Media

On Tuesday, the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, and Science (CJS) adopted language requesting the Department of Justice Office of Inspector General to investigate whether there exists a pattern or practice of using race, national origin, and other civil rights classifications to target Federal employees and other Americans. The Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC) pushed for the language following recent high-profile arrests of Chinese-American scientists wrongfully accused of espionage only to have those charges later dropped. The amendment, offered by Rep. Mike Honda, the Ranking Member of the CJS Appropriations Subcommittee, was adopted by voice vote and included into the CJS Appropriations Bill for Fiscal Year 2017. Rep. Judy Chu (CA-27), Chair of CAPAC, released the following statement:

Today, the House Judiciary Committee held a markup of H.R. 5203, the “Visa Integrity and Security Act of 2016.” The bill adds new restrictions and burdens on those visa applicants and asylum seekers, including DNA testing at the expense of the applicant and social media background checks. Rep. Judy Chu (CA-27) introduced an amendment that would create an exemption from the social media background check for applicants fleeing domestic violence. The amendment failed 14-8 along party lines.

Washington, D.C. – Today, the House of Representatives unanimously approved a bill to rename the Sierra Madre, CA post office after Sergeant Louis Van Iersel, an immigrant, father, husband, and veteran who lived in Sierra Madre. The bill was introduced by Rep. Judy Chu (CA-27) who represents the area. Rep. Chu released the following statement:

Today, Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi named Rep. Judy Chu (D-CA) as one of the Democrats who will serve on a conference committee to complete legislation addressing the opioid epidemic. The conference committee was selected to reconcile the 18 opioid bills passed by the House of Representatives last week with the single opioid measure passed by the Senate in March. The compromise legislation reconciled by the conference committee will then be resubmitted to the House and Senate for final approval.

Today, the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Homeland Security, and Investigations held a hearing entitled “Synthetic Drugs, Real Danger.” The purpose of this hearing is to examine the growing problem of the manufacture and use of synthetic drugs and law enforcement responses.

On Friday, May 13, Rep. Judy Chu (CA-27), Chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC), and Rep. Grace Napolitano (CA-32), Chair of the Congressional Mental Health Caucus, introduced legislation to curb mental health stigma in the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community. H.R.5234, the Stop Mental Health Stigma in Our Communities Act, instruct the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to provide outreach and education strategies for the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community by partnering with local advocacy and behavioral health organizations that have an established record of serving AAPIs. These strategies will increase awareness of symptoms of mental illness common among AAPI populations, provide linguistically and culturally appropriate interventions, and encourage individuals and communities to use a comprehensive, public health approach when addressing mental and behavioral health.