Press Releases

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine released the following statement after the Senate passed a short term extension of the Highway Trust Fund last night: “While I reluctantly supported a two-month extension of federal transportation funding, Congress should not consider it a victory to kick this can two more months down the road.  The American Society of Civil Engineers’ annual infrastructure report card gives Virginia a C- grade, citing the 4,800 structurally defici...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine released the following statement today after final passage of Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) and Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) legislation, 62-37: “I am pleased that the Senate today completed the passage of four related trade bills. We have given the President the same power to negotiate trade deals that has been provided to every President since 1974. We have guaranteed funding for workers whose jobs are negatively affected by global t...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. —Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations and Armed Services Committees, joined 13 of his Senate colleagues in sending a letter urging President Obama to significantly increase the number of Syrian refugees allowed to resettle in the United States. The Syrian conflict has led to the world’s worst ongoing humanitarian crisis and the worst refugee crisis since World War II.  “Our nation’s founders came to our shores to es...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON – U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine joined 21 of their Senate colleagues in urging Congress to increase funding for Positive Train Control (PTC). According to the National Safety Transportation Board, PTC technology could have prevented the derailment of Amtrak 188 in Philadelphia last week.  Currently the nation’s rails need approximately $2 billion to fully implement positive train control but Congress has only allocated $50 million to date. In a letter to the...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on the U.S. strategy against ISIL, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, pushed back against Congressional criticism of the Obama administration’s strategy in Iraq & Syria, along with calls for additional ground troops, while Congress remains unwilling to be held accountable for asking U.S. servicemembers to risk their lives. By avoiding a debate and vote on a new Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) against I...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – This week, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine introduced the Strong Start for America’s Children Act, legislation that would expand quality preschool programs. The Strong Start for America's Children Act is a 10-year innovative federal-state partnership to expand and improve early learning opportunities for children from birth to age five. “Quality preschool programs benefit students and the nation as a whole,” said Kaine. “By expanding access to early childh...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine released the following statement after a resolution recognizing May as Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month was passed by the Senate. Kaine is a co-sponsor of this resolution: “For more than one hundred years, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders have had an immeasurable impact on our country. The influence of the AAPI community is present in the arts, sciences, Armed Forces, business community and so many other f...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 after Speaker Boehner called on President Obama to “start over” and send a new Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) against ISIL to Congress: “After ten months of the House avoiding the responsibility to even have any meaningful debate on the current war on ISIL, the Speaker's plea for the President to submit a...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, DC – Senator Tim Kaine , a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, joined a bipartisan letter expressing support for the people and government of Tunisia as they transition to democracy and representative government. The letter was co-signed by nine other senators that sit on the committee, including Senators Ben Cardin, Jim Risch, Robert Menendez, Marco Rubio, Chris Coons, Jeff Flake, David Perdue, Chris Murphy, and Johnny Isakson.  “In the dark ...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, today praised the committee’s Fiscal Year 2016 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which includes amendments introduced by Kaine condemning sequestration cuts and strengthening credentialing programs, as well as a number of other provisions supported by Kaine that benefit Virginia’s shipbuilding industry and defense community. The bill was reported out of committee today and will ...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine released the following statement today after the House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly to pass the Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act, of which Kaine is a lead cosponsor: “I’m thrilled that overwhelming bipartisan majorities in both houses of Congress have now committed to a constructive process for review of a final nuclear agreement  with Iran.  It was an honor to work with Senators Corker, Cardin, Graham, Menendez an...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Following the Senate’s votes to pass key customs enforcement legislation and trade preferences for developing economies today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine released a statement on his vote to advance the bipartisan fast-track Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) and Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) legislation: “We all agree that trade, under the right conditions and with strong enforcement measures in place, benefits our economy. I refused to allow consideration of tr...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine released the following statement on last night’s fatal Amtrak crash in Philadelphia: “My heart goes out to the loved ones of those killed or seriously injured in last night's tragic Amtrak derailment. Investigations are underway, and we should reserve judgment until we understand exactly how this happened.  But one thing is clear – the state of repair of the nation’s transit infrastructure is not where it should be.&nbs...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine and U.S. Representative Bob Goodlatte introduced legislation in the Senate and House to remove federal land use restrictions on an area used by a day care center in Rockingham County.  The Plains Area Day Care Center in Broadway, VA, has provided affordable childcare for 25 years and currently provides care for 94 children, many of whom are eligible for free and reduced lunch.  The Center’s building is in need of repair and m...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine co-sponsored bipartisan legislation to overhaul the nation’s chemical safety law. The Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act updates the outdated 1976 Toxic Substances Control Act by requiring the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to consider only the health and safety impacts of a chemical – never the cost or burden to manufacturers – when assessing chemicals for safety. The bill also ensures special protectio...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON – U.S. Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine joined 24 of their Senate colleagues today in urging President Obama to expand job opportunities and reduce recidivism by taking executive action and requiring federal contractors and federal agencies to “ban the box” on job applications. “Our nation’s legal and moral underpinnings provide that anyone who makes a mistake and learns from it deserves a second chance. Those who have accepted the consequences of their ac...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 after final Senate passage of the Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act, 98-1. The bipartisan legislation, of which Kaine is a lead cosponsor, includes significant provisions he negotiated to set up a prompt, deliberate and constructive process for Congressional review of a final nuclear agreement with Iran.   “With passage of the Iran N...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On the eve of the 9-month anniversary of the U.S. launching military operations against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations and Armed Services Committees, delivered remarks on the Senate floor, challenging his congressional colleagues to finally have a meaningful debate and vote on the U.S. mission against ISIL. Kaine pointed out that over the past 9 months of war, the U.S. has deployed thousan...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine, along with 37 of their Senate colleagues, sent a letter to Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia Mathews Burwell following reports that insurers, in violation of the Affordable Care Act, are failing to cover forms of FDA-approved contraception and neglecting to provide women with accurate information about the range of essential health care services that are now available without cost-sharing. In the lett...Continue Reading

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senators Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and Tim Kaine (D-VA) today released new data on Title IX sexual violence complaints and the Department of Education’s efforts to combat sexual assault on college campuses. In a letter responding to calls for transparency from Senators Boxer and Gillibrand, the Department highlighted its efforts to close difficult cases and urged Congress to increase funding to handle its increasing case load. Senato...Continue Reading