IN THE STATES: Senate Democrats Highlight How They’re Fighting For Working Families During State Work Period

During the recent state work period, voters in key Senate battlegrounds were reading and watching a wave of coverage highlighting how Senate Democrats are fighting to address working families’ most pressing priorities – like  lowering costs, supporting veterans, and expanding access to health care. 

See for yourself: 

MT – NBC Montana: VA halts foreclosures for 6 months to ensure veterans keep homes

• The Department of Veterans Affairs will take action to protect veterans and servicemembers using VA home loans by stopping foreclosures for six months.
  

• “I’m encouraged to see VA answering my call to quickly address this crisis facing our men and women who risked their lives serving this country and were facing foreclosure through no fault of their own,” said Tester, Chairman of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee. “This pause will help ensure our veterans, servicemembers, and their families can remain in their homes and get their payments back on track while VA works on a long-term solution. While this is a good start, the Department still has work to do and I’ll keep holding it accountable in delivering for our men and women using their earned VA home loan benefit.”
  

MT – Char-Koosta News: Senator Tester reintroduces the Montana Headwaters Legacy Act

• U.S. Senator Jon Tester reintroduced his Montana Headwaters Legacy Act (MHLA) on Thursday, setting the stage to double the number of protected river miles in Montana. If signed into law, the legislation would protect 20 rivers and 384 river miles in the Upper Missouri and Yellowstone river systems by adding them to the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System.
  
  
• “Protecting public lands in Montana is about preserving the livelihoods of our communities and making sure we pass on that heritage to future generations – and this bill was built from the ground up to do just that,” said Tester.
  

MT – Sidney Herald: After Tester push, FEMA approves $20 Million to mitigate effects of flooding in Montana

• After a push from U.S. Senator Jon Tester, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) recently announced funding availability to mitigate the effects of last year’s devastating spring flooding in Montana.
  
  
• The funding comes from Tester’s Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), and will work to deliver critical resources for flood mitigation in Montana.
  
  
• Last year, Tester urged FEMA to make Montana eligible to receive funds through FEMA’s new Swift Current Initiative, which would make communities affected by severe flooding eligible for Flood Mitigation Assistance (FMA).

NV – KOLO 8: Senator Jacky Rosen hosts roundtable highlighting rural small businesses

• Senator Jacky Rosen hosted a roundtable discussion highlighting the agreement between the U.S. Department of Agriculture & the Small Business Administration.
  
  
• Thanks to the agreement between the SBA and USDA, the rural business development grant program was created to provide funding for technical assistance and training to create jobs and expand access to new and better market opportunities for people in rural Nevada.

NV – This is Reno: Military briefs around Northern Nevada – Veteran Support and Outreach Act 

• The bipartisan Commitment to Veteran Support and Outreach Act, co-sponsored by Nevada Sen. Jacky Rosen, has passed the U.S. Senate.
  
  
• This bipartisan bill would authorize $50 million annually for five years to expand and support state and local entities that work to inform veterans of their eligibility for Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) programs and services; file pension and compensation claims; and help them enroll in job, housing, disability and education benefits.
  
  
• “Despite the many services available to them, only a small fraction of veterans fully utilize the benefits they have earned,” Rosen said. “I’m glad that this bipartisan bill to help more veterans take advantage of their VA benefits has passed the Senate. I’ll keep working to improve outreach and support for Nevada veterans.”

NV – Elko Daily Free Press: Elko schools get $500,000 grant to improve school security

• U.S. Senators Jacky Rosen, D-NV, and Catherine Cortez Masto, D-NV, announced that more than $1,050,000 for public safety and law enforcement has been awarded to the Nevada System of Higher Education, Elko County School District, and the City of Reno.
  
  
• The funding includes $500,000 for Elko County School District to improve school security; $375,000 for the Nevada System of Higher Education to hire additional officers; and $175,000 for City of Reno for officer recruitment, retention, and workforce diversification.
  
  
• “One of my top priorities in the Senate is ensuring law enforcement in Nevada have all the resources they need to keep our communities safe,” said Rosen.
  

OH – WHIO: Local manufacturing plant to receive millions to fund electric heat pump production

• A local manufacturing plant will receive millions to boost electric heat pump production, according to a spokesperson from Senator Sherrod Brown’s office.
  
  
• On Tuesday, Nov. 21, Senator Brown (D-OH), Chair of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs announced an $11 million investment to the Copeland plant in Sidney.
  
  
• The investment will increase energy efficiency and decrease energy costs in Ohio homes, schools, and other buildings, the spokesperson said.
  
  
• “We are in the midst of a renewable energy boom that will create jobs and economic development opportunities for communities across Ohio. This investment in heat pump manufacturing will support local jobs in Sidney, and help lower energy bills for Ohioans. The technology of the future will be developed in Ohio and made in Ohio,” Brown said.
  

OH – The Marietta Times: AOMC receives ARC POWER grant 

• The Appalachian Regional Commission awarded The Appalachian Ohio Manufacturers’ Coalition a $1,396,500 grant for the “GROW Appalachia” Project. U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown announced these investments through the Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic Revitalization Initiative.
  
  
• The project will provide approximately 225 workers/trainees and 175 students with specialized training.
  
  
• The AOMC is developing a Manufacturing Support Center in Southeastern Ohio. It will allow industry and education to utilize advanced technology and equipment (including subject matter experts and engineering technical assistance to help design and develop prototypes), according to the ARC.
  

OH – Cleveland.com: Akron Metro RTA breaks ground on new $37M maintenance and operations facility

• Metro RTA representatives and community leaders on Monday broke ground on the new $37 million maintenance and operations facility located on Metro’s existing campus at 336 Kenmore Blvd.
  
  
• Sen. Sherrod Brown said. “And since we were able to do the bipartisan infrastructure bill, we’ve seen all kinds of help. We’re working on the bridge between Cuyahoga Heights and Akron, we’re working on a number of things that came out of that bill. I used to say I wanted Ohio to get its fair share but I kind of changed my mind. I want Ohio to get a lot more than its fair share–starting with what we are doing in Akron and this project.”

PA – CBS Philadelphia: Pa. Sen. Bob Casey’s “greedflation” reports exposes consumer price gouging

• On Thursday, Casey published his second report on why holiday meals will be more expensive for the average consumer titled, “A Greedflation Report: Stuffing Their Pockets.”
  
  
• It is unique compared to his first report because it narrows on the expenses that families face specifically during the holidays. Casey says “corporate greed” is to blame.
  
  
• Casey went on to say that companies need to be held accountable for raising prices while recording record profits.

PA – TribLIVE: Casey touts Senate legislation to improve coal miners’ access to black lung benefits

• Known as The Black Lung Benefits Improvement Act of 2023, the Senate bill updates a 1969 black lung law by improving miners’ access to medical information so they have a fairer shot at receiving benefits.
  
  
• The bill is cosponsored by Democrats in the Senate including Casey and U.S. Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, both senators from Virginia, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio and U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin III of West Virginia, records show.
  
  
• “Coal miners have kept their promises over and over again. We’ve got some work to do to keep our promises to you,” he said to the group of miners in Fayette County. “This is a disease that’s haunted us since the 1800s, since we started mining coal here. We’re going to fight and we’re going to win this.”

PA – Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: Casey seeks to boost federal help for rural communities

• U.S. Sens. Bob Casey, D-Pa., and Deb Fischer, R-Neb., have introduced legislation to help rural communities get more federal funding.
  
  
• Their bill would provide grants to help pay for child care, housing, and job training, along with technical assistance to help rural communities learn about federal grants they are eligible to receive and then apply for the money.
  
  
• “Our rural communities deserve a fair shot to grow their economies and improve their quality of life,” Mr. Casey said. “This legislation will put rural communities on a level playing field to compete for federal resources alongside our cities and suburban areas. This is a critical moment to ensure that communities that have been the bedrock of our nation for generations are receiving the support they need to thrive.”

PA – Courier Express: US Sen. Bob Casey visits Elk County to announce federal manufacturing grant 

• U.S. Sen. Bob Casey was in Ridgway on Monday to announce the awarding of a $400,000 federal grant to further develop the manufacturing sector in North Central Pennsylvania.
  
  
• “It’s noteworthy that all of these counties are considered rural counties, and sometimes not enough investment, not enough time, and not enough effort is expended by the federal government to invest in rural communities,” Casey said. “I think it’s also noteworthy to point out that in rural Pennsylvania, the gross domestic product is almost $150 billion. If we don’t continue to invest in rural Pennsylvania, it’s an economic risk for the state. The Tech Hubs program that we’re talking about today will both spur innovation…and allow us to continue to create economic growth, jobs, and hope in rural Pennsylvania.

WI – Republican Eagle: Western Wisconsin Health hosts groundbreaking ceremony for expansion 

• Western Wisconsin Health hosted a groundbreaking ceremony on Saturday in Baldwin, Wis. to celebrate expansions to its hospital that will help combat various problems surrounding the rural hospital landscape.
  
  
• Wisconsin state Senator Tammy Baldwin also spoke during the groundbreaking ceremony. Baldwin helped secure a $1 million congressionally directed spending grant for the hospital expansion.
  
  
• “Too often I hear from Wisconsinites in rural communities who are faced with very limited health care options,” Baldwin said. “The scarcity of options forced Wisconsinites to delay or forgo care that they need or take long drives, experience long wait times, to see a provider.”

WI – Milwaukee Courier: Senator Tammy Baldwin Meets With Faith Leaders in Milwaukee

• Wisconsin Senator Tammy Baldwin met with over a dozen Milwaukee faith based and community leaders to discuss critical issues important to the African American community.
  
  
• Baldwin expressed her advocacy for Buy American policies, emphasizing the importance of directing US tax dollars towards supporting American jobs, workers, and small businesses.
  
  
• “My dream is to get a huge new anchor business in Century City,” Baldwin said. “We were proud to open a minority business development center in Milwaukee. We were relying on centers in Chicago. That changed earlier this year.”
  

WI – WUWM: 2 year review: Exploring how the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law has impacted Wisconsin

• The law invested billions in infrastructure projects around the country, including many here in Wisconsin. Senator Tammy Baldwin voted for the law and sees a noticeable impact that it’s had on families and communities in Wisconsin.
  
  
• “We have secured $275 million in funding to clean up the Milwaukee estuary to reverse decades of legacy pollution and protect our freshwater resources, our public health and frankly, our way of life,” says Baldwin.
  
  
• The law has also provided a means to begin replacing the tens of thousands of lead pipes still in the water system, which also provides lots of new jobs. Another $9 million has been invested into the Port of Milwaukee.

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