Homeland Security
Congressman Bilirakis sought a seat on the Homeland Security Committee shortly after his election to Congress because few issues are as important as defending America’s citizens from those who seek to hurt us. In December 2010, Gus was named Chairman of the critical Emergency Preparedness, Response and Communications Subcommittee. As Chairman, Bilirakis' position was vital to the state of Florida, as he oversaw FEMA, emergency grant programs, communication during emergency situations, and disaster response and recovery efforts.
In March 2011, Gus introduced the Student Visa Security Improvement Act, which would improve the background checks conducted on student visa applicants from high-risk areas and enhance America's ability to ensure that foreign students are abiding by the terms of their visas once in the U.S. He has also introduced the Metropolitan Medical Response System Program Act of 2011, H.R. 1411, to assist state and local governments in preparing for and responding to mass casualty incidents resulting from acts of terrorism, natural disasters, and other emergencies.
During the 111th Congress, Gus served as Ranking Member (Lead Republican) on the important Subcommittee on Management, Investigations and Oversight. In this role, he was his party's top congressional watchdog over the Department of Homeland Security. He also served on the Border, Maritime, and Global Counterterrorism Subcommittee.
The Implementing the 9/11 Commission Recommendations Act, which was signed into law, includes two proposals sponsored by Congressman Bilirakis. First, ensuring that rail and mass transit security coordinators are American citizens and requiring the real-world testing of rail tank cars carrying hazardous materials to determine the way to best protect them from attack.
He also has introduced legislation that will help the Coast Guard determine the identity of interdicted aliens so that they are not simply released to continue their illegal and dangerous behavior and ensure that terrorists do not slip through cracks in our border defenses. Gus also introduced a resolution, which the House approved unanimously, which encourages increased maritime domain awareness and highlights a program called America’s Waterway Watch, which serves like a neighborhood watch program for the water. Gus has championed the most important issue to Florida’s port community: ensuring that maritime workers are only required to have a single port access identification card with the most stringent standards possible.
Currently, through his work on the Communications & Technology Committee, the Congressman continues to improve emergency communications systems. He has sponsored multiple pieces of legislation, which have become law, to achieve this goal.
Most recently, Congressman Bilirakis has re-iterated the need for strong support of the law enforcement community. The circumstances of George Floyd’s death helped highlight a number of much needed police reforms. Now more than ever, law enforcement officers, who are placed in harm’s way on a daily basis as they work to keep our community safe, need our support. Congressman Bilirakis is an original cosponsor of the Community Policing Act, which would establish a five-year grant program for local police departments that focuses on increased de-escalation training and community outreach programs to strengthen the relationship between police officers and citizens.
He is also a cosponsor of the JUSTICE Act, which seeks to provide long-term solutions focused on police reform, accountability, and transparency, while also promoting efforts to find solutions to systemic issues affecting people of color. Trust is critical in allowing law enforcement to be protectors of their communities, and this legislation seeks to help restore that trust.
More on Homeland Security
Earlier today, Congressman Gus Bilirakis spoke to WFLA’s Jack Harris about the urgent crisis occurring along the southern border resulting from President Biden’s failed open border policies. More than 3 million illegal migrants have entered our country since President Biden took office. Since last October, 66 suspected terrorists were among those caught illegally entering our country. During this same time period, Border Patrol Agents also report over 500,000 known “get-aways.” Bilirakis questions how many more t
Tampa, FL: Earlier today, Congressman Gus Bilirakis visited Cyber Florida and the Global and National Security Institute (GNSI), both of which are housed at the University of South Florida in Tampa and led by General (Ret.) Frank McKenzie, former Commander of U.S.
WASHINGTON, DC-Congressman Gus Bilirakis and dozens of his Republican colleagues penned a stern letter to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Secretary of State Antony Blinken on the first anniversary of the Biden Administration’s disastrous Afghanistan withdrawal. The group of lawmakers questioned the Administration’s mismanagement on every level of the withdrawal of troops and personnel from Afghanistan, including the fall of Kabul, and demanded accountability and oversight for this abject failure.
Land O’ Lakes, FL: Earlier today, U.S.
Washington, DC: Earlier today, the House passed the “Reporting Attacks from Nations Selected for Oversight and Monitoring Web Attacks and Ransomware from Enemies Act” or the “RANSOMWARE Act” authored by Congressman Gus Bilirakis. This critical bill will strengthen the federal government’s efforts to respond to recent ransomware and other cyber-attacks from foreign adversaries, such as China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea.
Washington, DC: Earlier today, Representative Gus Bilirakis voted against the “Bipartisan Safer Communities Act” because the legislation would undermine the fundamental Constitutional rights of Americans by criminalizing routine firearm transactions, singling out law-abiding citizens under the age of 21 for heightened scrutiny, and eroding due process protections for Americans subject to red flag laws. Of specific concern is the bill’s
Washington, D.C.
Washington, DC: Representatives Gus Bilirakis, Scott Franklin and approximately 170 Republican colleagues recently sent a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas demanding answers from the Department of Homeland Security regarding the establishment of its Disinformation Governance Board.