Press Releases
Peters, Stabenow Announce Over $343,000 in Support of Fire Departments in Flushing, Albee Twp.
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senators Gary Peters (MI) and Debbie Stabenow (MI) today announced $274,727 for the Flushing Fire Department and $69,047 for the Albee Township Fire Department to purchase new equipment and improve services. These grants comes from the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Assistance to Firefighters Grants program. "Michigan's first responders help make our communities safe places to live, work and raise a family," said Senator Peters. "I'm pleased to announce this fundi… Continue Reading
09.13.19
Peters Presses for Full Funding for 2020 Census as Congress Finalizes Spending Bills
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senator Gary Peters, Ranking Member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, this week urged the Senate Appropriations Committee to include full funding for the 2020 Census in any government funding bill passed before the end of the fiscal year. Peters explained to his colleagues that, without its full operating budget of $7.5 billion, the Census could be compromised in its mission of effectively reaching every community to achieve a full and accu… Continue Reading
09.13.19
Peters, Portman Reintroduce Historic Vehicle Preservation Bill
WASHINGTON, D.C. -U.S. Senators Gary Peters (D-MI) and Rob Portman (R-OH) reintroduced bipartisan legislation to establish a national register to preserve records of historic vehicles that have made a significant impact on American history and culture. The National Historic Vehicle Register Act would require the Department of Interior to create a register administered by the Library of Congress to safeguard the innovative feats of American engineering by documenting historically significant auto… Continue Reading
09.13.19
Senate Passes Peters, Kennedy Resolution Designating Patriot Week
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senators Gary Peters (D-MI) and John Kennedy (R-LA) applauded Senate passage of a bipartisan resolution they introduced designating September 11th through September 17th as Patriot Week. Cofounded by Judge Michael Warren of Oakland County, Michigan, Patriot Week would honor the victims of the September 11th terrorist attacks, celebrate Constitution Day on the 17th and encourage students to learn more about the history of the United States. "I'm pleased that the Senate pass… Continue Reading
09.12.19
VIDEO: Peters, Stabenow, Stevens, Walberg, Kildee, Elizabeth Whelan Call on Russian Government to Release Michigander Paul Whelan
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senators Gary Peters (MI) and Debbie Stabenow (MI) and Representatives Haley Stevens (MI-11), Tim Walberg (MI-07) and Dan Kildee (MI-05) today called on the Russian government to release Michigan native Paul Whelan, who has been detained without evidence presented-despite repeatedly extending his pre-trial detention. Paul's sister Elizabeth Whelan joined the Members, who also urged Congress to pass their bipartisan, bicameral resolution introduced this week condemning the… Continue Reading
09.12.19
Peters, Dingell, Stabenow Announce $7.5 Million Federal Grant for Michigan’s Mobility Ecosystem
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senators Gary Peters (MI) and Debbie Stabenow (MI) and U.S. Representative Debbie Dingell (MI-12) today announced a $7.5 million federal grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation for partnership between the City of Detroit, the State of Michigan, the University of Michigan, and the American Center for Mobility (ACM). The funding will go towards the research, development and testing of self-driving technologies in both the world-class facilities at the University of M… Continue Reading
09.11.19
Peters Urges Inclusion of Bipartisan Legislation to Combat Fentanyl Trafficking in Final Defense Bill
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senator Gary Peters, Ranking Member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, is urging Senate Armed Services Committee leaders to include a provision that would crack down on international manufacturers and traffickers of fentanyl in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) conference report. The bipartisan Fentanyl Sanctions Act, which Peters cosponsored, would help curb the production and distribution of illicit synthetic opioids - such as … Continue Reading
09.11.19
Peters, Kennedy Introduce Patriot Week Resolution
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senators Gary Peters (D-MI) and John Kennedy (R-LA) today introduced a bipartisan resolution to designate September 11th through September 17th as Patriot Week. Cofounded by Judge Michael Warren of Oakland County, Michigan, Patriot Week would honor the victims of the September 11th terrorist attacks, celebrate Constitution Day on the 17th and encourage students to learn more about the history of the United States. "As we pause to remember those we lost on 9/11 and pay tri… Continue Reading
09.10.19
Peters Calls for Department of Defense Inspector General to Investigate Air Force Travel Following Use of Taxpayer Funds at Trump Turnberry
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senator Gary Peters, Ranking Member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, today called on the Department of Defense (DOD) Inspector General to conduct an independent investigation of whether the U.S. Air Force violated any laws, regulations, or policies related to taxpayer-funded travel to Prestwick Airport and President Trump's Turnberry golf resort in Scotland. Peters expressed concern that the Air Force's patronage of the Trump Turnberry gol… Continue Reading
09.09.19
VIDEO: Peters Delivers Remarks at 9/11 Memorial & Museum in New York City
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI), Ranking Member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, today helped lead a hearing to discuss how the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has secured the U.S. in the years since the September 11, 2001 attacks and how the Department must adapt to evolving and emerging national security threats in a rapidly changing world. The committee members were joined by former DHS Secretaries Michael Chertoff (2005-2009), Janet A. … Continue Reading
09.06.19
Peters Blasts White House Objections to Bipartisan PFAS Provisions in Defense Bill
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI) today released the following statement after the White House detailed numerous objections to the Senate-approved National Defense Authorization Act of 2019. Among their concerns were bipartisan provisions Peters authored and supported to address the PFAS crisis in Michigan and across the country, including requiring the Department of Defense (DOD) to phase out the use of firefighting foams containing PFAS at military installations. "Taking decisive… Continue Reading
09.05.19
Peters Statement on Federal Investigation into Michigan State University
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI) today released the following statement in response to the Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights concluding that Michigan State University violated Title IX during its handling of the Larry Nassar and William Strampel cases: "The toxic environment that allowed Larry Nassar and William Strampel to get away with their abuses needs to be eliminated. University leadership must be held accountable so that what happened at MSU can never happen … Continue Reading
09.05.19
Peters Presses VP Pence on Taxpayer-Funded Travel to Trump Property in Ireland
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senator Gary Peters, Ranking Member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, is pressing for answers following a decision by Vice President Mike Pence to stay at the Trump International Golf Links & Hotel in Doonbeg during his official visit to Ireland. The President's golf club is located more than 180 miles away from Dublin, where the Vice President attended meetings during his visit. Peters expressed concerns that the Vice President wasted … Continue Reading
08.30.19
Bipartisan, Bicameral Homeland Security Committee Leaders Press DHS on Reported Changes to Weapons of Mass Destruction Counterterrorism Programs
WASHINGTON, DC - The bipartisan leaders of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee and the House Homeland Security Committee are pressing the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for answers following recent reports that the Administration has scaled back programs focused on preventing terrorist attacks involving weapons of mass destruction. U.S. Senators Gary Peters (D-MI) and Ron Johnson (R-WI), Ranking Member and Chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmen… Continue Reading
08.30.19
Peters Statement on Environmental Impact Statement for Potential Missile Defense Site
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, released the statement below on the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD)'s Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for a potential missile defense site for the East Coast, which was released today. The statement reiterates the summary Senator Peters received in June, which noted that while Fort Drum in New York is the current preferred option "by a small margin", Fort Custer near Battle Creek is considered … Continue Reading
08.29.19
Peters, Stabenow Urge Labor Secretary to Reconsider Administration Proposal Undermining Effective Apprenticeship Programs
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senators Gary Peters (MI) and Debbie Stabenow (MI) are urging the Labor Department to rescind its recent proposal that would diminish Michigan's and other successful registered apprenticeship programs. The Senators joined a number of their colleagues in a letter to Acting Labor Secretary Patrick Pizzella requesting he reverse the Department's decision to form "industry-recognized apprenticeship programs" (IRAPs), which would not provide recipients the same benefits and pr… Continue Reading
08.28.19
Peters, Stabenow Urge Trump Administration to Stop Choosing Oil Companies over Michigan Farmers
WASHINGTON - This week, U.S. Senators Gary Peters (MI) and Debbie Stabenow (MI), Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, & Forestry, joined five Senators to urge the Administration to support a strong Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) for Michigan farmers. The President recently took action to benefit oil companies and undercut American-grown biofuels. On August 8, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued 31 small refinery hardship waivers, which allows oi… Continue Reading
08.26.19
Peters Announces Bipartisan Bill to Help Retired Government Laboratory Animals Find New Homes
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Gary Peters (D-MI) announced that he recently introduced the Animal Freedom from Testing, Experimentation and Research (AFTER) Act with Senators Susan Collins (R-ME), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Martha McSally (R-AZ). The bipartisan legislation would direct all federal agencies to develop and maintain a policy allowing for the adoption or retirement of dogs, cats, primates, rabbits, and other regulated animals no longer needed for research in federal labs. "Ensuri… Continue Reading
08.15.19
Peters Requests Information from Facebook on Handling of User Audio
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI) today sent a letter to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg requesting additional information on the company's handling of personal audio accessed from users. The letter comes amid reports that Facebook not only captured audio from users, but that the audio was sent to a third-party vendor to be analyzed and transcribed. Last year, Peters questioned Zuckerberg at a joint Commerce and Judiciary Committee hearing regarding concerns that users' audio conversat… Continue Reading
08.13.19
Peters Presses for Answers on CBP Action that Halted Service at Port of Monroe
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senator Gary Peters, Ranking Member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, pressed U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) on an agency decision that has blocked the Port of Monroe from receiving certain types of international cargo. In a letter to CBP, Peters expressed concern that a 2017 notification from CBP's Detroit Field Office has restricted the Port of Monroe from accepting international break bulk cargo and containerized cargo - counte… Continue Reading
