Press Releases

WASHINGTON – Today U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) announced that legislation to add more than 7,000 acres to the Petersburg National Battlefield is on track to be approved by Congress as soon as next week. Text of the annual defense authorization bill released by a congressional conference committee includes legislation sponsored by the two Virginia Senators authorizing the National Park Service to acquire additional historic land sites related to the Siege of Petersbu...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine announced that Virginia preschools have been awarded $17.5 million in grants from the U.S. Departments of Education (ED) and Health and Human Services (HHS) to continue their work ‎expanding access to high-quality preschool for children from low- to moderate-income families in the communities of Brunswick, Chesterfield, Fairfax, Giles, Henrico, Norfolk, Petersburg, Prince William, Richmond, Sussex, and Winchester. Bot...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – In remarks on the Senate floor, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Armed Services and Foreign Relations Committees, renewed his call for Congress to vote on an Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) specific to the terrorist group ISIL. He also paid tribute to Senior Chief Petty Officer Scott C. Dayton of Woodbridge, Virginia who was killed in combat in Syria last week, highlighting the costs of two and a half years of war against ISIL. “I ...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON – Today, Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) asked the Chair and Ranking Member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense to protect funding for the Carrier Replacement Program during the Fiscal Year 2017 appropriations process. If the Department of Defense is funded temporarily through a Continuing Resolution, as is currently expected, the advance procurement funding for the program will continue at FY 2016 levels – delaying shipbuilding, jeopardizin...Continue Reading

RICHMOND, VA – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations and Armed Services Committees, released the following statement following President-elect Trump’s announcement that he will nominate South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley to be U.S. ambassador to the United Nations:  “I look forward to meeting with Governor Haley and considering her nomination in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.  As a former Governor, I believe that Governor...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON – Today, Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) joined 20 of their Senate colleagues in sending a bipartisan letter to Congressional leadership urging passage of the Miners Protection Act by the end of this year. The bill, which would protect the hard-earned health and pension benefits of retired mine workers, has bipartisan support and is currently awaiting consideration in the Senate after passing through the Senate Finance Committee in September by a large margin.&nbs...Continue Reading

Today, current and former Members of Congress filed an amicus brief to affirm Congressional intent to raise expectations for the quality of education provided to students with disabilities under IDEA At stake in the case is the ability of students with disabilities to receive access to meaningful public education Members of Congress: “Congress intended…IDEA to provide meaningful educational benefits for students with disabilities and—significantly—raise expectations for ...Continue Reading

HALIFAX, NOVA SCOTIA – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Armed Services and Foreign Relations Committees, received the 2016 Halifax Builder Award at the Eighth Annual Halifax International Security Forum in Halifax, Nova Scotia. In accepting the award, Kaine discussed American national security strategy and the important role democratic alliances have had throughout history. The Builder Award recognizes individuals who have been instrume...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine sent a letter to the Chair and Ranking Member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense asking them to protect funding for the Ohio Replacement Program (ORP) during the Fiscal Year 2017 appropriations process. If the Department of Defense is funded through a Continuing Resolution, the Navy will lose the authority to execute advance procurement funding for the program—halting shipbuilding, jeopardizing national secu...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine joined 13 Senators to introduce a bipartisan resolution in the Senate designating the week of November 14, 2016, National Apprenticeship Week. Senators joining Kaine to introduce the resolution were U.S. Senators Patty Murray (D-WA), Susan Collins (R-ME), Al Franken (D-MN), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Barbara A. Mikulski (D-MD), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Joe Donnelly (D-IN), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Amy ...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine sent a bipartisan letter to the leadership of the Senate Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs Committee, which has jurisdiction over the U.S. Postal Service (USPS), calling for the improvement of mail delivery service to be a critical component of any comprehensive USPS reform bill.  “While the importance of reliable mail delivery for customers, especially those living in rural areas, has not changed, the ...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Marco Rubio (R-FL), members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, introduced the Combatting European Anti-Semitism Act, legislation to address the troubling trend of anti-Semitism across Europe. “I am alarmed by the steady increase in anti-Semitism we’re witnessing in America and Europe. We must be vigilant in reporting any incidents of anti-Semitism to ensure the safety, security and inalienable rights...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine released the following statement after voting against cloture on the motion to proceed to the American Energy and Conservation Act: “I voted no on this bill in large part because of findings from the Obama Administration earlier this year, as well as increasing opposition to speculative oil drilling off Virginia’s coast from constituents in Hampton Roads and on the Eastern Shore. Department of Defense concerns about the impact mi...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine announced that the New River/Mount Rogers Workforce Investment Area Consortium in Radford, VA will receive a $6,000,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) to strengthen and expand regional workforce partnerships in Southwest Virginia. The funds are available through DOL’s America’s Promise Job Driven Grant Program. “Today’s economy requires workers to have knowledge of new and emerging t...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will award $3,684,248 in Rural Development grants to various Virginia enterprises. The USDA’s Value Added Producer Grant Program, part of the 2014 farm bill, assists farmers with developing new product lines and expanding markets for their products, with a specific focus on small and medium-sized family farms and beginning farmers and ranchers. The grant...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has awarded more than $70.4 million to help finance projects to increase reliability of rural electric utility systems in Virginia. These loans, which are part of the Electric Program of the Rural Utilities Service, are targeted to rural regions where capital is limited, and will help finance infrastructure upgrades, create jobs and improve operations for rura...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) announced that the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) has awarded more than $6.6 million to promote cybersecurity readiness, unmanned aerial systems, and other workforce development programs in southwest Virginia. The funding comes as part of the Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic Revitalization (POWER) Initiative, a multi-agency effort aligning and targeting federal economic and workforce de...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) announced that the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) has designated Pulaski County and Wythe County as Appalachia High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA), as well as Frederick County as a Washington/Baltimore HIDTA. The designations will enable each county to receive federal resources and tools to improve drug control efforts and coordination among federal, state and local law enforcement. “...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – As the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) finalizes a new rule to address predatory practices in payday and similar types of consumer lending, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine expressed support for the agency’s efforts to protect consumers from the predatory lending practices associated with these high-priced loans. “The issue of predatory lending is not new nor will it improve without strong action from the CFPB. Too many consumers are stuck in high-cost debt...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) announced that the Department of Justice (DOJ) has awarded $823,341 in grant funding to support community policing efforts and strategies throughout Virginia. The funding, awarded to state and national organizations headquartered in Virginia, was made available through DOJ’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services’ (COPS) Community Policing Development Awards program. “I am pleased that Virgini...Continue Reading