In the News
Detroit Free Press:U.S. Senate accepts Gary Peters' plan to help traumatized vets
by Todd Spangler
WASHINGTON - A proposal by U.S. Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., to help make sure traumatized veterans retain their G.I. benefits passed the Senate on a voice vote on Tuesday. Peters, along with several other senators, had requested the measure as an addition to the annual National Defense Authorization Act. If it is part of the final law at passage, it would write into law a policy that Discharge Review Boards consider petitions to change the discharge status of service members if they suffer from … Continue Reading
06.02.16
Detroit News: Senator Peters Op-ed: Michigan inventing the future of mobility
by Senator Gary Peters
Michiganians know something about inventing the future. We invented the auto industry, large-scale manufacturing, and the American middle class. During World War II, Michigan's booming automotive factories fueled the Arsenal of Democracy, building the aircraft, munitions and vehicles that powered the Allied forces to victory. Today, our state is once again poised to lead the world - this time into the next frontier of automotive technology. The automotive industry is undergoing a technological… Continue Reading
06.02.16
Detroit News:Panel: Michigan should lead autonomous car development
by Michael Martinez
Michigan should lead the development of autonomous vehicle technology and needs to change the public's perception that it's an old-world manufacturing hub, automotive executives and public officials said Wednesday. "It's about branding," Sen. Gary Peters, D-Bloomfield Township, said in an afternoon panel at the Mackinac Policy Conference. "This is a very high-tech state. Folks tend to view Michigan as a place with factories and smokestacks ... we're a lot more than that." State officials are t… Continue Reading
05.27.16
Grand Rapids Business Journal: Senator enjoys firsthand look at city’s small businesses
by Mike Nichols
A U.S. senator now has a better understanding of Grand Rapids' entrepreneurial scene. Democrat Gary Peters, chair of the Senate Payments Innovation Caucus, took a tour of the Downtown Market last week. Peters is one of three senators who introduced the SEC Small Business Advocate Act in Washington, D.C., last month. The act's goal is to establish better lines of communication between small businesses and the federal government. He said the trip to Grand Rapids helped him see these small busin… Continue Reading
05.25.16
Detroit News: Stabenow, Peters join push for medical facility funding
by Keith Laing
Washington - U.S. Sens. Debbie Stabenow, D-Lansing, and Gary Peters, D-Bloomfield Township, are joining a bipartisan group of 13 senators to urge the authorization of $904 million to fund leases for 18 medical facilities in 12 states, including two in Michigan. The senators said the funding has been been held up by "a technical change in the way the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates the cost of these leases" that has "stymied efforts to authorize any VA major medical facility leases. … Continue Reading
05.22.16
AP: Senators want higher liability for Great Lakes spills
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) - Michigan's senators are asking the Department of Transportation to make sure oil pipelines crossing underneath the Great Lakes are classified as "offshore" so that owners would have to pay the full costs of cleaning a spill. Sens. Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow, both Democrats, sent U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx a letter on Tuesday urging him to make sure underwater pipeline segments in and around the Great Lakes are classified as separate "offshore" fac… Continue Reading
05.19.16
Detroit News: Stabenow, Peters want Soo Locks study completed sooner
by Chad Livengood
Michigan Sens. Debbie Stabenow and Gary Peters are stepping up pressure on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to speed up a cost-benefit study of building an additional passageway for Great Lakes freighters at the Soo Locks in Sault Ste. Marie. The two senators sent the Army Corps of Engineers a letter Thursday requesting that a $1.35 million analysis of replacing the Davis and Sabin locks be completed "as quickly as possible," citing the "critical importance" of the Soo Locks to commerce for Mic… Continue Reading
05.19.16
Detroit Free Press: Peters, Stabenow urge quick work on Soo Locks study
by Todd Spangler
WASHINGTON - Michigan's U.S. senators on Thursday urged the head of the Army Corps of Engineers to expedite a study into the benefits of building a second, super-size navigation lock in the Upper Peninsula, citing concerns that a major shutdown could plunge the nation into a recession. The letter from U.S. Sens. Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow, both D-Mich., to Assistant Secretary of the Army Jo-Ellen Darcy relies heavily on a previous study done by the Department of Homeland Security - and rep… Continue Reading
05.17.16
Detroit Free Press: U.S. senators want more scrutiny for Mich. oil pipeline
by Todd Spangler
Peters, Stabenow say Line 5 through Straits of Mackinac may be treated as onshore -- not offshore -- pipeline and receive less scrutiny WASHINGTON - Michigan's U.S. senators on Tuesday sent a letter to the Obama administration raising concerns that a pair of pipelines at the bottom of the Straits of Mackinac may be treated as onshore -- and not offshore -- facilities, meaning they could face less regulatory scrutiny. U.S. Sens. Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow, both D-Mich., sent the letter to … Continue Reading
05.16.16
Oakland Press: Senator honors Farmington Hills Marine, calls him ‘trailblazer’ in race relations
by Anne Runkle
The Marines who trained at Canp Montford Point in North Carolina during World War II slept in temporary huts. They drove on dirt ruts. The Montford Point Marines were among the first African-Americans to serve in that branch of the military. Their white counterparts at nearby Camp Lejeune had permanent barracks and paved roads. Their training hours were shorter. On Monday, U.S. Sen. Gary Peters wished to express the nation's thanks to John Jordan, 90, a Farmington Hills resident and Montford … Continue Reading
05.14.16
Macomb Daily: From Macomb to Mars: County firm manufactures hardware of dreams
by Jim Bloch
Long known for auto plants and a thriving blue economy revolving around its lakefront, Macomb County is getting into the next chapter of space exploration. A local firm is building components and tooling for the spaceship that will take astronauts to Mars. "A lot of the work we've been doing lately is for the new Space Launch System, which is the rocket that's going to power the Orion capsule to Mars," said John Couch, vice president of Futuramic Tool and Engineering in Warren. The name of th… Continue Reading
05.06.16
Soo Evening News: Senator Peters visits the Sault
by Nick Nolan
United States Senator Gary Peters (D-MI) paid a visit to Sault Ste. Marie on Thursday to talk about federal and state issues going on in the Senate that are affecting the city and the Great Lakes area. The first-term senator from Pontiac discussed his efforts to create a more bipartisan approach to the senate. He believes that by entering the senate in 2014 as the only democrat alongside 12 republicans, he has become more inheritably open to reaching across the aisle to get legislation passed. … Continue Reading
05.03.16
Alpena News: Peters promotes Great Lakes, unmanned aircraft
by Steve Schulwitz
ALPENA - Monday afternoon students at Alpena Community College got a brief glimpse of an unmanned aircraft flying just below the tree line on campus. What they probably didn't realize is who the pilot was - Sen. Gary Peters. The college was one of several stops in Northeast Michigan where Peters was taken on tours in part promoting his agenda of helping to protect and preserve the Great Lakes and ease burdensome restrictions on colleges who have unmanned aircraft programs. Peters co-sponsored … Continue Reading
05.02.16
Dearborn Press & Guide: Vehicle Innovation Act passes Senate, awaits approval in House
Vehicle Innovation Act passes Senate, awaits approval in House Legislation to promote investment in the future of the automotive industry is more than halfway to becoming law after passage in the Senate for the Vehicle Information Act. U.S. Sen. Gary Peters (D-Michigan) and U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-12th District) appeared at a commercial vehicle outfitting plant in Taylor last year to announce the legislation that promotes investments in research and development of fuel-efficient technologi… Continue Reading
04.28.16
Washington Post: Extreme space weather could cripple our infrastructure. This bill aims to prevent that.
by Angela Fritz and Joe Kunches
Legislation introduced in the Senate last week is the best effort yet put forward by Congress to improve forecasts of an invisible yet potent threat: space weather. The bipartisan bill, authored by Sen. Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Cory Gardner (R-Colo.) and Cory Booker (D-N.J.), passed out of the Commerce Committee on Wednesday and will soon be brought to the Senate as a whole. It tackles the threats and challenges that space weather poses to our critical infrastructure, enumerating aspects that beg… Continue Reading
04.28.16
MLive/Flint Journal: Federal funding for Flint water crisis heads to full Senate
by Ron Fonger
FLINT, MI -- A bill that includes $100 million in federal funds for Flint has cleared committee and is headed to the full U.S. Senate. Michigan Sens. Debbie Stabenow and Gary Peters said today, April 28, today that the Committee on Environment and Public Works passed the funding as part of the Water Resources Development Act. The legislation includes money to repair water infrastructure and authority for the state of Michigan to forgive $22 million in past drinking water loans given to the cit… Continue Reading
04.27.16
Detroit Free Press: Oil company will not ship under St. Clair River in wake of outcry
by Daniel Bethencourt and Keith Matheny
A petroleum transport company will not be shipping heavy crude oil under the St. Clair River through 98-year-old pipelines, following an outcry from residents and concern from state and federal officials earlier this year. The company, Plains LPG, based in Houston, has withdrawn a request to revise its permit that would have allowed it to potentially transport oil under the St. Clair River between Marysville and Sarnia, Ontario, according to announcements issued Wednesday from U.S. Senator Gary… Continue Reading
04.26.16
AP: Senators Again Reach Deal on Flint Water Crisis Aid
by MATTHEW DALY
WASHINGTON (AP) - For the second time in two months, the Senate has reached a bipartisan deal to address a water crisis in Flint, Michigan, where lead-contaminated pipes have resulted in an ongoing public health emergency. Democratic Sens. Debbie Stabenow and Gary Peters of Michigan said an agreement reached Tuesday with Republican Sen. James Inhofe of Oklahoma would authorize $170 million in grants and loans to replace the city's lead-contaminated pipes and other infrastructure. It includes $5… Continue Reading
04.22.16
Midland Daily News: Sen. Gary Peters discusses Dow merger, education, small business in Midland visit
by John Kennett
The city of Midland recently saw a visit from Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., as the first-term senator toured The Dow Chemical Co., sat down with the Midland Area Chamber of Commerce and followed those visits up with a stop at the Daily News. "It was incredible what they are doing there and the products they are devising," Peters said of Dow Chemical. "If you are looking to reduce the amount of energy consumption in America, or dependence on foreign oil, or making buildings more insulated, Dow is r… Continue Reading
04.22.16
Detroit Free Press: Peters, Stabenow want action on Downriver air quality
by Todd Spangler
WASHINGTON - Michigan's U.S. senators wrote the nation's top environmental official Friday asking her agency to implement a plan for reducing sulfur dioxide and other pollutants in Wayne County if the state of Michigan does not do so in the next two months. Three years ago, a section of Wayne County stretching from Detroit south along the Detroit River past Trenton was found to have sulfur dioxide levels above federal standards, triggering a requirement for the state to submit a plan for contro… Continue Reading
