Press Releases
Cortez Masto Promotes Legislation to Spur Local Economic Growth, Job Creation by Connecting Affordable Housing and Access to Public Transit
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) cosponsored legislation introduced by U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) that creates a federal grant program to incentivize the coordinated development of affordable housing and transit. The Livable Communities Act of 2021 encourages local communities to partner strategically to develop bold, innovative solutions that reflect their unique character, while leveraging existing assets, including access to transit, to help revitalize … Continue Reading
August 05, 2021
Cortez Masto, Murkowski Recognize Next Steps in Bipartisan Efforts to Protect Native Women
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) today released statements regarding the announcement by the Departments of Interior (DOI) and Justice (DOJ) that the agencies are taking the next steps in the senators' bipartisan Not Invisible Act to address the crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous women. DOI and DOJ are now consulting with tribal leaders and soliciting nominations for a joint commission, as the law requires. "The crisis of … Continue Reading
August 05, 2021
Cortez Masto Introduces Legislation to Help Small Businesses Become More Energy Efficient
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) introduced legislation to help small business owners make energy efficiency upgrades to their businesses and reduce their energy costs. The Main Street Energy Efficiency Act would establish a Small Business Energy Efficiency Grant program to provide funds to small businesses for energy efficiency projects, particularly in underserved, rural, and economically disadvantaged communities. It would also help support the almost 12,000 … Continue Reading
August 05, 2021
Cortez Masto Introduces Legislation to Help Small Businesses Become More Energy Efficient
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) introduced legislation to help small business owners make energy efficiency upgrades to their businesses and reduce their energy costs. The Main Street Energy Efficiency Act would establish a Small Business Energy Efficiency Grant program to provide funds to small businesses for energy efficiency projects, particularly in underserved, rural, and economically disadvantaged communities. It would also help support the almost 12,000 … Continue Reading
August 03, 2021
Cortez Masto Urges Tech CEOs to Combat Spanish-Language Disinformation
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) joined Senators Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), U.S. Representative Tony Cárdenas (D-Calif.), and 23 colleagues in calling on tech CEOs to act on the rampant spread of Spanish and other non-English language disinformation across Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Nextdoor. "We write to express our serious concerns regarding the increasing rate of Spanish and other non-English language disinformation … Continue Reading
July 29, 2021
Cortez Masto Statement on White House Meeting on Immigration Reform and Reconciliation
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) released the following statement after meeting with President Joe Biden at the White House. "Today at the White House I urged President Biden to support our efforts to pass immigration reform through reconciliation. For decades, politicians have refused to act to fix our broken immigration system, and this is our opportunity to ensure we are treating workers and families with dignity. A reconciliation bill that balances border … Continue Reading
July 29, 2021
Senator Cortez Masto, Representatives Lee, Huffman, and Stewart Introduce Bicameral, Bipartisan Legislation to Transform Water Management in the West
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) today introduced legislation to get critical water use data in the hands of farmers, ranchers, and decision-makers for improved water management across the Western U.S. The Open Access Evapotranspiration (OpenET) Act would establish a program under the Department of the Interior (DOI) to use publicly available data from satellites and weather stations to provide estimates of evapotranspiration (ET), a critical measure of the water … Continue Reading
July 28, 2021
Cortez Masto & Boozman Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Stop Government Bureaucracy From Preventing Veterans With Service-Related Injuries From Accessing Benefits
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) and John Boozman (R-Ark.) today introduced new bipartisan legislation to make it easier for veterans who have a service-related medical condition to get the benefits they are entitled to. The Brian Neuman VA Clothing Allowance Improvement Act of 2021 would fix current policy that can prevent veterans from accessing these benefits. Currently, veterans must submit yearly proof of their service-related disability to receive the … Continue Reading
July 22, 2021
Cortez Masto Introduces Comprehensive Legislation to Prevent and Detect Wildfires, Support Fire Recovery Efforts
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) today introduced sweeping legislation to help prevent wildfires, fund state-of-the-art firefighting equipment and programs, and support recovery efforts for communities impacted by fires. The comprehensive Western Wildfire Support Act will allow communities in Nevada and across the western U.S. to acquire the training, equipment, and funding they need to combat the increasing dangers posed by wild and rangeland fires. In 2020, … Continue Reading
July 20, 2021
Cortez Masto & Rosen Help Secure Bipartisan Legislation to Support Crime Victims
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) and Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) released the following statements after passing the bipartisan VOCA Fix to Sustain the Crime Victims Fund Act of 2021 ("VOCA Fix Act"). When signed by the president, the VOCA Fix Act will make more money available to support crime victims, at no cost to taxpayers. "Survivors and crime victims need to know that we have their backs, and I am committed to getting them the resources and support they need to … Continue Reading
July 20, 2021
With Nevada’s Vaccination Rate for Nursing Home Residents the Lowest in the Country, Cortez Masto & Rosen Urge HHS to Help Boost Vaccinations for Nevada Seniors
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) and Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) are calling on Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra to help boost COVID-19 vaccinations for Nevada seniors. Nevada has the lowest vaccination rate for nursing home residents in the country, at 61%. Cortez Masto and Rosen are urging HHS to focus federal resources on addressing vaccine hesitancy among this group of Nevadans, which has been especially hard hit by the virus. "Across the … Continue Reading
July 16, 2021
Cortez Masto Statement on Ruling Against DACA Program
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) today issued the following statement after a Texas judge ruled against the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program and blocked the Department of Homeland Security from approving new DACA applications. "This ruling is wrong and will threaten the safety of tens of thousands of new DACA applicants who will no longer be able to pursue protected status. It must be overturned. The U.S. is the only home that Dreamers have … Continue Reading
July 16, 2021
Cortez Masto, Rosen Reaffirm Support for Cuba’s Pro-Democracy Movement With Bipartisan Resolution
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) and Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) joined U.S. Senators Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and U.S. Representatives Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.-23), Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Fla.-25), and 26 additional congressional members in unveiling a bicameral, bipartisan resolution condemning the Cuban government's violent response to the thousands of Cuban citizens who have taken to the streets to peacefully call for basic human rights and … Continue Reading
July 15, 2021
Cortez Masto: “634,000 Nevada Children Will Benefit From the Child Tax Credit Starting Today”
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) released the following statement reminding Nevada families that hundreds of dollars per month will flow to their bank accounts starting today, thanks to the expanded Child Tax Credit she helped secure in the American Rescue Plan. She again called on Congress to permanently increase this vital tax relief for working families and their children. Beginning July 15, over 39 million households across the country will get up to $300 … Continue Reading
July 14, 2021
Cortez Masto Passes Legislation out of Committee to Combat Drought and Wildfire, Bring Investments to Nevada
Washington, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) secured passage of several Nevada priorities through the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, including her legislation to address drought, reduce wildfires in Nevada, and create jobs across the state by investing in renewable energy projects. These provisions have cleared a key committee hurdle and will be included in the Energy and Natural Resources Committee's infrastructure package, which will now go before … Continue Reading
July 13, 2021
Cortez Masto Introduces Bill to Combat Drought in Nevada and Across the Western U.S.
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) today introduced the Large Scale Water Recycling and Drought Resiliency Investment Act to combat drought and protect the water supply of millions of Americans living in Nevada and other western states, including California and Arizona. The bill would create a grant program for large-scale water recycling projects in Nevada and the other sixteen western states and would allow federal funding to be used for an increased range of … Continue Reading
July 09, 2021
Newsletter - A productive two weeks across Nevada
July 08, 2021
Cortez Masto Calls for More Than $500 Million in Funding to Address Student Mental Health Crisis
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) led 17 of her colleagues in a letter calling for an increase of $500 million in federal funding to address the shortage of school-based mental health professionals like psychologists, counselors, and social workers. "There is currently a shortage of school-based mental health professionals in our country," wrote the senators. "National mental health organizations recommend a ratio of one school counselor and one school social … Continue Reading
July 07, 2021
Cortez Masto Urges Education Department to Expand Debt Relief for Student Loan Borrowers
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) joined U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-Wash.), and 21 colleagues in urging Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona to expand student debt relief as soon as possible. In a letter to Secretary Cardona, Cortez Masto and her colleagues called for polices that improve and expand our existing student loan repayment and forgiveness programs to ensure borrowers can access the relief they are owed. Specifically, the Senators urged Secretary … Continue Reading
July 01, 2021
Cortez Masto Statement on Supreme Court Voting Rights Case
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) today issued the following statement after the Supreme Court weakened key provisions of the Voting Rights Act in Brnovich v. Democratic National Committee. "The right to vote is under attack all across the country. The Supreme Court, which had already gutted major provisions of the Voting Rights Act, today weakened it even further. This must serve as a wake-up call, and I urge my colleagues to stand with me and pass the John … Continue Reading