Press Releases
Durbin, Duckworth, Foster, Schneider Meet with Acting EPA Administrator, Call for Action on Cancer-Causing Pollution in Lake and DuPage Counties
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), along with U.S. Representatives Bill Foster (D-IL-11) and Brad Schneider (D-IL-10), today met with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler to discuss cancer risks caused by ethylene oxide (EtO) emissions at Sterigenics Inc. in DuPage County, Illinois and Medline Industries, Inc., and Vantage Specialty Chemicals, Inc., in Lake County, Illinois. The members urged Acting … Continue Reading
November 15, 2018
Duckworth, Durbin Introduce Legislation to Improve Water Quality & End Sewage Dumping into Great Lakes
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) introduced legislation today to end the dumping of untreated sewage waste into the Great Lakes Basin. The Senators' Great Lakes Water Protection Act would improve water quality in the Great Lakes, which contain 95% of America's fresh surface water and supply drinking water to more than 30 million people in North America. The bill would also create a dedicated fund to help clean up sewage in the Great Lakes and … Continue Reading
November 15, 2018
Duckworth Meets with Nominee to Head DOE’s Office of Nuclear Energy
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) met with the President's nominee yesterday to be Assistant Secretary for the Office of Nuclear Energy (NE) at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Dr. Rita Baranwal. They discussed Duckworth's Sensible, Timely Relief for America's Nuclear Districts' Economic Development (STRANDED) Act, which will help communities like Zion, Illinois, that are struggling with the impacts of stranded nuclear waste by incentivizing economic development … Continue Reading
November 14, 2018
Duckworth, Durbin Announce Over $1.5 Million for Central Illinois Head Start Programs
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) announced $1,589,871 in federal funding today to help children in Central Illinois access Head Start and Early Head Start programs through the C.E.F.S. Economic Opportunity Corporation. This funding comes through the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services' (HHS) Administration for Children and Families, which allocates funding, provides technical assistance, and builds strategic partnerships to promote the … Continue Reading
November 11, 2018
Duckworth Honors Our Nation’s Veterans at City of Chicago Veterans Day Ceremony
[CHICAGO, IL] -U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) honored Veterans today at the City of Chicago's Annual Veterans Day Ceremony. Duckworth, a combat veteran and a former Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, joined Illinois Army National Guard Brigadier General Mark C. Jackson to celebrate the courage of our nation's Veterans. A full copy of Duckworth's remarks as prepared for delivery are below: Hello everyone! Thank you for inviting me here this afternoon. I … Continue Reading
November 09, 2018
Duckworth, Durbin, Schneider Call on Trump Administration to Improve Its Monitoring of Cancer-causing pollution in Lake County
[CHICAGO - IL] - U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) and U.S. Representative Brad Schneider (D-IL-10) today, in a letter to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), requested it perform updated and current air sampling and modeling studies to determine the cancer risks in Lake County, Illinois, caused by ethylene oxide (EtO) emissions at Medline Industries, Inc. and Vantage Specialty Chemicals, Inc. The EPA has not conducted air emissions quality tests for these … Continue Reading
November 07, 2018
Duckworth Delivers Keynote Address at Commercial Club of Chicago’s Annual Veterans Recognition Program
[CHICAGO, IL] - Today, U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) delivered the keynote address at the Commercial Club of Chicago's Annual Veterans Recognition Program, where she discussed how Congress' failure to pass a new Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) represents a broken promise to some of America's bravest sons and daughters. After her keynote, Duckworth also took part in a fireside chat with David Hiller, President and CEO of the McCormick Foundation. Photos from the event are … Continue Reading
November 07, 2018
Duckworth: Congress Must Protect the Special Counsel Immediately
[CHICAGO, IL] - After Donald Trump requested-and received-Attorney General Jeff Sessions' resignation, U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) released the following statement: "Congress must protect the Special Counsel … Continue Reading
November 05, 2018
Durbin, Duckworth call on Illinois Public Health Director Nirav Shah to Resign over botched response to Legionnaires' Outbreaks at IVH Quincy
[WASHINGTON - D.C.] U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today called for Illinois Public Health Director Nirav Shah to resign following reports that the Rauner Administration botched a water-system repair at Illinois Veterans Home (IVH) Quincy, which was in violation of state health codes, and then chose to deliberately withhold that information from the public and not cite the facility for a mistake. In newly released documents, Shah detailed the dangers present at the … Continue Reading
November 02, 2018
Duckworth Demands Improved Transparency, Honesty from Trump Administration Regarding Cancer Risks Associated with Willowbrook-based Sterigenics
[CHICAGO, IL] - After a Chicago Tribune report exposed the multiple ways both the Rauner and Trump administrations failed to protect Illinoisans from toxic chemical exposure through inaction or neglect, U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) is demanding the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) take immediate action to enhance transparency and restore public trust in the agency's desire and ability to keep Illinoisans safe. In a letter to EPA Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler, Duckworth … Continue Reading
November 01, 2018
Durbin, Duckworth, Foster Request EPA Investigation Into Rauner and Trump Administrations' Delay of Notifying Public About Sterigenics Cancer Risks
[CHICAGO, IL] - U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and U.S. Representative Bill Foster (D-IL-11) today requested the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) investigate if EPA complied with all statutory, regulatory, and policy requirements and protocols when it intentionally withheld critical health information from the public about carcinogenic air pollution from the Sterigenics facility in DuPage County, Illinois. … Continue Reading
October 31, 2018
Duckworth, Durbin Applaud $120 Million for Energy Efficiency Research at Argonne National Laboratory
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) applauded the recent announcement of $120 million in federal funding to continue battery performance research at Argonne National Laboratory. The funding will support five more years of research at the Joint Center for Energy Story Research (JCESR), a Department of Energy (DOE) Energy Innovation HUB at Argonne devoted to advancing battery science and technology. "This funding will help the dedicated scientists … Continue Reading
October 26, 2018
Duckworth: The Chemical and Ethical Clouds Surrounding Sterigenics Continue to Grow Darker
[CHICAGO, IL] - With a new Chicago Tribune report exposing the multiple ways both the Rauner and Trump administrations failed to protect Illinoisans from toxic chemical exposure while intentionally and needlessly delaying the public disclosure of known cancer risks, U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), a member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, issued the following statement: "Each day, it seems that the chemical and ethical clouds surrounding Sterigenics continue … Continue Reading
October 25, 2018
Duckworth, Durbin Announce More Than $1 Million to Illinois Housing Organizations
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) announced $1,370,410 in federal funding today for housing organizations throughout Illinois to support housing counseling. The funding comes from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) Office of Housing Counseling's Comprehensive Housing Counseling Program grants, which provides counseling to consumers on seeking, financing, maintaining, renting or owning a home, as well as counseling … Continue Reading
October 24, 2018
Duckworth, Durbin Announce Over $200,000 to Rehabilitate Homes in Western Illinois
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) announced today $202,576 in federal funding today to the Western Illinois Regional Council Community Action Agency to help low income homeowners across the region repair and rehabilitate their homes. The grant comes from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Housing Preservation Program, which is within the Office of Rural Development. "These federal funds will help 30 low-income individuals and families in … Continue Reading
October 22, 2018
Duckworth, Durbin Ask OSHA for Lower Exposure Limit, Alternatives for Ethylene Oxide
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) wrote to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) today requesting the agency do more to protect American workers from ethylene oxide and explore alternatives to for sterilization. An August report published by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Control Registry (ATSDR), an arm of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), detailed higher than normal cancer risk in the area … Continue Reading
October 22, 2018
Duckworth: EPA Must Explain Apparent Efforts to Silence Career Children’s Health Official, Delay in Releasing Lead Safety Strategy
[CHICAGO, IL] - More than a year after the Trump Administration held a "lead summit" and created a task force focused on developing a strategy to address our nation's lead crisis and amid reports that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) may have sidelined a renowned children's health official at taxpayer expense in order to delay or prevent the release of a major lead poisoning report, U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth today wrote to EPA Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler demanding an … Continue Reading
October 18, 2018
Bipartisan Duckworth-Portman-Schatz-Booker Bill to Help Reduce Recidivism Rates Gains Support from Criminal Justice Leaders and Civil Rights Organizations
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - Bipartisan legislation introduced by U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Rob Portman (R-OH), Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Brian Schatz (D-HI) to help families keep in touch with incarcerated family members, which is proven to help reduce recidivism rates and save taxpayer dollars, is gaining momentum, with 28 criminal justice leaders and civil rights organizations writing the Senators to express their support. The Senators' Inmate Calling Technical Corrections Act would … Continue Reading
October 17, 2018
Duckworth, Durbin Announce Over $200,000 to Rehabilitate Homes in Western Illinois
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) announced today $202,576 in federal funding today to the Western Illinois Regional Council Community Action Agency to help low income homeowners across the region repair and rehabilitate their homes. The grant comes from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Housing Preservation Program, which is within the Office of Rural Development. "These federal funds will help 30 low-income individuals and families … Continue Reading
October 17, 2018
Duckworth, Durbin Press For Full Disclosure of Trump Family Business Ties to Saudi Arabia
WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Dick Durbin (D-IL), along with Senator Tom Udall (D-NM) and eight other Senate Democrats, wrote to President Donald Trump and to the Trump Organization seeking a full accounting of any financial ties between the Trump Organization and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The Senators' letters follow the disappearance and reported killing of Jamal Khashoggi, a resident of the United States and Washington Post journalist, whose whereabouts … Continue Reading
