Newsroom

With published reports today indicating that Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) leaders may be secondguessing their plans to cut oil production by up to 2.5 million barrels a day, US Senator Charles E. Schumer today asked President Bush to weigh in and urge the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and other OPEC leaders not to make the cuts, which were specifically designed to drive up the costs of gasoline and home heating oil prices. "It's too soon to say, but there may be a... Read More

With Tuesday's Senate vote on reauthorizing the Assault Weapons Ban expected to be VERY close, US Senator Charles Schumer today urged VP Cheney to be available to cast the tiebreaking vote in favor of renewing the Assault Weapons Ban if needed. As President of the US Senate, Cheney casts the deciding vote when there is a tie. In a letter being sent to the VicePresident today, "I expect that should there be a tie vote on the Assault Weapons Ban, you will fulfill the Presidents commitment... Read More

US Senator Charles E. Schumer said today that the worstcase scenario for New York dairy farmers has apparently been averted in the newly created free trade agreement with Australia. In response to fears that the agreement would open up New York's dairy markets to floods of cheap Australian imports, a measure that could cost New York dairy farmers billions in lost revenues, Schumer last month urged the President to ensure that the agreement protect US dairy producers from such an influx of... Read More

Joined by Caryn Battaglia, whose husband was brutally murdered by gang members and died on the steps of their Lynbrook home in September, US Senator Charles E. Schumer today unveiled sweeping bipartisan legislation to give prosecutors tough new tools to go after gang activity in New York. Gang slayings are up 80% over the last year in New York City, despite the historic lows in overall number of murders. "When a father of two can be shot and stabbed to death for absolutely no reason while... Read More

Standing with workers at the struggling Precision Grinding & Manufacturing factory in Rochester, US Senator Charles E. Schumer today detailed his new plan to get tough with China and keep manufacturing jobs in the Rochester/Finger Lakes area. With Rochester facing its highest unemployment rate of the last twenty years, Schumer detailed his bipartisan effort to get the Chinese government to stop manipulating the value of its currency (the yuan), a practice that gives the Chinese an unfair... Read More

US Senator Charles E. Schumer today announced that he has received assurances from the Army that the 105th Military Police unit currently in Iraq will leave Iraq in early May and that its service will be complete June 17. The unit, based at the Masten Avenue Armory in Buffalo, was to return home in April but was told this week that its stay has been extended. With their families concerned that the stay had been extended indefinitely, Schumer today called the Army and demanded a firm date for... Read More

Armed with a new study showing that the average American family with two cars will be forced to spend most of their federal tax rebate on increased gas prices, US Senators Charles Schumer, Barbara Boxer, and Harry Reid today asked President Bush to immediately to stop filling and instead tap the Strategic Petroleum Reserves (SPR) to increase supplies and reduce the cost of driving for American families. "The $400 tax cut was passed to put extra money in the taxpayers' hands, but instead... Read More

US Senator Charles E. Schumer today invited the President of the Ivory Coast, S.E.M. Laurent Gbagbo, to come to Fulton to tour the New York Chocolate plant and meet with its developers. Schumer said that having the top official from the Ivory Coast see firsthand the plans for what will be one of his nation's top economic enterprises for its cocoa producers, will give the project further credibility and could encourage the consortium to get even more active at Fulton. "What's... Read More

The proposed company that would result from a Bank of America/Fleet merger should have a representative of Upstate New York on its Board of Directors, US Senator Charles E. Schumer said today. Schumer said that the region should be represented in company deliberations to ensure that Fleet's strong presence in the area is maintained and that decisions affecting jobs and other major concerns include input from someone knowledgeable in and protective of the area. "I've spoken with the... Read More

US Senator Charles E. Schumer today unveiled sweeping bipartisan legislation that would give prosecutors tough new tools to go after gang activity in Newburgh, where hundreds of gang members have been identified by local law enforcement. Schumer said that in light of the occurrence of gang activity in the area it is vital that law enforcement be beefed up with more personnel, stronger punishments for criminals, and more money to fund special toughoncrime programs. "It's not something we... Read More

Armed with a new study showing that the average New York family with 2 cars will be forced to spend their entire $400 federal tax rebate on increased gas prices, US Senator Charles E. Schumer today asked President Bush to immediately to stop filling and instead tap the Strategic Petroleum Reserves (SPR), to increase supplies and reduce the cost of driving for New Yorkers. "The $400 tax cut was passed to put extra money in the taxpayers' hands, but instead it slipped right through their... Read More

Standing outside an East Side IRT subway station, US Senator Charles E. Schumer today said that the tragic terrorist bombings in Madrid this week should serve as a wakeup call to the United States to finally get serious about improving rail security. In light of this week's events, Schumer proposed a 3point plan to speed up the development of bombdetecting sensors for subway and rail stations, provide more federal funds to help cashstrapped cities and transit systems pay for additional... Read More

US Senator Charles E. Schumer announced today that his office has secured visas from the US State Department so that family members of US Army Staff Sgt. Anthony S. Lagman, the Yonkers native who was killed in Afghanistan on Thursday, will be able to travel to the United States for his funeral at Calverton National Cemetery. "After he sacrificed his life defending our Nation, Sergeant Lagman's family ought to be able to see their nephew and cousin be buried at Calverton National... Read More

US Senator Charles E. Schumer author of the 1994 Crime Bill today announced that the Town of Newburgh Police Department has received a $150,000 federal grant from the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) program. The money will be used to hire two new fulltime officers as part of the bills goal to add new cops to the beat. As we fight the war on terrorism, its vital that we ensure that our day to day crime fighting efforts continue, Schumer said. These grants will help local police... Read More

Schumer details cuts each NY county faces; Capital Region fire departments could lose $2.5 million; Central NY $1.5 m; Rochester/Finger Lakes $2 m; Hudson Valley $2.9 m; North Country $2.2 m; Southern Tier $2.6 m; Western NY $3.9 m New York fire departments could lose out on over $18 million for equipment, training, and fire trucks next year under the Administration's new federal budget proposal, US Senator Charles E. Schumer warned today. Schumer released a new report showing that the... Read More

US Senator Charles E. Schumer today said that he supports onetime Hudson resident Ansar Mahmood's application for a supervised release and deferred deportation that would enable him to stay in the country. Mahmood, who was cleared of wrongful suspicions of terrorist connections, has served time in the Batavia Detention Center since February, 2002 for a nonviolent felony and has been threatened with deportation. "As I've said before, I'm sympathetic to Ansar Mahmood,"... Read More

With an Amtrak fiscal crisis threatening to shut down the company's rail service this year, US Senator Charles E. Schumer today unveiled a proposal to inject Amtrak with the $1.8 billion the company needs to maintain and improve its service in New York State. Schumer's proposal comes on the heels of proposed cuts to the Amtrak budget that would shut down Amtrak completely this year and President David Gunn's visit to the area Saturday to detail the dire situation. "If you shut... Read More

US Senator Charles E. Schumer announced today that he has received assurances from Kraft Senior Vice President and General Counsel Mark Firestone that the Cool Whip plant in Avon is not a priority for closure. After Kraft announced last week that it will be making significant unspecified cuts to its workforce, there were concerns that the Livingston County plant was in jeopardy, leading Schumer to lobby the company to keep them. "The good news is that the Cool Whip plant is not likely to... Read More

US Senator Charles Schumer, author of the 1994 Crime Bill, today announced that several New York school districts will receive federal grants under the bills Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) program. The money will be used to hire community police officers to be placed within the citys school system. Schumer said that grants worth $125,000 will go to Cortland, the Village of East Aurora and Ogdensburg to hire one officer each and $214,896 will go to Chenango County to hire two... Read More

US Senator Charles Schumer today pressed the General Services Administration (GSA) to keep its commitment and retain Buffalo's 1,200 federal employees in the city's downtown core. GSA recently announced that it would expand its search area for a new Buffalo location to outside of downtown for employees being relocated from the Dulski Federal Building. Schumer said that keeping the jobs in downtown is vital for building the area into a thriving economic center for growth. "Downtown... Read More