Press Releases

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine released the following statement after voting against legislation to prohibit federal funding for Planned Parenthood: “For many women and families across the country, Planned Parenthood health centers are their only source of high quality health care. That’s why I voted against legislation that would deny more than 2.5 million Americans important primary care services. For years, activist groups like the Center for Medical Progress have...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine released the following statement on the United States’ final plan to reduce emissions of the carbon pollution responsible for climate change, which calls on U.S. power plants to generate 32% less carbon pollution by the year 2030 than they do today: “The Clean Power Plan marks the biggest step the United States has ever taken to address the pollution responsible for climate change. The consensus is clear – from an overwhelming ma...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine(D-VA) joined U.S. Senators Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Rob Portman (R-Ohio), and Pat Toomey (R-PA) to introduce the bipartisan Stopping Medication Abuse and Protecting Seniors Act to prevent inappropriate access to opioids and improve patient care for at-risk beneficiaries. The legislation would prohibit Medicare Part D and Medicare Advantage patients suffering from drug addiction fr...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, co-chair of the Senate Career and Technical Education (CTE) Caucus, introduced the Jumpstart Our Businesses By Supporting Students (JOBS) Act, legislation that would amend the Higher Education Act by expanding Pell Grant eligibility to students enrolled in short-term job training programs. Under current law, Pell Grants - needs-based grants for low-income and working students&mdash...Continue Reading

Failure of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming to Expand Medicaid Has Left Four Million Eligible Americans Without Medicaid Coverage WASHINGTON, D.C. – Ahead of the 50th anniversary of Medicare and Medicaid, U.S. Senators Tim Kaine, Sherrod Brown and 29 of their Senate colleagues are urging the 19 states that have not yet decide...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine and 12 of his Senate colleagues urged gun dealers to stop selling firearms to people who do not first pass a background check. When a criminal background check indicates that a firearm purchaser may have a criminal record, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) tries to determine whether the purchaser can legally buy a gun. If this process takes longer than 72 hours, gun dealers can complete the sale even though there is a heightened...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, released the following statement on reports of greater cooperation between the U.S. and Turkey on an ISIL-free zone along the Syrian border: “I welcome the news of greater U.S.-Turkey cooperation along the Syria border to establish an ISIL-free zone that, with additional measures, could become a protected zone for internally displaced Syrians and the approximately 1.8 million Syrian refuges...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Ben Cardin (D-MD), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, along with Senators John McCain (R-AZ), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Marco Rubio (R-FL), Chris Coons (D-DE), Mark Kirk (R-IL), and Bob Casey (D-PA) wrote Secretary of State John Kerry today ahead of the upcoming U.S.-Egypt Strategic Dialogue, urging that “political reform, human rights, and fundamental freedoms” are made a central element of the agenda. In the letter, the Senators write ...Continue Reading

Video: KAINE_FR_QA072315.mp4 WASHINGTON, D.C. – During a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing today on the Iran nuclear agreement with Secretary of State John Kerry, Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz and Treasury Secretary Jack Lew, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine pressed the witnesses on Iran’s obligations 15-25 years from now after various provisions of the agreement begin to expire, as well as how we can preserve the most credible military threat should Iran break toward producing a...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – In the wake of the tragic shooting in Chattanooga, Tennessee last week, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, sent a letter to Defense Secretary Ashton Carter urging the Department of Defense to explore all options in its review of force protection measures to better protect servicemembers at traditional and non-traditional military facilities across the country. “The threats we face today are unconventional and without borders. T...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON – U.S. Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine released the following statements supporting today's announcement that the Scott County Telephone Cooperative will receive a $2.1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA)  Community Connect Grant program.  The funds will establish a broadband network in Edwards Ridge and the surrounding area in Dickenson County. “Broadband access is vital to support and prom...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Senate has unanimously approved bipartisan legislation to help older Americans live longer with independence and dignity in their communities. The reauthorization of the Older Americans Act (OAA), which was co-sponsored by U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA), provides vital programs and services for nearly 12 million low-income seniors, including nutrition programs like Meals-on-Wheels, preventive health services, transportation assistance, part-time c...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine today welcomed Senate passage of the Every Child Achieves Act (ECAA), bipartisan education legislation that includes key provisions he authored to help prevent sexual assault and strengthen career and technical education (CTE) in schools across the country. The bill reauthorizes the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), the chief federal law addressing K-12 education. With passage of ECAA, 81-17, key provisions of the Teach Safe Relationsh...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, released the following statement on the Iran nuclear deal: “I applaud the U.S. negotiating team for its hard work to find a diplomatic solution to peacefully limit Iran’s nuclear program.  A nation’s commitment to diplomacy is every bit as important as its commitment to military strength.  Now that the negotiations have concluded, Congress must give the deal a thorough...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Senate unanimously passed an amendment to the Every Child Achieves Act of 2015 introduced by U.S. Senators Tim Kaine (D-VA), Rob Portman (R-OH), and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) to help ensure students are ready for postsecondary education and the workforce. The amendment encourages states to create work-based learning opportunities through partnerships with businesses that allow students to earn industry-recognized credentials and credit for postsecondary education. ...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, was named to the FY16 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) Conference Committee by Chairman John McCain (R-AZ) and Ranking Member Jack Reed (D-RI). The bipartisan, bicameral committee is tasked with ironing out differences between the Senate and House versions of the annual defense authorization bill. “As a member of the NDAA Conference Committee, I’ll be an advocate for a bipartisa...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – In remarks on the Senate floor, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine spoke about the Every Child Achieves Act (ECAA), which incorporates key provisions of his legislation to help prevent sexual assault by ensuring public secondary schools teach students “safe relationship behavior.” The Teach Safe Relationships Act, which Kaine introduced with U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill in February,  would require all scho...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Ben Cardin (D-Md.) with Senators Barbara A. Mikulski (D-Md.), Mark Warner (D-Va.) and Tim Kaine (D-Va.) have introduced legislation to better protect federal workers and all those potentially affected by the recent cyberattacks on the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) data system. Outraged by the expanse of the breach, the senators found the response by OPM to be severely lacking in the duration and extent of coverage for those who had their most sensitive info...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine introduced new legislation providing equal dignity for all legal marriages in the tax code.  The Equal Dignity for Married Taxpayers Act seeks to remove gender-specific references to marriage in the tax code consistent with recent developments that, extend equal treatment under the law to LGBT Americans. “The debate is over and marriage equality is the law of the land. Our tax code must reflect that,” said W...Continue Reading

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, released the following statement on Secretary of State John Kerry’s update on the nuclear talks with Iran today: “I support giving our negotiators the time to make sure they get the best deal possible with Iran to protect U.S. national security interests. Extending negotiations is much better than the alternative—walking away from significant progress that’s been made, inc...Continue Reading