Durbin, Duckworth, Budzinski Announce $16 Million For Rail Safety In Decatur

CHICAGO - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), and U.S. Representative Nikki Budzinski (D-IL-13) today announced $16 million in funding through the U.S. Department of Transportation's (DOT) Railroad Crossing Elimination Grant Program for Decatur, Illinois, to improve rail connectivity by supporting construction activities to upgrade 1.21 miles of Brush College Road. This project will create a new grade separation structure, permanently close two exis… Continue Reading

Durbin, Hospital Leaders Release Year 4 Report on Chicago HEAL Initiative to Address Gun Violence

CHICAGO – U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today joined hospital leaders and the Illinois Health and Hospital Association (IHA) to unveil the four-year reportof the Chicago HEAL Initiative. Launched in 2018 by Senator Durbin and 10 of the largest hospitals serving Chicago, the HEAL Initiative is a collaboration to address the root causes of gun violence through economic, health, and community projects in 18 of Chicago’s neighborhoods with the highest rates of violence, poverty, and health dispari… Continue Reading

Durbin, Kelly, Duckworth Introduce Bicameral “Wear Orange” Resolution In Observance Of National Gun Violence Awareness Month

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and U.S. Representative Robin Kelly (D-IL-02), along with U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), introduced theWear Orange Resolution, which supports the designation of June 2, 2023, as "National Gun Violence Awareness Day" and June 2023 as "National Gun Violence Awareness Month." Each year, more than 43,000 people in the United States are killed, and 76,000 are injured by gun violence. June 2 … Continue Reading

Durbin Votes For Bipartisan Debt Ceiling Agreement To Avoid First Ever Default On Our Nation’s Debt

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today released the following statement after the U.S. Senate passed the Fiscal Responsibility Act-preventing the first-ever default on our national debt. The legislation now heads to the President's desk for his signature. "Thankfully, Congress has once again performed its constitutional duty and prevented a first-ever default on our national debt. Defaulting on our national debt is un… Continue Reading

Durbin Statement On Senate Vote To Overturn President Biden’s Student Debt Relief Plan

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today released the following statement after the Senate voted in favor of H.J. Resolution 45, which would overturn President Biden's student debt relief plan to cancel up to $10,000 for non-Pell-eligible borrowers and up to $20,000 for Pell-eligible borrowers: "Tens of millions of Americans are plagued by student loan debt. Working families, particularly in communities of color, are buried in so much student debt that they can't afford … Continue Reading

Ahead Of Debt Limit Vote, Durbin Continues To Call For Closure Of Guantanamo Bay

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today spoke on the Senate floor about the importance of closing the Guantanamo Bay detention facility. Durbin began his speech by highlighting the unnecessary cost Guantanamo Bay has forced American taxpayers to fund. During his speech, Durbin called out Republicans for their message of "fiscal responsibility" ahead of the debt limit vote, but their unwillingness to close Guantanamo Bay, which c… Continue Reading

Durbin: Senate Must Quickly Pass Bipartisan Debt Ceiling Agreement To Avoid First Ever Default On Our Nation’s Debt

WASHINGTON - In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today urged his colleagues to perform their constitutional duties by quickly passing the Fiscal Responsibility Act and preventing a first-ever default on our national debt. The bipartisan agreement avoids a default on our national debt, maintains funding for clean energy incentives, protects student debt relief for millions of borrowers, and beats back ext… Continue Reading

Durbin Urges Military Leaders To Extend Recruitment Efforts To DACA Recipients

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense, today participated in a Subcommittee hearing entitled "A Review of the President's Fiscal Year 2024 Budget Request for the National Guard and Reserve." During the hearing, Durbin questioned the witness, General Daniel R. Hokanson, Chief of the National Guard Bureau, on the Guard's recruitment efforts as the military as a whole faces recruitment and retention issues and furth… Continue Reading

Senate Judiciary Committee Advances Bipartisan Bill To Protect Children From Online Sexual Exploitation

WASHINGTON - Today, the Senate Judiciary Committee voted to advance the REPORT Act, a bipartisan bill by Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) and Jon Ossoff (D-GA) that would strengthen the CyberTipline run by the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) to report online child sexual exploitation, which received over 32 million reports last year. On today's vote, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said: "I've said since the b… Continue Reading

Durbin Urges FDA To Address Shortage Of Life-Saving Drugs For Cancer Patients

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today urged the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Dr. Robert Califf to use the Agency's authority to immediately address the ongoing shortage of critical cancer drugs that are threatening the lives of patients nationwide. In the letter, Durbin cites two chemotherapy drugs, carboplatin and cisplatin, that are used to successfully treat hundreds of thousands of cancer patients each year in the United States. Both of these d… Continue Reading

Durbin: Putin’s Legacy Will Be A War Criminal And A Failed Leader Who Weakened Russia

WASHINGTON - Following Memorial Day, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Co-Chair of the Senate Ukraine Caucus, spoke on the Senate floor highlighting democratic nations' commitment to defend peace and freedom as Vladimir Putin's unprovoked war in Ukraine continues. Durbin said, "On Memorial Day, we remember those who gave their lives for this country. And on this Memorial Day, we were reminded, once again, that the struggle to defend freedom is never over. The peace and freedom … Continue Reading

Durbin: Not Paying Our Bills Will Result In A Loss Of Trust In The Stability In The United States

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee and Co-Chair of the Senate Ukraine Caucus, today spoke on the Senate floor highlighting the need to avert a debt ceiling crisis so the United States remains a stable, global leader. During his speech, Durbin addressed Senator Lindsey Graham's (R-SC) call for even higher defense spending than what is specified in the Fiscal Responsibility Act, a bipartisan deal on the debt ceiling that was … Continue Reading

Durbin, Duckworth Applaud Department Of Transportation For Implementing Key Provisions Of Their Protecting Roadside First Responders Act

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today applauded the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) for implementing a key provision of their Protecting Roadside First Responders Act by proposing a rule to require automatic emergency braking (AEB) on all new light and heavy vehicles. The provision, which was passed in the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, aims to reduce the number of traffic fatalities and injuries. Ac… Continue Reading

Durbin, Menendez, Booker Lead Oversight Effort To Hold Companies Accountable For Contracting With Packers Sanitation Services, Inc. Which Unlawfully Employed Migrant Child Labor

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and U.S. Senators Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and Cory Booker (D-NJ), alongside several Senate colleagues, sent letters to nine companies that contracted with Packers Sanitation Services, Inc. (PSSI), which the Department of Labor (DOL) found was unlawfully employing migrant child labor at these host companies' facilities. In the letters, the Senators asked each host company to describe the changes to th… Continue Reading

Durbin Questions Witnesses During Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing On Immigrant Workers, Agriculture, And Need For Immigration Reform

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today questioned witnesses during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing entitled, "From Farm to Table: Immigrant Workers Get the Job Done." The hearing highlighted how immigrant workers are essential to put food on our tables, the need for immigration reform to help American farms and businesses, and the importance of protections and fair wages for both domestic and immigrant workers. Durbin ask… Continue Reading

Durbin Joins NAFSA Annual Conference To Talk About Study Abroad Programs And Immigration

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today joined NAFSA: Association of International Educators for its annual conference to discuss his longstanding support for international education opportunities for Americans, as well as making an American education more accessible to international students seeking higher education. Durbin delivered remarks at the conference, noting the importance of legislation like his bipartisan Senator Paul Simon Study Abroad Program Act, which wou… Continue Reading

Durbin Delivers Opening Statement During Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing On Immigrant Workers, Agriculture, And Need For Immigration Reform

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today delivered an opening statement during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing entitled, "From Farm to Table: Immigrant Workers Get the Job Done." The hearing will highlight how immigrant workers are essential to put food on our tables, the need for immigration reform to help American farms and businesses, and the importance of protections and fair wages for both domestic and immigrant workers.… Continue Reading

Durbin, Luján, Risch, And Blackburn Announce New Senate National Labs Caucus

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Senators Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), James Risch, (R-ID) and Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) today announced the creation of a new Senate National Labs Caucus. The National Lab Network conducts cutting-edge research to advance and deploy technologies that are critical to maintaining sustainable economic growth in the U.S. and safeguarding our national security. The Senate National Labs Caucus will coordinate with its counterpa… Continue Reading

Durbin: Chief Justice Roberts Should Strengthen Supreme Court Ethics Standards Before The Court’s Summer Recess

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today spoke on the Senate floor about the need for stronger Supreme Court ethics standards before the Court recesses for the summer. Durbin's calls come after ProPublica reporting that Justice Clarence Thomas accepted and failed to disclose years' worth of luxury travel and lodging from prominent Republican donor Harlan Crow, much of which took place during the Court's summer recesses. Durbin no… Continue Reading

ICYMI: Durbin, Whitehouse Sent Follow Up Letter To Harlan Crow Seeking Full Information On Gifts, Travel, And Access Given To Supreme Court Justices

WASHINGTON - Last Friday, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Chair of Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Federal Courts, Oversight, Agency Action, and Federal Rights, sent a follow up letter to Republican megadonor Harlan Crow seeking to identify the full extent of Mr. Crow's gifts of travel and lodging to Justice Clarence Thomas, which other individuals were able to gain personal and private access to … Continue Reading