Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT) today met with Mayor Ben Lathrop of Norwich to discuss the need for improvements to the city’s sewage treatment plant.  The aging infrastructure of the facility poses a threat to the environmental well-being of the Thames Estuary in southeastern Connecticut.  In today’s meeting, Mayor Lathrop and city officials outlined this threat and discussed the proposed improvement project with Senator Dodd.

As the nation experiences a dramatic economic slowdown and Congress considers economic stimulus packages to present to the President, Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT), Chairman of the Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, held his first hearing of the year on the root cause of the current problems in the economy: the tumult in the mortgage markets and the rising number of home foreclosures.  Dodd focused the hearing on both short- and longer-term solutions to address the housing crisis, based on the premise that the mortgage meltdown is largely responsible for the current economic downturn. 

Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT) today met with the Connecticut chapter of the National Federation of the Blind to discuss the bill he introduced on Friday that would allow blind individuals to earn more in the workplace without losing critical Social Security benefits, as well as other issues related to improving the lives of blind individuals.

Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT), Chairman of the Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, today continued his efforts to address the recent weakening of the U.S. economy by meeting with Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson to discuss stimulus package proposals and efforts to reduce record foreclosure rates which are forcing people out of their homes.  Dodd, who has tied the recent economic downturn to the foreclosure crisis, has urged leaders in Congress and the Administration to incorporate provisions that deal with the housing crisis in any stimulus bill they present to the President. 

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Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, today held a press conference to discuss the recent market volatility and downturn in the American economy, as well as the priorities that the Banking Committee will focus on over the year ahead to help working families and businesses achieve economic security and prosperity.  Below are his remarks as prepared:

Today, we are facing a serious meltdown in the subprime mortgage market.

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Today, Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, met with Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson.  The meeting, which took place in the Senator’s Washington office, focused on the recent turmoil in the financial markets. Dodd, Bernanke, and Paulson also discussed the broader implications for the U.S. economy and ways to help homeowners nationwide.

Today I am pleased to convene the Subcommittee on Western Hemisphere, Peace Corps and Narcotics Affairs. I would like to welcome my Ranking Member, Senator Corker, who has joined me at this morning’s hearing to receive testimony and ask questions on a very important topic – the Peace Corps.

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Today Senators Chris Dodd (D-CT) and Patrick Leahy (D-VT)  denounced Senator Tom Coburn’s (R-OK) announcement that he would place a hold on The Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act, which was passed in the House of Representatives yesterday by a vote of 422 to 2 and scheduled to be passed by unanimous consent in the Senate today.  Today marks the anniversary of the kidnapping and murder of three young civil rights workers (Andrew Goodman, James Chaney, and Michael Schwerner) in Philadelphia, Mississippi, and is also the anniversary of Edgar Ray Killen’s conviction for those crimes two years ago.  

The Council of State Administrators of Vocational Rehabilitation presented Senator Chris Dodd with their award for Outstanding Senator of the Year. Senator Dodd was joined by his sister Carolyn Dodd, along with Carl Suter (CEO of the Council of State Administrators of Voc. Rehab.), Butch McMillan (President of the Council of State Administrators of Voc. Rehab.), Brenda Moore (Connecticut’s Voc. Rehab. Director), and Brian S. Sigman (Executive Director of the CT Board of Education and Service for the Blind).