Ernst Week in Review
Modernizing Our Family and Medical Leave Policies
As a mom, Senator Ernst understands how important it is for new parents to spend time with their children in their first few weeks together. This week, Senator Ernst, a member of the Senate Small Business Committee, proposed a bipartisan bill to modernize the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) to ensure married couples who work for the same employer are not restricted in the amount of leave they can take under the law, an issue in the original law that’s become increasingly evident in the modern workforce.
The FAIR Leave Act—or Fair Access for Individuals to Receive Leave Act—modernizes the FMLA by extending equal benefits to married couples regardless of their employer, and also provides time to care for a sick family member, including our heroic servicemembers.
Fighting to Improve Transparency and Accountability in the Olympic Community
Building on her efforts to tackle the heartbreaking abuses seen within the U.S. Olympic system, Senator Ernst partnered with her fellow Iowan, Senator Chuck Grassley, in putting forward a bipartisan bill to ensure the resources designated for investigating abuses of Olympic and amateur athletes are safeguarded and put to proper use.
The U.S. Olympic Committee has shown a willingness to make necessary reforms to prevent these abuses in the future and this legislation supports that effort. Senator Ernst’s bill will increase oversight and accountability, begin necessary steps to prevent all forms of abuse, and will help in moving us down the long road to rebuilding trust within our country’s Olympic community.
The legislation, called the SAFESPORT Act—or the Stopping Abuse from Entering Sports, Promoting Oversight, Responsibility and Transparency Act—was included as amendments to a larger bill, the Empowering Olympic and Amateur Athletes Act that was approved Wednesday by the Senate Commerce Committee.
Working to Ensure Survivors Get the Resources and Support They Need
For months, Senator Ernst has been working in good faith with Democrats, like Senator Dianne Feinstein, to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). Last week, after months of bipartisan work and progress, talks came to an end because “Democrats cannot afford to be seen as giving Republicans a win.”
Senator Ernst spoke on the Senate floor to call out Democrats for putting politics before sexual assault and domestic abuse survivors.
Click here or the image above to watch Senator Ernst’s remarks.
Senator Ernst stated that she remains committed to making sure survivors get the resources and support they need, and she stands ready to work in a bipartisan way to find a pathway forward for a bipartisan reauthorization of VAWA.
Meeting in the Oval Office on US-Turkey Relations
Senator Ernst, a combat veteran and member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, joined President Trump at the White House for a meeting with President Erdogan of Turkey to voice her concerns about President Erdogan’s decision to choose Russia’s S-400 as its missile system and her support for the Kurds.
Continuing to Press EPA to Uphold the RFS
On behalf of Iowa’s farmers and biofuels producers, Senator Ernst continues to press the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to restore the integrity of the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). This week, Senator Ernst, along with a group of Midwest senators, renewed her recommendations to the Trump Administration with respect to the EPA’s proposed RFS supplemental rule.
In a letter sent yesterday, which enclosed her initial comments to EPA from last week, Senator Ernst and her colleagues urged the administration to take corrective action in its RFS rulemaking to uphold the agreement they reached with President Trump at their September 12, 2019 White House meeting.
Social Media Highlights
Click here or the image above to watch Senator Ernst discuss the fight to uphold the RFS.
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