Press Releases
Peters, Stabenow, Announce $4.6 Million to Expand Head Start Programs for West Michigan Children
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senators Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow today announced that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) awarded $1.95 million to the Grand Rapids Early Learning Neighborhood Collaborative to support their Early Head Start Child Care Partnership program, and $2.7 million to the Muskegon Area Intermediate School District to support Early Head Start and Head Start programs for children. "Head Start and Early Head Start programs provide vital educational and support … Continue Reading
03.20.17
Peters, Stabenow, Announce $3.8 Million to Expand Head Start Programs for Pontiac Area Children
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senators Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow today announced that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) awarded $3.8 million to the Oakland Livingston Human Service Agency to support Early Head Start and Head Start programs for children in Oakland County. "Head Start and Early Head Start programs provide vital educational and support services to families and children that put them on the path to success," said Senator Peters. "I'm pleased to help announce this fu… Continue Reading
03.20.17
Peters, Stabenow, Kildee Announce $5.5 Million to Expand Flint Early Head Start
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senators Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow, and Congressman Dan Kildee today announced that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) awarded $2.3 million to Genesee County and $3.2 million to the Genesee Intermediate School District to support expanded Early Head Start for children in the Flint area through their Early Head Start Child Care Partnership programs. "The children of Flint have been particularly impacted by the water crisis given their vulnerability to… Continue Reading
03.17.17
Peters Presents West Michigan Vietnam Veterans with 50th Anniversary Commemorative Lapel Pins
GRAND RAPIDS, MI - U.S. Senator Gary Peters, a member of the Senate Armed Services and Homeland Security Committees and a former Lieutenant Commander in the U.S. Navy Reserve, today presented Vietnam veterans from West Michigan with commemorative lapel pins to honor their service in the Vietnam War. The ceremony, which was held at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum in Grand Rapids, is part of a national effort to honor the 50th anniversary of the Vietnam War. "Michigan is home to more Vietn… Continue Reading
03.17.17
Stabenow, Peters, Kildee Announce Environmental Protection Agency Approval of $100 Million in Federal Funds for City of Flint
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senators Gary Peters (D-MI) and Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) and Congressman Dan Kildee (MI-05) today announced that the Environmental Protection Agency approved $100 million in federal emergency funding for the City of Flint. Senators Stabenow and Peters and Congressman Kildee secured the funding in a bipartisan agreement that passed Congress at the end of 2016. "Today we have good news for families in Flint who have already waited far too long for their water system to be fi… Continue Reading
03.16.17
Peters Cosponsors Legislation Expanding Coverage for Veterans Harmed by Agent Orange
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S Senator Gary Peters (MI), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, announced today he is cosponsoring the bipartisan Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act to help ensure that Vietnam veterans who served aboard deep-water naval vessels, known as "Blue Water" veterans, are eligible for the disability and health care benefits for illnesses linked to exposure to Agent Orange. Currently, care directly linked to Agent Orange exposure is only available to veterans who served… Continue Reading
03.16.17
Peters Statement on President Trump’s Proposed Budget
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI), Ranking Member of the Federal Spending Oversight Subcommittee, released the following statement regarding President Trump's proposed budget that dramatically cuts critical domestic programs: "President Trump's proposed budget makes drastic cuts that will hit Michigan families and businesses in both urban and rural areas especially hard, including cuts to transportation services education, job training and programs that are essential for protecting… Continue Reading
03.15.17
Peters, Portman & Stabenow Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Boost Great Lakes Funding
Washington, DC - U.S. Senators Gary Peters (D-MI), Rob Portman (R-OH) and Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) today introduced bipartisan legislation to spur Great Lakes funding and research efforts and help support effective fishery management decisions. The Great Lakes Fishery Research Authorization (GLFRA) Act gives the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) the legislative authority to support the $7 billion Great Lakes sport and commercial fishery industry. Despite holding one-fifth of the world's fresh water, t… Continue Reading
03.15.17
Peters, Stabenow, Kildee Introduce Resolution Opposing Nuclear Waste Storage Site in Great Lakes Basin
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senators Gary Peters (D-MI), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) and Congressman Dan Kildee (MI-05) today introduced resolutions, in both the House and Senate, expressing opposition to construction of a nuclear waste repository less than a mile from Lake Huron in Ontario. "The Canadian proposal to build a permanent nuclear waste repository less than a mile from Lake Huron could cause significant, lasting damage to the Great Lakes and undermine the progress we have made cleaning up th… Continue Reading
03.10.17
Peters, Stabenow Send Bipartisan Senate Great Lakes Task Force Letter Expressing Concern about Trump Administration’s Reported 97 Percent Cut to Great Lakes Funding
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Gary Peters (D-MI), a member of the Task Force, and U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Co-Chair of the Senate Great Lakes Task Force today sent a bipartisan letter to Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt expressing concern about reports that the Trump Administration's 2018 budget request will include a 97 percent cut to Great Lakes funding. Great Lakes Task Force Co-Chair Rob Portman (R-OH), Vice Chair Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Task Force m… Continue Reading
03.10.17
Peters Joins Calls for Increase in Federal Security Funds in Wake of Recent Threats against Religious Institutions
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI) joined 18 of his colleagues in a bipartisan letter to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) urging Secretary John Kelly to increase federal funds for the Nonprofit Security Grant Program (NSGP) for Fiscal Year 2018 and fully fund the program at $50 million. The funds would help support physical security enhancements and other prevention, response and recovery efforts to protect nonprofit organizations that are at high risk of a violent attack. T… Continue Reading
03.09.17
Peters, Colleagues Urge Trump Administration to Stop Cuts to Coast Guard
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI), Ranking Member of the Commerce Subcommittee overseeing the U.S. Coast Guard, helped lead a bipartisan group of 23 Senators in a letter urging Office of Management and Budget Administrator Mick Mulvaney not to make a $1.3 billion dollar cut to the budget of the U.S. Coast Guard. According to reports, the FY 2018 Presidential Budget Request could amount to almost 12 percent of the service's budget being cut. The U.S. Coast Guard plays a critical role… Continue Reading
03.09.17
Senators Peters, Perdue Reintroduce No Hero Left Untreated Act
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senators Gary Peters (D-MI) and David Perdue (R-GA) have reintroduced the No Hero Left Untreated Act to enhance medical care for America's heroes. The bipartisan legislation would create a pilot program to test an innovative treatment called Magnetic e-Resonance Therapy for veterans to help treat post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), traumatic brain injury (TBI) and other mental health issues. Peters and Perdue are both members of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and… Continue Reading
03.08.17
Peters Named Ranking Member on Senate Subcommittee Overseeing U.S. Coast Guard, NOAA
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI) today announced that he will serve as Ranking Member of the Commerce Subcommittee on Oceans, Atmosphere, Fisheries, and Coast Guard. The subcommittee oversees agencies critically important to the Great Lakes, including the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Weather Service. "Next to our people, the Great Lakes are Michigan's most precious resource and play a central role in our state… Continue Reading
03.08.17
Peters, Graham, Cornyn Reintroduce National Criminal Justice Commission Act
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senators Gary Peters (D-MI), Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and John Cornyn (R-TX) today reintroduced the bipartisan National Criminal Justice Commission Act, legislation that would create a National Criminal Justice Commission to review the criminal justice system from top to bottom and propose reforms to address the most pressing issues facing the nation's criminal justice system. "Our criminal justice system is built on the pillars of fairness and equality, but too many Americ… Continue Reading
03.07.17
Peters, Portman, Nelson & Rubio Lead Entire Senate in Calling on DHS and DOJ to Address Threats to Jewish Institutions Across the Country
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senators Gary Peters (D-MI), Rob Portman (R-OH), Bill Nelson (D-FL) and Marco Rubio (R-FL) are leading all 100 Senators in urging the Trump Administration to take action in response to the recent anonymous bomb threats made against Jewish Community Centers (JCC's), Jewish Day Schools, and Synagogues. In a bipartisan letter that will be sent to Department of Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, Attorney General Jeff Sessions, and FBI Director James Comey, the Senators str… Continue Reading
03.06.17
Peters Statement on Revised Executive Order
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI) today released the following statement on President Trump's signing of a revised executive order: "As a member of the Homeland Security and Armed Services Committees, I take very seriously the federal government's responsibility to keep Americans safe. I believe we should always look for ways to fortify our refugee screening process, which is already one of the most rigorous in the world. However, I do not support President Trump's suspension of th… Continue Reading
03.03.17
Peters Visits Michigan Technological University’s Advanced Power Systems Research Center
Calumet, MI - U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI), a member of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee and co-founder of the Senate Smart Transportation Caucus, visited the Michigan Technological University (MTU)'s Advanced Power System Research Center (APS LABS) to learn more about MTU's connected and autonomous vehicle technology research and development efforts. Peters also visited MTU's Keweenaw Research Center to view research conducted by MTU for the Department of Defense. "Mi… Continue Reading
03.02.17
Peters Statement on Attorney General Jeff Sessions
Washington, DC - Below is a statement from U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI) on Attorney General Jeff Sessions' meeting with the Russian Ambassador: "Attorney General Sessions' statements to the Senate Judiciary Committee are just the latest in troubling pattern of Trump Administration and campaign officials covering up their interactions with the Russian government. Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort and National Security Advisory Michael Flynn both resigned after misleading the public about the… Continue Reading
03.02.17
Peters, Stabenow, Upton, Dingell Call for Federal Funding to Support Testing of Self-Driving Vehicle Technologies
Washington, DC - U.S. Senators Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow and U.S. Representatives Fred Upton and Debbie Dingell called on the Trump Administration to prioritize the development and testing of connected and self-driving vehicles in the President's proposed budget for 2018. The Members of Congress sent a letter to Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Mick Mulvaney and Department of Transportation (DOT) Secretary Elaine Chao urging them to include $200 million in their 2018 federal … Continue Reading
