Newsroom

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

Today, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer urged the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to swiftly review a request by Launch New York to receive notforprofit status so that promised grant funding that hinges on this status, such as federal Economic Development Administration funding, is not delayed or lost altogether. Launch New York is a new Venture Development Organization led by the University at Buffalo. Typically, achieving notforprofit status can take about 18 months, but Schumer is urging the... Read More

Today,U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer called on his colleagues to pass the bipartisan Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) that would give law enforcement the necessary tools to fight back against rampant domestic violence throughout Upstate New York. Schumer's call comes amidst new figures from the NYS Division of Criminal Justice Services that show about 43,782 domestic abuse incidents in which law enforcement was called to the scene in 2011 in Upstate New York. VAWA, which is expected to come... Read More

Today, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer urged the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to set aside a portion of its disaster relief funding recently signed into law, in order to keep dozens of stream and river gauges in the Susquehanna River Basin online. Specifically, in the Sandy supplemental bill, NOAA received a pot of $25 million to "improve weather forecasting and hurricane intensity forecasting". The U.S. Geological Survey recently listed 18 stream gauges and 16... Read More

Today, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer urged the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to swiftly review a request by Symphoria - comprised of musicians from the nowdefunct Syracuse Symphony Orchestra - to receive notforprofit status so the group of professional musicians could perform again, and continue to attract scores of classical music enthusiasts to Central New York. Shortly after the Syracuse Symphony Orchestra filed for bankruptcy in 2011, Schumer traveled to Syracuse and publically pledged to... Read More

U.S. Senators Charles E. Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand today called on the Office of Management and Budget and the Department of Energy to increase funding to its Nuclear Physics program by an additional $50 million for next fiscal year, citing a recent recommendation from the Nuclear Science Advisory Committee. The U.S. Department of Energy and National Science Foundation advisory committee was recently charged with issuing a report evaluating scientific priorities under a flatfunding or... Read More

Today, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer announced that the Canadian Consulate completed their process of adding two additional employees to focus on Upstate and Western New York late last week, and the employees are now working in the Buffalo region. In June 2012, following news of the Canadian government's plans to close the consulate completely, Schumer urged that the Canadian government reverse its penny wise and pound foolish decision to close the western New York consulate, and at least... Read More

Today, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer called on the Department of Interior's (DOI) Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) to reject the Oklahomabased SenecaCayuga Nation's landintotrust application in Cayuga and Seneca counties. Schumer said that the outofstate tribe's application to place 229 acres of land into trust comes after the BIA opposed a similar application five years ago, and without the consent from state or county stakeholders. Schumer noted that placement of this populated land into trust... Read More

U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer today revealed that the Sandy aid package, set to receive a vote on the Senate floor Monday night, will provide millions of dollars in funding for dozens of damaged and delayed projects on Long Island and New York City that will protect the coastline from future storms. In a letter to Jo Ellen Darcy, Assistant Secretary of the Army, Schumer discussed the implementation of these Army Corps of Engineer projects, which will include funding for a comprehensive study... Read More

Washington, DC - In the remaining days before the 2013 Presidential Inaugural Ceremonies, the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies (JCCIC) is issuing the following advisory to help people who plan to attend the swearingin ceremonies. The following is a special alert for people who will have tickets to the swearingin, but may have questions about getting to and from the event that morning. Because of the large crowds and the potential for inclement weather, those people with... Read More

Today, standing at The College of St. Rose, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer announced that his legislation, the American Opportunity Tax Credit (AOTC), was included in the 11 thhour of the fiscal cliff deal, and will continue to provide up to $2,500 in college tuition tax credits to middleclass families for the next five years. Schumer fought to ensure his college tuition tax credit made it into the final package, which will continue help the vast majority of Capital Region families and... Read More

U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer launched his twopronged plan to begin redevelopment of the longblighted Hudson Valley landmark known as the Glenwood Power Plant by the end of this year, potentially generating hundreds of new jobs and bringing new economic activity to this waterfront parcel for the first time in decades. Schumer fought successfully at year's end to extend the New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC), and urged the Department of Treasury to strongly consider an allocation for the project.... Read More

U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer and Congressman Michael Grimm (NY11) today requested a personal meeting with National Park Service Director (NPS) Jonathan Jarvis to discuss the fate of Nichols Marina at Great Kills Park on Staten Island. Earlier in December, Schumer and Grimm called on NPS to commit to maintaining the marina at Great Kills Park and allow it to rebuild after 350 of its boat slips were swept away due to Superstorm Sandy. Schumer and Grimm have advocated on behalf of the "Committee... Read More

New York, NY - U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer, today called on Apple Inc. to immediately raise the age restriction on the newly release "NRA: Practice Range" App that allows kids to play at virtual target practice - including shooting at animated coffins - with assault weapons, including the one used at last month's Sandy Hook Massacre.  With the leaders of the National Rifle Association blaming the nation's gun violence in large part on violent video games and movies, Schumer said that their... Read More

New York, NY - U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer today called on the nation's largest gun retailers to participate in a temporary moratorium on selling assaultstyle rifles until Congress has considered legislation to reduce gun violence.  Since the Sandy Hook massacre, sales of assaultstyle rifles have skyrocketed, and are poised to grow even further during an upcoming "Gun Appreciation Day" organized by extreme progun activists.   Gun Appreciation Day, to be held later this month, encourages... Read More