Newsroom

Schumer Provision Will Make Major Fed Funds Available as Grants for First Time in Years & Help Kickstart Projects Around the State – Large Number of Water & Sewer Main Breaks This Winter Highlight Importance of Getting Projects Moving Forward  With A Backlog of 279 Sewer Projects Awaiting Funding Throughout Upstate NY & Hudson Valley, Schumer Pushes NYS EFC To Use Maximum Amount of Fed Funds Recently Made Available as Grants; Would Free Up an Estimated $46M in Fed Funds... Read More

Mayor Bill de Blasio Highlighted the Importance of the Federal Funding & Repairing This Key Transit Hub  Floodwaters From Superstorm Sandy Caused Extensive Damage to South Ferry Terminal Station; MTA Station Was Closed for Years After Storm First Hit Schumer, Gillibrand, Nadler Announce Emergency Relief Funding to Rehabilitate MTA’s South Ferry Station & Protect Against Future Flooding; Work Includes Leak Remediation & Repairs to Station, Rail Tracks, Power Equipment &... Read More

In December, FEMA Announced It Had Agreed To Provide Fed Funding to Rebuild the School District’s Administration Building and Storage and Maintenance Facility Outside of the Floodplain – Now, More Than $5 Million in Funding Is On Its Way; Will Enable the School to Get First Part of Project Underway   Schumer, Gillibrand Vow to Continue to Push Feds to Get the Remaining Portion of the $23 Million Award Out the Door For Second Phase of Project   Schumer: Owego Apalachin... Read More

Washington County Economic Opportunity Council, Inc. Will Use Funding to Continue to Provide Early Education for Low-Income Children   U.S. Senators Charles E. Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand today announced $3,931,223 in federal funding for the Washington County Economic Opportunity Council, Inc., a community based organization in Hudson Falls. Schumer and Gillibrand said this funding will continue to support the organization’s efforts to improve education for low-income children at... Read More

Opportunities for Otsego, Inc. in Oneonta Will Use Funding to Continue to Provide Early Education for Low-Income Children   U.S. Senators Charles E. Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand today announced $3,317,564 in federal funding for Opportunities for Otsego, Inc., a community based organization in Otsego County. Schumer and Gillibrand said this funding will continue to support the organization’s efforts to improve education for low-income children at their earliest age, when major... Read More

Western New York’s Chautauqua Opportunities, Inc. Will Use Funding to Continue to Provide Early Education Programs for Low-Income Children U.S. Senators Charles E. Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand today announced $1,319,314.00 in federal funding for the Chautauqua Opportunities, Inc., a community based agency in Western New York. Senators Schumer and Gillibrand said that the funding support a new Early Head Start – Child Care Partnership program and expand the organization’s... Read More

In 2011, Hurricane Irene’s Wrath Collapsed Sewers, Damaged Two Manholes & Caused Road Instability, Slope Failure on Campbell Avenue; Storm Damage Forced The City Of Troy To Close The Road For Several Months   FEMA Originally Approved Project Cost of $400,000 to Rebuild & Rehab, But it Was Not Enough Due To The Complexity of Repairs; The Total Cost of Repairs for the City Was Well Over $1 Million, A Necessary Expense to Keep Residents Safe & Adjoining Sewer... Read More

TSA Pre-Check Has Been Successfully Installed at Syracuse Hancock International Airport, But In Order To Register For The Program Residents Must Travel All The Way to Oswego – Program Enables Travelers Deemed Safe To Enter Terminal With Expedited Screening Schumer Urges TSA To Bring A Pre-Check Enrollment Center To Syracuse Hancock International Airport to Make Air Travel Easier For Syracuse Residents – Rochester & Albany Have Enrollment Centers, Syracuse Should Too Schumer:... Read More

Schumer Urges the FAA to Finally Approve the MacArthur Airport Master Plan & Airport Layout Plan to Extend a Second Runway to Approx 7,000 Feet - MacArthur-Submitted Plan Has Languished on FAA's Desk for More Than a Year.  Schumer Cites February FAA Report Outlining Concerns That JFK, LGA & Newark Will Be Over-Capacity in 5 to 15 Years Due to Demand for Air Travel - Major Airlines Will Turn to Other Nearby Airports To Alleviate Delays, & Two 7000+ Ft. Runways Will Make MacArthur... Read More

Schumer, Following Personal Call to Alcoa CEO, Say He is Optimistic There Are No Reductions In Workforce Levels Or Smelting Capacity At Massena Planned Despite Current Down Market For Aluminum & Alcoa’s Global Reduction Of Smelting Capacity Schumer-Led Effort To Provide The Plant With A Steady Supply Of Clean And Affordable Power Has It Well Positioned For The Future  Schumer: I Will Watch This Situation Like A Hawk & Continue to Do Whatever I Can To Help Alcoa Thrive In The... Read More

A “60 Minutes” Report Revealed This Month That Lumber Liquidators Laminate Flooring Is Made In China & Likely Contains Unsafe Levels of Formaldehyde – Report Studied Wood Samples From New York, Which Did Not Meet Key Environmental Standards   Schumer Highlights Serious Concerns That Lumber Liquidator Wood is Polluting Air Inside NYC Apartments – With Generally Poor Ventilation – And Homes Recently Rebuilt After Superstorm Sandy;  Formaldehyde Is A... Read More

Northern Westchester Hospital Serves 350,000 Residents, But is Vulnerable During Major Storms; Hospital’s 45-Year Old Emergency Power System Failed During Superstorm Sandy, Cutting Off Power for 70 Hours & Leaving Doctors & Patients Scrambling – Failure During a Future Storm Could Leave Residents Without Emergency Care   Schumer, Gillibrand, Lowey Push FEMA For Funding That Would Enable Hospital to Rebuild Power System With Three Separate Switches – Current System... Read More

Taxpayers Who Did Not File 2011 Federal Tax Returns Are Eligible to Claim Tax Refunds If They File Their 2011 Returns By April 15 – New York Taxpayers Could Receive an Average Return of Nearly $700, But They Must Do This Before Grace Period is Up   Schumer Urges New Yorkers Who Are Eligible to Put Money Back In Their Pocket By Taking Advantage of This Opportunity Today, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer announced over 63,000 New York State residents have more than $62 million in... Read More

Children’s Health Insurance Program Is A Critical Lifeline for Low- To Moderate-income Children and Pregnant Women; Program Supports Comprehensive Care – CHIP Is Critical For Families Whose Income Is Too High to Qualify For Medicaid; A Family of 4 Can Make Up To $100K & Qualify for CHIP   Schumer Pushes Bill To Extend Program for Four Years, Wants Extension By End of Month; If CHIP Is Not Renewed, More Than 116,000 Upstate NY Families Could Lose Out on $414 Million in Fed... Read More

Recently, Two Journalists Who Were Vocal Critics of President Erdogan’s Administration & Were Arrested & Detained—Both Individuals Lead Major News Organizations; Prior To That Incident, Many Journalists Lost Their Jobs for Writing Material That Was Critical of President Erdogan and His Administration   Noting Turkey’s Long Tradition of Democracy and Tolerance of Civic Dissent, Schumer Urges State Department to Collaborate With Turkish Government To Address and... Read More

Funding Will Allow Organizations in Clinton, Franklin, Genesee, Monroe, Onondaga, Orleans & Westchester Counties to Provide Early Education Programs for Low-Income Children   U.S. Senators Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand today announced a total of $21,568,272 in federal funding for Head Start and Early Head Start Programs across Upstate New York. Schumer and Gillibrand said this funding would allow organizations in Clinton, Franklin, Genesee, Monroe, Onondaga, Orleans, and... Read More

Mount Vernon Neighborhood Health Center Network in Westchester Provides More Than 23,000 Patients Living in Poverty With Valuable Health Services, But is Currently Operating Without $700K in Medicaid Funds It Has Been Promised – Funding Has Been Awaiting Fed Approval For Over Two Years & Mt. Vernon Has Been Forced To Expend Its Own Reserves to Cover The Gap   Schumer Urges Centers of Medicare & Medicaid Services to Quickly Approve Mt. Vernon Neighborhood Health Center... Read More

Administration Proposed Cutting $200 Million from HUD’s Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program In Upcoming Fiscal Year – Rochester Received More Than $9.5 Million in Funding in 2014 Alone & It Is A Major Driver In City-Wide Development; CDBG Funding Has Allowed the City to Create and Retain Thousands of Local Jobs for Low-Income Workers CDBG Has Helped Rochester Fund Transformative Development Initiatives Each Year, Like Revitalizing the Historic Carriage Factory;... Read More

In 2013, Colonie Native Lauren Tanski Was Tragically Killed By Her Roommate’s Ex-Boyfriend, While Living in New Orleans – When Lauren Died, She Had $30K in Outstanding Fed Student Loan Debt & $60K in Private Student Loan Debt; Fed Loans Were Immediately Forgiven, but Private Loans Were Not; Schumer Worked With Family To Get Private Loans Forgiven, But Law To Protect Grieving Families is Needed   Schumer Announces Major Effort This Congress To Pass Legislation That Would... Read More

Fed Dept. of Housing & Urban Development Had Approved Hundreds of Thousands in Fed CDBG Funds To Infrastructure Projects In Towns & Villages Across Onondaga County, But Recently Rescinded Those Funds After New Census Data Lumped Communities Eligible To Receive Funds Together With Towns That Were Ineligible For Funding – HUD Then Backed Out Of Promise, Leaving Communities With Nowhere to Turn   Schumer Says HUD Should Not Change The Rules Mid-Game; Pushes HUD to Provide Funding... Read More