Press Releases

House Judiciary Committee Approves Legislation to Increase Transparency and Accountability in Regulations

March 24, 2015

Washington, D.C. – Today the House Judiciary Committee approved H.R. 690, the Providing Accountability Through Transparency Act of 2015, by a voice vote. Congressman Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-Mo.) serves as the bill’s chief sponsor. This legislation would require any new proposed regulation to include the Internet address of a 100-word, plain-language summary of the rule for easy access on regulations.gov. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) praised today’s Committee vote. Chairman Goodlatte: “A common complaint from the American people is that federal regulations are too complicated and too complex to understand.

House Judiciary Committee Approves Bill to Facilitate Art & Cultural Artifact Exchange

March 24, 2015

Press Release

Washington, D.C. – Today, the House Judiciary Committee approved the Foreign Cultural Exchange Jurisdictional Immunity Clarification Act (H.R. 889) by a voice vote. Through a change in the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, this legislation bolsters the ability of U.S. museums and schools to borrow foreign government-owned artifacts and artwork from other cultures around the world.. The legislation would encourage governments to loan many of their most treasured pieces of art and artifacts for public viewing in the United States. This goodwill partnership between nations of the world would allow for U.S.

House Judiciary Committee Approves RAPID Act to Expedite Federal Permit Approval

March 24, 2015

Press Release

Washington, D.C. – The House Judiciary Committee today approved by a vote of 15-11 the Responsibly And Professionally Invigorating Development (RAPID) Act of 2015 (H.R. 348).

Goodlatte, Sessions, Gowdy, Cornyn Demand DHS Provide Information on Criminal Aliens

March 23, 2015

Press Release

Washington, D.C. – Congressman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, Senator Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.), Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Immigration and The National Interest, Congressman Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee’s Immigration and Border Security Subcommittee, and Senator John Cornyn (R-Texas), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today sent a letter to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Jeh Johnson requesting information regarding the dangerous criminal aliens arrested during Ope

Goodlatte Statement on the Resignation of ATF Director B. Todd Jones

March 20, 2015

Press Release

Washington, D.C. – Following the announcement of the resignation of Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Director B. Todd Jones, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) issued the following statement:

Goodlatte to Secretary Johnson: Changes Needed to Reduce Fraud in Immigration System

March 19, 2015

Press Release

Washington, D.C. – House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) today sent a letter to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Jeh Johnson expressing outrage over rampant fraud in the Special Immigrant Juvenile (SIJ) program. A recent investigative report, conducted by News 4 in New York, uncovered an orchestrated scam where people – up to twenty years of age – are fraudulently claiming that their parents abandoned, abused, or neglected them in order to be placed on a fast-track to a green card. In the letter, Chairman Goodlatte demands the Department of Homeland Securi

House Judiciary Committee Approves Bill to Reform Asylum Laws

March 18, 2015

Press Release

Washington, D.C. – The House Judiciary Committee today approved by a vote of 21-12 the Asylum Reform and Border Protection Act (H.R. 1153). This bill, authored by Congressman Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), strengthens asylum standards to prevent the Obama Administration’s rubberstamping of fraudulent claims, effectively ends “catch and release,” and prevents American taxpayer dollars from being used to pay for unlawful immigrants’ lawyers.

House Judiciary Committee Approves Bill to Strengthen the Enforcement of Immigration Law

March 18, 2015

Press Release

Washington, D.C. – The House Judiciary Committee today approved legislation by a vote of 17-13 to remove the ability of the President to unilaterally shut down immigration enforcement and strengthen the security of our country and communities. The Michael Davis, Jr. and Danny Oliver in Honor of State and Local Law Enforcement Act (H.R.

Goodlatte, Smith, Cornyn, Cruz File Brief Supporting Halt of President’s Unilateral Immigration Actions

March 18, 2015

Press Release

Washington, D.C. – House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), Congressman Lamar Smith (R-Texas), Senator John Cornyn (R-Texas), and Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) – in conjunction with the American Center for Law and Justice – today filed an amicus brief with the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in support of the federal district court’s decision to halt President Obama’s executive overreach on immigration in Texas vs. the United States.

Goodlatte, Gowdy, Labrador Applaud Action to Keep Seasonal Guestworker Program Operating

March 17, 2015

Press Release

Washington, D.C. – House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), Immigration and Border Security Subcommittee Chairman Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), and Immigration and Border Security Subcommittee Vice Chairman Raul Labrador (R-Idaho) today applauded the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Department of Labor’s (DOL) decision to continue processing H-2B applications while they finalize interim regulations for the seasonal guestworker program.