Hagerty Introduces Legislation to Hold NGOs Accountable for Facilitating Illegal Immigration
WASHINGTON—United States Senator Bill Hagerty (R-TN), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, (yesterday) introduced the Fixing Exemptions for Networks Choosing to Enable Illegal Migration (FENCE) Act, legislation to revoke the tax-exempt status of organizations that engage in a consistent pattern of providing financial assistance, benefits, services, or other forms of material support to individuals they know to be unlawfully present in the United States.
“It’s absurd that our federal government has been giving tax exemptions and federal funding to NGOs that have helped facilitate record illegal immigration and carry out the far-left’s agenda, while cloaked as charities,” said Senator Hagerty. “President Trump’s executive order requiring a review of federal funding to NGOs will expose this malpractice that has occurred for too long. I’m pleased to introduce this legislation that will augment the President’s work to hold these NGOs accountable by revoking their tax-exempt statuses.”
Background:
The Biden Administration’s immigration policies have drawn significant attention to the role of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in facilitating illegal immigration. Many of these organizations have been involved in efforts to transport and harbor illegal aliens, actions that undermine the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and its ability to enforce federal immigration laws. In numerous cases, these activities have also raised concerns about risks to American citizens’ safety and security.
Despite their tax-exempt status and, in many cases, access to hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding, these NGOs continue to play a significant role in aiding illegal migration into the United States. Taxpayers have been double-funding these organizations, once through resettlement grants and again through tax exemption.
In March 2024, Hagerty forced the Senate to take a vote to stop taxpayer dollars from going to NGOs who were facilitating resettlement of illegal aliens in American cities. Unfortunately, every Senate Democrat voted against the proposal, which would have shifted funding away from NGOs flying illegal aliens into U.S. cities and toward deportation flights to send them back to their country of origin.
Full text of the legislation can be found here.
