Press Releases

On Thursday, the House voted 359-65 to adopt the conference report on H.R. 22, Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act, a five-year reauthorization of funds for highway, bridge, transportation safety, and public transit projects. California transportation agencies including the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans), Alameda Corridor East (ACE), the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) and others stand to benefit from provisions that fund and create programs to improve transit in Southern California.

On Wednesday, two shooters arrived at a holiday party at the Inland Regional Center, a social services center in San Bernardino, California. Armed with assault weapons and tactical gear, they killed at least 14 people and wounded at least 17 others. The shooting was the deadliest mass shooting in the U.S. since Sandy Hook, three years ago.

On Wednesday, the House of Representatives voted to pass the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), a reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) of 1965. The ESSA includes requirements for college or career aligned standards, maintains annual statewide assessments, and mandates that states identify schools where subgroups - like English language learners, minorities, low income students, and students with disabilities - are struggling. Rep. Judy Chu (CA-27) voted for the ESSA, but expressed some reservations about the lack of mandated improvements for failing schools or specific requirements for tracking the progress of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) students.

Senators Mazie K. Hirono and John Cornyn (R-TX), and Representatives Judy Chu (D-CA) and Ed Royce (R-CA) introduced the Minority-Serving Institution Fairness Act in the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives today, legislation that would make Minority-Serving Institutions (MSI) eligible to compete for, and receive, multiple federal grants for the purpose of serving a wider range of minority students.

Today, the House of Representatives voted 289-137 for H.R. 4038, the so-called “American SAFE Act of 2015.” This bill adds new certification requirements and requires that the FBI Director, the Homeland Security Secretary, and the National Intelligence Director concur on each refugee from Iraq and Syria. Organizations like the ACLU, the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), Oxfam, the AFL-CIO, National Council of Asian Pacific Americans and dozens of religious groups argue that these new requirements are unnecessary and would effectively stop the flow of any and all refugees from Iraq and Syria.

Today, Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC) Chair Rep. Judy Chu (CA-27) and CAPAC Members Rep. Ted Lieu (CA-33), Rep. Grace Meng (NY-06), and Rep. Michael Honda (CA-17) held a press conference to call on the Department of Justice (DOJ) to investigate the recent cases against Chinese American scientists who were wrongfully suspected of economic espionage. They were joined by Sherry Chen, a U.S. citizen and employee of the National Weather Service in Ohio, as well as Dr. Xiaoxing Xi, a U.S. citizen and Interim Chair of the Physics Department at Temple University. Both Ms. Chen and Dr. Xi were arrested and indicted for various charges and suspected of economic espionage, only to have all charges against them later dropped. The press conference comes one day before a CAPAC meeting with Attorney General Loretta Lynch.

On Friday, the Supreme Court announced that it will hear the Whole Woman’s Health v. Cole case, which challenges two provisions of a Texas state law that effectively shut down women’s health clinics.