News Releases
Hoeven, Heller, Colleagues Introduce Bill to Fix Military Pension COLA Reductions
WASHINGTON - Senator John Hoeven and Republican colleagues today introduced the Responsible Unemployment Compensation Extension Act of 2014, legislation that will repeal the Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) reduction for military retirees that was included in the recent budget agreement. The measure also includes an offset for a three-month extension of temporary long-term unemployment benefits and averts payment reductions for Medicare providers. The measure would repeal cuts to military retir… Continue Reading
01.16.14
Hoeven Statement on Fiscal Year 2014 Omnibus Appropriations Bill
WASHINGTON - Senator John Hoeven, who serves on the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee, today announced that both the U.S. Senate and House have approved the Consolidated Appropriations Act, a bipartisan agreement that will fund the U.S. federal government through 2014. The legislation now goes to the president for signature. The legislation is the result of extensive bipartisan and bicameral negotiations and compromise. The measure sets discretionary spending levels $164 billion below the 20… Continue Reading
01.16.14
Hoeven, Heitkamp, Cramer Meet with DOT Sec. FOxx, PHMSA Admin. Quarterman, Industry Leaders to Improve Railway Safety
WASHINGTON - Senators John Hoeven and Heidi Heitkamp and Congressman Kevin Cramer met today with Transportation Department officials, railroad industry executives and shippers, specifically the oil industry, to follow up on a meeting last week on railway transportation safety. The delegation again met with Department of Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) head Cynthia Quarterman, Federal Railroad Administration head Joseph C. Sza… Continue Reading
01.15.14
Hoeven Meets with Canadian Foreign Minister, Ambassador to Continue Push for Keystone XL Pipeline
WASHINGTON - Senator John Hoeven today met with Canadian Foreign Minister John Baird and Canadian Ambassador to the United States Gary Doer to continue pressing for presidential approval of the Keystone XL pipeline. The Canadian leaders were in Washington to build relations with U.S. leaders and to press for support of the job-creating pipeline project in light of the State Department's forthcoming release of a final environmental impact statement (EIS). "Canada is one of our greatest friends a… Continue Reading
01.15.14
Hoeven: DOT Must Issue Timely Standards on Tanker Car Construction
WASHINGTON - Senator John Hoeven today issued the following statement in response to the Department of Transportation's disclosure today that it will not finalize rules governing the construction of rail tanker cars until sometime after January 2015: "The DOT today indicated it will not finalize rules governing the construction of new rail tanker cars until sometime after January 2015. We are concerned that unless DOT provides guidance sooner, the timeline will be too long for industry to trans… Continue Reading
01.14.14
Hoeven, Klobuchar Introduce Driver Privacy Act
WASHINGTON - Senators John Hoeven (R-N.D.) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) today introduced their Driver Privacy Act, legislation that protects a driver's personal privacy by making it clear that the owner of a vehicle is also the owner of any information collected by an Event Data Recorder (EDR). An EDR has the ability to continuously collect at least 45 pieces of information about a vehicle's operation that can be retrieved at any time. This includes direction, speed, seatbelt usage and other dat… Continue Reading
01.14.14
Omnibus Appropriations Bill Includes North Dakota Priorities for Global Hawk, Missile Silos
WASHINGTON - Senator John Hoeven today announced that the Fiscal Year 2014 omnibus bill includes provisions to maintain Global Hawk and missile silos, two important North Dakota priorities. "North Dakota's two air bases have long served an important role defending our nation's security, and maintaining the strength of these bases remains a top priority," said Hoeven. "The bipartisan omnibus bill includes important provisions that will help maintain the important work taking place in Grand Forks… Continue Reading
01.13.14
Hoeven Visits North Dakota Guard Members Deployed to Mission in Nation's Capital
WASHINGTON - Senator John Hoeven today met with members of the North Dakota Army National Guard's 1st Battalion, 188th Air Defense Artillery regiment, who are currently deployed on a mission to Washington, DC. Hoeven saw firsthand the unit performing its mission to defend the airspace in the national capital region and expressed his support and gratitude for the guard members during the year-long deployment. "The skies over our nation's capital are in good hands with the 188th," Hoeven said. "T… Continue Reading
01.13.14
Hoeven Statement on the NTSB's Preliminary Report on the Casselton Derailment
WASHINGTON - Senator John Hoeven made the following statement in response to the National Transportation Safety Board's (NTSB) preliminary report on the Casselton, N.D. derailment. "We have reviewed the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) preliminary report, but we will need the NTSB's full report and any recommendations they make to enhance rail transportation safety. "Thankfully, no one was hurt, but this accident underscores the need to work to prevent derailments in the first place… Continue Reading
01.09.14
Hoeven, Heitkamp Meet with DOT Sec. Anthony Foxx, PHMSA Administrator Cynthia Quarterman on Railway Safety
WASHINGTON - Senators John Hoeven and Heidi Heitkamp today met with Department of Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx and Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) head Cynthia Quarterman to discuss steps the DOT is taking to improve railway transportation safety and to follow up on a letter Hoeven wrote a year ago asking Quarterman to expedite rules governing construction of new, safer tanker cars. Congressman Kevin Cramer was represented at the meeting by a staff member.… Continue Reading
01.08.14
Hoeven to IRS: Stop Onerous New Tax Rules Impacting Family Farms, Small Businesses
WASHINGTON - Senator John Hoeven today pressed Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Commissioner John Koskinen to stop unfair and onerous new tax rules that are negatively impacting family farms and other small businesses. In a letter to the head of the IRS, Hoeven called on the agency to revise the new Tangible Property Repair Regulations that force family farms and other businesses to meet unrealistic and burdensome requirements to expense the purchase of materials and supplies as well as the cost o… Continue Reading
01.08.14
Hoeven, Heitkamp, Cramer to Host Reception for 188th AIR Defense Artillery Regiment
WASHINGTON - Senators John Hoeven and Heidi Heitkamp and Congressman Kevin Cramer today are hosting a reception for the North Dakota National Guard's (NDNG) 1st Battalion, 188th Air Defense Artillery Regiment in honor of their service in defending the nation's capital. This is the second reception hosted by the delegation for the 188th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, the first being held in observance of the anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. In April 2013, the NDNG Regime… Continue Reading
01.07.14
Hoeven, Heitkamp, Bipartisan Group of Senators Press to Bring Bill Preventing Steep Flood Insurance Hikes to Floor
WASHINGTON- Senators John Hoeven, Heidi Heitkamp and a bipartisan group of senators today rallied to promote legislation that will prevent the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) from unfairly raising flood insurance rates and help ensure affordable premiums for millions of Americans. Included in the bipartisan legislation is the Hoeven-Heitkamp Flood Safe Basements Act, which enables homeowners to receive credit for flood proofed basements when determining flood insurance rates. "The Ho… Continue Reading
01.03.14
Hoeven to Meet Saturday with BNSF Railway President and CEO to Address Railroad Safety
FRISCO, TEXAS - Senator John Hoeven today said he will meet with BNSF Railway President and CEO Matt Rose Saturday near the company's headquarters in Fort Worth to get an update on the Casselton derailment and measures that can be taken to enhance railroad safety. The senator is maintaining an ongoing dialog with officials on the state, local and federal level to identify the cause of the accident and seek ways to minimize the chance of a similar event occurring in the future. "While it's a ble… Continue Reading
01.02.14
Hoeven: USDA Agrees to Permanently Modify National School Lunch Program Requirements
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senator John Hoeven of North Dakota and Senator Mark Pryor of Arkansas today said the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has agreed to enact permanent changes to the National School Lunch and Breakfast Program requirements in response to demands by Hoeven and Pryor. In December 2012, USDA made temporary changes to the School Lunch Program in response to a letter led by Hoeven and Pryor and signed by other senators. Hoeven and Pryor then wrote legislation, which is likely t… Continue Reading
12.30.13
Hoeven, Heitkamp, Cramer and Dalrymple: FAA Selects Grand Forks to be UAS Test Site
WASHINGTON - Senators John Hoeven and Heidi Heitkamp, Congressman Kevin Cramer and Governor Jack Dalrymple today announced that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has selected Grand Forks as one of six sites to test unmanned aerial systems (UAS) for integration into the National Airspace. The announcement comes after years of work by North Dakota's leaders to position Grand Forks as the premier northern UAS hub. The FAA Reauthorization bill passed by Congress in February 2012 includes… Continue Reading
12.23.13
Hoeven, Heitkamp, Cramer Urge Federal Agencies to Quickly Review Proposals for Highway Expansion Project Between Williston and Watford City
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators John Hoeven and Heidi Heitkamp, as well as Congressman Kevin Cramer urged federal agencies to review in a timely manner state proposals to expand US-85 highway between Williston and Watford City from two lanes to four lanes. The federal delegation sent a letter to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), U.S. Coast Guard (USCG), and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) encouraging the agencies to approve the highway expansion project. The project aims to make the… Continue Reading
12.20.13
Hoeven, Heitkamp: Bill to Streamline Federal Oil and Gas Permitting Process in North Dakota Becomes Law
WASHINGTON - Senators John Hoeven and Heidi Heitkamp today announced that legislation they authored to help streamline oil and gas permitting on federal lands in western North Dakota has passed the U.S. Senate. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Streamlining Act expands the service area of the Miles City, Mont. office to include North Dakota. The office will now be able to process permits for North Dakota, which will help to address backlog and delays. Federal permits currently take up to nine… Continue Reading
12.20.13
Hoeven Statement on the National Defense Authorization Act
WASHINGTON - Senator John Hoeven today issued the following statement regarding passage of the National Defense Authorization Act: "Today, I joined a bipartisan majority in the U.S. Senate to pass the National Defense Authorization Act. This legislation includes important provisions for our troops, including increased pay, and measures to address sexual assault in the military. It also contains measures important to our bases including the authorization of three new military construction projec… Continue Reading
12.18.13
Hoeven Statement on the Ryan-Murray Budget Plan
WASHINGTON - Senator John Hoeven today issued the following statement relating to his vote to pass the Ryan-Murray budget in the U.S. Senate: "There are provisions in the Ryan-Murray budget that I do not support, but this agreement averts another government shutdown, establishes certainty for Americans families and businesses and reduces the deficit by $23 billion without raising taxes. I believe the Fiscal Year 2014 and 2015 budget limits should have been retained, but the measure reduces spen… Continue Reading
