will be lifted out of poverty,” said Kaine. “T...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. —U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine joined Senator Brian Schatz and their colleagues in reintroducing the Federal Adjustment of Income Rates (FAIR) Act, a bill that would provide federal employees with a 3.2 percent pay increase in 2022. “For years, federal employees have faced pay freezes, furloughs, and government shutdowns all while continuing to protect and serve the American people,” the Senators said. “The FAIR Act will finally give the...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON – U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) and Sens. Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen (both D-MD) today urged the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to quickly make available the maximum number of Congressionally-authorized H-2B visas in order to ensure that seafood processors in Virginia and Maryland have the seasonal workforce they need ahead of the seasonal start date on April 1.  “In the rural and remote coastal regions in our states, even i...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, was joined today by Senators Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Ranking Member and Chairman of the SFRC Subcommittee on Western Hemisphere, as well as Senators Bill Cassidy (R-La.) and Ben Cardin (D-Md.) in reintroducing legislation authorizing the tenth general capital increase for the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the hemisphere’s leading international...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA), a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, & Pensions (HELP) Committee and Congresswoman Susan Wild (D-PA-07) announced the reintroduction of the Dr. Lorna Breen Health Care Provider Protection Act, comprehensive, bipartisan legislation to reduce and prevent suicide, burnout, and mental and behavioral health conditions among health care professionals. Health care professionals have long experienced high levels of stres...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON – Today U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) announced they are now accepting applications for the position of United States Circuit Court Judge for the Fourth Circuit in Richmond to succeed Fourth Circuit Judge Barbara M. Keenan, who will assume senior status effective August 31, 2021. An independent panel of lawyers assembled by the Senators will review applications and interview qualified individuals. The Senators will then use those recommendations, as well as...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON – U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) today sent a letter to the White House recommending candidates for the U.S. Attorney vacancies in the Eastern District of Virginia (EDVA) and the Western District of Virginia (WDVA). In their letter, the Senators recommended Jessica Aber, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and John Hall, civil litigator at Covington & Burling, for the EDVA position. The Senators recommended Christopher Kavanaugh...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Todd Young (R-IN) reintroduced their bipartisan legislation to repeal the 1991 and 2002 Authorizations for Use of Military Force (AUMF) against Iraq. The bill would formally end the authorizations for the Gulf and Iraq wars – 30 and 19 years, respectively, after these AUMFs were first passed, reasserting Congress’ vital role in not only declaring wars, but in ending them. The repeal of these authorizations also recogn...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. —U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine joined Senator Chris Murphy and their colleagues in reintroducing the Background Check Expansion Act to expand federal background checks to all gun sales. Under current federal law, unlicensed or private sellers are not required to conduct a background check prior to transferring a firearm. Research indicates that nearly a quarter of all gun sales in the United States may occur without a background check. U.S. Repr...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – As the world knows by now, one of the officers who arrested George Floyd kneeled on his neck for 8 minutes and 46 seconds—killing him and any chance he had of proving his innocence. Not only did this one incident of police misconduct cost Floyd his life—an inhumane and incalculable cost—it will likely cost taxpayers where he lived millions of dollars. Yet cities and counties are not required to report information about these costs to the federal go...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine joined Senator Jack Reed in introducing the Reopen and Rebuild America’s Schools Act, a companion to legislation introduced by Congressman Bobby Scott in the House. The bill would invest $130 billion over ten years to modernize K-12 classrooms across the country and help schools upgrade their physical and digital infrastructure. Funds will be provided through direct grants and school construction bonds to help fill the gap in school facility capital need...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (SFRC), released the following statement after the Biden Administration released the unclassified intelligence assessment confirming Saudi Arabia’s state-sponsored murder of Virginia resident and journalist Jamal Khashoggi: “I’m relieved this Administration did what the Trump Administration consistently refused to do: publicly acknowledge that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MB...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Tim Kaine released the following statement today on recent U.S. air strikes in Syria targeting Iran-backed militias: “The American people deserve to hear the Administration’s rationale for these strikes and its legal justification for acting without coming to Congress. Offensive military action without congressional approval is not constitutional absent extraordinary circumstances. Congress must be fully briefed on this matter expeditiously.&rdqu...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine announced $1,105,039 in federal funding to help seven Native American tribes in Virginia develop affordable housing within their communities. The funding was awarded through the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Indian Housing Block Grant Program (IHBG), and will go towards the Chickahominy, the Eastern Chickahominy, the Upper Mattaponi, the Rappahannock, the Monacan, the Pamunkey, a...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine announced $95,560,265 in federal funding to help Virginians access safe and affordable housing across the Commonwealth. The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) awarded the funding through four grant programs – the Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) program, the HOME Investment Partnerships Program (HOME), Emergency Solutions Grants (ESG) program, and the Housing Opportunities for Perso...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (SFRC) and Congressman Gerry Connolly, a member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, led their colleagues in a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken urging the State Department to press Saudi Arabia to drop false charges against two Virginians and other Americans in the Kingdom. In their letter, the lawmakers highlight cases of U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents (LPRs) who ar...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, released the following statement after voting to confirm Linda Thomas-Greenfield as Ambassador to the United Nations: “At her confirmation hearing, Linda Thomas-Greenfield demonstrated her exceptional qualifications and her commitment to strengthening our alliances. After learning more about her vision for the future of American diplomacy, I was proud to vote to confirm Ms. Thomas-Gr...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C – Today, U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine announced $46,328,480 in federal funding to support affordable housing development across Virginia. The funding, which will go to 26 municipalities across the Commonwealth, has been awarded through the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Public Housing Capital Fund. “Access to safe and affordable housing is crucial to a family’s health and stability,” said th...Continue Reading