News Releases
Hoeven Invites Interior Nominee Jewell to North Dakota
WASHINGTON - Senator John Hoeven today invited Sally Jewell, President Barack Obama's nominee to be the next Secretary of the Interior, and Gina McCarthy, the president's nominee to be Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator, to visit North Dakota and see firsthand the state's energy development. Hoeven wrote the nominees to extend formal invitations to visit North Dakota. If confirmed, Jewell will oversee federal lands, natural resources and Native American programs. The senator ha… Continue Reading
04.04.13
Hoeven: Park Service Will Open Painted Canyon Overlook for Season
WASHINGTON - Senator John Hoeven today said the U.S. Park Service has agreed to open the Painted Canyon Overlook in the North Dakota Badlands beginning May 25. The overlook will remain open through Labor Day. Last week, Hoeven contacted U.S. Park Service Director Jonathan Jarvis and he agreed to work with the senator and the local community to come up with options to keep open the Painted Canyon Overlook. Hoeven's western North Dakota field representative, Jon Cameron, organized the Painte… Continue Reading
04.02.13
Hoeven Congratulates West Fargo STEM Center Middle School for Winning National Mobile App Competition
FARGO, N.D. - Senator John Hoeven today congratulated a team of students from West Fargo's STEM Center Middle School for winning a national mobile application design competition. The students designed a recycling bin app to help encourage the community to increase recycling efforts and reduce the need for landfills. Verizon officials today presented the students with a $10,000 check to support STEM education efforts at the school. "We congratulate these students and West Fargo's STEM Center for… Continue Reading
03.28.13
Hoeven and U.S. Park Service Director Working with State, Badlands Communities to Keep Painted Canyon Overlook Open
WASHINGTON - Senator John Hoeven today said U.S. Park Service Director Jonathan Jarvis has agreed to work with the senator to come up with options to keep the Painted Canyon Overlook in the North Dakota Badlands open to the public. Hoeven said he has asked Jon Cameron, the senator's western North Dakota field representative, to organize a Painted Canyon Overlook working group, including representatives from the Dickinson Convention and Visitors Bureau, Medora mayor's office, Theodore Roosevelt … Continue Reading
03.28.13
Legislative Update: Building a National Energy Plan
BISMARCK, N.D. - Senator John Hoeven today held an energy roundtable in Bismarck to update industry and the public on legislation he is working to pass in the U.S. Senate. He assembled leaders who helped to develop the state's comprehensive energy plan to help develop a national energy plan. The senator praised North Dakota's energy industry as a key contributor to U.S. energy security and said the state's large and varied energy sources provide tremendous opportunities to create jobs, grow the… Continue Reading
03.28.13
Hoeven: Students, School Officials Support Sensible School Lunch Act
FARGO, N.D. - Senator John Hoeven today was joined by students and school officials at Davies High School to show support for the Sensible School Lunch Act, legislation he introduced to provide school districts with greater flexibility to meet the nutritional needs of all students. Hoeven met during the lunch hour to highlight the importance of his legislation, which would ensure that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) permanently modifies strict rules for serving grains, starches and pro… Continue Reading
03.27.13
Delegation, Governor Announce More Than $40 Million in Additional CDBG-DR Disaster Aid for Minot, Ward County
MINOT, N.D. - Senators John Hoeven and Heidi Heitkamp, Congressman Kevin Cramer and Governor Jack Dalrymple today announced that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has awarded the city of Minot and Ward County more than $40 million in another round of funding through the Community Development Block Grant Disaster Relief (CDBG-DR) program. Notification of the new funding came from HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan, whose agency oversees the CDBG-DR program. Also, the city and c… Continue Reading
03.27.13
Hoeven: Students, School Officials Support Sensible School Lunch Act
MINOT, N.D. - Senator John Hoeven today was joined by students and school officials at Magic City Campus to show support for the Sensible School Lunch Act, legislation he introduced to provide school districts with greater flexibility to meet the nutritional needs of all students. Hoeven met during the lunch hour to highlight the importance of his legislation, which would ensure that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) permanently modifies strict rules for serving grains, starches and prot… Continue Reading
03.27.13
Hoeven: Energy Infrastructure Crucial Part of Growing Economy
MINOT, N.D. - Senator John Hoeven today delivered remarks at the dedication and ribbon-cutting of Central Power Cooperative's new power substation, located southwest of Minot. In addition to the $7 million substation, the cooperative has also constructed $5 million worth of new transmission lines with the purpose of supplying Verendrye Electric Cooperative with the power needed to meet the increased demand in western North Dakota resulting from increased energy development in that area. "By del… Continue Reading
03.26.13
Hoeven Presents Donald Diederich WWII Military Honors
DICKINSON, N.D. - At a ceremony in Dickinson today, Senator John Hoeven presented former Technical Sergeant Donald Diederich with a host of medals Mr. Diederich earned for valor in the U.S. Army during World War II, but never received. Inquiries made by the senator revealed documentation of the decorations on Mr. Diederich's discharge papers and the senator worked to secure them. "These long-overdue honors mark in tangible form Donald Diederich's courage and our admiration, respect and gratitud… Continue Reading
03.26.13
Hoeven, Officials Break Ground on New Dakota Prairie Diesel Refinery
DICKINSON, N.D. - Senator John Hoeven today joined officials from MDU Resources Group, Inc. and Calumet Specialty Products Partners to break ground for a new, $300 million diesel refining facility in southwestern North Dakota that will process up to 20,000 barrels per day of Bakken crude. As both governor and now senator, Hoeven is working to develop a strong national energy plan to boost domestic energy production and reduce dependency on Middle Eastern petroleum. MDU Resources and Calumet for… Continue Reading
03.23.13
Hoeven Statement on the Fiscal Year 2014 Budget Resolution that Passed on A Party-Line Vote Today
WASHINGTON - Senator John Hoeven issued the following statement regarding his vote on the Fiscal Year 2014 Budget Resolution, which passed along party lines in the U.S. Senate early this morning: "This morning, I voted against a budget plan offered in the U.S. Senate that raises taxes by more than $1 trillion and never balances. "To effectively address our deficit and debt will require a budget that takes a pro-growth approach to our economy, reduces our spending in a careful way, and reforms,… Continue Reading
03.22.13
Hoeven, Baucus: Senate Passes Bipartisan Amendment in Support of Keystone XL Project
WASHINGTON - Senators John Hoeven (R-N.D.) and Max Baucus (D-Mont.) today offered an amendment that passed putting the U.S. Senate on record in support of the Keystone XL pipeline. The measure, which is attached to the Senate budget bill, was cosponsored by Sens. John Cornyn (R-Texas), Mary Landrieu (D-La.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Heidi Heitkamp (D-N.D.), John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), Mark Begich (R-Alaska), Pat Roberts (R-Kan.) and Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.). The measure passed by a vote of 62 to 37. … Continue Reading
03.21.13
Hoeven Meets with Major General John Peabody to Secure Flood Protection Assurances for Fargo, Minot
WASHINGTON - Senator John Hoeven today met with U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' Mississippi Valley Division Commander Maj. Gen. John Peabody to secure assurances that the budget sequester will not affect flood prevention and protection activities in the Minot or Fargo regions this spring. The senator also wanted to ensure that the Corps is taking all and any necessary steps to prepare for and prevent flooding in both communities, which are under the jurisdiction of the Mississippi Valley Division… Continue Reading
03.20.13
Hoeven, Heitkamp, Cramer: North Dakota Bases Critically Important to Air Force, National Defense
WASHINGTON - Senators John Hoeven and Heidi Heitkamp and Congressman Kevin Cramer yesterday met with representatives from both the Grand Forks Base Realignment Impact Committee (BRIC) and Minot's Task Force 21. The delegation is working on issues important to the bases, including support for the missions and infrastructure at each installation. Following the meeting, the Grand Forks BRIC traveled to the Pentagon to meet with Kathleen Ferguson, the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Air … Continue Reading
03.20.13
Senate Approves Continuing Resolution to Fund Government for 2013, Makes Necessary Spending Reductions
WASHINGTON - Senator John Hoeven issued the following statement today upon passage of a continuing resolution to fund the federal government for the remainder of Fiscal Year 2013, which runs through September 30: "The continuing resolution we passed today on a bipartisan basis funds government for 2013 and cuts spending to help address our deficit and debt. Although it does not provide as much flexibility as other measures I pushed to include in the bill, it is an improvement on the across-the-… Continue Reading
03.20.13
Hoeven Cosponsors Amendment Passed by the Senate to Keep Frontline Food Inspectors on the Job
WASHINGTON - Senator John Hoeven (R-N.D.) today cosponsored an amendment with Senators Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) and Mark Pryor (D-Ark.) to the 2013 continuing resolution that will make sure food inspectors in the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) stay on the job to protect the safety and affordability of the nation's food supply. The measure passed the Senate unanimously. "This was a case where clearly the USDA needed flexibility to prioritize their funding in … Continue Reading
03.19.13
Hoeven Announces $2 Million FEMA Grant to Aid Minot Flood Recovery
WASHINGTON - Senator John Hoeven today announced that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has awarded a $2 million grant to the City of Minot to complete the first phase of a project to protect the city's water treatment plant. Senators Hoeven and Conrad worked together last year to make sure the grant funding was authorized and appropriated. "FEMA's decision to award additional grants to assist with Minot's continued flood recovery efforts reflects an ongoing commitment to ensuring … Continue Reading
03.15.13
Hoeven Presses President on Keystone XL, Introduces Legislation Enabling Congress to Approve the Project
WASHINGTON - At a meeting Thursday with President Barack Obama and the Republican Senate caucus on Capitol Hill, Senator John Hoeven again pressed the president for a definite timetable and favorable decision on the Keystone XL pipeline project, which has been delayed by the administration for nearly five years. The president said only that he would decide "this year." "The president still hasn't given us a decision or a definitive timeline, so Senator Max Baucus and I, along with a bipartisan … Continue Reading
03.15.13
Delegation Encourages North Dakota High School Marching Bands to Apply for 2014 National Independence Day Parade
WASHINGTON - Senators John Hoeven and Heidi Heitkamp and Congressman Kevin Cramer today announced that the 2014 National Independence Day Parade is seeking applications from high school marching bands interested in representing the State of North Dakota in the annual Independence Day Parade. The delegation encourages North Dakota high school marching bands to apply through their congressional offices to participate in the annual parade held each July 4 in the nation's capital in celebration of A… Continue Reading