WASHINGTON – On the Senate floor today, U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Vice Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, requested that the Senate immediately take up and pass a resolution calling for the public release of Special Counsel Robert S. Mueller III’s report. However, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) objected to the unanimous consent request and blocked the immediate passage of the resolution, which previously passed the House of Representatives by a vote of 420 – 0.

“Simply put, a summary is not going to cut it,” Sen. Warner said on the floor. “This is an extraordinarily extensive investigation that yielded a rich collection of facts about Russia’s attack on our democracy. The American people deserve to see the results so they can judge the facts for themselves.”

Sen. Warner highlighted that the Attorney General’s four-page summary of the Special Counsel’s report only focused on the criminal portion of the Mueller probe, and barely mentioned the Special Counsel’s counter-intelligence investigation into Trump campaign contacts with Russian officials and intermediaries.

He continued, “Our committee has made multiple criminal referrals to the Special Prosecutor based on what we learned in witnesses’ efforts to lie to us and obstruct our investigation. This is what a counter-intelligence investigation is all about. We need to fully understand what the Russians were trying to do. And we need to be able to warn future campaigns and candidates about the lengths and new tools hostile governments will go to undermine our democracy… Let’s make sure the full Mueller report is released to Congress — including the underlying documents and intelligence. And then let’s make sure that the American people see as much of the report as possible, and as soon as possible. And let’s do it in that bipartisan way that protect sources and methods.”

Sen. Warner also emphasized that the resolution, H. Con. Res. 24, Expressing the Sense of Congress that the report of Special Counsel Mueller should be made available to the public and to Congress, ensures that the Special Counsel’s report is released in accordance with the law, without publicly revealing sources, methods, or grand jury information.

Below is a transcript of Sen. Warner’s full floor remarks:

Sen. Warner: Two weeks ago, after almost two years, Special Counsel Mueller filed his report with the Attorney General. The Attorney General sent us a short letter summarizing the major findings of the report.

Simply put, a summary is not going to cut it. The Attorney General’s own letter discusses the vast extent of the Special Counsel’s investigation, mentioning over 500 witness interviews, 2,800 subpoenas, 500 search warrants, 230 orders for communications records, and almost 50 orders for pen registers, and actually 13 requests to foreign governments. 

This is an extraordinarily extensive investigation that yielded a rich collection of facts about Russia’s attack on our democracy. The American people deserve to see the results so they can judge the facts for themselves.

We know from court filings, news reports, and the Senate Intelligence Committee’s own investigations that the Russians attempted to influence the Trump campaign in many ways. At least 17 individuals in the Trump orbit had over 100 publicly released contacts with Russian officials or intermediaries. And yet, with all those 100 contacts during the midst of a campaign, somehow not one of those individuals — even those contacted with explicit offers of assistance from a hostile government — called the FBI to report those offers.

And yet, the Attorney General’s four-page summary of this sprawling investigation, a summary that according to press reports may not even accurately reflect the Mueller report, focuses almost exclusively on the criminal portion of the Mueller probe — with barely any mention of the Special Counsel’s counter-intelligence investigation into these contacts.

The Senate Intelligence Committee — the only bipartisan counter-intelligence investigation still standing — has documented extensive efforts by Russians to reach out to those around then-candidate Trump.

A few examples we have documented and have been in the public domain: Candidate Trump’s efforts to negotiate a business deal to build what was going to be called the largest building in all of Russia, negotiating on that deal throughout the whole primary process and even potentially, at least according to his attorney Mr. Giuliani, maybe negotiated all the way through the election. Data that may, in itself, not have violated laws, but I frankly think that if I were a Republican primary voter, I would have liked to have known that my potential presidential candidate was still trying to do a deal with Vladimir Putin’s government.

We also in our investigation have exposed ongoing communications between the President’s campaign chairman, Mr. Manafort, and Konstantin Kilimnik, who has ties with both Russian intelligence and the oligarch Oleg Deripaska. Our committee has made multiple criminal referrals to the Special Prosecutor based on what we learned in witnesses’ efforts to lie to us and obstruct our investigation.

This is what a counter-intelligence investigation is all about. We need to fully understand what the Russians were trying to do. And we need to be able to warn future campaigns and candidates about the lengths and new tools hostile governments will go to undermine our democracy.

Now, I believe that we can’t make that full guidance to future campaigns without a full release of this report.

Now some observers have said that the report cannot be released without jeopardizing sources and methods. Let me be clear: as Vice Chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, no one is more sensitive to those concerns than I am. But the resolution that we have specifically states that the report should be released to the public in accordance with the law. Clearly, sources and methods would not be released under this standard. Nor would grand jury information.

What we are talking about here is basic transparency. Let’s make sure the full Mueller report is released to Congress — including the underlying documents and intelligence. And then let’s make sure that the American people see as much of the report as possible, and as soon as possible. And let’s do it in that bipartisan way that protect sources and methods.

Therefore, Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that as if in legislative session, the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of H Con RES. 24, Expressing the Sense of Congress that the report of Special Counsel Mueller should be made available to the public and to Congress, which is at the desk. Further, that the concurrent resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate. 

Presiding Officer: Is there objection?

[Sen. Rand Paul objects]

Presiding Officer: Does the Senator from Virginia wish to modify his request?

Sen. Warner: Reserving the right to object, I would simply point out to my colleague from Kentucky that the Intelligence Community in their January 2017 report reached a unanimous conclusion. That conclusion was that Russia massively interfered in our elections. They did it in forms of hacking into personal information, and releasing it subjectively, they did it in terms of at least touching the electoral systems in 21 of our states’ election systems in ways that frankly found a great deal of vulnerabilities, and they did it in ways that manipulated social media, that quite honestly caught our Intelligence Community and social media companies off guard.

Our Intelligence Committee spent a year reviewing the conclusions of the Intelligence Community and in January of 17 unanimously agreed that the Intelligence Community’s findings were correct, the Russians interfered, they did it on behalf of one candidate, Mr. Trump, against another candidate, Mrs. Clinton, and for those reasons I respectfully object to my colleague from Kentucky.

Presiding Officer: Is there objection to the original request?

[Sen. Rand Paul objects]

Presiding Officer: Objection is heard.

Sen. Warner: Mr. President, I’ll simply close out. I hope we can move past this, the President himself has called for the release of the report, the House in a rare stroke of unanimity, voted 420 – 0. I think many in this body would like to move beyond this issue and the only way we are going to be able to move beyond this is to get this report released, get it out to the American public, let those of us who are charged with the Intelligence Community responsibilities see all of the report including the underlying documents. I hope we can get to that point.

Thank you Mr. President, I yield the floor.

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WASHINGTON, D.C.—Today, U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine joined Senators Tina Smith (D-MN), Ben Cardin (D-MD), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), and Sherrod Brown (D-OH) to introduce a pair of bills aimed at protecting federal health care benefits in the event of a government shutdown. Similar bipartisan legislation was introduced in the House yesterday, led by Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-MD). 

The two bills would amend current law to ensure that workers who have qualifying life events – like the birth or adoption of a child – are able to make the proper adjustments to their health insurance plans and continue dental and vision benefits during lapses in federal funding.

“I’ve heard story after story about how the recent government shutdown caused significant financial hardship for Virginians. But stories like Brian Uholick’s really struck a nerve. During the 35-day shutdown, Brian struggled to get his newborn on his health insurance to ensure he could get the medication she needed because his own HR department was furloughed,” said Warner. “It’s just not right. That’s why I joined my colleagues in introducing a set of bills to ensure the health and well-being of our federal workforce and their families.” 

“Our hardworking federal employees should never have to go through the pain of a shutdown in the first place, and they should never have to fear losing access to their health benefits as a result. Our legislation would help ensure that federal workers and their families can get the care they need during a shutdown,” said Kaine.     

Press reports during the recent shutdown indicated that federal employees had difficulty obtaining health insurance coverage for their newborns because some agencies were not processing new enrollments or changes to enrollments. 

In January, Sens. Warner and Kaine pressed the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Acting Director to prevent the termination of dental and vision coverage for federal workers during the 35-day shutdown after reports emerged that employees could stand to lose their coverage if they did not pay their premiums. During the government shutdown, OPM announced that coverage would continue only for two or three pay periods, after which insurers would start billing employees directly.   

Both bills are supported by the American Federation of Government Employees, National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association, and International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers.

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WASHINGTON – U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA), along with Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Kamala D. Harris (D-CA) called on the Senate Armed Services Committee to include in the upcoming National Defense Authorization Act portions of an essential bill to address hazards in private military housing. The Senators introduced the Ensuring Safe Housing for our Military Act last month in response to a Reuters investigation that exposed health, safety and environmental hazards in privatized military housing throughout the United States.

“While we are pleased that the military services have realized the scope and severity of the problem, and have begun to circulate a ‘Resident Bill of Rights’ for servicemembers living in privatized housing, we strongly believe that Congress must enact legal protections for our military families and strengthen accountability mechanisms for these private companies,” the Senators wrote. 

They concluded, “We believe these reforms are necessary to ensure that contractors are responsive to servicemembers’ concerns, that military housing officials are exercising proper oversight, that servicemembers are empowered to leave any home they feel is unsafe for their family without fear of incurring a financial penalty, and, most importantly, for servicemembers and their families to live in safe and secure housing.”

Among other things, the Ensuring Safe Housing for our Military Act would create stronger oversight mechanisms, allow the military to withhold payments to contractors until issues are resolved, and prohibit contractors from charging certain fees. It would also require the military to withhold incentive fees to poorly performing contractors.

Sens. Warner and Kaine have long advocated for servicemembers and military families. Last week, they filed an amendment to the Fiscal Year 2020 budget resolution to ensure military families have safe and healthy housing. Sen. Warner also recently met with military families in Newport News to hear about their experiences living in privatized military housing, and Sen. Kaine recently toured privatized military housing near Naval Station Norfolk. Last month, the Senators also visited Fort Belvoir to hear from military families about their experiences with military housing.

In addition to Sens. Warner, Kaine, Feinstein, and Harris, the letter was signed by Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Chris Murphy (D-CT), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), and Jon Tester (D-MT). 

Full text of the letter is below and a copy can be found here.

April 1, 2019

The Honorable James Inhofe

Chairman

Senate Committee on Armed Services

Russell Senate Building, Room 228

The Honorable Jack Reed

Ranking Member

Senate Committee on Armed Services

Russell Senate Building, Room 228

Dear Chairman Inhofe and Ranking Member Reed:

We write today to request that the Armed Services Committee include provisions of our legislation, entitled the Ensuring Safe Housing for our Military Act, to improve privatized military housing, in the Fiscal Year 2020 National Defense Authorization Act.

As you know, major problems with privatized military housing have surfaced since Reuters first published a series of articles last year. The Reuters articles, and hearings held by your committee, have revealed that many servicemembers and their families have been forced to live in homes with serious health, safety and environmental hazards, without sufficient recourse.

The contractors who operate privatized military housing have too often failed to properly remedy these hazards, or outright ignored servicemembers’ concerns. The military housing officials and installation commanders responsible for ensuring that our servicemembers have safe housing have frequently fallen well short of their charge.

While we are pleased that the military services have realized the scope and severity of the problem, and have begun to circulate a “Resident Bill of Rights” for servicemembers living in privatized housing, we strongly believe that Congress must enact legal protections for our military families and strengthen accountability mechanisms for these private companies.

To that end, our bill would:

1)      Require installation commanders to withhold payment of a servicemember’s basic allowance for housing (BAH) until a military housing official has inspected an environmental, safety or health hazard, verified that appropriate remediation has taken place, and the servicemember concurs that the remediation is satisfactory. In the case that the hazard requires the servicemember to leave the housing unit, the contractor will pay all relocation costs. 

2)      Prohibit payment of a deposit, and any fee or penalty related to ending a lease early, except for normal wear and tear. The bill also requires contractors to reimburse servicemembers for damage to their private property caused by a hazard. 

3)      Require the Secretary of Defense to withhold incentive fees to any contractor who persistently fails to remedy hazards.

4)      Create standard credentials for health, safety and environmental inspectors across the services, and including contractors, to ensure consistent inspection practices.

5)      Require the DOD to establish an electronic system so that installation commanders and servicemembers can track and oversee work orders.

We believe these reforms are necessary to ensure that contractors are responsive to servicemembers’ concerns, that military housing officials are exercising proper oversight, that servicemembers are empowered to leave any home they feel is unsafe for their family without fear of incurring a financial penalty, and, most importantly, for servicemembers and their families to live in safe and secure housing.

We thank you for your leadership and we look forward to continuing to work on this vitally important issue.

Sincerely,

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Washington – U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) joined Sens. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), and a bipartisan group of 43 other Senators to urge the Trump Administration to rescind a proposed rule that would take away nutrition benefits from Americans struggling to find stable employment. In a letter to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Senators asked Secretary Sonny Perdue to withdraw this proposal, which would make it harder for states to provide Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits to communities experiencing economic uncertainty.   

“Congress recognizes that one-size-fits-all rules for SNAP and employment practices actually end up fitting no one,” the Senators wrote. “This proposed rule removes critical local input and flexibility. This proposal ignores the intent of Congress, would worsen hunger in this country, and would do nothing to help increase stable, long-term employment or move individuals to self-sufficiency. We urge you to immediately withdraw this proposed rule.” 

This proposed regulation, which could result in the loss of more than 178,000 jobs, comes in direct contravention of Congressional intent. In the 2018 Farm Bill, Congress chose to reject similar proposals by the President and some members of Congress that would have changed SNAP work rules and the ability of states to waive work requirements. In fact, an amendment to further restrict states from providing geographic waivers for able-bodied adults without dependents (ABAWD) was rejected by the House of Representatives by a vote of 83-330.  A similar amendment proposed in the Senate was rejected (tabled) by a bipartisan vote of 68-30.

Sens. Warner and Kaine have long stressed the importance of sustained funding for the SNAP program. In January, both Senators wrote to the Secretary of Agriculture to voice concern about the status of SNAP amidst the government shutdown. Additionally, Sen. Warner reintroduced a bill earlier this month to benefit low-income rural and urban communities with limited or no access to nutritious food by increasing access to grocery stores in areas designated as “food deserts.” 

In addition to Sens. Warner, Kaine, Stabenow, and Murkowski, the letter was signed by Sens. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Ben Cardin (D-MD), Robert Casey (D-PA), Susan Collins (R-ME), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Kamala Harris (D-CA), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Doug Jones (D-AL), Angus King (ME), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Patrick  Leahy (D-VT), Joe Manchin (D-WV),  Edward J. Markey (D-MA), Robert Menendez (D-NJ), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Chris Murphy (D-CT), Patty Murray (D-WA), Gary Peters (D-MI), Jack Reed (D-RI), Jackie Rosen (D-NV), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Brian Schatz (D-HI), Charles Schumer (D-NY), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), Tina Smith (D-MN), Jon Tester (D-MT), Tom Udall (D-NM), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), and Ron Wyden (D-OR).

Full text of the letter is below and a copy can be found here.

The Honorable Sonny Perdue

Secretary of Agriculture

U.S. Department of Agriculture

1400 Independence Avenue, S.W.

Washington, DC  20250

Dear Secretary Perdue:

We write to raise serious concerns about the Administration’s recent proposed rule “Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program: Requirements for Able-Bodied Adults without Dependents (84 FR 980).”  Despite the Department’s intent that this rule would “improve employment outcomes and economic independence,” the proposed changes would take food assistance away from Americans struggling to find stable employment while doing nothing to help them to actually become permanently employed.  This is contrary to Congressional intent, evidenced by the passage of the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (P.L. 115-334), which rejected similar harmful changes to SNAP and passed Congress by a historic vote of 87-13 in the Senate and by 369-47 in the House of Representatives.

SNAP already has strict time limits that restrict access to food assistance to three months out of every three years for most working-aged adults.  Acknowledging the strictness of these policies and understanding the unique needs of our states and our constituents, Congress sought to mitigate the impact by providing states discretion to request waivers of the time limit and to utilize monthly exemptions based on local workforce circumstances.  Every state in the country but Delaware has utilized waivers when local conditions warranted.  While the use of time limit waivers peaked for many states during the great recession, the percentage of the population eligible for waivers of time limits has dropped to pre-recession levels, resulting in many SNAP recipients losing access to food assistance under current rules.  There is no evidence, however, that the re-imposition of the time limit in these areas has resulted in these individuals achieving self-sufficiency through new employment opportunities. 

Since the waiver process was formally adopted during the George W. Bush Administration, efforts to modify waiver criteria have always originated in—and been rejected by—Congress, instead of through executive action.  Most recently, Congress considered and chose to reject attempts to limit flexibility for states to request waivers for time limits in SNAP during both the 2014 and 2018 Farm Bills.  Instead, Congress has focused on improving employment and training activities through innovative pilots, workforce partnerships, and state-based employment and training initiatives that strengthen an individual’s ability to secure stable, long-term employment. These efforts recognize that many individuals face substantial barriers to employment that an arbitrary time limit or unemployment floor do nothing to address.

Noting that some states and regions experience a normal or near-normal unemployment rate, the proposed rule assumes that an average unemployment rate means every person seeking a job will be able to find one, and that wages from such employment would sustain a family.  However, rates of unemployment for individuals without a high school diploma or a GED and individuals in the service sector are often as much as double the average rates of unemployment in a community.  For example, in 2018, while the unemployment rate for workers with a bachelor’s degree or more was 2.1 percent, the unemployment rate for those with less than a high school education was 5.6 percent, and 10.4 percent for African-American workers with less than a high school education.  In addition, in some areas with insufficient jobs, a declining unemployment rate may not only imply that more Americans have gotten jobs, but also that some Americans may be leaving the labor force.

Many rural areas have had slow employment growth since the end of the great recession, and the gap between employment rates in rural and urban areas has widened.  In some rural and frontier regions, unemployment remains in the double digits.  The economic, transportation, geographic, and other challenges that contribute to high unemployment rates in some large regions of our country are unlikely to change.  It is unlikely, for example, that significant employment opportunities will come to regions that have very small populations, are unconnected by roads, and experience high energy costs.

Due to persistent discrimination in hiring practices, certain protected classes are also likely to be disparately impacted by this proposal, a fact that the proposed rule acknowledged, but did not resolve.  For example, field studies have consistently shown that white applicants receive more callbacks for job interviews than otherwise identical applications from African-American or Latino applicants.   Assuming generalized employment figures are representative of the ABAWD population targeted by this rule ignores the employment realities that many of these individuals face.  Early analysis also indicates that the proposed rule would have a disparate negative impact on American Indian and Alaska Native populations living in rural areas of the nation.

The proposed rule also is based on a faulty assumption that individuals that are receiving SNAP are choosing not to work.  In fact, most SNAP participants are working.  Many individuals that would lose access to food assistance because of this rule are employed, but have inconsistent hours or work in seasonal industries such as fishing and construction.  The proposed rule asserts that 74% of ABAWDs are not working.  That statistic is misleading and does not correctly represent the work status of most SNAP recipients.  Recent studies show that less than 2% of participants aged 18-49 are consistently working less than 20 hours a week, and less than 2% are always unemployed. Instead, the majority of these individuals fluctuated over a two-year period between working at least 20 hours a week in a given month, to falling short of a consistent 20 hours per work week.  Even those individuals who successfully meet the work requirement may lose their food assistance if they fail to correctly document their hours or submit required paperwork.  Asserting individuals facing inconsistent or unstable work circumstances are not seeking self-sufficiency does a disservice to our shared goals of helping American families to find consistent, stable employment that allows them to feed their families.

The proposed rule also wrongly assumes that those who are not qualified for work available in their community, region, state, or elsewhere in the nation can easily obtain job training.  In rural and frontier areas, job training is not available.  In most cases, job training opportunities located in urban areas cannot absorb additional trainees.  In addition, Congress has asked state and local Workforce Investment Boards to more closely align job training with actual job opportunities because it makes no sense to train someone for a job that does not exist.

We are also concerned about the impact these changes would have on state agencies.  The proposed rule would require additional oversight of and paperwork from an expanded number of people not currently subject to work requirements.  If finalized, states would be compelled to hire and train many additional caseworkers and in states with rural and remote regions, spend even more to provide on-the-ground oversight to ensure claimed work requirements were met.

Establishing an arbitrary unemployment floor would have a dramatic impact on participation.  According to the proposed rule’s estimates, establishing a 7% unemployment rate floor for waivers would affect 1.1 million SNAP participants, with nearly three-quarters of those participants, over 755,000 people, losing access to food assistance.  This estimate is likely low as it is based on economic growth rates that are not feasible.  This only clearly demonstrates that this proposed rule is not designed to help individuals gain stable employment. Instead, the outcome is simply more hunger.

In addition to being out of line with Congressional intent related to waivers, this rule also directly contradicts Congressional direction related to waiver submissions and carry-over exemptions included in the 2018 Farm Bill report.  This report, written by Chairman Pat Roberts, Ranking Member Debbie Stabenow, Chairman Mike Conaway and Ranking Member Collin Peterson and approved by the 369 members of the House and 87 members of the Senate, explicitly directs the Department not to make the changes made in this rule.  This unilateral Administrative action is in direct contradiction to the will of Congress.

The Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 Conference Report (H. Rept. 115-1072) specifically states that it was the intent of Congress that states will “continue to accrue exemptions and retain carryover exemptions from previous years, consistent with current law.”  The proposed rule’s elimination of unlimited carry-over exemptions blatantly disregards this direction from Congress.

Further, the Conference Report states that “The Managers intend to maintain the practice that bestows authority on the state agency responsible for administering SNAP to determine when and how waiver requests for ABAWDs are submitted…..It is not the Managers’ intent that USDA undertake any new rulemaking in order to facilitate support for requests from State agencies, nor should the language result in any additional paperwork of administrative steps under the waiver process.”  Congress was clear that we do not wish to establish any new requirements regarding state agency waiver submissions.

Congress recognizes that one-size-fits-all rules for SNAP and employment practices actually end up fitting no one.  While this Administration has promoted local control in many other sectors of federal policy, this proposed rule removes critical local input and flexibility. 

This proposal ignores the intent of Congress, would worsen hunger in this country, and would do nothing to help increase stable, long-term employment or move individuals to self-sufficiency.  We urge you to immediately withdraw this proposed rule.

Sincerely,

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine, along with 45 of their colleagues, introduced the For the People Act, a sweeping package of comprehensive reforms that would make government work for the people. The landmark legislation aims to restore the promise of American democracy by making it easier, not harder, to vote; ending the dominance of big money in politics; and ensuring that public officials work for the public interest. Earlier this month, the House passed their companion legislation, H.R. 1, by a vote of 234-193.  

“Our nation belongs to the people – not just the wealthy or the powerful people – but all the people,” said Warner. “I’m proud this legislation includes the Honest Ads Act, a bill I introduced to bring overdue transparency and accountability to online political ads. By facilitating access to the ballot box, addressing the influence of money in politics, and ensuring that lawmakers can be held accountable by those they serve, this bold legislation will strengthen democracy and put power back in the hands of everyday Americans.”

“I’m proud to join my colleagues to introduce landmark legislation to protect the power of the American people in our democracy,” said Kaine. “This bill is about ensuring Americans can exercise their right to vote, securing our elections, and bringing more transparency to money in politics.”

The For the People Act would:

Make It Easier, Not Harder, To Vote

— Improve Access and Secure Voting Rights – Expands access to the ballot box by taking aim at institutional barriers to voting, such as cumbersome registration systems, limited voting hours, and many other roadblocks. The bill creates automatic voter registration across the country, ensures that individuals who have completed felony sentences have their full rights restored, expands voting by mail, promotes early voting and online voter registration, and modernizes the U.S. voting system. 

— Promote Integrity – Fights back against the assault on voting rights by reaffirming Congress’s commitment to restoring the Voting Rights Act, prohibiting voter roll purges like those seen in Ohio, Georgia and elsewhere, and ensuring that discriminatory voter ID laws do not prevent Americans citizens from exercising their rights. This bill would also end partisan gerrymandering to prevent politicians from picking their voters and making Americans feel like their voices do not count. 

— Bolster Election Security – Ensures that American elections are decided by American voters without interference by foreign adversaries. The bill creates a national strategy to protect our democratic institutions, increases oversight over election vendors, and enhances federal support for state voting system security upgrades, including paper ballot voting systems.

End The Dominance of Big Money In Politics 

— Guarantee Disclosure – Shines a light on dark money in politics by requiring all political organizations to disclose their donors, which will break the nesting-doll system that allows big-money contributors and special interests to hide their spending in networks of so-called “social welfare” organizations; expands “Stand By Your Ad” provisions; and harmonizes internet disclosure rules with existing broadcast rules.

— Empower Citizens – Builds a 21st-century campaign finance system to increase the power of small donors, reaffirms Congress’s authority to regulate money in politics, and pushes back against Citizens United. This bill levels the political playing field for Americans, creating a multiple matching system for small donations and allowing the American people to exercise their due influence in a post-Citizens United world, while reaffirming that Congress should have the authority to regulate money in politics. The new system of citizen-owned elections will decrease special interests’ influence on Congress and the White House and lay the groundwork for an agenda that serves the American people.

— Strengthen Oversight – Repairs and restructures the Federal Election Commission (FEC) to break gridlock and enhance enforcement mechanisms, tightens rules on super PACs, and repeals policy riders that block sensible disclosure measures. 

Ensure Public Officials Work For The Public Interest

— Fortify Ethics Laws and Slow the Revolving Door – Breaks the influence of special interests in Washington and increases accountability by expanding conflict of interest law and divestment requirements, slows the revolving door, prohibits members of Congress from serving on for-profit corporate boards, limits first class travel for government officials, ends taxpayer-financed settlements for officeholders, and requires presidential candidates to disclose their tax returns.

— Impose Greater Ethics Enforcement – Gives teeth to federal ethics oversight by overhauling the Office of Government Ethics, requires the Supreme Court to create a new ethical code, and closes registration loopholes for lobbyists and foreign agents.

The legislation is sponsored by U.S. Senators Tom Udall (D-NM) and Jeffrey A. Merkley (D-OR). In addition to Warner and Kaine, the bill is cosponsored by Senators Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Kamala D. Harris (D-CA), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Richard J. Durbin (D-IL), Ben Cardin (D-MD), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Chris Coons (D-DE), Ed Markey (D-MA), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Brian Schatz (D-HI), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Tina Smith (D-MN), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Tom Carper (D-DE), Angus King (I-ME), Bob Casey (D-PA), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Jon Tester (D-MT), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Chris Murphy (D-CT), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Gary Peters (D-MI), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Bob Menendez (D-NJ), Patty Murray (D-WA), Doug Jones (D-AL), Jack Reed (D-RI), Joe Manchin (D-WV), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), and Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ).

The full text of the legislation is available HERE.

A one-page summary of the bill is available HERE.

A longer summary of the bill is available HERE.  

A section-by-section summary of the legislation is available HERE.

A list of organizations supporting the legislation is available HERE. 

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WASHINGTON- U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX), along with Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Chairman Richard Burr (R-NC) and Vice Chairman Mark Warner (D-VA), introduced the Secure 5G and Beyond Act. This legislation would require the President to develop a strategy to ensure the security of next-gen mobile telecommunications systems and infrastructure in the United States, as well as to assist allies in maximizing the security of their systems, infrastructure, and software. Senators Susan Collins (R-ME), Tom Cotton (R-AR), Marco Rubio (R-FL), and Michael Bennet (D-CO) are original cosponsors.

“Our telecom systems continue to advance at a rapid rate, and it’s critical that we develop a strategy to protect potential vulnerabilities from being exploited by our adversaries,” said Sen. Cornyn. “I’m proud to partner with my colleagues on this legislation to ensure we can defend our national security interests as we develop future technologies.” 

“It’s imperative we not only understand the revolutionary value of next-gen communications, but also the security measures required to ensure the deployment of safe and secure 5G networks,” said Sen. Burr.  “I’m proud to work with my colleagues on this important legislation, which will bring together a variety of industry experts, further protect Americans’ privacy rights, and better equip our nation with a comprehensive strategy as we continue to be a global leader in technology.”

“5G promises to usher in a new wave of innovations, products, and services. At the same time, the greater complexity, density, and speed of 5G networks relative to traditional communications networks will make securing these networks exponentially harder and more complex,” Sen. Warner said. “It’s imperative that we have a coherent strategy, led by the President, to harness the advantages of 5G in a way that understands – and addresses – the risks.”

Background on the Secure 5G and Beyond Act:

• Requires the President to create an inter-agency strategy to secure 5th generation and future generation technology and infrastructure in the United States and with our strategic allies.

• Designates NTIA as the Executive Agent to coordinate implementation of the strategy in coordination with: the Chairman of the FCC, the Secretary of Homeland Security, the Director of National Intelligence, the Attorney General, and the Secretary of Defense. 

• Ensures that the strategy does not include a recommendation to nationalize 5th generation deployment or future generations of mobile telecommunications infrastructure in the United States.

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WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) and Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) – all members of the Senate Committee on the Budget – filed four amendments to the Fiscal Year 2020 budget resolution aimed at protecting federal employees and contractors. The amendments would put the Senate on the record in favor of preserving retirement security for federal employees, and providing back pay to service contractors affected by the recent federal government shutdown. 

“Federal workers are the backbone of our government. If we want to recruit and retain top talent, we have to offer competitive pay and benefits, including retirement security,” said Sen. Warner, who added, “Though the shutdown itself may be over, for many federal contractors who went without pay for 35 days, the effects have been long-lasting. The Senate cannot forget about these workers, many of whom work paycheck to paycheck. We owe it to them to provide back pay.” 

“This year, federal workers experienced the longest shutdown in history. Their finances were pinched and their families were hurt. As we look at next year’s budget, my priority is to ensure that we’re protecting federal workers against pay cuts, preserving their retirement security, and trying to secure back pay for the service contractors impacted by government shutdowns,” said Sen. Kaine. 

“Our federal workers and federal contract employees provide crucial services to the American people. These amendments will protect the hard-earned paychecks and benefits of our federal employees and help secure back pay for contract workers harmed by the government shutdown,” said Sen. Van Hollen.

One amendment would ensure that federal workers are not shouldering more than their fair share of deficit reduction. This amendment would establish a scorekeeping rule that would prevent federal employees from being subject to increased retirement contributions meant to offset the cost of other, unrelated congressional spending. Despite there being no solvency concerns related to the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS), Congress has repeatedly increased the required federal employee contribution rate without offering any additional benefit. Combined with years of pay freezes, the increased requirements have resulted in de facto pay cuts for thousands of hardworking federal employees. 

Another amendment would preserve the retirement security of civil service employees by preventing further retirement benefit reductions and protecting the retirement plans that employees have spent decades building.

A third amendment would establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to provide back pay to service contractors affected by the recent government shutdown. The shutdown caused more than 800,000 employees and thousands of contractors to go without pay for 35 days, and while affected federal employees were assured that they would be compensated for their missed wages, their contractor colleagues – who perform essential functions like cleaning, food service, and security – were not given that same guarantee. This amendment would put the Senate on the record in support of making these workers whole, following the record-breaking shutdown. 

A fourth amendment would protect federal workers’ retirement benefits by striking a provision in the draft budget that could cut federal employees’ benefits by at least $15 billion.

Sens. Warner, Kaine, and Van Hollen have fiercely advocated for federal employees and contractors, especially during and following the government shutdown. In January, the Senators, along with several colleagues, introduced a bill to pay back federal contract workers after the shutdown. They also joined a bipartisan group of Senators earlier this month in urging the Senate Appropriations Committee to include contractor back pay in the upcoming disaster package. Additionally, the Senators pressed OMB in February for a timeline detailing the implementation of the 1.9 percent pay increase for federal employees that the Senators worked to pass into law earlier in the year. 

The Senate Budget Committee is scheduled to begin its two-day markup on the FY20 budget resolution on Wednesday, March 27. Though nonbinding, the budget resolution provides a blueprint for future congressional action on federal programs.  

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WASHINGTON – U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) along with Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA), members of the Senate Committee on the Budget, filed an amendment to the Fiscal Year 2020 budget resolution to ensure military families have safe and healthy housing. The amendment would protect the wellbeing of our nation’s military families by creating a reserve fund to address health hazards in military housing.

“Thousands of servicemembers call Virginia home, and their experiences with unsafe living conditions in housing are disturbing and unacceptable,” said Sen. Warner. “This amendment would ensure we can improve housing conditions for servicemembers and their families, whether they’re stationed here in the Commonwealth or across the country.” 

“Too many of our troops and their families are living in unacceptable conditions,” said Sen. Kaine. “When servicemembers are deployed, their families not only have to worry about their loved ones in harm’s way, but many of them have to endure added anxiety caused by lead, mold, or rodent infestations in their homes. Military families sacrifice so much to serve our nation – they shouldn’t have to tolerate horrible housing conditions, and our amendment is part of an effort to make sure they never have to again.” 

“Members of our military and their families in California and across the nation make sacrifices every day and their housing should be clean and free from health hazards,” said Sen. Harris.  “I’m proud to join my colleagues to introduce this common-sense amendment to ensure our nation’s military families live in the safe and comfortable housing that they deserve.”  

The proposed amendment would reaffirm a commitment by Congress to address pervasive allegations of health hazards at privatized military housing under the budget resolution. The health hazard allegations include mold blooms, lead poisoning, cockroaches, rodent infestations, and water leaks.  

In February, Sens. Warner, Kaine and Harris introduced the Ensuring Safe Housing for our Military Act, which would create stronger oversight mechanisms over private military housing, allow the military to withhold payments to contractors until issues are resolved, and prohibit contractors from charging certain fees. It would also require the military to withhold incentive fees to poorly performing contractors.

The Senate Budget Committee is scheduled to begin its two-day markup on the FY20 budget resolution on Wednesday, March 27.

 The budget amendment text can be found here.

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Washington – U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) today wrote to Attorney General William Barr to request an update on the implementation of the Ashanti Alert Act – a piece of crucial bipartisan legislation championed by Sen. Warner and signed into law in December of 2018. The Ashanti Alert Act requires the Department of Justice (DOJ) to establish a national communications network to assist regional and local search efforts for certain missing adults, filling a gap for missing persons who are too old for an Amber Alert and too young for a Silver Alert.

“It has now been more than two months since the Ashanti Alert Act was signed into law, and I continue to consult with stakeholders who are eager to make progress in implementing this new network so we can start saving lives,” said Sen. Warner. “I remain strongly committed to the Ashanti Alert Act and plan to actively monitor its implementation to ensure that the Department, law enforcement agencies, and relevant entities and stakeholders can work together to make the Ashanti Alert network as helpful and effective as possible.” 

The Ashanti Alert will notify the public about missing or endangered adults ages 18-64. The law instructs the Attorney General to designate a national Ashanti Alert Coordinator responsible for helping states establish alert systems and develop voluntary guidelines. Under the law, the coordinator is also tasked with providing Congress with an annual report detailing the use and progress of Ashanti Alerts in states. 

In requesting a status update on DOJ’s implementation efforts, Sen. Warner also presented the Attorney General with the following questions:

1.  Have you designated a national coordinator to lead the implementation effort?
2. Can you provide a timeline through which you plan to achieve important milestones in establishing this new network?
3. What is the Department’s strategy to solicit and incorporate input from subject matter experts, local law enforcement agencies, and relevant federal agencies? Has the Department begun this outreach? 
4. What barriers or challenges to implementation had you identified and how do you plan to address them?
5. What additional assistance or direction from Congress is necessary to assist in your efforts? 

The Ashanti Alert Act was named after Ashanti Billie, a 19-year-old abducted in Norfolk, Va. on September 18, 2017, whose body was discovered in North Carolina 11 days after she was first reported missing. Sen. Warner secured unanimous passage of this bill through the Senate in December 6, 2018 by working with his colleagues to make modifications to the House bill, which was introduced by then-Congressman Scott Taylor and had previously been blocked from passing the Senate. The bill was then signed into law by President Trump on December 31, 2019.

Full text of the letter is below and a copy can be found here.

March 21, 2019

The Honorable William Barr  

Attorney General 

U.S. Department of Justice 

950 Pennsylvania Avenue NW

Washington, D.C., 20530 

Dear Attorney General Barr,

I write to respectfully request an update from the Department of Justice regarding the status of implementation of the Ashanti Alert Act. As you are aware, on December 31, 2018, President Trump signed into law the Ashanti Alert Act of 2018 (Pub L. 115-401). The Ashanti Alert Act requires the Department of Justice to establish a national communications network, named the Ashanti Alert, to assist regional and local search efforts for certain missing adults. Last Congress, the Senate and House of Representatives secured strong bipartisan support for the legislation and it passed both chambers by a near-unanimous margin.

As you know, the Ashanti Alert, similar to other missing person alert systems, would notify the public about missing or endangered adults, ages 18-64, through a national communications network to assist law enforcement in searching for the missing person, helping to save lives. This law was borne out of the tragic death of Ashanti Billie, a 19 year old who was abducted in Norfolk, Virginia and whose body was discovered 11 days after she was first reported missing. Because Ashanti was too old for an Amber Alert to be issued and no similar network for adults existed at the time, her parents, family, and friends struggled to get word out of her disappearance in a timely fashion.

It has now been more than two months since the Ashanti Alert Act was signed into law, and I continue to consult with stakeholders who are eager to make progress in implementing this new network so we can start saving lives. Last year, Virginia passed legislation of its own to create an Ashanti Alert network and issued its first alert last month. Extending this effort to all 50 states is, of course, a difficult and comprehensive undertaking. I strongly urge that you direct senior Department officials to prioritize implementation at the federal level.

Under the new law, the Attorney General must designate a national coordinator to work with states to establish Ashanti Alert systems and to develop voluntary guidelines that states (as well as territories) should use in creating their networks. Called the Ashanti Alert Coordinator, he or she would be responsible for consulting with the Secretary of Transportation, Federal Communications Commission, Assistant Secretary for Aging of the Department of Health and Human Services, and other DOJ offices in coordinating activities to support Ashanti Alerts. The Coordinator is also expected provide an annual report to Congress detailing the states that are in the process of establishing or have already established Ashanti Alerts and information on Ashanti Alert use in states. 

As you move forward with implementation of this law, I ask that you provide me an update on the status of your efforts. More specifically: 

·         Have you designated a national coordinator to lead the implementation effort?

·         Can you provide a timeline through which you plan to achieve important milestones in establishing this new network?

·         What is the Department’s strategy to solicit and incorporate input from subject matter experts, local law enforcement agencies, and relevant federal agencies? Has the Department begun this outreach? 

·         What barriers or challenges to implementation had you identified and how do you plan to address them?

·         What additional assistance or direction from Congress is necessary to assist in your efforts? 

I remain strongly committed to the Ashanti Alert Act and plan to actively monitor its implementation to ensure that the Department, law enforcement agencies, and relevant entities and stakeholders can work together to make the Ashanti Alert network as helpful and effective as possible.

I look forward to hearing back from you with this information by April 21, 2019. If I can be of assistance in addressing implementation challenges at your agency, please contact Nicholas Devereux on my staff at (202) 224-2023. Thank you again for your efforts to prioritize the implementation of the Ashanti Alert Act and to fully leverage the potential of this opportunity to transform the lives and safety of Americans.

Sincerely,

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WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) met with Blue Ridge Parkway Superintendent J.D. Lee at Warner’s office in Washington, D.C.

In the meeting, Sen. Warner emphasized the need to pass the Restore Our Parks Act – bipartisan legislation to address the maintenance backlog at national parks across the country. New numbers from the National Park Service (NPS) show that the national backlog of deferred maintenance needs grew by more than $313 million last year – with a $100 million increase in Virginia alone. Deferred maintenance on the Blue Ridge Parkway increased by more than $46 million in 2018, bringing the total for the parkway to $508,077,342, including $212,702,891 in Virginia alone. The total overall cost of backlogged maintenance projects at NPS sites nationwide now reaches $11.9 billion. 

“The Blue Ridge Parkway has some of the most significant and pressing maintenance needs of any park property in Virginia,” said Sen. Warner. “Kicking the can down the road on needed repairs will lead to further deterioration of the Parkway and harm the many small towns and communities whose economies depend on it. Congress needs to finally make the proper investments in our national parks by passing the Restore Our Parks Act.”

According to the National Park Service, the Blue Ridge Parkway ranks #1 in visitor spending among Park Service properties. Parkway visitor spending supports 15,300 jobs and more than $1.3 Billion in economic output. Last year, 14.6 million Americans visited the Blue Ridge Parkway and the surrounding communities.

The Restore Our Parks Act has widespread support among legislators and conservation groups. It would reduce the maintenance backlog by establishing the “National Park Service Legacy Restoration Fund” and allocating existing revenues from onshore and offshore energy development. This funding would come from 50 percent of all revenues that are not otherwise allocated and deposited into the General Treasury, not exceeding $1.3 billion each year for the next five years. 

The latest data on Virginia’s national park deferred maintenance backlog as of 2018 is available here.

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WASHINGTON – Today the Vice Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), joined with U.S. Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), a member of the Committee, to introduce bipartisan legislation to protect the integrity of the security clearance process and ensure that it cannot be abused for political purposes.

“Americans should be able to have confidence that the security clearance process is being used only to protect our nation’s greatest secrets,” said Sen. Warner. “Our bipartisan bill will make clear that security clearances are not to be used as a tool to punish political opponents or reward family members, but to ensure personnel are thoroughly vetted to the highest standards.”

“The security clearance system is critical to protecting our country from harm and safeguarding access to our secrets. Americans should have the utmost confidence in the integrity of the security clearance process,” said Sen. Collins. “This bipartisan bill would make the current system more fair and transparent by ensuring that decisions to grant, deny, or revoke clearances are based solely on established adjudicative guidelines.” 

The Integrity in Security Clearance Determinations Act will ensure that the security clearance process is fair, objective, transparent, and accountable by requiring decisions to grant, deny, or revoke clearances to be based on published criteria. It explicitly prohibits the executive branch from revoking security clearances based on the exercise of constitutional rights, such as the right to freely express political views, or for purposes of political retaliation. It also bans agencies from using security clearances to punish whistleblowers or discriminate on the basis of sex, gender, religion, age, handicap, or national origin.

The bipartisan bill also codifies in statute the right of government employees to appeal decisions to deny or revoke a security clearance, and requires the government to publicly publish the results of such appeals – providing transparency, accountability and basic due process rights in an otherwise opaque and irregular process. 

The legislation aims to enhance the rigor and accountability of our security clearance process and to prevent abuses. It complements other reforms the executive branch is undertaking to modernize how the government processes clearances, and was developed with input from a wide range of experts across the government and in private law practice. 

A copy of the bill text is available here. 

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WASHINGTON – Today U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) and John Kennedy (R-LA), members of the Senate Banking Committee, introduced the Securities Fraud Enforcement and Investor Compensation Act, bipartisan legislation that would give the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) power to seek restitution for Main Street investors harmed by securities fraud.

The bill would give the SEC a broader range of tools to seek compensation for investors who’ve lost money to Ponzi schemes and other investment scams. It also extends the window of time for which the SEC can pursue a claim on an investor’s behalf from five years to ten.

“As Bernie Madoff demonstrated, financial fraudsters can sometimes go on for years, even decades, before they finally get caught. They shouldn’t be able to rip off investors just because some arbitrary five-year window has expired,” said Sen. Warner. “This bill will give the Securities and Exchange Commission more time and additional tools to seek restitution for everyday Americans who fall victim to investment scams.”

 “Investors who are scammed by con artists like Bernie Madoff and Allen Stanford lose their life savings. All too often, the victims of financial fraud aren’t wealthy people,” Sen. Kennedy said. “They’re middle class Americans who lose every penny they set aside for their retirements. Because of a narrow window of time for recouping stolen investment dollars, fraudsters are actually incentivized to keep the shell game going for decades. This bill addresses that problem.”

Background:

On June 5, 2017, the Supreme Court in Kokesh v. Securities Exchange Commission ruled that the SEC only has five years to bring disgorgement claims against bad actors to try to compensate harmed Main Street investors. Although the SEC strives to bring cases as soon as possible, sometimes well-concealed frauds are not discovered for many years. (As an example, Bernie Madoff was able to defraud investors for decades before his investment fund was revealed as Ponzi scheme in 2009.) Under the Kokeshprecedent, clever fraudsters can manage to retain any ill-gotten gains from outside the five-year window.  

The implications of the Kokesh ruling limiting the SEC’s enforcement window to five years have been significant. The SEC’s 2018 enforcement report noted that “the court’s ruling in Kokesh may cause the Commission to forgo up to approximately $900 million in disgorgement, of which a substantial amount likely could have been returned to retail investors.” The Securities Fraud Enforcement and Investor Compensation Act addresses this problem by expanding the range of tools available to the SEC to pursue compensation for scammed investors, subject to a 10-year statute of limitations.

Today, the SEC typically compensates harmed investors by bringing disgorgement claims, which allow the SEC to recoup any ill-gotten profits from the perpetrator and turn them over to the investor. Sometimes, the profits are small, and the compensation can represent just a small fraction of the overall loss to the investor as a result of the fraud. Under the terms of the bill, the SEC would retain the power to bring disgorgement claims for up to five years, but would also gain the authority to file claims of restitution, which would increase the amount of compensation available to make whole harmed investors. Rather than limiting the compensation to just the profit margin of the perpetrator, as with a disgorgement claim, restitution would allow the SEC to recover from fraudsters and refund investors the full amount of their losses, up to ten years after the fact.

Bill text is available here.

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