Press Releases
Sens. Coons, Hatch introduce legislation to grant the USPTO continued autonomy over its fees while holding it accountable for modernizing its IT systems
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.) and Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) today introduced legislation that will extend the USPTO's fee setting authority, established by the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act of 2011. In exchange for this financial autonomy that facilitates long-term planning and investment, the bill would hold the USPTO accountable for making it a priority to complete the transition to modern IT systems as well as planning for future incorporation of emerging technologies in the e… Continue Reading
03.22.18
Flake, Coons Outline Framework for U.S. – Zimbabwe Relations
WASHINGTON - U.S. Sens. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) and Chris Coons (D-Del.), both members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today introduced a bill to lay the framework for U.S. relations with the new government in Zimbabwe. This legislation updates the Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Act of 2001 and sets forth the steps Zimbabwe needs to take to have sanctions on its country lifted. … Continue Reading
03.22.18
CLOUD Act from Sens. Hatch, Coons included in 2018 funding bill
WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senators Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and Chris Coons (D-DE) applauded the inclusion of their legislation, the Clarifying Lawful Overseas Use of Data (CLOUD) Act, in the 2018 federal funding bill poised to become law over the next few days. The CLOUD Act will help put the United States and other countries on a path towards resolving the problem of cross-border data requests by law enforcement in the age of email and cloud computing. "For over four years now I've been working to … Continue Reading
03.22.18
Sen. Coons leads successful effort to include $380 million in election security grants in 2018 government funding bill
WASHINGTON, DC. - U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-DE), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, and the top Democrat on the Financial Services and General Government Subcommittee, led the successful effort to include $380 million in funding for election security grants to help states to protect their election systems in the 2018 federal funding bill poised to pass Congress and become law in the coming days. Delaware's 1,600 voting machines are among the oldest in the nation and have outlived… Continue Reading
03.21.18
[VIDEO] Sen. Coons: “Anyone who thinks the Special Counsel Robert Mueller isn’t in imminent danger of being fired isn’t paying attention”
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today joined MSNBC's Morning Joe to discuss Special Counsel Robert Mueller and the Russia investigation. "Anyone who thinks the Special Counsel Robert Mueller isn't in imminent danger of being fired isn't paying attention. Just look at your phones," said Senator Coons. "The tweets coming out from President Trump this morning make it clear that he is rattling the cage and threatening to fir… Continue Reading
03.20.18
Delaware Delegation seeks applicants for annual Congressional Youth Conference
DOVER, Del. - Senators Tom Carper, Chris Coons and Representative Lisa Blunt Rochester (all D-Del.) will host their annual Congressional Youth Conference for more than 100 Delaware high school juniors on Friday, May 25 at Wesley College. The delegation is currently seeking civic-minded high school juniors to apply for the conference. Interested students should contact their school's administration or guidance office for application details. The late U.S. Senator Bill Roth organized the first You… Continue Reading
03.20.18
Sens. Carper, Coons co-sponsor Safe Schools Improvement Act to address root causes such as bullying
WASHINGTON, DC. - A Department of Education study found that 1 in 5 children between the ages of 12 and 18 will be impacted by bullying. In an effort to address this ongoing issue, U.S. Senators Tom Carper and Chris Coons (both D-Del.), joined over 20 colleagues, as co-sponsors of the Safe Schools Improvement Act. This legislation works to ensure that no child is afraid to go to school for fear of unchecked bullying and harassment. U.S. Senators Bob Casey (D-PA), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Patty… Continue Reading
03.20.18
Sen. Coons applauds the introduction of the House STRONGER Patents Act
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, released the following statement on the introduction of the House version of the STRONGER Patents Act. Senator Coons introduced the STRONGER Patents Act in the Senate with U.S. Senator Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) last year. "When Senator Cotton and I introduced the STRONGER Patents Act last year, the United States patent system was rated tenth in the world by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce-the first time the U.S.… Continue Reading
03.20.18
Senator Coons’ statement on legislative efforts to protect Special Counsel Mueller, future Special Counsels
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee and co-author of the bipartisan Special Counsel Integrity Act, released the following statement regarding legislative efforts to protect Special Counsel Robert Mueller and future Special Counsels from being removed without cause. "I understand that many of my colleagues don't believe that President Trump will fire Special Counsel Robert Mueller without cause, and some have cited that as their reason for … Continue Reading
03.19.18
[VIDEO] Sen. Coons: “This is a time when all of us, Republicans and Democrats, need to stand up and make it clear that we are committed to the rule of law.”
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, joined CNN New Day this morning to discuss President Trump's recent attacks on Special Counsel Robert Mueller. "It's hard to know exactly what direction the President is taking. But you just played a number of senior Republican leaders in the House and the Senate saying obstruction of Mueller's investigation would be a red line, would create a constitutional crisis, would show that we are not a country … Continue Reading
03.15.18
Sens. Coons, Collins, Markey praise release of GAO technical assessment report in support of sustainable chemistry
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), and Ed Markey (D-Mass.) today praised the release of the GAO report entitled, "Technology Assessment: Chemical Innovation: Technologies to Make Processes and Products More Sustainable." GAO conducted this study in response to a request from Senators Coons, Collins, and Markey in May 2015. In this report, GAO worked with stakeholders across the chemistry field, including from government, industry, and academia. They explo… Continue Reading
03.15.18
Corker, Coons Introduce Food for Peace Modernization Act of 2018
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) and Chris Coons (D-Del.), both members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today introduced bipartisan legislation to modernize U.S. global food assistance programs as part of the 2018 farm bill. The Food for Peace Modernization Act of 2018 (FPMA) proposes greater efficiencies in the Food for Peace program so the U.S. can free up as much as $275 million to provide life-saving food to nearly 9 million more people in a shorter time period. U.S… Continue Reading
03.15.18
Senator Coons applauds Trump Administration sanctions against Russian individuals, organizations
WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, applauded the Trump Administration for sanctioning Russian individuals and organizations for attacking U.S. elections and other cyberattacks. "There is no question that Russia attacked our election in 2016 and will continue to launch cyberattacks against the United States unless they are deterred, so I applaud the Trump Administration for identifying Russia's hostile actions and punishing them fo… Continue Reading
03.15.18
Carper, Coons’ judicial candidates receive support of Senate Judiciary Committee, will proceed to Senate floor
WILMINGTON, DE. - WILMINGTON, DE - U.S. Senators Tom Carper and Chris Coons announced today that the nominees they recommended for judgeships on the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware, Maryellen Noreika and Colm F. Connolly, have been approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee. Their nominations will proceed to a Senate confirmation vote in the coming months. "Colm and Maryellen both have a wide breadth of knowledge, many years of experience and the respect of their peers in the j… Continue Reading
03.15.18
Two of Sen. Coons’ bipartisan small business bills move forward
WASHINGTON - Today, the Senate Small Business Committee voted to advance two bipartisan bills written by U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.). The Support Startup Businesses Act (S. 2419), authored by Senators Coons and Cory Gardner (R-Colo.), would allow awardees of federal research and development grants to use a portion of that funding to create a startup business. The Microloan Modernization Act of 2017 (S. 526), authored by Senators Coons and Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), would strengthen the SBA Mic… Continue Reading
03.14.18
Senator Coons discusses gun violence with Marjory Stoneman Douglas HS teacher and parent, FBI, ATF officials
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, questioned witnesses in the "See Something, Say Something: Oversight of the Parkland Shooting and Legislative Proposals to Improve School Safety" in today's hearing. In the first panel, Sen. Coons questioned Acting Deputy Director of the FBI, Dave Bowdich, Acting Director of the ATF, Thomas Brandon, and Chief of the National Threat Assessment Center at the U.S. Secret Service, Lina Alathari. For video … Continue Reading
03.14.18
VIDEO: Sen. Coons speech on climate change
WASHINGTON, DC. - Yesterday, U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.) gave a speech on the U.S. Senate floor about how climate change is impacting Delaware with his colleagues, including Senator Whitehouse, who has been delivering "Time to Wake Up" floor speeches since 2012. A link to the full speech can be found here: https://youtu.be/KoHc8p1pN5c Full text of speech below: Mr. President, this evening, inspired by the determined efforts of my colleague Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island. M… Continue Reading
03.13.18
Senators Coons, Toomey, applaud Attorney General Sessions order to enforce existing gun laws
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senators Chris Coons (D-DE) and Pat Toomey (R-PA), released a joint statement regarding Attorney General Jeff Sessions directing all U.S. Attorneys to more vigorously enforce existing gun laws against individuals who are legally barred from owning a gun but "lie and try" to buy one. Unfortunately, federal prosecutors rarely prosecute any of these cases. "We are pleased that Attorney General Sessions is directing all U.S. Attorneys to more vigorously enforce existing gun laws … Continue Reading
03.08.18
Sens. Carper, Coons secure free credit monitoring services for active duty service members in Senate banking bill
WASHINGTON - The Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief and Consumer Protection Act (S.2155), which passed a key procedural hurdle earlier this week with overwhelming bipartisan support, includes a key amendment from Delaware's U.S. Senators, Tom Carper and Chris Coons, that would require credit reporting agencies like Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion to offer their credit monitoring services to all active duty military, including Reservists and the National Guard, for free. According to the Fede… Continue Reading
03.07.18
RUBIO, COONS INTRODUCE BILL AUTHORIZING ENHANCED SECURITY ASSISTANCE TO ISRAEL, STRENGTHENING STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Chris Coons (D-DE) today introduced the United States-Israel Security Assistance Authorization Act of 2018 (S.2497), which would reaffirm bipartisan support for the unshakeable U.S.-Israel relationship by authorizing foreign military financing for Israel over 10 years pursuant to the new Memorandum of Understanding signed between the two countries in September 2016. The bill also supports Israel's ability to meet and address both convention… Continue Reading
