Bill Text: NJ AR183 | 2024-2025 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Declares support for Ukraine and Ukrainian refugees residing in NJ; expresses solidarity with its citizens; urges federal government to continue providing support for Ukraine and funds for refugee programs.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2025-03-17 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Oversight, Reform and Federal Relations Committee [AR183 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2024-AR183-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman MITCHELLE DRULIS
District 16 (Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex and Somerset)
SYNOPSIS
Declares support for Ukraine and Ukrainian refugees residing in NJ; expresses solidarity with its citizens; urges federal government to continue providing support for Ukraine and funds for refugee programs.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Assembly Resolution supporting Ukraine in its conflict with Russia and Ukrainian refugees residing in New Jersey, expressing solidarity with its citizens, and urging the federal government to continue providing support for Ukraine and funds for refugee programs.
Whereas, On December 1, 1991, more than 90 percent of Ukrainian citizens voted in a national referendum in support of independence following the collapse of the Soviet Union; and
Whereas, On December 5, 1994, the United States, the Russian Federation, and the United Kingdom signed the Budapest Memorandum on Security Assurances, whereby each country pledged to respect the independence and sovereignty of Ukraine's borders while refraining from the threat or use of force against Ukraine; and
Whereas, In 2014, the Russian Federation invaded the independent state of Ukraine, annexed Crimea, instigated conflict in the eastern regions of the country, and threatened Ukraine's freedom of navigation in the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov; and
Whereas, On February 24, 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin launched an unprovoked, full-scale war of aggression against Ukraine, with the aim of ending its existence as an independent country and bringing it under the control of Russia; and
Whereas, Despite overwhelming odds, with support from the United States and European allies, the Ukrainian people, and their democratically elected leaders, have courageously resisted Russia's invasion and have won back half of the territories that the Russian forces seized; and
Whereas, Russian forces in Ukraine have reportedly committed war crimes and crimes against humanity, massacring Ukrainian civilians, deliberately targeting civilian buildings, kidnapping more than 19,000 Ukrainian children from their families, and breaking ceasefire agreements with Ukraine on numerous occasions; and
Whereas, On March 17, 2023, the International Criminal Court issued warrants of arrest for Russian President Vladimir Putin for these alleged war crimes committed in Ukraine; and
Whereas, As a result of Russia's unprovoked war, an estimated 43,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed and 370,000 have been wounded, more than 12,000 Ukrainian civilians, including more than 600 children, have been killed, 29,000 Ukrainian civilians, including more than 1,800 children, have been injured, and approximately 6.9 million people have been displaced; and
Whereas, The Refugee Resettlement Program was created by an act of Congress entitled the "Refugee Act of 1980" and received almost unanimous bipartisan support, including passing unanimously in the US Senate before being signed into law; and
Whereas, Since April of 2022, over 187,000 Ukrainian refugees have been admitted to the United States under the "Uniting for Ukraine" program, and another 350,000 Ukrainians have arrived in the United States outside of that program through temporary visas, many of whom have sought refuge in New Jersey; and
Whereas, Many of the Ukrainian refugees present in this country wish to return home, but cannot due to Russia's ongoing aggression and the destruction of their homes; and
Whereas, On January 20, 2025 through a presidential executive order, the United States Refugee Admissions Program was suspended and federal funding for the program, whose mission is to assist refugees who have arrived in this country, were frozen, and
Whereas, As a result, Ukrainian refugees in New Jersey, who were brought to the United States through actions by the federal government, are now faced with a lack of federal funding for support services, such as employment services, English language training, and other programs that promote self-sufficiency, wellbeing, and integration; and
Whereas, These cuts to federal funding have negatively impacted service providers in New Jersey by causing a loss of jobs for New Jersey residents and a loss of the services these programs provide; and
Whereas, The United States has an important trading partnership with Ukraine and imports numerous goods from Ukraine such as iron, steel, fertilizers, agricultural products, and machinery, many of which are utilized in and provide benefits to New Jersey; and
Whereas, As of 2022, New Jersey's exports to Ukraine were the second highest in the nation, resulting in a positive impact on New Jersey businesses; and
Whereas, Disruptions to trade between Ukraine and the United States caused by the war have caused the prices of these goods to rise for New Jersey families and businesses; and
Whereas, Approximately 67,000 Ukrainian-Americans call New Jersey their home, enriching our communities with their culture, making extraordinary contributions to our economy, and deepening our connection to their ancestral homeland; and
Whereas, The Ukrainian people have demonstrated immense courage, resolve, and restraint in their righteous pursuit of sovereignty, democracy, and their right to exist in peace; and
Whereas, It is altogether fitting and proper for New Jersey to condemn Russia's unbridled aggression and call upon Russia to stop the assault on Ukraine and work towards forming a lasting peace; and
Whereas,
It is altogether fitting and proper for New Jersey to support a secure,
democratic, and independent Ukraine, free to choose its own leaders and future;
now, therefore,
Be It Resolved by the General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. This House, and the people of New Jersey, express their gratitude to the people of Ukraine for the sacrifices they have made and the courage they have demonstrated by holding back a Chinese, Iranian, and North Korean-backed Russian invasion of Europe, and continue to stand in solidarity with Ukraine and the Ukrainian people.
2. This House condemns the illegal aggression against Ukraine by Vladimir Putin and the Russian Federation, who are solely responsible for starting the brutal war and who could end the war at any point by withdrawing their forces.
3. This House urges the federal government to pursue, in concert with Ukraine and European allies, a just, negotiated end to the war that preserves Ukraine's sovereignty and right to choose its allies, that secures the return to Ukraine for all prisoners and kidnapped children, and that is backed by meaningful European and American security guarantees.
4. This House urges the federal government to continue the provision of military and economic aid to Ukraine for as long as Russia's invasion continues and, following a negotiated settlement, to ensure that peace endures.
5. This House urges the federal government to unfreeze all funding for federal refugee programs and aid to Ukraine and its people.
6. Copies of this resolution, as filed with the Secretary of State, shall be transmitted by the Clerk of the General Assembly to the President and Vice President of the United States, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, the Minority Leader of the United States House of Representatives, the President Pro Tempore of the United States Senate, every member of Congress elected from this State, Ukraine's ambassador to the United States, and Ukraine's ambassador to the United Nations.
STATEMENT
This resolution express gratitude to the people of Ukraine for the sacrifices they have made and the courage they have demonstrated by holding back a Chinese, Iranian, and North Korean-backed Russian invasion of Europe, and expresses the State's solidarity with Ukraine and the Ukrainian people.
The resolution condemns the illegal aggression against Ukraine by Vladimir Putin and the Russian Federation, who are solely responsible for starting this brutal war and who could end this war at any point by withdrawing their forces.
The resolution urges the federal government to pursue, in concert with Ukraine and European allies, a just, negotiated end to the war that preserves Ukraine's sovereignty and right to choose its allies, that secures the return to Ukraine for all prisoners and kidnapped children, and that is backed by meaningful European and American security guarantees.
This resolution urges the federal government to continue the provision of military and economic aid to Ukraine for as long as Russia's invasion continues and, following a negotiated settlement, to ensure that peace endures.
The resolution urges the federal government to unfreeze all funding for federal refugee programs and aid to Ukraine and its people.
