U.S. Policy
Through advancement of the DHS Restrictions on Confucius Institutes and Chinese Entities of Concern Act (H.R. 1516), this week the House Homeland Security Committee took aim at American funds going to universities connected to Chinese entities of concern.
Authored by Homeland Security... Read More »
On Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced the indictment of a San Jose engineer for his attack on energy facilities in California.
According to court documents, Peter Karasev, 36, was indicted Oct. 19 for attacking two PG&E transformers in San Jose on Dec. 8, 2022 and Jan. 5,... Read More »
On Monday, U.S. Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Tom Cotton (R-AR), and James Lankford (R-OK) unveiled a proposal to secure the country’s southern border.
The group said their proposal would address policies that have led to a crisis at the southern border. Drawn from H.R. 2, the proposal would... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced Friday it would make nearly 65,000 H-2B visas available in Fiscal Year 2024.
The temporary nonagricultural worker visas will add to the 66,000 H-2B visas mandated by Congress each year. According to DHS, the additional visas represent the... Read More »
Republican national security leaders in Congress are urging President Joe Biden to send long-range Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) to Ukraine.
These would be in addition to the full inventory of the shorter range anti-personnel variants of the same munition, according to a Nov. 1 letter... Read More »
The U.S. Secret Service and the Australian Federal Police signed a memorandum of understanding last week creating a new basis for interagency and international collaboration and information sharing on transnational crime.
“The Secret Service is honored to join our partners at the Australian... Read More »
Following missile attacks on Israel by the Houthis of Yemen – also known as Ansarallah – and more intercepted by U.S. military units in the region in recent days, U.S. Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT) introduced a bill last week to redesignate the group as a foreign terrorist organization (FTO).
The... Read More »
On the 25th anniversary of the murders of James Byrd Jr. and Matthew Shepard, the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division held a virtual forum on the launch of the United Against Hate (UAH) initiative and efforts to fight hate crimes.
“As I see in my daily threat briefings, there has... Read More »
In a letter to the House Appropriation Committee this week, U.S. Reps. Michael McCaul (R-TX) and Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) urged leadership to include funding for first responder aid programs in any FY 2024 supplemental appropriations to support those affected by immigration.
“Increased operations... Read More »
A new amendment from U.S. Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) and Mark Warner (D-VA) that would bar the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) from providing federal funds to drones produced in certain foreign countries was added to an Appropriations Minibus package this week.
This amendment (1349)... Read More »
Working together, U.S. Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) and Ben Ray Luján (D-NM) introduced a resolution this week to support the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) role in promoting nuclear security.
“The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) plays a crucial role in bolstering... Read More »
In a wide-ranging Executive Order issued this week, President Joe Biden sought to preempt threats posed by the development of artificial intelligence with new safeguards and oversight, while calling on Congress to pass data privacy legislation and enshrine such guardrails permanently.
While AI... Read More »
After an internal memo from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) warning that foreign fighters from the Israel-Hamas conflict could be encountered at the southwest border leaked to the press, House Republicans demanded documents and information from Department Secretary Alejandro... Read More »
The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee advanced a bill from U.S. Sens. Gary Peters (D-MI) and Bill Cassidy (R-LA) last week that would make the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) update its cost-effectiveness requirements for hazard mitigation grants.
The... Read More »
According to an updated approach released last week by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) remains focused on the opioid epidemic while reckoning with an ever-changing landscape.
CBP planted its focus firmly around four areas:
... Read More »
With the war between Hamas and Israel dragging attention on Iran once more to the fore, U.S. Reps. French Hill (R-AR) and Juan Vargas (D-CA) reintroduced the Holding Iranian Leaders Accountable Act this week, seeking new means to crackdown on their financial support.
“The Iranian regime has... Read More »
A collection of six senators this week introduced the Protect Our Bases Act, seeking to require member agencies annually update their lists of sensitive military, intelligence and national lab sites for the review of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS).
This... Read More »
The United States-Mexico remains a focus of Congressional interest, and the latest offshoot of that emerged this week in the form of the Senate’s Advanced Border Coordination Act, which aims to improve law enforcement communication and coordination.
“From local sheriffs to Border Patrol and... Read More »
With government shutdowns, however brief, becoming more of a regular danger, and exacerbated by the Republican Speaker crisis in the House, several Republican senators introduced the Keep Our Border Agents Paid Act to shield border and customs officers from a shutdown.
U.S. Sens. Ron Johnson... Read More »
On Monday, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) announced it had renewed updates to security directives that regulate passenger and freight railroad carriers.
The revised directives, part of an effort to enhance the cybersecurity of surface transportation systems and associated... Read More »
In a far-ranging paper on the past, present, and future of nuclear policy and conflict released this week, the Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) called for a renewed investigation into the effects of nuclear conflict.
Faced with conflicts currently ranging from Ukraine to Israel and threats of... Read More »
A Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) published by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) last week would streamline eligibility for the H-1B specialty occupation worker program, improve efficiency and institute more benefits and integrity measures.
H-1B is a nonimmigrant visa program... Read More »
A joint effort from U.S. Sens. Gary Peters (D-MI) and Bill Cassidy (R-LA) last week yielded the Hazard Mitigation Projects Act, which would require the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to simplify requirements surrounding hazard mitigation grants.
“Too often, complex application... Read More »
With the bicameral introduction of the Border Enforcement, Security, and Trade (BEST) Facilitation Act (H.R. 5990) last week, supporters seek to allot for a series of new image technicians within Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to expedite screenings at U.S. ports of entry.
Created by U.S.... Read More »
Ohio will become one of five states newly selected by the Department of Defense’s (DoD) Defense Innovation Unit to gain a defense innovation hub, focused on developing and adopting new technologies for national security.
This center, to be placed in the Miami Valley, will be known as the Ohio... Read More »
Real-time, standards-based tests for exchanging supply chain data from three U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) collaborating startups have opened the door for Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) to begin integrating data from them and their customers.
Companies mesur.io, Neoflow and... Read More »
Following meetings with more than 35 law enforcement and community leaders nationwide, the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) this week released recommendations to reverse challenges facing recruitment and retention at law enforcement agencies nationwide.
The causes are many. In its... Read More »
Continuing the Biden administration’s emphasis on equitability, the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) announced that investments of $40 million this week would help create four research centers of excellence at minority-serving institutions of higher education.
For recipients selected through... Read More »
Calling on Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, a group of representatives led by U.S. Reps. Mike Kelly (R-PA) and Ryan Zinke (R-MT) introduced a resolution this week to recognize an outsized number of suspected terrorists recently seized at the northern border.
This year, Customs and... Read More »
In a bipartisan showing last week, more than a dozen U.S. senators called on Secretary of State Antony Blinken to officially freeze $6 billion in Iranian assets following Hamas attacks on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
While Hamas rules over the Gaza Strip, it is long had a close relationship with... Read More »
For a mix of active shooter training, efforts to counter illegal drug trafficking and law enforcement mental health and wellness training, the U.S. Justice Department Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) awarded nearly $75 million to agencies nationwide last week.
While the... Read More »
FEMA opened $1.8 billion in funding to two grant programs this week as part of the Biden administration’s Investing in America Agenda, dangling assistance for communities facing down climate change and the extreme weather it has brought.
Climate resilience is the name of the game, and both the... Read More »
A comprehensive report from the Congressional Commission on the Strategic Posture of the United States found that, on examination, the long-term strategic posture of the United States is flagging amid worsening global security, and pointed to looming threats from China and Russia alike.
The... Read More »
According to the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), the Navy has taken steps to address fatigue in its ranks – an ongoing problem that has plagued its ranks for years, even contributing to fatal ship collisions.
Essentially, this was a follow-up to an analysis conducted in 2021,... Read More »
Although the House remains paralyzed in the face of a Republican rift that has left the Speaker position empty, four representatives crossed the aisle this week to introduce the “Operation Swords of Iron” Iron Dome Supplemental Appropriations Act to buoy Israeli defenses.
The bill followed... Read More »
