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.

06.28.13

Murkowski Challenges Director of National Intelligence on Surveillance

WASHINGTON, DC - With law-abiding Alaskans and Americans facing the prospect of secret federal government surveillance programs collecting their phone logs and Internet records in 'bulk collections,' Senator Lisa Murkowski today peppered the Director of National Intelligence with questions in a letter she co-signed with 25 other Senators. Recent disclosures of the FBI/NSA programs have led Murkowski to reassert - as she has for a decade - her grave concern over the government's secret interpret… Continue Reading


06.28.13

“You Think I Am Going to Die That Easy?”

WASHINGTON, DC - Senator Lisa Murkowski is releasing her 13th Veteran Spotlight installment today, featuring Wasilla resident Tyler Hall, a U.S. Army veteran who served as a combat engineer in Iraq, and in 2003 was the first Alaskan to be injured during Operation Iraqi Freedom. During his Veteran Spotlight interview, Hall recalls that generations of his family serving in the Army and the opportunity to travel around the world helped him decide to join on the delayed entry program right after he… Continue Reading


06.27.13

Murkowski Efforts for Healthier School Foods to be Implemented Nationwide

WASHINGTON, DC - Senator Lisa Murkowski today applauded the United States Department of Agriculture for issuing the final rules of implementing her legislation providing healthier food and beverages inside schools nationwide, as it announced the "Smart Snacks in Schools" program that will take effect in the 2014-2015 school year. USDA's action was required by legislation Senator Murkowski sponsored and which was enacted as part of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act. "America's obesity problem ha… Continue Reading


06.27.13

Murkowski Votes for Immigration Reform

WASHINGTON, DC - Senator Lisa Murkowski today joined 67 other Senators to cast her vote for S.744 the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Bill and shared the following statement afterwards: "I have always believed that immigration reform legislation should have teeth, heart and 21st century enhancements - and all three priorities have been reached through this bill. It's important for all of us to acknowledge that we have a broken immigration system that has resulted in 11 million undocumented ind… Continue Reading


06.27.13

Murkowski Addresses Alaska Infrastructure Needs, Saves Money

WASHINGTON, DC - Senator Lisa Murkowski made sure that Alaska's road, port and energy priorities were reflected in the FY2014 Energy and Water Appropriations bill - while working with her E&W Appropriations Subcommittee colleagues to make sure the measure is $1.96 billion below last year's total - before it passed out of the Senate Appropriations Committee today. Additionally, in an effort to find an 'offset' for the expenses these projects represent, Murkowski found $20 million within the … Continue Reading


06.26.13

Murkowski Responds to Supreme Court Ruling

WASHINGTON, DC - Senator Lisa Murkowski today shared her thoughts about the Supreme Court deciding the Defense of Marriage Act is unconstitutional: "I welcome today's Supreme Court decision to strike down the Defense of Marriage Act because the federal government should empower households, respect the decisions of states and otherwise get out of the way. This ruling represents victories for states' rights and equal treatment under the law." ###… Continue Reading


06.25.13

Alaska Delegation Welcomes Disaster Declaration for Interior

WASHINGTON, D.C.- Today the Alaska Congressional Delegation commended the Administration's response in issuing a major disaster declaration for the State of Alaska in areas of the Interior where Alaskans are still recovering from devastating damages caused by heavy spring floodwaters. The declaration comes only weeks after Senators Lisa Murkowski, Mark Begich and Congressman Don Young wrote in a letter to President Obama and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator Craig Fugate t… Continue Reading


06.25.13

Murkowski: U.S. Army Cuts Send “Mixed Signals” to Last Frontier

Washington, dc - Senator Lisa Murkowski today shared the following response to the United States Army decision to cut Fort Richardson manpower while adding troops to Fort Wainwright - resulting in 342 fewer U.S. Army soldiers in Alaska: "Alaska supports our men and women in uniform, as well as our veterans who have served valiantly in defense of our nation. Our connection to the military community is why our entire state stands ready to step up now that the Pentagon has declared the Asia-Pacif… Continue Reading


06.25.13

Murkowski Votes For Commerce Nominee Penny Pritzker

Washington, dc - Senator Lisa Murkowski today voted for Penny Priztker, President Obama's Nominee to head the Department of Commerce, issuing the following statement afterwards: "When I recently met with Ms. Pritzker, I was pleased to hear a woman willing to engage on a number of key Alaskan concerns - from Arctic development and fisheries issues to the use of electronic monitoring for small boats and the impact of Stellar sea lion restrictions on commercial fishermen. "Ms. Pritzker gave me ad… Continue Reading


06.25.13

Murkowski: Innovation Needed to Reverse Falling Timber Harvests

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, today called on U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell to take immediate steps to reverse declining timber harvests and return the Tongass National Forest to a working forest. (Click video for Sen. Murkowski's opening statement) Murkowski, the ranking member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, pressed Tidwell on the need to increase timber harvest in the Tongass to create jobs, stimulate local economies, and maintain the… Continue Reading


06.25.13

Sen. Murkowski Comments on Administration’s Climate Plan

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, today released the following statement in response to President Obama's speech on climate: "The central feature of the president's climate agenda is command-and-control regulations that will drive up energy costs for all Americans. This is exactly the opposite of what we should be seeking from our energy and environmental policies. "In the past several years, we've already seen substantial decreases in greenhouse gas emissions thanks to l… Continue Reading


06.24.13

Murkowski “Separation of Powers” Legal Challenge to Get Supreme Court Hearing

WASHINGTON, DC - In what is being called "a major constitutional test of executive power," the United States Supreme Court today agreed to hear arguments on President Barack Obama's controversial recess appointments, an act requested last month by Senator Lisa Murkowski and her Republican Senate colleagues (attached). By appointing four different government officials to positions when the Senate was not in recess, the DC Court of Appeals ruled this practice "would demolish the checks and balanc… Continue Reading


06.21.13

Sen. Murkowski Directs $50 Million for Cleanup of Abandoned Wells

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, this week won the support of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee for legislation that would provide $50 million for the cleanup of abandoned federal oil wells on current and former National Petroleum Reserve lands. The energy panel on Tuesday approved the Helium Stewardship Act (S. 783), which is expected to generate $495 million over the next 10 years through the sale of crude helium from the Federal Helium Reserve. NPR-A Le… Continue Reading


06.20.13

Murkowski Welcomes Renewable Energy Grants for Alaska Projects

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, today announced the awarding of $178,000 in U.S. Forest Service grants for renewable energy projects to the Chilkoot Indian Association and the Ketchikan Gateway Borough. The Woody Biomass Utilization Grants encourages the clearing of dead trees and other potential forest fire fuel from national forest lands to create renewable energy for heating and electricity, and protect communities and critical infrastructure from wildfires. Under the… Continue Reading


06.20.13

Murkowski’s Frankenfish Labeling Measure Passes Committee

WASHINGTON, DC - Senator Lisa Murkowski today won a major battle in the war over genetically modified salmon on Capitol Hill in the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee - as the amendment she introduced (attached) to mandating that 'Frankenfish' are labeled passed out of committee. Leading up to the vote, Appropriations Chair Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) asked Murkowski if she wanted a vote on her amendment (audio here), to which Alaska's senior Senator responded "I do if I'll win" to laughter and th… Continue Reading


06.20.13

Murkowski, Young Invite Jewell to Glacier Bay National Park

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, and U.S. Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska, joined together in a letter to Interior Secretary Sally Jewell to call upon her expertise and experience in the tourism industry to find a solution to the concessioner contract situation that is threatening to shut down Glacier Bay Lodge and the accompanying Day Boat Tour operation. "Both the Lodge and Day Boat Tour are integral to the Gustavus economy," Murkowski and Young wrote. "What troubles us is that… Continue Reading


06.19.13

Anti-Obesity “Champion” Murkowski Targeting America’s Obesity Crisis

WASHINGTON, D.C. - In her continued effort to promote health in America through fitness and nutrition, Senator Lisa Murkowski today co-sponsored bipartisan, bicameral legislation to target the growing national obesity epidemic. The Treat and Reduce Obesity Act that Senator Tom Carper (D-DE) introduced with Senator Murkowski - and in the House of Representative by Representatives Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA) and Ron Kind (D-WI) - would work to lower short- and long-term health care costs linked to o… Continue Reading


06.18.13

Murkowski’s Committee Work Reaps “Ten Point Plan” for Veterans Care

WASHINGTON, DC - Senator Lisa Murkowski today was pleased to address key Alaskan priorities for the state's military community through her work on the Military and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Subcommittee - including an unprecedented attempt to address the vast backlog of veterans' benefits claims within the Veterans Administration (VA). In addition to getting the VA to better address its treatment of Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Lou Gehrig's disease) through adding language to the MilCon… Continue Reading


06.18.13

Sen. Murkowski Applauds Passage of Bill to Rename Mount McKinley

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, today commended her colleagues on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee for helping advance legislation to officially restore the nation's tallest peak, Mount McKinley, to its traditional Koyukon Athabascan name, Denali. The energy panel on Tuesday approved the measure by voice vote, clearing it for consideration by the full Senate. (Photo credit: National Parks Service) "In Alaska, we don't refer to it as Mount McKinley; we… Continue Reading


06.18.13

Energy Committee Advances 12 Lands, Energy Bills to Full Senate

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, today applauded her colleagues on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee for advancing 12 energy and lands bills out of the panel for consideration by the full Senate. "It's important to acknowledge the work that has gone into these bills, as some have been worked on for many years," said Murkowski, the ranking Republican on the panel. "To be able get to a point where we can move these bills out on a bipartisan basis really says … Continue Reading

Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76 Page 77 Page 78 Page 79 Page 80 Page 81 Page 82 Page 83 Page 84 Page 85 Page 86 Page 87 Page 88 Page 89 Page 90 Page 91 Page 92 Page 93 Page 94 Page 95 Page 96 Page 97 Page 98 Page 99 Page 100 Page 101 Page 102 Page 103 Page 104 Page 105 Page 106 Page 107 Page 108 Page 109 Page 110 Page 111 Page 112 Page 113 Page 114 Page 115 Page 116 Page 117 Page 118 Page 119 Page 120 Page 121 Page 122 Page 123 Page 124 Page 125 Page 126 Page 127 Page 128 Page 129 Page 130 Page 131 Page 132 Page 133 Page 134 Page 135 Page 136 Page 137 Page 138 Page 139 Page 140 Page 141 Page 142 Page 143 Page 144 Page 145 Page 146 Page 147 Page 148 Page 149 Page 150 Page 151 Page 152 Page 153 Page 154 Page 155 Page 156 Page 157 Page 158 Page 159 Page 160 Page 161 Page 162 Page 163 Page 164 Page 165 Page 166 Page 167 Page 168 Page 169 Page 170 Page 171 Page 172 Page 173 Page 174 Page 175 Page 176 Page 177 Page 178 Page 179 Page 180 Page 181 Page 182 Page 183 Page 184 Page 185 Page 186 Page 187 Page 188 Page 189 Page 190 Page 191 Page 192 Page 193 Page 194 Page 195 Page 196 Page 197 Page 198 Page 199 Page 200 Page 201 Page 202 Page 203 Page 204 Page 205 Page 206 Page 207 Page 208 Page 209 Page 210 Page 211 Page 212 Page 213 Page 214 Page 215 Page 216 Page 217 Page 218 Page 219 Page 220 Page 221 Page 222 Page 223 Page 224 Page 225 Page 226
Showing page   of 226