News Releases
Craig, Crapo Co-Sponsor Ag Drought Relief Bill
Washington, DC - Idaho Senators Mike Crapo and Larry Craig have co-sponsored a new attempt to get disaster assistance to farmers and ranchers affected by drought conditions. Both senators joined Senators Pat Roberts (R-KS), Sam Brownback (R-KS), and Mike Enzi (R-WY) to introduce the Emergency Agriculture Assistance Act of 2004. The bill would provide eligible producers with $3 billion in emergency disaster assistance for the 2001 and 2002 crop years. Producers would choose between crop years 200… Continue Reading
February 11, 2005
AMBER ALERT BILL REINTRODUCED BY CRAPO, OTHERS
Washington, DC - Federal assistance for a voluntary program to help locate missing children is a priority that should pass this Congress, according to Idaho Senator Mike Crapo. Crapo has joined a bipartisan group of colleagues to reintroduce S. 121, the â??AMBER Alert Network Act.â?? Similar measures passed in both the House and Senate last year, but time ran out before the differences between the measures could be worked out.â??As a parent, I feel the establishment of an AMBER Alert system is a… Continue Reading
February 11, 2005
Crapo receives President's Budget
Washington, DC â?? Idaho Senator Mike Crapo had his first opportunity to begin review of the delivery of President Bushâ??s request for fiscal year 2004 budget. As a member of the Senate Budget Committee, Crapo joined with other Committee members at the delivery of the budget on Capitol Hill. Total government spending contained in the proposal will be $2.2 trillion, a 4.2 percent increase over 2003 levels. The budget outline keeps interest on federal debt below 10 percent, and reduces the federa… Continue Reading
February 11, 2005
Crapo: Columbia Crew "True Heroes"
Washington, DC - Idaho Senator Mike Crapo joined with the nation today in mourning the loss of the crew of the space shuttle Columbia. The shuttle, ending a 16-day science mission, apparently exploded just minutes before its scheduled landing in Texas. Recovery and investigation efforts by NASA are underway. "I join with a stunned nation today as we mourn the loss of the seven-member crew of the space shuttle Columbia," Crapo said. "This tragedy is a far too real reminder of the dangers that exi… Continue Reading
February 11, 2005
Crapo Opens Service Academy Application Process For Class Of 2004
Washington, D.C. â?? Students who are interested in attending one of the nationâ??s four service academies are encouraged to get started on the application process now, according to Idaho Senator Mike Crapo. Every year, Crapo nominates selected Idaho students to the following: the U.S. Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, Colorado; the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, Kings Point, New York; the U.S. Military Academy, West Point, New York; and the U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis, Maryland. Interested … Continue Reading
February 11, 2005
Delegation Congratulates Al Lance
Washington, DC â?? Idaho Senators Larry Craig and Mike Crapo and U.S. Representatives Mike Simpson and C.L. â??Butchâ?? Otter sent congratulations to former Idaho Attorney General Alan G. Lance. Sr. upon congressional receipt of his nomination to be a Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims. President Bush submitted Lanceâ??s name to Congress yesterday. Lance was initially nominated for this position last September, but no action was taken on it prior to the end of the 10… Continue Reading
February 11, 2005
Crapo Congratulates Senior Senator Craig
Washington, DC â?? Idaho Senator Mike Crapo offered his congratulations to Idaho senior Senator Larry Craig upon his swearing-in to fill a third term in the U.S. Senate. Crapo escorted Craig to the ceremony, which was held in the Senate Chambers in the U.S. Capitol this afternoon.â??Senator Craig has been a phenomenal leader for the state of Idaho,â?? Crapo said. â??During his tenure in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, he has made Idaho his priority and worked hard to represent … Continue Reading
February 11, 2005
Crapo: Jobs and Security Important to the State of the Union
Washington, DC - Idaho Senator Mike Crapo expects President Bush will expand on his economic recovery plans and homeland security initiatives during tonightâ??s State of the Union Speech. Crapo will attend the speech in the U.S. House Chambers and said he supports the Presidentâ??s blueprint for economic stimulus efforts including tax cuts to bolster private sector investment and create new jobs.â??Having the private sector create new jobs is always preferable to long-term government programs th… Continue Reading
February 11, 2005
Craig and Crapo Support $3.1 billion in Farm Drought Aid
Washington, DC - Farmers and ranchers in Idaho and other states may be able to file for more than $3 billion in federal drought assistance under an amendment approved today by the full U.S. Senate on a 59-35 vote. Senator Larry Craig, a member of the Appropriations Committee, and Senator Mike Crapo, a member of the Agriculture Committee, both sought the additional assistance offered in the amendment offered by Senator Thad Cochran (R-MS)â??Drought has struck a significant economic blow to farmer… Continue Reading
February 11, 2005
Craig, Crapo Praise President's Economic Growth Package
WASHINGTON, DC - Idaho Senators Larry Craig and Mike Crapo issued the following statements today regarding President Bush's economic growth package:â??Under the Presidentâ??s plan, everyone in America who pays taxes will benefit from tax reductions. Senior citizens, families, married couples, small business people, and investors will all receive significant tax relief,â?? Senator Craig said. â??This plan encourages consumer spending that will continue to boost economic recovery and it promot… Continue Reading
February 11, 2005
Craig And Crapo Want Stable Funds For Home Heating Program
Washington, DC â?? Idaho Senators Mike Crapo and Larry Craig want continued support for a federal program that helps low-income households and senior citizens pay their home energy bills. Under the proposed budget for 2002-2003, the Department of Health and Human Services is proposing a $300 million cut in the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). In a letter sent to the President, Craig and Crapo are urging support for $1.7 billion in each fiscal year 2003 and 2004 to continue the… Continue Reading
February 11, 2005
Amber Alert Passes Senate
Washington, DC - Missing children and their families may be reunited more quickly if the U.S. House, as expected, follows the lead of the Senate and approves a bill to expand the AMBER (Americaâ??s Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response) Alert system. Idaho Senator Mike Crapo, who co-sponsored the measure which was passed by the Senate last night, says several Idaho-based alert systems may be interested in matching federal grants for the voluntary programs aimed at alerting the public when childr… Continue Reading
February 11, 2005
Crapo Committee Assignments Reflect Idaho Priorities
Washington, DC â?? Idaho Senator Mike Crapo will gain a new committee assignment for the 108th Congress by serving on the Senate Budget Committee. He has also been named a Deputy Whip by Senate Majority Whip Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky). Crapo will continue to serve on the following committees: Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs; Environment and Public Works; Agriculture; and Small Business. In addition, he will serve as the Chairman of the Environment and Public Works Subcommittee on Fisheries,… Continue Reading
February 11, 2005
Crapo: Take Measures To Keep Bones Strong
Washington, DC â?? Idaho Senator Mike Crapo wants more Americans to pay closer attention to bone health, or osteoporosis. It is estimated that millions of men and women are diagnosed each year with the bone disease. This morning, he met with Boise doctor Paul Collins to discuss this and other health-related issues. Last month Crapo underwent a bone density test at Collinsâ?? office in Boise. A bone density scan is a quick and painless test that can detect osteoporosis before a fracture occurs as… Continue Reading
February 10, 2005
Idaho Students Nominated To U.S. Service Academies
Washington, DC â?? Idaho Senator Mike Crapo has nominated more than thirty Idaho students to military service academies for the class entering in 2005. The studentsâ?? applications will be forwarded to one of the four U.S. service academies where final selections will be made by each academy. â??These students represent some of the finest that Idaho has to offer,â?? Crapo said. â??It is worth noting that today is the anniversary of the bombing of Pearl Harbor, an event that spurred many young Am… Continue Reading
February 10, 2005
Crapo Reacts To Planning Regulations
Washington, DC â?? Idaho Senator Mike Crapo, Chairman of the Forestry, Conservation and Rural Revitalization Subcommittee of the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee, commented on the Forest Serviceâ??s final National Forest System Land and Resource Management Planning Rule. The final rule provides the framework for individual forest management plans governing the 155 national forests and 20 grasslands. The new rule directs forest managers to take into account the best available … Continue Reading
February 10, 2005
Homeland Security Okays Firefighter Payments
Washington, DC â?? Idaho Senator Mike Crapo says rural firefighters and all other Americans will benefit from an agency decision to allow volunteer and part-time firefighters to be compensated for security training. Crapo spoke today with Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge to thank him for agreeing to the change, which had been under discussion since September. Ridgeâ??s DHS oversees the Office for Domestic Preparedness (ODP), which operates the security training programs. Crapo says of the 2… Continue Reading
February 10, 2005
Crapo: Rural Doctors To Receive Boost
Washington, DC â?? Doctors and patients in Idaho will see payment increases and service benefits due to expansions in Medicare. Idaho Senator Mike Crapo welcomed the changes that will provide payment bonuses to physicians servicing patients in areas with health care shortages and highly concentrated areas of Medicare recipients. Many doctors in Idaho who treat Medicare patients are in areas considered to have health care shortages. The expansions come on the one-year anniversary of the Medicare … Continue Reading
February 10, 2005
Intelligence Reform Clears Senate
WASHINGTON, D.C. â?? S.2845, the Intelligence Reform bill, was approved by the U.S. Senate today with strong bipartisan support. Idaho Senators Larry Craig and Mike Crapo both voted in support of the measure, which passed 89-2. S.2845 overhauls the intelligence gathering and analysis capabilities of the United States to deal more effectively with the threats of the 21st Century. â??I applaud the passage of this much needed Intelligence Reform bill,â?? said Craig. â??At last, we will have a centr… Continue Reading
February 10, 2005
Lawmakers Seek Transportation Help For Onion Industry
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Idaho's congressional delegation, along with eastern Oregon Congressman Greg Walden, is asking the U.S. Department of Transportation to waive a trucking rule that is putting the region's onion producers at risk. In a letter dated Monday to Transportation Secretary Norman Y. Mineta, Idaho Senators Larry Craig and Mike Crapo and Idaho Congressmen Mike Simpson and C.L. "Butch" Otter joined Walden in asking that the hours-of-service rule on short-haul truckers be… Continue Reading
