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Search Senator Leahy’s press releases, floor statements, and Committee speeches by date or by subject.
Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy On the Introduction of the Automatic Voter Registration Act of 2016
Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On the Introduction of the Automatic Voter Registration Act of 2016 July 14, 2016 My friend John Lewis often says that "the right to vote is the most powerful nonviolent tool we have in a democracy." I could not agree more with him. We are a better and more representative nation when more Americans participate in our democracy, and we can help foster greater participation by modernizing the way we register … Continue Reading
07.15.16
Senate Passes, Obama To Sign Key Housing Reforms Backed By Leahy
Senate Passes, President To Sign Key Housing Reforms Backed By Leahy . . . Housing Opportunity Through Modernization Act Will Reduce Homelessness And Increase Access To Housing In Vermont And Other States WASHINGTON (FRIDAY, July 15, 2016) - Before leaving for the summer recess, the U.S. Senate Thursday night approved legislation championed by Vermont Senator Patrick Leahy (D) to make needed and long overdue reforms to several federal housing programs. The Housing Opportunity Through Moderniz… Continue Reading
07.14.16
Senate Republicans Leave Town, Refusing to Act on Judicial Backlog And Hurting Courts Across America
(THURSDAY, July 14, 2016) - Senate Republicans control the Senate schedule and whether any nominee will receive a vote. Despite repeated pleas by Democrats to confirm dozens of uncontroversial judicial nominees, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has refused to allow these confirmation votes and is sending Senators out of town for seven weeks. Republicans have even blocked consideration of uncontroversial nominees who would fill vacancies in their home states. Their obstruction has resu… Continue Reading
07.14.16
Leahy & Senate Dems Introduce Bill To Increase Voter Participation
(THURSDAY, July 14, 2016) - Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) introduced legislation Thursday to make it easier for all Americans to vote and to participate in our democracy by making registration automatic. The Automatic Voter Registration Act of 2016 requires states to automatically register those who are eligible to vote when they interact with certain state and federal agencies, unless those people decline. The bill would streamline the voter registration pro… Continue Reading
07.14.16
Leahy-Authored Legislation To Preserve Historic Film & Sound Recordings To Be Signed Into Law
(THURSDAY, July 14, 2016) - Legislation authored by Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) to preserve the nation's most treasured films and sound recordings passed both the Senate and House this week and is on its way to the White House for signature. The bipartisan Library of Congress Sound Recording and Film Preservation Programs Reauthorization Act, which Leahy introduced with Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) in May, reauthorizes the National Film Preservation Program and the National Sound Recording… Continue Reading
07.14.16
Leahy And Lofgren Lead Bicameral Introduction Of Refugee Protection Act
Leahy And Lofgren Lead Bicameral Introduction Of Refugee Protection Act WASHINGTON (THURSDAY, July 14, 2016) - With refugees fleeing violence worldwide, Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and House Judiciary Immigration and Border Security Subcommittee Ranking Member Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) introduced bicameral legislation Thursday to bolster and update the nation's laws to promote a more fair and efficient asylum and refugee process. Over the past five years, more … Continue Reading
07.14.16
Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy On Recent Developments in Honduras
Mr. President, yesterday I made a statement about the situation in Honduras, where the March 3rd assassination of environmental activist Berta Caceres remains under investigation. I also mentioned the brutal killing last week of Lesbia Janeth Urquia. In that statement I said that Ms. Urquia was a member of the organization COPINH, which stands for the Civic Council of Popular and Indigenous Organizations of Honduras. According to information I received today, she was not a "member" of COPINH.… Continue Reading
07.14.16
Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy On Another Environmental Activist Assassinated in Honduras
Mr. President, it has been four months and 8 days since Berta Caceres, an internationally respected indigenous Honduran environmental activist, was shot and killed in her home. Ms. Caceres had led her Lenca community in a campaign over several years against the Agua Zarca hydroelectric project financed in part by a Honduran company, Desarrollos Energeticos (DESA), on the Gualcarque River which the Lenca people consider to be sacred. Honduran police officers tampered with the crime scene, and … Continue Reading
07.13.16
Senate Wednesday Night Passes Bill Cosponsored By Leahy To Target Opioid And Heroin Abuse
Senate Wednesday Night Passes Bill Cosponsored By Leahy To Target Opioid And Heroin Abuse Leahy: Bill Treats Addiction As An Illness And Reflects Vermont's - And Rural America's - Experiences In Coping With The Crisis . . . Leahy Continues To Push Lawmakers To Put Real Resources Behind These New Efforts WASHINGTON (WEDNESDAY, July 13, 2016) - The U.S. Senate Wednesday night, in a vote of 92 to 2, passed the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act (CARA), addressing the nation's opioid and he… Continue Reading
07.13.16
Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy On Cloture Vote of S.524, the Comprehensive Addiction And Recovery Act
Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On Cloture Vote of S.524, the Comprehensive Addiction And Recovery Act July 13, 2016 Today, Congress is taking a step forward in how it responds to opioid addiction. By advancing the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act (CARA), we are leaving behind decades-old misconceptions about how to confront addiction. For too long, Congress relied on punitive measures that only served to push addicts further unde… Continue Reading
07.13.16
Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy On Senate Passage of S. 2944, Public Safety Officers’ Benefits Improvement Act of 2016
Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Committee on the Judiciary On Senate Passage of S. 2944, Public Safety Officers' Benefits Improvement Act of 2016 July 12, 2016 Our nation's law enforcement officers, firefighters, and other first responders face threats every day to ensure the safety and security of our communities. Last week's senseless attack in Dallas is yet another painful reminder of dangers faced by law enforcement. Today the Senate came together in supp… Continue Reading
07.12.16
House Passes Leahy-Backed Bill To Support Active Shooter Training For Officers, Which Now Goes To White House For Signature
Comment of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On House Passage Of The POLICE Act July 12, 2016 [On Tuesday, the House passed the POLICE Act, bipartisan legislation cosponsored by Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) to allow law enforcement officers in Vermont and throughout the country to use federal Justice Department grant funds to train and better prepare for active shooter situations. The bill unanimously passed the Senate in May, and now goes to the White… Continue Reading
07.12.16
Opening Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy - Judiciary Committee Hearing On The Freedom Of Information Act
Opening Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy - Judiciary Committee Hearing On The Freedom Of Information Act WASHINGTON (TUESDAY, July 12, 2016) - The Senate Judiciary Committee is holding a hearing entitled, "FOIA at Fifty: Has the Sunshine Law's Promise Been Fulfilled?" Ranking Member Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) is the coauthor of the bipartisan FOIA Improvement Act, a bill signed into law last month which ushered in the most meaningful update to FOIA since its enactment 50 years ago. Leahy has long … Continue Reading
07.08.16
Comment Of Senator Patrick Leahy After The Senate Passes Bill To Implement GMO Labeling ‘Deal’
"The Senate's GMO bill vote is a well-funded travesty, a setback for consumers' right to know. They deserve clear labels, not scavenger hunts."… Continue Reading
07.08.16
Comment of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Ranking Member, Senate Judiciary Committee, On The Tragedy In Dallas
"Marcelle and I are praying for the families of the Dallas officers who were murdered last night, as well as those who were wounded. This was a heinous and cowardly attack, and we join Americans across the country in support of the Dallas law enforcement community. It has been a particularly painful week for our country. There is so much anger, frustration and grief, and we must find ways to heal and rebuild trust after such unnecessary loss of life. Violence is never the answer." # # # # #… Continue Reading
07.07.16
Leahy Calls On FCC To Strengthen Privacy Protections For Consumers
(THURSDAY, July 7, 2016) - Americans' personal information is increasingly shared online, but the necessary protections against invasions of privacy are not in place. Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), who has long worked to protect consumer privacy, joined Senator Ed Markey (D-Mass.) and others this week to urge the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to address an essential element of online privacy by adopting strong rules to regulate how broadband providers can use personal information. In… Continue Reading
07.07.16
Leahy, Sanders, Welch: Vermont Nets $1.3 Million For Super-Size Culvert Under U.S. Route 7 In Brandon, In Latest Post-Irene Mitigation Grant From FEMA
(THURSDAY, July 7, 2016) - Many Vermonters saw the dramatic photos in 2011 documenting the aftermath of Tropical Storm Irene. The Neshobe River overflowed and swept through downtown Brandon with such force that the flood closed the state highway and damaged several businesses and other structures. [NOTE: Here are links to two YouTube videos of this flooding in Brandon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LarR9JifsMQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YBIVoai8-E ] Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Sen.… Continue Reading
07.07.16
Leahy’s Latest Senate Floor Speech Today During Senate’s Debate On The Bill To Derail Vermont’s GMO Labeling Law
(THURSDAY, July 7, 2016) -- Following is a LINK to Leahy's full remarks today during the Senate's debate on the bill to nullify Vermont's GMO labeling law: https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/full-statement-of-senator-patrick-leahy-d-vt-on-the-senates-hasty-attempt-to-preempt-state-laws-and-thwart-a-consumers-right-to-know # # # # #… Continue Reading
07.07.16
Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) On The Senate’s Hasty Attempt To Preempt State Laws And Thwart A Consumer’s Right To Know
It has been just two weeks since negotiators released what can only be called a farce of a proposal to require the labeling of genetically engineered foods. Less than a week after it was released - without any Committee action, any testimony or recorded feedback from proponents or opponents - the Senate Majority Leader filed cloture on a privileged vehicle to fast-track the bill. Gone are the promises of regular order. Gone are the pledges of the open amendment process. Instead, the Senate w… Continue Reading
07.07.16
Full Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) On The Senate’s Hasty Attempt To Preempt State Laws And Thwart A Consumer’s Right To Know
It has been just two weeks since negotiators released what can only be called a farce of a proposal to require the labeling of genetically engineered foods. Less than a week after it was released - without any Committee action, any testimony or recorded feedback from proponents or opponents - the Senate Majority Leader filed cloture on a privileged vehicle to fast-track the bill. Gone are the promises of regular order. Gone are the pledges of the open amendment process. Instead, the Senate w… Continue Reading
