August Wrap-Up

Above: Gottheimer congratulates “Sussex County Senior of the Year” Shirley Smith Hill.

Congressman Josh Gottheimer celebrated Senior Day at the New Jersey State Fair and presented a flag flown over the U.S. Capitol to Sussex County’s “Senior of the Year,” Shirley Smith Hill of Augusta — honoring her service as a dedicated community volunteer.

Across the fairgrounds, Gottheimer greeted families, thanked veterans and active-duty service members, toured the 4-H livestock exhibits, met with youth leaders, visited local veteran organizations, and stopped by the locally operated food concessions. He also participated in the U.S. Army’s flight and parachute virtual reality exhibit.

“The New Jersey State Fair is one of my favorite New Jersey traditions, and I’m glad to be able to visit with so many Fifth District residents, veterans, and seniors,” said Congressman Josh Gottheimer (NJ-5). “I’m proud to celebrate and honor Shirley Smith Hill as Sussex County’s Senior of the Year, who has spent decades giving back to our community. From donating to food pantries and serving meals at Manna House for the Needy, to packing more than 1,000 holiday gifts for children in need last year, her commitment to our community and country is truly inspiring.”

Below: Gottheimer visits the New Jersey State Fair, including the Sussex County Farm and Horse Show, at the Sussex County Fairgrounds.

Above: Reps. Gottheimer, Crawford, and Jackson visit the Kerem Shalom humanitarian aid staging site on the border with Gaza.

Congressman Josh Gottheimer (NJ-5) departed from Israel after co-leading a bipartisan House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence delegation trip with Committee Chairman Rick Crawford (AR-1) and Congressman Ronny Jackson (TX-13).

While visiting the Kerem Shalom crossing, the Members discussed the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation’s efforts to surge aid directly to civilians in Gaza while keeping it out of the hands of Hamas. More than 85% of UN convoys do not reach their destinations, with trucks being diverted by armed Hamas terrorists or overrun by civilians desperately seeking food. Hamas pocketed more than $500 million in stolen aid last year alone. Scaling up solutions to safely deliver aid directly into the hands of civilians is critical to improving the humanitarian situation on the ground.

“Since October 7, I have been clear: we must bring home every hostage, surge humanitarian aid to innocent civilians, and end Hamas’ reign of terror in Gaza,” said Congressman Josh Gottheimer (NJ-5), a member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. “My trip to Israel was vital to understanding exactly what needs to be done to accomplish these goals and to protect America and our allies from terror.”

Gottheimer continued, “Given the situation, it was extremely important to meet with Prime Minister Netanyahu and other senior Israeli officials, Ambassador Huckabee, and family members of hostages still in Gaza. It was also critical to visit an aid staging location at the Kerem Shalom border crossing and a GHF coordination site, which gave me a better understanding of efforts to surge aid into Gaza. We must ensure aid is able to swiftly reach Gazans in need, not Hamas terrorists, who continue to steal food from innocent Palestinians. With so much misinformation, there is no better way to understand the situation than to see it firsthand. By promoting security and stability in the Middle East, the United States will improve our own national security.”

Below: Reps. Gottheimer, Crawford, and Jackson visit the Kerem Shalom humanitarian aid staging site on the border with Gaza.

Congressman Josh Gottheimer (NJ-5), alongside Reps. Nicole Malliotakis (NY-11), Jared Moskowitz (FL-23), and Mike Lawler (NY-17) led a bipartisan letter calling on the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to immediately release information to Congress to help nonprofit organizations applying for Nonprofit Security Grant Program (NSGP) funding.

Currently, FEMA is withholding from Members of Congress the list of nonprofits in their districts that will be awarded Nonprofit Security Grant Program (NSGP) awards this year — despite a longstanding precedent of sharing this information. This lack of transparency comes after a months-long delay in releasing awards and as nonprofits face a fast-approaching application deadline for next year’s funding. Without knowing whether they were awarded funds, countless synagogues, churches, mosques, and other nonprofit organizations and religious institutions are unable to plan and complete applications for next year’s round of NSGP funding for much-needed security investments.

“We ask that you work with Congress and immediately share the list of awardees from June, as has been the normal course of business for FEMA, so that these non-profits at risk of attack can submit an accurate application before the deadline. As we wrote to FEMA back in March, the NSGP is one of the most effective and critical programs for protecting all faith-based communities from attack. There are numerous examples available that demonstrate the direct return on investment for communities under threat,” the Members of Congress wrote in the letter to Acting FEMA Administrator David Richardson.

The Members continued, “The Administration has made clear its goal to protect Americans from terrorist threats as well as to respond to the rise in hate crimes. Therefore, it is imperative that eligible nonprofit organizations, including Jewish faith-based organizations, have the information they need to submit the best and most accurate application before the deadline. This requires cooperation to ensure that awardees are notified of their intent to receive funding from FEMA following the June announcement.”

As always, if you’re experiencing an issue with a federal agency, Congressman Gottheimer's Constituent Service team is here to listen & help with VA benefits, Social Security, Medicare, & much more.

Call at 201-389-1100 or email [email protected].

You can also follow Congressman Gottheimer's Twitter here, Facebook here, and Instagram here.

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