Media

Washington, DC- Today, Homeland Security Committee Vice Chair Rep. Ritchie Torres (NY-15) made public a letter to the House Appropriations Committee’s Homeland Security Subcommittee to eliminate funding for Immigration & Customs Enforcement’s controversial 287(g) program. The program facilitates collaboration between local law enforcement officials and federal immigration authorities, which undermines trust in law enforcement within immigrant communities, discouraging undocumented immigrants from reporting crimes in fear of questions concerning immigration status. The letter was signed by more than two dozen House Democrats.

BRONX, NY. – Today, Rep. Ritchie Torres (NY15) was joined by Assembly member Karines Reyes and various Bronx environmental organizations and advocates to push the Biden Administration to include the transformation of the Cross Bronx Expressway in President Biden’s infrastructure package, the American Jobs Plan, which is currently being considered by Congress. They highlighted a letter to Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg pushing for the inclusion of the Cross Bronx Expressway in the $20 billion allocated in President Biden’s American Jobs Plan for “urban renewal.”

Washington, D.C.– Today, Rep. Torres voted to pass H.R. 1333, the NO BAN Act, and H.R. 1573, the Access to Counsel Act of 2021.  Together, this landmark legislation would prevent future presidents from issuing travel bans that discriminate based on religion, such as the previous Administration’s Muslim Ban, while protecting certain due process protections for individuals detained while attempting to lawfully enter the country at ports of entry.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Rep. Torres voted to pass H.R. 7, the Paycheck Fairness Act, landmark legislation that will help close the gender wage gap by strengthening equal pay protections for women.  The bill would create more effective remedies for women who are not being paid equal pay for equal work, including requiring employers to prove that pay disparities exist for legitimate, job-related reasons, new tools for the Department of Labor to enforce pay equity and protections against retaliation for workers who voluntarily discuss or disclose wages. 

The Bronx – Today, Rep. Ritchie Torres (NY-15) announced that eight community health centers located in the Bronx will receive federal funding from President Biden’s American Rescue Plan totaling almost $69 million to support COVID-19 vaccination and services for vulnerable populations. The funding will be awarded beginning April by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). Seven of the eight health centers were also invited to participate in Biden’s Health Center COVID-19 Vaccine Program which will provide a direct supply of vaccines to the hardest-hit and highest-risk communities.

Representative Ritchie Torres (D-NY-15) and Oregon U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley are leading a bicameral group of 58 lawmakers today in urging the Biden administration to include major investments in affordable housing in the upcoming infrastructure package.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Rep. Torres voted to pass H.R. 6, the American Dream and Promise Act, and H.R. 1603, the Farm Workforce Modernization Act, two landmark pieces of legislation to modernize and reform our immigration system and secure permanent protections and a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants who have been, and will continue to be, key to the economic recovery of our nation. 

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Rep. Torres voted to pass H.R. 1620, a bipartisan, long-term Violence Against Women Act reauthorization. The landmark Violence Against Women Act of 1994 ushered in transformative progress by calling for the protection of all Americans from violence and abuse, and working to ensure all victims and survivors have the support they need. This critical reauthorization will safeguard and further strengthen these life-saving protections for women throughout New York City and across the country.