Congressman Chris Smith (NJ-04), a senior member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, today expressed his hopes that his constituent, Aharon Sofer, of Lakewood, N.J., missing in Israel since Friday, Aug. 22, will be found and returned to his family, and called for the U.S. State Department to assist in every way possible. “I learned about Aharon Sofer over the weekend and became very concerned for his well-being. I immediately sent a letter to Secretary of State John Kerry Monday urging that ... Read more

Congressman Chris Smith (NJ-04) announced today that the Borough of Neptune City has received an Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) award for nearly $60,000 to purchase critically-needed self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA). "This important FEMA grant will help protect firefighters in harm’s way,” said Smith, a long-time member of the Congressional Fire Services Caucus. “Firefighters need the proper equipment to survive in smoke-filled environment. Neptune is an all-volunteer company an... Read more

Congressman Chris Smith (NJ-04) said President Obama has resorted to coercion and massive, punitive fines in a U.S. Health and Human Services announcement made today that targets faith-based hospitals, schools and other organizations which for moral reasons cannot and will not include abortion-causing drugs, sterilization and contraception procedures in their private health insurance plans. “Here he goes again. This new ‘notification option’ announced today is really just another highly coercive... Read more

Congressman Chris Smith (NJ-04) today announced the awarding of a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) grant for Lakewood Airport. The $84,000 grant will be used to design a new taxiway intended to increase safety. The project comes in the wake of a 2013 FAA grant for $220,500 used for the removal of obstructions both on and off airport property that interfered with runway 6/24. The new taxiway will be at the end of runway 24. “This federal funding slated for Lakewood Airport operations will fu... Read more

Carl LaGrotterria is getting his wish. After years of overcrowding brought on by burgeoning numbers of veterans, the James J. Howard Veterans Clinic will open a new supplemental location in September. "They want to help their vets, but the staff sometimes is overwhelmed and overworked," said the 66-year-old veteran from Brick. "The phones are ridiculous. You can rarely get through and have to wait for callbacks." The news comes as the federal Department of Veterans Affairs faces a litany of comp... Read more

As horrid details of the brutal torture and treatment of human rights lawyer Gao Zhisheng have recently become known, a human rights leader in the U.S. Congress is urging the Chinese government to immediately allow Gao to come to the United States for medical care. “Gao Zhisheng has suffered unspeakable and repeated torture because he has championed freedoms respected worldwide, but hated by China’s leaders,” said U.S. Rep. Chris Smith, co-chairman of the U.S. Commission on China (CECC), and Ch... Read more

Thousands of American families struggling on very different fronts will received federal support now that President Obama has signed into law two separate bills late Friday, one to help prevent international child abduction and return American children now held overseas, and the other targeting $1.3 billion in federal funds to assist families touched by autism. "What a momentous day for thousands of families across America," said Rep. Chris Smith, the author of the Sean and David Goldman Intern... Read more

WASHINGTON – New Jersey is prepared to handle Ebola or any other infectious disease that may appear in the state, Republican Rep. Chris Smith of New Jersey said Thursday. “New Jersey Health Commissioner Mary O’Dowd reiterated to me yesterday that New Jersey hospitals have infection control programs,” Smith said. “They train and are ready to deal with potentially infectious patients that come through their doors.” Congress is not in session, but Smith, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs subco... Read more

By Times of Trenton Editorial Board You’re a parent with a child on the autism spectrum and you’ve just gotten the phone call you’ve dreaded for a decade or so: “Your son (or daughter) has aged out of the system.” Every year, more and more fathers and mothers in New Jersey hear those words. They mean families no longer have access to the support systems that school-based programs provide for young adults who desperately need them. They mean, essentially, you’re on your own. U.S. Rep. Chris Smit... Read more

The House Foreign Affairs Africa and Global Health Chairman Chris Smith (NJ-04) held an emergency congressional hearing today on the unprecedented outbreak of the Ebola virus, featuring Dr. Thomas Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the U.S. State Department, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and two U.S. private organizations which have seen workers stricken with the virus. “Ebola had been thought to be limited to isolated areas where i... Read more