Senator Frank R. Lautenberg

Statement on the Passing of Senator Frank R. Lautenberg

Statement on the Passing of Senator Frank R. Lautenberg WASHINGTON, D.C.—United States Senator Frank R. Lautenberg, the last remaining World War II veteran serving in the Senate, passed away due to complications from viral pneumonia at 4:02 a.m. today at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell. He was 89 years old.

Worked with the Obama Administration to secure $185 million in federal funding for critical, first piece of the Gateway Tunnel. The Gateway Tunnel project will create thousands of jobs, drive economic growth, and help New Jersey meet the demands for expanded, reliable rail options.

Tunnel vision improving: Gateway commuter rail tunnel to NYC to receive $185M Major boost for alternative to canceled ARC tunnel

The New York Times weighs in on my Chemical Safety Improvement Act, saying it "deserves to be passed because it would be a significant advance over the current law."

Our nation's chemical safety laws are "badly flawed" and this bill would make the reforms needed to ensure your health isn't at risk from the chemicals found in everyday household products.

A Senate Opening to Strengthen Chemical Regulations A bipartisan bill introduced in the Senate deserves to be passed because it would be a significant advance over the current Toxic Substances Control Act.

My bill to require ignition interlocks for anyone convicted of drunk driving would keep repeat offenders off the road and save lives. I am proud to have the support of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) in this important fight.

MADD - Senate Legislation Moves U.S. Closer to Eliminating Drunk Driving MADD applauds Senator Frank Lautenberg for reintroducing the Drunk Driving Repeat Offender Prevention (DDROP) Act of 2013 – legislation that would push states to require an ignition interlock for a minimum of six months for all drunk driving offenders. States that fail to comply with this mandate w...

The Washington Post says my Chemical Safety Improvement Act "might lead to the first major environmental law enacted since the 1990s."

Share the editorial to support this "burst of bipartisanship" with a real chance of reforming our nation's out-dated chemical safety laws.

WASHINGTON POST: A bipartisan effort to regulate dangerous chemicals Senators from both parties team up to fix an ineffective chemical-safety law.

The "Chemical Safety Improvement Act" has been hailed by former top Environmental Protection Agency toxics officials, including the Assistant Administrator from President Obama’s first term. These leaders understand first-hand what's needed to improve our nation's chemical laws, and see this bipartisan legislation as the path forward.

Top EPA Toxics Officials Hail Legislation to Reform Nation's Chemical Laws WASHINGTON, D.C.—U.S. Senators Frank R. Lautenberg (D-NJ) and David Vitter (R-LA) today announced support for their bipartisan legislation to modernize the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) by former top Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) toxics officials from the Administrations of President B...

Announced bipartisan legislation yesterday to revamp the nation's outdated chemical laws. The Chemical Safety Act is a dramatic improvement over today's law and would protect children and families from the thousands of chemicals found in everyday household products. Read more from today's Washington Post.

After 37 years, U.S. chemical-safety laws may finally get an overhaul A big new Senate bill would revamp a much-criticized 1976 law governing the chemicals in everything from crib mattresses to water bottles.

Pleased to announce a historic, bipartisan bill with the lead Republican on the Senate Environment Committee David Vitter, to reform our nation's broken chemical safety laws. Public health advocates and the chemical industry agree that we need reform, and the bill introduced today takes us closer than ever before to fixing current law and protecting American families from toxic chemicals. Learn more about the Chemical Safety Improvement Act here: http://1.usa.gov/16OUy8U

Our fight in Congress for common-sense reforms to stop the scourge of gun violence is far from over. Read about it in my op-ed in the Courier Post:

Efforts to pass gun bill to continue In my nearly 30 years in the United States Senate, I've never been so disappointed as I was several weeks ago when common-sense gun safety reforms failed in the Senate.

On National Train Day, check out this video to learn about the many ways trains connect us, create economic opportunities and strengthen our towns and cities.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=O9YOZRMecWE

National Train Day 2013 Join us on May 11, 2013 at the sixth annual National Train Day to show that trains matter to you, your town, and your community. Attend an event around the c...

Joining Senator Ben Cardin and Senator Mark Kirk to promote equal rights for women by expanding the opportunity for states to ratify the Equal RIghts Amendment.

Very happy for our LGBT neighbors in Delaware who will soon have the right to marry. Now it's time for marriage equality in New Jersey.

Flame retardants soaked into couch cushions threaten your health and the health of your children, yet the chemical industry has fought to keep these in our homes, schools and workplaces. Like and Share to support the Safe Chemicals Act to require that chemicals found in everyday products are tested for safety.

A new report finds more than 5,000 children products — from kid's clothing and toys to bedding and baby care products — contain toxic chemicals. We need the Safe Chemicals Act so that parents don't have to worry about unknowingly buying a product that is dangerous to their kids' health.

Thousands of kids’ products contain toxic chemicals, report says More than 5,000 products, including clothing, toys and bedding, contain toxic chemicals that could be dangerous for children’s health, yet stores still stock them and consumers know little about their content, an advocacy group reported this week.

What are lurking in your morning beauty and hygiene products? My Safe Chemicals Act would ensure that chemicals used in personal care products are tested for safety before they end up on your bathroom shelf.

Check out the Star Ledger editorial on a new audio tour of the Great Falls narrated by NBC's Brian Williams and featuring great Patersonians like Rep. Bill Pascrell, Victor Cruz and Pulitzer Prize winning writer Junot Diaz. Download the free Mill Mile app today to listen to our story.

Great Falls tells the story of a nation, then and now: Editorial A new audio tour will make it easier for visitors to understand the significance of the Great Falls in nurturing American economic independence.

Pleased to work with NARAL Pro-Choice America to ensure that Peace Corps volunteers have access to the same health care coverage that other federal employees receive. Will continue to stand with women.

Two great bills for women were introduced in the Senate this week! Sen. Gillibrand introduced the Military Access to Reproductive Care and Health (MARCH) for Women in the Military Act and Sen. Lautenberg introduced the Peace Corps Equity Act. Both are a step in the right direction to making abortion care accessible to all America women, at home and abroad. http://nar.al/nobans

Check out this video from Planned Parenthood Action to learn more about the need for my Peace Corps Equity Act. Our selfless Peace Corps volunteers deserve the right to make their own health care choices.

Peace Corps Equity -- Abortion Coverage for Volunteers -- Planned Parenthood Global Returned Peace Corps Volunteer and current Planned Parenthood Vice President - Global, Latanya Mapp Frett, discusses the importance of health services like a...

It's time for Peace Corps volunteers to have access to the same reproductive health care coverage that other federal employees receive. My bill would end the health care inequity that women in the Peace Corps face.

Advocates want abortion ban lifted for Peace Corps volunteers Advocates want ban lifted to give women benefits to end pregnancy in cases of r**e, in**st, life-risks

New reports that one of the Boston bombers may have been on a terror watch list highlight the need to close the Terror Gap in our gun laws and pass my bill to prevent guns and explosives from legally getting into the hands of known or suspected terrorists. NPR reports on the Terror Gap:

People On Terror Watch List Not Blocked From Buying Guns : NPR Under current laws, if a background check shows your name is on the national terror watch list, you can still purchase a gun. Government data show that people on terror watch lists were able to buy guns or explosives after a background check more than 1,300 times between 2004 and 2010.

Leftovers for lunch today? Read about the health risks of reheating food in plastic dishes before you pop your lunch in the microwave. We need my Safe Chemicals Act to ensure dangerous toxins aren't used in plastics and other household products.

Is It OK to Heat Food in Plastic? Lunch at your desk can be a downer, especially when it involves leftovers reheated in the office microwave. But are you putting more into your body than just lukewarm pad thai?

BPA has been linked to developmental problems in children, yet it's used in the liner of most food cans. We need my Safe Chemicals Act to ensure found in consumer products aren't harming our health.

The New York Times is right: TSCA is a toothless law. We need to pass my Safe Chemicals Act to protect families from dangerous chemicals in many of our common household products.

A Toothless Law on Toxic Chemicals It is time for Congress to reform a 1976 law so that it provides genuine protection against harmful chemicals in products like detergents and shampoos.

Did you know formaldehyde is used in wrinkle-free clothing? Learn more about and support the Safe Chemicals Act if you think it's time for these chemicals to be tested for safety.

It is outrageous that the Senate can't rise to the occasion and summon the courage to ban high-capacity magazines and protect our loved ones from mass murderers. Opponents of my amendment chose to side with the NRA and the gun industry over the victims of Newtown, Aurora, Tucson, and other mass shootings. The large number of casualties in recent mass shootings were made possible by these super-sized magazines—banning them is common sense and would save lives. Although I am disappointed by today’s vote, I am not discouraged—families deserve to be free from the fear of high-capacity magazines and gun violence in their communities, and I’ll never stop fighting to give them that right.

What is 1,4 Dioxane? It's a chemical linked to cancer that can be found in most laundry detergents. Like to support the Safe Chemicals Act to require that found in everyday products are tested for safety.

Without chemical testing, "consumers and companies looking for safer products are largely on their own." It shouldn't be this way, and my Safe Chemicals Act would make the reforms needed.

Majority of chemicals in household products have never been independently tested

New York Times-"Hazardous chemicals have become so ubiquitous that scientists now talk about babies being born pre-polluted, sometimes with hundreds of synthetic chemicals showing up in their blood."
My Safe Chemicals Act would enact necessary reforms to ensure our homes and bodies are safe from dangerous chemicals.

Think Those Chemicals Have Been Tested? The overwhelming majority of chemicals in use today have never been independently tested for safety.

It's a great honor for the Navy to name one of its newest ships after New Jersey's historic capital city. The people of Trenton and families across New Jersey should be proud that the USNS Trenton will be deployed around the world helping to support our troops in their military and humanitarian missions.

U.S. Navy to name high-speed vessel the USNS Trenton The USNS Trenton, a joint high-speed vessel, will be operational in winter 2014, the Navy said.

If we had stronger chemical laws, lawsuits like this would not be necessary. But this is just a drop in the bucket when it comes to chemicals in common household products, like detergents and cleaners. We need my Safe Chemicals Act to ensure dangerous toxins stay out of our homes and out of our bodies.

Tide: Getting stains - and the carcinogen - out After pressure from an environmental group, a 78,000-signature petition and a court suit, Proctor & Gamble, which makes Tide and Tide Free & Gentle detergents, has agreed in a California court to significantly reduce the levels of the chemical 1,4 dioxane in its laundry products.

Check out the Philadelphia Inquirer story on my fight to reform our broken chemical laws and protect American families from toxic chemicals in consumer products.

Lautenberg to push bill to regulate chemicals Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D., N.J.), plans Wednesday to introduce what he hopes will be signature legislation for his final term in office - a bill aimed at ensuring the safety of the many chemicals that Americans come in contact with every day.

On Equal Pay Day, we should take a close look at the impact the wage gap has on women and families. In New Jersey, women working full-time earn, on average, just 78 cents for every dollar paid to men. That means $13,413 less each year. It's time to pass the Paycheck Fairness Act.

Fact Sheet: New Jersey Women and the Wage Gap