{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://web.archive.org/web/20140206212738/http://waxman.house.gov/rep-waxman-urges-renewal-legislation-protect-religious-minorities-iran", "Rep. Waxman Urges Renewal of Legislation to Protect Religious Minorities in Iran", "2013-12-20", "2013", "2013-12", "Democrat", "House", "CA", "Henry Waxman", "W000215", "web.archive.org", null, null, "legacy", "December 20, 2013\n\u00a0\n\t\t\t\tThe Honorable Hal Rogers\n\t\t\t\tChairman\n\t\t\t\tCommittee on Appropriations\n\t\t\t\t\tH-305 The Capitol\u00a0\n\t\t\t\t\tWashington, DC 20515\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tThe Honorable Nita M. Lowey\n\t\t\t\tRanking Member\n\t\t\t\tCommittee on Appropriations\n\t\t\t\t1016 Longworth House Office Building\n\t\t\t\tWashington, DC 20515\n\t\t\t\t\t\u00a0\n\t\t\t\n\t\tDear Chairman Rogers and Ranking Member Lowey,\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 We are writing to urge you to take swift action to once again extend the \u201cLautenberg Amendment,\u201d a critical tool available to threatened religious minorities trapped inside Iran who seek religious freedom and refuge in the United States.\u00a0 Congress included this provision in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2013, and must include it again in any continuing resolution to prevent a lapse that would place these persecuted minorities at great risk.\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The Lautenberg Amendment, first enacted as part of the 1989 Foreign Operations Appropriations Bill, established a presumption of refugee eligibility for historically persecuted groups in the former Soviet Union and Southeast Asia.\u00a0 Since 2003, the Lautenberg Amendment has been expanded to cover Iranian religious minorities facing persecution.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Today, the provision is more necessary than ever as Iranian Jews, Christians, and Baha\u2019is suffer systematic persecution and discrimination by the Iranian government.\u00a0 The State Department International Religious Freedom Report and the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom have consistently designated Iran as a \u201cCountry of Particular Concern\u201d for chronic and systematic violations of religious freedom, and this year\u2019s report states that \u201creligious freedom in Iran deteriorated further from an already egregious situation.\u201d\u00a0 At a time when the Iranian regime continues its campaigns to demonize Jews and jail Baha'i leaders for their beliefs, the Lautenberg Amendment preserves a pathway to freedom that is a beacon of hope.\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Without the safeguards provided by the Lautenberg Amendment, past experience has shown that safe transit countries like Austria would no longer be willing to provide visas to allow religious minorities to be processed on their soil. \u00a0With no U.S. Embassy in Tehran, persecuted religious minorities would be forced to flee to dangerous neighboring countries such as Pakistan, where religious minorities also face grave danger.\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 We urge you to act in an expeditious manner to reauthorize the Lautenberg Amendment and thus preserve a safe and reliable mechanism for vulnerable religious minorities to escape harm\u2019s way.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://web.archive.org/web/20140206212738/http://waxman.house.gov/rep-waxman-urges-renewal-legislation-protect-religious-minorities-iran"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.052493928000331, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}