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.

06.12.13

Murkowski Chides Washington, D.C. Dictating Rural Education Policies

WASHINGTON, D.C. - There are at least fifteen different and distinct federal definitions of 'rural' in the U.S. government - eleven alone from an agricultural policy perspective - and today Senator Lisa Murkowski argued for more sensible policies to address America's rural regions that reflects the needs of the nation's less populated areas. This priority was a driving force in Murkowski introducing The Educational Accountability and State Flexibility Act, which would take power from Washington… Continue Reading


06.11.13

Murkowski to Testify on Importance of Honoring Hmong Allies

ANCHORAGE, AK - Though Senator Lisa Murkowski is regularly the one posing questions towards U.S. Senate committee witnesses, Murkowski herself has been invited to testify tomorrow before the Veterans Affairs Committee about the value and importance of her bill that would give an enduring honor to Hmong covert operations volunteers who came to America's aid during the Vietnam War - by allowing these veterans to be buried in national cemeteries. During Vietnam, the CIA conducted covert operations… Continue Reading


06.11.13

Murkowski Works to Alaskanize No Child Left Behind Law

WASHINGTON, D.C. - As the United States Senate opens discussions this week on reauthorizing the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) education law, Senator Lisa Murkowski has introduced two pieces of legislation designed to improve the one-size-fits-all policies that are clearly not working for Alaska's students. The two bills she has introduced would work to address the frightening national level of high school dropouts and ensure accountability for billions in federal tax dollars, while allowing Alas… Continue Reading


06.10.13

Murkowski Fends Off ‘Beat the Clock’ Tactic, Gets One Month Eielson Hearings Reprieve

ANCHORAGE, AK - Senator Lisa Murkowski today welcomed the news that the United States Air Force will delay hearings on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement regarding their proposed downsizing of Eielson Air Force Base. The hearings were initially scheduled to begin next Monday - meaning only ten business days after the DEIS release - but now will be postponed until the week of July 15th, according to the Air Force's official Eielson DEIS website. "While I strongly disagree with the finding… Continue Reading


06.07.13

Murkowski: No “Blank Check” for Government on Privacy, Surveillance

WASHINGTON, DC - Ten years after urging Congress to rethink federal surveillance policies and address concerns about the potential infringement of civil liberties - beginning a decade of privacy rights vigilance on behalf of Alaskans - Senator Lisa Murkowski today shared her concerns with Alaskans at the Obama administration's far-reaching tracking of Americans phone call records and Internet data mining, saying: "Alaskans believe the government has no business snooping around our property, our… Continue Reading


06.06.13

Murkowski Presses Interior Secretary on Key Alaskan Concerns

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senator Lisa Murkowski today pressed Interior Secretary Sally Jewell on her department's handling of decades-old exploration wells drilled by the federal government in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPR-A), and on the slow pace of conveying land owed to the state of Alaska and Alaska Natives. (Click for video of Sen. Murkowski's opening statement.) NPR-A Legacy Wells "The department is presiding over an environmental disaster in the NPR-A that must be remedied,… Continue Reading


06.06.13

AG to Murkowski: I Will Appeal Stevens Prosecutors “Given a Pass”

WASHINGTON, DC - Over a year after a team of Department of Justice prosecutors was found to have hidden evidence and other professional misconduct in the trial of Senator Ted Stevens and months after the punishment meted out to them was overturned, Senator Lisa Murkowski questioned Attorney General Eric Holder about the matter and asked if he planned to allow this dubious decision to stand, because she said it seems to Alaskans that while some inside the DoJ were found accountable, many higher-… Continue Reading


06.06.13

Murkowski Co-Sponsoring Effort to Protect Military Sexual Assault Victims from Retaliation

WASHINGTON, DC - Senator Lisa Murkowski today announced her continued support to combat military sexual assault through every angle, co-sponsoring S. 1092, legislation aimed at increasing protections for victims, particularly from possible retaliation after reporting a violation. An outspoken advocate for the needed culture change within the military, Murkowski believes that the current rates of military sexual assault are a fraction of the actual occurrences - with victims frequently reluctant… Continue Reading


06.05.13

Murkowski Changes TSA’s Mind on Knife Threat to Air Safety

WASHINGTON, DC-Senator Lisa Murkowski is welcoming the Transportation Security Administration reversing course on its plan to begin allowing knives back on passenger airplanes. Today's announcement from the TSA comes after passengers, pilots, and flight attendants nationwide spoke out against the policy change, with Murkowski leading the charge in a three-month campaign that included filing legislation, letters of pressure to department heads, and questioning Department of Homeland Security Secr… Continue Reading


06.05.13

Murkowski Fighting to Bring “Veterans’ Claims into the Daylight”

WASHINGTON, DC - As part of her ongoing attempt to break the logjam of delays for veterans' benefits, Senator Lisa Murkowski is co-sponsoring a bill designed to improve the needlessly-bureaucratic process and cut some paperwork timelines in half. S. 674, the Accountability for Veterans Act would streamline the process while also demanding answers for any delays incurred along the way in records requests between the Veterans Administration and Department of Defense (DoD) or Social Security Admin… Continue Reading


06.04.13

Alaska-Hawaii Delegations Continue Tradition of Working Together for Native Peoples

WASHINGTON- U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Mark Begich (D-AK), Brian Schatz (D-HI) and Mazie Hirono (D-HI) today continued the long legacy of two states working together and working for their native populations. The Senators were joined by roughly 100 Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian business, policy, and community leaders to discuss a range of topics including ways to improve education in Native communities, and how to stimulate Native owned businesses. The roundtable was hosted by the … Continue Reading


06.04.13

Over 130 Alaskans Hired Due to Murkowski Local Hire Efforts

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senator Lisa Murkowski welcomed news from the Department of the Interior that more than 130 Alaskans are benefiting from a Department-wide local hire program she was able to restore in a recent Department of the Interior spending bill through her role as the top Republican on the Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittee. "On the subcommittee, we worked extremely hard to improve the local-hire program that for years had been bogged down and misinterpreted by federal governm… Continue Reading


06.03.13

Murkowski Welcomes 10 of Alaska’s Brightest to Washington, D.C.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senator Lisa Murkowski this week is welcoming her first session of summer interns to observe and participate in the daily operations of the United States Senate and observe the legislative process firsthand. Senator Murkowski's D.C. office is the only U.S. Senate office on Capitol Hill to bring on newly-graduated high school students for full-time help. The young Alaskans from across the state will spend 4 weeks assisting in clerical and administrative tasks such as directin… Continue Reading


06.03.13

Senator Lisa Murkowski Statement on the Passing of Senator Frank Lautenberg

WASHINGTON, DC - Senator Lisa Murkowski today released the following statement regarding the death of Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) at age 89: "With my colleagues and Americans nationwide, I mourn the loss of Senator Frank Lautenberg. He truly was a humble self-made man who plunged himself into every effort he joined - whether through his lifelong commitment to the military he served in WWII, his tremendous success in the private sector, or his Senate career where he had a profound impac… Continue Reading


05.31.13

Murkowski Statement on “Seriously Flawed” Eielson Draft EIS

Senator Lisa Murkowski today took issue with the United States Air Force's Draft Environmental Impact Statement, challenging its tone, timing and omissions: "If this fact-finding Air Force Draft Environmental Impact Statement is supposed to represent a fair and balanced opening look at the pro's and con's of relocating the F-16 Aggressor Squadron, somebody has a finger on the scale. In its initial findings, the U.S. Air Force seems to be telegraphing its intent through this DEIS, and the Backdo… Continue Reading


05.31.13

Murkowski on Passing of Alaska Icon Katie John

ANCHORAGE, AK - Senator Lisa Murkowski today shared her thoughts upon hearing the news that Athabascan elder Katie John has died: "Katie John was an Alaska icon who devoted her life to ensuring that her Ahtna people had the opportunity to carry on traditional subsistence fishing in their ancestral homeland. She was unafraid to challenge any bureaucrat standing between her Native people and their opportunity to fish, whether that was a State of Alaska that didn't recognize that ANILCA's rural pr… Continue Reading


05.29.13

Murkowski Leveling Playing Field for Alaska Brewers, Boosting Job Creation

WASHINGTON, DC - Senator Lisa Murkowski will announce today that she is co-sponsoring S.917, the "Small Brewer Reinvestment and Expanding Workforce (BREW) Act" at a Kodiak Island Brewing Company event, in an effort to promote job growth, spur the $150 million industry in the state and level the playing field for Alaska's small brewery and microbrew economy against big international conglomerates. Murkowski discussed the bill with the owner of the Kodiak Island Brewing Company earlier this month… Continue Reading


05.27.13

Our Nation is Ever Grateful - Senator Murkowski’s Memorial Day Message

Washington, D.C.- Senator Lisa Murkowski today offered the following statement in observance of Memorial Day: Click image to watch video "This Memorial Day, let us pause and take a moment to reflect on the brave men and women of our armed services who have chosen to serve our great country. I call upon Alaskans across the state to thank those who have served and to always remember those who have made the ultimate sacrifice in the defense of our freedoms. "Memorial Day is a solemn occasion,… Continue Reading


05.24.13

Murkowski Honors Vietnam Veteran, Alaskan Veteran Advocate

WASHINGTON, DC - Senator Lisa Murkowski is releasing her 12th Veteran Spotlight installment today, featuring Ron Travis of Big Lake. Travis, a U.S. Navy veteran who served in Vietnam, has devoted his life to serving his fellow veterans. These days, Travis is working to start the Last Frontier Honor Flight, the first non-profit in Alaska dedicated to bringing veterans to Washington, DC to visit the memorials dedicated to their service. During his Veteran Spotlight interview, Travis talks about … Continue Reading


05.24.13

Murkowski Rips Border Crossing Fee Proposal

WASHINGTON, DC - Senator Lisa Murkowski today voiced her concerns over the wide range of harmful consequences Alaska and other border states would suffer if a proposed border-crossing fee becomes a reality for vehicle and even pedestrian traffic - from restricting tourism and trade to greatly limiting access to shopping, dining, and attending religious service. She shared these scenarios in a letter to both the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) as well as the ranking members of the Senate H… Continue Reading

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