{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["http://noem.house.gov/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=FF48BFF7-A5E6-4E91-876A-76969881E6D8", "Security Upgrade of Visa Waiver Program Passes House with Noem Support", "2015-12-08", "2015", "2015-12", "Republican", "House", "SD", "Kristi Noem", "N000184", "noem.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Representative Kristi Noem today joined a bipartisan majority of House members in passing H.R. 158, the Visa Waiver Program Improvement and Terrorist Travel Prevention Act. The legislation prohibits individuals who have traveled to countries with terrorist hotspots, like Iraq and Syria, from entering the U.S. without going through the full visa vetting process  even if they are from a country that participates in the United States Visa Waiver Program.\r\nMy number one priority is the safety and security of the American people, said Noem. The Visa Waiver Program  as it currently stands  poses security concerns that need to be addressed. With thousands of individuals traveling to Iraq and Syria from Visa Waiver Program countries, this is a commonsense change that makes a significant security upgrade.\r\nCreated in 1986, the Visa Waiver Program allows more than 20 million people annually from 38 participating countries to more easily travel to the U.S. for up to 90 days. It is estimated that approximately 5,000 Europeans have traveled to Syria and Iraq to join ISIL, many of whom are from countries that participate in the Visa Waiver Program. To close this security gap, H.R.158:\r\n \r\nGives the Secretary of Homeland Security the authority to suspend a countrys participation in the program if they fail to share counterterrorism information with the U.S.\r\nDenies Visa Waiver Program status to those citizens from participating countries that have traveled to or are dual nationals of certain terrorist hotspots since 2011\r\nRequires all Visa Waiver Program countries to use fraud resistant e-passports\r\nAllows for the suspension of high-risk countries", 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": ["http://noem.house.gov/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=FF48BFF7-A5E6-4E91-876A-76969881E6D8"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.8498239330947399, "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"}