Press Releases

BISMARCK—U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) joined Senators John Kennedy (R-LA) and Roger Marshall (R-KS) in introducing a Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution to block the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) from reclassifying pistols with stabilizing braces as short-barreled rifles. Under the Biden Administration’s new rule, law-abiding gun owners could face up to 10 years in jail and thousands of dollars in fines for failing to register pistols with... CONTINUE READING

BISMARCK– U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) announced the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) awarded the University of North Dakota (UND) $1,000,000 to support the advancement of a cost-effective emissions reduction solution for small production facilities. Specifically, the grant will help UND further develop a novel technological approach to reducing or eliminating methane emissions from storage tanks. The Bakken Production Optimization Program provided an additional $250,000... CONTINUE READING

BISMARCK – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) announced members of his staff will hold mobile office hours in Enderlin and Milnor on Tuesday, March 28. “Since it’s not always possible for people to travel to my in-state offices, these mobile office opportunities help bring the services we offer closer to the constituents who need them,” said Senator Cramer. “Having members of my staff in Enderlin and Milnor will give North Dakotans more... CONTINUE READING

BISMARCK – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) announced BNSF Railway and Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) publicly filed weekly grain backlog status updates as required by the U.S. Surface Transportation Board (STB). A summary of the reporting data specific to North Dakota from the last 10 weeks is below. Following STB’s April 2022 hearing on “Urgent Issues in Freight Rail Service,” BNSF Railway, CSX Transportation, Norfolk Southern Railway, and Union Pacific submitted service... CONTINUE READING

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Ranking Member of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Subcommittee on Transportation and Infrastructure, announced the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) awarded the Three Affiliated Tribes $1,966,345 to support the use of drones for medical care and equipment delivery. The resources will be administered through USDOT’s Strengthening Mobility and Revolutionizing Transportation (SMART) Grant Program, which was... CONTINUE READING

***Click here to download video. Click here for audio.*** WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), member of the Senate Banking Committee, joined "Eric Bolling The Balance" on Newsmax to discuss Silicon Valley Bank and the fiscal and monetary contributors to its collapse. Excerpts and full video are below. On Next Actions Following Recent Bank Failures: “We should resist making knee-jerk responses until we know more about what happened at each of these banks. What were the... CONTINUE READING

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Ranking Member of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Subcommittee on Transportation and Infrastructure, announced the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) awarded a total of $5,297,038 to the Bismarck and Mott Municipal Airports. The below will be administered through the FAA’s Airport Infrastructure Grant (AIG) program, which received funding in the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA). $5,202,538... CONTINUE READING

***Click here to download video. Click here for audio.*** WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) questioned Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Assistant Administrator for Water Radhika Fox about the overreaching effects of the new Waters of the U.S. (WOTUS) rule at a Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) hearing. He thanked her for visiting North Dakota, where he hosted her and then-Acting Secretary of the Army Corps for Civil Works Jaime Pinkham for a listening session with... CONTINUE READING

***Click here to download video. Click here for audio.*** WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), founder and co-chair of the Senate Space Force Caucus, questioned General B. Chance Saltzman, Chief of Space Operations, about modernizing the Perimeter Acquisition Radar Attack Characterization System (PARCS) Radar Warning System, preparedness, and offensive operations. Excerpts and full video are below. Senator Cramer previously pushed for the Space Force to prioritize upgrades... CONTINUE READING

WASHINGTON — U.S. Senators Kevin Cramer (R-ND) and Angus King (I-ME), members of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) and the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee (SVAC), sent a letter to the chiefs of each U.S. military service branch expressing concern about a lack of attention to servicemembers transitioning from active duty to veteran status. The Senators urged the Department of Defense (DOD) to improve the Transition Assistance Program (TAP) by better ensuring timely... CONTINUE READING

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) issued the below statement after the Surface Transportation Board (STB) announced its approval of a proposed merger between Canadian Pacific (CP) and Kansas City Southern Railway (KCS). “Today’s decision will expand market access for North Dakota producers, unlock opportunities for commerce in Mexico, and make existing routes across North America more efficient. I appreciate the STB’s thorough process and final... CONTINUE READING

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), member of the Senate Banking Committee, issued the below statement on the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank and subsequent reactions by the U.S. Department of the Treasury (DOT), the Federal Reserve Board, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC): “The failures of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank have led to needless stress in the banking system. This situation demands... CONTINUE READING

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), member of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee, joined Senators Deb Fischer (R-NE) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) in reintroducing the Consumer and Fuel Retailer Choice Act of 2023. The legislation would permit the year-round, nationwide sale of ethanol blends higher than 10%, ending years of regulatory uncertainty and preventing a patchwork of uneven state regulations. “North Dakota consumers and producers deserve... CONTINUE READING

WASHINGTON — U.S. Senators Kevin Cramer (R-ND) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) reintroduced the Chiropractic Medicare Coverage Modernization Act, which would expand Medicare coverage of chiropractic services to ensure patients enrolled in the program can access chiropractic care as a non-drug alternative for pain management. “Current Medicare restrictions prevent chiropractors from offering a full scope of treatments or ordering diagnostic services for... CONTINUE READING

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, announced the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) National Cemetery Administration (NCA) awarded the state $1,860,775 to expand the North Dakota Veterans Cemetery in Mandan. These resources will be administered through the Veterans Cemetery Grants Program (VGCP) to support landscaping projects, infrastructure improvements, and the construction of 1,440 columbarium... CONTINUE READING

***Click here to download video. Click here for audio.*** BISMARCK – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) joined Chuck Todd on Meet the Press to discuss the Silicon Valley Bank collapse, budget and debt limit negotiations, and the release of Capitol surveillance from January 6, 2021. Excerpts and full video are below.  On Silicon Valley Bank, Financial Regulations: “There are so many unique things about Silicon Valley [Bank] that aren't necessarily applicable... CONTINUE READING

BISMARCK – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) announced BNSF Railway and Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) publicly filed weekly grain backlog status updates as required by the U.S. Surface Transportation Board (STB). A summary of the reporting data specific to North Dakota from the last 10 weeks is below. Following STB’s April 2022 hearing on “Urgent Issues in Freight Rail Service,” BNSF Railway, CSX Transportation, Norfolk Southern Railway, and Union Pacific submitted service... CONTINUE READING

***Click here to download video. Click here for audio.*** WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), ahead of a Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) hearing, met with Air Force General Anthony Cotton, U.S. Strategic Command, regarding the nuclear triad, radar modernization, and opportunities at Grand Forks and Minot Air Force Bases. At SASC, Senator Cramer discussed maintaining B-52-capable runways and bolstering deterrence programs to protect our nation against near-peer... CONTINUE READING

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) issued the following statement on President Biden’s Fiscal Year 2024 (FY24) budget request: “President Biden finally announced his unserious budget request. Instead of exercising fiscal discipline and reducing the inflationary pressures families are feeling, he is focused on penalizing energy producers while insisting on more taxes to recklessly fund his failed Build Back Broke agenda. This is a purely political proposal when we... CONTINUE READING

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) issued the below statement on voting to strike Washington, D.C. legislation which changed definitions for criminal offenses and lowered certain penalties. The U.S. Constitution places D.C. within federal jurisdiction and gives Congress ultimate authority over its laws. “Our nation’s capital should be safe for residents and visitors. At a time when violent crime and carjackings are alarmingly high, the D.C. Council overhauled... CONTINUE READING