WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Jack Reed (D-RI), a member of the Appropriations Committee and the Ranking Member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, today joined with 44 other U.S. Senators in urging Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) to pass a clean bill that funds the Department of Homeland Security for the remainder of the fiscal year. 

“We need to put national security ahead of partisan politics and pass a Homeland Security bill that is free from extraneous policy riders,” said Reed.

In their letter to McConnell the senators wrote: “As we rapidly approach the date on which the Department of Homeland Security’s funding expires, and as law enforcement officials face major threats to our nation’s safety and security, we write with one simple request: work with us to pass a clean bill that funds Homeland Security for the remainder of the fiscal year.”

“While we agree our current immigration system needs comprehensive reform, including border security enhancements, this appropriations bill is not the place for this debate,” the letter noted.

“In light of recent events in Paris, Ottawa and Australia, the threat of ISIS and the proliferation of foreign fighters that return home radicalized, DHS funding should not be tied to divisive political issues that could jeopardize this critical funding,” the senators continued, concluding: “Every day, new threats emerge that endanger our citizens at home and our allies abroad.  We should not cast doubt on future funding for the Department of Homeland Security at a time when the entire nation should be marshalling collective resources to defend against terrorism.”

The Senators urged the Majority Leader to “immediately schedule a vote” on the clean, bipartisan compromise funding bill that House and Senate negotiators reached in December, which would fund DHS for the entire fiscal year.  Homeland security funding supports DHS and its related agencies, including the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Coast Guard, Secret Service, Transportation Security Administration (TSA), and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, among others.

The full text of the letter is available here.