9/11 Can You Hear Me Now Act

Mr. Speaker, I rise to speak in support of H.R. 5852, the 21st Century Emergency Communications Act of 2006.

As the ranking member of the House Committee on Homeland Security, I am proud to be an original cosponsor of this legislation. This bill amends the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to enhance and improve the capability of first responders to communicate during times of emergency. It does so by improving the coordination of Federal, State, territorial, local and tribal governments as it relates to voice, data and other emerging technologies.

Mr. Speaker, the Committee on Homeland Security has heard from more than 25 witnesses in the more

than six hearings held on the interoperable challenges of emergency communications. We heard from Governors, mayors, first responders, emergency support responders, the heads of Federal agencies with responsibilities for promulgating emergency communication capabilities, as well as experts in the technology sectors of interoperable emergency communications.

All in all, Mr. Speaker, the message from the witnesses was twofold: the need for leadership and funding for the deployment of an interoperable emergency communications system.

Today, Congress has finally decided to show one of these two things by placing this legislation on the calendar. The timing, days before Members go home before the August recess and only a couple of months before fall elections, does not escape me.

Despite the convenience of timing, I am grateful that we are moving forward and finally are doing something to help the men and women on the front lines of our homeland security efforts. This has been a long time coming.

When Air Florida Flight 90 crashed in the Potomac Basin in Washington, D.C. on January 13, 1982, Congress learned that there were no provisions for communication interoperability in place.

On April 19, 1995, when the white supremacist and homegrown terrorist Timothy McVeigh rammed his flammable truck into the Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City, the post-investigation revealed that the 117 local, State, and Federal agencies, with more than 1,500 personnel on the scene, were forced to rely on runners to disseminate critical, time sensitive information.

Congress must respond. Now, in less than 2 months, this Nation will mark the fifth anniversary of September 11, 2001. On that fateful day, Americans learned that the Nation was vulnerable and unprepared for an attack that killed almost 3,000 people. Among the dead were 343 New York City Fire Department members and 23 New York City Police Department officers.

As a volunteer firefighter of 26 years, Mr. Speaker, my heart dropped when I heard of the radio communication failures of that day. Lack of inoperable communication impeded a lot of help that could have gone to those individuals.

Four years later, Mr. Speaker, as Hurricane Katrina and Rita struck the gulf coast, the same story emerged. Firefighters and police along the gulf coast didn't have the means to communicate.

This legislation will move us closer to fixing the interoperability crisis facing our Nation. As I noted earlier, leadership is only half the solution for the interoperability crisis. All our efforts here today will be for naught if we do not provide funding for the development and deployment of a nationwide emergency communication system. My colleague, Representative Nita Lowey of New York, has repeatedly raised this issue.

Mr. Speaker, I look forward to the passage of this legislation.

In less than two months, this Nation will mark the fifth anniversary of the Al Qaida's attack on the United States. On Tuesday, September 11, 2001, millions of Americans watched in shock and horror as American Airline Flight 11 and United Airline Flight 75 torpedoed into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City at 8:46 AM and 9:20 AM respectively. Within 17 minutes, the public learned that American Airlines Flight 77 smashed into the Pentagon. Twenty-six minutes later, United Airlines Flight 93 plummeted into a field in Shankville, PA after passengers attempted to deter the terrorists' attempt to fly the plane to Washington, D.C. Al Qaida's villainous assault on American soil killed almost 3,000 people. Among the dead were 343 New York City Fire Department Firefighters and 23 New York City Police Department officers.

Americans were startled to learn of the United States' vulnerabilities and lack of preparedness on September 11th. As a former volunteer firefighter of 26 years, I understood instinctively the radio communication challenges the firefighters and police officers faced in New York City. As one who experienced the threat of collapsing buildings and other dangers in the line of duty, I was heartbroken to learn that New York City firefighters never received the police warning to evacuate the North Tower after the South Tower's collapse because their system was not interoperable with the police communication systems. Lack of interoperable communication also impeded the relay of the message that an open stairwell in the South Tower free of debris and obstruction could be used for evacuation.

Interoperable or emergency communication capabilities became catch- phrases to the public because of September 11th. However, first responders face the challenge of emergency communications in everyday emergencies and high-profiled public safety events. Members of Congress also know of these challenges. When Air Florida Flight 90 crashed in the Potomac Basin in Washington, D.C. on January 13, 1982, Congress learned that there were no provisions for communication interoperability in place. On April 19, 1995, when white supremacist Timothy McVeigh rammed his flammable truck into the Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City, the post-investigation revealed that the 117 local, state, and federal agencies with more than 1,500 personnel on the scene were forced to rely on runners to disseminate critical, time sensitive information.

In 1996, the Public Safety Wireless Advisory Committee (PSWAC), a blue ribbon committee created by Congress to examine the issue of interoperable communication, concluded that public safety agencies did not have sufficient radio spectrum to communicate with each other when they responded to emergencies. Responding to the PSWAC report, Congress included a provision in the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 which called for the Federal Communications Commission to allocate portions of the 700 Mhz spectrum for public safety use by December 31, 2006.

The catastrophic Hurricanes Katrina and Rita demonstrated, yet again, the critical need for operable and interoperable communication. Despite the high-profiled events and everyday challenges facing first responders, Congress extended the date for freeing the much-needed public safety spectrum to February 17, 2009.

Interoperability directly impacts the first responder community which consists of over 61,000 public safety agencies including 960,000 firefighters, 830,000 EMS personnel, and 710,000 Law Enforcement Officers. The U.S. Conference of Mayors (USCM) conducted a survey of 192 cities regarding their interoperable communications systems in 2004 and found:

--Of the cities with a major chemical plant, 97% reported that they did not have interoperable communications capability between the chemical plant, police, fire and emergency medical services;

--60% of the cities reported that they did not have interoperable communications capability with state emergency operations centers; and

--75% of the cities pointed out that limited funding was preventing achieving full interoperable communications capability.

Despite the pressing need for effective emergency communications capabilities, the Department of Homeland Security has incredibly assigned a full-time staff of only four to seven employees to provide grant guidance, develop standards and methodology, implement pilot programs and the expansion of the Rapidcom program, research and development, conduct a national interoperability baseline study, and disaster management and emergency communication at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

The 9/11 Commission said a rededication to preparedness is perhaps the best way to honor the memories of those we lost that day [September 11]. This is why I join my fellow original cosponsors to introduce the 21st Century Emergency Communications Act of 2006. H.R. 5852 will improve the country's preparedness and emergency communications capability by (1) creating, for the first time, a central office within the Department for the administration and policy consideration for emergency communications; (2) ensuring appropriate staffing and resources commitment to improve emergency communication capabilities; (3) compelling DHS to create a national emergency communications plan and inventory of the Nation's emergency communications system and capabilities; and, (4) seeking accountability regarding the use of DHS funds and governance.

The bill would establish an Office of Emergency Communications within the Department where the Assistant Secretary for Emergency Communications would be directed to foster the development of interoperable emergency communications capabilities by State, territorial, local, tribal, and public safety agencies. The Office would prepare a baseline report that provides a snapshot of the current state of emergency communications capabilities; follow-up with periodic assessment reports regarding Federal efforts to address existing gaps and identify best-practices models; coordinate the capability to deploy backup communications services in the event of system failures during an emergency; create regional working groups made up of public and private sector emergency communication experts that would assess and report on the state of emergency communication networks nationwide;

provide technical assistance to state and local governments; and, develop a plan to ensure the operability of the Federal governments communications systems.

The legislation would require the Secretary to report to Congress on the resources and staff necessary to carry out the responsibilities of the Office of Emergency Communications not later than 60 days after the enactment of the bill. Within 30 days of the Secretary's report to Congress, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) is to review, assess, and report on the findings submitted by the Secretary of Homeland Security.

The bill would also call a National Emergency Communications Strategy to expedite an effective nationwide emergency communications system and conduct a national inventory of the channels, frequencies, and the types of communication systems and equipments. The plan would also identify and make recommendations regarding both short-term and long- term obstacles and solutions to achieving emergency communication capabilities at all levels of government; set goals and timeframes for achieving nationwide emergency communication capabilities; and, accelerate the development of national standards for emergency communications equipment.

To improve the accountability and good governance, State and local governments would be required to establish effective statewide interoperable communications plans before being able to use Department of Homeland Security grant funds for emergency communications. The Department's grant guidelines would also have to be coordinated and consistent with the goals of the national strategy for emergency communications.

Finally, this legislation would establish an Emergency Communications Preparedness Center to act as a clearinghouse for the Federal Government's efforts to achieve nationwide interoperability; ensure cooperation among the relevant departments and agencies to implement the goals of the emergency communications strategy, and prepare and submit to Congress, on an annual basis, a strategic assessment regarding efforts of Federal departments and agencies to implement the emergency communications strategy.

The 21st Century Emergency Communications Act of 2006 will take substantial steps to provide the leadership that is needed on emergency communication. I hope this Congress moves quickly to pass this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to rise in support as a sponsor of H.R. 5852, the 21st Century Emergency Communications Act of 2006. Although I appreciate the comments from the gentleman from Michigan, I would like to first address before I get into my formal statement some of his comments.

There have been several hearings, four hearings and a joint hearing, held on the issue of interoperability and operability under the umbrella of the Homeland Security Committee and, more specifically, through the Emergency Preparedness Subcommittee that I chair.

I have only been in Congress 18 months. I was a police officer for 33 years. The last 8 years of that I was the sheriff. So I know a little bit about interoperability. I know a little bit about the inability for police officers to communicate. I know a little bit about life and death, and the ability to be in touch with your communications center or not to be in touch with your communications center, or not to have a partner present, or wait for a partner when you are facing someone with a gun. And I understand, too, the gentleman from Michigan has some experience in law enforcement and hopefully understands the importance of this bill.

I would also like to point out that between 2003 and 2005, $2 billion have been spent by the Federal Government across this Nation for interoperability without any national plan, without any national standards. And that is what this bill addresses today, and that is why it is so important for first responders across this country.

So there have been hearings. And not only have there been hearings, but these hearings have been held with people in attendance like firefighters, police officers, emergency management, people on the ground, people doing the job. We are not just hearing from politicians and mayors and CEOs of police departments and sheriff's offices, we are hearing from cops and firefighters, and they are supporting this bill 110 percent.

So, I would like to thank Mr. Pascrell, my ranking member on my subcommittee, and I would like to thank Mr. Thompson, the ranking member of the full committee, and all those who serve on both committees, the Subcommittee on Emergency Preparedness, Science and Technology and the full Homeland Security Committee, who supported this bill.

When people look at Congress, they say what are we doing? Why are we not working together? On this particular issue, we did work together. This was a combined effort, this was a team effort, and it was congenial and it was an effort that was well respected by every member and every staff member on both the subcommittee and the committee.

Protecting our Nation should never be an issue where Democrats and Republicans cannot come together and recognize the need for our cooperation, especially on behalf of our first responders to ensure that our communities stay safe.

The Committee on Homeland Security did not just develop a bipartisan legislation overnight. Rather, it is the product of a series of hearings on the state of public safety energy communications. I presided over these hearings as chairman of the Subcommittee on Emergency Preparedness, Science and Technology, as well as held countless meetings on the topic with first responders, government officials, and other interested stakeholders. Last fall, Chairman King appointed me to serve as the chairman of the Emergency Preparedness Subcommittee. I know the importance of finding solutions to this problem. That is precisely why I made interoperability the subcommittee's number one priority.

Until the events of September 11, 2001, many people in this Nation believed and assumed that first responders from different disciplines and jurisdictions could actually talk to each other. It wasn't happening. It is still not happening today. Unfortunately, that was not the case then, and, as demonstrated by the inadequate responses to Hurricane Katrina, that is not the case today. In fact, inability of first responders to communicate with one another effectively led to the loss of many lives in New Orleans and in other gulf coast communities. This is simply unacceptable. It is intolerable that our Nation's law enforcement, fire service, and emergency medical services personnel still confront many of the same emergency communication problems that I did as a rookie cop when I started in 1972.

To many, the word ``interoperability'' means little. It is a little confusing term that police officers, firefighters, and first responders use. But I want to just share a personal story.

Back in the early 1970s when I was a deputy in a police car, I responded to a call where a young man 17 years old was high on drugs and alcohol, and he was able to gain access to his father's .308 Winchester rifle and he came from his house and he began to shoot at the neighborhood. I was the first car to arrive. A shot was fired over my police car. He ran out the back door of his house. We lost him for a while. We were able to surround the area. I was one of the officers on the perimeter. My radio didn't work, and a neighbor who saw the young man with the rifle pointed at three Seattle police officers who were coming to help the sheriffs office in the south end of the county called the neighbor across the street because she was afraid to leave her house. The neighbor across the street ran across the street to my police car and told me what was going on, because the person saw this young man ready to fire on three police officers.

I grabbed my police radio and I tried to get through the communications center, and I couldn't. No one heard me. A rifle pointed at three police officers, and I could not communicate back in 1974, 1975.

Three police officers' lives are now in danger. The only choice I had was to holster my weapon because there were people in the house peeking out of the window, watching the young man with the rifle pointed at the police officers, and run across the yard. That is what I did, holstered my gun, radio would not work, ran across the yard, jumped on the back of the 17-year-old with the .308 Winchester rifle and now was in a fight for my life.

Interoperability is a life and death matter. This bill matters to the police officers, firefighters and first responders working in our country today.

As I said earlier, the legislation before us today is based on the record made during four separate hearings, and during those hearings, the subcommittee heard testimony from a wide variety of parties including first responders, public works, utilities, hospitals, State and local officials, standards-setting organizations, the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Commerce, the Federal Communications Commission, and other Federal Departments.

During these hearings, the witnesses identified the same problems over and over again. We heard about the lack of an accountable senior- level official in the Department of Homeland Security to oversee interoperability. When I first came here, I was told at one of my first hearings that the Federal Government has been dealing with the problem of interoperability for 10 years; and as I have just shared with you, we have been dealing with it as police officers for over 30 years. Something needs to be done, and it needs to be done now.

The absence of national voluntary consensus standards to help State and local governments to make wise decisions when purchasing communications equipment is something we heard over and over again.

We also heard about the failure of the Department to condition the use of grant funds by State and local governments on approved statewide communications plans and the absence of effective coordination between Federal Departments with shared responsibility for emergency communications.

H.R. 5852 will solve these and other problems that hinder the rapid deployment of interoperable emergency communication systems in our Nation.

H.R. 5852 enjoys broad support from members of the Committee on Homeland Security. It is almost identical to the provisions of H.R. 5351, the National Emergency Management Reform and Enhancement Act of 2006, a comprehensive Katrina lessons-learned legislation that the Committee on Homeland Security passed 28-0.

Mr. Speaker, it is time for us to send a message to our Nation's first responders that we support them in their efforts to protect us. Passage of H.R. 5852 would send such a message. I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of H.R. 5852.

Mr. Speaker, before I conclude, I will include in the Record at this point letters exchanged between the Committee on Homeland Security and the Committee on Science regarding jurisdiction over this bill, and I thank the Science Committee and Energy and Commerce Committee for their input on this important legislation.

House of Representatives,

Committee on Science,

Washington, DC, July 24, 2006.

Hon. Peter T. King,

Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security, Ford House Office

Building, Washington, DC.

Dear Mr. Chairman: I am writing to you concerning the

jurisdictional interest of the Science Committee in matters

being considered in H.R. 5852, the 21st Century Emergency

Communications Act of 2006. The Science Committee

acknowledges the importance of H.R. 5852 and the need for the

legislation to move expeditiously. Therefore, while we have a

valid claim to jurisdiction over the bill, I agree not to

request a sequential referral. This, of course, is

conditional on our mutual understanding that nothing in this

legislation or my decision to forgo a sequential referral

waives, reduces or otherwise affects the jurisdiction of the

Science Committee, and that a copy of this letter and of your

response will be included in the Congressional Record when

the bill is considered on the House Floor.

The Science Committee also asks that you support our

request to be conferees on any provisions over which we have

jurisdiction during House-Senate conference on this

legislation.

Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Sincerely,

Sherwood Boehlert,

Chairman.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

While I do not oppose the substance of H.R. 5852, the 21st Century Emergency Communications Act of 2006, I

strongly oppose the process by which this bill has been brought to the floor today.

H.R. 5852 was introduced July 20, 5 days ago, and was referred to the Energy and Commerce Committee. The committee has held no hearings on this bill nor did the subcommittee or full committee ever mark up this bill. The last hearing the committee held on this issue was September 2005, and the focus was public safety communications after Hurricane Katrina. Now, a month before the anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, the majority party is bringing up a bill that is not nearly enough to help our first responders on the ground.

This is no way to bring public safety legislation to the floor, and this process does a disservice to all our public safety officers throughout America.

Since the bill was not subject to any hearings in the Energy and Commerce Committee, I will not spend a lot of time talking about the bill's substance. I will say that the Department of Homeland Security should have taken these steps months and years ago. This bill gives the Department of Homeland Security the ability to deny grants to States and localities that don't have interoperability plans completed and don't meet minimum standards.

Let me be clear. I support accountability for the money spent from the Department of Homeland Security grant programs. However, we have not heard from the States and localities, because they did not have a hearing on this bill. I suspect that some States and localities may consider these provisions to be unfunded mandates.

The bill calls for periodic baseline surveys on the level of interoperability across the country. I support efforts to measure our progress towards interoperable public safety communications; however, I have little faith that the Department of Homeland Security is going to complete these surveys. We heard in committee that while the first survey was supposed to be finished by 2005, the Department had only recently agreed on methodology and had no start time in mind.

A bill that holds DHS's feet to the fire is a good thing. The administration could certainly use some prodding. DHS testified in September that it is the administration's goal to achieve interoperability within the next 20 years, by 2023. We don't have 20 years to become interoperable as a Nation. Our first responders are on the front lines in the war against terror today. They need the help now. Without adequate funding, the benchmarks and planning in this bill will not be implemented in our communities. Last year, the Republican Congress cut the DHS grant programs that fund interoperable communications by almost $600 million and slashed the Department of Justice interoperability grant program by $82 million, effectively eliminating it.

My colleagues may not know that this bill is based very closely on a bill introduced by my colleague, Ms. Lowey, which has the support of Democrats. There is one glaring difference, Ms. Lowey's bill would have established an interoperability grant program at the Department of Homeland Security to help our communities. In the closed door negotiations, the Republican majority removed the grant program. No money, no program.

This has become a pattern of the majority: Take a good Democratic bill, copy it in theme only, rush it to the floor without any hearings, send out a press release, and then quietly never fund the program. We have seen this time and time again.

Mr. Speaker, we ask more of our first responders than ever before. They are on the front lines in the war against terror. They must be prepared to respond to chemical disasters, rail disasters, natural disasters. We saw during 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina that public safety communications are critical in any emergency, but without adequate funding, the bill's worthy goals may never be achieved.

Are new interoperable radios more important than replacing out-of- date fire trucks or creating a meth crime task force? These are the real choices that communities across this Nation must make every day, and they receive no help from Washington. Their choices are becoming harder and harder as the Bush administration and Republican budgets ask them to make more with less and less.

The real reason why I think the Republicans have brought the bill before us today is because they don't want to face any funding amendments that may come up. In committee last fall, I offered an amendment to create a $5.8 billion trust fund for first responder communications. My amendment failed on a tie vote. Homeland Security Committee Democrats have forced similar votes. Why is this bill on suspension today? Because the majority wants to avoid votes on amendments that would invest in public safety communication grants for our communities.

My colleagues should vote for this bill because it will bring some accountability to the Department of Homeland Security and focus more attention on the urgent need of interoperable communications. But my colleagues should not be under any false illusion that this bill will make it easier for first responders to acquire modern equipment. This bill will not provide the necessary interoperable equipment this country needs.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 30 seconds to just respond to the gentleman from Washington.

I repeat, I know you have been in Congress for a limited amount of time, but there have been no hearings in the Energy and Commerce Committee on this bill, the committee with primary jurisdiction.

You talked about your law enforcement career. Well, back when you were

deputy in the early 1970s, I was a city police officer, went on to Michigan State Police, where I served until I was injured in the line of duty.

I am the founder of the Law Enforcement Caucus, and I hope you will join our caucus someday.

Law enforcement and first responders, what we are doing here today is giving them false hope and promises. The gentleman from Washington claims interoperability is a life and death issue. Then let us fund interoperability and not put law enforcement with a death penalty because they did not get the equipment they need.

I yield 6 minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell), the ranking member of the Energy Preparedness Subcommittee.

Mr. Speaker, can you tell us how much time we have remaining?

Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Mississippi (Mr. Thompson), a former first responder and a volunteer firefighter for 26 years.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Lowey), who really wrote this bill that the majority presents here today in theme only.

How much time do we have remaining, Mr. Speaker?

I yield 30 seconds to Mr. Pascrell.

Mr. Speaker, Democrats on this side, we will support the bill. It does create some accountability at the Department of Homeland Security. It will provide the cities and counties with guidance and standards 5 years after 9/11. But the real critical need is, we need funding.

Public safety interoperability should be an urgent priority for this country. As a former police officer, I understand clearly the importance of adequate funding for homeland security programs. The bill solves half the problem. We create the standards, but there is no funding. Let us provide funding and not continue to give false hope to our first responders that interoperability will finally arrive. It will never arrive until we provide adequate funding.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 5852) to amend the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to enhance emergency communications at the Department of Homeland Security, and for other purposes.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on this legislation and insert extraneous material on the bill.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I rise in support of H.R. 5852, the 21st Century Emergency Communications Act of 2006.

I would especially like to commend Representative Reichert for his authorship of this legislation. In addition, I want to recognize the efforts of both Chairman Barton and Chairman King in preparing this legislation for consideration on the floor today.

Mr. Speaker, without a doubt, this Nation has endured significant domestic tragedies in the past 5 years, and of course, 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina stand out as most catastrophic.

While both were catastrophic, the causes were very different. The former a profoundly evil terrorist act, and the latter a terrible act of nature. But there at least is one common lesson that we learned from both tragedies: We learned how critically important interoperable communication is for our Nation's first responders during crisis regardless of the cause. It really is a matter of life and death.

At its heart, H.R. 5852 is designed to improve interoperable communications among our Nation's first responders. Of course, this Congress has already paved the way by providing for an orderly digital television transition to be completed by February 17, 2009, at which point 24 megahertz of spectrum in the upper 700 megahertz band will be returned by the broadcasters and provided to first responders to facilitate interoperable radio communications. That spectrum is ideally suited for this purpose. Congress also earmarked $1 billion from upcoming spectrum auction proceeds to assist State and local governments in procuring interoperable communications equipment.

But the legislation before us today mandates a National Emergency Communications report to recommend goals and time frames for the achievement of redundant, sustainable, and interoperable emergency communication systems. It requires a baseline assessment of current emergency communications capabilities and periodic assessments on progress in filling existing gaps, and it accelerates the development of national voluntary consensus standards for emergency communications equipment. It requires State and local governments to establish effective statewide interoperable communication plans before being able to use DHS grant funds for emergency communications. It facilitates coordination on emergency communications by establishing regional working groups comprised of Federal, State, and local officials, first responders, and other relevant stakeholders. And it elevates the importance of emergency communications within the Department of Homeland Security, enhancing accountability and resources to ensure first responders on the ground that it can communicate with one another.

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 5852 is truly an excellent bill which builds on the work that this Congress has already done to ensure that our Nation's first responders have the interoperable communications that they need to do their job of protecting our constituents in times of crisis. Again, I want to commend Representative Reichert, Chairman Barton, and Chairman King for their excellent work. I would urge all of my colleagues to support this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, at this point I would yield as much time as he may consume to Sheriff Reichert, the sponsor of this legislation and the chairman of the Emergency Preparedness Subcommittee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. McCaul).

Mr. Speaker, who has the ability to close?

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time, and at this point I want to include a number of letters as part of the Record: Two from Chairman Barton, one from Mr. Boehlert and one from Mr. Young.

House of Representatives, Committee on Transportation and

Infrastructure,

Washington, DC, July 24, 2006.

Hon. Joe Barton,

Chairman, Committee on Energy and Commerce, Washington, DC.

Dear Mr. Chairman: I am writing to you concerning the

jurisdictional interest of the Transportation and

Infrastructure Committee in matters being considered in H.R.

5852, the 21st Century Emergency Communications Act of 2006.

Our Committee recognizes the importance of H.R. 5852 and

the need for the legislation to move expeditiously.

Therefore, while we have a valid claim to jurisdiction over a

number of provisions in the bill, I do not intend to request

referral. This, of course, is conditional on our mutual

understanding that nothing in this legislation or my decision

to forego the referral waives, reduces or otherwise affects

the jurisdiction of the Transportation and Infrastructure

Committee.

The Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure also

asks that you support our request to be conferees on the

provisions over which we have jurisdiction during any House-

Senate conference. I would appreciate it if you would include

a copy of this letter and of your response acknowledging our

jurisdictional interest as part of the Congressional Record

during consideration of the bill by the House.

Thank you for your cooperation in this matter.

Sincerely,

Don Young,

Chairman.

Mr. Speaker, in closing, I would urge all my colleagues to support this bill. I would remind my colleagues that it was clearly a bipartisan bill. It passed 28-0. I want to particularly thank Mr. Pascrell, Mr. Thompson, Mrs. Lowey, and Mr. Reichert. This has bipartisan spirit behind it from the start.

I would just note that interoperability is very important. We saw with 9/11 that our firefighters didn't get the message, they stayed in the buildings, and they died. With Katrina, we saw the Coast Guard folks couldn't communicate with the law enforcement folks at the bottom of the helicopter ladders.

It needs to change. That is why we reserved part of the spectrum, as part of the reconciliation bill earlier this year, to retrieve it from the broadcasters and to be able to sell it so that, in fact, that analog spectrum will be available. In addition, of course, we had $1 billion that was part of that sale that was reserved specifically on matching grants to first responders across the country. It is very important.

It is not the end. We need to do more. I realize it, and we are prepared to do such. So I was pleased to see that legislation move forward. This is yet another step. It passed 28-0 in committee. I would like to think that when we have a vote on this later this afternoon, it might be able to pass 433-0, knowing that we have two vacancies in the House at this point.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 5852, the 21st Century Emergency Communications Act.

As an original sponsor with my good friend Congressman Reichert, this is long-overdue legislation. It is bipartisan legislation and really sends a message throughout the entire Congress of the United States that we can work together if we place the needs of our families and neighborhoods ahead of partisan politics.

When the 9/11 Commission released its final report, it found that the inability of our first responders to talk with each other and their commanders resulted in a loss of life. This is very, very important to America.

The 9/11 Commission identified a problem that has been in existence, Mr. Speaker, for decades. It identified a problem that many policymakers have known for some time.

In fact, in 1996, 10 years ago, Congress asked a blue ribbon committee, the Public Safety Wireless Advisory Committee, to examine the issue of interoperable communications. It concluded 10 years ago that public safety agencies did not have the sufficient interoperable communications ability to do their jobs.

Five years later, on September 11, 2001, public safety officers were still ill-equipped in this regard. Now, this is unconscionable. Five years after the 9/11 catastrophe, the 30 major cities in the United States of America still cannot communicate.

In 2002, the National Task Force on Interoperability convened several meetings with various national associations representing public safety officials to discuss the challenges of interoperable communications. They explicitly identified the key challenges that must be addressed if we are to move forward on the issue: incompatible aging equipment, fragmented planning in general, and a lack of coordination and cooperation from all the different stakeholders.

So we have known about the problems that exist, Mr. Speaker. Many have explored the possible remedies. Yet many in Congress sit, after 9/ 11, after Katrina, wondering why no real progress has been made.

And although I may take difference with my good friend and brother from Michigan, his point must be well taken, that these cannot be empty commitments. We must fund the very process that we have identified and voted on today.

The bottom line is that H.R. 5852 will improve the capability of first responders to communicate during times of emergencies. I am proud to work with a bipartisan allotment of Members. We have had hearings, and I am sorry that one of the major problems in this Congress is jurisdiction and we have not addressed that, and I hope that we can do this and not air our linen. I hope that we can come to agreement, but the fact is that homeland security is at the center of the stage in trying to make a terrible situation much better.

In an era when information can be sent instantaneously anywhere, it is utterly nonsensical that our Nation's police, the fire, and EMS personnel cannot consistently communicate with each other.

First, this bill elevates the importance of improved emergency communication. For the first time, we are going to finally have a central office within the Department of Homeland Security that does just that. We will create an Office of Emergency Communications within the Department where the Assistant Secretary for Emergency Communications is directed to force the development of interoperable emergency communications capabilities by States and territorial, local and tribal and public safety agencies. This is absolutely critical.

Elevating the status and standing, that standing of interoperability, within the Department is a key first step to ensuring the Department focuses at the proper time, has the staff, has the resources.

This office will be charged with a variety of long-overdue critical endeavors, including preparing a baseline report.

H.R. 5852 ensures that the appropriate staffing and resources are available to carry out the obligations charged.

Mr. Speaker, our legislation compels the Department of Homeland Security to create a national emergency communications plan. Common sense must prevail here. This bill, I know, does not address the grant funding; but it is interesting to note, and I would ask my brothers and sisters on both sides of the aisle just to listen to this one statement that I have if you listen to nothing else: a one-time expenditure, equivalent to 3 days of what we spend in the Iraq war, will do one thing. It will pay for making emergency radio systems interoperable 5 years after 9/11.

This bill is important, Mr. Speaker. This bill affects every American.

Mr. Speaker, I think that those who have come before us today have highlighted how critical this legislation is to the American people. In the Subcommittee on Science, Technology and Emergency Preparedness for our police, our fire and EMS, we believe that unless the Homeland Security Department puts more emphasis and boots on the ground than those people who are there every day and every night, that we are never going to get this right in protecting America.

This bill seeks to do that, and, hopefully, within a very short period of time, we will look and find the funding, and I have suggested one place today, so that we will take care of those needs of homeland security and protecting our families.