Press Releases

~ Introduction comes after Sen. Hirono joined Reps. Tokuda and Case in urging VA to remove former psychiatrist from Punchbowl Cemetery over sex abuse allegations ~ WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), John Cornyn (R-TX), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), John Fetterman (D-PA), Rick Scott (R-FL), and Adam Schiff (D-CA) introduced the...

~ Bipartisan bill would establish an Associate Administrator position, dedicate funding at SBA’s Office of Native American Affairs ~ WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) joined Senators John Hickenlooper (D-CO), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), and Dan Sullivan (R-AK) in reintroducing legislation to increase the...

~ Resolution recognizes the role community school coordinators play in helping students succeed—statewide, there are dozens of community schools serving thousands of students ~ WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) joined Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) and three other Senate colleagues in introducing a bicameral resolution...

~ Video of the full forum can be found here and photos can be found here ~ ~ Video of Senator Hirono’s opening remarks can be found here ~ WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) held a spotlight forum titled, “Killing the American Dream: How Republicans are Closing the Door on Working and Middle-Class Students,” highlighting...

Senators: “This demonstrates how the Trump administration views skilled personnel as pawns to be traded between agencies, rather than as professionals essential to their core missions, in order to advance misguided immigration policies.” WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) led 11 of her Senate Armed Services Committee...

WASHINGTON, D.C. –U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), a senior member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, joined Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) and 23 colleagues in pressing the Trump Administration for answers regarding the September 2 U.S. military strike on a vessel in the Caribbean Sea that reportedly killed all 11 passengers on board. The Trump...

~ Letter follows reporting that the Administration plans to gut Biden-era Income-Driven Repayment plans, which would force hundreds of thousands of borrowers to make higher monthly payments on their student loans ~ WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) joined Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) and 10 of her Senate colleagues in demanding...

~ Introduction comes after Trump Administration announced its plans to cancel the lease for essential government office connected to the Mauna Loa Observatory ~   WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) and U.S. Representatives Jill Tokuda (D-HI) and Ed Case (D-HI) introduced a resolution recognizing the history and important...

~ The Protecting and Preserving Social Security Act aims to restore fairness in Social Security and protect the program from future cuts ~ WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, on the 90th anniversary of Social Security, U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) and U.S. Representative Jill Tokuda (D-HI) reintroduced the Protecting and Preserving Social Security...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) introduced four bills that would institute a moratorium on reductions in force (RIF) at federal science agencies under the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation’s jurisdiction, including the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST),...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, on the 60th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) led 17 of her Senate colleagues in introducing the Time Off to Vote Act, legislation that would require employers—upon the request of the employee—to provide at least two consecutive hours of paid leave in order to vote in federal...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI)—a member of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee (SVAC)—and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT)—ranking member of the Committee—sent a letter to Kristi Noem, Secretary of Homeland Security, criticizing the agency’s treatment of Sae Joon Park, a disabled Purple Heart veteran who was forced by the Trump...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) joined 43 of her Senate colleagues in expressing unified alarm about the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, called for the large-scale expansion of humanitarian aid, and urged the Trump Administration to resume diplomatic efforts to secure a ceasefire agreement and end the war.   “The acute...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) joined Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Ron Wyden (D-OR), and Cory Booker (D-NJ) in reintroducing the Adjunct Faculty Loan Fairness Act of 2025 to allow part-time faculty at colleges and universities—who often have high student debt loads and are paid low wages with few...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) joined 20 of her Senate colleagues in pressing the Trump Administration for answers on the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a private group supported by U.S. security contractors and connected to deadly violence against civilians in Gaza. In their letter to Secretary of State Marco...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) joined Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Patty Murray (D-WA), and U.S. Representatives Ayanna Pressley (D-MA), Diana DeGette (D-CO), Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), Maxwell Frost (D-FL) in leading more than 180 of their colleagues in reintroducing the Equal Access to Abortion Coverage in Healthcare...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) held a spotlight forum titled, “Robbing Our Students’ Futures: The Indefensible Attacks on Public Education,” focused on the Trump Administration and Republicans’ continued attacks on K-12 public education programs across the country. During the forum, Senator Hirono and her Democratic...

Sen. Hirono: “Far from an independent, fair-minded jurist, Mr. Bove is willing to use whatever means he deems necessary to meet the ends sought by Donald Trump.” ~ Video of Senator Hirono’s floor speech can be found here ~   WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, took to the...

~ UNCLOS is the globally recognized framework for all matters related to the law of the sea ~   WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) led a bipartisan group of their Senate colleagues in reintroducing a resolution urging the U.S. Senate to ratify the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea...

~ Senators introduce AVERT Crises Act to improve VA’s preparedness for responding to natural disasters, pandemics, and other emergencies ~   WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), both members of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, introduced the Advancing VA’s Emergency Response to (AVERT) Crises...