Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), founder and Co-Chair of the Congressional Autism Caucus and author of five comprehensive autism laws, issued the following statement after meeting with Autism Speaks advocates from across the country to discuss the importance of continued federal research funding for autism: “Yesterday, I had the distinct pleasure of welcoming over 100 Autism Speaks advocates to Washington, D.C. for the 2026 Autism Speaks Advocacy Forum & Capitol Hill Day. “Autism Speaks President and C... Read more

Three of New Jersey’s brightest computer science students, who won the 2025 Congressional App Challenge in New Jersey’s Fourth District, were honored this week at a ceremony on Capitol Hill for their creation of a new app, Food Fight. Selected by a panel of five judges, Ava Obara, Skye Huang, and Abigail Riddle—all from Communications High School in Wall Township, New Jersey—won the NJ-04 competition hosted by Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) for Food Fight, an app that presents nutritional facts in a t... Read more

Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), Co-Chair of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC), today co-led a congressional hearing on China’s illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing practices, which distort seafood markets, harm American fishermen, undermine law and order, enable human rights abuses, and threaten national security. “From the earliest days of seafaring, the oceans have been governed not only by currents and commerce, but by rules—rules that distinguish lawful navigation... Read more

Reps. Chris Smith (R-NJ) and Andy Harris, M.D. (R-MD) strongly criticized the European Commission for its unprecedented, undemocratic interference in Hungary’s upcoming elections. In a letter to Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission, Smith and Harris argue that the EU Commission’s anti-democratic actions “raise serious concerns regarding the boundary between legitimate EU oversight and authoritarian political intervention” and are “deeply destructive of public confidenc... Read more

During today’s markup, the House Foreign Affairs Committee unanimously approved legislation authored by Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) to extend and authorize annual appropriations for the State Department’s United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) through fiscal year 2028. If enacted, Smith’s United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) Reauthorization Act of 2025 (HR 1744) will reauthorize the Commission, which was created through the International... Read more

Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) today announced the date of his United States Service Academy Information Night, which will take place on Wednesday, April 22nd from 5:00—6:30 PM at the Ocean County Resource Center (1005 Hooper Ave., Toms River, NJ 08753). “Over the years, I’ve had the honor and privilege of nominating many outstanding young men and women for acceptance into our Nation’s Service Academies,” said Smith. “Many, if not all, of the students I nominated attended one of the Service Academy in... Read more

Corporal Leo Perlmutter Fifty-eight years ago, U.S. Marine Corporal Leo Perlmutter did not know what hit him. He was in one of the battles in the Tet Offensive, launched by North Vietnam and the Viet Cong against the U.S. and Vietnamese forces in January of 1968. Enemy mortar rounds were coming in all around, and one struck close to his position. “I didn’t even know I was hit,” Perlmutter said. “A medic came to treat me. I was bleeding from the head from shrapnel.” He qualified for the Purple H... Read more

“The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF)’s 2026 Annual Report is a sobering reminder that millions of people around the world still face imprisonment, violence, and discrimination simply because of their faith,” said Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ)—a longtime defender of religious liberty—upon the release of USCIRF’s 21st Annual Report, led by USCIRF Chairwoman Vicky Hartzler. The report evaluates the religious freedom conditions in dozens of countries and makes recommendations ... Read more

Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), senior member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, issued the below statement following the U.S. military and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF)’s joint strikes on Iran, known as “Operation Epic Fury”: “For far too long, Iran has held the world hostage with its nuclear threats and state-sponsored terrorism. As today’s strikes have exemplified, all diplomatic endeavors to secure peace with the Iranian dictatorship have been exhausted. “President Trump is a man of his wor... Read more

Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), Co-Chair of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC), will host Claire Lai—the daughter of democracy and free speech champion, Jimmy Lai—at President Trump’s 2026 State of the Union address. “My wife, Marie, gave Claire her ticket to the State of the Union, because we are so deeply inspired by her courageous and tenacious campaign to obtain the release of her father—the Hong Kong free speech and religious liberty hero—Jimmy Lai,” said Rep. Chris Smith, the... Read more