Amo, McCaul, 148 Members Request $1 Billion for Nonprofit Security Grant Program to Protect Houses of Worship and At-Risk Organizations
WASHINGTON, DC –Friday, March 20th, Congressman Gabe Amo (D-RI) and Chair Emeritus Michael McCaul (R-TX) led a letter signed by 148 Members of Congress requesting $1 billion in federal funding for the Nonprofit Security Grant Program (NSGP). With faith-based organizations experiencing a dramatic increase in violence, this is the highest request for funding since the creation of the program.
In a letter to the Appropriations Committee, the Members write:
“The threat of violence is unfortunately increasing at places of worship across our country at alarming rates. There has been an increase in hoax bomb and active shooter threats against houses of worship to interrupt services and intimidate the worshippers. There has also been an increase in antisemitic incidents across the country following the October 7th attack in Israel. In 2025, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) Audit of Antisemitic Incidents recorded nearly 10,000 antisemitic incidents in the United States, an over 893 percent increase over the past decade and the highest number recorded in a single year since ADL started tracking antisemitic incidents in 1979. A recent study by ADL and the Jewish Federation of North America also found that 55% of all Jewish Americans experienced some form of antisemitism in the last year.”
“Nationwide, there have been countless acts of violence against religious communities, including these specific incidents that underscore the importance and complexity of protecting our religious communities from violence and extremism.”
“Today’s threat environment provides a compelling public interest in preventing attacks that would disrupt the vital health, human, social, cultural, religious, and other humanitarian services provided by at-risk faith-based and nonprofit institutions. Such threats terrorize the lives and well-being of millions of Americans who operate, utilize, live, and work in their communities. Accordingly, we respectfully urge you to strengthen the NSGP by properly funding the program at $1 billion in FY2027, and we remain sincerely grateful for your past support of this critical program.”
“According to AJC’s State of Antisemitism in America 2025 Report, 28% of American Jews say that at least one Jewish institution they are affiliated with has been a target of antisemitic incidents in the last five years, and 55% of American Jews altered their behavior in the past year out of fear of antisemitism,” said Ted Deutch, CEO of American Jewish Committee. “At a time of rising threats against Jewish institutions and other at-risk communities, most recently underscored by the Detroit synagogue attack, robust funding for the Nonprofit Security Grant Program is essential to ensure communities have the resources they need to remain safe. AJC commends Representatives Amo and McCaul for leading their colleagues in calling for an increase in this vital funding.”
“ADL is grateful to Representatives Amo and McCaul for their leadership in spearheading a bipartisan congressional effort calling for a historic $1 billion in funding for the Nonprofit Security Grant Program (NSGP),” said Lauren Wolman, ADL’s Senior Director of Government Relations and Strategy. “At a time of rising antisemitism and continued threats to houses of worship, this program provides critical resources that help communities protect themselves. The need is clear, demand continues to far outpace available funding, and we urge Congress to act to ensure NSGP is funded at a level that reflects the reality on the ground.”
“We are in the middle of the most serious, violent antisemitic threat environment against the Jewish community in the history of the United States,” said Eric Fingerhut, President and CEO of Jewish Federations of North America. “The Jewish community is spending over $765 million a year to protect itself. It’s the largest item in every synagogue, every school, every camp, every Jewish community center budget. It is the government’s responsibility to protect its citizens in their places of worship, in their places of communal gathering, and the government of the United States must step up to this responsibility now, before we have another tragedy of a kind that we almost had in Detroit last week.”
“The thousands of synagogues and hundreds of Jewish schools affiliated with the Orthodox Union (Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations) across the United States are very grateful to Representatives Amo and McCaul for their leadership in addressing our massive security needs at this critical time,” said Nathan Diament, Executive Director of the Orthodox Union Advocacy Center. “If the latest attack on a Michigan synagogue was not a wake up call to Congress, that must act now and fully fund the Nonprofit Security Grant Program, I don’t know what is. In America, everyone’s freedom to worship must be accompanied by a freedom from fear. We urge Congressional leaders to heed the call in today’s letter right away.”
The full letter can be found here.
