Press Releases
Udall Introduces Amendment to Give All Americans an Opportunity to Invest in Our Clean Energy Future
WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senator Tom Udall announced an amendment that he has filed to energy legislation that would ultimately enable all Americans to buy Clean Energy Victory Bonds, allowing regular people across the country to do their part to invest in our nation's clean energy future. Modeled after war bonds, which raised billions of dollars during World War I and World War II, Clean Energy Victory Bonds would help local, state and federal governments raise billions of dollars in capital th… Continue Reading
January 29, 2016
Udall Bill to Childproof E-Cigarettes Signed into Law
WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senator Tom Udall welcomed news that a bill he championed to improve e-cigarette safety has been signed into law by the president. The Child Nicotine Poisoning Prevention Act of 2015 requires manufacturers to put childproof caps on the small bottles of liquid nicotine used in e-cigarettes. The number of e-cigarette users -- especially young users -- has soared in recent years, and this is the first piece of national legislation to help regulate the impact on public healt… Continue Reading
January 28, 2016
Udall, Heinrich, Luján Announce Selection of Valles Caldera, Bandelier for a National Park Service Centennial Challenge Project
WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich and U.S. Representative Ben Ray Luján announced that the Valles Caldera National Preserve and Bandelier National Monument have been selected to participate in the National Park Service Centennial Challenge Project. The National Park Service (NPS) has selected 69 projects at 63 parks nationwide to highlight during its centennial celebration this year. As part of their selection, the Valles Caldera and Bandelier National Monume… Continue Reading
January 28, 2016
Udall, Heinrich, Luján Welcome Partnership to Allow Public Access to the Sabinoso Wilderness
WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich and U.S. Representative Ben Ray Luján welcomed a partnership between the Wyss Foundation and the Wilderness Land Trust to open up the Sabinoso Wilderness for public access. Created in 2009 through legislation championed by Udall, Heinirch, Luján and former Senator Jeff Bingaman, the Sabinoso Wilderness is currently surrounded by private land and therefore inaccessible without trespassing on private property. That will … Continue Reading
January 27, 2016
Udall Statement on Standoff at Occupied Oregon Refuge
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Tom Udall issued the following statement on the standoff at Malheur National Wildlife Refuge: "I respect the right of all Americans to exercise their First Amendment rights to protest laws and policies. But the standoff in Oregon has gone far beyond protest or civil disobedience. The Refuge occupiers pose a significant danger to themselves, law enforcement and the nearby community, and now tragically, the situation has turned deadly. While I strongly oppose their demand… Continue Reading
January 22, 2016
NM Delegation Welcomes BLM's Draft Rule on Reducing Natural Gas Loss, Fighting Climate Change
WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Sens. Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich, and U.S. Reps. Ben Ray Luján and Michelle Lujan Grisham welcomed the Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) draft rules for curbing natural gas waste. New Mexico is the nation's leading producer of oil from onshore federal land, and second for natural gas production. Yet too much of the state's natural gas goes to waste through venting, flaring and leaks - causing dangerous methane pollution over the San Juan Basin. Methane is a pot… Continue Reading
January 22, 2016
NM Delegation Welcomes $12.6 Million to Tribes for Diabetes Prevention and Treatment
WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich and U.S. Representatives Steve Pearce, Ben Ray Luján and Michelle Lujan Grisham announced that several New Mexico Tribes are receiving a total of $12.6 million over five years for diabetes prevention and treatment programs. Tribes receiving funding include the Mescalero Apache Tribe and the Pueblos of Jemez, Taos, Zia, Zuni and Santa Ana, as well as the Indian Health Service Albuquerque Area. The grants are part of the Speci… Continue Reading
January 20, 2016
Ahead of Citizens United Anniversary, Udall Announces 2 Major Election Reform Bills
WASHINGTON - Ahead of tomorrow's sixth anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court's Citizens United decision, U.S. Senator Tom Udall (D-N.M.) announced that he is introducing two bills to help restore voters' voices in our democracy and follow through on the president's call to fix our politics during last week's State of the Union address. Udall is a champion for fair elections that are free of unlimited and undisclosed special interest money, and is the lead sponsor of a constitutional amendment to… Continue Reading
January 19, 2016
Udall, Heinrich Call on Legislature to Put Constitutional Amendment to Improve Well-Being of NM Children on the Ballot
WASHINGTON - Today, on the first day of the state legislative session, U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich sent a letter to the leaders of the New Mexico House and Senate, formally calling on them to work together to improve the well-being of New Mexico's children. Specifically, Udall and Heinrich urged legislators to bring up and pass a measure that would allow voters to amend the constitution and invest a portion of the state's Land Grant Permanent Fund in the most effective early chil… Continue Reading
January 15, 2016
NM Delegation Presses for Disaster Assistance for Farmers and Ranchers Recovering from December Storms
WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich and U.S. Representatives Steve Pearce, Ben Ray Luján and Michelle Lujan Grisham asked U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack to quickly approve the State of New Mexico's request for disaster assistance following December's catastrophic winter storm. The storm hurt farmers and ranchers across 18 New Mexico counties, and a secretarial disaster designation would allow them to access Farm Service Agency emergency loans. These … Continue Reading
January 14, 2016
Udall Congratulates New Mexico Nominees to United States Service Academies
WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senator Tom Udall announced that 36 New Mexico students have received his nomination to attend a United States service academy. A congressional, vice-presidential, or service-connected nomination is required for admission to the U.S. Military Academy (West Point), U.S. Naval Academy, U.S. Air Force Academy or the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy. Students receiving Udall's nomination participated in a competitive application process, which included an interview with the sena… Continue Reading
January 12, 2016
Udall Responds to President's Final State of the Union Address
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Tom Udall issued the following statement after President Obama delivered his final State of the Union address: "President Obama was right to be upbeat in his final State of the Union address. We've made tremendous progress in this country. We took historic steps to ensure tens of thousands of New Mexicans - and millions of Americans - can get health care when they're sick. We reformed K-12 education. We're dramatically increasing the production of solar and wind energy.… Continue Reading
January 12, 2016
Udall, Heinrich Urge Executive Action to Limit Anonymous Campaign Contributions
WASHINGTON - Last week, U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich joined 27 other senators to urge the president to limit anonymous political spending in elections by requiring new transparency for previously secret campaign contributions. The senators are pushing the administration to require federal contractors to disclose political spending before submitting bids for government work. The administration released a draft plan to do so five years ago, but has not finalized it. The senators mad… Continue Reading
January 08, 2016
Delegation Secures Promise that New Mexicans will Continue to be able to Fly with NM Licenses until 2018
WASHINGTON -- U.S. Sens. Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich and U.S. Reps. Ben Ray Luján and Michelle Lujan Grisham issued the following response to today's statement by Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Jeh Johnson on the final phase of REAL ID implementation: "In December, we convened a meeting with DHS officials and urged the administration to provide New Mexico families and businesses with certainty about whether they would be able to board a commercial airplane with a driver's lice… Continue Reading
January 07, 2016
Looking Ahead to 2016
From welcoming Valles Caldera into the National Park Service and securing funding to modernize the Columbus border crossing to advances in lifesaving technology to prevent drunk driving, we made exciting progress in 2015. I was especially proud to end the year with passage in the Senate of my bipartisan bill to protect our kids from dangerous chemicals. Looking forward to 2016, I will continue working hard to do what's right for New Mexicans. That means fighting for resources for our national la… Continue Reading
January 05, 2016
Udall Statement on President's Action to Prevent Gun Violence
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Tom Udall issued the following statement: "Recent mass shootings in Tucson, Newtown, Aurora, Charleston, Roseburg, San Bernardino and elsewhere have shocked and saddened us all, not just because of the tragic and senseless loss of life but because they have shed light on loopholes in our gun laws and deep problems in the availability of mental health care. Every day, 30 Americans die from gun violence - 100,000 have been killed over the last decade -- and in too many ca… Continue Reading
December 23, 2015
Udall, Heinrich, Luján and Lujan Grisham Secure Pledge from DHS that NM Can get Delay of REAL ID Enforcement if Governor and Legislature Agree on REAL ID Fix
WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich and Representatives Ben Ray Luján and Michelle Lujan Grisham announced that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has informed them that the state of New Mexico can still get an extension of the deadline for REAL ID enforcement if Gov. Susana Martinez and the leadership of the N.M. House and Senate can verify to DHS that they agree on legislation that ensures REAL ID compliance. Seeking answers on behalf of New Mexi… Continue Reading
December 22, 2015
Udall Secures Sports Safety Provisions to Protect Youth Athletes from Concussions
WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senator Tom Udall, a member of the Senate Appropriations and Commerce committees, announced that the president has signed into law as part of the "omnibus" appropriations measure several sports safety provisions that Udall has championed to help protect youth athletes from the dangers of sports-related traumatic brain injuries. Udall has led efforts in Congress to improve equipment safety standards and curb false advertising claims, focusing on ensuring parents, coaches … Continue Reading
December 22, 2015
Udall, Heinrich Secure $85.6 Million for Columbus Port of Entry Expansion
WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senator Tom Udall, a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, and Senator Martin Heinrich announced that they have secured $85.6 million for construction of a new, replacement land port of entry in Columbus, New Mexico. The project will expand the current border crossing facilities to safely and efficiently accommodate increases in car, commercial and pedestrian traffic -- improving security, encouraging trade and creating jobs in Southern New Mexico. The funding w… Continue Reading
December 22, 2015
Udall Provision to Require VA Report on Burn Pits will help Advance Care and Treatment for Veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan
WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senator Tom Udall announced that he secured a provision in the "omnibus" appropriations bill signed by the president last week requiring the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to report on the status and findings of its burn pit registry. The registry -- which was created by Udall's Burn Pits Registry Act -- is the first step toward providing medical care and research for service members and veterans who were exposed to toxic chemicals and fumes from open-air burn pits … Continue Reading
