1. United States
2. Ohio
3. Letter

I am writing to urge you to work across the aisle to immediately end the Department of Homeland Security shutdown. However, I believe any funding agreement must include the common-sense guardrails and oversight measures that have been proposed to protect American citizens and residents from the documented overreach of ICE and CBP. For our law enforcement agencies to be effective, they must be professional, transparent, and accountable to the Constitution. I am demanding that the following guardrails be included in any final funding package: -- Mandatory Use of Body-Worn Cameras: It is standard practice for modern law enforcement to use body cameras during public interactions. Requiring this for ICE and CBP protects both the public and the officers by providing an objective record of events. -- Prohibition on Face Coverings: Unless involved in a formally approved undercover operation, federal agents should not be allowed to wear masks or face coverings during enforcement actions. Transparency and identification are essential to preventing "paramilitary" style tactics in our communities. -- Protection of Sensitive Locations: We must codify a ban on enforcement actions near schools, medical facilities, places of worship, and polling sites. These areas must remain safe for all people to access essential services without fear. -- Verification of Citizenship: Recent reports of U.S. citizens being wrongfully detained are unacceptable. I support the requirement for agents to make every reasonable effort to verify citizenship before detention. -- Judicial Warrant Requirements: To uphold the Fourth Amendment, I am asking you to require judicial warrants for home entries. The use of administrative warrants for residential "sweeps" undermines the legal standards every other law enforcement agency must follow. These are not "radical" requests—they are the basic standards of professional policing that ensure the rule of law. Funding an agency without these safeguards is a dereliction of Congressional oversight duties. Please prioritize a bipartisan deal that funds our essential services—including the Coast Guard, TSA, and FEMA—while ensuring that ICE and CBP operate with the accountability the American people deserve.