Ron Wyden

Stories

Banks that served Epstein have now paid over half a billion dollars to trafficking survivors

Leading ongoing congressional investigation into Epstein banking ties

Bank of America agreed to pay $72.5 million to settle a lawsuit alleging it ignored red flags in Epstein's banking, including over $170 million in Leon Black payments not reported as suspicious until his 2019 death. On April 3, U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff approved the settlement, following $290 million JPMorgan Chase and $75 million Deutsche Bank settlements in 2023.

Updated May 30

Trump orders a fast-track marijuana reschedule to Schedule III—reviving a stalled Biden-era process

Rule Changes

Longtime advocate for federal cannabis reform; highlighted 280E implications

Trump's executive order instructing DOJ to fast-track marijuana's move to Schedule III immediately triggered a familiar split. Public health and industry groups cheered the potential research and tax impacts, while House Republicans organized opposition, urging Trump to keep marijuana in Schedule I.

Updated May 15

Treasury goes after Mexico’s “gasoline cartel”

Rule Changes

Opened an inquiry into tanker-shipping exposure to cartel-linked fuel smuggling (2025-12-19)

Treasury sanctioned the Cartel de Santa Rosa de Lima (CSRL) and its jailed leader José Antonio Yépez Ortiz ("El Marro") on December 17, 2025. Washington's campaign against huachicol money then shifted toward the infrastructure that makes stolen hydrocarbons tradable: shipping, routing, and due diligence.

Updated May 15

Congress moves to revive secure rural schools after 2023 funding cliff

Rule Changes

Longtime SRS champion for Oregon timber counties

President Donald Trump signed the Secure Rural Schools reauthorization into law on December 18, 2025, ending a two-year funding cliff that had devastated more than 700 forested counties. The bill directs the USDA Forest Service to deliver retroactive payments for FY2024 and FY2025 within 45 days of enactment—by early February 2026—and extends the program through FY2026. Counties that had cut sheriffs' patrols, closed schools, and delayed road repairs are now budgeting for an influx of roughly $280 million per year.

Updated May 10

Scott Bessent’s farmland divestiture: ethics clash inside Trump’s Treasury

Money Moves

Leading Democratic critic of Bessent’s delayed divestiture and Trump’s ethics record

Scott Bessent became Treasury Secretary in January 2025. An ethics agreement required him to sell substantial holdings, including up to $25 million in North Dakota soybean and corn farmland that earned as much as $1 million a year in rent. After months of delays, the Office of Government Ethics warned him in August 2025 that he'd failed to comply on time.

Updated May 10

Notable Quotes

Bank of America's decision to settle with this group of Epstein survivors is a step towards justice and a vindication of my staff's investigation into how major Wall Street banks enabled Epstein's crimes. — March 2026

from Banks that served Epstein have now paid over half a billion dollars to trafficking survivors · Updated May 30

All along the way, attorneys representing the survivors used the findings of my investigation to prove that Bank of America willfully looked the other way as billionaire Leon Black paid Epstein more than $170 million. — March 2026

from Banks that served Epstein have now paid over half a billion dollars to trafficking survivors · Updated May 30

"At long last, barriers to much-needed research will be lifted and the inequitable 280E tax provision thrown in the trash can." — Sen. Ron Wyden

from Trump orders a fast-track marijuana reschedule to Schedule III—reviving a stalled Biden-era process · Updated May 15

Wyden has called SRS renewal “urgent business” for communities that “have long depended on millions of dollars from these federal funds.”

from Congress moves to revive secure rural schools after 2023 funding cliff · Updated May 10

"I'm relieved the House has finally done its job with the long-overdue passage of my bill to return the safety net for critical services to communities that need it the most."

from Congress moves to revive secure rural schools after 2023 funding cliff · Updated May 10

“You wouldn’t have the Treasury secretary picking and choosing which ethics requirements to follow and which to blow off.” ([bankingdive.com](https://www.bankingdive.com/news/bessent-ethics-farmland-divest-assets-investments-china-north-dakota-treasury-crapo-wyden-oge/757703/))

from Scott Bessent’s farmland divestiture: ethics clash inside Trump’s Treasury · Updated May 10