Press Releases

U.S. Senators John Thune (R-South Dakota), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minnesota) led 42 of their Senate colleagues in sending a letter to Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Thomas Wheeler calling on the FCC to implement a policy change that permits... Continue Reading

U.S. Senator John Thune (R-South Dakota) joined his Republican colleagues on the Senate Finance Committee in sending a letter to Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Commissioner John Koskinen demanding answers as to how the IRS plans to prevent future bonus payments from being given to employees with conduct, performance, and tax... Continue Reading

U.S. Senator John Thune (R-S.D.), member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, today welcomed South Dakota business owner Mark Tilsen of Kyle, South Dakota, who testified before the Senate Agriculture Subcommittee on Jobs, Rural Economic Growth and Energy Innovation at a hearing entitled, “The Importance of Regional... Continue Reading

U.S. Senators Pat Roberts (R-Kan.), Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.) and John Thune (R-S.D.) today introduced legislation to prohibit the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) from providing performance awards to employees who owe outstanding federal tax debt or who have violated U.S. tax law. “Given what we know about recent IRS actions —... Continue Reading

U.S. Senator John Thune (R-S.D.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, today announced that the Surface Transportation Board (STB)’s Rail Customer and Public Assistance program (RCPA) will be hosting a series of informal meetings with interested South Dakota shippers regarding railroad service delays on Tuesday,... Continue Reading

U.S. Senator John Thune (R-S.D.) today issued the following statement on the State Department’s announcement that it will again delay its decision to approve or deny the job-creating Keystone XL pipeline: “On a day when many Americans are observing Good Friday and preparing for Easter, the administration took the opportunity... Continue Reading

U.S. Senator John Thune (R-S.D.), Chairman of the Senate Republican Conference, tonight issued the following comment regarding the administration’s enrollment announcement: “The president’s latest ObamaCare ‘victory’ lap is an insult to the millions of Americans who lost the coverage they were promised they could keep, who lost access to the... Continue Reading

U.S. Senators Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), John Thune (R-S.D.), and Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) today sent a letter to Census Bureau Director John H. Thompson urging the administration to continue asking the existing health insurance coverage questions in the Census Bureau’s annual survey, along with its planned new questions, for two years.... Continue Reading

U.S. Senator John Thune (R-S.D.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, issued the following statement after the Surface Transportation Board (STB) announced tonight that it will direct the Canadian Pacific Railway Company and BNSF Railway Company to report by April 18, 2014, their plans to... Continue Reading

Following the increased number of South Dakota shippers experiencing significantly reduced rail service, U.S. Senator John Thune (R-S.D.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, today delivered remarks at a hearing before the Surface Transportation Board (STB) regarding... Continue Reading