Press Releases

WASHINGTON, D.C.- Senator Mazie K. Hirono today announced that the University of Hawaii was selected for two federal programs to assist veterans entering the civilian workforce. The University of Hawaii system is one of six new universities nationwide to receive support from the U.S. Small Business Administration to establish a Veterans Business...

Senators Mazie K. Hirono and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), along with a bipartisan group of Senators and advocates, today called on the Senate to pass the bipartisan Military Justice Improvement Act, which would establish an impartial, fair, and accountable military justice system to address the crisis of sexual assault. Since 2013, Senator...

Senator Mazie K. Hirono released the following statement on Representative Mark Takai’s announcement that he will not seek reelection: “Mark has served our state and our country honorably as a public servant, elected official, and a Lieutenant Colonel in the Hawaii Army National Guard. He has an unwavering commitment to improving the...

Senator Mazie K. Hirono today met with Judge Merrick Garland, nominee for the Supreme Court. Senator Hirono also called on her Republican colleagues to do their job and hold a hearing to consider Judge Garland’s nomination. “Judge Garland’s character and record of judicial service are impressive, and Americans deserve to hear from...

WASHINGTON, D.C.- Senator Mazie K. Hirono today voted in support of more than $1 billion in emergency funding to fight the Zika virus. The Senate advanced a $1.1 billion bipartisan compromise amendment to the appropriations bill currently being debated on the Senate floor. While the funding is short of the Administration’s $1.9 billion...

Senator Mazie K. Hirono today announced that Hawaiian Airlines was awarded a direct route from Haneda Airport in Tokyo to Kona International Airport. While the flight route is approved, flights must still stop on Oahu until a permanent Customs and Border Protection (CBP) checkpoint is established in Kona. “Today’s announcement that...

Senator Mazie K. Hirono, a member of the Senate Committee on Armed Services and Ranking Member of the Seapower Subcommittee, voted to approve the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2017 (FY17), sending the bill to the full Senate for consideration. The NDAA is a comprehensive bill passed annually that sets policy and funding...

After fighting poison-pill amendments on the Senate floor, Senator Mazie K. Hirono, Ranking Member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water and Power, today voted to support the Fiscal Year 2017 Energy and Water Appropriations Act, which funds the activities of the U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. Army Corps of...

Senator Mazie K. Hirono released the following statement after President Obama announced that he will visit the Hiroshima Peace Memorial later this month, becoming the first sitting United States President to visit: "I commend President Obama's decision to visit the Hiroshima Peace Memorial, which serves as a poignant reminder of the devastating...

The U.S. Senate late last night unanimously passed Senator Mazie K. Hirono and Representative Grace Meng’s (D-NY) bill to remove offensive terms such as “Oriental” from federal law. H.R.4238 was approved by the House 376-0, and will now go to President Obama to be signed into law. “Updating derogatory references in federal...

HONOLULU – Senator Mazie K. Hirono today announced that certain family members of Filipino World War II veterans can finally apply to come to the United States to be reunited with their aging Filipino veteran family members who are U.S. citizens or Legal Permanent Residents under a program announced by the Obama Administration last year....

HONOLULU- Senator Mazie K. Hirono, a member of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, today toured Hawaii Candy, Inc., Island Princess, and Menehune Mac, Hawaii businesses set to participate in the upcoming Hawaii on the Hill, Hawaii’s state showcase in our nation’s capital. This week is National Small Business...

Senator Mazie K. Hirono, Governor David Ige, Hawaii Director of Health Dr. Virginia Pressler, State Administrator of Emergency Management Vern Miyagi, Healthcare Association of Hawaii emergency responders, and Dr. Elliot Parks, CEO of Hawaii Biotech today called for increased public awareness and additional federal resources to prepare for and...

Senators Mazie K. Hirono took to the Senate floor today to raise awareness of the Zika virus and call for expediently funding President Obama’s funding request to fight Zika. To date in Hawaii, there are seven confirmed cases of Zika and one case of an infant born with microcephaly, a serious birth defect directly linked to Zika. Senator...

WASHINGTON, D.C.– Senator Mazie K. Hirono today took to the Senate floor to call for unanimous consent to confirm Hawaii’s Clare Connors and other judicial nominees from courts across the country who have been waiting months, and in some cases over a year, for a floor vote. In yet another showing of Senate Republicans’ refusal to...

Senators Mazie K. Hirono and Bill Nelson (D-FL) introduced legislation to fully fund President Obama’s $1.9 billion funding request to fight the Zika virus. The measure is also co-sponsored by Senators Richard Durbin (D-IL), Al Franken (D-MN), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Bob Menendez (D-NJ), Jack Reed (D-RI), Harry Reid (D-NV), Charles E....

Senator Mazie K. Hirono voted today in support of S. 2012, the Energy Policy Modernization Act, wide-ranging legislation that prioritizes innovation, energy efficiency, and renewable energy investments. If enacted, the Energy Policy Modernization Act would be the most comprehensive update to federal energy law since 2007, and includes several...

Senator Mazie K. Hirono voted today in support of H.R. 636, a bill to renew and reform the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and U.S. aviation law through September 30, 2017. The FAA Reauthorization Act, which passed the Senate 95-3, includes a bipartisan measure authored by Senator Hirono and Senator Deb Fischer (R-NE), which puts veterans...

Senator Mazie K. Hirono today marked Equal Pay Day by introducing the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) Opportunities Act, legislation that would improve inclusion of women, minorities, and people with disabilities in STEM careers. Equal Pay Day marks the day in 2016 when, on average, women’s wages catch up to what men earned...

Senator Mazie K. Hirono hailed an agreement reached this week between the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) and the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office (TECRO) on behalf of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Taiwan to facilitate its membership in U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP) Global Entry Program, which...