Cramer: Time for Senate to Protect the American People and Pass the Safe Act

Press Release

Congressman Kevin Cramer today again called on the U.S. Senate to fulfill its obligation to protect the American public from terrorists and pass H.R. 4038, the American Security Against Foreign Enemies (SAFE) Act of 2015. Senate Democrats filibustered and prevented its passage in January.

The bill prohibits the entry of refugees from Iraq and Syria into the United States unless the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) certifies to the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) the refugee has undergone a background investigation sufficient to determine if they would pose a threat to our nation. In addition, the bill requires the DHS Secretary, FBI Director, and DNI to certify to Congress each refugee is not a security threat prior to his or her admission to the United States. Cramer is a co-sponsor of the legislation.

"The attack in Brussels is another sad reminder we are at war with radical Islamic terrorism even if the President refuses to acknowledge it," said Cramer. "The House passed the SAFE Act in November 2015 with a bi-partisan veto proof majority and I cannot comprehend why Senator Harry Reid (D-NV) refuses to allow a vote on the bill. ISIS has stated it plans to use the refugee crisis and infiltrate terrorists into the United States and throughout Europe. It is time to pass this bill and ensure any refugee who is admitted into our country is not a terrorist."

H.R. 4038 also requires the DHS Inspector General to conduct a risk-based review of all certifications for admission of Iraqi or Syrian refugees made by DHS, FBI, and DNI each year and provide an annual report to Congress detailing its findings. The bill further requires the DHS Secretary to provide a monthly report to Congress on the total number of applications for admission of Iraqi and Syrian refugees for which certifications were made and the total number for whom a certification was not made, including the concurrence or non-concurrence of each required official.

A covered alien is defined in the bill as a refugee who is a national or resident of Iraq or Syria, has no nationality and whose last habitual residence was in Iraq or Syria, or who has been present in one of those countries at any time on or after March 1, 2011.

Cramer has long been an advocate for reforming the nation's refugee admission program. He is a co-sponsor of H.R. 4731, the Refugee Program Integrity Restoration Act. This bill sets the refugee ceiling at 60,000 per year which cannot be increased without Congressional approval. It prevents the resettlement of refugees in any state or locality which takes legislative or executive action disapproving resettlement within their jurisdiction, and requires the Government Accountability Office to issue a report on the security of the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program, the number of refugees who have been convicted of terrorism-related offenses since 2006, and the use of federally-funded benefit programs by refugees resettled in the United States. It requires DHS to implement a fraudulent document detection program for refugee processing and provides for regular security vetting of each admitted refugee until the refugee adjusts immigration status to lawful permanent resident. In addition, the bill requires DHS to review open source Internet postings, including social media, for each applicant. H.R. 4731 was approved by the House Judiciary Committee on March 16, and now awaits action on the House Floor.

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