Democratic News

U.S. Senators Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, Chairman Ted Cruz, (R-Texas), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.) Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), Brian Schatz (D-Hawai’i), Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) and Tim Sheehy (R-Mont.) today introduced the Weather Research and Forecasting Innovation Reauthorization Act of 2026, bipartisan legislation authorizing programs at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) that would strengthen weather research and forecasting to save lives and better prepare our nation against dangerous weather disasters.

Following the National Transportation Safety Board’s (NTSB) release of its final report on the deadly midair collision between a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter and American Airlines flight 5342 that killed 67 people, the House will vote this afternoon on bipartisan legislation that would close critical safety gaps identified by investigators and implement key NTSB safety recommendations. Passed unanimously by the Senate in December 2025, the ROTOR Act would require aircraft required to have ADS-B Out to operate in busier airspace to have safety-enhancing ADS-B In location technology and require the Federal Aviation Administration to conduct safety reviews of congested

U.S. Senators Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, Jon Husted (R-Ohio), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), John Fetterman (D-Pa.) and Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio) reintroduced the Bipartisan Railway Safety Act of 2026. Three years ago, following the Norfolk Southern train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, Sen. Cantwell led passage of the safety legislation through the Commerce Committee, yet it stalled on the Senate floor due to opposition by Republicans and railroad executives.

U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, and U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), a senior member of the Committee, reintroduced the bipartisan Small Business Artificial Intelligence Training Act of 2026 that would authorize the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) to work with the Small Business Administration (SBA) to create and distribute artificial intelligence (AI) training resources and tools to help small businesses leverage AI in their operations.

The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation approved the SAT Streamlining Act today, after Ranking Member Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) and Chair Ted Cruz (R-Texas) came to agreement on changes proposed by Sen. Cantwell. The updated legislation streamlines satellite licensing while adding critical guardrails to protect federal spectrum operations and national security. It directs the FCC to define what constitutes a complete application, establish the qualifications an applicant must meet, and determine which projects require full review versus those eligible for expedited deemed granted treatment.

U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, delivered the below opening statement at a hearing about the National Transportation Safety Board’s (NTSB) final report on the January 29, 2025, mid-air collision near DCA Airport that took the lives of 67 people. NTSB Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy testified before the Committee about the findings the report contained.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — In her opening remarks at today’s Commerce Committee hearing on the National Transportation Safety Board’s (NTSB) final report on the tragic mid-air collision near DCA, Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Ranking Member, addressed the FAA’s closure of the airspace over El Paso and her ongoing concerns about the lack of interagency coordination necessary to keep the public safe.

The U.S. Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee passed the FAA SMS Compliance Review Act of 2026 led by Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, and Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill,), Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Aviation, Space, and Innovation, Mark Warner (D-Va.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Tim Kaine (D-Va.) and Peter Welch (D-Vt.). The bill directs the FAA to establish an independent expert review panel to make recommendations for a comprehensive, integrated and effective FAA safety management system (SMS) to better predict, manage and mitigate

U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, delivered the below opening statement at a hearing on the future of broadcast ownership featuring testimony from Chris Ruddy, CEO of Newsmax, Curtis LeGeyt, President and CEO of the National Association of Broadcasters, Thomas Johnson, Partner and Co-Chair of Issues and Appeals at Wiley Rein LLP and Steve Waldman, President of Rebuild Local News.

U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, called for sustainable solutions to support the future of local journalism at today’s hearing on the future of broadcast ownership. Sen. Cantwell focused on the importance of finding a sustainable business model to avoid a future in which communities across the nation are left without local journalists and without a voice.