Press Releases
Lankford and Smith Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Expand Health Care Resources for Urban Indian Health Organizations Amid Pandemic
WASHINGTON, DC - Senators James Lankford (R-OK) and Tina Smith (D-MN) introduced bipartisan legislation to boost health resources for urban Indian health organizations as the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic forces many to grapple with financial hardship and even close operations. The Coverage for Urban Indian Health Providers Act, also co-sponsored Tom Udall (D-NM) and Martha McSally (R-AZ) would amend the Indian Health Care Improvement Act to create parity within the Indian Health System (I… Continue Reading
05.07.20
Lankford, King, Colleagues Urge Leadership to Consider Nonprofits in Next Relief Proposal
WASHINGTON, DC - Senators James Lankford (R-OK) and Angus King (I-ME) today sent a bipartisan letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) to advocate that they do not overlook nonprofits, charities, and houses of worship in the fourth-phase relief proposal for the coronavirus pandemic. The letter asks the Leaders to consider expanding access to relief and support, increase unemployment insurance reimbursement for nonprofit employees, and stren… Continue Reading
05.07.20
Lankford Honors Former Oklahoma Senator, Dr. Tom Coburn, on the Senate Floor
CLICK HERE to watch Lankford's remarks on the Senate floor. WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today honored the life and legacy of his friend and former Oklahoma Senator, Dr. Tom Coburn, whose passing was announced March 28, 2020. Lankford's tribute to Dr. Coburn included important lessons imparted on him by Dr. Coburn prior to Lankford's service in both the House and Senate. Lankford also highlighted the legacy Dr. Coburn leaves behind in the Senate as an institution and on his … Continue Reading
05.06.20
Lankford Named One of the Most Conservative Senators
WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) was awarded the 2019 Award for Conservative Excellence by the American Conservative Union (ACU) Foundation for his voting record in 2019. Lankford obtained an ACU rating of 95 percent, the second-highest in the Senate. "I am grateful Oklahomans put their trust in me to press for our conservative values as a nation, including working to find areas of common ground across the aisle," said Lankford. "As a nation it's important that we continue to purs… Continue Reading
05.06.20
Lankford Asks Treasury, SBA to Adjust PPP Loan Forgiveness to Help Oklahoma Restaurants, Other Small Businesses
WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK), along with Senator John Cornyn (R-TX), joined a bipartisan group of Senators to send a letter yesterday to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, and Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA), Jovita Carranza, urging changes to the loan forgiveness criteria of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans to help small businesses and particularly restaurants, which tend to have lower payroll expenses, use the program to stay afloat during … Continue Reading
05.05.20
Lankford Sends Letter to USDA to Support Oklahoma Chicken Farmers and Processors
WASHINGTON, DC -Senator James Lankford (R-OK) along with Senators Chris Coons (D-DE) and Roger Wicker (R-MS), led sent a letter to the Secretary of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) highlighting the severe impacts of COVID-19 on the US chicken industry and requesting direct assistance for chicken growers and continued support for processing facilities. "As representatives of states with substantial chicken operations, we strongly request that USDA provide direct assistance fo… Continue Reading
05.05.20
Lankford Sends Letter to USDA to Support Oklahoma Chicken Farmers and Processors
WASHINGTON, DC -Senator James Lankford (R-OK) along with Senators Chris Coons (D-DE) and Roger Wicker (R-MS), sent a letter to the Secretary of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) highlighting the severe impacts of COVID-19 on the US chicken industry and requesting direct assistance for chicken growers and continued support for processing facilities. "As representatives of states with substantial chicken operations, we strongly request that USDA provide direct assistance for chic… Continue Reading
05.04.20
Lankford, GOP Colleagues Send Letter to FBI and ATF to Ensure Second Amendment is Preserved during COVID Response
WASHINGTON, DC - Senators James Lankford (R-OK), John Cornyn (R-TX), and 26 of their colleagues sent a letter today to Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Christopher Wray and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) Acting Director Regina Lombardo encouraging them to protect public safety while respecting the Second Amendment and federal law related to the three-business-day waiting period for firearm purchases and seeking information on how the federal firearms background chec… Continue Reading
05.04.20
Lankford, Senate Colleagues Ask Treasury to Provide Relief for Oklahoma Opportunity Zones in the Wake of COVID-19
WASHINGTON, DC - The 2008 financial crisis showed the entire country that low-income communities are often the first hit and last to recover during times of economic instability. Fortunately, as the United States begins to reopen this year following the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a new tool to help the most economically distressed communities: Opportunity Zones.Senators James Lankford and Tim Scott (R-SC) are leading Senate colleagues in asking the US Department of Treasury an… Continue Reading
04.30.20
Lankford Calls For Clarity to the Paycheck Protection Program to Ensure Oklahoma Small Businesses Aren’t Penalized for Multiple Application Attempts
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK -Senators James Lankford (R-OK) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), Chairman and Ranking Member of the Regulatory Affairs and Federal Management Subcommittee are calling for the Small Business Administration (SBA) and Treasury Department to ensure small businesses across the country that apply to the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) multiple times due to delayed processing and confusion are not penalized for their multiple attempts. Lankford and Sinema argue there must be a way to dist… Continue Reading
04.29.20
Lankford Joins Bipartisan Call for Equal Telephone-based Health Services Reimbursements
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today joined 36 Senators in advocating for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to increase telephone-based, or audio-only, telehealth reimbursements to equal other audio-visual telehealth and in-person visitation reimbursements. Many Americans do not have access to reliable broadband, making it nearly impossible to use video-sharing to receive telehealth services during the COVI… Continue Reading
04.29.20
Lankford Joins Bipartisan Letter Supporting Main Street Associations
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today joined a bipartisan letter with 17 other senators asking that local trade and professional associations become eligible for assistance through the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) in any future coronavirus stimulus bill. The letter to Senate leadership and the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship requests support for 501(c)(6) associations, which are major drivers of Main Street economic development. These entities incl… Continue Reading
04.28.20
Senators Lankford and Hassan Press Administration on Counterterrorism Efforts Amid COVID-19
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - Senators James Lankford (R-OK) and Maggie Hassan (D-NH), both members of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, called for answers on what the Department of Homeland Security, FBI, and Intelligence Community are doing to address ongoing and emerging terrorist threats amid the COVID-19 pandemic. As the Senators detail in their bipartisan letter, there is evidence of both foreign and domestic potential terrorists trying to take advantage of the COVID-… Continue Reading
04.24.20
Oklahoma Delegation Applauds Administration Allowing Publicly Owned Hospitals Inclusion in CARES Act Programs
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) and Oklahoma's Congressional Delegation today released the following statements after the Small Business Administration (SBA) clarified this morning that publicly owned rural hospitals will be eligible to receive Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans and other financial assistance relief provided through the CARES Act: Lankford: "I am grateful for SBA's attention to the important issue we raised that will allow Oklahoma's rural, municipality-o… Continue Reading
04.22.20
Lankford Calls on FCC to Expand Rural Broadband, Update 5G Coverage Maps
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - Senators James Lankford (R-OK), Joe Manchin (D-WV), Jon Tester (D-MT), and Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS) today called on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to update the broadband coverage maps being used to distribute the 5G Fund's $9 billion to expand reliable broadband access across America. During the COVID-19 pandemic, it has become increasingly clear that millions in America, especially those in largely rural states like Oklahoma, do not have the reliable broadband … Continue Reading
04.22.20
Lankford urges Senate, House Leadership to Stop Taxpayer Funding for China’s Wuhan Institute of Virology
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) along with Senator Martha McSally (R-AZ), Representative Matt Gaetz (R-FL), and a bicameral coalition of over 50 other lawmakers sent a letter to Senate and House leadership requesting no COVID-19 relief funds be appropriated to China's notorious state-run bio-agent laboratory, the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV). Reports indicate that for years WIV has received taxpayer dollars from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for secretive and … Continue Reading
04.21.20
Lankford Supports More Relief for Oklahoma’s Small Businesses, Workers, and Hospitals
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today issued a statement after the Senate unanimously voted to provide additional funding to hospitals, the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) and the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). PPP and EIDL programs were created under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. PPP ran out of money after 10-days. "Oklahoma small businesses and workers saw funding for both the Paycheck Protection Program and the EIDL advances run … Continue Reading
04.20.20
Lankford, Rosen Statement Commemorating Holocaust Remembrance Day
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - Today, Senators James Lankford (R-OK) and Senator Jacky Rosen (D-NV), co-chairs of the Senate Bipartisan Task Force for Combating Anti-Semitism, released the following statement in commemoration of Yom HaShoah, Holocaust Remembrance Day. "During the horrors of the Holocaust, six million Jews and millions of others were taken from us," said the Senators. "Today, communities across the globe look back on this dark chapter of history in remembrance of those who were lost, with… Continue Reading
04.20.20
Senator Lankford to Host Virtual Town Hall with Governor Stitt THURSDAY
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - The Office of Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today announced that Lankford will host a virtual town on Thursday, April 23, 2020, with Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt (R-OK). The town hall will focus on state and federal resources available to Oklahomans during a time of COVID-19. Lankford will also provide an update on additional funding for the Paycheck Protection Program which was created from passage of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act in March. … Continue Reading
04.20.20
Lankford Calls for SBA to Continue Accepting Paycheck Protection Program Applications
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK -Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today joined Senators Todd Young (R-IN), Jim Inhofe (R-OK), John Cornyn (R-TX), Steve Daines (R-MT), Michael Enzi (R-WY), Joni Ernst (R-IA), and Rand Paul (R-KY) to send a letter to the Small Business Administration (SBA) requesting that lenders be permitted to submit applications for the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) despite the program's funding lapse. Enabling lenders to continue processing applications would help alleviate the already deve… Continue Reading
