January 2, 2009

Email Newsletter

Please take the opportunity to subscribe to “Wyden News Now.” This periodic e-mail newsletter will keep you updated on Senator Wyden’s work on behalf of Oregon and the nation, and will provide information on upcoming town hall meetings and other Oregon events. Subscribing is as easy as filling out the simple form found here.

You will find the lastest issue of "Wyden News Now" below.

Wyden News Now

Dear Friend,

Welcome to the latest edition of Wyden News Now.

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Susan Castillo and I recently held a series of roundtable meetings around the state to discuss possible reforms to the federal No Child Left Behind law. The law expires this year, which -- combined with the change in control of Congress -- presents a real opportunity to reform No Child Left Behind so that it better meets the needs of Oregon's students, teachers and communities. Your input on this issue would be helpful, and you can share your ideas, concerns and personal stories about the No Child Left Behind law by e-mailing me.

For more information on this and other issues, and to weigh in with your thoughts, please visit my Senate website at http://wyden.senate.gov. I always enjoy hearing from you.

Sincerely,

Ron Wyden
United States Senator

Working for Oregonians

Bonneville Power Administration
Since 1980, the Residential Exchange program has enabled residents and small farm utility customers in Oregon to share the benefits of the Bonneville Power Administration's low-cost, hydroelectric power. A recent U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal's decision disrupting the Exchange program, however, is leaving many Oregon customers without any Exchange benefits, and as a result, thousands of residential and small farm customers will begin paying significantly higher rates. I have joined with my colleagues from the Idaho, Washington, and Oregon congressional delegations in calling for a regional response and solution to the disruption of the Residential Exchange program.

Outpatient Clinic in La Grande
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs recently announced that it will establish a Community Based Outpatient Clinic for veterans in La Grande. I have lobbied hard for a La Grande clinic, and according to preliminary projections from the Walla Walla, Washington, VA Medical Center planning staff, approximately 1,570 Eastern Oregon veterans will be able to receive care at the new La Grande outpatient facility. For the nearly 900 veterans living in remote Wallowa County, a new clinic in La Grande means that their travel time to a VA facility should be reduced considerably.

Working for the Nation

Healthy Americans Act
Last month, Senator Robert Bennett (R-UT) and Representatives Brian Baird (D-WA) and Jo Ann Emerson (R-MO) joined me in proposing the first bipartisan, comprehensive health care reform bill in more than a decade that guarantees health coverage for all Americans. The bipartisan response to the Healthy Americans Act, which I introduced earlier this year, indicates that many in Congress prefer to work toward reforming health care now, instead of sitting on the sidelines until after the 2008 presidential elections. The Healthy Americans Act, as introduced in the Senate, guarantees affordable, high quality, private health coverage for all Americans that can never be taken away; provides benefits equal to those of Members of Congress; gives incentives for individuals and insurers to focus on prevention, wellness and disease management; includes tough cost containment and saves $1.48 trillion over 10 years; and is fully paid for using the $2.3 trillion currently spent on health care in America.

War in Iraq
I was one of twenty-nine U.S. Senators last month who supported the Feingold-Reid amendment, which would have required the President to withdraw U.S. troops from Iraq by March 31, 2008. The Feingold-Reid amendment would have immediately transitioned the mission of U.S. forces in Iraq from refereeing a civil war to protection of our troops, training Iraqi security forces, and counterterrorism, with a goal of redeploying troops not conducting these specific missions by March 31, 2008. I was one of the original twenty-three U.S. Senators to vote against the 2002 Iraq War Resolution. Since then, I have consistently and repeatedly voted to oppose the surge and bring U.S. troops home.

Internet Radio
Last month, Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS) and I proposed legislation to vacate a Copyright Royalty Board decision that could increase Internet radio sound recording royalties by 300 percent to 1,200 percent. Most Internet radio Webcasters will be driven out of business because of a massive retroactive royalty rate that is above total revenues for most in the business. For large Webcasters, the royalty increase could be between 40 percent and 70 percent of revenues. For small Webcasters the royalty increase could reach up to 1,200 percent of revenues. The rate hike is schedule to go into effect on July 15.