House Homeland Security Committee approves amended funding measure after rejecting dozens of member amendments

The House Committee on Homeland Security on Thursday approved an amendment in the nature of a substitute to the committee print and voted to transmit the measure to the House Budget Committee, 18-14, after more than three hours of debate and roll-call and voice votes on dozens of member amendments.

The final motion to transmit the committee print and accompanying material passed as recorded votes concluded with 18 ayes and 14 noes. Committee members later were given two calendar days to file supplemental, additional or minority views with the clerk, per the ranking member’s request.

Why it matters: The markup covered large domestic-security spending and policy questions that committee members said could shape how states and localities use federal homeland-security grants. Members debated amendments touching on immigration enforcement, protections for service members’ families, funding to counter antisemitism and other hate crimes, repair and staffing for federal cybersecurity offices, medical care for people detained by Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and security funding for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics and Paralympics.

Major debates and outcomes

- Noncitizen free-speech protection (Carter amendment 016): Representative Carter offered an amendment that would prohibit funds for detention or removal of a noncitizen whose legal status was terminated or visa revoked because they exercised free speech. Carter said the change was needed because, in his view, "free speech is to be protected regardless of its content" and described visits he led to immigration detention centers in Louisiana. The amendment failed by voice vote; a recorded vote was requested and further proceedings were postponed.

- Funding to counter antisemitism (Swalwell amendment 007): Representative Swalwell proposed dedicating up to $500,000,000 from the state homeland security grant program toward countering antisemitism, saying the amendment "funds efforts to protect Americans from antisemitism." He cited Anti-Defamation League incident totals and a presidential executive order (cited in debate as Executive Order 14188) as context. The amendment was not adopted by voice vote; a recorded vote was requested and proceedings were postponed.

- Protections for military spouses…