Rep. Demings Votes for Counterterror Bill

Orlando, FL: Today Rep. Val Demings (FL-10) voted for, and the House passed, the Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act, legislation which Rep. Demings cosponsored to empower the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Department of Justice (DOJ), and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to monitor, investigate and prosecute cases of domestic terrorism.Said Rep. Demings, "I took an oath to protect the Constitution and the American people from all enemies, foreign and domestic. As a former Chief of Police, I saw that the safety of our communities depends on law enforcement partnerships that are critical to preventing domestic terrorism and violent extremism like the Buffalo mass shooting.

"Whether targeted hate crimes or domestic terrorism, violent extremism is a threat to every American. We must do everything within our power to stop these campaigns of targeted incitement and violence before they rear their ugly head in your city or town. With this legislation, we are empowering our homeland security and law enforcement officers to investigate these threats to the American people and keep communities safe."

Background

Rep. Demings has led effortsto support critical anti-terror programs including the Urban Area Security Initiative(UASI) program and the Nonprofit Security Grant Programand recently chaired a hearingwith Texas Rabbi Charlie Cytron-Walker and other witnesses on the threat of antisemitic terrorism and other domestic terror.

Attacks on minority institutions and individuals continue to pose an alarming threat to communities across the country. In 2020 (the most recent year for which data is available), the FBI Uniform Crime Reporting Programrecorded 8,263 hate crime incidents involving 11,129 offenses.

Analysis by the Center for Strategic and International Studiesshowed domestic terrorism in 2020 was at the highest level of any year the organization has analyzed, dating back to 1994. According to CSIS, since 2015, right-wing extremists have been involved in 267 plots or completed attacks and 91 fatalities.

In remarksto the Senate Homeland Security Committee, FBI Director Christopher A. Wray said that "2019 was the deadliest year for domestic extremist violence since the Oklahoma City Bombing in 1995. According to Director Wray, the FBI arrested 107 individuals duringfiscal year 2019 in connection with domestic terrorism investigations, which was "close to the same number on the international terrorism front." However, Assistant Director McGarrity also noted the disparity in resource allocation, testifying that "in the field [agents] that work domestic terrorism, [comprise] about 20 percent, and we have about 80 percent working international terrorism.

###