WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, today urged the Biden administration to build on its recently announced voluntary commitments from several prominent artificial intelligence (AI) leaders in order to promote greater security, safety, and trust in the rapidly developing AI field.

As AI is rolled out more broadly, researchers have repeatedly demonstrated a number of concerning, exploitable weaknesses in prominent products, including abilities to generate credible-seeming misinformation, develop malware, and craft sophisticated phishing techniques. On Friday, the Biden administration announced that several AI companies had agreed to a series of measures that would promote greater security and transparency. Sen. Warner wrote to the administration to applaud these efforts and laid out a series of next steps to bolster this progress, including extending commitments to less capable models, seeking consumer-facing commitments, and developing an engagement strategy to better address security risks.

“These commitments have the potential to shape developer norms and best practices associated with leading-edge AI models. At the same time, even less capable models are susceptible to misuse, security compromise, and proliferation risks,” Sen. Warner wrote. “As the current commitments stand, leading vendors do not appear inclined to extending these vital development commitments to the wider range of AI products they have released that fall below this threshold or have been released as open source models.”

The letter builds on Sen. Warner’s continued advocacy for the responsible development and deployment of AI. In April, Sen. Warner directly expressed concerns to several AI CEOs about the potential risks posed by AI, and called on companies to ensure that their products and systems are secure.

The letter also affirms Congress’ role in regulating AI, and expands on the annual Intelligence Authorization Act, legislation that recently passed unanimously through the Sente Select Committee on Intelligence. Sen. Warner urges the administration to adopt the strategy outlined in this pending bill as well as work with the FBI, CISA, ODNI, and other federal agencies to fully address the potential risks of AI technology.

Sen. Warner, a former tech entrepreneur, has been a vocal advocate for Big Tech accountability and a stronger national posture against cyberattacks and misinformation online. In addition to his April letters, has introduced several pieces of legislation aimed at addressing these issues, including the RESTRICT Act, which would comprehensively address the ongoing threat posed by technology from foreign adversaries; the SAFE TECH Act, which would reform Section 230 and allow social media companies to be held accountable for enabling cyber-stalking, online harassment, and discrimination on social media platforms; and the Honest Ads Act, which would require online political advertisements to adhere to the same disclaimer requirements as TV, radio, and print ads.

A copy of the letter can be found here and below. 

Dear President Biden,

I write to applaud the Administration’s significant efforts to secure voluntary commitments from leading AI vendors related to promoting greater security, safety, and trust through improved development practices. These commitments – largely applicable to these vendors’ most advanced products – can materially reduce a range of security and safety risks identified by researchers and developers in recent years. In April, I wrote to a number of these same companies, urging them to prioritize security and safety in their development, product release, and post-deployment practices. Among other things, I asked them to fully map dependencies and downstream implications of compromise of their systems; focus greater financial, technical and personnel resources on internal security; and improve their transparency practices through greater documentation of system capabilities, system limitations, and training data.

These commitments have the potential to shape developer norms and best practices associated with leading-edge AI models. At the same time, even less capable models are susceptible to misuse, security compromise, and proliferation risks. Moreover, a growing roster of highly-capable open source models have been released to the public – and would benefit from similar pre-deployment commitments contained in a number of the July 21^st obligations. As the current commitments stand, leading vendors do not appear inclined to extending these vital development commitments to the wider range of AI products they have released that fall below this threshold or have been released as open source models. 

To be sure, responsibility ultimately lies with Congress to develop laws that advance consumer and patient safety, address national security and cyber-crime risks, and promote secure development practices in this burgeoning and highly consequential industry – and in the downstream industries integrating their products. In the interim, the important commitments your Administration has secured can be bolstered in a number of important ways. 

First, I strongly encourage your Administration to continue engagement with this industry to extend these all of these commitments more broadly to less capable models that, in part through their wider adoption, can produce the most frequent examples of misuse and compromise.

Second, it is vital to build on these developer- and researcher-facing commitments with a suite of lightweight consumer-facing commitments to prevent the most serious forms of abuse. Most prominent among these should be commitments from leading vendors to adopt development practices, licensing terms, and post-deployment monitoring practices that prevent non-consensual intimate image generation, social-scoring, real-time facial recognition (in contexts not governed by existing legal protections or due process safeguards), and proliferation activity in the context of malicious cyber activity or the production of biological or chemical agents.

Lastly, the Administration’s successful high-level engagement with the leadership of these companies must be complemented by a deeper engagement strategy to track national security risks associated with these technologies. In June, the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence on a bipartisan basis advanced our annual Intelligence Authorization Act, a provision of which directed the President to establish a strategy to better engage vendors, downstream commercial users, and independent researchers on the security risks posed by, or directed at, AI systems.

This provision was spurred by conversations with leading vendors, who confided that they would not know how best to report malicious activity – such as suspected intrusions of their internal networks, observed efforts by foreign actors to generate or refine malware using their tools, or identified activity by foreign malign actors to generate content to mislead or intimidate voters.  To be sure, a highly-capable and well-established set of resources, processes, and organizations – including the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence’s Foreign Malign Influence Center – exist to engage these communities, including through counter-intelligence education and defensive briefings. Nonetheless, it appears that these entities have not been fully activated to engage the range of key stakeholders in this space. For this reason, I would encourage you to pursue the contours of the strategy outlined in our pending bill. 

Thank you for your Administration’s important leadership in this area. I look forward to working with you to develop bipartisan legislation in this area.

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WASHINGTON — Today, U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) issued the following statement after the Biden Administration announced new voluntary commitments from leading artificial intelligence (AI) companies promoting safety, security, and trust:

“I’m glad to see the Administration taking steps to address the security and trust of AI systems, but this is just the beginning. We must continue to ensure these systems, which are already being adopted and integrated into broader IT systems in areas as wide-ranging as consumer finance and critical infrastructure, are safe, secure, and trustworthy – including through consumer-facing commitments and rules. While we often hear AI vendors talk about their commitment to security and safety, we have repeatedly seen the expedited release of products that are exploitable, prone to generating unreliable outputs, and susceptible to misuse. These commitments are a step in the right direction, but, as I have said before, we need more than industry commitments. We also need some degree of regulation. That’s why I will continue to work diligently to ensure that vendors prioritize security, combat bias, and responsibly roll out new technologies.”

In April, Sen. Warner sent a series of letters to AI companies asking them to provide greater information on their safety, security, and integrity practices and commit to a series of best practices. A copy of the letters can be found here.

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WASHINGTON - In an effort to prevent money laundering and stop crypto-facilitated crime and sanctions violations, a leading group of U.S. Senators is introducing new, bipartisan legislation requiring decentralized finance (DeFi) services to meet the same anti-money laundering (AML) and economic sanctions compliance obligations as other financial companies, including centralized crypto trading platforms, casinos, and even pawn shops.  The legislation also modernizes key Treasury Department anti-money laundering authorities, and sets new requirements to ensure that “crypto kiosks” don’t become a vector for laundering the proceeds of illicit activities.

DeFi generally refers to applications that facilitate peer-to-peer financial transactions that are recorded on blockchains.  The most prominent example of DeFi is so called “decentralized exchanges,” where automated software purportedly allows users to trade cryptocurrencies without using intermediaries.

By design, DeFi provides anonymity.  This can allow malicious and criminal actors to evade traditional financial regulatory tools, including longstanding and well-developed rules requiring financial institutions to monitor all transactions and report suspected money laundering and financial crime to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), which is a bureau of the U.S. Treasury Department.  This allows DeFi to be used to launder criminal proceeds and fund more crime.

Criminals, drug traffickers, and hostile state actors such as North Korea have all demonstrated a propensity for using (DeFi) as a preferred method of transferring and laundering ill-gotten gains.  These bad actors have been quick to recognize how DeFi can be exploited to advance nefarious activities like cross-border fentanyl trafficking and financing the development of weapons of mass destruction. 

According to the most recent U.S. National Money Laundering Risk Assessment: “DeFi services often involve no AML or other processes to identify customers.”  According to another recent Treasury Department report, “illicit actors, including ransomware cybercriminals, thieves, scammers, and Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) cyber actors, are using DeFi services in the process of transferring and laundering their illicit proceeds. To accomplish this, illicit actors are exploiting vulnerabilities in the U.S. and foreign AML regulatory, supervisory, and enforcement regimes as well as the technology underpinning DeFi services.”

Noting that transparency and sensible rules are vital for protecting the financial system from crime, U.S. Senators Jack Reed (D-RI), Mike Rounds (R-SD), Mark Warner (D-VA), and Mitt Romney (R-UT) today unveiled the Crypto-Asset National Security Enhancement and Enforcement (CANSEE) Act (S. 2355).  This legislation targets money laundering and sanctions evasion involving DeFi.

The CANSEE Act would end special treatment for DeFi by applying the same national security laws that apply to banks and securities brokers, casinos and pawn shops, and even other cryptocurrency companies like centralized trading platforms.  That means DeFi services would be forced to meet basic obligations, most notably to maintain AML programs, conduct due diligence on their customers, and report suspicious transactions to FinCEN.

These requirements will close an attractive avenue for money laundering that has been routinely exploited over the past several months by the North Korean government, Chinese chemicals manufacturers, Mexican drug cartels, cybercriminals, ransomware attackers, scammers, and a host of other bad actors. 

The legislation also makes clear that if a sanctioned person, like a Russian oligarch, uses a DeFi service to evade U.S. sanctions, then anyone who controls that project will be liable for facilitating that violation.  If nobody controls a DeFi service, then—as a backstop—anyone who invests more than $25 million in developing the project will be responsible for these obligations.

The CANSEE Act would also require operators of crypto kiosks (also known as crypto ATMs) to improve traceability of funds by verifying the identities of each counterparty to each transaction using a kiosk.  Unless these vulnerabilities are addressed, criminals will continue to exploit these kiosks to launder money from drug trafficking, human trafficking, scams, and other crimes.

Featuring an interface similar to regular ATMs, crypto ATMs are often found at convenience stores, laundromats, and gas stations.  Users can insert cash or a debit card into the machine to turn their real money into cryptocurrency, which is then transferred into a digital wallet that can then be accessed by scammers.   Once a transfer is complete, users cannot get their money back.  Currently, there are about 30,600 crypto ATMs across the country – up from 1,200 in 2018, according to Coin ATM Radar.

Finally, the CANSEE Act makes important updates to the Treasury Department’s authority to require participants in the U.S. financial system to take special measures against money laundering threats.  Currently, these authorities are limited to transactions conducted in the traditional banking system.  But as new technologies like cryptocurrency increasingly enable new ways to conduct financial transactions, it is critical to extend Treasury’s authority to crack down on illicit financial activity that may occur outside the banking sector.

“DeFi and crypto ATMs are part of a largely unregulated technology that needs stronger oversight and guardrails to prevent rampant money laundering and sanctions evasion,” said Sen. Reed. “This legislation bolsters the Treasury Department’s tools to protect our national and economic security. Drug cartels, sex traffickers, and the like shouldn’t be able to use DeFi platforms to avoid justice – their victims deserve better.  Our bill  will also ensure that law enforcement has access to better information about cryptocurrency transactions, which they need to fight crimes like cross-border drug trafficking, weapons proliferation, and ransomware attacks.  We must protect the integrity of the financial system from new and emerging threats from the worst criminal organizations and malicious state actors.”

“Our adversaries and criminals worldwide are using creative ways every day to take advantage of the United States financial system and we should not allow them to exploit American innovation to evade sanctions and money launder,” said Sen. Rounds. “As more Americans start to use and invest in cryptocurrency, both DeFi platforms and crypto kiosks remain in the blind spot of regulation. This targeted legislation kicks off an important debate on how to protect our financial system and give law enforcement the tools they need to prosecute bad actors.” 

“As Chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, I remain deeply concerned that criminals and rogue states continue to use crypto to launder money, evade sanctions, and conceal illicit activity. The targeted package we’re introducing today will help address specific problems in decentralized finance and crypto kiosks, and incorporates the Special Measures to Address Modern Threats bill I introduced in the last Congress to modernize FinCEN’s existing anti-money laundering authorities,” said Sen. Warner. “I believe these focused measures will help maintain the robust AML and sanctions enforcement we need to protect our national security, while allowing participants who play by the rules to continue to take advantage of the potential of distributed ledger technologies.”

“Malign actors—including China-based fentanyl manufacturers and drug cartels operating along the southern border—are capitalizing on existing loopholes under current law to evade sanctions using decentralized finance services,” said Sen. Romney. “By fortifying U.S. anti-money laundering frameworks, our legislation cracks down on crypto-facilitated crimes and ultimately reinforces our national security.”

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WASHINGTON – This week, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine joined 49 of their colleagues in reintroducing the Freedom to Vote Act, legislation to improve access to the ballot for Americans, advance commonsense federal election standards and campaign finance reforms, and protect American democracy. The legislation includes various provisions that have already been enacted in Virginia, including automatic voter registration, same day and Election Day voter registration, online voter registration, and no excuse mail voting.

In addition to bringing Virginia’s successes to every corner of the country, the legislation would protect Virginia’s progress from potential attacks from state legislators, some of whom have already tried to make it harder for Virginians to cast their ballots. Earlier this year, a top Republican legal strategist told a roomful of donors she was optimistic that legislation making it more convenient to vote in Virginia could be undone. The introduction of the Freedom to Vote Act—which would also restore the right to vote in federal elections for people who have served their time for felony convictions after they are released from prison—comes as the Virginia NAACP calls for clarity from Virginia’s Governor regarding the process for restoring voting rights for people with felony convictions who have completed their sentences in Virginia.

“The opportunity for every American to make their voice heard is the bedrock of our democracy, but right now the very act of voting is under siege in state legislatures across the country,” said Sen. Warner. “The Freedom to Vote Act enshrines in federal law efforts to safeguard democracy from these attacks and protect Americans’ access to the ballot.”

“The strength of our democracy depends on Americans’ ability to make their voices heard,” said Sen. Kaine, who practiced civil rights law for 17 years. “The Freedom to Vote Act would help expand voting by mail, early voting, and other reforms to make voting easier. These provisions—many of which were adopted in Virginia—are broadly popular among Americans across the political spectrum and are essential to our democracy. It’s crucial that we pass this legislation to protect Virginia’s progress on the federal level, and help states across the country follow Virginia’s lead in making voting more convenient.”

The legislation reflects feedback from state and local election officials to ensure the people responsible for implementing reforms are able to do so effectively. It also elevates the voices of American voters by ending partisan gerrymandering, and would help eliminate the undue influence of secret money in our elections. Summaries of how the three sections of the bill would protect Americans’ right to vote are below.

Legislative text is available here.

Voter Access and Election Administration 

This section includes provisions to improve voter access by implementing reliable state best practices for voter registration and election administration to ensure all Americans can easily exercise their freedom to vote regardless of where they live. 

• Automatic Voter Registration and Online Voter Registration: Enacts an automatic voter registration system for each state through the state’s motor vehicle agency and ensures voters in all states have access to online voter registration.
• Election Day Holiday: Makes Election Day a public holiday.
• Uniform Early Voting: Ensures voters have access to at least two weeks of early voting for federal elections, including two weekends, while accommodating small election jurisdictions and vote-by-mail jurisdictions.
• Same Day Voter Registration: Ensures every state offers same day registration at a limited number of locations for the 2024 elections and at all polling locations by 2026, allowing election officials, especially in rural areas, time to implement the new requirements.
• Federal Minimum Standards on Vote by Mail and Drop Boxes: Ensures all voters can request a mail-in ballot, improves the delivery of election mail, and puts in place minimum standards to ensure drop boxes are available and accessible to all voters.
• Strengthens Voter List Maintenance Standards: Requires that the removal of voters from the rolls is done on the basis of reliable and objective evidence and prohibits the use of returned mail sent by third parties to remove voters. 
• Counting of Provisional Ballots: Requires provisional ballots to count for all eligible races within a county, regardless of the precinct they were cast in.
• Standards for Voter Identification: Promotes voter confidence and access by requiring a uniform national standard for states that require identification for in-person voting, and allowing voters to present a broad set of identification cards and documents in hard copy and digital form. States that do not have a voter identification requirement would not be required to make any changes.
• Voting Rights Restoration for Returning Citizens: Restores the right to vote in federal elections for people who have served their time for felony convictions after they are released from prison.
• Expanded Voting Access Protections for the Disabled, Native Americans, Military, Overseas Voters, and Underserved Communities: Includes targeted protections to promote accessible voting to communities facing unique challenges. 

Election Integrity

This section includes measures to promote confidence in elections, stop partisan election subversion, and protect against election interference, both foreign and domestic. 

• Preventing State Election Subversion: Establishes federal protections to insulate nonpartisan state and local officials who administer federal elections from undue partisan interference or control.
• Protection of Election Records, Election Infrastructure, and Ballot Tabulation: Strengthens protections for federal election records and election infrastructure in order to protect the integrity and security of ballots and voting systems.
• Voter-Verified Paper Ballots, Reliable Audits, and Voting System Upgrades: Requires states to use voting systems that use paper ballots that can be verified by voters and to implement reliable post-election audits. Also provides grants for states to purchase new and more secure voting systems and make cybersecurity improvements.
• Non-Partisan Election Official Recruitment and Training: Tasks the Election Assistance Commission with developing model training programs to recruit a new generation of election workers and provides dedicated grants for training and recruitment.
• Comprehensive Voting System Security Protections: Puts in place election vendor cybersecurity standards, including standards for manufacturing and assembling voting machines, among other key security measures.
• Establishing Duty to Report Foreign Election Interference: Creates a reporting requirement for federal campaigns to disclose certain foreign contacts. 

Civic Participation and Empowerment 

This section includes provisions to prevent partisan manipulation of the redistricting process, establishes uniform disclosure standards for money in politics, and empowers states to make critical investments in their election systems. 

• Non-Partisan Redistricting Reform and Banning Partisan Gerrymandering: Requires states to abide by specific criteria for congressional redistricting and makes judicial remedies available for states’ failure to comply. Allows states to choose how to develop redistricting plans, including the option of having an independent redistricting commission.
• Combatting Secret Money and Election Interference (DISCLOSE Act and Honest Ads Act): Requires super PACs, 501(c)(4) groups, and other organizations spending money in elections to disclose donors and shuts down the use of transfers between organizations to cloak the identity of contributors. Ensures that political ads sold online have the same transparency and disclosure requirements as ads sold on TV, radio, and satellite.
• State Election Assistance and Innovation Fund: Establishes a self-sustaining fund to finance critical investments in state-led innovations for our democracy and election infrastructure. The fund is financed through an additional assessment paid on federal fines, penalties, and settlements for certain tax crimes and corporate malfeasance. States would be allotted an annual distribution for eligible democracy and election-related investments. States could select to access their full distribution or a partial distribution, or roll over their distribution for future use.
• Nonpartisan Oversight of Federal Election Law: Improves the ability of the Federal Election Commission to carry out oversight and enforcement responsibilities.
• Stopping Illicit Super PAC Coordination: Creates “coordinated spender” category to ensure single-candidate super PACs do not operate as arms of campaigns. 

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 WASHINGTON — Today, U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) issued the following statement on the appointment of Tannia Talento, his Northern Virginia Regional Director, to the Arlington County Board:

“Tannia’s commitment to public service is evident in her day-to-day work, in her extensive experience, and in her ongoing involvement with Arlington County. I’m proud to see Tannia step up to fill this vacancy on the Arlington County Board and have no doubt that her strong leadership skills, deep ties to the community, and hardworking disposition will serve her well in this temporary role.” 

Talento, who was appointed by the board to fill the seat vacated by Katie Cristol, will serve temporarily through the remainder of the term, which expires on December 31, 2023. She will continue to serve as Sen. Warner’s Northern Virginia Regional Director while recusing herself from official Senate business involving the county.

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WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Rev. Raphael Warnock (D-GA), Jon Ossoff (D-GA), Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA), and U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO) introduced bicameral legislation to help first-time, first-generation homebuyers – predominately Americans of color – build wealth much more rapidly. By offering new homeowners a 20-year mortgage for roughly the same monthly payment as a traditional 30-year loan, LIFT will allow individuals traditionally underrepresented in the housing market to grow equity twice as fast. 

“Homeownership is one of the key ways Americans build capital and wealth. Unfortunately, racism and systemic discrimination in our housing laws have put this opportunity out of reach for far too many families of color,” said Sen. Warner. “The LIFT Act will help narrow the racial wealth gap by allowing qualified home buyers to build equity – and wealth – at twice the rate of a conventional 30-year mortgage.”

“It’s about time Congress took bold steps to support the American dream of homeownership for working class families that for too long have been left behind, which will not only allow more hardworking Americans to build generational wealth but also help close the racial wealth gap,” said Rep. Cleaver. “The LIFT Act builds upon President Biden’s economic agenda that focuses on building our economy from the bottom up and middle out, allowing more families to qualify for homeownership and build equity and stability in their home at an accelerated rate. As the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Housing and Insurance, I’m proud to introduce this legislation with Senator Warner and his colleagues in the Senate, as we seek to ensure every American has an opportunity to share in the prosperity of this great nation.”

“Homeownership is a key tool for Americans to grow their wealth and build economic stability, but for far too many people, this goal remains out of reach. This is especially true for people of color – which is why we need to address the legacy of discrimination in our housing policy. This bill will help level the playing field for first-time, first-generation buyers and empower them to build more wealth,” said Sen. Van Hollen.

“Housing is dignity and security for hardworking families in Georgia and across the nation, and owning a home is a long-held pathway to building generational wealth. But too many families have been left out of the American dream of buying a home, and Congress should act to make it a reality for more people,” said Sen. Reverend Warnock. “I’m proud to join my colleagues in reintroducing the LIFT Act to help put the dream of homeownership in reach for working families in Georgia and nationwide, boosting our economy and helping provide families safety and security. Let’s get this done.”

“This is about helping first-time homebuyers pay down their mortgages and build wealth in their homes more quickly. I'm teaming up with Senator Warner to help low-income Georgians and first-time homebuyers build generational wealth,” Sen. Ossoff said.

“Homeownership is not only a key part of the American dream but also one of the best ways to build generational wealth,” said Sen. Kaine, a former fair housing attorney. “I’m proud to be joining my colleagues in introducing this bill to help first-generation homebuyers, particularly those from communities of color, build wealth and help address the racial wealth gap in our country.”

First introduced in 2021, the Low-Income First Time Homebuyers (LIFT) Act would establish a program at the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), in consultation with the Department of the Treasury, to sponsor low fixed-rate 20-year mortgages for first-time, first-generation homebuyers who have incomes equal to or less than 120 percent of their area median income. Treasury would subsidize the interest rate and origination fees associated with these 20-year mortgages so that the monthly payment would be in line with a 30-year Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-insured mortgage.

For example: A first time homebuyer of modest means who purchases a property for $210,000 is likely to put down $10,000 and take out a $200,000 mortgage. In today’s market, a lender would offer this borrower a 6.5% 30 year FHA insured mortgage, for which the borrower would pay an annual 0.55% FHA insurance fee and a 1.75% up-front insurance fee, which would be folded into the mortgage. The borrower would have a monthly payment of $1,377. Under the LIFT program, the lender would instead offer this homebuyer a 5.5% 20-year FHA insured mortgage, which would include an up-front 4.00% FHA fee that would be folded into the loan and no annual FHA premium. The borrower would have a monthly payment of $1,430. By paying roughly the equivalent monthly payment, a borrower with a LIFT loan would build equity more than twice as fast.

By allowing borrowers to build equity through their homes at twice the rate of a comparable 30-year loan without meaningfully increasing the monthly payment, LIFT will improve the power of homeownership for millions of families. Coupled with well-targeted down-payment assistance, the LIFT program will make meaningful progress in narrowing the racial wealth gap, expanding and greatly strengthening the wealth-building benefits of homeownership in communities too long left behind by our existing financial structures.

A copy of the legislation is available here. A summary is available here.

This legislation has the support of a number of organizations including the National Consumer Law Center (on behalf of its low-income clients), the Center for Responsible Lending.

“The LIFT Act would be a groundbreaking new approach to help close the nation’s significant and troubling shortfall in homeownership among people of color and the associated substantial wealth racial gap.  Focusing eligibility on first-time, first-generation homebuyers would target this assistance to families and individuals most in need of assistance while also narrowing racial homeownership gaps. And the use of subsidies to make a 20-year mortgage as affordable as a 30-year loan puts homebuyers on a path to rapidly accumulate home equity while also making homeownership less risky. The proposed approach is also highly cost effective by leveraging federal subsidies to enable homeowners to build wealth over time more quickly and effectively,” said Chris Herbert, Managing Director, Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies.

“Homeownership is the major source of wealth and assets for most American families. Senator Warner's proposed LIFT Act is a worthy initiative that can help families build equity faster and Opportunity Finance Network is pleased to endorse this legislation,” said Jennifer A. Vasiloff, Chief External Affairs Officer, Opportunity Finance Network.

“Homeownership is the best way to build wealth, especially for lower and moderate income households and families of color, and LIFT supercharges that wealth-building. By helping homeowners get a 20-year mortgage with a lower monthly payment consistent with a 30-year mortgage, LIFT preserves affordability and supports homeownership, but also allows homeowners to rapidly accumulate equity in their homes. LIFT is among the most effective ways policymakers have to address the nation’s pernicious problem of large and widening economic disparities,” said Mark Zandi, Chief Economist, Moody’s Analytics.

“One of the most important benefits of homeownership is the ability to build wealth. In fact, it is the primary way millions of middle-income Americans have achieved economic stability for 75 years. While legally sanctioned racial discrimination seems like a thing of the past, outlawed in the 1968 Fair Housing Act, the reality is that the housing wealth affect continues to disadvantage people of color whose parents and grandparents never benefitted from a wide range of government programs that made homeownership possible to most Americans,” said David Dworkin, President and CEO, National Housing Conference. “The LIFT bill evens that playing field and will not only help close the wealth gap, but it will strengthen the economy for all Americans. Senator Warner has a long history of thinking outside the box and writing legislation that makes a difference in new and innovative ways. The LIFT Act is another example of his leadership.”

“The LIFT Act allows more first-time, first-generation prospective homeowners to realize their American Dream. This creates more generational wealth across different communities and supports low to middle-income Americans. AREAA is proud to support the continued efforts by Senator Warner to pass this legislation,” said Kurt Nishimura, President, Asian Real Estate Association of America (AREAA).

“NAHREP is pleased to support the re-introduction of the LIFT Homebuyers Act. The bill’s goal of helping homeowners expedite earning equity in their properties means the opportunity to build intergenerational wealth is all that more achievable,” said Gary Acosta, Co-Founder & CEO, NAHREP. “NAHREP is committed to helping Latinos realize their economic potential through homeownership and is encouraged by Senator Warner, Senator Kaine, Senator Warnock, Senator Ossoff, and Senator Van Hollen’s commitment to the same goal as evidenced in the LIFT Homebuyers Act.”

“The Virginia Housing Alliance applauds Senator Warner’s leadership and commitment to ensuring that the wealth building opportunity of homeownership becomes a reality for many more Americans through the Low-Income First Time Homebuyers Act (LIFT Act). In Virginia, the homeownership rate for non-Hispanic white households is 73% compared to just 48% for Black households. The LIFT Act will provide a transformative opportunity to close this gap and make the American dream of homeownership a reality for thousands of first time homebuyers in Virginia,” said Brian Koziol, Executive Director, Virginia Housing Alliance.

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WASHINGTON — Today, U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, issued the following statement following reports of a breach of Microsoft email accounts at over two-dozen organizations, including government agencies, by China-based hackers:

“The Senate Intelligence Committee is closely monitoring what appears to be a significant cybersecurity breach by Chinese intelligence. It’s clear that the PRC is steadily improving its cyber collection capabilities directed against the U.S. and our allies. Close coordination between the U.S. government and the private sector will be critical to countering this threat.”

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WASHINGTON – Last week, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner, Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, and Tim Kaine (both D-VA), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, sent letters to the Air Force, Army, Navy, and to the Department of Defense (DoD) regarding their implementation of privatized housing reforms and tenant protections for servicemembers and their families. After hearing from military families in Virginia about the hazardous and unsafe living conditions in many privatized military housing units that included leaking roofs, mold, and rodents, Sens. Warner and Kaine championed housing reforms, including the “Tenant Bill of Rights” in the Fiscal Year 2020 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), and the Senators have continued to push for housing support in subsequent defense bills.

Despite passing legislation to improve these conditions, a recent U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) study found that while DoD has made progress in implementing provisions, “gaps in guidance and training remain.” The Senators are urging DoD and each military branch to take a range of steps, including the necessary actions outlined in the report, to ensure that they are meeting their obligations towards servicemembers and properly implementing all necessary reforms. Specifically, the GAO focused on implementation of three reforms in order to give servicemembers and their families more leverage when dealing with unsafe and inadequate living conditions:

• More detailed guidance on the formal dispute resolution process;
• Improved guidance on the role of tenant advocates;
• Better oversight of the condition of private housing units.

The Senators also called on DoD and the services to better incorporate resident feedback into the implementation process of the various protections, in order to inform continued progress and highlight areas for additional reform.

“Having spent years addressing privatized housing concerns from multiple fronts – hearing from families firsthand who are dealing with challenges, and helping them to address those; working with installation leadership to push for greater oversight and accountability for these housing projects; and demanding action from the privatized housing companies – we have been incredibly disturbed by some of the conditions that members of the military and their families have been subjected to,” the Senators wrote.

“The purpose of these reforms and continued Congressional oversight is to provide long-overdue improvement to the experience that military members and their families have with the privatized housing system,” they continued. “It is vital that the protections and reforms that we have put in place are implemented in a way that works for residents, and there must be a continual effort to examine the use of these reforms and processes.”

The letters include a series of questions aimed at better understanding the progress being made in implementation as well as better understanding what is causing certain delays. Among the questions are inquiries about the branches’ process when enacting these reforms as well as questions on what is being done to standardize implementation across the country so that all members of the military have access to, and can utilize, the same protections.

A copy of the letters can be found here. 

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Washington, DC – U.S. Senators Joe Manchin (D-WV), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Bob Casey (D-PA), John Fetterman (D-PA), Mark Warner (D-VA) and Tim Kaine (D-VA) released the following statement on the Department of Labor’s (DOL) proposal by its Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) to amend current federal standards to better protect the nation’s miners from health hazards related to exposure to respirable crystalline silica, or silica dust. 

“We applaud the Mine Safety and Health Administration’s new proposed silica rule to enhance health protections for miners across the country. We urge swift implementation of this rule because protecting our hard-working miners from dangerous levels of silica cannot wait. After decades of declining rates of black lung deaths, we have seen the number of reported cases rapidly increase over the last 20 years - especially in Appalachia. America’s coal miners have risked their lives to power our great nation for generations, and we are committed to using every tool possible to protect miners from developing debilitating diseases that are entirely preventable.”

Earlier this month, the Senators sent a letter to Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Shalanda Young, seeking additional information on the delayed announcement of a new silica standard for miners across America and urging prompt promulgation.

WASHINGTON – U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) sent a letter to the CIM Group, a real estate owner and developer, highlighting the concerns of tenants at an affordable housing complex in Alexandria, who have reported declining conditions and increases in evictions and rents.

“We write to share troubling concerns we have heard from constituents regarding conditions of the Southern Towers apartment complex in Alexandria, Virginia since your firm, the CIM Group (CIM), took ownership of the property,” wrote the Senators. “Tenants have shared with our offices that, under CIM ownership, they have been subjected to eviction filings during the eviction moratorium, changes in how utilities are billed combined with rent increases that have led to substantial price hikes, and unaddressed maintenance issues that pose health and safety risks. Further, tenants have voiced that CIM issued unclear eviction notices indicating that tenants who were late on their rent payments had only five days to ‘pay rent or, alternatively, to terminate lease and vacate premises’ – only mentioning later in the notice that tenants located on a ‘covered property’ as defined by the CARES Act were entitled to a 30-day notice before vacating.”

The Senators urged CIM to quickly address these concerns directly with residents and work with tenants to resolve any outstanding concerns. The Senators highlighted the need to tackle these issues in the midst of a nationwide affordable housing crisis. Virginia alone is facing a shortage of over 170,000 units for extremely low-income households with the supply shortfall particularly pronounced in Alexandria, which lost an estimated 90 percent of its market-affordable units between 2000 and 2017.

They continued. “As a federally-backed property, it is incumbent upon CIM to manage Southern Towers in alignment with the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s mission to promote quality affordable housing. At a minimum, federally-backed properties should be well-maintained and free from health and safety risks, and have a responsive management team with transparent rent and utility pricing procedures. Moving forward, we urge CIM to meet regularly with tenants to hear their concerns, clearly communicate plans regarding deferred maintenance issues or pricing changes, and work directly with tenants to address issues in a timely manner.”

Sens. Warner and Kaine, a former fair housing attorney, have long supported efforts to increase accessibility to affordable housing. Earlier this year, they announced over $98 million in federal funding for affordable housing, community development, and homelessness assistance throughout the Commonwealth. They’ve introduced legislation that would address rising home prices, assist first-generation homebuyers, and close widening wealth and homeownership gaps. Sen. Kaine has also introduced legislation that would protect veterans and low-income families from housing discrimination.

A copy of the letter is available here and text is below:

Dear Ms. Chang,

We write to share troubling concerns we have heard from constituents regarding conditions of the Southern Towers apartment complex in Alexandria, Virginia since your firm, the CIM Group (CIM), took ownership of the property. Tenants of Southern Towers have raised concerns regarding declining conditions, unresolved maintenance requests, and significant pricing changes. As such, we urge you to take immediate action to address these issues by engaging directly and frequently with the tenants and working quickly to resolve outstanding concerns.

As you know, Southern Towers is a five-building apartment complex located in Alexandria, Virginia. For years, it has been home to generations of immigrants and has become a haven of affordable housing where families can achieve economic stability. In 2020, CIM purchased the property with significant financial backing from Freddie Mac. Tenants have shared with our offices that, under CIM ownership, they have been subjected to eviction filings during the eviction moratorium, changes in how utilities are billed combined with rent increases that have led to substantial price hikes, and unaddressed maintenance issues that pose health and safety risks. Further, tenants have voiced that CIM issued unclear eviction notices indicating that tenants who were late on their rent payments had only five days to “pay rent or, alternatively, to terminate lease and vacate premises”  – only mentioning later in the notice that tenants located on a “covered property” as defined by the CARES Act were entitled to a 30-day notice before vacating.  

These issues are all the more staggering when considering that our nation is in the midst of an affordable housing crisis. Virginia alone is facing a shortage of over 170,000 units for extremely low-income households with the supply shortfall particularly pronounced in Alexandria, which lost an estimated 90 percent of its market-affordable units between 2000 and 2017.  As the vast share of the undersupply is concentrated in low-income, high-opportunity markets, we know that the burden of this crisis is falling largely on low- and moderate-income families. It is more important than ever that our existing affordable housing stock is safe and available for those that need it most, including complexes like Southern Towers.

As a federally-backed property, it is incumbent upon CIM to manage Southern Towers in alignment with the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s mission to promote quality affordable housing. At a minimum, federally-backed properties should be well-maintained and free from health and safety risks, and have a responsive management team with transparent rent and utility pricing procedures. Moving forward, we urge CIM to meet regularly with tenants to hear their concerns, clearly communicate plans regarding deferred maintenance issues or pricing changes, and work directly with tenants to address issues in a timely manner. As CIM refers to itself as a “community-focused real estate investor”, we also urge CIM to offer assistance to tenants at risk of eviction by connecting them with government resources in an effort to keep more individuals and families in their homes. 

It must be a priority that our most vulnerable communities are protected from displacement and have access to safe and affordable housing. We look forward to working with you to ensure that Southern Towers is a quality, affordable community for the tenants that call it home.

Sincerely,

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WASHINGTON — Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) applauded $171,555,620 in federal funding for five transit projects in Virginia. This funding was authorized by the bipartisan infrastructure law supported by both Senators and signed into law by President Joe Biden. Specifically, these federal dollars will go towards investing in bus facilities and American-built buses that will be manufactured with American parts and labor.  

“We are thrilled to see the bipartisan infrastructure law continue to deliver for communities,” said the Senators. “This funding will help deliver state-of-the-art buses and bus facilities that are better for our environment and make Virginia’s transit systems more reliable and comfortable for riders. We’re proud to know that this funding will support American jobs while making our communities more accessible.” 

The funding will be distributed as follows:

• The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) will receive $104 million to convert its Lorton, VA, bus garage to a fully electric facility, buy approximately 100 battery-electric buses, and develop a workforce training program for drivers, mechanics, and first responders to ensure safe and efficient operations of the fleet. This project will support WMATA’s plans to accelerate its transition to a 100-percent zero-emission bus fleet and create good paying construction jobs, which will be supported through a project labor agreement and registered apprenticeships.

• The City of Alexandria will receive $23,984,700 to buy 13 battery-electric buses and charging equipment and perform utility upgrades to the DASH transit system. The project includes worker training to introduce new skills to the existing and future workforce to maintain the electric buses, charging infrastructure and associated technology. The buses will accelerate DASH's transition to a 100% zero-emission fleet.

• Loudoun County will receive $13,880,910 to buy 37 compressed natural gas buses, build a fueling station and improve its maintenance facility, the first step in its 10-year net-zero energy strategy.  The buses will anchor the agency's fleet and service the county's environmental justice communities while reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

• The Transportation District Commission of Hampton Roads will receive $25,000,000 to replace the 39-year-old Parks Avenue Maintenance Facility in Virginia Beach to accommodate future zero-emission buses. The new Southside Bus Operating Facility will help the agency support and maintain its current fleet while preparing to support expanded regional transit service.

• The Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation (DRPT) will receive $4,690,010 to replace the oldest buses operated by 11 rural transit providers. The project includes the purchase of a few dozen replacement buses that are vital to reducing a backlog of adequate vehicles. 

Funding for these projects was distributed through the Federal Transit Administration (FTA)’s Grants for Buses and Bus Facilities and Low- and No-Emission (Low-No) Vehicle programs.

The Buses and Bus Facilities program provides federal funding for transit agencies to buy and rehabilitate buses and vans and build and modernize bus facilities. The bipartisan infrastructure law provides nearly $2 billion through FY 2026 for the program. The Low-No program makes funding available to help transit agencies buy or lease American-built low- or zero-emission vehicles, including buses and vans; make facility and station upgrades to accommodate low- or zero-emission vehicles; and purchase supporting equipment like chargers for battery electric vehicles. The bipartisan infrastructure law provides $5.5 billion through FY 2026 for the Low-No Program – more than six times greater than the previous five years of funding combined.