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Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Mario Diaz-Balart (25th District of FLORIDA)

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Yesterday, Congressman Mario Díaz-Balart (FL-26), Vice Chair of the House Committee on Appropriations and Chairman of the Subcommittee on National Security, Department of State, and Related Programs (NSRP), celebrated the final passage of his Fiscal Year 2026 National Security, Department of State, and Related Programs Act, which was passed as part of the Senate Amendment to H.R. 7148, the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2026 and signed into law by President Donald Trump.

The NSRP legislation delivers a historic16% spending reduction.

Watch Rep. Díaz-Balart’s House Floor remarks here.

“Once again, President Trump and Republicans deliver for the American people by avoiding another destructive shutdown and governing responsibly. The passage of these five funding bills fulfills our commitment to cut waste, fraud, and abuse, strengthen accountability, and advance an America First agenda.

As Chairman of the subcommittee responsible for funding America’s foreign policy and national security priorities, I am proud that my NSRP full-year funding legislation refocuses our nation’s foreign policy in historic ways while also restoring fiscal sanity, delivering a historic spending reduction.

With these bills, we are doing more for our country and the American people while spending less. This is possible thanks to the brilliant and persistent leadership of Chairman Tom Cole and our House Appropriations colleagues who worked day and night to get these bills across the finish line and to the President’s desk.”

KEY HIGHLIGHTS

 

FISCAL YEAR 2026 NATIONAL SECURITY, DEPARTMENT OF STATE, AND RELATED PROGRAMS APPROPRIATIONS BILL

The National Security, Department of State, and Related Programs (NSRP) Appropriations Act provides a total discretionary allocation of $50.014 billion, a nearly $9.3 billion cut (16%) below the Fiscal Year 2025 enacted level. The unprecedented reduction of spending in this measure codifies the FY25 rescissions and cuts even more, while reflecting the priorities of the America First agenda.

Even with the cuts, the NSRP bill maintains robust funding for our allies like Israel, Jordan, Egypt, and Taiwan, and counters adversaries like the Communist People’s Republic of China (PRC), Iran, Cuba, and drug cartels – including those designated as Foreign Terrorist Organizations. The bill removes woke Biden-era poison pills and supports President Trump’s vision to refocus and realign foreign policy to make America safer, stronger, and more prosperous.

Champions America First Foreign Policy by:

• Reprioritizing funding in support of United States national security.
• Creating the America First Opportunity Fund to ensure the Secretary of State has the flexibility to quickly respond to unforeseen opportunities in an effort to advance the America First foreign policy agenda.
• Supporting President Trump’s America First foreign policy by eliminating wasteful spending on DEI or woke programming, climate change mandates, and divisive gender ideologies.
• Prioritizing funding and policies to combat the flow of fentanyl and other illicit drugs into the United States to help save American lives.
• Putting American businesses first by prioritizing diplomatic engagement to favorably resolve commercial disputes abroad and to promote American business interests overseas.
• Refocusing attention on critical diplomatic functions, such as addressing passport applications and ensuring the safety and security of our embassies.

Protects life, supports American values, and enhances our standing in the world by:

• Protecting long-standing pro-life provisions as well as enhancing oversight and transparency over program implementation to ensure American taxpayer dollars will not fund abortions.
• Increasing support for religious freedom programs and demanding religious freedom protections for faith-based organizations.
• Holding foreign governments and bad actors accountable for their persecution of people of faith, including restricting assistance to Nigeria until measurable actions are taken to protect Christian communities suffering from violence due to their beliefs.
• Confronting human trafficking by prohibiting funding for countries and organizations that continue benefiting from the human trafficking of Cuban medical doctors, while directing the Secretary of State to pull visas for officials involved in Cuban doctors’ trafficking.
• Advancing free speech and prohibiting censorship by banning programs that violate the free speech rights of American citizens.

 Bolsters U.S. national security and border protections by:

• Providing unwavering support for Israel by including no less than $3.3 billion in Foreign Military Financing Program funds.
• Upholding longstanding partnerships with our key security allies in the Middle East, Israel, Egypt, and Jordan.
• Including $300 million for the Foreign Military Financing Program for Taiwan to strengthen deterrence across the Taiwan Strait, and up to $2 billion in loans and loan guarantees for such purpose.
• Fully funding the Countering PRC Influence Fund at $400 million.
• Providing $1.8 billion for United States national security interests in the Indo-Pacific and to counter the PRC’s malign influence.
• Denying the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) access to U.S.-backed resources:
• Requires opposition to multilateral development bank lending for China.
• Requires opposition to increased shareholding for China within the multilateral development banks.
• Prohibits funds from being used to repay loans to China.
• Furthers cooperation between the Department of State and War in countering foreign talent programs posing a threat to national security.
• Prohibiting funding for programs that facilitate and encourage migration toward the United States border.

Safeguards American taxpayer dollars and preserves core functions by:

• Prioritizing fiscal sanity with over $9 billion in cuts.
• Enhancing oversight and transparency requirements to ensure American taxpayer funds are not used by ineffective or fraudulent organizations.
• Supporting efforts to reduce duplication, eliminate bureaucracy and silos, and streamline foreign policy under the direction of the Secretary of State to support a nimble and effective Department.
• Eliminating funding for Biden-era executive orders on climate, gender, DEI, and extraneous or irrelevant programs that run contrary to an America First foreign policy agenda.
• Including a new directive to the Secretary of State to establish a responsible strategy for transitioning PEPFAR programs off United States assistance.
• Consolidating and reducing the number of accounts to facilitate efficient, strategic allocation of funds for programs that support United States national security interests. 

Standing with our friend and ally, Israel by:

• Providing unwavering support for Israel by fully funding security assistance for Israel at $3.3 billion, consistent with the United States-Israel Memorandum of Understanding.
• Prohibiting U.S. funding for the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA).
• Prohibiting funding for the United Nations International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem and Israel.
• Prohibiting any funding from being used to move the U.S. Embassy to the State of Israel to a location other than Jerusalem.
• Continuing conditions and restrictions to ensure taxpayer funds are not getting into the hands of terrorists or paying prisoners for acts of terrorism (pay-to-slay).
• Including language to ensure full compliance with the Taylor Force Act.
• Prohibiting funding from being used to revoke the designation of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a Foreign Terrorist Organization.
• Extending Israel’s access to defense articles in the War Reserves Stockpile and loan guarantees for Israel. 

Promotes freedom and democracy while safeguarding U.S. taxpayer dollars by:

• Requiring that foreign assistance be directed to countries in the Western Hemisphere that act as allies and execute foreign and domestic policies which are consistent with United States values and security interests, including Argentina, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Panama, Paraguay, and the Dominican Republic.
• Promoting freedom in the Western Hemisphere:
• $25 million for democracy programs for Cuba;
• $50 million for democracy programs for Venezuela;
• $15 million for democracy and religious freedom programs for Nicaragua.
• $30 million for the operations of the Office of Cuba Broadcasting (Radio and TV Marti).
• Prohibiting funds to prevent the removal of entities from the Cuba Restricted List.
• Including limitations on funding for countries and organizations that benefit from the continued trafficking of Cuban medical doctors, and directing the Secretary of State to revoke visas for officials involved in the human trafficking of Cuban doctors.
• Prohibiting assistance to individuals or entities that support, finance, or facilitate the operations or commercial activities of the Cuban Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces or Ministry of the Interior, or their affiliates.
• Placing strict conditions on funding and requiring a pre-obligation report for Colombia, due to the Petro Administration’s failure to align with United States interests and worsening security conditions, including the assassination of a political opposition leader.
• Requiring a report from the Administration about efforts in Haiti and encouraging the incorporation of locally led organizations in their approach to the multi-layered crisis.

A summary of the bill is available here.

Bill text is available here.

Rep. Díaz-Balart’s House floor remarks can be watched here.

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Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Haley Stevens (MI-11)

Washington, D.C. – Yesterday, Michigan Congresswoman Haley Stevens introduced the Make Congress Drive Union-Made Act to ensure that taxpayer dollars used by Congress support Michigan auto workers and union jobs. Companion legislation was introduced in the U.S. Senate by Michigan Senator Elissa Slotkin.

Members of Congress receive an annual budget to carry out official duties, which can be used to lease or acquire vehicles for official use. Currently, there is no requirement for those vehicles to be American-made or assembled by union labor, allowing taxpayer funds to be recklessly spent on foreign-made vehicles or those produced with non-union labor.

“Michigan auto workers put the world on wheels, and they deserve to know their elected leaders have their backs,” said Rep. Haley Stevens. “This bill makes sure we invest in our American auto industry and the union workers that power it.”

“Michigan union autoworkers fuel our economy and are the backbone of this country. I believe as elected officials, we have an obligation to support them any way we can — and that means not using taxpayer dollars to purchase non-American-made, union-made vehicles,” said Senator Slotkin.

The Make Congress Drive Union Made Act is endorsed by the United Auto Workers (UAW).

“In the labor movement we ask one question of our elected officials: which side are you on?” said UAW Legislative Director Rajiv Sicora. “The Make Congress Drive Union-Made Act would ensure that Members of Congress stand up for the union way of life in their choice of vehicle—supporting the generations of autoworkers who build not only cars, but a better economic future based on solidarity.”

Stevens and Slotkin’s bill reflects their shared Michigan values – strong manufacturing, good-paying jobs, and respect for the workers that power Michigan.
 

The full text of the bill can be found here.
 

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Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative for Western Samoa Congresswoman Aumua Amata

Headline: Amata Welcomes Passage of Five Appropriations Bills to End the Partial Government Shutdown

Washington, D.C. – Congresswoman Uifa’atali Amata is welcoming House passage of the Senate Amendment to H.R. 7148, the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2026, with a vote of 217 to 214, sending five full-year FY26 appropriations bills to President Trump’s desk to be signed into law, and end the partial government shutdown. 

Congresswoman Amata with Speaker of the House Mike Johnson on a CODEL flight Jan 24 2026

Notably, this package has the Transportation Appropriations, which contains funding for highways, bridges, airports and ports, including $1 million that Amata requested for American Samoa’s port upgrade efforts. In passing the Defense appropriations, the vote also locks in this year’s congressionally authorized pay raise for the military.

Congress has now completed final passage of 11 of the 12 appropriations bills (the House has passed all 12), but full-year Homeland Security appropriations have not yet reached the necessary bicameral, bipartisan agreement. Instead, Tuesday’s vote secures two weeks of extended funding to continue work on the last remaining appropriations bill. 

“I’m pleased to secure this port funding, and recently we secured $900,000 growth in American Samoa’s operations fund in the DOI appropriations,” said Congresswoman Amata. “All of our federal support in grants and formulas for the year will come from this major group of bills, which supports everything from medical research to classrooms. I especially welcome final completion of the pay raise for our very deserving troops.” 

“It is imperative that Congress finish appropriating funds for Homeland Security,” she concluded. “This Department includes the U.S. Coast Guard, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, so we need funds in place and ready to provide services to the American people.” 

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Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Henry Cuellar (TX-28)

Today, U.S. Congressman Henry Cuellar, Ph.D. (TX-28), a senior member of the House Appropriations Committee and ranking member of the Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee, released the following statement after Congress passed the remaining Fiscal Year 2026 appropriations bills to fund the federal government. The package funds key priorities across national defense, workers, schools, public health, transportation, housing, local community projects, and federal financial oversight. Congress also approved a short-term extension of Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funding, ensuring the time needed to continue negotiations for proper oversight, accountability, and guardrails in the DHS bill.

“I voted to keep the government open and functioning because shutdowns hurt families, undermine public safety, and weaken essential services people rely on every day,” said Congressman Cuellar. “As an appropriator, my responsibility is to deliver results while making sure taxpayer dollars are spent responsibly and with accountability.

“In this instance, a shutdown would not stop DHS from operating due to the so-called One Big Beautiful Bill. A shutdown would only stop Congress from doing its job. We stand for accountability, oversight, and the rule of law. Walking away is not an option.

“DHS is a large and powerful department, and Congress has a responsibility to ensure enforcement is focused on the most serious threats – not families and individuals who have lived here for decades, worked hard, and contributed to our economy. This extension gives Congress the time needed to ensure enforcement is targeted against criminals.”

Beyond DHS, the funding bills deliver significant investments in health care, particularly for rural communities across South Texas.

“These bills include some of the strongest rural health care investments we’ve seen in years,” Dr. Cuellar added. “Health care is a cost-of-living issue, and access to care close to home matters for families.”

Dr. Cuellar helped secure $4.6 billion in funding for community health centers through 2026, the largest increase in more than a decade. The legislation also prevents $16 billion in hospital cuts that would have disproportionately affected rural hospitals and vulnerable patients. It strengthens Medicaid support for providers serving seniors and low-income populations and includes nearly $2 billion in value-based Medicare payments to physicians, supporting providers who treat patients with complex medical needs. Additional provisions support telehealth services, behavioral health care, maternal health programs, and the rural health care workforce.

“These investments help keep hospitals open, support doctors and nurses, and expand access to care in rural areas,” Dr. Cuellar said. “When providers have certainty, families save money and receive care closer to home.

“This is what governing looks like. You keep the government open, you assert congressional authority, and you use the tools you have to protect our communities.”

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Congressman Henry Cuellar, Ph.D. is a senior member of the U.S. House Appropriations Committee. Previously, he served as a Texas State Representative and Texas Secretary of State.

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Source: United States House of Representatives – Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07)

At the Invitation of Omar, Pressley Met with Organizers and Community Members Impacted by Violence Perpetrated by ICE

Photos (Dropbox) | Press Conference (YouTube)

MINNEAPOLIS – Last week, at the invitation of Congresswoman Ilhan Omar (MN-05), Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07) went to Minneapolis to meet with organizers and community members impacted by ICE’s violent operation in Minnesota, where they have murdered bystanders, terrorized schools and small businesses, and abducted children and parents.

“I went to Minnesota to join my sister-in-service, Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, to meet with community members, help my movement family process their grief, and listen and learn from them,” said Congresswoman Pressley. “Through our visits, it’s clear to me that the people of Minnesota—much like the people of Massachusetts—stand up for their neighbors. Whether organizing their blocks, protecting families at school drop off, or leading mutual aid drives, Minnesotans are showing us the blueprint for community response and proving what is possible when we unite for good. It was an honor to support Rep. Omar and her community—and I am fortified in our fight to resist and reject the cruelty of ICE and abolish this rogue agency once and for all.”

Last week, the lawmakers met with local businesses providing essential learning services, child and elder support, and culturally conscious food options that are seeing a lack in engagement from community members attributed to fear of going to work, school, shopping, and more. They also toured Karmel Mall, a hub holding over 100 small businesses and community organizations, many of which have reported a significant decline in business since Trump’s Operation Metro Surge began.

Rep. Pressley hosted a press conference with Congresswoman Ilhan Omar (MN-05) in which she condemned the violence perpetrated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and renewed her calls to abolish ICE, impeach Kristi Noem, and end qualified immunity for ICE agents and other federal law enforcement. The presser followed the horrific ICE murders of Renee Good and Alex Pretti and comes as the Senate takes up the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funding bill, including $28 billion for ICE, which the Congresswoman voted against in the House.

Additionally, the lawmakers met with parents and neighbors protecting families and students at school drop-off, visited a church and coffee shop providing mutual aid packages, and engaged with Black leaders violently targeted by ICE. Many community members expressed that they are traumatized by and living in fear of ICE assaults, and turning to their community for support has provided essential solace and protection.

This month, following the ICE murder of Renee Good, Congresswoman Pressley and Senator Ed Markey (D-MA) introduced the Qualified Immunity Abolition Act of 2026, which builds on the lawmakers’ prior work by granting victims the right to sue federal law enforcement officers—not just state and local—for civil rights violations and abolishing the defense of qualified immunity in these suits. The expanded legislation would help deliver accountability for families abused by law enforcement, including ICE agents.

Congresswoman Pressley delivered a floor speech on the need to end qualified immunity for federal law enforcement, including immigration officers. Watch the floor speech here.

Earlier this month, Congresswoman Pressley condemned the ICE murder of Renee Good in Minnesota and motioned to subpoena all records and footage related to the shooting, but Republicans obstructed it. Footage of Congresswoman Pressley’s motion to subpoena is here.

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Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Frank Pallone (6th District of New Jersey)

WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) today announced the launch of the 2026 Sixth Congressional District High School Art Competition, part of the national Congressional Art Competition: An Artistic Discovery program. This annual contest provides young artists an opportunity to showcase their talent and have their work recognized at the national level.

 

High school students residing in New Jersey’s Sixth Congressional District are encouraged to participate through their schools. The submission deadline is March 13, 2026.

 

“The Congressional Art Competition is a great opportunity for young artists to gain recognition and share their creativity with a wider audience,” said Congressman Pallone. “Each year, I am impressed by the incredible talent of students in our district, and I look forward to seeing this year’s submissions.”

 

Winners will be selected in April and honored at a Sixth Congressional District Awards Ceremony. The first-place artwork will be displayed in the U.S. Capitol for one year alongside winning pieces from across the country.

 

For more information, including submission guidelines and entry forms, students and teachers can visit Congressman Pallone’s website or contact his district offices.

Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Don Beyer (D-VA)

On Friday, January 30, Congresswoman Jennifer McClellan (VA-04) led her Virginia House Democratic colleagues, Representatives Bobby Scott (VA-03), Don Beyer (VA-08), Eugene Vindman (VA-07), Suhas Subramanyam (VA-10) and James Walkinshaw (VA-11), in sending a letter to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Acting Director Todd Lyons. The letter expressed fierce opposition to the proposed purchase of a 550,000 square-foot warehouse in Hanover County to serve as an ICE processing and intake facility, as well as the potential construction of a 10,000-bed warehouse detention center in Stafford County, Virginia.

“Since early last year, we have witnessed an increasingly aggressive and militant ICE under your leadership,” wrote the Members. “Most recently in Minneapolis, we have seen federal immigration agents kill two American citizens, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, and injure dozens more. These reckless raids on our communities have resulted in the wrongful detention of hundreds of U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents. … This disproportionate use of force is utterly unacceptable.”

ICE and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) have escalated their tactics in the last year, ranging from demands that individuals randomly show their IDs and verify their legal status when they are not suspected of any crime, to instigations of violence, to warrantless searches and entries into homes, businesses and schools. Combined with a refusal to cooperate with federal partners and allow for meaningful Congressional oversight, the activities of DHS have raised serious concerns for the safety of detainees and Virginians. Hanover County’s Board of Supervisors has asked DHS to reconsider its proposed facility. The Canadian-based company that owns the Hanover County warehouse has since backed out of the proposed sale.

“Across the nation, there have been reports of overcrowded detention facilities with poor ventilation, inadequate climate control, limited access to shower facilities and basic hygiene, and insufficient food and access to meals,” the Members continued. “We have seen this sort of gross negligence play out firsthand in the Commonwealth. In the summer of 2025, reports emerged of severe overcrowding, a lack of food and access to basic hygiene, and limited water supplies at ICE’s Washington Field Office in Chantilly, VA. ICE stonewalled attempts by our offices to gain access to the facility and conduct proper oversight, and it continues to prevent our offices from fully understanding what conditions were like during that period.”

Even after increased scrutiny into the presence of ICE agents in Virginia and beyond, culminating in articles of impeachment introduced against DHS Secretary Noem, questions remain as to the conditions of current ICE facilities and measures being taken to ensure the basic needs of detainees are being met. There is no guarantee that the proposed ICE facilities in Virginia would permit Members of Congress to hold DHS accountable for any lapses in quality of care and detention.

“Given this history of behavior, it is no surprise that we are alarmed by the prospect of siting two enormous ICE facilities in Virginia,” the Members concluded. “We do not want the Commonwealth to be home to large detention facilities rejected by our local communities, which make no one safer. Rather, these facilities undermine public safety, erode trust between local law enforcement and the public, and place a federal agency indifferent to constitutional liberties near our schools, hospitals, and residential areas. We refuse to allow the Commonwealth to be beholden to an agency that has repeatedly failed to demonstrate the transparency, restraint, and constitutional compliance the public and Congress are entitled to expect from law enforcement.”

Read the full letter here.

Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Don Beyer (D-VA)

Today, Congressman James R. Walkinshaw (VA-11) and Reps. Jamie Raskin (MD-08), Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC), Don Beyer (VA-08), Kweisi Mfume (MD-07), Suhas Subramanyam (VA-10), and Eugene Vindman (VA-07) introduced legislation to pay all federal employees, as well as service members and federal contractors, during any shutdowns in FY2026.

With Republicans continuing to threaten shutdowns and use federal workers as political leverage, the True Shutdown Fairness Act would ensure that during any FY2026 shutdown, federal workers, service members, and contractors are paid and protected, and that the Trump administration cannot use a shutdown to carry out reductions in force.

“Federal workers and service members should never be used as leverage in Republicans’ shutdown standoffs, and the Trump administration should never be able to use a shutdown to inflict harm on our federal workforce, as we have seen,” said Rep. Walkinshaw. “This bill would provide critical protections by ensuring workers get paid during any FY2026 shutdown, contractors can keep paying their staff, and the Trump administration would be blocked from using a shutdown as a smokescreen to purge the federal workforce through reductions in force.”

“Our dedicated federal workers should never be pawns in a government shutdown fight,” said Rep. Raskin. “Our bill provides security to civil servants in MD-08 and across the country by protecting their paychecks and shielding them from any more of Trump’s reckless, unlawful firing sprees during a shutdown in FY26.”

“Federal workers and contractors – and their jobs – should never be used as leverage in political standoffs,” Rep. Norton said. “The True Shutdown Fairness Act would ensure that employees and contractors are paid during a shutdown in FY 2026 and would prohibit reductions in force, which can permanently damage the public’s access to services they have a right to receive from the federal government. Federal workers and the American public shouldn’t bear the cost of Congress’s failure to do its job.”

“Federal workers and contractors are never responsible for government shutdowns, but they are always the ones who bear many of the worst consequences. The True Shutdown Fairness Act would ensure all federal workers, contractors, and servicemembers continue to receive their pay throughout a shutdown. These people devote their careers to serving the American people, their efforts are essential for keeping Americans safe and healthy, and they should be paid for their work regardless of political squabbles,” said Rep. Beyer.

“Since the last government shutdown, federal employees and contractors have continued to face uncertainty despite the essential work they perform every day,” said Rep. Kweisi Mfume. “These workers keep our government functioning, and they deserve stability and fairness when shutdowns occur. The True Shutdown Fairness Act is a common-sense solution that ensures our federal employees are fairly paid and protected for their work during a shutdown. I thank Representative Walkinshaw for his leadership and am proud to support this legislation.”

“Congress’ inability to pass budgets shouldn’t stop federal workers, contractors, and service members from getting a paycheck,” said Rep. Subramanyam. “This commonsense legislation ensures that if there is a shutdown in FY2026, personnel and contractors are paid and protected—and that no administration can use a shutdown as a pretext to carry out reductions in force. It’s a commonsense safeguard for the public servants and their families in our community.”

“Virginia is home to tens of thousands of federal workers, contractors, and service members who keep our country running. This week, many are once again being forced to wonder if they will get their next paycheck — not because they failed to do their jobs, but because of the chaos and cruelty coming from the White House,” said Rep. Vindman. “As their Representative, a 25-year Army officer, and as the husband of a former federal employee, I know the uncertainty and strain shutdowns place on families. My family has lived through it. Nobody should have to. I am proud to support this bill that would change just that.”

“Federal workers simply want to do their jobs and serve their communities – yet too often they are treated as bargaining chips by anti-worker politicians,” said AFSCME President Lee Saunders. “These are dedicated people with families to support – they shouldn’t have to worry about whether they’ll be able to pay the rent or buy groceries during a shutdown. The True Shutdown Fairness Act will ensure federal workers, contractors, and service members don’t miss a paycheck and protect federal workers from reductions-in-force during shutdowns. Further, the legislation is time-limited to avoid incentivizing more frequent and longer shutdowns that would stop funding for public services and cost our members’ jobs at the state and local level. Our members thank Reps. Walkinshaw, Raskin, Holmes Norton, Beyer, Subramanyam, Vindman, and Mfume for introducing this legislation to ensure federal workers have the security of knowing they’ll be paid regardless of the politics in Washington.”  

The Services Employees International Union (SEIU) and American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) endorse the bill.

Read the full bill text here.

The True Shutdown Fairness Act is the House companion to legislation led in the Senate by Chris Van Hollen.

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Jimmy Panetta (D-Calif)

Washington, DC – Rep. Panetta released the following statement:

“I will not be complicit in untrained and unaccountable actions by any ICE and CBP agents anywhere in our country. That is why, today, I voted against the appropriations continuing resolution for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

“Now is the time for serious negotiations between Democrats and Republicans to rein in ICE and CBP and hold DHS leadership accountable. Moreover, Congress must use the power of the purse to be a proper constitutional check on this Administration.

“In the meantime, I continue to work with community leaders and law enforcement in our 19th Congressional district to coordinate on any activity by ICE and CBP in our region. We continue to work hard at the federal level to prevent further recklessness and ruthlessness by DHS, and we will continue to work together at the local level to prepare and protect our communities.”

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi (8th District of Illinois)

WASHINGTON — Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL) today exposed a pattern of systemic violence by Trump DHS at a bicameral shadow hearing titled “Our Values at Stake: Examining DHS’ Use of Violence in Immigration Enforcement,” detailing repeated uses of excessive force, false official narratives, and entrenched impunity under President Trump.

During the hearing, Krishnamoorthi laid out how DHS and ICE operations carried out under President Trump — including Operation Midway Blitz — inflicted serious, systemic harm on Chicago-area communities. Incidents examined included the pepper-spraying of a one-year-old child, the tasing of a U.S. citizen who refused to allow agents into his vehicle, the deployment of tear gas and smoke bombs in residential neighborhoods, and multiple shootings — including the killing of Silverio Villegas-González, a Chicago father of two who was shot after dropping his children off at school.

Krishnamoorthi underscored that Trump DHS repeatedly justified these actions by claiming they made communities safer — claims that collapsed under scrutiny. Pointing to body-camera footage, eyewitness testimony, and court findings, he emphasized that violent encounters were routinely followed by misleading or false official accounts from Trump administration officials.

Despite Trump’s DHS claiming Mr. Villegas-González had attacked federal agents, “there was no evidence,” Krishnamoorthi said. “This is part of a pattern.”

He also warned against allowing the human cost of DHS violence to fade from public memory. “The nation knows the names Renée Good and Alex Pretti — but let us not forget Mr. Silverio Villegas-González, a Chicagoan and a father of two,” Krishnamoorthi said.

Krishnamoorthi further highlighted testimony showing how DHS officials under President Trump advanced false narratives after violent encounters, only for those stories to unravel when video evidence and independent investigations emerged. Citing a federal court ruling in which a judge accused a senior Customs and Border Protection commander of “outright lying” about the use of force against peaceful protesters in the Chicago area, Krishnamoorthi stated bluntly: “He lied. He lied again.”

The Congressman reiterated his call for accountability at the highest levels of the department. “I have already called for Secretary Noem to be fired or impeached,” Krishnamoorthi said. “Today, I am calling for Greg Bovino to be fired.” He emphasized that officials who authorize, carry out, and attempt to cover up abuses of power must be investigated and held accountable.

Krishnamoorthi closed by warning that Trump DHS actions have placed lives at risk, eroded public trust, and undermined the rule of law — and that restoring accountability is essential to ensuring federal power is never again wielded with such impunity.

Footage of Congressman Krishnamoorthi’s question line is available here.