Press Releases

Media Requests: Members of the media can contact the press office by emailing Joseph_Plesha@murkowski.senate.gov or by calling 206-302-8317 and asking for the press office.

07.01.14

Murkowski Welcomes Karina Petersen to Communications Team

Senator Lisa Murkowski today announced that Karina Petersen has joined her Anchorage office as the new Communications Director for Alaska. "I am tremendously excited for Karina to join my Communications Team," Murkowski said, "With her deep Alaskan roots, Karina will be a perfect fit in my Anchorage office and bring the information about my work within the federal government with the Alaskans who are impacted. It's clear that Karina sees communications as a vocation, not just a profession. Ala… Continue Reading


07.01.14

Murkowski Gets FedEx to Rethink its Rural P.O. Box Policies

Waiting for days to get prescription drugs. Trips to the post office to find an empty box where your business-critical supplies should be. After hearing these and other rural Alaskans' frustrations about FedEx delivery problems that occur when FedEx hands packages over to the United States Postal Service in Anchorage for the final miles of delivery, Senator Lisa Murkowski's efforts led FedEx CEO to reconsider its protocols. For years, Alaskans who live in post office box only communities have… Continue Reading


06.26.14

Murkowski Works to Improve Summer Nutrition for Thousands of Young Alaskans

Senator Lisa Murkowski joined Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) to introduce S.2527, the Summer Meals Act, to help ensure that fewer young Alaskans in financial need go hungry over the summer. This bipartisan legislation would make it easier for community organizations to feed children through the Summer Food Service Program, which provides free, nutritious meals to children age 18 or younger at approved sites located in areas where at least 50% of the children are low-income. "Each year, too… Continue Reading


06.26.14

Murkowski: World is Expecting Us to “Step it Up” on the Arctic

Senator Murkowski today continued her fierce advocacy for U.S. Arctic awareness and investment in the Senate Appropriations Committee while they considered the 2015 Homeland Security Appropriations Funding Bill. To press her points, Murkowski cited the Coast Guard's 2011 High Latitude Story, which concluded that the U.S. needs three heavy and three medium icebreakers to meet its statutory requirements - and pointed out how far behind the nation is behind other Arctic nations. During the hearin… Continue Reading


06.26.14

Murkowski: Supreme Court Ruling "Slams the Door" on Obama's Unconstitutional Recess Appointments

The United States Supreme Court today unanimously ruled that President Barack Obama's controversial recess appointments are unconstitutional - in what was being called a "a major constitutional test of executive power." Senator Murkowski responded to the ruling, saying: "The President's unilateral, "pen and phone" approach to governing does not work and - in the case of recess appointments - is unconstitutional. This issue is not about partisanship or ideology or even the nominees qualificatio… Continue Reading


06.25.14

Murkowski Lauds Passage of Key Jobs Training Bill for “Tomorrow’s Workforce”

Senator Lisa Murkowski today voted for the bipartisan H.R. 803 Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, a pro-growth jobs training bill that reauthorizes the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 while making key reforms to promote greater efficiency in administering employment training programs nationwide. WIOA will fund and streamline critical workforce development program like Job Corps, vocational rehabilitation and adult education and adds new considerations for potential employees who are dis… Continue Reading


06.24.14

Murkowski to Appropriators: “We Need to be Leading as an Arctic Nation, Not Sitting Back”

Senator Lisa Murkowski today continued to advocate for Arctic investment with her colleagues on the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security. While discussing the Fiscal Year 2015 Homeland Security funding bill, Murkowski insisted that the committee focus more on Arctic issues like maritime commerce, natural resource development, Coast Guard search and rescue, and the critical need to invest in icebreakers. Subcommittee Chairwoman Senator Mary Landrieu promised Senator Murkowski … Continue Reading


06.23.14

Murkowski’s Second Group of Summer Interns Set to Arrive in D.C.

Senator Lisa Murkowski today announced the names of her second session summer interns who will work in her Washington, D.C. office in July. These recent high school graduates will get an up close and personal insight into the operations of a U.S. Senate office by "shadowing" Murkowski throughout the day, helping with day-to-day clerical and administrative tasks, and assisting staff with research projects. "I am excited for these young Alaskans to arrive in Washington, D.C. and experience the op… Continue Reading


06.22.14

Murkowski Lauds Successful Missile Test

Senator Lisa Murkowski today congratulated the Missile Defense Agency for its successful missile test conducted over the Pacific Ocean, which will may lead to expanded missile investments at Alaska's Fort Greely: "Today's successful test spotlights Alaska's continued strategic relevance in the Pacific theater. The test shows that we have turned the corner on technical issues with the GMD intercept vehicle and are moving forward to a new chapter in our nation's vital ballistic missile defense c… Continue Reading


06.20.14

Sen. Murkowski Applauds Omnibus Territories Act Passage in Senate

U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, today thanked her colleagues in the Senate for unanimously agreeing to pass legislation to improve and extend programs in U.S.-affiliated islands, the Omnibus Territories Act of 2013 (S. 1237). "Today's political climate is frustrating, and it certainly isn't an environment where any of us are able to get much across the finish line," Murkowski said. "That makes the Senate's passage of the Omnibus Territories Act on Wednesday night all the more satisfying. Di… Continue Reading


06.19.14

Sen. Murkowski: Natural Gas Exports Clearly in the Public Interest

U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, today encouraged the Obama administration to expedite its process for approving liquefied natural gas (LNG) export licenses to take advantage of the abundance of U.S. energy for the economic and security benefits of the nation. (Click for video of Sen. Murkowski's opening statement) "This hearing is being held in the midst of geopolitical turbulence - Ukraine is in turmoil, Iraq is on the brink, and energy is never far from any of these discussions," Mu… Continue Reading


06.19.14

Murkowski: Preserve Native Languages, Don’t Fail Another Generation

Senator Lisa Murkowski today challenged the Obama Administration's Initiative on American Indian and Alaska Native Education to aggressively advocate within the Administration, among school districts and teachers the link between Native language revitalization, increased academic achievement and well-being among our Native youth. "Those responsible for improving the education outcomes of our Native students must understand and take action knowing the moral gravity of inaction is another generat… Continue Reading


06.19.14

Murkowski J-1 Visa Amendment in Funding Bill Supports Fisheries Industry and Seafood Processors

Senator Lisa Murkowski today successfully added a key amendment to the 2015 State and Foreign Operations spending bill to restore the J-1 Visa program through Fiscal Year 2015 and help Alaska's seafood processors statewide hire needed staff - after the State Department had suspended visas due to concerns rising from Lower 48 activities. The J-1 program is an important policy that allows processing companies to recruit staff from outside the United States when their rural location and seasonal wo… Continue Reading


06.18.14

Murkowski Calls for VA Investigation, Transparency in Alaska

Senator Lisa Murkowski today called for a thorough, swift and independent investigation of alleged scheduling irregularities within the Alaska VA system and a full response to the longstanding concerns surrounding the Wasilla Community Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC). In a letter (attached) to the Department of Veterans Affairs Inspector General, Murkowski is pressing them to "expedite an inquiry into two matters related to the Alaska VA Healthcare System." After a New York Times report citing … Continue Reading


06.18.14

Murkowski Committee Work Brings Alaska Infrastructure Investment, Water Projects

Senator Lisa Murkowski assured that a number of provisions in the 2015 Energy and Water Development funding bill will improve or sustain current infrastructure projects in Alaska. By virtue of her position on the Senate Energy and Water Development Appropriations Subcommittee, she was able to work with colleagues to fund studies, research, port projects for small underdeveloped villages and energy innovations that will boost Alaska's economy. The bill passed through the subcommittee and heads… Continue Reading


06.18.14

Murkowski Highlights Value of Alaska’s Fisheries and Coastal Communities at International Summit

Senator Lisa Murkowski joined her Senate Oceans Caucus co-chair Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) at the Department of State's "Our Ocean" Conference to lead a discussion on America's leadership in managing fisheries on a sustainable basis. In her joint remarks, Murkowski said "We have a good thing going" with fisheries management in Alaska - citing it as a model for fisheries worldwide - while also discussing the importance of recently-passed treaties to combat pirate fishing and the continued vigilan… Continue Reading


06.17.14

Murkowski Touts Alaskan Diversity as American “Fabric of Society” Example

Senator Lisa Murkowski today gave an Alaskan welcome to immigrants from around the world becoming American citizens at a naturalization ceremony at the Smithsonian Institute's Museum of American History. (Murkowski applauds the new Americans - some waving American flags - after having spoken the Oath of Allegiance.) Joined by Department of Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson, Murkowski told the newest Americans from Iraq, Australia, Sierra Leone and El Salvador that their diversity w… Continue Reading


06.16.14

Murkowski Welcomes New FDA Recommendation: Eat More Fish

After delivering the keynote address at the Sustainable Seafood Seminar, Senator Lisa Murkowski today welcomed the Food and Drug Administration's revised guidance regarding the consumption of fish during pregnancy - recommending that pregnant women eat 2 to 3 servings per week, after a decade of steering them away. "We know that fish is brain food for us, and I thank the FDA for opening the door to improved cognition and neurodevelopment for the next generation of young Americans," said Murkows… Continue Reading


06.13.14

Murkowski Questions Legality of Guantanamo Release

Senator Lisa Murkowski and a number of her U.S. Senate colleagues are asking the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to look into the negotiations of the Department of Defense that resulted in the release of five high-ranking Taliban officials. Under the rule of law, in the 2014 National Defense Authorization Act, the Secretary of Defense is required to consult with, or at a minimum notify, Congress at least 30 days in advance of any transfer or release of Guantanamo inmates. The 2014 NDAA … Continue Reading


06.13.14

Murkowski Vows to Keep Fighting for Alaska’s Sustainable Fisheries

Senator Lisa Murkowski today spoke before federal and commercial seafood representatives at the Sustainable Seafood Seminar - pledging to continue her support for strong federal funding for fisheries management. Additionally, she reiterated her commitment to protect the seafood industry from threats posed by genetically-engineered salmon and third-party sustainable seafood certification schemes. (Murkowski speaks to Sustainable Seafood Seminar - Click here for video) As Co-Chair of the … Continue Reading

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