Department of Homeland Security
Announces Climate Change
Professionals Program
The Department of Homeland Security
(DHS) announced the creation
of a new Climate Change Professionals
Program to recruit recent graduates
and current federal employees to support
the Department’s growing focus
on adapting to climate change and improving
resilience. The 2year program
is one of many new activities under the
umbrella of the DHS Climate Change
Action Group, established in 2021 by
Secretary Alejandro N. Mayorkas.
“The Climate Change Professionals
AIRPORT V 26 OICE, FEBRUARY 2022
Program will be instrumental in helping
the Department adapt to our changing
climate by providing hands-on experience
and guidance to young professionals
interested in climate adaptation
and resilience,” said Secretary Mayorkas.
Interested applicants can view
the first job postings for the Climate
Change Professionals Program on the
DHS is Hiring webpage. To learn more
about DHS’s climate commitment, visit
DHS Actions: Climate Change.
DHS Advances Biden-Harris Efforts
Stop Flow of Goods Produced by
Forced Labor
Requests Public Input to Implement Uyghur
Forced Labor Prevention Act and Block
Importation of Goods Produced by Forced Labor
in the People’s Republic of China
The Department of Homeland Security
(DHS) announced, as part of its
implementation of the Uyghur Forced
Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA), that it
will seek public input to inform the Department’s
continued efforts to prohibit
goods from being imported into the
United States that are produced with
forced labor in the People’s Republic of
China, including in the Xinjiang Uyghur
Autonomous Region.
“As part of our efforts to advance
the Biden-Harris Administration’s priority
to eradicate forced labor from U.S.
supply chains, we are taking an important
first step today to implement the
Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act,”
said Secretary Mayorkas. “Every day,
the Department of Homeland Security’s
Customs and Border Protection
ensures that goods made with forced
labor are not able to enter the U.S.
supply chain, and I am proud to work
alongside the world’s leading forced
labor investigators in their mission to
protect human rights and international
labor standards
The UFLPA prohibits goods from
being imported into the United States
that are either produced in China’s Xinjiang
province or by certain entities
identified in the forthcoming UFLPA
enforcement strategy, unless the importer
can prove by clear and convincing
evidence that the goods were not
produced with forced labor. After receiving
comments, the Forced Labor
Enforcement Task Force will conduct
a public hearing and develop a strategy
for supporting enforcement of section
307 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as
amended. DHS and U.S. Customs and
Border Protection will issue guidance
for importers.
Rewards for Justice
The U.S. Department of State’s Rewards for Justice (RFJ) program, administered by the
Diplomatic Security Service, is offering a reward of up to $10 million each for information
leading to the identification or location of ISIS-K leader Sanaullah Ghafari, also known as
Shahab al-Muhajir, and for information leading to the arrest or conviction in any country
of those responsible for the August 26, 2021, terrorist attack at the Kabul airport killing 13
American soldiers.
Banning fl ying disruptors
Delta wants no-fl y list
Delta Air Lines wants the U.S. government
to place passengers convicted
of on-board disruptions on a national
"no-fly" list that would bar them
from future travel on any commercial
airline, according to a letter seen by
Reuters.
Delta Chief Executive Ed Bastian,
in a previously unreported letter to U.S.
Attorney General Merrick Garland,
said the action "will help prevent future
incidents and serve as a strong symbol
of the consequences of not complying
with crew member instructions on commercial
aircraft."
The request comes amid a record
spike in disruptive passengers reported
over the last 13 months. The
Justice Department did not immediately
comment.
In November, Garland directed federal
prosecutors to prioritize prosecution
of airline passengers committing
assaults and other crimes aboard aircraft.
Delta noted there is currently a nofly
list that is a subset of the terrorism
watch list that allows the U.S. government
to prohibit persons considered a
threat to civil aviation from traveling on
airlines.
New CBP Mobile
Passport Control
Pass through customs with this app
Effective February 1, 2022, the CBP MPC mobile app
will be the only authorized application available on iOS and
Android devices.
Mobile Passport Control (MPC) allows eligible travelers
to submit their passport and customs declaration information
through a free, secure app on their smartphone
or other mobile device. Travelers who successfully use an
authorized MPC app will no longer have to complete a paper
form or use an APC kiosk. CBP’s MPC app is a free application
that can be downloaded from the Apple App store
and Google Play and is currently available for eligible travelers
to use upon arrival at MPC 30 approved sites which
can be found here: https://www.cbp.gov/travel/us-citizens/
mobile-passport-controlapproved sites.
Family-Run sex trafficking
organization sentenced
Young girls from Mexico forced into prostitution
Capping off Human Trafficking
month, five members of a family-run sex
trafficking organization were sentenced
this week to prison terms of nearly 40
years in prison by U.S. District Judge Allyne
R. Ross in federal court in Brooklyn.
Jose Miguel Melendez-Rojas was
sentenced to 39 years and six months
in prison; Jose Osvaldo Melendez-Rojas
and Rosalio Melendez-Rojas were each
sentenced to 39 years and four months
in prison; Francisco Melendez-Perez
and Abel Romero-Melendez were sentenced
to 25 years and 20 years in prison
respectively. The defendants were also
ordered to pay restitution to their victims.
The defendants were convicted by a federal
jury in March 2020 of sex trafficking,
sex trafficking conspiracy, sex trafficking
of minors, interstate prostitution,
alien smuggling and money laundering
conspiracy. National Human Trafficking
Resource Center Hotline at 1-888-373-
7888, or Text 233733.
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