News and reports from the Department of Homeland Security.

Release: Good morning, Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield. Welcome to the Subcommittee’s first hearing of the 118th Congress on oversight of the United Nations.

In the final act of the 117th Congress, the Senate has passed (68-29) the Fiscal Year 2023 (FY23) omnibus appropriations package containing all 12 appropriations measures, as well as $47 billion in emergency funding to support Ukraine’s valiant efforts to repulse Russian invaders and bring the conflict to an end and $38 billion in much-needed emergency disaster assistance.

The Fiscal Year 2023 (FY23) omnibus appropriations package containing all 12 appropriations measures was filed today in the U.S. Senate.

Bipartisan legislation authored by U.S. Senators Gary Peters (D-MI) and Rob Portman (R-OH), Chairman and Ranking Member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, to make permanent the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) National Risk Index (NRI) – an online tool that utilizes data to identify communities that are most vulnerable to natural disasters – has been signed into law.

Legislation authored by U.S. Senators Gary Peters (D-MI), Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, Dan Sullivan (R-AK), Maggie Hassan (D-NH) and Thom Tillis (R-NC) to help protect the health and safety of firefighters and emergency responders from PFAS exposure has been signed into law.

U.S. Senator Gary Peters (D-MI), Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, joined Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator Deanne Criswell to announce a new funding opportunity for a program to help states establish low cost revolving loan funds for local governments to carry out mitigation projects that reduce natural disaster risk

Following calls from U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI), Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, the Nonprofit Security Grant Program (NSGP) will receive $305 million in the upcoming government spending bill to meet the needs of houses of worship and other nonprofit organizations that want to secure their facilities against potential terrorist attacks

U.S. Senator Gary Peters (D-MI), Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, released the following statement after an announcement today from the United States Postal Service (USPS) saying they will invest in charging infrastructure and deploy over 66,000 electric vehicles by 2028 – making a majority of new vehicle purchases electric.

U.S. Senators Rob Portman (R-OH), Ranking Member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, sent a letter to Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young requesting an update on the implementation of his Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Government Act which became law in 2020.

U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI), Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, toured Dearborn Fire Station 2 to discuss the need to pass his bipartisan legislation to renew federal grants programs that are set to expire in the coming years

U.S. Senator Rob Portman (R-OH), Ranking Member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, released a new report examining the laws governing synthetic opioid interdiction, the synthetic opioid precursor supply chain from China to Mexico, and the finished-product supply chain from Mexico to the U.S.

U.S. Senator Rob Portman (R-OH), Ranking Member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee and Co-Chair of the Senate Artificial Intelligence (AI) Caucus, introduced the Stopping Unlawful Negative Machine Impacts through National Evaluation Act to clarify that existing civil rights laws apply to decisions made by AI systems just as if those decisions were made by humans

U.S. Senator Rob Portman (R-OH), Ranking Member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, introduced the Facial Accountability, Clarity, and Efficiency In Technology Act (FACE IT) to establish best practices and rules for the federal government’s use of facial recognition technology (FRT).

U.S. Senators Rob Portman (R-OH), Ranking Member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) announced today that their bipartisan Quantum Computing Cybersecurity Preparedness Act has been signed into law.

U.S. Senators Rob Portman (R-OH), Gary Peters (D-MI), Ranking Member and Chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, and Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), sent a letter to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Mayorkas, Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary McDonough, and Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Becerra requesting an update on the implementation of their Make PPE in America Act, which was signed into law by President Biden as a part of the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act.