WASHINGTON — U.S. Sens. Mark Warner (D-VA), Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), Rob Portman (R-OH), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Susan Collins (R-ME), Joe Manchin (D-WV), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Mitt Romney (R-UT), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), and Jon Tester (D-MT) issued the following statement after the historic Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act was signed into law. The law represents the largest investment in infrastructure in our nation’s history. 

“Today’s signing of the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act is a victory for all Americans. When Congress puts America’s needs over politics, we make genuine progress. We were proud to work together on this historic investment in our nation’s core infrastructure to modernize roads and bridges, strengthen rail and transit systems, upgrade ports, expand broadband access, improve water systems, and increase the resiliency of the nation’s energy grid. It strengthens our economy without raising taxes or increasing inflation. This legislation will positively impact every American.” 

###

WASHINGTON —Today, U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) joined by Sens. Tim Kaine (D-VA), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), and Ben Cardin (D-MD), introduced the Enhancing Military Base Resilience and Conserving Ecosystems through Stormwater Management (EMBRACE) Act, legislation to authorize the Department of Defense (DOD) to carry out stormwater management projects at military installations to improve resilience at the facilities while protecting waterways and stormwater impacted ecosystems, such as those that feed into the Chesapeake Bay. Senator Kaine is pushing to include the legislation in the must-pass National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) this year.

“Sea level rise, flooding, and stormwater pollution threatens not only our environment and economy, but our military readiness too,” said Senator Kaine. “I’m proud to introduce the EMBRACE Act, legislation to help our Armed Forces protect our military bases and environment from the effects of climate change. This is a collaborative approach to defend our nation, improve our waterways, and preserve our environment for generations to come.”

“Military bases across the Commonwealth are at risk of flooding due to climate change. The EMBRACE Act will allow for projects to reinforce these bases while protecting our waterways and the Chesapeake Bay. These projects are crucial to keeping our military facilities operational and ready,” said Senator Warner.

“The impacts of the climate crisis – from flooding to natural disasters – increasingly threaten Maryland communities, including our military installations. We need all hands on deck to respond, which is why our legislation authorizes the Department of Defense to help reduce stormwater runoff that threatens access to clean water and the health of the Chesapeake Bay. This common-sense bill will support our efforts to protect both civilian and military communities, while also supporting a clean and healthy Bay,” said Senator Van Hollen.

“Climate change, including more extreme weather and flooding events that increase stormwater runoff, has significant implications for U.S. national security and defense. This legislation bolsters the work of the Department of Defense – a federal agency partner of the Chesapeake Bay Program restoration effort – to reduce runoff and improve water quality by implementing stormwater management practices at military installations,” said Senator Cardin.

Stormwater remains the only pollutant in the Chesapeake Bay watershed that continues to increase. Climate related impacts, such as increased rainfall intensity, only exacerbate this problem. As the second largest federal landholder in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, DOD plays a vital role in reducing stormwater loads and enhancing climate resiliency.

Specifically, the EMBRACE Act would:

• Make stormwater management projects eligible for federal funding under either military construction projects, military installation resilience projects, unspecified minor military construction projects, defense access roads projects, the Defense Community Infrastructure Program (DCIP), and Energy Resilience and Conservation Investment Program (ERCIP).
• Instructs DOD to prioritize projects that retrofit buildings and grounds on bases and improve access to roads prone to flooding.
• Supports the building of stormwater ponds and other retention strategies.
• Supports replacing impermeable paving that lets water run off with materials that let water seep into the soil, allowing projects such as rain gardens, cisterns, and planters to be eligible for funds. 

Climate change has put numerous Virginia and Maryland military bases at increased risk of flooding, including Naval Station Norfolk, Naval Air Station Oceana, Naval Support Activity Hampton Roads, Langley Air Force Base, Naval Support Activity Annapolis, Naval Support Activity Bethesda, Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Joint Base Andrews, and Naval Support Activity South Potomac.

The EMBRACE Act is endorsed by The Chesapeake Bay Commission, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, the Chesapeake Conservancy, Choose Clean Water Coalition, American Flood Coalition Action, the Nature Conservancy, Southern Environmental Law Center, and Wetlands Watch.

In the U.S. House of Representatives, Representatives Bobby Scott (VA-03), Rob Wittman (VA-01), and Elaine Luria (VA-02) introduced companion legislation in September. The bill also passed as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2022 in September in the House of Representatives.

###

WASHINGTON – U.S. Sens. Mark Warner (D-VA), Gary Peters (D-MI), Rob Portman (R-OH), and Susan Collins (R-ME) introduced a bipartisan amendment to the annual defense authorization bill to require critical infrastructure owners and operators and civilian federal agencies to report to the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) if they experience a cyber-attack, and most entities to report if they make a ransomware payment. The amendment is based on the Cyber Incident Reporting Act and Federal Information Security Modernization Act of 2021 authored by Peters and Portman, and advanced by the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, where they serve as Chairman and Ranking Member, respectively.

“Cyber-attacks and ransomware attacks are a serious national security threat that have affected everything from our energy sector to the federal government and Americans’ own sensitive personal information,” said Senator Peters, Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. “I’m grateful to my colleagues for working together to introduce this bipartisan amendment that will take significant steps to strengthen cybersecurity protections, ensure that CISA is at the forefront of our nation’s response to serious breaches, and most importantly, requires timely reporting of these attacks to the federal government so that we can better prevent future incidents and hold attackers accountable for their crimes.”

“As cyber and ransomware attacks continue to increase, the federal government must be able to quickly coordinate a response and hold bad actors accountable,” said Senator Portman, Ranking Member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. “That’s why I’m proud to introduce this bipartisan amendment to the FY 2022 NDAA to update the Federal Information Security Modernization Act (FISMA) and give the National Cyber Director, CISA, and other appropriate agencies broad visibility into the cyberattacks taking place across our nation on a daily basis to enable a whole-of-government response, mitigation, and warning to critical infrastructure and others of ongoing and imminent attacks. This bipartisan amendment to significantly update FISMA will provide the accountability necessary to resolve longstanding weaknesses in federal cybersecurity by clarifying roles and responsibilities and requiring the government to quickly inform the American people if their information is compromised.”

“It seems like every day, Americans wake up to the news of another ransomware attack or cyber intrusion, but the SolarWinds hack showed us that there is nobody responsible for collecting information on the scope and scale of these incidents,” said Senator Warner, Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. “We can’t rely on voluntary reporting to protect our critical infrastructure – we need a routine reporting requirement so that when vital sectors of our economy are affected by a cyber breach, the full resources of the federal government can be mobilized to respond to, and stave off, its impact. I’m glad we were able to come to a bipartisan compromise on this amendment addressing many of the core issues raised by these high-profile hacking incidents.”   

“Having a clear view of the dangers the nation faces from cyberattacks is necessary to prioritizing and acting to mitigate and reduce the threat,” said Senator Collins. “My 2012 bill would have led to improved information sharing with the federal government that likely would have reduced the impact of cyber incidents on both the government and the private sector. Failure to enact a robust cyber incident notification requirement will only give our adversaries more opportunity to gather intelligence on our government, steal intellectual property from our companies, and harm our critical infrastructure. I urge my colleagues to pass our amendment, which is common sense and long overdue.”

The amendment would require critical infrastructure owners and operators to report to CISA within 72 hours if they are experiencing a substantial cyber-attack. Many other organizations, including businesses, nonprofits, and state and local governments, would also be required to report to the federal government within 24 hours if they make a ransom payment following an attack. Additionally, the amendment would update current federal government cybersecurity laws to improve coordination between federal agencies, force the government to take a risk-based approach to security, as well as require all civilian agencies to report all cyber-attacks to CISA, and major cyber incidents to Congress. It also provides additional authorities to CISA to ensure they are the lead federal agency in charge of responding to cybersecurity incidents on federal civilian networks.

###

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) joined Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) and Congresswoman Karen Bass (D-CA) in a bicameral letter with over 50 of their colleagues to President Joe Biden and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas urging the Administration to provide critical protections to Cameroonians in the midst of the current humanitarian crisis facing the nation. Senator Van Hollen is the Chair of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Subcommittee on Africa and Global Health Policy and Congresswoman Bass is the Chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights and International Organizations.

The lawmakers begin, “We write to you today to request that you issue an immediate 18-month designation of either Temporary Protected Status (TPS) or Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) for Cameroon. A humanitarian crisis and civil war characterized by massive internal displacement, war crimes, and shortages of essentials like water, food, healthcare, and housing make safe return impossible, and we must act quickly to extend protection against deportation to Cameroonian nationals in the United States (U.S.).”

They go on to underscore the worsening crisis in Cameroon, noting, “Based on the high risk of armed conflict and kidnapping, the U.S. State Department has issued ‘Do Not Travel’ warnings for six regions: the North, Far North, North-West, South- West, East, and parts of Adamawa. In its most recent human rights report on Cameroon, the State Department identified a troubling catalogue of human rights abuses, including extrajudicial killings, torture, arbitrary detention, violence against women and children, and targeted attacks against members of the LGBTQ+ community. The United Nations estimates that 4.4 million people in Cameroon need assistance, with over 1.5 million people internally displaced and another 67,000 Cameroonian refugees displaced in Nigeria. An estimated 38,790 Cameroonians currently living in the U.S. would benefit from a DED or TPS designation for Cameroon.”

“Cameroon is facing three separate humanitarian crises sprawling across its ten regions: conflict with the armed Islamist group Boko Haram in the Far North region; a political and humanitarian crisis in the Anglophone North-West and South-West regions; and a refugee crisis in the East, near the border with the Central African Republic. Inter-communal violence has also affected several regions. The government’s continued crackdowns on peaceful political opposition and security forces’ documented use of incommunicado detention and torture contribute to the danger of return.5 Deportees from the U.S. are at particular risk of being targeted for actual or imputed opposition to the government and have experienced arbitrary detention and other abuses upon return,” they continue.

The lawmakers close the letter urging, “Announcing a TPS or DED designation for Cameroon would serve as a key and strategic part of the U.S. government’s commitment to human rights and international stability, safeguarding Cameroonians in the U.S. from a return to these dangerous conditions. We call upon this administration to do its part to protect Cameroonians. Given that the devastating human consequences of these humanitarian crises in Cameroon have escalated in recent months, this protection is urgently needed now more than ever.”

In addition to Senator Van Hollen and Congresswoman Bass, the letter was signed by Senators Kaine, Shaheen, Murray, Padilla, Booker, Markey, Cardin, Brown, Warren, Smith, Klobuchar, Warner, and Warnock and Representatives Nadler, Lofgren, Velazquez, Ruppersberger, Vargas, Beatty, Gwen Moore, Norton, Johnson, Jr., Brown, Lee, McGovern, Schakowsky, Espaillat, Connolly, Raskin, Lieu, Jacobs, Sewell, Evans, Garamendi, Tlaib, Jayapal, Adam Smith, Lowenthal, Ocasio-Cortez, Jones, Cicilline, Meng, Rush, Watson Coleman, Quigley, Castro, Dean, McCollum, Chu, Napolitano, Garcia, Gallego, Pressley, Khanna, and Clarke.

The full text of the letter is available here and below:

Dear President Biden and Secretary Mayorkas:

We write to you today to request that you issue an immediate 18-month designation of either Temporary Protected Status (TPS) or Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) for Cameroon. A humanitarian crisis and civil war characterized by massive internal displacement, war crimes, and shortages of essentials like water, food, healthcare, and housing make safe return impossible, and we must act quickly to extend protection against deportation to Cameroonian nationals in the United States (U.S.).

TPS is a form of statutory deferred action afforded to nationals of a country living in the U.S. if conditions in the country make return unsafe. The Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) may designate a country for TPS if conditions in the country meet requirements regarding ongoing armed conflict, natural disasters, or other extraordinary and temporary conditions in the country that prevent safe return. TPS provides protection from deportation and permission to work in the U.S. for the duration of the designation.

DED serves as a vital foreign policy tool of the President and another mechanism to protect foreign nationals in the U.S. from civil, political, and humanitarian crises in their home country that make it unsafe for them to return, or whose suspension of deportation serves other U.S. foreign policy or domestic interests. DED provides similar protections as TPS, but it does not require registration and is only triggered when an individual is identified for removal. A DED designation uses minimal administrative resources and has an immediate effect for eligible individuals.

Based on the high risk of armed conflict and kidnapping, the U.S. State Department has issued “Do Not Travel” warnings for six regions: the North, Far North, North-West, South- West, East, and parts of Adamawa. In its most recent human rights report on Cameroon, the State Department identified a troubling catalogue of human rights abuses, including extrajudicial killings, torture, arbitrary detention, violence against women and children, and targeted attacks against members of the LGBTQ+ community. The United Nations estimates that 4.4 million people in Cameroon need assistance, with over 1.5 million people internally displaced and another 67,000 Cameroonian refugees displaced in Nigeria. An estimated 38,790 Cameroonians currently living in the U.S. would benefit from a DED or TPS designation for Cameroon.

Cameroon is facing three separate humanitarian crises sprawling across its ten regions: conflict with the armed Islamist group Boko Haram in the Far North region; a political and humanitarian crisis in the Anglophone North-West and South-West regions; and a refugee crisis in the East, near the border with the Central African Republic. Inter-communal violence has also affected several regions. The government’s continued crackdowns on peaceful political opposition and security forces’ documented use of incommunicado detention and torture contribute to the danger of return. Deportees from the U.S. are at particular risk of being targeted for actual or imputed opposition to the government and have experienced arbitrary detention and other abuses upon return.

Since late 2016, Cameroon, a bilingual country with eight Francophone and two Anglophone regions, has faced a protracted humanitarian crisis in its Anglophone North-West and South- West regions resulting in the internal displacement of more than 712,000 civilians and the displacement of over 67,000 Cameroonian refugees across the border to Nigeria. Grassroots advocacy in the Anglophone regions in late 2016 called for more political autonomy or secession. In response, government security forces cracked down on protests and non-state armed groups continued to seek independence, with both sides committing serious and widespread human rights violations. As a result of this crisis, at least 4,000 civilians have been killed in the Anglophone regions alone.

The Far North region of Cameroon has been severely impacted by armed conflict between government forces and the armed Islamist group Boko Haram and its splinter faction, the Islamic State in West Africa Province. The Boko Haram insurgency, which began in Nigeria in 2009 and spread to Cameroon in 2014, has led to the deaths of more than 3,000 Cameroonians and has resulted in the internal displacement of over 340,000.

Conflict in the neighboring Central African Republic (CAR) also impacts Cameroon, which currently hosts over 330,000 refugees from the CAR in its East, Adamawa, and Northern regions after a new wave of refugees crossed the border following election-related violence in CAR in late 2020. The influx of refugees has put significant pressure on the already limited natural resources and basic social services in host communities, severely exacerbating pre- existing vulnerabilities and leading to increased incidents of criminality, kidnappings, and inter-communal violence.

The conflict in the Far North and the crisis in the Anglophone regions have also exacerbated long-standing inter-communal tensions over natural resources, resulting in violence and increased civilian casualties. In August 2021 in the Far North Region, clashes between ethnic Choa Arab herders and ethnic Mousgoum fishermen and farmers killed at least 32, injured at least 74 people, and razed at least 19 villages, representing the most violent inter-communal attack to date in Cameroon.

The Cameroonian government and security forces create risks for deportees nationwide, including crackdowns on political dissent, the security forces’ documented use of torture, and criminalization of and targeted violence towards LGBTQ+ people. Political and ethnic tensions in Cameroon have been further frayed by uprisings and violence following the 2018 presidential and 2020 local elections.

On three known deportation flights in October, November, and September of 2020 the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) deported an estimated 80-90 Cameroonians en masse. According to press reports and interviews with deportees, Cameroonian authorities confiscated the identification documents of most Cameroonians deported on the October and November 2020 flights.

The COVID-19 pandemic has only intensified the humanitarian crises and human rights issues in Cameroon, where violence and heavy rains have catastrophically degraded infrastructure essential to the delivery of humanitarian aid and pandemic relief. Citing limited medical resources and a high risk of contracting the virus, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has warned against all but essential travel to Cameroon. The Cameroonian government has also been criticized for its lack of transparency on the misuse of millions of dollars in pandemic relief funds.

Announcing a TPS or DED designation for Cameroon would serve as a key and strategic part of the U.S. government’s commitment to human rights and international stability, safeguarding Cameroonians in the U.S. from a return to these dangerous conditions. We call upon this administration to do its part to protect Cameroonians. Given that the devastating human consequences of these humanitarian crises in Cameroon have escalated in recent months, this protection is urgently needed now more than ever.

Sincerely,

###

WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) issued the following release:

“After months of work, I’m encouraged that the White House has reached an agreement on a transformative budget reconciliation package to reduce child and home health care costs, invest in clean energy, combat the effects of climate change, and make life a little easier and more affordable for hardworking Americans and Virginia families. While this framework leaves room for future action on critical needs like paid family leave, I’m pleased that it does include significant investments in affordable housing and measures to close the racial wealth gap that I fought hard to include. I look forward to working with my colleagues and President Biden to get this fully paid-for framework signed into law.

“I’m pleased to hear that the House is heading towards a vote today on a bipartisan infrastructure package that I helped write. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act will bring billions of dollars home to Virginia to fix our roads and bridges, invest in our ports and airports, expand broadband, and more. I urge my colleagues in the House of Representatives to approve this once-in-a-generation investment in our nation’s infrastructure needs without further delay.”

###

RICHMOND—Governor Ralph Northam today announced that President Biden has approved a Major Disaster Declaration for Buchanan County, after extreme rainfall on August 30 resulted in devastating flash floods and landslides. The declaration provides federal support through Public Assistance and Hazard Mitigation grant programs to assist in recovery efforts and protect against future disasters. 

“I’m grateful to President Biden for approving my request and providing much needed federal assistance,” said Governor Northam. “Federal support will help Buchanan residents recover from this devastating storm and reduce the future flood risk to local organizations, homes, and businesses. As Governor, I will continue to do everything I can to support the Hurley community.”    

The Virginia Department of Emergency Management (VDEM) will hold Applicant Briefings in the coming weeks to help inform potential grant applicants of the process for applying for and receiving federal grants. Applicants will have 30 days to register and submit a Request for Public Assistance (RPA) in the FEMA Grants Portal.

Public Assistance (approved)
With this approval, local, state, and private non-profit organizations with infrastructure damage or emergency and debris removal expenditures, may apply to FEMA for reimbursement of 75 percent of eligible costs. The FEMA Public Assistance program could take years to be fully reimbursed for disaster related expenditures. The Virginia Department of Emergency Management is the administrative agency for this grant program.
https://www.fema.gov/press-release/20210318/what-fema-public-assistance

Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (approved)
With this approval, Virginia will receive funding for projects to reduce future flooding to homes, businesses, and infrastructure. This program could take 5-7 years to implement. The application phase of this program is 12 months, and then FEMA may take 6-18 months to award the project based on environmental and historic review compliance or technical feasibility review. Federal assistance is approved at 75 percent of the total eligible project costs. Local governments and state agencies will apply through the Virginia Department of Emergency Management as the administrative agency.
https://www.fema.gov/es/grants/mitigation/hazard-mitigation

“We’re pleased President Biden has heeded our calls and supported Governor Northam’s request for a Major Disaster Declaration,” said Senator Mark R. Warner and Senator Tim Kaine. “Now, Virginia can receive much-needed federal funds to help Buchanan County recover. We will continue working with the Governor’s office, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and other relevant federal and state agencies to ensure the residents of Buchanan County have the resources they need following this tragic natural disaster.” 

“Recovery from August’s severe flooding will take time, but the federal major disaster declaration will significantly help Hurley move forward,” said Congressman Morgan Griffith. “This declaration opens up new sources of aid for the rebuilding effort and will contribute to overcoming the flood’s devastation.”

A decision on the potential award of Individual Assistance is still pending.

For more information, please visit VDEM’s grants page.

# # #

WASHINGTON – Today U.S. Senators and India Caucus Co-Chairs Mark Warner (D-VA) and John Cornyn (R-TX) sent a letter to President Biden encouraging him to waive Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) sanctions against India for buying military arms from Russia.

They wrote: “While India has taken significant steps to reduce its purchases of Russian military equipment, it has a long history of purchasing arms from the Soviet Union, and later Russia. In 2018, India formally agreed to purchase Russian S-400 Triumf air-defense systems after having signed an initial agreement with Russia two years prior. We are concerned that the upcoming transfer of these systems will trigger sanctions under the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA), which was enacted to hold Russia accountable for its malign behavior.”

“As such, we strongly encourage you to grant a CAATSA waiver to India for its planned purchase of the S-400 Triumf surface-to-air missile system. In cases where granting a waiver would advance the national security interests of the U.S., this waiver authority, as written into the law by Congress, allows the President additional discretion in applying sanctions.”

“We share your concerns regarding the purchase and the continued Indian integration of Russian equipment, even with these declining sales. We would encourage your administration to continue reinforcing this concern to Indian officials, and engaging with them constructively to continue supporting alternatives to their purchasing Russian equipment.”

October 26, 2021

The Honorable Joseph R. Biden, Jr.

President

The White House

Washington, DC 20500

Dear Mr. President:

We commend the steps you have taken to deepen the U.S.-India partnership since you have taken office. The robust and swift support that your administration provided to India during its devastating COVID surge earlier this year undoubtedly saved many lives and demonstrated the strength of our countries’ bond. Your revitalization of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, of which India is a core member, has served as an additional mechanism for closer cooperation between our two countries. In the midst of this strengthening bilateral relationship, we are concerned that possible upcoming sanctions against India could reverse or slow this progress. 

While India has taken significant steps to reduce its purchases of Russian military equipment, it has a long history of purchasing arms from the Soviet Union, and later Russia. In 2018, India formally agreed to purchase Russian S-400 Triumf air-defense systems after having signed an initial agreement with Russia two years prior. We are concerned that the upcoming transfer of these systems will trigger sanctions under the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA), which was enacted to hold Russia accountable for its malign behavior.

CAATSA’s provisions, including sanctions targeting Russia’s defense and intelligence sectors, serve as an important tool for the U.S. government to discourage Russian arms purchases around the world. However, in the case of this current S-400 transaction involving India, we believe that the application of CAATSA sanctions could have a deleterious effect on a strategic partnership with India, while at the same time, not achieve the intended purpose of deterring Russian arms sales.

As such, we strongly encourage you to grant a CAATSA waiver to India for its planned purchase of the S-400 Triumf surface-to-air missile system. In cases where granting a waiver would advance the national security interests of the U.S., this waiver authority, as written into the law by Congress, allows the President additional discretion in applying sanctions.

Congress established criteria for determining the appropriateness of waiving CAATSA sanctions. Specifically, the Fiscal Year 2019 National Defense Authorization Act allows the President to issue a waiver if doing so is in the national interest, and if it would not endanger U.S. national security, adversely affect U.S. military operations, or compromise U.S. defense systems. We believe that a waiver for India is appropriate for several reasons.

First, India has taken significant steps to reduce its imports of Russian military hardware in recent years. From 2016 to 2020, there was a 53 percent drop in Russian arms exports to India compared to the preceding five-year period. Meanwhile, India has shown its intent to purchase equipment from the United States, with sales reaching $3.4 billion in FY20. These are positive trends that show India’s effort to reduce reliance on Russian equipment, and a desire to take advantage of its new status as a Strategic Trade Authorization-1 (STA-1) partner.

Second, we believe there is a national security imperative to waiving sanctions. Imposing sanctions at this time could derail deepening cooperation with India across all aspects of our bilateral relationship – from vaccines to defense cooperation, from energy strategy to technology sharing. Furthermore, sanctions have the potential to embolden critics within India who warn that the United States will not be a consistent and reliable partner for cooperation, and to thwart the Indian government’s efforts and long-term strategy to reduce Russian purchases and reliance on Russian defense hardware. 

We share your concerns regarding the purchase and the continued Indian integration of Russian equipment, even with these declining sales. We would encourage your administration to continue reinforcing this concern to Indian officials, and engaging with them constructively to continue supporting alternatives to their purchasing Russian equipment. We also propose that your administration establish a bilateral working group to identify ways to promote the security of U.S. technology, and to chart a path forward to develop strategies to enhance U.S.-India military interoperability. We believe these actions reinforce India’s status as a Major Defense Partner and will provide another avenue to counter PRC influence in the Indo-Pacific.

Sincerely,

###

WASHINGTON – U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) today announced $1,558,976 in federal funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to expand access to high-speed internet, health care, and educational services in rural Virginia. 

“Teleservices are essential in today’s world, especially in rural areas where folks have to travel long distances to access resources. These investments will help close the digital divide across our Commonwealth and extend valuable educational and health opportunities to many Virginians,” the Senators said.

The funding will be distributed as follows:

• Bristol Virginia Public Schools will receive $993,840 in federal funds to purchase interactive video conferencing equipment to deliver distance learning and telehealth services to 21 schools in eight rural Virginia communities.

• University of Virginia will receive $267,036 in federal funds to purchase telemedicine equipment to serve a Tribal Nation, a Critical Access Hospital, a new Opioid Use Disorder and Substance Use Disorder clinic, and two federally qualified health centers serving the Appalachian region of Virginia. This equipment will help address urgent health needs, including those related to COVID-19, severe respiratory disease, the opioid crisis, and Type 2 diabetes. It is estimated that over 3,000 patients will receive treatment from this project.  

• Mountain States Health Alliance will receive $298,100 in federal funds to expand virtual access to behavioral health, urgent care, and specialty care in Rural Appalachia. An estimated 33,000 patients will benefit from the telemedical care available facilitated by this project.

###

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine (Both D-Va.) and Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen (Both D-Md.) wrote to Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) CEO Paul Wiedefeld Thursday urging cooperation, transparency, and action to address safety concerns and restore public confidence in the transit agency.

The senators called for WMATA’s full cooperation with the National Transportation Safety Board and the Washington Metrorail Safety Commission in the effort to identify the factors leading to last week’s derailment, and that this cooperation must include answering questions about the history of WMATA’s awareness, since as early as 2017, of safety concerns with the 7000 series cars.

“Residents of the National Capital Region deserve a safe, reliable, and well-functioning transit system,” the senators wrote. “While your cooperation and information sharing with the NTSB and WMSC require your urgent attention, please know that we will be eager to hear from you in a timely manner on your plans to address the specific safety concerns associated with last week’s derailment, to restore public confidence in your organization, and to embed safety more effectively into your organizational culture—a repeated focus of our discussions with you since you took the helm of WMATA six years ago.”

The full letter follows and can be downloaded here.

Mr. Paul J. Wiedefeld

General Manager and CEO

Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority

600 5th Street, N.W.

Washington, D.C. 20001

Dear Mr. Wiedefeld:

We regret that we must write to you about another safety issue with Metrorail. Last week’s derailment of WMATA Train 407, a Kawasaki-made 7000 series railcar, near Arlington Cemetery thankfully ended without fatalities or serious injuries. However, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has indicated that the nature of the derailment and the equipment failure that made it possible could have led to a much worse outcome. It is imperative that WMATA cooperate fully with the NTSB and the Washington Metrorail Safety Commission (WMSC) to ascertain all factors that led to this derailment and to implement a lasting solution to the Kawasaki 7000 series rail cars’ susceptibility to failure and to prevent future derailments. WMATA’s transparency with the public throughout this process is critical.

We appreciate your early indications that you will cooperate with the NTSB investigation. Our expectation is that this will include thorough and timely responses to questions about the history of WMATA’s awareness of safety concerns with the 7000 series rail cars. We are deeply troubled by the possibility that WMATA knew about this safety concern as early as 2017, but failed to implement a course of action sufficient to prevent last week’s derailment.

Residents of the National Capital Region deserve a safe, reliable, and well-functioning transit system. While your cooperation and information sharing with the NTSB and WMSC require your urgent attention, please know that we will be eager to hear from you in a timely manner on your plans to address the specific safety concerns associated with last week’s derailment, to restore public confidence in your organization, and to embed safety more effectively into your organizational culture—a repeated focus of our discussions with you since you took the helm of WMATA six years ago.

In addition, the abrupt reduction in service has been difficult for riders. We appreciate the briefings that have been provided or scheduled thus far. Please continue to provide us and the public with details on the actions WMATA is taking to assist riders, including steps to expand bus service, provide accurate train schedules and real-time arrival information, and protect public health in stations and on trains and buses while the rail system operates with a reduced fleet.

We look forward to more complete information on WMATA’s plans to address these serious concerns. Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Sincerely,

###

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, issued the statement below after voting for a procedural motion to advance the Freedom to Vote Act – landmark legislation to secure American elections and protect the right to vote. The legislation failed to move forward by a vote of 49-51 after falling short of the 60-vote threshold needed to open debate on the bill, with no support from Republicans.

“Today, I voted to move forward with a bill to secure our elections and protect the right to vote – a cornerstone of American democracy. If we are to preserve this democracy, we must make sure that future generations of voters have the same reasonable, unencumbered access to the ballot box that so many Virginians currently enjoy as they cast their votes ahead of the November election. As we face an alarming barrage of attacks on our most solemn ideals and our most precious institutions, it’s discouraging that my colleagues on the other side of the aisle would refuse to even debate this set of commonsense measures.”

###

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) joined Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and colleagues in introducing bipartisan legislation to restore competition online by establishing commonsense rules of the road for dominant digital platforms to prevent them from abusing their market power to harm competition, online businesses, and consumers.

Original cosponsors of the legislation include U.S. Sens. Steve Daines (R-MT), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), John Kennedy (R-LA), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), and Josh Hawley (R-MO).

“For our digital economy to work for all Americans and all innovators, we need fair rules of the road. This bill ensures that dominant platforms aren’t engaging in self-preferencing or other discriminatory conduct that tilts the playing field in their favor and entrenches their dominance,” said Sen. Warner.

“As dominant digital platforms – some of the biggest companies our world has ever seen – increasingly give preference to their own products and services, we must put policies in place to ensure small businesses and entrepreneurs still have the opportunity to succeed,” said Sen. Klobuchar. “Support for this bill continues to grow because American consumers, workers, and businesses know that it is past time to update our competition laws for the digital era. I am proud to introduce this much-needed legislation alongside Senator Grassley and a bipartisan group of our colleagues, and I look forward to it passing the Senate and being signed into law.”

“As Big Tech has grown and evolved over the years, our laws have not changed to keep up and ensure these companies are competing fairly. These companies have continued to become a larger part of our everyday lives and the global economy, controlling what we see and how we engage on the internet,” said Grassley. “Big Tech needs to be held accountable if they behave in a discriminatory manner. Our bill will help create a more even playing field and ensure that small businesses are able to compete with these platforms.”

“Time and again we have seen Big Tech use its power to stifle online competition and manipulate the marketplace,” said Sen. Daines. “This bipartisan bill will help level the playing field and ensure Montana business owners are able to have full access to the online marketplace to grow and create Montana jobs and support local economies.”

“Choice is fundamental to competition. American consumers have been systematically denied access to critical information about their market choices. This new bill will fight strong arm tactics used by Big Tech to disadvantage their consumers and exclude competitors from the marketplace,” said Sen. Durbin.

“This legislation will help end Big Tech’s self-serving market manipulation. For too long, tech giants have been able to use their vast market dominance to unfairly boost their own products and services—and to disadvantage competitors. I’m proud to back this bipartisan bill to level the playing field, ensuring smaller competitors have a fighting chance and consumers have more options at fairer prices,” said Sen. Blumenthal.

“Big Tech has a track record of unfairly limiting consumer choices and thwarting free-market competition. The American Innovation and Choice Online Act would help offer consumers more options at competitive prices from businesses online, which is what the American economy is supposed to do best,” said Sen. Kennedy.

“The nation’s largest tech companies, such as Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google, have faced accusations of prioritizing their own products on their platforms, using their market power to edge out competitors, and limiting consumers’ choice,” said Sen. Booker. “These discriminatory practices have been an issue for far too long, and it's time for Congress to step up and help restore competition to the digital marketplace. The American Innovation and Choice Online Act would hold the largest tech platforms accountable by prohibiting these discriminatory practices, and ensure that their competitors can participate fairly in the marketplace.”

“In the absence of any meaningful regulations, Big Tech platforms are using the data they collect from companies on their platforms to create unfair advantages for themselves. These practices have stifled innovation and harmed their very consumers with a lack of choice. The American Innovation and Choice Online Act would level the playing field and make sure that consumers and merchants in Wyoming have fair access to the marketplace,” said Sen. Lummis.

“Our competition laws haven’t kept pace with today’s economy. The result is online giants like Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google who roll over potential competitors and harm consumers,” said Sen. Hirono. “By preventing tech giants from preferencing their own products, the American Innovation and Choice Online Act will bring real competition back to the online world.”

“For too long, Big Tech has run roughshod over small businesses, and lax antitrust enforcers have refused to do anything. No more. Congress is finally beginning to take these issues seriously. This bill will outlaw much of the discrimination and self-preferencing that tech companies currently get away with,” said Sen. Hawley.

Specifically The American Innovation and Choice Online Act will:

• Set clear, effective rules to protect competition and users doing business on dominant online platforms, including:
• Prohibiting dominant platforms from abusing their gatekeeper power by favoring their own products or services, disadvantaging rivals, or discriminating among businesses that use their platforms in a manner that would materially harm competition on the platform; and
• Prohibiting specific forms of conduct that are harmful to small businesses, entrepreneurs, and consumers, but that do not have any pro-competitive benefit, including:
• Preventing another business’s product or service from interoperating with the dominant platform or another business;
• Requiring a business to buy a dominant platform’s goods or services for preferred placement on its platform;
• Misusing a business’s data to compete against them; and 
• Biasing search results in favor of the dominant firm.

• Give antitrust enforcers strong, flexible tools to deter violations and hold dominant platforms accountable when they cross the line into illegal behavior, including significant civil penalties, authority to seek broad injunctions, emergency interim relief, and potential forfeiture of executive compensation.

• Prevent self-preferencing and discriminatory conduct by the most economically significant online platforms with large U.S. user bases which function as “critical trading partners” for online businesses. For such platforms, the rules target harmful conduct, allowing the platforms to innovate, do business, and engage in pro-consumer conduct, including protecting user privacy and safety, preventing unlawful behavior, and maintaining a secure online experience for users.

“We applaud this bipartisan group of senators, led by Sens. Klobuchar and Grassley, for taking a major step forward towards bringing real accountability and change to Big Tech. This legislation, combined with other bipartisan bills in the U.S. House are a serious and substantive set of solutions to address the power and abuses of Big Tech that have resulted in real harms to workers, small businesses, consumers, and innovation. We look forward to moving this proposal forward as well as additional measures to address the range of Big Tech abuses,” said Alex Harman, competition policy advocate for Public Citizen.

“Nondiscrimination protections like the ones in this bill are crucial for breaking down the power of Big Tech. Right now, dominant platforms can pick winners and losers to stay in power and benefit their own bottom line—to the detriment of the people who rely on them: consumers, innovators, and the small businesses. This bipartisan bill marks a meaningful step forward in the fight to protect consumers and competition online. We look forward to continuing to work with Chairwoman Klobuchar, Ranking Member Grassley, and the bipartisan group of cosponsors to strengthen the nondiscrimination protections in this bill. We want to cut down on the additional hoops enforcers have to jump through to bring a case against Big Tech discrimination, so that competition on and against dominant digital platforms will have a fair shot,” said Charlotte Slaiman, Competition Policy Director at Public Knowledge.

“Big Tech corporations have been abusing their monopoly power for years, blatantly self-dealing and rigging marketplaces under the presumption that Congress would fail to stop them. Amid historic polarization in Washington, this bipartisan show of force sends an unmistakable message that the era of impunity is over. This bill takes direct aim at some of the most exploitative tactics Silicon Valley giants have long employed to unfairly entrench their dominance at the expense of consumers and competition. And it demonstrates unequivocally that lawmakers are ready to work across the aisle to take significant action to rein in Big Tech. We thank Senators Klobuchar and Grassley for their bipartisan leadership, and look forward to Congress moving forward on the full suite of aggressive antitrust reforms needed to unwind decades of corporate consolidation that – along with other Big Tech abuses that must separately be addressed – has undermined American democracy,” said Jesse Lehrich, co-founder of Accountable Tech.

“We applaud today’s introduction of the American Innovation and Choice Online Act. We thank Chair Klobuchar and Senator Grassley for the thoughtful crafting of this legislation. If passed into law, the proposal would strengthen and expand the tools at the government's disposal to restore competitiveness in the online market and promote an open and pluralistic web for consumers,” said Luther Lowe, Senior Vice President of Public Policy at Yelp.

“Gatekeeper platforms use their power to distort markets by manufacturing self-serving advantages at the expense of American consumers and competitors.  They offer users fewer, less innovative choices and insulate themselves from competition, which leads to higher prices for consumers. At Spotify, we welcome the bipartisan introduction of the American Innovation and Choice Online Act and thank Senators Klobuchar and Grassley for their steadfast leadership. With both the House and Senate now hard at work to modernize competition law, we look forward to Congress bringing an end to these discriminatory practices for the sake of consumer choice and the digital economy,” said Horacio Gutierrez, Head of Global Affairs and Chief Legal Officer at Spotify.

“Roku supports bipartisan efforts such as the American Innovation and Choice Online Act to modernize our competition laws, promote innovation, and protect consumers in the Digital Age,” said John Kelly, Senior Vice President, Corporate Affairs and Communications at Roku.

"This legislation directly addresses the threats to a competitive and fair marketplace that Senators Klobuchar and Lee identified during their April hearing. We support this bipartisan approach from Senators Klobuchar and Grassley, which establishes important protections that will put a stop to monopolies using their dominant position to charge discriminatory monopoly rents and unfairly control access to customers,” said Mark Buse, Senior Vice President of Global Policy at Match Group.

"When Google and other dominant tech companies self-preference their own products across their platforms, forcing people to use their services by default, it unfairly and purposefully blocks competitors like DuckDuckGo. And in the case of companies like Google and Facebook in particular, not only does this hurt competitors like us, it also significantly damages our society and democracy by pushing people into their surveillance business models. We support the American Innovation and Choice Online Act because it will make clear that self-preferencing behavior like this is illegal as well as allow consumers to actually choose the services they want to use without interference from dominant platforms,” said Gabriel Weinberg, CEO and Founder of DuckDuckGo.

“The Coalition for App Fairness is encouraged that members of Congress in both parties are paying attention to the anti-competitive practices of Apple and other tech gatekeepers,” said Meghan DiMuzio, executive director of Coalition for App Fairness. “We appreciate Senators Klobuchar and Grassley for their leadership and look forward to continuing our work to address the specific concerns of app developers and consumers around the world.”

# # #