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WASHINGTON – Congressman Troy Balderon’s Securing American Nonprofit Organizations Against Terrorism Act of 2019 (H.R. 2476) passed the House yesterday, marking his first piece legislation introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives to move onto the Senate.

The bipartisan legislation would ensure necessary Federal support to protect the safety of nonprofits at risk of terrorism, including synagogues, mosques, churches, and other places of worship. The bill was co-authored by Homeland Security Committee Chairman Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS), and co-sponsored by Congressmen Steve Stivers (R-OH), Peter King (R-NY), Max Rose (D-NY), and Bill Pascrell, Jr. (D-NJ).

“People should feel comforted and uplifted in their houses of worship, not in fear of their lives,” said Congressman Balderson. “Freedom of religion is foundational to our citizens’ rights, which extends to their wellbeing while practicing their faiths. This bill is an important step in ensuring the safety of religious nonprofits, and I hope to see it passed by the Senate so it can be sent to the president’s desk.”

The Securing American Nonprofit Organizations Against Terrorism Act of 2019 would authorize a security grant program within the Department of Homeland Security for 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organizations that are at risk of a terrorist attack. This grant funding would assist targeted organizations with costs related to: acquiring and installing security equipment; hiring security personnel; and security training for key personnel to prevent or protect against attacks.

BACKGROUND

Chairman Thompson tapped Balderson to be the Republican lead on H.R. 2476 following Balderson’s April letter to the Department of Justice, which requested the department’s assistance in tracking a rise in anti-Semitic hate crimes in the United States. The letter cites the October 2018 Tree of Life Synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh, chants of “Jews will not replace us” during the August 2016 Charlottesville, Va., white nationalist rallies, and anti-Israel remarks made by Congresswoman Ilhan Omar (D-MN), as well as her use of anti-Semitic tropes.