Press Releases
Media Requests: Members of the media can contact the press office by emailing Joseph_Plesha@murkowski.senate.gov or by calling 206-302-8317 and asking for the press office.
Murkowski: “Luck Is No Substitute for National Policy” on Arctic Security
Senator Lisa Murkowski today thanked the United States Coast Guard and the crew of the cutter Healy for their rescue mission of a stranded mariner attempting to sail through the Arctic region, saying: "While I realize that an icebreaker is a high cost item, America needs to step up its investment in the Arctic as the waters there open up to possible travel, economic and military activity. I continue to raise the need for a new icebreaker and the Senate is beginning to understand the importance … Continue Reading
07.10.14
Murkowski Critical of Administration Governing By Crisis
Senator Lisa Murkowski today questioned a number of Cabinet officials about the crisis at the U.S./Mexico border - as tens of thousands of unaccompanied minors are entering the U.S. from Central America - asking why they waited for the slow-motion migration to reach "emergency" status to seek a $3.7 billion increase in funding to combat the problems. At the outset of her questioning, Murkowski noted the gradual rise of the numbers of youth entering the country illegally over the years indicati… Continue Reading
07.10.14
Murkowski “In Awe” of Silver Star Medal Recipient’s Heroism
With his honor ceremony scheduled to be held tomorrow, Senator Lisa Murkowski praised Alaska Air National Guardsman Master Sergeant Roger Sparks for receiving the Silver Star Medal. Sergeant Sparks earned the military's third highest decoration for valor and gallantry while in action against enemy forces in Afghanistan in 2010 during a lifesaving rescue in the face of a fierce and coordinated Taliban assault. Sergeant Sparks will receive his medal on Friday, July 11, 2014 at Joint Base Elmendor… Continue Reading
07.10.14
Sen. Murkowski Applauds Senate Passage of Gull Egg Use Bill
U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, today applauded the unanimous passage in the Senate of the Huna Tlingit Traditional Gull Egg Use Act, a bill championed by Murkowski and Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska. The bill was one of apackage of 16 public lands bills approved Wednesday by the Senate. "Today's passage of the Huna Tlingit Traditional Gull Egg Use Act completes the legislative process we started over three years ago when I first introduced a version of this bill in the Senate," Murkowski said. "… Continue Reading
07.09.14
Murkowski: Open, Fair Amendment Process Essential in Considering Sportsmen’s Package
U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, today called on Senate Democratic leaders to allow for an open and fair amendment process that permits all members to participate in shaping the Murkowski-Hagan Bipartisan Sportsmen's Act. (Click for video of Sen. Murkowski's comments) "We have to return to regular order. We have to have a fair and healthy debate on legislation, especially legislation that has not gone through the committee process," Murkowski said. "A lot of hard work has gone into … Continue Reading
07.03.14
Murkowski Shares Independence Day Message with Alaskans
Senator Lisa Murkowski today commemorated the 4th of July by sharing her thoughts on the importance of the date with Alaskans: "238 years ago, a group of courageous and brilliant men put their names and fates on the line to ensure that their children and grandchildren - and us, two centuries later - could live in a nation that values the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. These were truly revolutionary concepts at the time, and are ideas that we must defend and p… Continue Reading
07.02.14
Murkowski Committee Work Leads to Over 150 Alaskan NPS Jobs
Senator Lisa Murkowski today welcomed the news that 157 Alaskans have gotten National Park Service jobs this year because of the ANILCA Local Hire provision she restored in the 2012 Department of Interior funding bill through her position as top Republican on the Interior Appropriations Subcommittee. The National Park Service recently informed Murkowski that they are making the best use of her legislative fix to the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA) - resulting in the hir… Continue Reading
07.02.14
Murkowski’s HAARP Fight Keeps Wrecking Ball Away for a Year
Senator Lisa Murkowski today received official word from the Secretary of the Air Force that the Pentagon is delaying its plans to demolish the High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program facility site in Gakona - or 'HAARP' -for another year so that a possible transfer to a university or scientific institution can be explored. This news comes as a result of Murkowski's recent attempts to communicate the important work done by the facility among Pentagon brass, including sharing the favorab… Continue Reading
07.01.14
Murkowski Welcomes Karina Petersen to Communications Team
Senator Lisa Murkowski today announced that Karina Petersen has joined her Anchorage office as the new Communications Director for Alaska. "I am tremendously excited for Karina to join my Communications Team," Murkowski said, "With her deep Alaskan roots, Karina will be a perfect fit in my Anchorage office and bring the information about my work within the federal government with the Alaskans who are impacted. It's clear that Karina sees communications as a vocation, not just a profession. Ala… Continue Reading
07.01.14
Murkowski Gets FedEx to Rethink its Rural P.O. Box Policies
Waiting for days to get prescription drugs. Trips to the post office to find an empty box where your business-critical supplies should be. After hearing these and other rural Alaskans' frustrations about FedEx delivery problems that occur when FedEx hands packages over to the United States Postal Service in Anchorage for the final miles of delivery, Senator Lisa Murkowski's efforts led FedEx CEO to reconsider its protocols. For years, Alaskans who live in post office box only communities have… Continue Reading
06.26.14
Murkowski Works to Improve Summer Nutrition for Thousands of Young Alaskans
Senator Lisa Murkowski joined Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) to introduce S.2527, the Summer Meals Act, to help ensure that fewer young Alaskans in financial need go hungry over the summer. This bipartisan legislation would make it easier for community organizations to feed children through the Summer Food Service Program, which provides free, nutritious meals to children age 18 or younger at approved sites located in areas where at least 50% of the children are low-income. "Each year, too… Continue Reading
06.26.14
Murkowski: World is Expecting Us to “Step it Up” on the Arctic
Senator Murkowski today continued her fierce advocacy for U.S. Arctic awareness and investment in the Senate Appropriations Committee while they considered the 2015 Homeland Security Appropriations Funding Bill. To press her points, Murkowski cited the Coast Guard's 2011 High Latitude Story, which concluded that the U.S. needs three heavy and three medium icebreakers to meet its statutory requirements - and pointed out how far behind the nation is behind other Arctic nations. During the hearin… Continue Reading
06.26.14
Murkowski: Supreme Court Ruling "Slams the Door" on Obama's Unconstitutional Recess Appointments
The United States Supreme Court today unanimously ruled that President Barack Obama's controversial recess appointments are unconstitutional - in what was being called a "a major constitutional test of executive power." Senator Murkowski responded to the ruling, saying: "The President's unilateral, "pen and phone" approach to governing does not work and - in the case of recess appointments - is unconstitutional. This issue is not about partisanship or ideology or even the nominees qualificatio… Continue Reading
06.25.14
Murkowski Lauds Passage of Key Jobs Training Bill for “Tomorrow’s Workforce”
Senator Lisa Murkowski today voted for the bipartisan H.R. 803 Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, a pro-growth jobs training bill that reauthorizes the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 while making key reforms to promote greater efficiency in administering employment training programs nationwide. WIOA will fund and streamline critical workforce development program like Job Corps, vocational rehabilitation and adult education and adds new considerations for potential employees who are dis… Continue Reading
06.24.14
Murkowski to Appropriators: “We Need to be Leading as an Arctic Nation, Not Sitting Back”
Senator Lisa Murkowski today continued to advocate for Arctic investment with her colleagues on the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security. While discussing the Fiscal Year 2015 Homeland Security funding bill, Murkowski insisted that the committee focus more on Arctic issues like maritime commerce, natural resource development, Coast Guard search and rescue, and the critical need to invest in icebreakers. Subcommittee Chairwoman Senator Mary Landrieu promised Senator Murkowski … Continue Reading
06.23.14
Murkowski’s Second Group of Summer Interns Set to Arrive in D.C.
Senator Lisa Murkowski today announced the names of her second session summer interns who will work in her Washington, D.C. office in July. These recent high school graduates will get an up close and personal insight into the operations of a U.S. Senate office by "shadowing" Murkowski throughout the day, helping with day-to-day clerical and administrative tasks, and assisting staff with research projects. "I am excited for these young Alaskans to arrive in Washington, D.C. and experience the op… Continue Reading
06.22.14
Murkowski Lauds Successful Missile Test
Senator Lisa Murkowski today congratulated the Missile Defense Agency for its successful missile test conducted over the Pacific Ocean, which will may lead to expanded missile investments at Alaska's Fort Greely: "Today's successful test spotlights Alaska's continued strategic relevance in the Pacific theater. The test shows that we have turned the corner on technical issues with the GMD intercept vehicle and are moving forward to a new chapter in our nation's vital ballistic missile defense c… Continue Reading
06.20.14
Sen. Murkowski Applauds Omnibus Territories Act Passage in Senate
U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, today thanked her colleagues in the Senate for unanimously agreeing to pass legislation to improve and extend programs in U.S.-affiliated islands, the Omnibus Territories Act of 2013 (S. 1237). "Today's political climate is frustrating, and it certainly isn't an environment where any of us are able to get much across the finish line," Murkowski said. "That makes the Senate's passage of the Omnibus Territories Act on Wednesday night all the more satisfying. Di… Continue Reading
06.19.14
Sen. Murkowski: Natural Gas Exports Clearly in the Public Interest
U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, today encouraged the Obama administration to expedite its process for approving liquefied natural gas (LNG) export licenses to take advantage of the abundance of U.S. energy for the economic and security benefits of the nation. (Click for video of Sen. Murkowski's opening statement) "This hearing is being held in the midst of geopolitical turbulence - Ukraine is in turmoil, Iraq is on the brink, and energy is never far from any of these discussions," Mu… Continue Reading
06.19.14
Murkowski: Preserve Native Languages, Don’t Fail Another Generation
Senator Lisa Murkowski today challenged the Obama Administration's Initiative on American Indian and Alaska Native Education to aggressively advocate within the Administration, among school districts and teachers the link between Native language revitalization, increased academic achievement and well-being among our Native youth. "Those responsible for improving the education outcomes of our Native students must understand and take action knowing the moral gravity of inaction is another generat… Continue Reading
