Press Releases

WASHINGTON —Today, Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Vice Chairman Mark Warner (D-VA) joined with Senate Armed Services Committee Ranking Member Jack Reed (D-RI), Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Dick Durbin (D-IL), Senate Foreign Relations Committee Ranking Member Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Ranking Defense Appropriator Chris Coons (D-DE), and Ranking State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriator Brian Schatz (D-HI) to release the following statement urging the Trump Administration to press Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu to immediately change course in its war in Gaza:

“Humanitarian conditions in Gaza are appalling and unconscionable. This week, more than 100 NGOs—including Mercy Corps, Doctors Without Borders, Save the Children, and Oxfam—warned of mass starvation spreading across Gaza. Following Prime Minister Netanyahu’s nearly 3-month blockade of humanitarian assistance, three-quarters of the population is facing emergency or catastrophic levels of hunger. 

“The handful of Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) sites are wholly inadequate to meet the needs of this starving population. Widespread problems have made GHF aid delivery chaotic and dangerous, leading to the deaths of an estimated 700 people. Yet the Trump Administration recently approved $30 million for GHF, overriding established procedures and waiving consultation with Congress.  

“While some established humanitarian organizations have been allowed to resume very limited operations, a number of restrictions and security challenges prevent them from fully functioning. To make matters worse, this week’s expansion of Israel’s military operation into central Gaza for the first time in the conflict has put at risk these few remaining operations. Moreover, the UN estimates that nearly 88 percent of Gaza is no longer accessible to civilians, leaving approximately two million people confined to a troublingly small remaining area.    

“Meanwhile, hostages remain in captivity in Gaza, including American citizens, and three out of four Israelis are calling for an end to this war. Last September, the IDF assessed that Hamas had been largely defeated militarily from its peak strength when it heinously attacked Israeli civilians on October 7, 2023 and is now effectively a “guerilla terror group.” As we know from our own experience following the attacks of September 11, 2001, there is no solely military solution to defeating a terrorist group. Continuing this war with no discernable end is not in Israel’s national security interest, and the lack of a viable “day after” plan has been a glaring mistake. 

“We call on the Trump Administration to use its considerable leverage to press Prime Minister Netanyahu to:

  • Reach a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas that releases the hostages as soon as possible.
  • Support a surge in humanitarian assistance that provides both a sufficient amount of humanitarian aid and credible mechanisms for effective distribution, including the verification and monitoring of assistance to ensure equitable distribution and to prevent Hamas from diverting assistance. Established humanitarian organizations like the World Food Programme have the experience and ability to renew their delivery of assistance without civil unrest. We must allow them to do their jobs. 
  • Dramatically reform or shut down the Gaza Humanitarian Fund and resume support for the existing UN-led aid coordination mechanisms in Gaza with enhanced oversight to ensure that humanitarian aid reaches civilians in need.
  • Establish a “day after” plan for Gaza where Hamas does not retain power, Israel disavows annexation of the West Bank and further integrates into the region, a reformed Palestinian Authority is fostered and empowered, and regional partners are included in rebuilding.
  • Create a framework for a viable path back to a two-state solution that will allow the Israeli and Palestinian people to live side by side in security, dignity, and prosperity.”

 

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WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sens. Mark Warner (D-VA) and Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) introduced the bipartisan Recovery of Stolen Checks Act, which would allow American taxpayers who have their paper checks from the U.S. Department of Treasury lost or stolen in the mail to receive their payment by electronic deposit:

“An outdated IRS policy is leaving Tennesseans vulnerable to having their tax refund checks repeatedly lost or stolen in the mail,” said Senator Blackburn. “When those refunds don’t arrive on time, it puts real strain on hardworking families. The Recovery of Stolen Checks Act would allow taxpayers to receive a direct deposit from the Treasury Department rather than another check a criminal could intercept.”

“With check fraud costing taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars, it makes no sense for the federal government to keep reissuing vulnerable paper checks after they have already been stolen or gone missing,” said Senator Warner. “This bipartisan bill offers a smart, secure fix by letting taxpayers opt for direct deposit so they can get their money faster and more safely.” 

The Recovery of Stolen Checks Act is cosponsored by U.S. Senators Rick Scott (R-Fla.), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), Jim Justice (R-W.Va.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.), Jon Husted (R-Ohio), and Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.). 

This legislation passed the U.S. House of Representatives and is sponsored by Representatives David Kustoff (R-Tenn.), Nicole Malliotakis (R-N.Y.), and Terri Sewell (D-Ala.).

BACKGROUND: 

  • Tax refund theft is on the rise, with two postal workers charged in May in connection to a $63 million scheme to steal Internal Revenue Service (IRS) refund checks. 
  • Criminals take stolen IRS refund checks and sell them on the dark web. One investigation found 4,000 to 5,000 stolen checks for sale every month. 
  • The total loss for American taxpayers for stolen mail is hundreds of millions of dollars.
  • Currently, if an IRS refund check is stolen, a taxpayer can only be issued a replacement paper check. This leaves the taxpayer vulnerable to having their refund check stolen again.

THE RECOVERY OF STOLEN CHECKS ACT

  • The Recovery of Stolen Checks Act would require Department of the Treasury to establish a secure, streamlined process that allows eligible taxpayers to receive their replacement refunds electronically via direct deposit, helping reduce the risk of theft, delays, and fraud.

Click here for bill text.

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) and John Thune (R-SD) today reintroduced the Equitable Community Access to Pharmacist Services (ECAPS) Act, bipartisan legislation that would ensure seniors can continue to access important clinical services from their pharmacist. The bill would allow Medicare to reimburse for certain pharmacist-administered tests, treatments, and vaccinations for illnesses like influenza, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and strep throat, in accordance with state scope-of-practice laws. 

“Seniors across South Dakota rely on the care and support they receive from their community pharmacists,” said Thune. “I am proud to lead this commonsense legislation that would allow these services and other important treatments to remain a reliable option for seniors, particularly in our rural communities.” 

“During the pandemic, we saw firsthand how pharmacists stepped up to meet urgent health care needs, especially in underserved and rural communities,” said Warner. “This bill builds on that progress by making sure seniors can continue to count on their local pharmacists for routine tests, vaccines, and treatments for common illnesses like flu and COVID. This is a practical step to improve access to care, reduce the burden on hospitals and clinics, and make our health system work better for seniors.”

“In rural states like South Dakota, pharmacists are often the most accessible – and sometimes the only – health care provider available to patients,” said Amanda Bacon, executive director of the South Dakota Pharmacists Association. “The ECAPS Act recognizes the vital role pharmacists play on the front lines of care, especially in areas where access is limited by geography, provider shortages, or both. The South Dakota Pharmacists Association strongly supports this legislation and the critical role it plays in strengthening our rural health care system. The ECAPS Act helps keep care close to home – and in South Dakota, that makes all the difference.” 

“We applaud Senator Warner and Senator Thune for championing the reintroduction of the ECAPS Act,” said Jamie Fisher, executive director of the Virginia Pharmacy Association. “This bipartisan legislation recognizes what patients across Virginia already know – pharmacists are vital, trusted, and accessible members of the health care team. By ensuring Medicare beneficiaries can receive essential services like flu, COVID-19, RSV, and strep testing and treatment from their local pharmacist, the ECAPS Act will improve health outcomes, particularly in rural and underserved communities where access to care is often limited. We strongly support this effort to expand access and equity in health care.” 

“The Future of Pharmacy Care Coalition commends Senate Majority Leader John Thune and Senator Mark Warner for championing the ECAPS Act to ensure seniors, including those living in rural areas and vulnerable communities, can turn to their local pharmacists for testing and treatment services that can protect them from certain common respiratory conditions,” said the Future of Pharmacy Care Coalition. “Congress must move with urgency to provide seniors with Medicare coverage in states where pharmacists can offer testing and treatment services for conditions that, although common, can quickly become life-threatening if not properly managed.”

 

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WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) issued the following statement after the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs voted to approve updated authorizations for 18 Veterans Affairs (VA) major medical facility leases – the final congressional committee needed to greenlight the leases, including one for a proposed outpatient clinic in Hampton Roads:

“We’re very pleased that all four congressional committees have now approved these much-needed VA leases, including the proposed new outpatient clinic in Hampton Roads. This is a major step forward in expanding access to high-quality, convenient care for the more than 60 percent of Hampton VA Medical Center patients who live on the south side of the region. For years, we’ve pushed to get these kinds of facilities authorized and built, because we refuse to accept a system where veterans are stuck with long wait times or forced to travel hours for basic appointments. With this final vote, we are one step closer to ensuring these long-overdue facilities become a reality.

“Now that the leases have cleared every hurdle in Congress, we’ll be pushing the VA and GSA to award these leases, and make sure these projects get off the ground without delay. Our veterans have waited long enough.” 

While these leases were originally authorized under the PACT Act, which both senators strongly supported, updated cost estimates and rent bids prompted the VA and the General Services Administration (GSA) to seek reauthorization from four congressional committees. With yesterday’s action by the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, the leases have now been reauthorized by all four needed committees: the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs.

Sens. Warner and Kaine have long fought to expand health care and benefits for Virginia’s nearly 700,000 veterans. Sens. Warner and Kaine began raising the alarm about the significant backlog of unapproved VA leases in 2016. After putting significant pressure on officials across the federal government, Congress unanimously passed the Providing Veterans Overdue Care Act, legislation written by Sen. Warner and supported by Sen. Kaine, to cut the backlog and get over two dozen delayed VA medical facilities’ leases approved.

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WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) joined Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) and 27 of their Senate Democratic colleagues in a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Attorney General Pam Bondi calling on the Administration to conduct an independent investigation into the death of Saifullah Kamel Musallet, an American citizen recently killed near the West Bank town of Sinjil. The Senators point to the repeated lack of accountability in the deaths of other American citizens killed in the West Bank since January 2022, including Shireen Abu Akleh, Omar Assad, Tawfic Abdel Jabbar, Mohammad Ahmed Mohammad Khdour, Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, and Amer Mohammad Saada Rabee. Given that, the Senators also ask for an update on the status of any investigations into the killings of these six other Americans.

The Senators wrote, “We write with grave concern regarding the brutal killing of a Palestinian-American, Saifullah Kamel Musallet, near the West Bank town of Sinjil, on July 11, 2025. The U.S. government must conduct a credible and independent investigation into his death and hold all perpetrators accountable. Protecting and supporting U.S. citizens abroad is one of the foremost responsibilities of the U.S. government. The United States Government has failed to secure accountability for the killing of respected Palestinian American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, or any of the other five American citizens – Omar Assad, Tawfic Abdel Jabbar, Mohammad Ahmed Mohammad Khdour, Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, and Amer Mohammad Saada Rabee – killed in the West Bank since January 2022. Following the Trump Administration’s sudden revocation of all U.S. sanctions against extremist settlers in the West Bank, the first five months of 2025 have seen the highest rate of settler attacks in years and the killing of another American. We urge you to pursue a different approach.” 

“Saifullah Kamal Musallet is the seventh American citizen killed in the West Bank since January 2022 — and the fifth in just the last nineteen months. The killings of these Americans in the West Bank have been met by a lack of accountability from the Netanyahu government and an inability to secure justice by the U.S. government. These failures have contributed to an unacceptable culture of impunity when it comes to incidents where civilians have been killed in the West Bank, including Americans,” they continued. 

The Senators noted, “The Netanyahu government has failed to hold anyone accountable for any of these seven killings of Americans and the United States government has failed in its responsibility to protect American citizens overseas and demand justice for their deaths.”  

“It is long past time for the U.S. government to demand accountability in these killings of Americans. To that end, we urge you to immediately launch an independent investigation into the brutal killing of Saifullah Kamel Musallet, including the circumstances that blocked ambulances from reaching him. We also ask that you provide us with an update on the status of any investigations into the killings of the six other Americans who have been killed since January 2022, and provide us with a briefing on actions you are taking to ensure accountability for their deaths and to prevent future killings of Americans in the West Bank,” the Senators closed. 

In addition to Sen. Warner, the letter was signed by Senators Van Hollen, Murray, Kaine, Durbin, Reed, Shaheen, Schatz, Merkley, Sanders, Warren, Cantwell, Welch, Smith, Baldwin, Markey, Warnock, Lujan, Ossoff, Kim, Heinrich, Duckworth, Klobuchar, Whitehouse, Hirono, Booker, Alsobrooks, Blunt Rochester, and Murphy. 

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

Dear Secretary Rubio and Attorney General Bondi, 

We write with grave concern regarding the brutal killing of a Palestinian-American, Saifullah Kamel Musallet, near the West Bank town of Sinjil, on July 11, 2025. The U.S. government must conduct a credible and independent investigation into his death and hold all perpetrators accountable. Protecting and supporting U.S. citizens abroad is one of the foremost responsibilities of the U.S. government. The United States Government has failed to secure accountability for the killing of respected Palestinian American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, or any of the other five American citizens – Omar Assad, Tawfic Abdel Jabbar, Mohammad Ahmed Mohammad Khdour, Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, and Amer Mohammad Saada Rabee – killed in the West Bank since January 2022. Following the Trump Administration’s sudden revocation of all U.S. sanctions against extremist settlers in the West Bank, the first five months of 2025 have seen the highest rate of settler attacks in years and the killing of another American. We urge you to pursue a different approach.

Saifullah Kamal Musallet is the seventh American citizen killed in the West Bank since January 2022 — and the fifth in just the last nineteen months. The killings of these Americans in the West Bank have been met by a lack of accountability from the Netanyahu government and an inability to secure justice by the U.S. government. These failures have contributed to an unacceptable culture of impunity when it comes to incidents where civilians have been killed in the West Bank, including Americans.

Saifullah Kamel Musallet, a 20-year-old U.S. citizen from Florida, was visiting family in the West Bank when he was beaten to death by extremist Israeli settlers during a settler attack on the town of Sinjil. Reports indicate that ambulances could not reach the injured for more than two hours, with eyewitness accounts stating that settlers and Israeli forces impeded ambulance access. In April of this year, a 14-year-old boy from New Jersey, Amer Mohammad Saada Rabee, was also killed in the West Bank. Amer was reportedly shot at the entrance to Turmus Ayya by Israeli security forces. Reports suggest that Amer was shot a total of 11 times and two other Americans were also shot in the incident. 

Last year, three other U.S. citizens were killed in the West Bank, including two teenagers. Tawfic Abdel Jabbar and Mohammad Ahmed Mohammad Khdour were both 17-year-old U.S. citizens visiting their families in the West Bank when they were shot and killed in separate incidents. In both cases they were shot in the head while they were traveling in vehicles. The third U.S. citizen killed in the West Bank last year was Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, a 26-year-old American citizen raised in Seattle who, according to reports, was shot in the head by an Israeli soldier from a distance of 200 meters. 

The Netanyahu government has failed to hold anyone accountable for any of these seven killings of Americans and the United States government has failed in its responsibility to protect American citizens overseas and demand justice for their deaths.

It is long past time for the U.S. government to demand accountability in these killings of Americans. To that end, we urge you to immediately launch an independent investigation into the brutal killing of Saifullah Kamel Musallet, including the circumstances that blocked ambulances from reaching him. We also ask that you provide us with an update on the status of any investigations into the killings of the six other Americans who have been killed since January 2022, and provide us with a briefing on actions you are taking to ensure accountability for their deaths and to prevent future killings of Americans in the West Bank.

We respectfully ask for a response within two weeks.

Sincerely,

 

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WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) joined Senator Edward J. Markey (D-MA) and nine of their Senate colleagues in sending a letter to Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Administrator Bryan Bedford requesting answers on the impact of FAA workforce reductions on aviation safety, including among analytical staff who proactively identify safety risks. The senators also inquired about comments by FAA officials suggesting the agency is using artificial intelligence (AI) to analyze safety data to identify risks.

“The tragic crash of American Airlines flight 5342 highlighted serious gaps in our aviation safety system and demonstrated the need for a robust and experienced analytical workforce at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Unfortunately, over the past six months, your agency has significantly reduced its workforce. We are deeply concerned about these reductions’ impact on aviation safety, the lawmakers wrote.

“The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigation into the crash of American Airlines flight 5342 has demonstrated the need for a robust FAA workforce, beyond the air traffic controllers and other FAA personnel on the front lines of our aviation system. According to the NTSB investigation, more than 15,000 ‘close proximity events’ occurred at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport over the last five years—reflecting a shockingly high trend that the FAA should have identified…It’s critical that this Administration ensures the FAA has the workforce capacity to proactively and properly analyze aviation safety data to prevent another crash like the American Airlines flight 5342 tragedy,” the senators continued.  

“In the aftermath of the crash, the FAA should be analyzing the near miss data from events at Reagan National Airport and reviewing the sufficiency of FAA staffing. Instead, the agency has moved ahead with workforce reductions. In particular, FAA fired hundreds of probationary employees in critical support roles key to assisting air traffic controllers in doing their jobs,” the lawmakers wrote. 

The lawmakers requested the following information by August 11, 2025:

  1. For each FAA line of business and its relevant suboffices, please provide the (a) number of employees employed as of January 1, 2025, (b) number of employees employed as of July 1, 2025, and (c) the current number of job openings. 
  2. For each FAA line of business and its relevant suboffices, please indicate whether any of its job positions are currently subject to a hiring freeze as of January 20, 2025.
  3. Please provide the analysis conducted by the Office of Airports related to the impact of workforce cuts on its safety mission.
  4. Besides the Office of Airports, please explain if any other FAA line of business has conducted an analysis of the impact of workforce cuts on its ability to deliver its mission. If so, please provide those analyses. 
  5. Please explain all relevant FAA lines of business and relevant suboffices charged with identifying aviation safety trends and possible safety risks affecting airport operations in congested airspace. 
  6. What specific AI tools is the FAA using to analyze aviation safety impacts and flight data and how is this improving FAA’s analysis? Does the FAA have adequate staff, familiar with these tools, to manage this analysis and ensure the security of the data used and generated by AI?

In addition to Warner, Kaine, and Markey, the letter was cosigned by Senators Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and Peter Welch (D-VT). 

Warner and Kaine have long championed aviation safety and spoken out against federal workforce reductions at the FAA and other agencies. Following the January 29, 2025 collision between an Army Black Hawk helicopter and American Airlines flight 5342 near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA), Warner and Kaine demanded answers from the FAA on additional safety measures to protect the public and expressed concerns about the impact of the “Department of Government Efficiency” in addressing issues that led to the mid-air collision. The senators also introduced legislation to strengthen aviation safety. Kaine, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, successfully got a provision included in the committee-passed Fiscal Year 2026 National Defense Authorization Act to require that all Department of Defense aircraft that operate near commercial airports be equipped with broadcast positioning technology. Earlier this year, Kaine invited Jason King, a veteran from Fairfax who was fired from his position in the FAA’s safety division, as his guest to the State of the Union address. King was rehired after the State of the Union. 

Full text of the letter is available here and below: 

Dear Administrator Bedford,

The tragic crash of American Airlines flight 5342 highlighted serious gaps in our aviation safety system and demonstrated the need for a robust and experienced analytical workforce at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Unfortunately, over the past six months, your agency has significantly reduced its workforce. We are deeply concerned about these reductions’ impact on aviation safety. We therefore write to request information on changes in the FAA workforce and their impact on aviation safety, including any analyses that the FAA has conducted on the effects of workforce reductions on the agency’s safety mission. 

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigation into the crash of American Airlines flight 5342 has demonstrated the need for a robust FAA workforce, beyond the air traffic controllers and other FAA personnel on the front lines of our aviation system. According to the NTSB investigation, more than 15,000 “close proximity events” occurred at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport over the last five years — reflecting a shockingly high trend that the FAA should have identified. At a Senate Commerce Committee hearing in March, the then-Acting FAA Administrator Chris Rocheleau acknowledged that the agency missed this warning sign, in part because of the sheer volume of data that FAA personnel must analyze. The Acting Administrator’s testimony illustrated the need for an FAA workforce robust and experienced enough to analyze all relevant data and identify safety risks. It’s critical that this Administration ensures the FAA has the workforce capacity to proactively and properly analyze aviation safety data to prevent another crash like the American Airlines flight 5342 tragedy.

Despite this clear need for enhanced analytical capacity, the FAA has instead moved to reduce its workforce during this critical period. In the aftermath of the crash, the FAA should be analyzing the near miss data from events at Reagan National Airport and reviewing the sufficiency of FAA staffing. Instead, the agency has moved ahead with workforce reductions. In particular, FAA fired hundreds of probationary employees in critical support roles key to assisting air traffic controllers in doing their jobs. With the Department of Transportation (DOT) pushing personnel to leave via two rounds of the Deferred Resignation Program — under which employees could elect to resign and receive pay until September 2025 — coupled with the federal hiring freeze, federal officials are leaving their jobs and it may be difficult for the FAA to attract new, qualified employees. Although the DOT assured Senators that key FAA safety staff were exempt from firings and the Deferred Resignation Program, the FAA has still not clarified whether it has the staff it needs to ensure the safety of the American public. Estimates from the DOT suggest that between 1,000 and 3,000 employees may leave the agency once the Deferred Resignation Program offers are finalized. According to an internal presentation to FAA management: “Employees are departing the agency in mass quantities across all skill levels.” Most recently, the Department of Transportation may now be able to move ahead with a large Reduction in Force after the Supreme Court’s recent ruling allowing federal agencies to move forward with staffing cuts consistent with existing federal law. This moment — after a tragic crash highlighted critical gaps in aviation safety — seems like precisely the wrong time for the FAA to aggressively shrink its workforce.

Moreover, the FAA’s recent announcement that it is using artificial intelligence (AI) to analyze its data — without explaining whether such AI tools are reliable or effective — provides little reassurance to the public. While we support the use of technology to improve how aviation safety data is used, the decision to rely on technological fixes while simultaneously moving ahead with staffing reductions is deeply worrisome. The FAA has not been transparent with Congress about the types of technology it is now using, whether those technologies are replacing, augmenting, or otherwise impacting the FAA workforce, or whether it requires human review of AI analyses before using any analysis in a safety-related decision. This reliance on technological fixes — without a transparent analysis of the FAA’s workforce levels and capacity— raises questions about the FAA’s commitment to prioritizing safety.

If the FAA lacks the staff to identify safety risks before future incidents occur, Congress must be informed of this as soon as possible. At a recent Senate Commerce Committee hearing, Senators questioned FAA officials from the Office of Airports, the Office of Aviation Safety, and the Air Traffic Organization about the personnel reductions at their respective offices and whether their offices had conducted any analysis on the impact of these workforce cuts on aviation safety. Only the head of the FAA Office of Airports — which is charged with planning and developing a safe and efficient national airport system — responded that his Office had conducted such an analysis. Senators urged the FAA to turn over that analysis to the Committee, along with data on any workforce reductions, but to date it has not. It is essential that Congress have sufficient information to understand the impact of recent FAA personnel changes on aviation safety.

To better understand the impact of FAA workforce reductions on aviation safety, please provide written responses to the following questions and requests for information by August 11, 2025:

  1. For each FAA line of business and its relevant suboffices, please provide the (a) number of employees employed as of January 1, 2025, (b) number of employees employed as of July 1, 2025, and (c) the current number of job openings.
  2. For each FAA line of business and its relevant suboffices, please indicate whether any of its job positions are currently subject to a hiring freeze as of January 20, 2025.
  3. Please provide the analysis conducted by the Office of Airports related to the impact of workforce cuts on its safety mission.
  4. Besides the Office of Airports, please explain if any other FAA line of business has conducted an analysis of the impact of workforce cuts on its ability to deliver its mission. If so, please provide those analyses.
  5. Please explain all relevant FAA lines of business and relevant suboffices charged with identifying aviation safety trends and possible safety risks affecting airport operations in congested airspace.
  6. What specific AI tools is the FAA using to analyze aviation safety impacts and flight data and how is this improving FAA’s analysis?
    1. Does the FAA have adequate staff, familiar with these tools, to manage this analysis and ensure the security of the data used and generated by AI?
    2. How were these AI tools selected? Please describe the specific testing or evaluation conducted in advance of the implementation of the tools and provide a copy of any reports or conclusions produced. If no testing or evaluation occurred, please explain why not.

Thank you in advance for your attention to this matter. 

Sincerely,

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WASHINGTON – Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Vice Chairman Mark R. Warner (D-VA) issued the following statement on DNI Gabbard’s release of a partisan report prepared by Republicans on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence regarding Russia’s intervention in the 2016 presidential election:

“It seems as though the Trump administration is willing to declassify anything and everything except the Epstein files. The desperate and irresponsible release of the partisan House intelligence report puts at risk some of the most sensitive sources and methods our Intelligence Community uses to spy on Russia and keep Americans safe. And in doing so, Director Gabbard is sending a chilling message to our allies and assets around the world: the United States can no longer be trusted to protect the intelligence you share with us.

“Let’s be clear: the bipartisan, unanimous finding of the Senate Intelligence Committee, after years of painstaking investigation, more than 200 witness interviews, and millions of documents, was that Russia launched a large-scale influence campaign in the 2016 election in order to help then-candidate Donald Trump. Nothing in this partisan, previously scuttled document changes that. Releasing this so-called report is just another reckless act by a Director of National Intelligence so desperate to please Donald Trump that she is willing to risk classified sources, betray our allies, and politicize the very intelligence she has been entrusted to protect.

“The American people are right to continue asking: What are they trying to hide?"

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WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) along with his colleagues Sens. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) and Richard Blumental (D-CT) led their colleagues in demanding answers from Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian after the company announced that it plans to ramp up its use of Artificial Intelligence to set surveillance-based ticket prices.

“Individualized pricing, or surveillance-based price setting, eliminates a fixed or static price in favor of prices that are tailored to an individual consumer’s willingness to pay. Delta’s current and planned individualized pricing practices not only present data privacy concerns, but will also likely mean fare price increases up to each individual consumer’s personal “pain point” at a time when American families are already struggling with rising costs,” wrote the senators. “The technology making that determination is trained using “all the data we can get our hands on” according to Fetcherr CEO Roy Cohen, and the company’s website claims that AI adoption and usage could increase aviation industry profits by up to $4.4 trillion annually.”

“The implications for individual consumer privacy are severe on their own. Surveillance pricing has been shown to utilize extensive personal information obtained through a variety of thirdparty channels, including data about a passenger’s purchase history, web browsing behavior, geolocation, social media activity, biometric data, and financial status,” they continued. “Former FTC Chair Lina Khan has cautioned against a particularly egregious but conceivable example of an airline using AI to charge a higher fare to a passenger ‘because the company knows that they just had a death in the family and need to fly across the country.’” 

In the letter, the senators demanded answers on the company’s plans to protect Americans from pricing discrimination. They also requested answers to a series of questions around the types and sources of data Delta will use to train this AI system, how many passengers and which routes will be impacted, and what steps the company has taken to ensure compliance will follow all applicable federal and state laws.

The full text of the letter is available here.

 

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WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) released the following statement regarding the official score from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) that President Trump and Republicans’ megabill will add $3.4 trillion to the budget deficit through 2034, before accounting for added interest costs. Including additional interest, the bill will increase borrowing by $4.1 trillion: 

“The official CBO score on President Trump and Republicans’ ‘Big, Ugly Bill,’ which comes weeks after the law's passage because Republicans fast-tracked it, confirms what we’ve been saying all along: when push comes to shove, Republicans will always do whatever it takes to give tax breaks to the ultra-wealthy. We wish they could bring that same determination to lowering the deficit and helping working- and middle-class families. Today’s news is further proof that the partisan megabill remains a bad deal for Americans—exploding the debt, forcing millions off their health insurance, slashing food assistance programs, and killing jobs. We will keep working to safeguard Virginians from the disastrous impacts this law will have for Virginia and the country.”

The Republican law, which Warner and Kaine strongly opposed, makes massive cuts to health care, nutrition assistance, and other critical programs that Virginians rely on in order to cut taxes for the ultra-wealthy. While the bill was being considered in the Senate, Warner and Kaine introduced a series of amendments in an attempt to improve the legislation, but Republicans blocked them. Under the Republican bill, hundreds of thousands of Virginians will lose health insurance because of cuts to Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act, and many rural hospitals will lose federal funding from Medicaid, putting them at risk of closure.

78,000 Virginians will lose access to some benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and Virginia will be required to contribute an estimated $263 million annually in state cost-share for benefits, which have always been fully federally funded. The law jeopardizes clean energy jobs in Virginia by phasing out clean energy and energy efficiency tax credits and incentives that were passed in the Inflation Reduction Act. The law gives the top 0.1% a $250,000 tax cut and makes it harder for students to access student loans. The legislation also includes $85 million to move the Space Shuttle Discovery from the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia to Houston, Texas; the full cost to move the space shuttle is estimated to be $300 million to $400 million.

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WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner D-Va. and Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron Wyden, D-Ore. called for the Trump administration to share its plan to prevent cyberattacks on rural hospitals following the largest health care cuts in American history in the Republican budget bill. 

“Trumpcare will harm the cybersecurity resiliency of rural and small hospitals just as this Administration has chosen to gut cybersecurity operations at HHS,” Wyden and Warner wrote. “As rural and small hospitals confront even lower operating margins due to Republican health care cuts, they will be less likely to prioritize spending on cybersecurity infrastructure. The lack of federal oversight and resources, coupled with historic cuts to Medicaid and the ACA, only serve to increase rural and small hospitals’ cybersecurity vulnerabilities.” 

The letter, sent to Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Mehmet Oz, calls on the Administration to share its plans to help small and rural hospitals meet federal cybersecurity standards, as well as its plan to use the so-called “rural health transformation program” to fund cybersecurity improvements - a fund that is dwarfed by more than $1 trillion in cuts to Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act (ACA)  under Trumpcare. 

Hospitals, particularly smaller facilities and those in rural areas, are a prime target for cyber criminals. Hospitals are also very likely to pay a ransom in order to maintain the continuity of health care given the lack of nearby providers, especially emergency services and procedures, and their top priority is protecting the health and well-being of patients they serve.

Last year, Wyden and Warner introduced legislation to strengthen federal cybersecurity standards across the health care system. Independent analysis has confirmed that over 330 rural hospitals are at risk of deep financial hardship or even closure due to Trumpcare’s cuts to Medicaid, forcing facilities into impossible choices to stay open and continue serving their community.

The full letter is here.

A web version of this release is here.

WASHINGTON – Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Vice Chairman Mark R. Warner (D-VA) issued the following statement on DNI Gabbard’s unfounded claims of a coup: 

“It seems DNI Gabbard is unaware that the years-long Russia investigation carried out by the Senate Intelligence Committee reaffirmed that ‘the Russian government directed extensive activity against U.S. election infrastructure’ ahead of the 2016 election, and that it ‘used social media to conduct an information warfare campaign’ in order to benefit Donald Trump. This conclusion was supported on a unanimous basis by every single Democrat and Republican on the committee. 

“It is sadly not surprising that DNI Gabbard, who promised to depoliticize the intelligence community, is once again weaponizing her position to amplify the president’s election conspiracy theories. It is appalling to hear DNI Gabbard accuse her own IC workforce of committing a ‘treasonous conspiracy’ when she was unwilling to label Edward Snowden a traitor. 

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WASHINGTON — Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) released the following statement after Senate Republicans voted to rescind federal funding for public broadcasting and national security programs, which had previously been appropriated by a bipartisan majority in Congress:

“It’s outrageous that enough Republicans caved to President Trump and OMB Director Vought’s pressure to go back on appropriations deals that a bipartisan majority of Congress had previously agreed to. A deal should be a deal. These cuts to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the State Department, and USAID will make it harder for communities to access critical emergency alerts during disasters, and create more instability around the world by defunding initiatives that protect our national security. Republican efforts to defund faith-based charity organizations are particularly sickening. The Trump Administration and our Republican colleagues are not going to stop here, and we urge every American to continue to speak out against these attacks on the interests of the American people. We will continue to fight against further efforts by the Administration and Republicans to defund critical programs that Virginians rely on.”

The Republican rescissions package cancels funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, including $100 million for Virginia. The Corporation for Public Broadcasting was authorized by Congress in 1967 and supports more than 1,500 locally owned public radio and TV stations, nearly half of which serve rural communities. It also cancels funding for the State Department and United States Agency for International Development (USAID), including for global health programs, faith-based organizations, Afghan refugee programs, United Nations peacekeeping operations, the U.S. Institute for Peace, the Inter-American Foundation, and the African Development Foundation. The legislation will impact thousands of Virginia’s federal employees and contractors. A recent study found that if the current cuts to USAID continue through 2030, 14 million people could die.

Sens. Warner and Kaine filed a series of amendments in an attempt to improve the legislation, but none of them were added to the final legislation.

Sen. Warner’s amendment would have reduced cuts to assistance for African nations and helped strengthen trade, counter the malign influence of adversaries, and pursue economic development. The amendment would have helped ensure that China could not capitalize on the sudden vacuum of influence that will ensue if America withdraws its economic development initiatives on the continent.

Sen. Kaine’s amendments included eliminating cuts in funding for the Migration and Refugee Assistance and International Disaster Assistance programs, including funding for faith-based organizations; protecting funding for USAID and the Inter-American Foundation; preserving funding to defend against cyberattacks by Russia and Iran and keep fentanyl out of the United States; and eliminating cuts in funding for CPB for pre-K educational programming and any broadcasts and media stations that disseminate information during natural disasters and national emergencies.

    

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WASHINGTON — Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, slammed the Republican rescissions package that cancels $8.3 billion in federal funding previously appropriated by a bipartisan majority in Congress for national security programs:

“If Republicans move forward with these massive cuts to the State Department, USAID, and other key agencies and programs, the world will become more unpredictable and unstable, which puts Americans at risk. Experts estimate that 14 million people will die, humanitarian crises will worsen, horrific diseases will spread, our Afghan partners will be faced with increased uncertainty about their futures, and China will become even more emboldened as Beijing continues to fill the leadership void left by the U.S.’s retreat. Destroying USAID and canceling critical U.S. national security programs, without any coherent strategy or rationale for doing so, sets us back when it comes to addressing the many national security challenges that we are facing. Any of our colleagues who care about the security of our great nation should vote against this rescissions package.”

The U.S. Constitution grants Congress the authority to approve and appropriate federal dollars. While a sitting president can propose the cancelation of appropriated funding, only Congress has the authority to revoke it, and must do so by passing a rescissions bill. The Republican rescissions package will be voted on in the Senate this week.

The legislation cuts previously appropriated State Department and USAID funding, including for global health programs that keep Americans safe from diseases and faith-based organizations that do essential work in the U.S. and abroad. It also eliminates funding for Afghan refugee programs, United Nations peacekeeping operations, the U.S. Institute for Peace, the Inter-American Foundation, and the African Development Foundation. These cuts will impact thousands of Virginia’s federal employees and contractors who carry out important refugee and development work. A recent study found that if the current cuts to USAID continue through 2030, 14 million people could die.

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WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) reintroduced legislation to create a tax credit that will incentivize the capture and repurposing of methane emissions from active and abandoned mines. Methane is a greenhouse gas that is 28 times more potent than carbon dioxide, and coal mines are the country’s fifth-largest source of methane emissions. Leveraging methane capture technology would not only prevent harmful emissions from entering our atmosphere, but also allow the gas to be converted or reused for productive use, providing an additional supply of lower-emission energy that has numerous industrial and commercial applications.

“This legislation takes a critical step in boosting Virginia’s efforts to address the harmful impact of methane when emitted into the atmosphere while simultaneously creating good-paying jobs and supporting economic growth,” said Sen. Warner. “By incentivizing the reduction of methane emissions, we’re not only protecting the environment but also strengthening our energy independence, I’m proud to reintroduce this legislation.”

“I’m proud to help reintroduce the Methane Reduction and Economic Growth Act, which will help capture and utilize mine methane emissions as a fuel source from coal mines. This legislation will result in positive environmental and economic impacts, and create another step for West Virginia to continue to lead the nation in an ‘all-of-the-above’ energy approach,” Sen. Capito said.

The Methane Reduction and Economic Growth Act would amend Section 45Q of the Internal Revenue Code – which houses an existing tax credit for carbon capture and sequestration – to create a Mine Methane Capture Incentive Credit. The new credit would be attributed to taxpayers based on the amount of qualified methane that is captured and injected into a pipeline or is otherwise used for producing heat or energy. Qualified methane includes methane which:

  • Is captured from mining activities, including underground mines, abandoned or closed mines, or surface mines;
  • Would otherwise be released into the atmosphere as industrial greenhouse gas emission; and
  • Is measured at the source of capture and verified at the point of injection or utilization.

Sen. Warner has been a leader on efforts to clean up and reclaim abandoned mine lands (AML) in Virginia, including by securing funding for this process through the bipartisan infrastructure law he helped to negotiate. Companion legislation has been introduced in the House of Representatives by U.S. Reps. Carol Miller (R-WV) and Terri Sewell (D-AL), along with Reps. Morgan Griffith (R-VA), Chris Deluzio (D-PA), Guy Reschenthaler (R-PA), and Darin LaHood (R-IL).

“Finding ways to incentivize the capture of mine methane will have a positive impact here in Virginia,” Jonathan Belcher, Executive Director of the Virginia Coalfield Economic Development Authority, said. “Encouraging beneficial use of methane, which would otherwise be wasted and emitted into the atmosphere, stimulates our economy by creating jobs in our local communities and improves our tax base, while reducing emissions both at a local and global level. Captured methane can be sold into existing marketplaces to help drive down costs for consumers and can be used as both a fuel source and a manufacturing feedstock, which will assist our existing industry and encourage new economic development in the region. We applaud Senator Warner for his leadership on this issue and his focus on the economic health of Southwest Virginia.”

“This is a perfect example of how Washington ought to work,” said Cecil Roberts, International President of the United Mine Workers of America. “This is strong bi-partisan legislation that will grow coalfield jobs, support coalfield communities and help reduce methane emissions. It is a win-win for workers and communities in Virginia and across Appalachia and I thank Senators Warner and Capito for taking the lead. The UMWA wholeheartedly supports this legislation and will work to secure its passage.” 

A copy of the bill text can be found here.

 

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WASHINGTON – Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AK), and Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Chairman and Vice Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, today released the following statements after the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence passed the Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026 (IAA) today on a bipartisan 15-2 vote. The bill authorizes funding, provides legal authorities, and enhances oversight of national security threats and our United States Intelligence Community.

“This bipartisan bill provides the Intelligence Community the resources it needs to do its mission while ensuring that we maintain rigorous oversight of the IC’s activities. This year’s IAA responds to important concerns, including by enhancing protections for whistleblowers, and also safeguards our Nation’s critical infrastructure in the wake of the Salt Typhoon compromises.  At the same time, it readies the IC for the future by promoting IC energy resiliency through the deployment of nuclear technologies and enhancing the IC’s ability to detect and counter threats relating to biotechnologies and bioweapons,” said Sen. Warner. 

“I’d like to thank my colleagues for their tireless work on this bill that will go a long way towards keeping America safer and making the intelligence agencies charged with doing so more transparent and efficient. I am pleased this bill includes needed reforms and restructuring to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, restricts the travel of adversarial diplomats inside the United States, and protects Intelligence Community installations by adding further reviews to nearby land purchases which safeguards them against drone threats. This bill passed out of committee on a bipartisan basis and I hope my colleagues will support its passage by the full Senate,” said Sen. Cotton.

The Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026 will:

  • Significantly reform and improve efficiencies and effectiveness within the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and the broader Intelligence Community;
  • Require that visas be denied to certain nationals applying to work at the United Nations if they are known or suspected of being foreign intelligence officers or committing intelligence or espionage activities;
  • Prohibit the Intelligence Community from contracting with Chinese military companies engaged in biotechnology research, development, or manufacturing;
  • Codify tour and travel restrictions for Chinese, Russian Iranian and North Korean diplomats in the United States;
  • Improve the Intelligence Community’s artificial intelligence capabilities and capacity and establish guidelines for the IC’s procurement and use of artificial intelligence;
  • Shores up counter-intelligence risks posed by Salt Typhoon compromises of U.S. telecommunications infrastructure by leveraging IC procurement power;
  • Strengthen the security of telecommunications networks by establish baseline cybersecurity requirements for vendors of telecommunications services to the IC;
  • Establish authorities for protecting Central Intelligence Agency facilities from unmanned aircraft systems;
  • Require the Intelligence Community to develop a policy for sharing biotechnological threats with U.S. agencies, allies, and private-sector partners, including on PRC efforts to acquire genomic data;
  • Require the Director of National Intelligence to identify sites for deployment of advanced nuclear technologies;
  • Establish a fund to support IC efforts to acquire and integrate emerging technologies proven to meet mission needs;
  • Prohibit Intelligence Community contractors from collecting or selling Intelligence Community personnel location data;
  • Support the Intelligence Community workforce by requiring the Director of National Intelligence to issue standard guidelines for Intelligence Community personnel to document and report Anomalous Health Incidents; 
  • Enhance protections for, and congressional oversight of, Intelligence Community whistleblowers;
  • Require the Director of National Intelligence to enhance efforts to counter narcotics trafficking with the Government of Mexico;
  • Promote transparency by requiring the Director of National Intelligence to conduct a declassification review and publish intelligence relating to the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic;
  • Streamline the construction of Intelligence Community facilities;
  • Amend the Spectrum Relocation Fund authorization to clarify eligibility for Title 50 agencies that utilize spectrum and whose usage could be impacted by future reallocation decisions;
  • Protect Americans’ privacy by statutorily requiring procedures governing the dissemination of U.S. identities and corresponding reporting requirements, as well as prohibits the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Intelligence and Analysis from collecting intelligence on Americans; and
  • Provide additional reviews for foreign purchases of land near IC facilities.

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WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) slammed efforts by congressional Republicans to defund public media and revoke more than $1.07 billion in previously-appropriated funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, including $100 million for Virginia. This move would cut federal support for more than 1,500 public radio and TV stations, nearly half of which serve rural communities.

“In yet another shortsighted effort, President Trump is now trying to gut public radio and broadcast TV news, which deliver impartial news, critical information, and educational programming to communities all across the country. As former governors, we are deeply disturbed by these efforts because we know that public media is often the only source of local news available to rural communities. We also know that public radio plays a key role in public safety, delivering emergency alerts during disasters like floods, hurricanes, and wildfires,” said the senators. “While our Republican colleagues in the House may be comfortable ceding their constitutionally-established authority over to a power-hungry president, we plan to fight this backwards legislation and protect the funding that was approved by both Democrats and Republicans in Congress.”

Since 2013, public TV stations have helped the Wireless Emergency Alert (WEA) system deliver emergency alerts to people’s cell phones via the stations’ own transmitters when cell companies’ connections fail. In 2024, over 11,000 alerts were issued by federal, state, and local authorities via the PBS WARN system. Similarly, the Public Radio Satellite System (PRSS), which is managed by NPR, helps send presidential emergency alerts to local public radio stations nationwide—allowing critical communications to reach people, even when the internet or cellular connections fail.

The U.S. Constitution grants Congress the authority to approve and appropriate federal dollars. While a sitting president can propose the cancelation of appropriated funding, only Congress has the authority to revoke it, and must do so by passing a rescissions bill. The rescissions package being championed by Republicans comes in response to President Trump’s demand that Congress cancel $9.4 billion in federal funding, including $1.07 billion in funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which was authorized by Congress in 1967 in order to ensure universal access to non-commercial, high-quality content and telecommunications services. The Corporation for Public Broadcasting delivers funding to more than 1,500 locally owned public radio and TV stations and serves as the largest single source of funding for public radio, television, and related online and mobile services.

The legislation, passed by the House of Representatives earlier this month, is now under consideration by the Senate.

 

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WASHINGTON – Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Vice Chairman Mark R. Warner (D-VA) today released the following statement after Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard addressed the Turning Point USA political summit:

“What we have here is a Director of National Intelligence willing to break decades of precedent to attack her own workforce and weaponize American intelligence at a political rally. 

“Director Gabbard is unable to adhere to her oath. Her claims that she cares about depoliticizing intelligence are incompatible with reality. When will my Republican colleagues, who claim to care about national security, finally speak up? Our intelligence community deserves better.”

 

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 WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) announced $15,553,713 in federal funding to support infrastructure improvements at six airports across Virginia. This funding comes through the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Aviation Administration Airport Infrastructure Grant program, made possible by the bipartisan infrastructure law.

“Investing in our airports is a crucial component of strengthening Virginia’s economy and keeping travelers safe,” the senators said. “We’re proud to support this funding and will keep working to foster growth and convenient transportation in the Commonwealth.” 

The funding is broken down as follows:

  • $11,499,942 to the Capital Region Airport Commission to reconstruct the existing 15,000-square-foot aircraft rescue and firefighting building Richmond International Airport;
  • $1,216,000 to the Emporia-Greensville Airport Commission to rehabilitate 2,650 feet of taxiway, construct 1,550 feet of new taxiway, and rehabilitate 9,000 square yards of existing apron at Emporia-Greensville Regional Airport;
  • $1,035,500 to the Town of Leesburg to reconstruct 5,500 feet of existing pavement parallel to a taxiway that has reached the end of its useful life at Leesburg Executive Airport;
  • $1,019,868 to the City of Manassas to rehabilitate 6,200 feet of runway at Manassas Regional Airport;
  • $748,488 to the Shenandoah Valley Regional Airport Commission to acquire 14 acres of land and an easement for 80 acres to protect runway approaches at Shenandoah Valley Regional Airport;
  • $33,915 to the Cumberlands Airport Commission to remove trees identified as obstructions by the Federal Aviation Administration at Lonesome Pine Airport.

Sens. Warner and Kaine have long supported efforts to improve Virginia’s airports. Sens. Warner and Kaine have secured millions in federal funding for airports across Virginia through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. This week the senators have already announced over $21 million in funding for Virginia airports, building on the $5 million in federal funding announced earlier this month and the $12 million for improvements to Virginia’s airports announced in January of this year. In October 2024, they announced nearly $57 million in federal funding for revitalizations efforts, and in September 2024, they announced more than $46 million in federal funding for improvements to Virginia airports through the Airport Improvement Program. The senators have previously announced $104.6 million in combined federal funding for the new terminal building at Dulles.

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WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) announced $21,254,275 in federal funding to support infrastructure improvements at ten airports across Virginia. This funding comes through the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Aviation Administration Airport Infrastructure Grant program, made possible by the bipartisan infrastructure law.

“We are thrilled to announce this funding for Virginia’s airports,” the senators said. “This investment is a major win for Virginia’s travelers and communities and will help to ensure our airports are safer, more efficient, and ready to meet growing demand in the years to come.” 

The funding is broken down as follows:

  • $6,000,000 to the Peninsula Airport Commission to reconstruct 6,500 feet of existing paved taxiways at Newport News-Williamsburg Airport;
  • $5,927,653 to the Roanoke Regional Airport Commission through grants to rehabilitate existing runway and taxiway at Roanoke-Blacksburg Airport;
  • $4,000,000 to the Capital Region Airport Commission for the Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting (ARFF) station at Richmond International Airport;
  • $1,699,218 to the Charlottesville-Albemarle Airport Authority to upgrade and replace existing security equipment at Charlottesville-Albemarle Airport;
  • $1,229,342 to the City of Lynchburg to rehabilitate runway at Lynchburg Regional Airport;
  • $750,000 to the Orange County Board of Supervisors to construct a new hangar for aircraft storage at Orange County Airport;
  • $600,000 to the County of Halifax to reconstruct runway lighting at William M. Tuck Airport;
  • $164,000 to the Dinwiddie County Airport and Industrial Authority to expand the terminal apron to allow for a wider variety of aircrafts at Dinwiddie County Airport;
  • $107,112 to the County of New Kent to remove trees obstructing operations at New Kent County Airport;
  • $76,950 to the Tazewell County Airport Authority to remove trees obstructing operations at Tazewell County Airport; and
  • $700,000 to the Commonwealth of Virginia to update Virginia’s existing airport system plan.

Sens. Warner and Kaine have long supported efforts to improve Virginia’s airports. Sens. Warner and Kaine have secured millions in federal funding for airports across Virginia through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Last month, the senators announced over $5 million in federal funding, building on more than $12 million for improvements to Virginia’s airports announced in January of this year. In October 2024, they announced nearly $57 million in federal funding for revitalizations efforts, and in September 2024, they announced more than $46 million in federal funding for improvements to Virginia airports through the Airport Improvement Program. The senators have previously announced $104.6 million in combined federal funding for the new terminal building at Dulles. 

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WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) issued the following statement after the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works voted to approve updated authorizations for 18 Veterans Affairs (VA) major medical facility leases, including a proposed lease for an outpatient clinic in Hampton Roads:

“We are very encouraged to see the Senate EPW Committee heed our request to quickly reauthorize 18 VA medical facility leases, including one for a new outpatient clinic in Hampton Roads. This facility would fill a critical gap, providing broader access and more convenient services for veterans on the south side of the region, who currently represent over 60 percent of the Hampton VA Medical Center's patient base. We will continue to press our colleagues in the House of Representatives to finalize the reauthorization process and ensure that our nation’s veterans are not forced to endure unacceptable wait times or travel burdensome distances to access the high-quality care they have earned through their sacrifice and dedication.”

While these leases were originally authorized under the PACT Act, which both senators strongly supported, updated cost estimates and rent bids prompted the VA and the General Services Administration (GSA) to seek reauthorization from four congressional committees. To date, the leases have been reapproved by the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs, and the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. One final approval, from the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs, remains.

Sens. Warner and Kaine have long fought to expand health care and benefits for Virginia’s nearly 700,000 veterans. Sens. Warner and Kaine began raising the alarm about the significant backlog of unapproved VA leases in 2016. After putting significant pressure on officials across the federal government, Congress unanimously passed the Providing Veterans Overdue Care Act, legislation written by Sen. Warner and supported by Sen. Kaine, to cut the backlog and get over two dozen delayed VA medical facilities’ leases approved.

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WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) issued the following statement as President Trump signs into law the GOP’s partisan budget megabill:

“Donald Trump and congressional Republicans have made it clear that they are willing to sell out millions of Americans in order to give tax breaks to the ultra-wealthy. This legislation is cruel and reckless – tearing health care away from millions of Americans, slashing critical assistance programs, killing jobs, and exploding our debt. Virginians deserve better, especially on a day that is meant to be about celebrating the promise of America and freedom from tyranny.”

Sens. Warner and Kaine introduced a series of amendments in an attempt to improve the legislation. Republicans blocked them.

The senators have been sounding the alarm about the effects of the GOP plan on Virginia families, noting that the GOP plan will strip health insurance from about 323,000 Virginianssaddle families with medical debtcut SNAP benefits for more than 204,000 Virginians, and devastate rural communities. The legislation will also explode the deficitjeopardize more than 20,000 Virginia jobsraise energy costsgive the richest 0.1% a $255,125 tax cut, and eliminate a program allowing Americans file federal taxes for free.

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WASHINGTON —Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) slammed the U.S. House of Representatives’ passage of President Donald Trump and congressional Republicans’ partisan budget megabill:

“With today’s vote, Donald Trump and congressional Republicans are one step closer to passing their bill to explode the debt and kill tens of thousands of jobs and rip health care and nutrition assistance away from hundreds of thousands of people in Virginia alone. Our constituents deserve better than a Congress and President willing to sell out America’s well-being and future to give the ultra-wealthy a tax handout. The consequences of this legislation will be stark—and Americans will know who is to blame.”

Sens. Warner and Kaine introduced a series of amendments in an attempt to improve the legislation. Republicans blocked them.

The senators have been sounding the alarm about the effects of the GOP plan on Virginia families, noting that the GOP plan will strip health insurance from about 323,000 Virginianssaddle families with medical debtcut SNAP benefits for more than 204,000 Virginians, and devastate rural communities. The legislation will also explode the deficitjeopardize more than 20,000 Virginia jobsraise energy costsgive the richest 0.1% a $255,125 tax cut, and eliminate a program allowing Americans file federal taxes for free.

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WASHINGTON —Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, released the following statement after the Trump Administration missed a key deadline to distribute $6.2 billion in federal K-12 funding, including $108 million for Virginia schools, to support teacher training, after school programming, mental health resources, and more:

“Virginians know that high-quality public schools and the well-being of our children are critical to the Commonwealth’s future and economic success. The Trump Administration’s decision to withhold over $6 billion in funding that Congress appropriated for schools across the country, while pushing for a disastrous megabill that slashes programs Virginians rely on to fund tax breaks for the ultra-wealthy, tells you everything you need to know about their priorities. This move will devastate our students, especially those in our rural communities. We demand that the Administration immediately provide Virginia schools with the $108 million in funding we voted to secure, and urge all of Virginia’s leaders to do the same.”

The $108 million being withheld from Virginia represents over 12 percent of the Commonwealth’s total K-12 funding.

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WASHINGTON—Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) released the following statement after they voted no on the Republican budget megabill:

“Today, Republicans jammed through a partisan megabill that slashes Medicaid, nutrition assistance, and other critical programs that Americans rely on in order to pay for massive tax breaks to the very rich. It’s clear that the Trump Administration and congressional Republicans are only interested in helping the wealthiest—even if it means ripping off working- and middle-class people, killing jobs, and hurting our economy. Americans deserve better than this. We are committed to doing everything we can to ensure all Virginians have the support they need in the wake of this disastrous legislation.”

Sens. Warner and Kaine introduced a series of amendments in an attempt to improve the bill. Republicans blocked them.

The senators have been sounding the alarm about the effects of the GOP plan on Virginia families, noting that the GOP bill would strip health insurance from about 323,000 Virginianssaddle families with medical debt, cut SNAP benefits for more than 204,000 Virginians, and devastate rural communities. The bill would also explode the deficit, jeopardize more than 20,000 Virginia jobs, raise energy costs, give the richest 0.1% a $255,125 tax cut, and eliminate a program allowing Americans to file federal taxes for free.

    

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WASHINGTON – U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner, Vice Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) issued the following statement:

“Moving the FBI from the Hoover Building to the Reagan Building isn’t a plan, it’s a punt. For years, Democratic and Republican administrations alike have agreed on the need for a secure, purpose-built headquarters that actually meets the FBI’s mission needs. This announcement brushes aside years of careful planning, ignores the recommendations of security and mission experts, and raises serious concerns about how this decision was made. Unfortunately, it fits a broader pattern from this administration — one marked by indiscriminate firings, canceled leases, and a general disregard for the federal workforce.

“The law enforcement and intelligence professionals of the FBI deserve more than a hasty, improvised approach. They deserve a facility that matches the gravity of their work to keep Americans safe.”

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