Press Releases

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), member of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, voted to pass the Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring Our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics (PACT) Act, comprehensive, bipartisan legislation to expand VA health care for veterans with health conditions related to burn pit...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, delivered remarks in two subcommittee markups for the Fiscal Year 2023 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) reiterating her support for the closure of the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility on Oahu, and highlighting the need to support...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, joined nine of her colleagues in introducing legislation to make registering to vote easier for all Americans. The Register America to Vote Act, led by Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), would require every state to create a system to register all eligible...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, President Joseph R. Biden signed into law legislation brought to the Senate floor by Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), to establish a commission to study the creation of a National Museum of Asian Pacific American History and Culture. Amid a rise in anti-Asian hate crimes, the creation of such a museum would help...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, joined Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) in introducing the Military Vehicle Fleet Electrification Act, which would transition the nontactical fleet of the Department of Defense (DoD) to electric or other zero-emission vehicles. The...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) delivered remarks in support of child care investments during a press conference with parents, child care advocates, and other members of Congress. Senator Hirono emphasized the importance of making high-quality child care both affordable and accessible, and also highlighted the...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), member of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, delivered floor remarks in support of the Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring Our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics (PACT) Act, comprehensive, bipartisan legislation to expand VA health care for veterans with health...

WASHINGTON, D.C. –Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), Patty Murray (D-WA), and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) introduced the Affordability is Access Act (AAA) to help ensure that people across the country can access and afford over-the-counter birth control options and plan their own reproductive lives, on their own terms. The bills comes as the...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, questioned witnesses at a full Committee hearing that examined the growing domestic terrorism threat in the U.S. Following tragic acts of hatred and violence in Buffalo, California, Uvalde, and elsewhere, Senator Hirono questioned experts and...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, President Joseph R. Biden signed into law legislation introduced by Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) to name the Advanced Leeward Outpatient Health Care Access (ALOHA) VA clinic—which is currently under construction on Oahu—after the late former Hawaii Senator Daniel Kahikina Akaka. During his time in the...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) held events this week in Hawaii focused on supporting families and investing in communities across Hawaii. Over the past week, Senator Hirono has been on Maui and Oahu, touring infrastructure projects, small businesses, and youth services providers, and meeting with teachers, child care...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) toured two centers serving vulnerable youth in Hawaii — RYSE (Residential Youth Services and Empowerment) and We Are Oceania’s (WAO) Youth Empowerment Center — and met with leaders of the Hawaii State Teachers Association (HSTA) to discuss the ongoing challenges COVID has...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) joined Senators Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Tina Smith (D-MN) and all 50 Senate Democrats in introducing a Senate resolution recognizing June as LGBTQ+ Pride Month. The senators’ resolution highlights the contributions LGBTQ individuals have made to American...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) held events on Maui highlighting federal investments in Hawaii communities and efforts to support the state’s ongoing recovery and rebuilding from the COVID-19 pandemic. During her visit, Senator Hirono toured the site of the Honoapiilani Highway Realignment Project, which last year...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senators Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA) introduced a bipartisan resolution marking May as Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. The resolution recognizes the significant contributions Asian Pacific Islander Americans (APIAs), which includes Native Hawaiians, have made to this country. It also highlights...

WASHINGTON, D.C. –Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) wrote to President Biden urging him to commute the sentence of Leonard Peltier, a Native American activist who has been imprisoned for 46 years. In 1977, Peltier, a member of the American Indian Movement (AIM), was convicted of the murder of two Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) agents and...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) introduced legislation to reinstate access to federal benefits for immigrants, who currently must wait five years after entering the country before becoming eligible due to unjust policy enacted nearly 30 years ago. In 1996, Congress passed restrictive welfare and immigration legislation...

WASHINGTON, D.C. –U.S. Senator Mazie Hirono (D-HI) and Representative Grace Meng (D-NY) called on Attorney General Merrick Garland to prioritize specific eligibility requirements for the newly created $5 million grant for Community-Based Approaches to Advancing Justice, that was established through the Fiscal Year 2022 spending bill. As...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) and Representative Grace Meng (D-NY) issued the following statements on the one-year anniversary of President Biden signing the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act into law. Following the rise of hate crimes and violence targeted at Asian and Pacific Islander American (APIA) communities, last March,...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Mazie Hirono (D-HI) led nine of her Senate colleagues in introducing the Teaching Asian Pacific American History Act, bicameral legislation that would promote the teaching of Asian Pacific American (APA) history for high school students and teachers who enroll in the U.S. Department of Education’s...