Press Releases

Metro Responds to Sen. Warner, Pledging to Update Emergency Communications Safety Protocols Following Fatal Accident at L'Enfant Plaza Station

At Warner’s request, Metro board promises to ensure that Metro and local public safety agencies regularly test communications systems to ensure interoperability

Feb 03 2015

In response to a request from U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments and the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Agency, the board which governs the Metro transit system, pledged to implement a system for testing of Metro and regional emergency radio systems.

Warner and Kaine Call for Action in Response to Abusive Debt Collection Practices Against Servicemembers

Report alleges that some retailers are bringing suit against servicemembers without opportunity to defend themselves

Aug 06 2014

Senators Warner and Kaine wrote letters to Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Richard Cordray, and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chairwoman Edith Ramirez calling their attention to recent reports published in ProPublica and the Washington Post that detail abusive debt collection practices against servicemembers undertaken by a Virginia-based retailer.

Sen. Warner Raises Questions About Facebook Experiment to Influence Users' Emotions

~ Facebook data scientists manipulated content of nearly 700K users to study emotional response ~

Jul 09 2014

Senator Warner asked privacy and consumer protection experts at the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to provide more information on recent reports that the social network Facebook conducted an experiment involving nearly 700,000 users to study the emotional impact of manipulating information on their News Feeds.
The Senate Select Committee on Intelligence today passed the bipartisan Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act of 2014 by a vote of 12-3. The bill includes an amendment by Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) that would require the Intelligence Community to produce a comprehensive accounting of the threat from cyberattacks and cybercrime.

Bipartisan Group of Nine Senators Urges V-A to Accept Free Private Sector Help to Fix VA

~ In letter to President Obama, Senators urge top-level private sector review of V-A systems ~

Jun 05 2014

WASHINGTON – A bipartisan group of nine U.S. Senators called on the Obama Administration today to accept private sector assistance in fixing the broken Department of Veterans Affairs (V-A) scheduling system.  In a letter, Sens. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Mike Johanns (R-NE), Patty Murray (D-WA), Richard Burr (R-NC), Al Franken (D-MN), Marco Rubio (R-FL), Joe Donnelly (D-IN), Saxby Chambliss (R-GA), and Michael Bennet (D-CO), urged the V-A to follow the example of the Army, which in 2010 allowed a consortium of leading technology companies to provide expertise in designing a corrective plan, at no cost to the taxpayers, to fix widespread data management issues uncovered at the Army’s Arlington National Cemetery.

“Because of the immediacy of the many challenges at the VA, we urge you to work with us to implement a similar cost-effective, private sector initiative so we can begin restoring the trust of our veterans and the American public in the ability of the VA to meet the commitments our nation has made to our veterans.  Our military men and women, their families, and our veterans deserve nothing less.”

“Engaging the tech sector and the best minds from leading American IT firms produced a comprehensive business plan to help the Army modernize its workflow procedures and upgrade the data management systems at Arlington.  That effort, conducted at no cost to the taxpayers, represented the very best traditions of corporate citizenship,” the senators wrote.

Full text of the letter is below, and a PDF of the signed letter can be accessed here.

Sens. Warner & Kaine Urge FCC to Consider Rural Virginia in Efforts to Expand Broadband

~ Send Letter to FCC Supporting Rural Experiments ~

May 01 2014

“Access to broadband is no longer a luxury and the current divide between urban and rural area access to modern communication is unacceptable,” the Senators said. “We need to continue to enhance efforts to make sure every Virginian has affordable access to broadband.”

Sen. Warner, in Richmond, Announces Retailers To Share Data on Cyber Threats

~ Senator Warner called for move in wake of Target data breach to strengthen consumer protections ~

Apr 15 2014

Sen. Warner announced that the National Retail Federation will establish an information sharing platform to allow the retail industry to coordinate with law enforcement agencies and partners in the financial services sector to more efficiently access information on cybersecurity threats.

Sen. Warner Questions Wait Times, Long Lines to Clear Passport Control at Dulles Airport

“This is not the way to welcome tourists, business people arriving in Va.”

Feb 21 2014

U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) today asked the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for an explanation of exceptionally long lines and wait times commonly experienced by passengers arriving on international flights at Virginia’s Dulles International Airport.
U.S. Sens. Mark Warner (D-VA) and Mark Kirk (R-IL) today sent a bipartisan letter to the head of the Federal Trade Commission requesting establishment of a Merchant and Retail Industry Information Sharing Analysis Center (MRI-ISAC), which would allow stores and retail businesses to share threats and vulnerabilities about data breaches and hacking attempts.