Jefferson Shreve

ICYMI: Congressman Shreve’s Rural Animal Shelter Legislation Included in 2026 Farm Bill

WASHINGTON — Last week, Congressman Jefferson Shreve (IN-06) joined House Republicans in advancing the 2026 Farm Bill through the House of Representatives. The final bill included provisions from Rep. Shreve’s bipartisan Rural Animal Shelter Investment Act, which helps rural animal shelters access existing federal funding to build, expand, or improve their facilities. Congressman Shomari C. Figures (AL-02) co-led the legislation. Animal shelters play an important role in rural communities. They rescue and care for animals, support public health, and often fill gaps where veterinary services are limited. Yet many rural shelters operate on tight budgets and have not fully accessed support available through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Community Facilities Direct Loan and Grant Program. Over the past decade, rural shelters have received funding through this program only a handful of times. The Rural Animal Shelter Investment Act clarifies that animal shelters qualify as “Essential Community Facilities” under the USDA program, helping local shelters apply for funding to improve their facilities and better serve their communities. “Rural animal shelters do important work, often with limited resources,” said Rep. Shreve. “This is a simple fix. It makes clear that shelters are eligible for existing federal support so they can build, expand, and improve the facilities they rely on every day.” “Animal shelters in rural communities house and care for animals in critical need,” said Rep. Figures. “This bipartisan bill will help animal shelters apply for more federal funding to support their work.” The legislation is endorsed by the American Kennel Club.

Shreve Introduces VERIFY Act to Strengthen Immigration Verification and Protect Public Safety

Position: The release advocates for the VERIFY Act, which would modernize the federal SAVE immigration verification system by requiring faster status updates (within 24 hours), improving inter-agency coordination, and strengthening oversight to prevent ineligible individuals from obtaining commercial driver's licenses and other benefits.

WASHINGTON — Following multiple deadly crashes involving illegal aliens unlawfully holding commercial driver’s licenses, including incidents that claimed the lives of Hoosiers, Congressman Jefferson Shreve (IN-06) introduced the VERIFY Act of 2026 with his Republican colleague Dave Taylor (OH-02). The VERIFY Act would modernize the Department of Homeland Security’s Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements system, known as SAVE, which agencies use to verify immigration status for licenses, benefits, and other approvals. Gaps and delays in federal record updates have left agencies relying on outdated information when making eligibility decisions. The VERIFY Act requires immigration status updates within 24 hours, improves coordination across federal databases, and strengthens oversight so federal, state, local, and tribal agencies receive faster, more reliable verification. “This is about accountability. When agencies issue commercial driver’s licenses, they need accurate information without delay,” said Congressman Shreve. “Americans have died because of these failures. The SAVE system is outdated. The VERIFY Act brings it into the modern era and strengthens public safety.” “The SAVE system is vital to ensuring that individuals in our country are here lawfully,” said Congressman Dave Taylor. “I am proud to support Rep. Shreve’s efforts to strengthen enforcement from within and protect Americans from bad actors. By modernizing the SAVE System, we will equip the Department of Homeland Security and other agencies with the most accurate, reliable data to enforce our nation’s immigration laws.” Read the full bill here.

Congressman Shreve’s Bill to Strengthen Domestic Mining Advances Out of Committee

Position: Congressman Shreve supports streamlining federal permitting for domestic mining and refining projects through the FAST Act to strengthen critical mineral supply chains and reduce reliance on foreign sources.

WASHINGTON — Today, Congressman Jefferson Shreve (IN-06) and Congressman Blake Moore (UT-01) announced that the Protecting Domestic Mining Act of 2025 advanced out of the House Committee on Natural Resources. The bill is an important step toward strengthening America’s critical mineral supply chain, cutting permitting delays, and reducing reliance on foreign adversaries. The legislation amends the FAST Act to ensure mining and refining projects can benefit from a more coordinated and efficient federal permitting process. It also stops a proposed Biden-era rule that would narrow which mining projects qualify for that process. “The Biden Administration’s proposed rule would make it harder to produce critical minerals in the United States and easier for China to keep gaining ground. That makes no sense,” said Congressman Jefferson Shreve. “We should be cutting red tape, strengthening American mining and processing, and securing the supply chains our economy and national security depend on.” “The U.S. mining industry is critical to our national security and energy dominance. In Utah alone, mining supports more than 43,000 jobs and contributes more than $5.2 billion to our state’s GDP each year,” said Congressman Blake Moore. “As demand for critical minerals continues to grow, our permitting process must keep pace. I’m proud to work with Congressman Shreve on the Protecting Domestic Mining Act of 2025 to ensure more mining projects can qualify for FAST-41 status.” “America’s ability to build, power, and defend itself starts with reliable access to critical minerals,” said House Committee on Natural Resources Chairman Bruce Westerman. “H.R. 1501 strengthens domestic mining by expanding FAST-41 expedited permitting for mining and processing projects, supporting jobs, and reducing reliance on foreign adversaries. I thank Rep. Shreve for his leadership on policies that strengthen our supply chains and support American workers and industry.” “It is imperative to our nation’s economic prosperity and national security that we not only move forward with more mining projects, but move forward faster,” said Heather Reams, President and CEO of Citizens for Responsible Energy Solutions. “The Protecting Domestic Mining Act is an important step in the right direction by creating greater opportunity for mineral projects to receive expedited consideration under FAST-41. CRES is proud to support this legislation.” The Protecting Domestic Mining Act of 2025 now heads to the full House for consideration. Read the full bill text here.