The following is a Senate sign-on letter from March 2, 2017, directed to the leadership at the Department of Homeland Security, Justice Department and FBI, seeking collaboration and an update on the actions these agencies intend to take to address, deter, and prevent threats against the Jewish community.  The letter has already secured 38 bi-partisan co-signers (see list below). This was shared with us by the NJ State Association of Jewish Federations. 
 

Dear Secretary Kelly, Attorney General Sessions, and Director Comey:
 
We write to underscore the need for swift action with regard to the deeply troubling series of anonymous bomb threats made against Jewish Community Centers (JCCs), Jewish Day Schools, Synagogues and other buildings affiliated with Jewish organizations or institutions across the country. We thank you for your recent efforts and ask that you inform us of the actions that your Departments plan to take to address threats against these and other religious institutions. We stand ready to work with you to ensure that these centers can continue to serve their communities free from violence and intimidation. 
 
It has become clear that threats of violence against individual JCCs are not isolated incidents. According to the JCC Association of North America, in the first two months of 2017 alone, at least 98 incidents against JCCs and Jewish Day Schools at 81 locations in 33 states have been reported. These cowardly acts aim to create an atmosphere of fear and disrupt the important programs and services offered by JCCs to everyone in the communities they serve, including in our states. In addition to reports of incidents at JCCs and Jewish Day Schools, there have been incidents at cemeteries in both St. Louis and Philadelphia involving the desecration of Jewish headstones. This is completely unacceptable and un-American.
 
We are concerned that the number of incidents is accelerating and failure to address and deter these threats will place innocent people at risk and threaten the financial viability of JCCs, many of which are institutions in their communities. Your Departments can provide crucial assistance by helping JCCs, Jewish Day Schools and Synagogues improve their physical security, deterring threats from being made, and investigating and prosecuting those making these threats or who may seek to act on these threats on the future. We encourage you to communicate with individual JCCs, the JCC Association of North America, Jewish Day Schools, Synagogues and other Jewish community institutions regarding victim assistance, grant opportunities or other federal assistance that may be available to enhance security measures and improve preparedness. We also recognize the anti-Semitic sentiment behind this spate of threats and encourage your Departments to continue to inform state and local law enforcement organizations of their obligations under the Hate Crimes Statistics Act and other federal laws.
 
We are ready to work with you to address this pressing issue, and we look forward to your responses about the actions you intend to take to address, deter, and prevent this threat.
 
Sincerely,
 
JCC Letter Current Signers
 
1.      Peters
2.      Portman
3.      Nelson
4.      Rubio
5.      Udall
6.      Fischer
7.      Carper
8.      Capito
9.      Van Hollen
10.  Gardner
11.  Markey
12.  Tillis
13.  Manchin
14.  Booker
15.  Cantwell
16.  Duckworth
17.  Cortez Masto
18.  Leahy
19.  King
20.  Whitehouse
21.  Casey
22.  Stabenow
23.  Menendez
24.  Hassan
25.  Gillibrand
26.  Hirono
27.  Brown
28.  Donnelly
29.  Schatz
30.  Blumenthal
31.  Shaheen
32.  Warren
33.  Kaine
34.  Blumenthal
35.  Bennet
36.  Klobuchar
37.  Reed
38.  Schumer