BY APP STAFF WRITER JERRY CARINO - For decades Pat Smith has sounded the alarm on the problems faced by chronic Lyme disease sufferers, from unreliable testing to a dearth of treatment options. Now she is making that case to her most important audience yet: Congress. The Wall resident has garnered a spot on the 14-person congressional working group that could recommend wholesale changes to federal Lyme disease policy. The group began meeting last month in Washington, D.C. Pat Smith, with U.S. Re... Read more

Congressman Chris Smith (R-NJ) spoke on the House Floor on Tuesday in defense of Iranians who are protesting the corruption of their regime and demanding greater respect for human rights. Read more

Following the Administration’s proposal to open over 90 percent of the U.S. outer continental shelf to oil and gas exploration and development—including off the coast of New Jersey—Congressman Chris Smith (R-NJ) stated his serious concern and opposition to the move. Read more

BY DAVID FOSTER Trentonian Staff Writer - Democrats and Republicans are hardly getting along lately. But when it comes to the Jersey Shore, New Jersey’s elected officials from both parties are letting President Donald Trump know to keep oil drilling away from the beach. “What President Trump announced yesterday is nothing less than dropping a ticking-time bomb off our coast,” Gov.-elect Phil Murphy said Friday at a press conference in Long Branch, referencing the havoc wreaked by the BP oil spil... Read more

The State Department on Thursday issued its annual designations of countries with the most egregious records of abusing religious freedom, yet it omitted Vietnam from the list despite its severe violations of religious freedom, an omission that is unacceptable, said Congressman Chris Smith (R-NJ), Chair of the House global human rights subcommittee. Read more

Legislation to grant houses of worship access to federal disaster relief funding passed last week in the U.S. House. The measure would provide significant assistance to synagogues in areas affected by natural disasters. The Federal Disaster Assistance Nonprofit Fairness Act was originally introduced in 2013 by Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.) after Superstorm Sandy struck New York and New Jersey—including some of the country’s largest Jewish communities—in 2012. “After Superstorm Sandy, I and others sa... Read more

A provision to give houses of worship access to critical federal disaster relief, and another provision allowing disaster victims to be eligible for both federal grants and federal loans for disaster assistance, were passed Thursday by the House as part of the third supplemental disaster relief bill. Both provisions reflect legislation originally authored by Congressman Chris Smith (R-NJ), in the wake of Superstorm Sandy. Read more

Congressman Chris Smith (R-NJ), chairman of the Africa Subcommittee of the U.S. House of Representatives, gave the following statement in advance of Liberia’s presidential run-off election next week: “Liberia again faces many challenges as their voters head to the polls on December 26, 2017 for its Presidential run-off election. The Government of Liberia must ensure that this vote is free, fair and transparent. Given America’s historic ties to Liberia and the role played by Americo-Liberians in ... Read more

Rep. Chris Smith issued the following statement after the House voted on H.R.1, the tax bill: On Wednesday, December 20th, I voted “no” on H.R. 1 because while I believe that Americans are overtaxed, this bill does not provide needed tax relief for New Jersey residents. The bill rolls back or entirely eliminates certain itemized deductions, and almost half—47%—of the taxpayers in my district itemize, claiming an average of $31,981 in deductions. Foremost among these changes that I opposed was t... Read more

On December 8, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) concluded its annual meeting of the Foreign Ministers of 57 OSCE participating States by adopting a ministerial decision on combatting child trafficking—modeled on OSCE Parliamentary Assembly (PA) resolutions adopted in 2016 and 2017, authored by Helsinki Commission Co-Chairman Rep. Chris Smith (NJ-04). Rep. Smith is the Special Representative on Human Trafficking Issues in the OSCE PA. Entitled “Strengthening Effort... Read more