Newsroom

U.S. Senators Charles E. Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand today announced over $5 million in federal funding for the New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). The funding will be provided through the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) Public Assistance Program and will reimburse the City for the Superstorm Sandy's damage to 16 pump stations in Manhattan, Staten Island, Brooklyn and Queens.   "Superstorm Sandy seriously damaged sixteen pumping stations all throughout New... Read More

Today, during a Senate Finance Committee hearing on the nomination of Marilyn Tavenner to be the Administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer highlighted several top priorities, including the unfair situation facing Samaritan Medical Center in Watertown because of a 2011 misclassification of its medical residency program. Samaritan Medical is the primary hospital in the area serving over 120,000 New Yorkers, has 246 acute care beds, and... Read More

Today, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer announced that Lockheed Martin Mission Systems and Sensors in Owego has received a Navy contract award totaling $13,516,318 to extend a previously awarded contract for the upgrade of data and software systems of MH60R helicopters. This award will improve the ability of the helicopter to transmit data from its sensors, providing more information and a better understanding of the battle space to military commanders. The work will take place at the Owego... Read More

Today, U.S. Senators Charles E. Schumer and Kirsten E. Gillibrand announced that the Clifton Fire Department, the Sea Breeze Volunteer Fire Department, and the Point Pleasant Fire District will receive a total of $279,639 in federal grants in Round 20 of the FY12 Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) Program. AFG awards are administered by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and are designed to help firefighters and other first responders... Read More

Today, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer announced that the Department of Defense (DoD) has heeded his call and officially restored the requirement that all U.S. military steel be 100% made in the U.S., boosting the strength of New York steel manufacturers like Buffalo Amory LLC in Tonawanda. In 2009, the DoD changed the definition of "domestically produced" to mean that only the secondary finishing process would have to be done in the U.S., which has meant that foreignmade steel can enter the... Read More

Today, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer secured a commitment from the new owners of Greek Peak in Cortland to preserve the nearly 1,000 jobs at the resort and add new ones during an expansion that is being considered. Schumer has long fought to keep the resort and all of its employees up and running during weatherinduced poor ski seasons and a financial hardship caused by a failed private lender. Schumer has repetitively said, allowing Greek Peak to shut down its slopes would leave thousands of... Read More

Today, at the Slyboro Cider House in Granville, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer unveiled a new plan to boost the sales for New York's over 20 existing hard apple cider producers and to allow the over 650 apple growers to expand their business and add this increasingly popular craft beverage to their product line. Schumer highlighted that the Capital Region boasts 3,648 acres of apple orchards that are primed to expand and produce more hard cider. Schumer explained that the alcohol content of New... Read More

U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer today urged the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) to provide $2 million in badly needed funds for the design and construction of a new Wyandanch Train Station in the Town of Babylon. The Town has already secured $2 million in federal funding for other projects that no longer need the resources, but administrative hurdles could prevent the funds from being used in the most effective manner - towards the train station.  Schumer today urged the Department of... Read More

Today, U.S. Senators Charles E. Schumer and Kirsten E. Gillibrand announced that the Town of Hopewell has received a Water and Waste Disposal Loan and Grant for a total of $1,008,000 from the U.S. Department of Agriculture - Rural Development's Water and Waste Disposal Loan and Grant Program. The funding will be used to install new water mains and improve access to clean and purified water for Hopewell area residents along NYS Route 488 and County Road #47.   "Supporting New York's rural... Read More

Today, at Eastern View Nursery & Dutchess Hops in Lagrangeville, U.S. Senator Charles joined local Dutchess County hops farmers to help provide federal backing for New York's first major commercial 'hop yard' in Dutchess County. Specifically, Schumer urged the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Small Business Administration to provide critical financing for the equipment needed to establish a cooperative of Hudson Valley hops farmers and craft breweries, that will produce locally... Read More

Today, at Fryer Machine Systems in Patterson , U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer joined Putnam County business leaders and representatives of Westchester Community College to launch a plan that ensures local community colleges are working to match student skills with local hightech manufacturing openings. The legislation called the  America Works Act restructures the way that workforce training programs are financed: under the bill, programs that provide portable, industryrecognized credentials to... Read More

New York, NY  U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer today announced that he is urging the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to take steps to prevent a potentially significant increase in violent prescription drug thefts and addiction that could be caused by the release of a generic version of Oxycodone next month.  A generic version of the highly addictive painkiller loses patent protection in April. There is currently no requirement that generic versions have the "antiabuse" features currently used... Read More

U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer today called on the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to reverse its decision that would indefinitely postpone a sixday athletic event in Buffalo, "The 2013 Veterans Golden Age Games." The Buffalo community has been planning the event since 2007, which was projected to garner over $2 million and over 2,500 people were expected to attend the event, including 1,000 veterans. The VA has yet to state a specific reason for postponing the event although similar events... Read More

WASHINGTON, DC   U.S. Senators Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand announced Senate committee passage of legislation to establish the Harriet Tubman Home in Auburn as a National Historical Park, which will also encompass the Tubman Home for the Aged, the Thompson Memorial AME Zion Church and Rectory.  The bill also establishes the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Historical Park in Maryland.  Schumer and Gillibrand are sponsors of the Senate legislation, in conjunction with... Read More

U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer, U.S. Senator Kirsten E. Gillibrand and Congressman Tim Bishop today announced $4,023,035 million of Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Public Assistance funding for Suffolk County, which will reimburse the cost of debris removal in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy.   "Superstorm Sandy destroyed neighborhoods throughout Suffolk County, creating a massive cleanup effort for Suffolk County's sanitation department and placing a burden on local taxpayers,"... Read More

Today, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer called on the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to unlock critical funding necessary for the Orange County Airport to move forward with improvements to increase airport safety and spur economic activity. Specifically, Schumer urged the FAA to approve the airport's application for $2.5 million in funding through the Airport Improvement Program (AIP) for a critical runway realignment project, which will bring the airport into compliance with FAA's Runway... Read More

Today, during a press conference call, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer revealed new legislation called 'Andrew's Law', in honor of his constituent Andrew Prior, who was tragically killed by a drunk driver shortly after graduating from college. Andrew Prior had one federal loan and three outstanding private student loans at the time of his death, which were cosigned by Andrew's parents, Mr. and Mrs. Prior. The federal loan and two of the private loans were forgiven shortly after Andrew's passing,... Read More

Today, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer announced major progress in his pursuit to keep dozens of stream and river gauges in the Susquehanna River Basin online. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has announced that instead of March, when the gauges were slated to be shut off, the federal agency will now keep them online until June 1 st. USGS plans to keep these gauges online, based on confidence in Schumer's efforts to work with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to provide... Read More

U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer today called on the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to provide additional Sandy services for taxpayers in areas that were seriously impacted by the storm  In response to questions about tax treatment of Sandy payments or losses, the IRS has created special assistance hours and a Saturday Open House to taxpayers . The locations for these services are currently in neighborhoods that were not necessarily impacted by the storm. Schumer today called on the IRS to... Read More

Today at Kingston Point Rotary Park, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer urged the Surface Transportation Board (STB) to swiftly approve Ulster County's request to "railbank" the abandoned Ulster and Delaware Rail Tracks between Ashokan Reservoir and the Walkway over the Hudson, to allow Ulster County to create the scenic Catskill Mountain Rail Trail (CMRT). This federal approval is the lynchpin for the project to move forward and create a beautiful recreational rail trail that would eventually pass... Read More