Email from Rep. Nehls Rep. Nehls Questions Acting Assistant Director of CJIS Division   Greetings! I wanted to take a moment to wish the 22nd Congressional District of Texas a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year and to share with you a recap on what happened last week in Texas' 22nd District and the United States House of Representatives. This Week in Washington, D.C. Rep. Troy E. Nehls Votes "YES" to Pass the American Relief Act Today, I proudly voted for the American Relief Act, which is an important piece of legislation to kickstart President Trump's America First agenda to take place on day one. This legislation provides funds for our nation’s hardworking farmers who feed, fuel, and clothe the world. Additionally, this legislation provides relief for those who were affected by the catastrophic hurricanes earlier this year. The American people gave us, the Republican Party and President Trump, a mandate to make America great again, and this bill paves the way for us to do so. I look forward to President Trump’s historic return to the White House. January 20th can’t come soon enough. Rep. Troy E. Nehls Questions Acting Assistant Director of CJIS This week, the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Federal Government Surveillance held a hearing titled "Oversight of the Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) Division." During the hearing, the subcommittee examined how the Federal Bureau of Information's (FBI) CJIS Division manages and maintains several data systems, including the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program, the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), the National Crime Information Center (NCIC), and many others. As the former Sheriff of Fort Bend County, Texas, I have experience with most of the FBI's data systems. During the hearing, I discussed my time as Fort Bend County Sheriff and how, as Sheriff, I was proud to report Fort Bend County’s crime data to the FBI because of how much crime my team and I solved. In 2021 and 2022, large jurisdictions in multiple states didn't report their crime data to the FBI, including New York City, Chicago, and Los Angeles. During the hearing, I questioned Timothy Ferguson, the Acting Assistant Director of the CJIS Division, about whether he thinks there should be a law requiring law enforcement agencies to report their crime data to the FBI, which I support. Accurate crime data is important information for the American people to have access to, especially when one is considering moving to a new community. I also asked him whether he believes grant funding should be withheld from municipalities that don't report their crime data to the FBI. I further asked him about the discrepancies between the FBI's data and that of certain municipalities. For example, Baltimore reported 262 murders in 2023, and the FBI reported 225 murders. This is a major problem and is one of the reasons why the FBI is not trusted by the American people and why the FBI needs to be overhauled. Watch my questioning of Acting Assistant Director of the CJIS Division HERE. 2025 Presidential Inauguration Information The 60th Presidential Inauguration will take place on Monday, January 20, 2025, in Washington, DC, on the west front of the U.S. Capitol. Each member of Congress receives a limited allotment of tickets to share with their constituents. My office will disburse tickets to constituents through a lottery based on all of the requests received. Tickets are not guaranteed as demand may exceed the number of allocated tickets. We will do our best to help those attending secure a ticket. To request tickets for the 2025 presidential inauguration, please fill out the form on my website HERE. The form must be completed in its entirety and include the full name of each person requesting a ticket. Forms not fully completed will not be considered in the lottery. Please note that these tickets are solely for attending the Presidential and Vice-Presidential Swearing-In Ceremonies. This does not include access to any of the inaugural balls or other ancillary events. Tickets to the inaugural balls are provided through the Presidential Inaugural Committee in consultation with the President-Elect. My office also does not receive seated tickets to the Inaugural Parade following the swearing-in. However, tickets to observe the Inaugural Parade route on-foot are not required. Please note the names of each guest in your party in the "Special Requests" box in the form on my website. Only one form per household/group will be accepted. All requests must be submitted by December 22nd, 2024, at midnight EST. For more information, or if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact my Washington, D.C. office at (202) 225-5951. Form for 2025 Presidential Inauguration Ticket Requests Rep. Troy E. Nehls Votes YES to Pass WRDA Last week, the United States House of Representatives passed, and I proudly supported, the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA). WRDA is bipartisan legislation Congress considers to authorize U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) Civil Works projects to improve the Nation’s ports and harbors, inland waterway navigation, flood and storm protection, and other aspects of our water resources infrastructure. I am proud to have worked with my colleagues to successfully secure several essential policy priorities for Texas and the 22nd Congressional District. WRDA authorizes locally driven projects that also deliver regional and national benefits. Specifically, the bill increases the Army Corp of Engineers accountability and requires an annual accounting on the status of Congressionally required reports, which helps Congress develop new policy priorities to strengthen our nation’s water infrastructure. The bill helps streamline projects by expanding alternative delivery options and letting local non-federal project sponsors take the lead in project completion through new pilot programs. This legislation requires the Secretary of Transportation to make timely updates to its online “permit finder” to accurately reflect the status of projects for which a permit was or is being processed, which is one of several new policy riders that increase government transparency. Furthermore, WRDA adjusts the federal cost share for harbor deepening and inland navigation projects, which will allow our ports to increase their capacity and handle larger container ships and cargo within our inland supply chain. Working across the aisle and on behalf of my fellow Texans in Congress, I helped secure language that directs the Secretary to expedite the completion of the Buffalo Bayou and Tributaries Resiliency study, which will help develop policy objectives to minimize flooding and protect our nation’s infrastructure and personal property. I am proud to have successfully worked with my colleagues on the committee to secure a revised cost-share for a project deficiency construction for the Matagorda Ship Channel Project. This year’s WRDDA increases the federal cost share from 75% to 90%. Additionally, I secured language that requires the Corps to expedite the completion of documentation for the Matagorda Ship Channel Improvement Project. I'm proud to say WRDA contains many wins for both TX-22 and the great state of Texas. This Week in TX-22 Casework Highlight: Internal Revenue Service Has the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) still not released your refund for your tax return? Has your amendment been pending for an excessive amount of time? My office can assist. You can check the status of your refund here and the status of your amended return here. The IRS asks that we allow returns to process for 10 weeks and amendments to process for 20 weeks. If you are outside of that timeframe, my staff is happy to help. Please note that there is a backlog in cases, so the processing times are subject to change. We can also help with general IRS questions or any other issues you may have with the agency. We will need a privacy release form filled out by the filers. Our release form can be found here. Please contact my District Office at 346-762-6600 if you have any questions. USPS: 2024 Holiday Shipping Dates for Contiguous U.S. If you're shipping holiday cards and gifts for Hanukkah (Dec. 25–Jan. 2), Christmas (Dec. 25), Kwanzaa (Dec. 26–Jan. 1), or other holiday traditions, find the United States Postal Service (USPS) recommended domestic, international, and military deadlines in these tables. The earlier you send, the better: Don’t delay, mail and ship today! Do you support eliminating Daylight Savings Time?  YES 79.2% NO 20.8% Follow Us We Want to Hear From You I always appreciate learning about the issues that are important to you. If you have a concern, please contact me HERE. Use this QR code to follow my Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter accounts and join my Newsletter for updates. It's an honor to represent you and the great state of Texas in the United States House of Representatives. What do you want to see Congress tackle in 2025? Let me know below Lock in Trump Tax Cuts Unleash American energy Build the wall and enhance border security Repeal harmful Biden policies Protect Social Security and Medicare Other Sincerely, Troy E. Nehls Member of Congress By participating in the survey, you are opting into further communication from Rep. Nehls Rep. Nehls | 1104 Longworth House Office Building | Washington, DC 20515 US Unsubscribe | Update Profile | Constant Contact Data Notice