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From The Blog

***Mail/Phone Delays on Capitol Hill***

April 17, 2013

Wednesday, April 17, 2013 - Due to the ongoing investigation into a suspicious letter recently mailed to the U.S. Senate, all mail to Capitol Hill has been halted.  Mail in states offices is also not being opened at this time.  The Washington, D.C. office is experiencing a higher than normal volume of calls.  Concerned Iowans are being asked to please take a minute to use our web form or call any of Sen. Harkin’s state offices.

New Study Shows Students Eating More Fresh Fruits & Veggies Under Harkin-led Program

April 10, 2013

Elementary school students around the country participating in the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program, a Harkin-led effort in both the 2002 and 2008 farm bills, consumed 15 percent more fresh fruits and vegetables than students not participating in the program, according to a new study.

Harkin Amendment Will Offer Negotiated FY 13 Labor, Health, Education Bill to Continuing Appropriations Act

March 12, 2013

An amendment to the Continuing Appropriations Act of 2013 by Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) will increases funding for the NIH, child care, and education while staying within the current budget parameters. The amendment reflects the bipartisan compromise on the Fiscal Year 2013 Labor-HHS spending bill negotiated in December by Harkin and his Senate and House counterparts. Harkin is Chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies.

Harkin Commemorates 25th Anniversary of Gallaudet University’s “Deaf President Now” Movement on WAMU’s The Kojo Nnamdi Show

March 7, 2013

Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA)—sponsor of the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee—today commemorated the 25th anniversary of Gallaudet University’s "Deaf President Now" movement on WAMU’s The Kojo Nnamdi Show. Harkin, who at the time served as Chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on the Handicapped, sent a letter in support of the deaf community while the protests were ongoing in 1988.

Sen. Harkin, Rep. Miller Introduce of Bill to Raise the Minimum Wage to $10.10

March 5, 2013

Joined by business leaders and workers, U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Rep. George Miller (D-CA) held a press conference to announce the introduction of legislation that would gradually raise the federal minimum wage to $10.10 an hour from its current $7.25, then provide for automatic annual increases linked to changes in the cost of living. Harkin and Miller’s bill would also gradually raise the minimum wage for tipped workers—which currently stands at just $2.13 an hour—for the first time in more than 20 years, to 70 percent of the regular minimum wage. The lawmakers were joined at the event by Margot Dorfman, CEO of the U.S. Women’s Chamber of Commerce; Andy Shallal, owner of several Washington-area restaurants; Amie Crawford, a Chicago fast-food worker; and Gregory Reynoso, a New York pizza delivery driver, to discuss why raising the minimum wage is good for both the economy and for working families.