Shaheen & Hassan Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Eliminate Penalties for Federal Workers When Accessing Money From Retirement Savings During Shutdown

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) joined Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) to introduce the Emergency Relief for Federal Workers Act of 2019 to ensure that federal employees can access money from their Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) without penalty. The bill would waive penalties and contribution prohibitions as a result of financial hardship during the government shutdown. Shaheen and Hassan previously cosponsored legislation that was signed into law to ensure that federal workers affected by the shutdown receive retroactive pay.

Senator Hassan Joins Colleagues in Re-Introducing Bill to Increase Financial Literacy Among School-Age Children

Washington, DC – U.S. Senators Doug Jones (D-Ala.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), and Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.) have re-introduced legislation that would establish a competitive grant program at the U.S. Department of Education to help states build in-school financial literacy programs, and to encourage community partnerships to promote financial literacy among school-age youth. Alabama is among the few states that requires personal finance education as a graduation requirement.

Senator Hassan Announces New Leadership Position on Subcommittee Focused on Federal Spending Oversight and Emergency Management

WASHINGTON – Senator Maggie Hassan announced today that she will serve as the Ranking Member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Subcommittee on Federal Spending Oversight and Emergency Management. In her new leadership position, Senator Hassan will play a key role in ensuring that taxpayer dollars are being spent wisely and working to eliminate waste, fraud, and abuse in the federal government. Senator Rand Paul serves as the Chair of the Subcommittee.

Senator Hassan Meets With TSA Officers at Manchester-Boston Regional Airport On Day 32 of President Trump’s Senseless Government Shutdown

MANCHESTER – Senator Maggie Hassan today met with TSA officers after their shift at the Manchester-Boston Regional Airport, where she heard from them about how the President’s senseless government shutdown is impacting them and reaffirmed her commitment to fighting to reopen the government.

Hassan, Shaheen Join Colleagues in Introducing Bipartisan Legislation to Protect Service Members and Veterans, Examine Health Effects of Toxic Burn Pits

WASHINGTON – Senators Maggie Hassan and Jeanne Shaheen this week joined colleagues in reintroducing the bipartisan Burn Pits Accountability Act to examine the health effects of exposure to open burn pits and toxic airborne chemicals on service members and veterans. The legislation would require the Department of Defense to evaluate members of the Armed Forces for exposure to toxic airborne chemicals during periodic health assessments, upon a service member’s return from a deployment (Post-Deployment Health Assessment), and at separation (Separation History and Physical Examination). The bill also enhances information sharing between the Secretary of Defense and Secretary of Veterans Affairs about service members’ based or stationed near an open burn pit or exposed to airborne toxins and provides members determined to have been exposed to toxic airborne chemicals or stationed near an open burn pit additional opportunities to enroll in the Airborne Hazards and Open Burn Pit Registry.

Senator Hassan Highlights Impact of Government Shutdown at Groundbreaking Ceremony for Affordable Housing Complex in Claremont

CLAREMONT – Senator Maggie Hassan today highlighted the impact of President Trump’s government shutdown during a groundbreaking ceremony for Goddard Block Revitalization Project, which will provide affordable housing to low- and moderate- income Granite Staters in Claremont. Senator Hassan also emphasized the importance of expanding affordable, safe, and stable housing for hard-working Granite Staters and how that can help New Hampshire businesses attract and retain employees.

Shaheen, Hassan Move to Protect New Hampshire Small Businesses from Online Sales Tax Collection Requirement

(Washington, DC) – U.S. Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) reintroduced the Stop Taxing Our Potential (STOP) Act with Senator Jon Tester (D-MT), legislation that would overturn the recent Supreme Court ruling in South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc. This Supreme Court ruling overturned a previous precedent, and will allow states to collect sales tax from out-of-state businesses. This new burden will hurt small businesses, which do not have the resources to navigate collecting sales taxes for more than 10,000 taxing jurisdictions across the country.  

Hassan and Shaheen Join Colleagues in Reintroducing Resolution to Defend Constitutionality of Protections for People with Pre-Existing Conditions

WASHINGTON – Senators Maggie Hassan and Jeanne Shaheen joined colleagues this week in reintroducing a Senate resolution that would authorize the Senate Legal Counsel to defend Granite Staters and Americans with pre-existing conditions against the lawsuit brought by Republican Attorneys General – and supported by the Trump Administration –Texas v. United States. The court decision would strike down the entire Affordable Care Act and put millions of people at risk of losing their health care coverage. The U.S. House of Representatives voted to pass a similar resolution last week.

NH Delegation Speaks Out on Impact of Government Shutdown on New Hampshire Efforts to Prevent Sexual and Domestic Violence

(Concord, NH) – Today, Senators Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan and Representatives Annie Kuster (NH-02) and Chris Pappas (NH-01) released the following statements on the government shutdown’s impact on New Hampshire efforts to prevent sexual and domestic violence. As a result of the ongoing shutdown, the New Hampshire Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence (NHCADSV) and three of its member programs are unable to access funds they receive directly from the Department of Justice’s Office on Violence Against Women (OVW). If the shutdown continues, the absence of these funds will impact the availability of critical support services for victims of domestic and sexual violence in certain Granite State communities, potentially creating an unsafe situation for these victims. In addition to the government shutdown, last month the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) was allowed to expire, jeopardizing resources for survivors of sexual violence. 

Bipartisan Legislation Cosponsored by Senator Hassan to Make Government More Efficient Signed Into Law

WASHINGTON – President Trump signed into law yesterday bipartisan legislation cosponsored by Senator Maggie Hassan that will help to make the federal government more efficient. The bipartisan Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act would create a more secure, transparent, and efficient data system to help federal agencies better assess the effectiveness of their programs. This legislation was introduced by former Speaker of the House Paul Ryan (R-WI) and Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) and is based off of recommendations from the bipartisan Commission on Evidence-Based Policymaking’s final report.

Senator Hassan Takes to Senate Floor to Share Stories of Granite Staters Impacted by the President’s Shutdown

WASHINGTON – Senator Maggie Hassan today took to the Senate floor to share stories of Granite Staters who have been impacted by the President’s senseless shutdown. 

NH Delegation Announces Grant Awarded to NH Dept. of Health and Human Services to Help Prevent Sexual Violence

(Washington, DC) – Today, Senators Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan and Representatives Annie Kuster (NH-02) and Chris Pappas (NH-01) announced that the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services (NH HHS) has been awarded a $289,598 Rape Prevention and Education (RPE) Program grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. The RPE program was started by the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) and works to prevent sexual violence by stopping perpetration, reducing risk factors, and using evidence to design, carry out and evaluate prevention programming.

Senator Hassan Visits New Hampshire Non-Profits to Discuss How Government Shutdown is Impacting Services for Granite Staters

NASHUA – Senator Maggie Hassan today met with representatives of New Hampshire non-profits to understand how their services would be impacted if President Trump’s senseless government shutdown continues. The Senator visited the Nashua Soup Kitchen as well as the Community Action Partnership (CAP) of Strafford County in Dover, which helps provide food, education, and child care services. Programs such as The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP), a USDA program that provides food to shelters, food pantries, and local organizations, are being impacted by the shutdown. 

Senators Hassan, Shaheen Join in Introducing Bills to Lower Skyrocketing Prescription Drug Prices

WASHINGTON – Senator Maggie Hassan, a member of the Senate Finance Committee that has jurisdiction over Medicare, and a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, and Senator Jeanne Shaheen joined colleagues this week in introducing legislation to lower skyrocketing prescription drug prices for Granite Staters and Americans. The Senators joined in reintroducing legislation to allow Medicare to negotiate the best possible price for prescription drugs to cut costs for the nearly 43 million seniors enrolled in Medicare Part D. The Senators also joined in reintroducing separate legislation to allow patients, pharmacists, and wholesalers to import safe, affordable medicine from Canada and other major countries.

Bipartisan Bill Co-Sponsored by Shaheen & Hassan to Protect Federal and Other Government Workers Hurt During Shutdowns Heads to President’s Desk

(Washington, DC) — U.S. Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) issued the following statements after Congress passed bipartisan legislation the Senators reintroduced earlier this week with Senators Susan Collins (R-ME) and Ben Cardin (D-MD) to protect federal and other government workers from the repercussions of the current government shutdown and future lapses in federal appropriations. The bill passed unanimously in the Senate and was approved across party lines in the House of Representatives. The Government Employee Fair Treatment Act would guarantee that furloughed federal employees will be paid retroactively and stipulates that all employees will be paid as soon as possible after the lapse in appropriations ends. The bill now heads to the President’s desk to be signed into law.

Senators Shaheen, Hassan Press Trump Administration to Ensure Federal Contractor Employees Receive Pay

WASHINGTON – Senators Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan today joined Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) and 30 additional colleagues in writing to the Office of Management and Budget, urging the Trump Administration to direct federal agencies to work with contractors to provide back pay to compensate low- and middle-income contractor employees for the wages they have lost during the shutdown. Under their existing authority, federal contracting officers should use provisions that allow them to modify the terms of the contract to work with contractors to provide back pay for employees who lost wages as a result of the government shutdown.

NH Delegation Introduces Legislation to Redesignate the Saint-Gaudens National Historic Site

(Washington, DC) — U.S. Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) and Congressmembers Annie Kuster (NH-02) and Chris Pappas (NH-01) today introduced legislation to redesignate the Saint-Gaudens National Historic Site as a “National Historical Park” to more appropriately reflect the expansion and utilization of the grounds. Authorized by Congress in 1964, the site preserves the home and artwork of Augustus Saint-Gaudens, the foremost American sculptor of the late 19th century. During his career, Saint-Gaudens created over 150 works of art, many of them commemorating heroes of the Civil War, including the Robert Gould Shaw Memorial in Boston and the Standing and Seated Abraham Lincoln monuments in Chicago.

Senator Hassan and Congresswoman Kuster Join Colleagues in Introducing Legislation to Help Protect Federal Workers from Long-Term Financial Hardships During a Government Shutdown

WASHINGTON – Senator Maggie Hassan and Congresswoman Annie Kuster today joined their Senate and House colleagues in introducing the Federal Employee Civil Relief Act. The new legislation would protect federal workers and their families from foreclosures, evictions, and loan defaults during a government shutdown.

President Signs Into Law Bipartisan Bill Cosponsored by Senator Hassan to Help Survivors of Child Abuse

WASHINGTON – President Trump this week signed into law a bipartisan bill cosponsored by Senator Maggie Hassan that will help survivors of child abuse. The legislation reauthorizes the Victims of Child Abuse Act (VOCAA), which provides funding for Children’s Advocacy Centers that support victims of child abuse and help law enforcement hold perpetrators accountable.

Senator Hassan Takes to Senate Floor to Call for End to the President’s Senseless Shutdown That’s Hurting Granite Staters and All Americans

WASHINGTON – Senator Maggie Hassan delivered a speech on the Senate floor tonight calling for an end to the President’s senseless government shutdown - now in its 18th day – that is hurting Granite Staters and Americans.