Velázquez E-Update 

In this issue:
Securing over $15 Million in Funding for Local Projects

Department of Homeland Security and ICE Immigration Enforcement

Continuing Work for Main Street

Military Action in Venezuela  

Plant-Powered School-Meals Pilot Act

Legislative Activity

Securing over $15 Million in Funding for Local Projects

Rep. Velázquez is proud to have secured $15,560,000 in funding for local projects across Brooklyn and Queens. The newly funded projects will improve infrastructure, public safety, and social services across Brooklyn and Queens. In a statement, Rep. Velázquez said that “from investing in lighting at Ravenswood Houses to supporting mental health services for our youth and modernizing our local transit corridors, these projects are about investing in the safety and dignity of the people of Brooklyn and Queens.”

Rep. Velázquez secured funding for these projects:

• $3,150,000 for NYCHA Ravenswood Houses: Installation of comprehensive exterior security lighting for the development.
• $2,850,000 for NYCHA Whitman Houses: Critical façade repairs for Buildings 14 and 15 to ensure safety and remove sidewalk sheds.
• $1,000,000 for NYCHA Cooper Park Houses: Security lighting upgrades to benefit residents and the surrounding community.
• $850,000 for NYC DOT Liberty Plaza: Permanent construction of the Drew Street plaza and traffic safety reconfigurations.
• $850,000 for NYC DOT Woodhaven Boulevard: Safety improvements including median widening to support Select Bus Service.
• $1,850,000 for NYC DOT Broadway Repaving: Full reconstruction of the roadway from concrete to modern blacktop.
• $1,200,000 for NYCHA Bushwick Houses: Replacement of deteriorating wood roof tanks to protect water quality.
• $2,000,000 for NYCHA Borinquen Plaza II: Critical security lighting upgrades.
• $850,000 for GMDC Bulkhead at 1155 Manhattan Avenue: Urgent bulkhead replacement at nonprofit Greenpoint Manufacturing & Design Center’s (GMDC’s) Newtown Creek shoreline to protect 70 industrial and artisan businesses and the 365 local jobs they provide.
• $345,000 for Ozone Park Residents Block Association: Expansion of the Block Watchers safety program.
• $250,000 for Bangladeshi American Community Development and Youth Services: Workforce development and intervention for justice-involved residents.
• $200,000 for Comunilife, Inc.: Suicide prevention and mental health services for at-risk teens (Life is Precious™).

Department of Homeland Security and ICE Immigration Enforcement

Immigration enforcement continues to impact communities across the country. In Minneapolis, ICE and Customs and Border Patrol agents have violated U.S. citizens’ constitutional rights, destabilized communities, and have killed two U.S. Citizens in broad daylight. Over the course of the month, ICE has violated nearly 100 court orders and agents continue to operate in anonymity with low levels of oversight or accountability.

In response, Rep. Velázquez voted against the DHS funding bill and has called for ICE to be abolished. Rep. Velázquez cosponsored Articles of Impeachment against DHS Secretary Kristi Noem. These articles would charge Secretary Noem with obstruction of Congress, violation of public trust, and self-dealing. Rep. Velázquez has also cosponsored Rep. Delia Ramirez’s “Melt ICE Act,” which would defund much of the DHS immigration enforcement operation. In addition, Rep. Velázquez continues to advocate for her own bills, the “No Masks for Ice Act” and the “Police Not ICE Act,” to increase accountability of federal agents carrying out immigration enforcement.

At a press conference this month, Rep. Velázquez declared that, in New York City, ICE “has become a rouge agency,” that should not stand, characterized by masked agents, unconstitutional raids, and families ripped apart. Rep. Velázquez will continue to advocate for our communities against these immigration enforcement efforts.

Continuing Work for Main Street

In the new year, Rep. Velázquez continues to advocate for small businesses across the country in her role as the Ranking Member of the House Committee on Small Business. At a hearing this month, she pressed Dr. Casey Mulligan on his work as the Chief Counsel of the Office of Advocacy at the Small Business Administration, which is intended to advance the views of small businesses. Rep. Velázquez presented serious challenges facing small firms that have “lost government contracts, experienced supply chain chaos, and endured a constant state of chaos” as a result of tariff policies. Rep. Velázquez called on the Office of Advocacy to do more to stand up to policies that harm small businesses.

Later in the month, Rep. Velázquez was proud to support the passage by the House of Representatives of five bipartisan bills related to small business. These bills aim to increase SBA transparency, reduce financial barriers, and support small businesses in navigating emerging artificial intelligence technology. In a statement, Rep. Velázquez said that while small business face a unique set of challenges today, “these bipartisan bills are about meeting entrepreneurs where they are and making sure the SBA has the right tools to support them.”

Military Action in Venezuela 

On January 3, the United States bombed Venezuela and launched a regime change war at the order of President Trump. Rep. Velázquez argued that the campaign was not focused on preventing drug smuggling or helping the Venezuelan people but instead on oil and regime change. Building on her previous advocacy surrounding US military escalation toward Venezuela, Rep. Velázquez quickly called on her colleagues in Congress to vote to end the war and cosponsored a War Powers Resolution to direct the removal of unauthorized troops from Venezuela.

Plant-Powered School-Meals Pilot Act

This month, Rep. Velázquez hosted a lunch reception to advocate for her legislation, the “Plant-Powered School Meals Pilot Act.” This bill would create a grant program to support schools in offering 100 percent plant-based food options for school meals. Expanding access to nutritious meals can play a critical role in improving children’s health and learning outcomes. This event showcased the potential for delicious meals that can nourish children and invest in a more sustainable future. Rep. Velázquez called on her colleagues to “support the health of our children and our Earth” by supporting this legislation.

Legislative Activity

Bills co-sponsored by Rep. Velázquez: 

• H.Res.996 – Impeaching Kristi Lynn Arnold Noem, Secretary of Homeland Security, for high crimes and misdemeanors – This resolution provides for Articles of Impeachment against Secretary of Homeland Security, Kristi Noem, for high crimes and misdemeanors including obstruction of Congress, violation of public trust, and self-dealing.

• H.Con.Res.68 – To direct the removal of United States Armed Forces from Venezuela that have not been authorized by Congress – This resolution would direct President Trump to remove U.S. Armed Forces from Venezuela unless a declaration of war or authorization to use military force is enacted.

• H.R. 7125 – Stop Body Camera Paywalls Act – This bill would prohibit local and state law enforcement agencies from creating a barrier to viewing body camera footage by charging for access to it, increasing transparency and oversight.

• H.R. 7128 – TRIA Program Reauthorization Act of 2026 – This bill would extend the Terrorism Risk Insurance Program which provides an important framework to facilitate insurance coverage against acts of terrorism.

• H.R. 7190 – Melt ICE Act – This bill would eliminate Department of Homeland Security funding to detain or monitor immigrants, significantly diminishing the agency’s ability to carry out immigration enforcement. The bill would also redirect funding to “wrap-around” services like housing and healthcare for communities effected by immigration enforcement.

For a full list of legislation co-sponsored by Rep. Velázquez, click here.