A $25 million federally funded project aimed at replenishing the beaches from Manasquan to Belmar will start on Friday, officials said. Anthony Ciorra, sandy coastal recovery program manager for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers New York District, said 1.5 million cubic yards of sand would be placed on the beach. That sand is part of a total of 8 million cubic yards being placed from Sea Bright to Manasquan. “The Corps of Engineers mission is primarily coastal flood risk reduction ensuring that ... Read more

Though it does not directly border the Atlantic Ocean, this Monmouth County Township has an expensive Hurricane Sandy cleanup. Wall Township received approval for a $1.6 million FEMA grant award to help pay for the extensive cleanup resulting from Hurricane Sandy, U.S. Rep. Chris Smith (NJ-04) said in a Monday press release. “Nearly a year ago Wall was among the towns hit hard by Sandy,” Smith said. “The human costs in terms of disruption of homelife, community and commerce was near immeasurable... Read more

U.S. Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) has announced the awarding of a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) grant for the Lakewood Airport, Lakewood. The $220,500 grant will be used for the removal of obstructions both on and off airport property that now interfere with runway 6/24, according to a press release from the congressman. “These federal dollars designated for debris removal will significantly improve Lakewood Airport operations, allowing planes to more safely use the facility, which serves as ... Read more

By Asbury Park Press reporter Stephanie Loder - David Goldman of Tinton Falls was among the parents ofAmerican children abducted and wrongfully held at overseas locations who came to Washington Thursday to watch and listen as child abduction and prevention legislation was unanimously approved by the full Foreign Affairs Committee. H.R. 3212, the Sean and David Goldman International Child Abduction Prevention and Return Act of 2013, was written by U.S. Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., chairman of the Ho... Read more

Agree or disagree with public funding of abortion — a significant majority of Americans oppose subsidizing abortion — but no one likes to be misled, fooled, deceived or defrauded. In the run-up to passage of Obamacare, Americans were repeatedly told and reassured by President Obama himself, including in a speech to a joint session of Congress in October 2009, that “under our plan, no federal dollars will be used to fund abortion.” In an 11th-hour ploy to garner the votes of a remnant of pro-life... Read more

Agence France-Presse - A congressional committee called Thursday for the United States to reach legal agreements with Japan and other countries to help resolve hundreds of cases of children abducted by estranged parents. The House Foreign Affairs Committee approved a bill to require the US secretary of state to reach memoranda of understanding with all nations not party to the 1980 Hague Convention, which requires the return of kidnapped children to wherever they usually live. The bill, which ne... Read more

Congressman Chris Smith (NJ04)—chairman of both the House Lyme Disease Caucus and global health subcommittee, and author of Lyme disease legislation in the House—as well as other Lyme disease leaders in Congress and from the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA), were featured in a Huffington Post article on Oct. 1 calling for an increased, coordinated effort to combat Lyme disease in the United States and around the globe. Journalist Cathy Rubin reported on the IDSA guidelines which can... Read more

There is a non-lethal way to help ensure that Bashar al-Assad and other perpetrators of atrocities in Syria are held to account, not someday far in the future but beginning now. The U.N. Security Council must move immediately to establish a Syrian war crimes tribunal. Past ad hoc war crimes tribunals — including courts for Sierra Leone, Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia — have made a difference, but they sent thugs to jail after hostilities ended. Regarding Syria, a new sense of urgency and commi... Read more

Written by Dan Radel, Asbury Park Press- Sea Girt and Point Pleasant Borough were awarded grants from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to cover 90 percent of costs that were a result of superstorm Sandy, officials confirmed. The boroughs will cover the remaining 10 percent. “This is very welcomed. We’ll be able to pay back our loan and refurbish our cash reserves,” said William Schroeder, Point Pleasant’s mayor. “It will make it easier on our residents.” Point Pleasant will receive $1.3 m... Read more

As talks continue about the situation in Syria, Congressman Chris Smith (R-4) wants the UN Security Council to establish a war crimes tribunal to hold President Bashar al Assad and others accountable for the use of chemical weapons. Smith told NJ Today Managing Editor Mike Schneider that he believes President Barack Obama made a mistake by threatening force in the region and wants other measures pursued. Smith said the international community has created successful tribunals in the past and bel... Read more