U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand plans to introduce legislation that would reverse President Donald Trump’s executive order renaming Lake Ontario “Lake America” and prevent the executive branch from changing the names of any of the five Great Lakes.
The New York Democrat said the Hands Off Our Great Lakes Act would nullify the Lake Ontario order, prohibit its implementation and bar federal money from being used to carry it out. Gillibrand said she expects to introduce the measure during the Senate’s next working period.
U.S. Rep. Joe Morelle, D-NY-25, has introduced companion legislation in the House. Morelle represents a Rochester-area district along Lake Ontario and said residents and businesses need federal officials focused on household costs and economic certainty.
The legislation would apply not only to Lake Ontario but also to lakes Erie, Huron, Michigan and Superior. The release announcing the bill did not provide a timetable for committee action or identify Republican support in either chamber.
Gillibrand framed the proposal as a response to an executive order issued during the administration’s escalating trade dispute with Canada. She argued that the president should focus on negotiating a deal that lowers costs for New York families rather than changing the lake’s name.
“I am proud to announce this legislation to restore Lake Ontario’s original name, and I look forward to getting it passed,” Gillibrand said. She also accused the administration of raising household costs, increasing gas prices and cutting programs used for health care and food assistance.
Morelle said Rochester-area residents would continue using the Lake Ontario name regardless of the executive order. “Lake Ontario is Lake Ontario,” he said, adding that Congress should address issues that directly affect families, businesses and communities.
The proposal follows another Gillibrand measure announced last week that would repeal tariffs imposed under Section 338 of the Tariff Act and refund duties collected under that authority. Her office said that proposal would include Trump’s recently announced 50% tariffs on Canadian goods, which Gillibrand argues would raise prices and harm New York’s economy.
Neither the Senate bill nor the House companion has completed the legislative process. Gillibrand’s office said the full Great Lakes measure would be introduced when the Senate returns for its next working period.
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