Senator Wyden

Ronald Lee Wyden was born May 3rd, 1949 in Wichita, Kansas. Wyden attented University of California, Santa Barbara and later transferred to Stanford University where he received his Bachelor in Arts. He then received his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Oregon School of Law in 1974. He is the senior United States Senator for Oregon serving since 1996 and is a member of the Democratic party. Wyden previously served for the United States House of Representatives.
Wyden ran for the U.S House of Representatives in 1980, and easily defeated his republican opponent with 71% of the vote. In 1996 Wyden filled the senate seat vacated by Bob Packwood. Senator Wyden was elected to a full term in 1998 with 61% of the vote, re-elected in 2004 with 64% of the vote, and re-elected in 2010 with 57% of the vote. Senator Ron Wyden characterizes himself as a "independent voice for Oregonians and the nation". His main priorities are health care reform, national security, consumer protection, and government transparency.

Senator Wyden's Committees:

• Committee on the Budget
• Committee on Finance
• Subcomittee on Energy, Natural Resources, and Infrastructure
• Subcommittee on Taxation and IRS Oversight
• Subcommittee on International Trade, Customs, and Global Competitiveness
• Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
• Select Committee on Intelligence
• Special Committee on Aging
• Joint Committee on Taxation

Sex Trafficking

Senator Wyden led a campaign to put domestic sex trafficking of children on the National Agenda. He also worked with Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy to include provisions into the TVPRA. The TVPRA stands for the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act. The TVPRA was made into law as an amendment to the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act in 2013 with several of Senator Wydens provisions. The provisions that Wyden provided created a pilot block grant program for four areas of the country that are hit the hardest with sex trafficking. Each block grant is authorized at $1.5 million to $2 million per year for up to four years. Some of Senator Wydens ideas are:

• Housing for child victims of sex trafficking
• Clothing and other daily needs in order to keep victims from returning to the street
• Mental health counseling, substance abuse treatment, and case management
• Victims’ assistance counseling and legal services
• Education or job training classes for victims
• Outreach, education, and deterrence/prevention efforts
• Education and training for law enforcement personnel on how to investigate crimes involving the sex trafficking of minors who are United States citizens or aliens admitted for permanent residence, including how to identify minor victims of sex trafficking 

Education

Since students are taking on record breaking tuition costs, and being put in debt, Senator Wyden along with a few others, came up with a plan. The plan is called "Student Right to Know Before You Go". It gives potential college students valuable information on what students can expect to make in the workplace. This helps students choose their schools, majors and career plans with as much insight as possible.