Press Releases

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) today issued the following statement regarding the Alpha Natural Resources bankruptcy filing:  “This news is very troubling for West Virginia and the thousands of families who will be impacted,” said Senator Capito. “It’s no surprise that Alpha points to federal policies as part of the reason for its bankruptcy filing, especially when the president is just hours away from announcing... Read More

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee’s Clean Air and Nuclear Safety Subcommittee, today announced the markup of the ARENA Act, an alternative to President Obama’s “Clean Power Plan.” The bill will be marked up in the EPW Committee on Wednesday, August 5, at 10:00 a.m.  “This administration continues to pick winners and losers within the nation’s energy... Read More

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) today applauded passage of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee’s Energy Policy Modernization Act of 2015. This broad, bipartisan bill was passed out of committee on an 18-4 vote. The final energy package included Senator Capito’s legislation to modernize the approval process for new pipelines.  “Implementing a commonsense energy policy is critically important to West Virginia and... Read More

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) today issued the following statement regarding the Senate’s passage of a bipartisan, six-year transportation funding bill, known as the Developing a Reliable and Innovative Vision for the Economy (DRIVE) Act:  “After weeks of debate, I am proud that the Senate has come to a consensus on a bipartisan, six-year transportation funding bill that will deliver the certainty and flexibility states need to... Read More

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) spoke on the Senate floor today outlining her specific concerns with the Iran nuclear agreement, including the argument that we must accept this deal or go to war with Iran.  Watch Senator Capito’s floor speech here.   Excerpts: “Mister President, I rise to express my deep concerns with the nuclear agreement negotiated between the United States, other world powers and... Read More

WASHINGTON, D.C. – In an effort to help thousands of children who undergo cancer treatment each year, U.S. Senators Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) and Jack Reed (D-R.I.) today introduced the Childhood Cancer STAR Act. This bipartisan legislation will advance pediatric cancer research and child-focused cancer treatments, while also improving childhood cancer surveillance and providing resources for survivors and those impacted by childhood cancer. “This bipartisan... Read More

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) this week joined Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.) and Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.) to introduce the bipartisan Anna Westin Act to help combat eating disorders. As many as 30 million Americans suffer from an eating disorder, but only one in 10 people with an eating disorder receive treatment. The bill will use existing funds to create grant programs to train school personnel, primary care... Read More

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Following a bipartisan push by Senators Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and eight of their colleagues, the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) has announced that it will reinstate Prescription Drug Take-Back Days, an initiative to encourage the responsible disposal of expired or unwanted prescription drugs. In May, the Senators sent a letter to U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch calling for the reinstatement of this initiative after it was... Read More

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) released the following statement regarding the announced closure of the Century Aluminum plant in Ravenswood, West Virginia: "The announcement that Century Aluminum will permanently close its Ravenswood aluminum smelter is a deep disappointment for Jackson County, Century retirees, and the federal, state and local officials who worked hard to reopen the facility. Following the closure, it is my hope that Century will... Read More

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) and Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) announced more than $1 million in funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for fire departments in five West Virginia counties. The Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) Awards will help improve training, operations and fire safety in Fayette, Randolph, Raleigh, Wayne and Tucker Counties. “It is essential that our fire departments have the... Read More

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), chair of the Legislative Branch Appropriations Subcommittee, yesterday voted in favor of the FY2016 Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Bill, which invests in programs to combat drug abuse, foster economic development and promote small business growth in West Virginia. This is the 12th and final appropriations bill to be approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee this year, marking the... Read More

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) spoke on the Senate floor today in support of the Developing a Reliable and Innovative Vision for the Economy (DRIVE) Act, a six year highway bill that will increase federal transportation funding, further economic growth and give West Virginia the ability to finish critical projects and repair our crumbling roads, bridges and highways. The bipartisan bill unanimously passed the Senate Environment and Public Works... Read More

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), chairman of the Senate Clean Air and Nuclear Safety Subcommittee, joined Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Chairman Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-Mich.), House Energy and Power Subcommittee Chairman Ed Whitfield (R-Ky.) and other members of the Senate and House to raise concerns regarding the extraordinary legal and economic aspects of the EPA’s proposed... Read More

WASHINGTON, D.C. — In an effort to curb overdose deaths related to opiate abuse, Senators Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and six of their Senate colleagues called on the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to examine the use of methadone for pain, and to issue guidance to state Medicaid directors to remove methadone from preferred drug lists for pain management. “West Virginia has the nation’s highest rate of overdose deaths, and because... Read More

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Yesterday, U.S. Senators Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) and Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), along with Representative Evan Jenkins (R-W.Va.), spoke with United States Veterans Affairs (VA) Secretary Bob McDonald regarding the reopening of the Greenbrier Community Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC). Reopening the facility would save thousands of West Virginia veterans from driving several hours to seek treatment. "[The Greenbrier CBOC] was shut down, and we have to reopen... Read More

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), chair of the Legislative Branch Appropriations Subcommittee, yesterday voted in favor of the agriculture appropriations bill for FY2016, which provides funding for a number of West Virginia priorities, including rural broadband expansion and free and reduced-price school lunches. The FY2016 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations bill invests in food and... Read More

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) released the following statement regarding the Stream Protection rule announced by the Department of Interior’s Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement today: “No one cares more about West Virginia’s streams and water quality than those living in the Mountain State. This far-reaching regulation fails to consider the benefits our state’s mining operations provide to West Virginia’s... Read More

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) today voted in favor of the Every Child Achieves Act of 2015, a bill that returns decisions about elementary and secondary education to states, local officials, teachers and parents and will help West Virginia children succeed in school. The bill passed with overwhelming bipartisan support on an 81-17 vote. “Today’s overwhelming bipartisan vote reflects the broad consensus that it was time to fix our education... Read More

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) and Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) today announced funding totaling more than $1.5 million from the U.S. Department of Education’s TRIO Student Support Services Program. The funds will be awarded to West Virginia University, Marshall University, West Virginia State University, Bluefield State College and West Virginia University Institute of Technology to provide academic support and counseling to low-income,... Read More

FLEMINGTON, W.Va. – U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito recently participated in a Skype conversation with students in the Energy Express program at Flemington Elementary School. Senator Capito read the children’s book, The Little Engine That Could, to roughly 25 students ranging from ages six to 10 and spoke about being West Virginia’s first female Senator. Energy Express is a summer reading and nutrition program sponsored by AmeriCorps that occurs at about... Read More