GE Aviation building new lab in Delaware

NEWARK, Del. — GE Aviation will add up to 70 jobs at its Newark facility over the next five years with the addition of a $27 million ‘lean lab.’ GE already employs 80 people at the plant working on advanced aircraft engine components made of ceramic matrix composites.

Lean labs are designed to promote intense collaboration between engineering and manufacturing teams before full-on manufacturing gets underway. The idea is to test and refine a particular component’s manufacturing readiness to promote efficiency and prevent waste.

“Lean labs are the height of innovation in high-tech manufacturing,” U.S. Senator Chris Coons said. “GE’s decision to develop a lean lab in Newark adds another chapter to Delaware’s long and rich manufacturing history, and by nearly doubling its presence here, GE Aviation is showing its faith in Delaware’s talented workforce. It’s a smart investment that I’m confident will pay off.”

The ceramic matrix composite components developed in GE Aviation’s Newark facility are used in GE’s next-generation LEAP aircraft engines. They allow the engines to run hotter than the standard, resulting in higher fuel efficiency, lower emissions, and improved environmental performance. The LEAP engine will enter service in 2016 in the new Airbus A320neo, Boeing 737 MAX, and COMAC C919 aircraft.

GE Aviation’s GE9X engine, which will be used by Boeing for its 777X aircraft program, is also expected to feature several ceramic-matrix component products.

“This investment is a testament to GE’s commitment to this advanced technology. The Newark team will play a vital role in the next-generation of aircraft engines, and we’re proud to be a part of it” said Jeff Wessels, plant leader at Newark.

The Senator’s Week Ahead Schedule: May 20 to May 26

Monday, May 21 at 10:00 a.m. — The Senator will attend a Senate Judiciary Committee business meeting.  During the meeting, the Committee will continue its mark-up of S.744, the comprehensive immigration reform bill. G50 Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington D.C. – Open to press.

Tuesday, May 21 at 10:30 a.m. — The Senator will attend a Senate Judiciary Committee business meeting.  During the meeting, the Committee will continue its mark-up of S.744, the comprehensive immigration reform bill. G50 Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington D.C. – Open to press.

Tuesday, May 21 at 2:00 p.m. — The Senator will attend a Senate Foreign Relations Committee business meeting. S. 960, regarding the stability in Syria, will be on the agenda for the meeting. 419 Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C. – Open to press.

Wednesday, May 22 at 10:30 a.m. — The Senator will speak at a seminar on dual-enrollment and early-college high schools.  The event, which is hosted by the National Alliance of Concurrent Enrollment Partnerships, Jobs for the Future, and Bard College, will look at how dual-enrollment and early-college high school programs are helping students get and afford higher education. Dual-enrollment programs are academic programs through which a high school student can simultaneously earn credit toward a high school diploma and a postsecondary degree. 385 Russell Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C. – Open to the press.

Wednesday, May 22 at 3:00 p.m. — The Senator will preside over the Senate until 4:00 p.m. Senate Chamber, U.S. Capitol, Washington, D.C. – Open to press who wish to sit in the Senate Gallery.

Thursday, May 23 at 4:00 p.m. — The Senator will preside over the Senate until 5:00 p.m. Senate Chamber, U.S. Capitol, Washington, D.C. – Open to press who wish to sit in the Senate Gallery.

Thursday, Mary 23 at 6:00 p.m. — The Senator will keynote the Industrial Research Institute’s CTO Forum. Senator Coons will discuss efforts to help manufacturers grow and create jobs, including his legislation to expand access to the research and development tax credit to innovative startup companies. Omni Shoreham Hotel, 2500 Calvert Street NW, Washington, D.C. — Closed to press.

Friday, May 24 at 11:00 a.m. — The Senator will attend the Kuumba Academy’s May Day celebration. 519 N. Market Street, Wilmington, DE

Note: Schedule is subject to change.

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State Senator Poore testifies about sunsetting programs

Delaware State Senator Nicole Poore (D-12) came to Washington Thursday to testify before the Senate Budget Committee’s Government Performance Task Force — of which Senator Coons is a member — about the efforts of Delaware’s Joint Sunset Committee to eliminate redundant and antiquated programs to save tax dollars.

Watch below as Senator Coons questions Senator Poore during the hearing:

Halting the rise in sexual assaults in the military

The disturbing arrests of an Army sergeant and an Air Force colonel who were responsible for training servicemembers to prevent sexual assaults have brought into acute focus to what has become a widespread problem: the staggering rise in sexual assaults within our military.

Senator Coons is determined to stop it and end the truly corrosive impact of this behavior in our armed forces.

According to the FY2012 Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office report released last week by the Defense Department, an estimated 26,000 cases of sexual assault occurred in FY2012, a 37 percent increase from FY2011. Another report released by the Defense Department late last month showed that more than 1 in 5 female servicemembers reported experiencing unwanted sexual contact while serving in the military.

Stopping this trend has earned bipartisan and bicameral support in the form of the Military Justice Improvement Act, which Senator Coons helped introduce on Thursday.

Senator Coons, who described the rise as “chilling,” told the News Journal that “we clearly have a cultural problem” in our armed forces, noting that a lack of real consequence has led to widespread abuse.

“This bill tries to strike at what is driving that continuing cultural problem, which is that the U.S. military has a legal system that is significantly out of date,” Senator Coons said. “And it puts the responsibility for prosecution and conviction where it should be – in the hands of a competent prosecutor rather than in the hands of the officers who often don’t have the training or experience to handle it.”

The Military Justice Improvement Act would for the first time remove the decision whether to take a case to special or general court-martial completely out of the chain of command and give that discretion to experienced military prosecutors for all crimes punishable by one year or more in confinement, except crimes that are uniquely military in nature, such as disobeying orders or going AWOL.

Video: Senator Coons’ passionate speech about helping kids get to college

Speaking at a forum organized by Opportunity Nation and CFED on Capitol Hill last week, Senator Coons made an impassioned case for doing more to help kids from low-income families save for college, sharing his own personal experience working with at-risk kids with the “I Have a Dream” Foundation.

Senator Coons on alleged IRS targeting

Senator Coons commented Monday on the chilling reports of the targeting of conservative groups by the Internal Revenue Service:

“Reports of politically biased targeting within the Internal Revenue Service are deeply disturbing and should be treated seriously and decisively. These accusations are outrageous and cannot be tolerated. Ideological discrimination is absolutely unacceptable and those responsible for it — including those who were aware of it and allowed it to happen — should be held accountable.”

The Senator’s Week Ahead Schedule: May 13 to May 19

Tuesday, May 14 at 10:00 a.m. – The Senator will speak at a Center for Strategic & International Studies event entitled, “Africa’s Emerging Energy Landscape.”  The Senator will deliver keynote remarks offering his perspective on how energy poverty is affecting economic, humanitarian, and security growth on the African continent. 325 Russell Senate Office Building, Washington D.C. – Open to press.

Tuesday, May 14 at 10:30 a.m. — The Senator will attend a Senate Judiciary Committee business meeting.  During the meeting, the Committee will continue its mark-up of S.744, the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Bill.  G50 Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington D.C. – Open to press.

Tuesday, May 14 at 11:00 a.m. — The Senator will attend a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee forum on infrastructure, transportation, research and innovation. The forum will explore what the next applications are for natural gas and how this new demand will be met. Pipeline infrastructure and increased use of natural gas in the transportation sector will be specific points of interest. – Open to press.

Tuesday, May 14 at 2:15 p.m. — The Senator will attend a Senate Foreign Relations Committee business meeting. U.S. Capitol, Washington, D.C.

Wednesday, May 15 at 9:00 a.m. — The Senator will attend a Senate Democratic Steering and Outreach Committee meeting. Sportsmen from across the country will discuss habitat protection and access to public lands and water. U.S. Capitol, Washington, D.C. – Closed to press.

Wednesday, May 15 at 3:00 p.m. — The Senator will preside over the Senate until 4:00 p.m. Senate Chamber, U.S. Capitol, Washington, D.C. – Open to press who wish to sit in the Senate Gallery.

Thursday, May 16 at 9:00 a.m. — The Senator will attend a Senate Judiciary Committee business meeting. During the meeting, the Committee will continue its mark-up of S.744, the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Bill.  226 Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C. – Open to press. Contact: Judiciary Committee’s Jessica Brady at 202-224-7703.

Thursday, May 16 at 10:00 a.m. — The Senator will attend a hearing of the Senate Budget Committee’s Government Performance Task Force. The hearing will look at strategies for streamlining redundant and federal programs to save federal tax dollars. The Honorable Nicole Poore, State Senator from Delaware’s 12th district and chair of the Delaware Joint Sunset committee will testify. 608 Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C. — Open to press.

Thursday, May 16 at 10:00 a.m. — The Senator will attend a Senate Energy and Natural Resources business meeting. 366 Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C. – Open to press.

Thursday, May 16 at 4:00 p.m. — The Senator will preside over the Senate until 5:00 p.m.  Senate Chamber, U.S. Capitol, Washington, D.C. – Open to press who wish to sit in the Senate Gallery.

Sunday, May 19 at 9:00 a.m. – The Senator will attend the Delaware Jewish Federation’s Mitzvah Day in Wilmington. The community-wide day of service brings together members of the local Jewish community and the community at large to perform acts of kindness benefiting many of Delaware’s most needy citizens.  Jewish Federation of Delaware, 101 Garden of Eden Road, Wilmington, DE  – Open to press.

Sunday, May 19 at 2:00 p.m. — The Senator will attend the Newark Memorial Day Parade and Ceremony.  Newark, DE – Open to press.

Note: Schedule is subject to change.

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Carper, Coons, Carney to host job fair on June 24th in Kent County

DOVER – To help connect Delawareans with employers in the area, the Delaware Congressional delegation, in collaboration with Brandywine Counseling, will host their third of three job fairs this spring on June 24th in Kent County. Business leaders will get to meet with and interview talented Delawareans ready with resumes in-hand. The delegation urges businesses throughout the state to reserve their tables now.

The job fair will be held Monday, June 24th at the Sheraton Hotel in Dover from 10 am to 2 pm.

In addition to networking with companies looking to hire, job-seekers will also be able to participate in job-search skills workshops, receive career counseling, and have their resumes reviewed by experts.

The delegation hosted a job fair in New Castle County on March 6th and one in Sussex County on April 30th.

For more information on how to participate as an employer or job-seeker, please call Senator Coons’ office at 302-573-6345, or email workshop@coons.senate.gov.

Video: Senator Coons reintroduces the American Dream Accounts Act

Senator Coons spoke on the Senate floor on Wednesday to reintroduce legislation that would help increase the number of low-income students able to access and complete a college education. The bipartisan American Dream Accounts Act of 2013 would authorize the Department of Education to award three-year competitive grants to support innovative and comprehensive partnerships that support low-income students in preparation for a college education.

Senator Coons on Delaware Senate’s passage of marriage equality bill

Senator Chris Coons issued the following statement Tuesday after the Delaware Senate voted to extend the freedom to marry to same-sex couples. HB 75, the Civil Marriage Equality and Religious Freedom Act of 2013, ensures that same-sex married couples have the same protections and obligations as opposite-sex married couples.

“This is a truly historic day for our state,” Chris said. “Today’s vote was about dignity, respect, and basic human fairness for our neighbors. Every Delawarean deserves access to the full rights and responsibilities of marriage, no matter their sexual orientation. The passage of HB 75 ushers in a new era of equality in our state and marks an important moment in our state’s history. I am incredibly proud.

“Lisa Goodman, Mark Purpura, Erik Raser-Schramm, and everyone who worked and volunteered at Equality Delaware have my heart-filled congratulations,” Chris continued. “The lawmakers who stood up for the freedom to marry for the first time today — some breaking with their party; others breaking with their previous politics — have my sincere thanks. It is because of that bold leadership that when Governor Markell signs this legislation tonight, Delaware will become the 11th state to offer marriage equality to all of its citizens, and it will do so without infringing on the religious liberties of a single Delawarean.”

Chris is a strong supporter of civil rights and LGBT equality. He is a cosponsor of the Student Non-Discrimination Act, Employment Non-Discrimination Act, Uniting American Families Act, Domestic Partnership Benefits & Obligations Act, Tax Parity for Health Plan Beneficiaries Act, the Family and Medical Leave Inclusion Act, and the legislation that would repeal the Defense of Marriage Act.

Chris has been an active supporter of Equality Delaware. In addition to rallying supporters using his email list, publishing op-eds, and recording video messages in support of the campaign, Senator Coons reached out directly to state lawmakers to urge their support.