WASHINGTON D.C. — U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on the Legislative Branch, and U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., released the following statements on Jan. 22 applauding House passage of legislation that mirrors Senate legislation they authored to repeal the ‘Arctic Frost’ provision, which allows Republican senators to collect $500,000 for every phone record that was previously, lawfully obtained.
“I’m pleased the House unanimously passed this legislation to repeal a last-minute provision that lets a few Republican senators collect hundreds of thousands of dollars of taxpayer money for legally obtained phone records,” Heinrich said. “This is a wrong-headed cash grab, and the Senate needs to end it next week.”
“This Republican-led effort was a blatant cash grab that never should have become law in the first place,” Kelly said. “I’m glad the House moved quickly to repeal it and put a stop to politicians lining their own pockets at the taxpayers’ expense. Arizona families are facing a serious cost-of-living crisis, and their elected officials should be focused on helping them, not taking a payout for themselves.”
Heinrich and Kelly are the authors of the Anti-Cash Grab Act, legislation that will repeal U.S. Senate Majority Leader John Thune’s, R-S.D., ‘Arctic Frost’ provision, which allows Republican senators to collect $500,000 for every phone record that was previously, lawfully obtained.
On Jan. 15, Heinrich filed an amendment in Fiscal Year 2026 (FY26) appropriations legislation to repeal the ‘Arctic Frost’ provision.
