press releases

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture will soon enable livestock producers to sign up for disaster assistance, which the senators helped to pass in the Farm Bill earlier this month. The assistance is being expedited -- signups will begin in 60 days -- at the...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Sens. Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich, and U.S. Reps. Ben Ray Luján and Michelle Lujan Grisham announced their enthusiastic support for increasing New Mexico’s minimum wage. The New Mexico state legislature is currently debating a measure to raise the minimum wage...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) issued the following statement today after voting in favor of a bill to restore the pension cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) to military men and women's retirement pay. The measure passed the Senate by a vote of 95-3 and now goes to the President for his...

(From left: Carl Colonius, Executive Director, Rocky Mountain Youth Corps; Senator Martin Heinrich; Linda Santana, 2014 Corpsmember of the Year; Rosie Williams, Training Director, Rocky Mountain Youth Corps; and Ben Thomas, Field Program Director, Rocky Mountain Youth Corps) WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), a member of...

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich today announced that they have sent a bipartisan letter signed by a coalition of senators to U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, encouraging the USDA to expedite the implementation of the livestock disaster programs reauthorized in the 2014 Farm Bill.  The Farm...

Last year, I said I would work hard every day to restore the basic bargain on which this country was built, that if you work hard and play by the rules you can get ahead. That was my commitment then and remains my commitment to you today. This year presents new opportunities for Congress to work together in a bipartisan, bicameral way to...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) issued the following statement today after Senate Republicans again refused to advance S. 1845, the Emergency Unemployment Compensation Extension Act, a bill that would extend federal emergency unemployment benefits to nearly 6,000 New Mexican job-seekers: "I'm greatly disappointed that...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich today joined the Senate in passing the Farm Bill, major legislation that will send needed assistance to N.M. farmers and livestock producers, and help almost every N.M. county provide basic public services. The Farm Bill, which provides agriculture funding...

The Obama administration is preparing to designate areas in New Mexico and California off-limits to development under its executive authority, according to individuals familiar with the matter, a move that signals a bolder public-lands policy in the president’s second term. The individuals, who asked not to be identified because a final...

On a tour Thursday, Jan. 23, of Sapphire Energy’s research and development facility in the West Mesa Industrial Park, U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich addressed the unique nature of the advanced biodiesel industry and the challenge it poses for legislators. “Advanced bio-fuels are caught between the silos of agricultural regulations and oil...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) released the following statement tonight after President Obama's State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress: "President Obama's call for bipartisanship and rewarding hard work goes hand in hand with New Mexico's priorities and values.  We must be unwavering in our...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich today announced that the Farm Bill conference report, made public last night, includes one year of funding for the critical Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) Program. The news provides relief for rural counties in New Mexico, which face significant budget cuts if PILT is not...

FARMINGTON — New Mexico senators said Tuesday that funding for the Payment of Lieu of Tax program has been added to the Farm Bill conference report. If Congress approves the report and President Barack Obama signs it into law, county governments throughout the country will share more than $400 million to compensate them for federal lands...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), a member of the Congressional Joint Economic Committee, applauded President Obama after the White House announced today he will sign an executive order setting the minimum wage for workers under new federal contract to be paid $10.10 an hour. "I commend President Obama for taking this...

Down in Las Cruces, excitement is growing. Years of work to preserve the Organ Mountains-Desert Peak region are almost completed, with Interior Secretary Sally Jewell visiting Friday to listen to the community and hear their views on what should be done to protect the majestic country. Her visit is likely one of the last steps before action is...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) will travel to Luna and Doña Ana Counties beginning tomorrow, Wednesday, January 22, to participate in briefings and events in Deming, Hatch, and Las Cruces. On Wednesday this week, Senator Heinrich will tour the Ben Archer Health Center in Hatch to discuss the center's experience with...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich will hold a news conference with U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell in the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks region near Valles Canyon on Friday, January 24, 2014 at 12 p.m. MT to discuss conservation initiatives to preserve some of Doña Ana County's most iconic...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich today announced that that they have sent a bipartisan letter signed by a coalition of senators to the leadership of the Farm Bill conference committee requesting that funding for the Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) Program be included in the final Farm Bill conference report. PILT...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) released the following statement today after Senate Republicans refused to advance S.1845, the Emergency Unemployment Compensation Extension Act, a bill that would extend the Emergency Unemployment Compensation (EUC) program that expired for nearly 6,000 New Mexican job-seekers on December...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) voted to extend the Emergency Unemployment Compensation (EUC) program that expired for nearly 6,000 New Mexican job-seekers on December 28, 2013. The bill, S.1845, the Unemployment Compensation Extension Act, passed a procedural vote today of 60 to 37. The measure now moves to debate. ...