The Utah Congressional delegation in coordination with the Department of State, today announced five “Passport Fairs” throughout the state. Utahns in need of a passport, or those whose passports have expired or will expire in the next year, may register for an appointment from February 13 – 17 at one of five locations.
Illicit vaping products, designed to target young people with flavors such as blue cotton candy and pink lemonade, have gotten more and more of our youth addicted to nicotine. Senator Romney continued efforts to tackle the youth vaping crisis by introducing bipartisan legislation to crack down on illicit vaping products, most of which come from China. He also called for an immediate and permanent halt of U.S. funding to UNRWA following reports that members of its staff participated in the Hamas terror attacks on Israel on October 7.
The Utah Congressional delegation sent a letter to Interior Secretary Haaland urging the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) to consider concerns raised by the UDOT and Washington County regarding the BLM and FWS decision to implement a supplemental Environmental Impact Statement to reconsider the planned Northern Corridor highway in Washington County.
Senator Romney joined a group of his Republican colleagues in sending a letter to Senate leadership demanding that the national security supplemental bill include “an immediate and permanent prohibition” of U.S. aid to the UNRWA. The letter follows recent allegations that 12 UNRWA staff were directly involved in the Hamas terrorist attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023, and reporting by the Wall Street Journal that around 10% of UNRWA staff in Gaza have ties to Islamist militant groups.
Senator Romney joined his colleagues, led by Senator Shaheen (D-NH), in reintroducing bipartisan legislation to protect children from the dangers of e-cigarettes. The Resources to Prevent Youth Vaping Act would require e-cigarette manufacturers to pay user fees to the FDA to help conduct stronger oversight of the e-cigarette industry and increase awareness for the danger of e-cigarettes.
It’s no secret that the Chinese Communist Party is implementing a multipronged strategy to overtake the United States as the global leader—militarily, economically, and geopolitically. Senator Romney advanced efforts to counter the China threat by introducing a bill to safeguard Americans’ sensitive health data from getting into the hands of the CCP and calling on the federal government to assess how export controls can restrict adversaries from using advanced U.S. technology to bolster their AI capabilities. He also called on the Biden Administration to withdraw its overreaching electric vehicle mandate.
Senator Romney, Ranking Member of the Senate Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs (HSGAC) Emerging Threats and Spending Oversight Subcommittee, joined HSGAC Chairman Peters (D-MI), Senator Hagerty (R-TN), and U.S. Representatives Gallagher (R-WI) and Krishnamoorthi (D-IL), in introducing bipartisan, bicameral legislation to help prevent foreign adversaries from stealing sensitive American genetic data and personal health information.
Senator Romney joined a bicameral group of 120 colleagues, led by Senators Crapo (R-ID) and Cruz (R-TX), and Representative Walberg (R-MI), in sending a letter to U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Deputy Administrator Sophie Shulman calling for the withdrawal of the Biden Administration’s proposed Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards for passenger cars and light-duty trucks.
Senators Romney and Hassan (D-NH) sent a letter to the Government Accountability Office requesting an assessment of the Department of Commerce’s export controls on advanced semiconductors, semiconductor manufacturing equipment, and related technologies from China and other countries. Strong export controls protect national security and will restrict adversaries, like China, from using advanced U.S. technology to bolster their artificial intelligence capabilities.
Senator Romney joined his colleagues, led by Senator Scott (R-SC) and HELP Ranking Member Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), in introducing a resolution designating January 21 through January 27, 2024, as National School Choice Week.
The national debt is now more than $100,000 per person in the U.S. This week, Senator Romney applauded the House Budget Committee for advancing legislation to establish a fiscal commission tasked with stabilizing the public debt—the companion of his and Senator Manchin’s Fiscal Stability Act. He also met with Taiwan’s representative to the U.S., saw his bill to clean up abandoned mines advance in committee, and met with several Utah leaders.
Senators Romney and Manchin (D-WV) released a statement following the House Budget Committee’s markup and passage of the bipartisan Fiscal Commission Act, which is the House companion to the Senators’ Fiscal Stability Act. The legislation would create a bicameral fiscal commission tasked with finding legislative solutions to stabilize and decrease the national debt, which now exceeds $34 trillion—nearly double what it was just ten years ago.