WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, (both D-VA) announced $1,935,757 in Public Health funding from AmeriCorps — the federal agency for national service and volunteerism — and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This funding for Virginia will go towards building the capacity of the public health workforce and bolstering efforts relating to mental health, chronic disease prevention, and public health readiness. Through this funding, Public Health AmeriCorps members will continue to gain experience in the public health field while supporting local health efforts and community-based organizations.

“AmeriCorps members across Virginia work hard to create positive change for the communities they serve,” said the Senators. “This federal funding will allow volunteers to continue their important work of addressing some of the Commonwealth’s biggest health care needs.”

The funding, which was made possible through the annual federal budget that Sens. Warner and Kaine helped pass, is broken down as follows:

• Volunteers of America, Inc. in Alexandria, VA will receive $432,000 in funding to continue supporting 16 AmeriCorps members;
• The City of Richmond will receive $431,317 in in funding to continue supporting 16 AmeriCorps members;
• Catholic Charities USA in Alexandria, VA will receive $314,306 in funding to continue supporting 14 AmeriCorps members;
• Blue Ridge Medical Center in Nelson County, VA will receive $312,659 in funding to continue supporting 34 AmeriCorps members;
• Boat People SOS, Inc. in Falls Church, VA will receive $226,797 in funding to continue supporting 12 AmeriCorps members;
• The Institute for Advanced Learning and Research in Danville, VA will receive $218,678 in funding to continue supporting 15 AmeriCorps members.

Since the launch of Public Health AmeriCorps in 2021, more than 4,700 AmeriCorps members have added much-needed capacity to health departments, community-based organizations, schools and more. This partnership has capitalized on AmeriCorps’ people power and infrastructure and leveraged the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s technical expertise as the country’s leading public health agency to address communities’ most pressing public health challenges and create new pathways to public-health related careers.  

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WASHINGTON — Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) announced $50,591,220 in federal funding for Fairfax County to purchase new low-emission diesel-electric hybrid buses under the county’s fleet replacement plan. The funding, made possible by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, will enable the Fairfax transit agency to buy and lease U.S.-built low- or no-emission vehicles, make facility and station upgrades, and buy support equipment for low- and no-emission buses.

“Robust public transit systems are vital to helping Virginians get where they need to go and investing in green infrastructure is key to our future,” said the Senators. “We’re proud to have supported the historic Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which has already brought billions to Virginia and now will invest an additional $50 million to improve public transit options in Fairfax County and boost air quality by reducing emissions.”

The Fairfax County Connector Hybrid Bus Procurement project is a part of the Low- or No-Emission grant program, which makes federal resources available to transit agencies to acquire low- and no-emission vehicles. Managed by the Federal Transit Administration, this program has funded more than 1,100 American-made buses in 47 states. These environmentally friendly buses reduce air pollution and help meet President Biden’s goal of zero emissions by the year 2050.

Sens. Warner and Kaine were proud to support the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) — landmark legislation that made this funding possible and brings critical investments to our communities to fix crumbling roadways, bolster public transit systems, bridge the broadband gap, and strengthen our coastal resiliency. As of November 2023, two years after President Biden signed the BIL into law, Virginia had received over $8.4 billion in funding to benefit Virginians across the Commonwealth.

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WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) issued the following statement:

“Another Trump term would be perilous for rule of law and for our democracy. President Biden has made America stronger, guiding the nation through some of our most difficult days. I am proud of my work on his agenda.

“With so much at stake in the upcoming election, now is the time for conversations about the strongest path forward.

“As these conversations continue, I believe it is incumbent upon the President to more aggressively make his case to the American people, and to hear directly from a broader group of voices about how to best prevent Trump’s lawlessness from returning to the White House.”

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WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) issued the statement below in response to new Department of Education guidance for individuals affected by joint consolidated student loans. This guidance follows longtime efforts by Sen. Warner to provide relief for individuals who previously consolidated their federal student loan debt with a spouse under a program that was created by Congress and subsequently eliminated without providing a way for spouses to sever existing loans – even in the event of domestic violence, economic abuse, or an unresponsive partner. In 2022, in culmination of these efforts, Sen. Warner secured the passage of the Joint Consolidation Loan Separation Act of 2021 in order to help borrowers who remain liable for their abusive or uncommunicative spouse’s portion of their consolidated debts.

“For years, borrowers in joint consolidated loans have faced frustrating bureaucratic hurdles and dismal prospects for severing their loans, keeping them trapped in financial agreements with unresponsive or abusive ex-spouses and preventing them from accessing loan forgiveness programs. I’m proud to have written the law that finally made separation a possibility, and I’m glad to see the Department of Education take another important step towards finally freeing borrowers from these burdensome loans. I look forward to working with the Department to ensure that it is meeting its established deadlines so all borrowers can finally separate their loans and move on with their lives,” said Sen. Warner.

According to new Department of Education guidance, the Office of Federal Student Aid will finalize and publish the application and promissory note for joint consolidation loan co-borrowers in the Fall of 2024. Upon availability, borrowers will be able to submit a:

• Joint Application: Both co-borrowers submit individual App/Notes to the Department, which will separate the JCL and create a new, individual Direct Consolidation Loan for each individual; or,
• Separate Application: An individual JCL applicant submits an App/Note to the Department without regard to whether or when the co-borrower applies, if the applicant has experienced an act of domestic violence or economic abuse from the other co-borrower, or if they are unable to reasonably reach or access the loan information of the other co-borrower.

Once the loans are separated, the applicants’ loan obligation will be consolidated into a Direct Consolidation Loan if both borrowers completed the joint application process. For those who submit a separate application, the loan obligation will follow the same process as the joint application process, but if the remaining co-borrower does not complete an application, their loan obligation will remain a JCL with one borrower.

According to the Department of Education guidance, the Office of Federal Student Aid aims to begin processing applications, in partnership with federal student loan servicers, by the end of the year. Borrowers and interested parties are encouraged to monitor the Department’s Homeroom Blog, FSA’s Electronic Announcements page, and the dedicated Joint Consolidation Loan Separation News and Updates webpage for details on webinars and general updates for potential applicants during implementation.

Sen. Warner’s Joint Consolidation Loan Separation Act, originally introduced in 2017, was inspired by Sara, a constituent from McLean, Virginia who contacted Sen. Warner to communicate her struggles with a joint consolidation loan. Sara was raising two children on a public school teacher’s salary in Northern Virginia and trying to keep up with payments on her student loans. Unfortunately, her ex-spouse, whom she had divorced and moved thousands of miles away from to start fresh, refused to pay his share of their joint loan. Because joint consolidation loans create joint and several liability for borrowers, Sara faced the threat of having her wages as a public school teacher garnished if she did not pay both her and her ex-husband’s portions of their debt. Sen. Warner did not think this was fair and sought to create a solution, so that constituents like Sara could control their own financial futures. You can hear Sen. Warner tell Sara’s story here.

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WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) voted to pass the Fire Grants and Safety Act, legislation that will renew critical grant programs that fund essential equipment and resources for fire stations, and also help hire, train, and retain new firefighters. Originally passed by the Senate in 2023, today’s final passage also includes Warner-supported provisions that will promote nuclear energy deployment across the country.

“During my visits to fire stations across the Commonwealth, I’ve seen firsthand how these grant programs help stations hire and retain firefighters and secure important equipment upgrades. Firefighters put their lives on the line day in and day out to keep our communities safe – the least we can do is make sure they have the equipment and the personnel they need to do their jobs safely. I’m glad we finally got this legislation across the finish line, and I’m also happy to see it take important steps forward in another critical arena – improving the nuclear regulatory space. This legislation invests in our clean energy future by cutting senseless red tape, promoting American energy independence, and paving the way to bring more green jobs and infrastructure to communities across Virginia,” said Sen. Warner. 

Specifically, this legislation would reauthorize the Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) program, which provides funding to help firefighters and other first responders obtain critically needed equipment, protective gear, emergency vehicles, training and other resources necessary for protecting the public and emergency personnel from fire and related hazards. It would also reauthorize the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) grant program, which provides funding directly to fire departments and volunteer firefighter interest organizations to help them increase or maintain the number of trained, "frontline" firefighters available in their communities. Finally, it would reauthorize and increase funding for the United States Fire Administration (USFA), the lead federal agency for fire data collection, fire research, and fire service training.

Since 2015, 273 AFG grants and 77 SAFER grants have been awarded to communities throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia. In 2023, 37 awards were made to localities and fire departments across Virginia totaling over $25 million in funding.

In 2023, the following entities in Virginia received 26 awards totaling over $6 million in funding through the Assistance to Firefighters (AFG) grant program:

• Isle of Wight County received $959,020
• The City of Lynchburg received $830,636
• The City of Alexandria received $600,000
• Frederick County received $463,450
• Franklin County received $438,238
• Chesterfield County received $313,880
• City of Hopewell received $294,645
• Loudoun County Fire & Rescue received $278,345
• Virginia Department of Fire received $203,736
• Patrick-Henry Volunteer Fire Company, Inc. received $186,857
• City of Portsmouth received $177,272
• Poquoson Fire/Rescue received $172,095
• The Bland County Volunteer Fire Department received $163,476
• Prince Edward County received $162,585
• Buena Vista Firefighters received $158,914
• Bloxom Volunteer Fire Co received $150,000
• Couple District Volunteer Fire Department received $130,144
• The Courtland Volunteer Fire Department received $130,144
• Dolphin Volunteer Fire Department received $126,433
• Brumley Gap Vol. Fire Department received $102,857
• City of Danville Municipal Building received $83,740
• Forest Volunteer Fire Co Foundation received $83,515
• The Scruggs Volunteer Fire Department and Rescue Squad in Franklin County received $66,666
• Brookville-Timberville Volunteer Fire Department received $53,181
• Natural Bridge Volunteer Fire Department received $33,034
• Woodstock Fire Department received $19,047

In 2023, the following entities in Virginia received 11 awards totaling over $19 million in funding through the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) grant program:

• The County of Albemarle received $7,146,642
• The City of Suffolk received $4,115,448
• The City of Manassas Park received $3,582,866
• International Association of Fire Chiefs received $2,667,697
• Rappahannock County received $561,617
• Goochland County received $556,972
• The Town of Chatham received $204,804
• Greene County received $176,445

• The Woodstock Fire Department received $133,043
• Hanover County received $41,800
• Stephens City Fire and Rescue Company in Frederick County received $21,068

The Fire Grants and Safety Act also contains provisions from the Warner-supported ADVANCE Act, bipartisan legislation that would make it easier to build nuclear power infrastructure. More specifically, the Fire Grants and Safety Act will facilitate American leadership in nuclear energy, reduce regulatory costs associated with licensing nuclear reactors, incentivize the development of next-generation reactors, strengthen the nuclear fuel supply chain, and allow the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to modernize and address staffing issues. Sen. Warner, a strong supporter of nuclear energy, recently launched the Senate Advanced Nuclear Caucus and has pushed directly on the Department of Defense to ensure consistent, reliable power sources for critical missions, including through the development and deployment of advanced nuclear reactors.  

Sen. Warner is a strong supporter of our firefighters across the Commonwealth, and previously voted to pass the Fire Grants and Safety Act in April 2023. Since then, he has visited fire stations in Richmond and Suffolk to highlight the urgent need to secure final passage of this legislation. Following wildfires across the Shenandoah Valley earlier this year, Sen. Warner met with first responders in Harrisonburg to discuss federal resources for firefighters.

This legislation recently passed with a huge bipartisan margin in the House of Representatives. It now heads to President Biden’s desk.

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WASHINGTON – Today, Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) released the following statement on the Senate’s failure to advance the Right to IVF Act, Warner-cosponsored legislation that would protect and expand access to in-vitro fertilization (IVF) and other assisted reproductive technology (ART) services nationwide.

“For years, millions of women have safely and successfully used IVF to start and grow families, making their plans a reality and their dreams come true. Yet we’ve seen judges and politicians take direct aim at fertility care, including in Alabama, where a state Supreme Court ruling upended families’ access to IVF overnight. It isn’t a far-off threat or a fearmongering tactic – we’re in the middle of a targeted assault on women’s access to reproductive care, and we need federal protections in place so families in all 50 states have the freedom to grow if they wish to do so. I’m deeply disappointed that my colleagues failed to protect access to IVF today, including robust protections for servicemembers and military families. I stand firmly with a woman’s right to make her own health care decisions, and I’ll never stop fighting to protect and expand a right to IVF.”

The Right to IVF Act includes provisions from the Warner-cosponsored Access to Family Building Act, and would establish a right for individuals to access IVF and ART services, as well as an adjacent right for doctors to provide these services. It also includes measures from the Veteran Families Health Services Act, which would improve fertility treatment and counseling options for veterans and servicemembers and promote research on servicemember and veteran reproductive health. It would also take several steps to increase affordability, including through mandating coverage of fertility treatments through employer-sponsored insurance plans and other public plans, as well as the Federal Employees Health Benefit (FEHB) Program.

Sen. Warner is a longtime advocate for comprehensive protections for reproductive care. In April, Sen. Warner urged the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to require all insurance carriers in the FEHB Program to cover in-vitro fertilization (IVF) medical treatments and medications. He also cosponsored and voted to pass the Right to Contraception Act, which would codify a right to birth control, and the Women’s Health Protection Act, which would protect abortion access, both of which have been blocked by Republicans.

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WASHINGTON — U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA), a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, joined U.S. Sens. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Patty Murray (D-WA), and Cory Booker (D-NJ) in introducing the Right to IVF Act, legislation to protect and expand access to in-vitro fertilization (IVF) and other assisted reproductive technology (ART) services nationwide. The Senate is expected to vote on the Right to IVF Act soon.

“For decades, millions of women have used IVF to start or grow their families and make their dreams come true,” said Sen. Warner. “It’s clear that lawmakers and judges across the country won’t stop at banning abortion – we’re witnessing a broad-scale attack on reproductive freedom that includes access to assisted reproductive technology and contraception, too. I’m glad to be standing up to these attacks by introducing the Right to IVF Act and other comprehensive measures to protect reproductive care, and I won’t stop fighting for families to have the freedom to access basic health care.”

“Following the Alabama Supreme Court ruling that restricted IVF access, Elizabeth Carr, the first person born via IVF in the United States in Norfolk, said she felt like an endangered species. I invited her to the State of the Union this year to shine a light on this issue because no one should be made to feel that way. We must take steps to protect Americans’ freedom to decide whether, when, and how to start or build their families amid state restrictions on reproductive health care,” said Sen. Kaine. “I’m proud to be introducing this comprehensive bill to protect and expand access to IVF and ART services. I hope my colleagues will pass it when it comes to the Senate floor next week.”

Specifically, the Right to IVF Act includes provisions from four bills:

• The Access to Family Building Act, which Warner and Kaine cosponsored to
  • Establish a statutory right for individuals to access, providers to provide, and insurers to cover IVF and ART services.
  • Authorize the U.S. Department of Justice to enforce these statutory rights.
  • Authorize a private right of action to allow adversely affected parties to sue.
• The Veteran Families Health Services Act of 2023, which Kaine cosponsored to
  • Permanently authorize and enhance fertility treatment and counseling options for veterans and servicemembers, expand family-building assistance, improve eligibility rules, and strengthen research on servicemember and veteran long-term reproductive health.
  • Expand servicemembers’ access to fertility services before deployment to a combat zone or hazardous duty assignment and after an injury or illness.
• The Access to Fertility Treatment and Care Act to
  • Increase affordability of fertility care, including IVF, by requiring employer-sponsored insurance plans and other public insurance plans, cover fertility treatments.
  • Standardize baseline of high-quality fertility treatment coverage under private health insurance plans and protect Americans against excessive out-of-pocket costs.
• The Family Friendly FEHB Fairness Act to
  • Promote the standardization and widespread availability of affordable fertility treatment coverage under employer-sponsored health insurance plans.
  • Require insurance carriers that participate in the Federal Employees Health Benefit (FEHB) Program to cover ART, including IVF treatments.

Sens. Warner and Kaine have been strong advocates for reproductive freedom in Congress. Following an Alabama Supreme Court ruling earlier this year that led to restricted access of IVF, Warner and Kaine cosponsored the Access to Family Building Act to protect Americans’ right to IVF and other assisted reproductive technology services. In April, Warner and Kaine urged the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to require health insurance coverage of IVF medical treatments and medications for federal employees. In March, Kaine invited Norfolk-born Elizabeth Carr, the first person born in the United States via IVF, to join him as his guest at the State of the Union. Kaine held two roundtables in Norfolk and Arlington to discuss the need to protect IVF. In the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision to strike down Roe v. Wade, Kaine worked across the aisle to introduce the Reproductive Freedom For All Act, a bipartisan bill to protect access to abortion and contraception.

The Right to IVF Act is endorsed by the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM), RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association, MomsRising, the Endocrine Society, Indivisible, and the What to Expect Project.

Full text of the bill is available here.

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WASHINGTON – Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) cosponsored Tyler’s Law, a bill directing the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to provide hospitals with guidance on how emergency rooms can implement fentanyl testing in their routine drug screens. The bill is named for Tyler Shamash, a teenager who died of an overdose in part because – unbeknownst to the physician – he was not tested for fentanyl upon being checked into the emergency room.

“I was deeply saddened to hear of the death of 17-year-old Fairfax County resident Malcolm Kent, who died of a fentanyl overdose that might have been prevented by more comprehensive testing protocols. It’s clear that we need to start employing every mechanism we have at our disposal to catch and treat overdoses before they occur,” said Sen. Warner. “While this law will never bring back Malcolm Kent, Tyler Shamash, or the thousands we’ve lost too soon to overdoses, in their memory I am glad to push to save more lives by instituting more robust guidance on testing for fentanyl during a suspected overdose.”

In January 2023, Malcolm Kent, a 17-year-old Fairfax County resident, went to the emergency room while experiencing an overdose but was not tested for fentanyl. He died of a fentanyl overdose shortly after being discharged. His mother, Thurraya Kent, has advocated for robust measures to test for fentanyl in emergency rooms and expand access to treatment.

Tyler’s Law would direct the Secretary of HHS to:

• Complete a study to determine how frequently emergency rooms are currently testing for fentanyl when patients come in for an overdose, as well as the associated costs and benefits/risks, and
• Issue guidance to hospitals on implementing fentanyl testing in emergency rooms.

In 2022, 1,967 Virginians died due to overdose of fentanyl and other synthetic opioids, accounting for nearly 79% of all drug overdose deaths in Virginia. Nationally, fentanyl and other synthetic opioids were responsible for just over 63% of all drug overdose deaths that year. Since the start of the COVID pandemic, fentanyl has more than doubled overdose deaths among children ages 12 to 17.

Sen. Warner has consistently pushed for robust action to address the opioid epidemic, particularly by expanding telehealth so more Virginians experiencing substance use disorder can access treatment. He leads the TREATS Act, which would permanently (and without any special registration) allow telehealth prescribing of controlled substances to treat opioid use disorder, such as buprenorphine. He also repeatedly pushed the DEA to preserve pandemic-era telehealth flexibilities and create a special registration  so that quality providers can permanently prescribe controlled substances safely via telehealth. To address trafficking, he recently celebrated passage of the FEND Off Fentanyl Act, a sanctions and anti-money laundering law that targets fentanyl traffickers. He also introduced the Stop Fentanyl at the Border Act, legislation that would increase staffing capacity and technology to detect drugs that are being smuggled through points of entry. 

Tyler’s Law is led by Sens. Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Mike Braun (R-IN), and also cosponsored by Bob Casey (D-PA), Todd Young (R-IN), Alex Padilla (D-CA). The full text of the bill is available here.  

WASHINGTON – U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) today applauded the announcement that Envigo – a breeding facility in Cumberland, Va. that engaged in egregious animal welfare violations – has plead guilty to felony violations of the Animal Welfare Act and Clean Water Act. This victory was made possible by Sens. Warner and Kaine, who began shedding light on this issue in 2022 and demanding federal action.

“Today’s settlement represents an enormous victory for animal welfare, as the perpetrators of horrific abuse against innocent dogs will pay a historic settlement for their negligence. After our advocacy for these animals, we’ve been deeply heartened to hear stories of their adoption into loving, safe homes, and this settlement takes another step critical towards justice. We’re glad to see Envigo held accountable for its crimes, and we’ll keep pushing to root out animal abuse across Virginia.”

In March of 2022, Sens. Warner and Kaine expressed horror and demanded immediate and aggressive action by the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) following more than 70 animal welfare violations at the Envigo breeding and research facility in Cumberland. After these calls for action, the federal government stepped in, seizing 446 beagles in acute distress and eventually helping facilitate the surrender of nearly 4,000 dogs to the Humane Society of the Unites States (HSUS), which worked to place these dogs into homes.

Following this action, Envigo today pled guilty and agreed to pay $22 million in fines and $13.5 million to upgrade their facilities and support animal welfare and environmental projects. The settlement represents the largest-ever fine in an animal welfare case ever pursued by the Department of Justice. Envigo’s parent company, Inotiv, will face additional animal care standards and be assigned a compliance monitor.

Sen. Warner, a dog owner, has been an advocate for dogs in Virginia and throughout the country, earning a 100% on the Humane Society of the United States’ Humane Scorecard for 2021. In March, Sen. Warner secured the passage of new language requiring the Department of State to report on the status of dogs in the Explosive Detection Canine Program (EDCP). This program came under scrutiny in 2019 after an Inspector General (IG) report found that the Department failed to conduct proper follow-up after sending highly-trained dogs to foreign partner nations, resulting in the death of at least ten dogs from largely preventable illnesses.

Sens. Warner and Kaine—who have received perfect scores on the Humane Society of the United States’ Humane Scorecard in previous years—have been consistent cosponsors of the Puppy Protection Act, which would amend the Animal Welfare Act to include additional care and safety standards for dog breeders like Envigo. Under the bill, breeders would be required to house dogs in appropriately sized enclosures with solid ground and keep them on a regular diet and exercise routine. As Governor of Virginia, Kaine signed a law that imposed stricter legal penalties for dogfighting offenses.

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WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and co-chair of the Senate Cybersecurity Caucus, wrote to the U.S. Copyright Office in support of expanding the existing good-faith research exemption within the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA).

Every three years, the DMCA goes through a rulemaking process to authorize exemptions that allow individuals and researchers to circumvent technical protection measures on copyrighted material without risking liability. This year, Artificial Intelligence (AI) researchers have petitioned for a new exemption relating to “Security Research Pertaining to Generative AI Bias.” Sen. Warner, who has led the charge in the Senate to explore the capabilities of AI technology while simultaneously advocating for reasonable guardrails around its usage, argues that expanding the current good-faith research exemption to cover research that falls outside of traditional security concerns, such as bias and other harmful outputs, is the best way to ensure safe and equitable AI while enabling its continued innovation, public trust, and adoption.

Sen. Warner wrote, “Due to the difficulty in understanding the full range of behaviors in AI systems - particularly as models are introduced in contexts that diverge from their intended use - the scope of good-faith research has expanded to the identification of safety flaws caused by misaligned AI systems, as well as research into how AI systems can reflect and reproduce socially and economically harmful biases…it is crucial that we allow researchers to test systems in ways that demonstrate how malfunctions, misuse, and misoperation may lead to an increased risk of physical or psychological harm.”

He continued, “At the same time, as the Department of Justice letter emphasized, a hallmark of the research exemption has been the good faith of security researchers. In the absence of regulation, many AI firms have voluntarily adopted measures to address abuse, security, and deception risks posed by their products. Given the growing use of generative AI systems for fraud, non-consensual intimate image generation, and other harmful and deceptive activity, measures such as watermarks and content credentials represent especially important consumer protection safeguards. While independent research can meaningfully improve the robustness of these kinds of authenticity and provenance measures, it is vital that the Copyright Office ensure that expansion of the exemption does not immunize research that intends to undermine these vital measures; absent very clear indicia of good faith, efforts that undermine provenance technology should not be entitled to the expanded exemption.”

This is the latest step in Sen. Warner’s efforts to reign in big tech and better understand the impacts of rapidly expanding usage of AI. Earlier this month, he introduced the Secure Artificial Intelligence Act of 2024, legislation to improve the tracking and processing of security and safety incidents and risks associated with Artificial Intelligence (AI).

A copy of the letter is available here and below: 

Dear Ms. Perlmutter,

I write today in response to the petition submitted to your office that proposes a new exemption for “Security Research Pertaining to Generative AI Bias” as part of the Copyright Office’s ninth triennial rulemaking proceeding under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). I understand a number of stakeholders have submitted public comments to weigh in on this petition, including a letter from the Department of Justice. Ultimately, I urge the Copyright Office to consider expanding the existing good-faith security research exemption to cover both security and safety flaws or vulnerabilities, where safety includes bias and other harmful outputs.

As the leader of bipartisan legislation to improve the security of AI systems and the Co-Chair of the Senate Cybersecurity Caucus, I recognize the importance of independent security research. The existing DMCA exemption for good-faith security researchers plays a critical role in empowering a robust security research ecosystem that identifies vulnerabilities and risks to systems around the world, facilitating their remediation, and preventing future exploitation by threat actors that could lead to incidents. We must continue to promote this important work and understand that, although AI is software at its core, the non-deterministic nature of AI systems means that security vulnerabilities are no longer the only type of flaw that can be introduced and enable misuse. As the AI Risk Management Framework, developed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), emphasizes, AI risks differ from traditional software risks in key ways - including increased opacity and barriers to reproducibility, complex and non-deterministic system dependencies, more nascent testing and evaluation frameworks and controls, and a “higher degree of difficulty in predicting failure modes” for so-called “emergent properties” of AI systems.

Due to the difficulty in understanding the full range of behaviors in AI systems - particularly as models are introduced in contexts that diverge from their intended use - the scope of good-faith research has expanded to the identification of safety flaws caused by misaligned AI systems, as well as research into how AI systems can reflect and reproduce socially and economically harmful biases. This research into bias and other harmful outputs is essential to ensuring public safety and equity while enabling continued innovation, public trust, and adoption of AI. Therefore, it is crucial that we allow researchers to test systems in ways that demonstrate how malfunctions, misuse, and misoperation may lead to an increased risk of physical or psychological harm.

At the same time, as the Department of Justice letter emphasized, a hallmark of the research exemption has been the good faith of security researchers. In the absence of regulation, many AI firms have voluntarily adopted measures to address abuse, security, and deception risks posed by their products. Given the growing use of generative AI systems for fraud, non-consensual intimate image generation, and other harmful and deceptive activity, measures such as watermarks and content credentials represent especially important consumer protection safeguards. While independent research can meaningfully improve the robustness of these kinds of authenticity and provenance measures, it is vital that the Copyright Office ensure that expansion of the exemption does not immunize research that intends to undermine these vital measures; absent very clear indicia of good faith, efforts that undermine provenance technology should not be entitled to the expanded exemption.

The existing exemption has been an important contributor to the multistakeholder effort to improve information security by enabling the “good-faith testing, investigation, and/or correction of a security flaw or vulnerability” in computer programs.  As you review the public comments on this new petition, I urge you to consider expanding the good-faith security research definition to include both security and safety flaws or vulnerabilities, where safety includes bias and other harmful outputs. In considering this expansion, I urge the Copyright Office to continue to bind the exemption to research that is conducted in a safe environment, primarily to enhance the security or safety of computer programs, without facilitating copyright infringement.  Further, I encourage careful consideration of the exemption’s application to any research on technical measures that protect the authenticity or provenance of content from generative AI models.

              Sincerely,

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WASHINGTON — U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, (both D-VA) today applauded the Senate’s passage of the Dr. Emmanuel Bilirakis and Honorable Jennifer Wexton National Plan to End Parkinson’s Act, legislation they cosponsored, which will direct the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to set up a National Parkinson’s Project, under which HHS would create and update a national plan to address Parkinson’s and related conditions, provide an estimate of research needs, and establish an advisory council that would report to Congress. The legislation now heads to President Biden for his signature.

In April 2023, Rep. Jennifer Wexton (D-VA-10) shared her diagnosis of Parkinson's disease, and in September of last year, her diagnosis was upgraded to progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP), a rare and incurable brain disorder that rapidly deteriorates mobility and speech.

“Our friend Jennifer Wexton has been a model of grace and perseverance in the face of a difficult diagnosis,” said the senators. “This legislation bearing her name will help all those who are suffering with Parkinson’s and related conditions, and we are proud to see it head to the president’s desk for signature.”

The National Parkinson’s Project is modeled after the National Alzheimer’s Project which, as co-chair of the Congressional Task Force on Alzheimer’s Disease, Sen. Warner led efforts to introduce and pass. Sen. Kaine’s bipartisan Building Our Largest Dementia (BOLD) Infrastructure for Alzheimer’s Reauthorization Act, legislation to reauthorize funding for public health initiatives across the country to combat Alzheimer’s disease and preserve brain health, passed out of the Senate HELP Committee this week. 

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WASHINGTON – The Senate Select Committee on Intelligence passed the Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2025 (IAA) today by a unanimous 17-0 vote. The bill authorizes funding, provides legal authorities, and enhances congressional oversight for the U.S. Intelligence Community (IC).

“The Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2025 reflects the Senate Intelligence Committee’s bipartisan commitment to ensuring America’s intelligence agencies have the authorities and resources they need to protect against rapidly evolving conflicts and threats,” said Committee Chairman Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA). “This year’s bill enhances the IC’s ability to identify and counter emerging technological threats posed by adversarial nations, including foreign adversaries’ efforts to use and dominate areas like artificial intelligence, biotechnologies, and next-generation energy. The IAA also designates foreign ransomware organizations as hostile cyber actors and ensures the IC has the tools it needs to counter economic coercion and illicit technology transfer, in particular by the People’s Republic of China. It also reforms the nation’s security classification system, strengthens the security of our election systems, and furthers the Committee’s efforts to ensure the IC can attract and expeditiously on-board a talented, diverse, and trusted workforce to meet the emerging challenges we face.”

“Our Intelligence Authorization Act represents significant improvements to our national security tools, legal authorities, Intelligence Community workforce, and ensures resources are focused on the most pressing threats, specifically from China, Russia, Iran, and their partners, including Cuba, Venezuela, and North Korea, as well as terrorist organizations,” said Committee Vice Chairman Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL). “Importantly, this bill takes unprecedented steps to address counterintelligence risks to our  National Laboratories by prohibiting visitors from foreign adversary nations thereby protecting America’s research and competitive advantage. I look forward to moving our bipartisan legislation to the full Senate and final enactment.”

Background:

The IAA for Fiscal Year 2025 authorizes funding for the IC and ensures that it has the resources, personnel, and authorities it needs to protect our country and inform decision makers, while ensuring continued robust congressional oversight. The bill’s provisions focus on the following key areas:

• Increases oversight of the national security threats posed by the People’s Republic of China (PRC), including its attempts to evade sanctions and regulations, military capabilities, and investments in, and attempts to dominate, the supply chains of artificial intelligence (AI), next-generation energy technologies, and biotechnology, among others.
• Enhances the IC’s ability to identify and counter threats relating to biotechnologies, including by improving and modernizing the roles, missions, and objectives of the National Counterproliferation and Biosecurity Center and by directing the IC to identify PRC plans, intentions, and timelines relating to illicit uses of biotechnologies.
• Enhances sanctions enforcement against terrorist and ransomware organizations and revokes foreign nationals’ visas if they endorse/espouse terrorist activity.
• Enhances policies relating to AI, including by requiring the President to develop procedures to ensure that Federal agencies better engage the private security on AI system-related threats, as well as establishing an AI Security Center within the National Security Agency to advance AI security research.
• Enhances the IC’s ability to procure, transition, and incorporate emerging technologies, including by creating a fund for acquiring and transitioning such technologies.
• Increases the IC’s focus on the growing threats to the United States by ISIS and affiliated terrorist organizations.
• Promotes reform of the nation’s security classification system, by requiring the President to designate an Executive Agent for Classification and Declassification, improving the system for the classification and declassification of information, and requiring each Federal agency with access to classified information to establish an insider threat program to protect against unauthorized disclosures.
• Prohibits entry into the Department of Energy National Laboratories by foreign nationals from adversary countries who pose counterintelligence risks.
• Builds upon the Committee’s efforts relating to energy security by requiring a strategy to improve information sharing between the IC and the private sector regarding foreign adversary-based threats to U.S. critical minerals and other energy-related projects abroad.
• Requires the IC to conduct an assessment of the likely course of Russia’s brutal war in Ukraine, and the effects of Western support to Ukraine.
• Requires the IC to conduct an assessment of the Israel-Hamas war.
• Improves oversight related to the Western Hemisphere, specifically when it comes to national security implications of visa-free travel by certain foreign nationals.
• Enhances insight into the Venezuela Maduro regime’s relationship with state sponsors of terrorism and foreign terrorist organizations.

• Requires the IC to establish an IC-wide policy authorizing a program for contractor-based sensitive compartmented information facilities, to improve public-private cooperation on technology innovation.

• Requires a Government Accountability Office (GAO) review of the All-Domain Anomaly Resolution Office regarding unidentified anomalous phenomena reporting and Federal agency coordination.
• Reforms management of controlled access programs to improve Congressional oversight.
• Enhances election security by requiring that voting systems undergo penetration testing for certification processes.
• Maintains strong congressional oversight of and enhances protections for IC whistleblowers.
• Ensures continued support to the victims of anomalous health incidents (AHIs or “Havana Syndrome”) by improving funding flexibility for payments to qualified victims.
• Safeguards important voluntary investments in watermarking and content authenticity by generative AI firms by establishing penalties for services that deliberately facilitate removal of those voluntary protections.

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