KAINE & MURKOWSKI INTRODUCE BIPARTISAN BILL TO CREATE ESTHER COOPERSMITH AWARD AT STATE DEPARTMENT

WASHINGTON, June 17 -- Sen. Tim Kaine issued the following press release:

U.S. Senators Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) introduced the Esther Coopersmith Award Act, bipartisan legislation that would establish an award named in honor of Esther Coopersmith at the State Department. Mrs. Coopersmith was a philanthropist and champion of women's equality. The recipient of the Esther Coopersmith Award would be a member of the Civil or Foreign Service who has made meaningful contributions to advancing Women, Peace, and Security, a legal mandate that requires the State Department and other federal agencies to promote women's role in conflict prevention, peace negotiations, and post-conflict reconstruction.

"Women's leadership in efforts...