February 12, 2026
Press Release
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.
February 12, 2026
Press Release
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
February 10, 2026
Press Release
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.
February 10, 2026
Press Release
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.
February 6, 2026
Press Release
U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, emphasized the need to invest in women’s and Olympic sports at U.S. colleges and universities—the nation’s Olympic pipeline—in a statement ahead of the 2026 Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony. While many colleges have eliminated or cut funding for these sports programs, Sen. Cantwell’s SAFE Act would amend the Sports Broadcasting Act to expand media revenues so schools can protect and invest more funding in women’s and Olympic sports programs.
February 5, 2026
Press Release
U.S. Senators Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill), Ranking Member of the aviation subcommittee, and Edward Markey (D-Mass.) sent a letter to Department of Transportation (DOT) General Counsel Gregory Zerzan demanding information and accountability regarding Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Administrator Bryan Bedford’s refusal to comply with his ethics agreement and divest his shares in Republic Airways. Instead, Bedford stalled while Republic Airways completed a merger with Mesa Air Group, which appears to have vastly increased the value of his holdings.
February 5, 2026
Press Release
U.S. Senators Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation and Ted Budd (R-N.C.) today introduced legislation to establish the Radar Next Program which will carry out deployment of the nation’s next generation weather radar system.
February 4, 2026
Press Release
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 self-driving vehicles featuring testimony from Lars Moravy, Vice President of Vehicle Engineering at Tesla, Waymo’s Chief Safety Officer Mauricio Pena, Jeff Farrah, Chief Executive Office for the Autonomous Vehicle Industry Association and Professor Bryant Walker Smith, Associate Professor of Law at the University of South Carolina’s Rice School of Law.
February 4, 2026
Press Release
U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Ranking Member of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee warned that the Trump administration’s gutting of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) will make it impossible for the agency to regulate autonomous vehicle technology to protect consumers while at the same time support the future growth of self-driving cars in the United States. Sen. Cantwell also emphasized the importance of ensuring consumers have a means for holding Autonomous Vehicle (AV) companies accountable.
February 3, 2026
Press Release
U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Ranking Member of the Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation called on Committee Chairman Ted Cruz (R-Texas) to hold a hearing with AT&T CEO John Stankey and Verizon CEO Dan Schulman to demand answers about the current security of their telecommunications networks after they refused to be transparent about their responses to the Salt Typhoon cyberattack.