Homeland Security & Public Safety
With a district bordering Canada, Brian is a recognized leader on matters related to the US-Canadian relationship. In his roles as Co-chair of the Northern Border Caucus, Co-chair of Canada-US Inter-Parliamentary Group, and a member of the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Trade, Brian seeks out opportunities to build our binational relationship, fighting for adequate staffing and systems to allow for the efficient flow of goods and people across the border.
Brian works to build safer neighborhoods through his support of the federal fire grant program, the Justice in Policing Act and common sense legislation to reduce gun violence including universal background checks.
More on Homeland Security & Public Safety
Congressman Brian Higgins (NY-26) encouraged local volunteer and combination fire departments to apply for the second round of federal fire grants made available through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.
Higgins said, “The Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program is designed to support community readiness in response to emergencies. The impact of the coronavirus outbreak puts a new strain on our first responders. This emergency funding provides necessary resources to support protective equipment and supplies.”
Yesterday afternoon Congressman Brian Higgins (NY-26) spoke directly with National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) Chairman Robert Sumwalt about concerns related to the federal investigation into the recent airplane crash in Western New York.
Congressman Brian Higgins (NY-26) joined members of the Vigilant Fire Department to kick-off Fire Prevention Week with the announcement of a federal fire grant totaling $176,250 for the department in West Seneca.
Congressmembers Brian Higgins (NY-26) and Chris Jacobs (NY-27) are calling on the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) to send investigators to the scene of fatal airplane crash in Genesee County. The Western New York leaders made the request in a letter to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Administrator and NTSB Chairman.
Congressman Brian Higgins (NY-26) announced a federal grant totaling $929,414 has been awarded to New York State for pandemic preparedness projects to help increase the planned pandemic response in upstate New York, including Erie and Niagara Counties.
Higgins said, “The COVID pandemic hit many American communities hard and left local governments struggling to recover. We have to be better prepared. These federal grants will take the lessons learned from the current pandemic and apply them to build a better, more robust and efficient pandemic response.”
Congressman Brian Higgins (NY-26), who serves as Co-Chair of the Northern Border Caucus, released the following statement in response to today’s announcement that the Canadian government is extending travel restrictions between the United States and Canada through September 21, 2020:
“On full display for the entire world to see is the Trump Administration’s abject failure to lead. This lack of leadership is keeping families apart, straining the relationship with our closest allies, and contributing to unnecessary deaths.
"From day one, this Administration’s policy toward Dreamers, who have only ever known life in this country, has been cruel and heartless. So today’s decision by the Supreme Court to strike down President Trump’s unjustified action to overturn the Deferral Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program is good news. The young people in the DACA program who have lived in fear that the President’s proposed action would force them further into the shadows can now breathe a sigh of relief.
Congressman Brian Higgins (NY-26) is responding to multiple reports confirmed by the Canadian government that the White House is making plans to send 1,000 U.S. troops to the border between the U.S. and Canada.
Higgins, who serves as Co-Chair of the House of Representatives Northern Border Caucus, released the following in response:
“Western New Yorkers today rightly protested the Trump Administration’s appalling treatment of innocent children and families desperately fleeing conflict and danger. Last week I opposed border legislation because it lacked appropriate safeguarding for the children and families who are victims of this administration’s repugnant policies. This treatment – including inhumane conditions and the shameful separation of children from their parents – does not represent who we are and what we stand for as Americans.”
“The distressing photos and accounts from within child detention facilities and at sites along the Rio Grande River and elsewhere at the border serve to underscore the wrong-headed and inhumane nature of this Administration’s policies toward asylum seekers and immigrants in general. This attitude is craven and goes against our values as a nation – something I called out this week at a House Budget Committee hearing.