Press Releases
NM Democrats Urge Trump Not to Make Changes to SNAP
WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich, and U.S. Representatives Ben Ray Luján and Michelle Lujan Grisham urged the president not to alter to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in ways that would prohibit New Mexicans in need from accessing food assistance. New Mexico has the third-highest proportion of SNAP recipients per capita - nearly one quarter of the state's residents rely on food assistance. According to the lawmakers, the Trump administr… Continue Reading
January 17, 2018
Ahead of Farm Bill Reauthorization, Udall Leads Oversight Hearing on Native Agribusiness
WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senator Tom Udall, vice chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, led an oversight hearing entitled, "Breaking New Ground in Agribusiness Opportunities in Indian Country." Udall highlighted how successes in Native agribusinesses have created jobs and improved food security in Indian Country, and questioned witnesses on how to build on this progress with greater Tribal input in the Farm Bill. "Indian Country's interest in agribusiness is real and growing," Udal… Continue Reading
January 17, 2018
Udall Opposes House GOP’s Temporary Funding Proposal with No Solution for DREAMers
WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senator Tom Udall declared his opposition to the House Republicans' proposal to yet again temporarily fund the government through Feb. 16 without addressing the nation's critical priorities. The Republican bill doesn't include protection for 800,000 DREAMers - including 7,000 in New Mexico - whose legal status is in jeopardy because President Trump canceled the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. It also would further weaken the Affordable Care Act, putting m… Continue Reading
January 17, 2018
Udall, Senate Democrats: EPA Putting Taxpayers on the Hook for Hard Rock Mining Disasters
WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senator Tom Udall (D-N.M.) led a group of eight Senate Democrats in condemning Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt's decision not to issue final federal financial responsibility requirements for hard rock mining operations, leaving taxpayers on the hook for cleaning up toxic spills from metal mining - the single largest source of toxic releases, according to EPA. The proposed rules would have assured that mining companies maintain enough fun… Continue Reading
January 12, 2018
Ahead of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Udall Denounces Trump’s Racist Remarks Against Immigrants
WASHINGTON - Today, ahead of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, U.S. Senator Tom Udall issued the following statement denouncing President Trump's offensive remarks about immigrants made during an Oval Office meeting: "As we approach Martin Luther King Jr. Day, I join with people from across New Mexico in reflecting on what Dr. King's work can teach us today. Thanks to Dr. King and other great Civil Rights leaders, our children grow up believing that no one should be judged on the color of their skin,… Continue Reading
January 10, 2018
VIDEO: Udall Highlights Urgent Need to Protect Dreamers
VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xY4JeCBQF1E&feature=youtu.be WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senator Tom Udall released a powerful video highlighting the stories of seven Dreamers from New Mexico as part of his fight for a permanent solution on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. Udall urged Republicans to join with Democrats and work in good faith toward an immediate agreement that will protect the future of the 800,000 Dreamers in the United States, including 7,000 … Continue Reading
January 09, 2018
Udall, Markey Net Neutrality Resolution Reaches 40-Vote Milestone in the Senate
Washington (January 9, 2018) - U.S. Senators Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) and Tom Udall (D-N.M.), members of the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, announced today 40 senators have signed on to co-sponsor a Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution of disapproval that overturns the anti-consumer regulations passed in December by FCC Chairman Ajit Pai and supported by Donald Trump to end net neutrality. At a press conference in the Capitol attended by Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer-am… Continue Reading
January 08, 2018
Udall, Heinrich Announce $10.7 Million in Grants to Help NM End Homelessness
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich welcomed $10.7 million in U.S. Housing and Urban Development grants to help New Mexico families, veterans and individuals experiencing homelessness. The grants will go to programs in communities across the state, including three new organizations. "Everyone deserves a quality place to call home, and this funding is particularly welcome news during the harsh winter months. These grants will help families and veterans experiencing homelessn… Continue Reading
January 03, 2018
Udall Responds to Trump’s Heartless DACA Brinkmanship
WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senator Tom Udall responded to President Trump's tweet on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, and to reports that the White House is seeking to avoid discussion of DACA during a meeting with congressional leadership today: "President Trump's continued heartlessness toward DREAMers and his political brinkmanship with their future is a stain on our country and on the office of the president. The fear and chaos in immigrant communities following the … Continue Reading
December 21, 2017
Río Grande del Norte Wilderness Bill Passes the Senate Unanimously
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich announced that their legislation to protect wilderness within the Río Grande del Norte National Monument northwest of Taos, N.M., has passed the Senate with unanimous support. The bill establishes two new wilderness areas, the Cerro del Yuta Wilderness and Rio San Antonio Wilderness, within the Río Grande del Norte National Monument. "Designating the Cerro del Yuta and Rio San Antonio areas as wilderness is a final step towa… Continue Reading
December 21, 2017
Udall Statement on Vote for Stopgap Measure to Keep the Government Open
WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senator Tom Udall voted for the continuing resolution (CR) to keep the government funded through Jan. 19, 2018. In addition to continuing federal funding into next year, the measure waives so-called PAYGO laws to prevent a $136 billion cut to Medicare, state mineral leasing payments, farm bill payments, and other critical funding in 2018. Waiving PAYGO was necessary to offset massive budget cuts caused by President Trump and the Republicans' tax cut, which will cost $1.5… Continue Reading
December 21, 2017
NM Delegation Announces Disaster Declaration to Help Pueblo of Acoma Recover from October Storms
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich and U.S. Reps. Steve Pearce, Ben Ray Luján and Michelle Lujan Grisham announced a major disaster declaration has been issued for the Pueblo of Acoma to provide federal aid for the severe storm and flooding that occurred between October 4 and October 6, 2017. The lawmakers sent a letter to the President earlier this month asking for prompt action on the Pueblo of Acoma's request for help with hazard mitigation and to repair public i… Continue Reading
December 20, 2017
Udall Votes Against Trump-Republican Tax Break for Millionaires and Corporations
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Tom Udall released the following statement after voting against President Trump and the Republicans' tax plan. Earlier in the evening, Udall spoke on the Senate floor in opposition to the bill, and his speech can be viewed here. "The Trump-Republican tax bill will line the pockets of President Trump, his family, and the GOP's billionaire donors. It will be a boon for the multinational corporations that have spent years shipping jobs overseas. But for working New Mexica… Continue Reading
December 20, 2017
Udall Condemns Provision in GOP Tax Bill that Opens Arctic Refuge to Drilling
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Tom Udall, vice chairman of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee and ranking member of the Appropriations subcommittee for the Interior Department, released the following statement after the late-night passage of the Republican tax plan which included a backdoor measure to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to drilling. "The Republican tax bill will be remembered in history as a terrible deal for the middle class, but it also is one of the greatest attacks on our … Continue Reading
December 15, 2017
Udall Statement on GOP Tax Conference Report
WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senator Tom Udall released the following statement after Senate and House Republicans released the final text of their tax plan: "Republicans released their tax plan on a Friday evening, wrote it entirely behind closed doors without any Democratic input, and now want to force it through Congress days before Christmas and before the duly elected senator from Alabama can take his seat. That's not the behavior of members of Congress who have any confidence in the quality o… Continue Reading
December 14, 2017
Udall, Murkowski, Cortez Masto Bill Would Restore Tribal Jurisdiction Over Domestic Violence Incidents on Tribal Land to Children and Law Enforcement
WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senators Tom Udall (D-N.M.), vice chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) introduced the bipartisan Native Youth and Tribal Officer Protection Act (NYTOPA) to build on the Tribal jurisdiction provisions in the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013 (VAWA 2013) by extending protections to children and law enforcement personnel involved in domestic violence incidents on Tribal lands. The… Continue Reading
December 14, 2017
Udall Statement on FCC Republicans’ Repeal of Net Neutrality
WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senator Tom Udall released the following statement after Republican Commissioners on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), led by FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, voted to repeal net neutrality protections: "Today's vote is a major blow to the internet as we know it. Chairman Pai's legacy will be leading the surrender of the free and open internet to corporate giants, letting Internet Service Providers create internet toll lanes, and stifling the competition, innovation, a… Continue Reading
December 13, 2017
Udall Welcomes Withdrawal of Michael Dourson’s Nomination to Head the EPA’s Toxics Bureau
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Tom Udall, the co-author of the landmark bipartisan Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act, released the following statement about news that Michael Dourson, the embattled nominee to lead the Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention, has withdrawn his nomination. "I am glad Michael Dourson did the right thing. As someone who has spent his career working for weaker safety standards for dangerous chemicals… Continue Reading
December 13, 2017
VIDEO: Udall Calls for Immediate Passage of the Dream Act
VIDEO: https://www.c-span.org/video/?c4699164/sen-udall-passage-dream-act WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senator Tom Udall joined a group of Democratic senators on the Senate floor to call for immediate passage of the DREAM Act, which would protect 800,000 young DREAMers - including almost 7,000 New Mexicans - from deportation, and allow them to continue to work, go to school, and support their families. DREAMers are undocumented young people who were brought to this country as children by their par… Continue Reading
December 13, 2017
Udall, Heinrich Call on FCC Chairman Pai to Abandon ‘Reckless’ Plan to End Net Neutrality
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich announced that they have joined a group of 39 Democratic senators in urging Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Ajit Pai to abandon his plan to repeal the agency's net neutrality rules in favor of giving internet providers the ability to freely block or slow down consumers' access to the internet. The senators' letter comes ahead of a Thursday vote by the FCC to dismantle net neutrality protections. "Your plan gives a broadba… Continue Reading
