Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet today issued the following statement in response to the wildfires burning throughout the state, including those in Black Forest, Rocky Mountain National Park, and the Royal Gorge area of Colorado. “Our thoughts are with those who have lost their homes and property in these fires,” ...

Colorado U.S. Senators Michael Bennet and Mark Udall today congratulated 55 Colorado counties on receiving over $31.6 million under the Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) program. The payments will be used to help rural communities with nontaxable federal lands provide critical services, such as police, fire protection, emergency resp...

Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet today announced the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has designated six Colorado counties as primary natural disaster areas and six more as contiguous disaster areas due to ongoing severe drought conditions. The designations mean that farmers and ranchers in these counties are eligible for ...

Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet today welcomed the U.S. Forest Service’s mobilization of two Department of Defense C-130s equipped with Modular Airborne Firefighting Systems, known as MAFFS, to assist with wildfire suppression efforts in Colorado. The planes will be based in Colorado Springs and will begin flying fire su...

Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet, a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, welcomed the passage of the 2013 Farm Bill in the Senate today, which includes two measures to improve forest health. Bennet introduced both measures earlier this year and worked with the Committee to have them included in the comprehensive long-ter...

The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee today passed the Strengthening America’s Schools Act with the support of Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet, one of the bill’s original cosponsors. The bill would reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education (ESEA) Act and fix No Child Left Behind...

Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet welcomed today’s announcement from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) that it has declared the Black Forest and Royal Gorge fires burning in Colorado eligible for federal resources from the Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG) program. “Record high temperatures and e...

The United States Senate today voted to begin consideration of the bipartisan immigration bill introduced by Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet and the ‘Group of 8.’ The bill includes a tough but fair path to citizenship for millions of undocumented immigrants, secures the border and makes reforms to an outdated visa ...

Maintains Measures to Improve Rural Energy Efficiency, Crop Insurance, Focus on Water Quantity Includes Bennet Provisions for Forest Health, Improved Conservation Programs, and Farm Animal Research Washington, DC – The 2013 Farm Bill passed the United States Senate today with several provisions authored by Colorado U.S. ...

Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet today welcomed the announcement by Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack that USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service will send more than $19 million in Emergency Watershed Protection Program funds for recovery from one of the worst fire seasons in the state’s history. “Col...