Press Releases
Senator Duckworth Calls on Army, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard and National Guard Bureau to Ban the Display of the Confederate Battle Flag
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - Combat Veteran and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today wrote to the leaders of the U.S. Army, U.S. Navy, U.S. Air Force, U.S. Coast Guard and National Guard Bureau to call on each of them to prohibit the display of the Confederate Battle Flag. These requests submitted by Duckworth, a former Army Black Hawk pilot who served in the Reserve Forces for 23 years and a member of the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee, followed the decisive action by the U.S. Marine Corps … Continue Reading
June 05, 2020
On World Environment Day, Duckworth, Carper and Booker Highlight Senate Environmental Justice Caucus Successes
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Tom Carper (D-DE) and Cory Booker (D-NJ), co-founders of the Senate Environmental Justice Caucus, commemorated World Environmental Day today by highlight the work of the Caucus and its successes since its founding in 2019. Over the past year, the Senate Environmental Justice Caucus and its 17 members have worked to help address racial justice issues by assisting environmental justice groups that seek to engage Congress, worked to … Continue Reading
June 05, 2020
Senator Duckworth, Former Army Black Hawk Pilot, Demands Investigations into Military Helicopters Threatening American Civilians
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - Combat Veteran and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) is demanding investigations by and information from both the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) after multiple reports of low-flying military aircraft intimidating large groups of Americans in Washington, D.C., followed Donald Trump's threats of military action against those protesting the killing of George Floyd on Monday evening. Duckworth, a former Army Black Hawk pilot who … Continue Reading
June 05, 2020
Duckworth Statement on Senate Passage of Paycheck Protection Program Extension
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), member of the Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee, released the following statement after the Senate unanimously passed a bipartisan bill to extend the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), allowing borrowers 24 weeks instead of eight weeks to use their loans and greater flexibility in using the funds. "Small businesses employ millions of Illinoisans and many of them are struggling to survive during the COVID-19 pandemic. … Continue Reading
June 04, 2020
Duckworth, Markey Urge SBA and Treasury to Streamline and Simplify the Paycheck Protection Program’s Loan Forgiveness Process for Small Dollar Borrowers
[WASHINGTON, DC] - U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Ed Markey (D-MA), both members of the Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship (SBE) Committee, today requested the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) and U.S. Department of the Treasury implement a streamlined Paycheck Protection Program loan forgiveness application and reduce paperwork for borrowers with loans of $100,000 or less. The letter also asks SBA and Treasury to provide these borrowers with reasonable safe harbors … Continue Reading
June 04, 2020
Duckworth Introduces Bill to Evaluate Barriers Facing Minorities Looking to Serve in Elite Forces
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - Combat Veteran and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, today introduced the Equality in Leadership and Inclusion in Top Elements (ELITE) Act of 2020 that would require the Department of Defense to conduct a study through a Federally Funded Research and Development Center (FFRDC) on the barriers facing minorities from serving in certain elite units of the Armed Forces, including pilots and special operations. Representative … Continue Reading
June 04, 2020
Duckworth, Co-Chair of the Senate Environmental Justice Caucus, Condemns President Trump’s Move to Waive Public Health Laws Amid COVID-19 Pandemic, National Unrest Due to Racial Injustice
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), co-founder of the Senate's first-ever Environmental Justice Caucus, released a statement in response to Trump's misguided Executive Order that will put communities at risk: "The COVID-19 pandemic is shining a bright yet disheartening light on the unfair cumulative impacts pollution has on low income communities and communities of color, many of which are made worse by lack of access to healthcare. Illinoisans-and Americans across the … Continue Reading
June 03, 2020
Duckworth, Klobuchar, Rounds, Sullivan Introduce Legislation to Help Servicemembers and Veterans Exposed to Burn Pits Receive Proper Care during Coronavirus Pandemic
[WASHINGTON, DC] - Combat Veteran and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth joined Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Mike Rounds (R-SD) and Dan Sullivan (R-AK) in introducing legislation to ensure that servicemembers and veterans with previous exposure to burn pits receive the care they need during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Pandemic Care for Burn Pits Exposure Act would require the Department of Defense (DOD) and Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to ask servicemembers and veterans who have tested … Continue Reading
June 02, 2020
Duckworth, Durbin, Senate Democrats Introduce Resolution Supporting Constitutional Right to Peacefully Protest & Condemning President Trump’s Order to Tear Gas Peaceful Protestors Last Night
[WASHINGTON, DC] - Today, on the floor of the U.S. Senate, U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Dick Durbin (D-IL), Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), and fellow Senate Democrats attempted to pass a new resolution that affirms the constitutional rights of Americans to peaceably assemble, exercise freedom of speech, and petition the government for redress of grievances. The resolution also condemns the President of the United States for ordering federal officers to use gas and … Continue Reading
June 02, 2020
Duckworth on Senate Floor Urges Every American to Fight for Justice in Wake of George Floyd’s Killing
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - After days of unrest and protests across the country following the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer, U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) spoke on the Senate floor to urge immediate action and call for unanimous consent to pass her legislation, the Police Training and Independent Review Act. This bill would help restore trust between law enforcement and the communities they serve by helping prevent police-involved deaths and encourage independent, … Continue Reading
June 02, 2020
Duckworth Statement on President Trump’s Misuse of Armed Forces to Divide America
[WASHINGTON, DC] - Combat Veteran and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), member of the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee, released the following statement today in response to President Trump's misuse of Armed Forces to divide America: "Last night, Donald Trump trampled the First Amendment rights of Americans to peaceably assemble for a redress of grievances. Even before any curfew went into effect, Trump ordered Federal law enforcement to violently assault Americans who stood in his way … Continue Reading
June 02, 2020
Duckworth, Carper, Durbin Statement on EPA’s Final Miscellaneous Organic Chemical Manufacturing EtO Rule
[WASHINGTON, DC] - U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), co-founder of the Senate's first-ever Environmental Justice Caucus and member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works (EPW), EPW Ranking Member Tom Carper (D-DE) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) today issued the following statement in response to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalizing its rulemaking on Hazardous Air Pollutants, which includes ethylene oxide, from the manufacturing sector. "We are relieved … Continue Reading
June 01, 2020
Duckworth, Durbin Call on DHS & HHS Inspectors General to Investigate COVID-19 Health Concerns at Pulaski County Detention Center
WASHINGTON — U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) called on the Inspectors General for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to immediately investigate the urgent public health concerns for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainees and facility staff at the Pulaski County Detention Center in Ullin, Illinois. Information has indicated that this remote detention facility lacks the physical … Continue Reading
May 29, 2020
Duckworth, Colleagues Call for Inspector General Audit of OSHA's Inadequate Enforcement amid Growing Worker Illnesses and Deaths during COVID-19 Pandemic
[WASHINGTON, DC] - U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) joined Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and colleagues in a letter to the Department of Labor's (DOL) Office of Inspector General requesting an audit of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's (OSHA) handling of inspections and citations during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the DOL's failure to issue an OSHA Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) to address the heightened risks for frontline workers during the pandemic. In addition to … Continue Reading
May 29, 2020
Duckworth, Durbin, Bustos Announce Nearly $3 Million For Rock Island Mass Transit
[WASHINGTON, DC] -- U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Congresswoman Cheri Bustos (D-IL-17) today announced $2.9 million in grant funding for the Rock Island Co. Metropolitan Mass Transit District (MetroLINK). The funding, awarded by the Federal Transit Administration's (FTA) Low or No Emission (Low-No) Bus Program, will be used to purchase new low-emission transit buses. "This federal funding will go a long way towards creating an environmentally-sustainable … Continue Reading
May 29, 2020
Duckworth, Durbin Join Klobuchar, Smith and Colleagues to Call for Investigation into Racially Discriminatory and Violent Policing at Minneapolis Police Department
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] – U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) joined Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Tina Smith (D-MN), along with 24 colleagues, to urge the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice (DOJ) to conduct an investigation into the patterns and practices of racially discriminatory and violent policing in the Minneapolis Police Department (MPD). “Given the repeated instances of police violence that have resulted in the deaths of … Continue Reading
May 29, 2020
Following Days of Protests in Minneapolis after George Floyd was Brutally Killed, Duckworth Calls for Justice, Accountability and Healing
[WASHINGTON, DC] - U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) released the following statement after the brutal killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer and days of violent protests in the city:“This week, we watched a fellow American be needlessly killed as he cried out that he couldn’t breathe. It’s painful and heartbreaking to watch George Floyd's final few moments on camera. My thoughts and deepest condolences are with his family and loved ones.“It’s hard to see this sort of … Continue Reading
May 29, 2020
Duckworth, Durbin Discuss Federal COVID-19 Response in Illinois Virtual Town Hall
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) connected with Illinoisans during a statewide virtual town hall on COVID-19 yesterday. The Senators shared updates on coronavirus relief negotiations, including expanding unemployment benefits, bringing aid to Illinois hospitals and healthcare providers, and funding state and local governments to help respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Senators also answered questions from Illinoisans on helping working … Continue Reading
May 28, 2020
Following Public Shaming from Duckworth and Others, Trump Administration Finally Extends Title 32 Authority & Guarantees Additional Benefits for National Guard Troops Responding to COVID-19
[WASHINGTON, DC] - Combat Veteran and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), member of the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee, released the following statement after the Trump Administration extended Title 32 authorization and federal funding through mid-August for National Guard troops activated to respond to COVID-19:“After four letters and a new bill, Trump finally got my message: the 40,000 National Guards troops responding to the COVID-19 pandemic deserve full benefits for putting … Continue Reading
May 28, 2020
Duckworth, Durbin Announce $11.8 Million for COVID-19 Testing In Rural Communities
[WASHINGTON, DC] - U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) today announced that Illinois will receive a total of $11,821,279 in federal funding to support COVID-19 testing in rural communities. The funding comes from the Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act signed into law on April 24th and will help support more than 200 Rural Health Clinics around Illinois. Each clinic will receive approximately $49,000 in federal funding. Congressional Democrats … Continue Reading
