Floor Statements

Mr. Chairman, I reserve a point of order against the amendment.

Mr. Chairman, I would like to assure the gentleman from California that, as Chair of the House Homeland Security Committee, I look forward to working with him.

The border issue, from a security standpoint, as you know, is a major issue. Customs and Border Patrol should have more training in this area. I look forward to joint hearings with the Agriculture Committee on this, and subsequent to the findings of those hearings, look forward to strengthening our borders.

I must express my reservations to using the farm bill as a legislative vehicle to transfer agriculture import inspectors from the Department of Homeland Security to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. After the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, Congress, in March of 2003 consolidated and transferred critical responsibility for inspections of passenger and agricultural commodities from USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

Since the transfer of APHIS inspectors to DHS, DHS had dedicated considerable resources to enhancing agriculture inspections to protect the nation from economically devastating agricultural pests and diseases. I agree that the Department of Homeland Security, especially Customs and Border Protection, must improve its training.

While DHS has experienced some challenges in implementing this enhanced inspection regime, those challenges are not insurmountable. As a former Agriculture Committee Member and representing many agriculture interests, I am very concerned about any breaches at the border, including foreign pest and prohibited agricultural products.

Though DHS carries out the inspections, USDA maintains the responsibility for establishing the regulations, guidelines, and even the training that govern the import of agricultural products. Thus, it is important to note that the success or failure of the program requires both DHS and USDA coordinated efforts.

Transferring employees at this time would divert attention from the real mission, delay any efforts to identify needed improvements, and set the program back for another several years while yet another readjustment occurs for both USDA and DHS. A far better approach than another disruptive, time-consuming transfer of thousands of employees would be for USDA and DHS to commit to conducting a thorough analysis of the program's performance, agree to a specific action plan for improvements, and to set clear and measurable goals.

Mr. Chairman and Mr. Cardoza, I am committed to working with you on this issue and would like to hold a joint hearing on this matter. I thank the gentleman for raising this important issue and look forward to working with you and Chairman Peterson immediately on this issue.

May 22, 2007.

Hon. Bennie G. Thompson,

Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security, U.S. House of

Representatives, Washington, DC.

Dear Chairman Thompson: We write to you today regarding the

recent consideration given to the proposed removal of the

agricultural inspection function from the U.S. Department of

Homeland Security's (DHS) Customs and Border Protection

(CBP), and relocation of this function to the U.S. Department

of Agriculture's (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection

Service (APHIS), as included in S. 887 and other legislation

pending in Congress. USDA and DHS oppose this legislative

proposal. We both take seriously the shared mission of

protecting our Nation from foreign plant and animal diseases,

as well as securing our homeland against unintentional and

intentional threats to our agriculture and food supply.

The creation of DHS was a thoughtful complex, and ambitious

integration effort. We strongly believe that Congress, which

recently mandated an extensive internal reorganization of

DHS, should now give DHS the organizational stability it

needs to succeed with its vital homeland security mission.

USDA, DHS, and our agriculture stakeholders all share a

common goal--protecting American agriculture. However, both

USDA and DHS strongly believe that another disruptive, time-

consuming transfer of thousands of employees and the

agricultural inspection function, as advocated by some, would

degrade enforcement and seriously undermine the integrated

border enforcement capabilities created with the formation of

DHS. A transfer would divert attention from the real mission

to prevent the entry of harmful plant and animal pests,

disease, and threats to our agricultural resources and food

supply. A transfer would delay efforts to identify needed

improvements in agricultural inspection and would therefore

set the agricultural inspection program back while also

creating counterproductive management and employee churn for

both USDA and DHS. Working cooperatively, USDA and DHS

employees have made much progress and have strengthened their

partnership in forming a unified first line of defense in

performing their missions and delivering agricultural

programs.

On March 1, 2003, the responsibility for the inspection of

goods and travelers for illegal agricultural products or

pests arriving in the United States was transferred from USDA

to the then-newly created CBP within DHS. The transfer of

this function was among the first steps in establishing CBP

as the single, unified agency responsible for managing and

securing our Nation's ports-of-entry. Another important part

of the creation of CBP was the development of two new

positions to respond to new and expanded border security

needs: the CBP Officer and the CBP Agriculture Specialist

(CBPAS).

CBP Officers are responsible for a wide range of duties

including preventing the entry of terrorists and their

weapons and conducting traditional inspection activities

related to trade, contraband enforcement, and admissibility--

as well as the important agricultural inspection function. In

this regard, CBP Officers receive specialized cross-training

related to agricultural risk and inspection referral. CBPASs

fill the role of the former APHIS inspectors and conduct

activities to prevent harmful plant and animal pests and

diseases from entering the United States while guarding

against agro/bio-terrorism.

Today, CBP Agriculture Specialists receive the same amount

of agriculture-specific training as they did when they were

part of USDA. The eight weeks of agriculture-specific

training that CBPASs receive, conducted by USDA instructors,

ensures that they are fully prepared for their role at the

border. In addition to traditional agricultural enforcement,

CBPASs play a crucial role in educating other CBP officers

about the agricultural inspection process, thus enhancing the

agricultural knowledge of all personnel at ports-of-entry.

Importantly, CBP has increased CBPAS staffing in the field by

over 30 percent, providing coverage at over 157 ports-of-

entry since the merger on March 1, 2003. The deployment of

both CBPASs (over 2,000) and cross-trained CBP Officers

(18,000) to search for agricultural threats has resulted in a

force multiplier that improves implementing the agricultural

inspection program. The proposal to remove agricultural

inspections from DHS would wholly undermine the force

multiplier achieved by cross-training.

With the creation of CBP, USDA continued to retain the

majority of agricultural functions, including responsibility

for establishing regulations and guidelines that govern the

import of agricultural products, pest identification,

inspection of propagative material, risk assessment, and

methods development. CBP, of course, retained border

inspection responsibilities. While USDA continues to

establish agricultural policy governing imports, it is the

significant cooperation between the two Departments that has

enabled the agricultural inspection program to advance and

meet the new challenges of the growing global marketplace.

USDA and DHS have worked tirelessly to integrate the

important duties and responsibilities of the scientific

mission of agricultural inspection with CBP's other missions.

American agriculture remains at risk from external threats.

Our joint efforts must continue to prepare us for the threat

of unintentional or intentional introduction of foreign plant

or animal pests or pathogens into our country. These

potential threats could devastate American crops or

livestock, which is why the incorporation of the two CBP line

positions plays such an important role in DHS's multi-layered

approach to protect U.S. agricultural resources.

USDA and DHS are committed to working in partnership to

safeguard American agriculture by detecting and preventing

harmful plant and animal pests and diseases through training

initiatives, trend analysis, targeting initiatives, and the

development of special programs like the National Agriculture

Release Program. As part of this commitment, USDA and DHS are

forming a task force to address the concerns of our

agriculture stakeholders, as well as issues raised about the

agricultural inspection program in reports from the

Government Accountability Office and USDA's Office of the

Inspector General. Through this task force, USDA and DHS will

take important steps to continue to improve the program by

conducting a thorough analysis of the program's performance,

agreeing to a specific action plan for improvements, and

setting clear and measurable goals to hold the agencies

accountable for protecting America from

threats to our agriculture. We believe this is a far more

productive course of action than the transfer of employees

and the agricultural inspection function back to USDA, and it

will achieve the common goal of protecting U.S. agricultural

resources. USDA and DHS stand together as partners and value

our cooperative efforts, our joint missions, and our

employees.

Sincerely,

Mike Johanns,

Secretary, U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Michael Chertoff,

Secretary, U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

Mr. Speaker, it is my privilege, as the first Democratic chairman of the Homeland Security Committee, to rise in strong support of this rule and the underlying bill.

At the direction of the Speaker, I authored H.R. 1, legislation to complete the unfinished business of the 9/11 Commission. It had 200 original cosponsors.

H.R. 1 was the first bill of the 110th Congress. It passed the House by a vote of 299-128; 32 House conferees on a bipartisan basis, including Ranking Member King, signed the conference report. Late last night the Senate passed it by a vote of 85-8.

It would seem that 6 years after the 9/11 attacks and 3 years after the release of the 9/11 Commission report, Congress is finally embracing what the 9/11 families have been saying all along. It takes more than vigilance for our Nation to be more secure against the threat of terrorism. It takes a willingness to do things a different way.

The 9/11 Commission challenged the administration, Congress and the American people to think a different way and take concrete steps to deter and prevent future attacks. Over the past 3 years, some progress has been made, most notably, the reforms in the intelligence community. However, until today, many of the key recommendations of the 9/11 Commission remain unfulfilled.

The conference report on H.R. 1 ensures that most grant funding is allocated based on risk. It authorizes $1.6 billion for an interoperability grant program to improve communications for first responders. It provides over $4 billion in rail, mass transit and bus security grants to ensure that our at-risk communities have the security they deserve.

Additionally, the conference report on H.R. 1 puts in achievable benchmarks for ensuring that 100 percent cargo carried on passenger planes is screened. It also mandates the screening of all U.S.-bound ships in foreign ports for 5 years, but gives the Homeland Security Secretary flexibility to delay implementation in certain cases.

The conference report requires a new electronic travel authorization system to screen visitors from companies participating in the Visa Waiver Program. This bill also strengthens a board that oversees privacy and civil liberties issues.

It requires the President and Congress to publicly disclose total spending requested and approved for the intelligence community for 2 years. The bill provides civil immunity to those in good faith who report suspicious activities that threaten the safety and security of passengers on the transportation system, or that could be an act of terrorism.

Before I yield back, I want to say on the record that the provisions I authored to give TSA screeners collective bargaining rights and whistle-blower protections was not included in the final bill. Though not an explicit 9/11 Commission recommendation, I believe that giving voice to the eyes and ears in the airports will make America more secure. I will keep working to get them the protections they deserve.

That said, the bill that is being considered today will make America more secure.

I strongly urge a ``yes'' vote on the rule, as well as the underlying bill.

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to the rule, I call up the conference report on the bill (H.R. 1) to provide for the implementation of the recommendations of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members would have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks.

Mr. Speaker, it is indeed historic, this conference report we have before us at this point.

Almost 3 years ago, 10 American patriots came forward and spoke with one unified bipartisan voice. What they said in their 567-page report fundamentally changed America's views of its security. Quite simply, Mr. Speaker, the 9/11 Commission did its job and told us what must be done to deter and prevent future terrorist attacks on our Nation.

When Congress didn't do its job to implement their recommendation, the 9/11 Commission stayed vigilant and formed the 9/11 discourse project. They did so, as they explained, because the perils of inaction are far too high and the strategic value of the Commission's findings too important for the work of the 9/11 Commission not to continue.

Unfortunately, the project's December 2005 report card found little progress was being made on addressing known vulnerabilities and gaps in our Nation's security. Still, Mr. Speaker, the 109th Congress did not do its job.

On January 5, however, at the direction of Speaker Pelosi, I introduced H.R. 1, a bill to complete the unfinished business of the 9/ 11 Commission, with 200 of my fellow colleagues. Today, I'm privileged to present a bipartisan conference report that finally fulfills the recommendations.

This report passed the Senate just last night before midnight by a vote of 85-8. When H.R. 1 is law, Mr. Speaker, Homeland Security grants will finally be allocated based on risk. Targeted communities will get the Federal help they so richly deserve. First responders will have interoperable communications. When H.R. 1 is law, information necessary to uncover terrorist plots will be exchanged between Federal and local law enforcement. Would-be terrorists will not be able to exploit the Visa Waiver Program. Privacy and civil liberties will be central in how we approach homeland security. Our rail, mass transit and aviation systems will be more secure. When H.R. 1 is law, 100 percent of U.S.- bound cargo will be scanned in a commerce-friendly manner.

Though I'm disappointed that collective bargaining and whistle-blower rights for TSA screeners were not included in the final report, I applaud Senator Lieberman and the 42 other conferees who stood with us on this legislation. Their hard work, combined with the leadership of Speaker Pelosi, Majority Leader Hoyer, assured that this effort came to fruition.

Frederick Douglass once said, ``The life of a nation is secure only while the nation is honest, truthful and virtuous.'' Thank you to the 9/11 Commission for exemplifying these values. And thank you to the 9/ 11 families, and everyone else who would not let us forget what was at stake if we did not act.

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

Mr. Speaker, I would like to suggest to Mr. King that it would have been nice to have four conferees, but it was a 900-page bill, so we had 60. It worked, and I'm happy to see the process go forward.

I would like to yield 1 minute to the chairman of the Intelligence Subcommittee on Homeland Security, the gentlelady from California (Ms. Harman).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Oberstar), one of the conferees, as well as the chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer), the majority leader of the House of Representatives.

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to yield 1 minute to the Speaker of the House.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Reyes), the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee.

Mr. Speaker, I am happy to yield 2\1/2\ minutes to the next speaker, who perhaps can answer some of the questions raised by the previous speaker, the gentleman from New York (Mr. Nadler), who has been a champion of inspection and screening ever since he has been here. As the Speaker indicated, his district was hit on 9/11.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to a member of the Homeland Security Committee, the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Etheridge).

(Mr. ETHERIDGE asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, I'm proud to yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Lowey), who's also a member of the Homeland Security Committee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Green), a member of the committee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlelady from the District of Columbia (Ms. Norton), a member of the Homeland Security Committee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Rhode Island (Mr. Langevin).

(Mr. LANGEVIN asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Dicks).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2\1/4\ minutes to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson-Lee), who is a member of the committee.

(Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas asked and was given permission to revise and extend her remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, it is quite clear that there is substantial support for the bill as well as substantial support to get on the vote for the bill.

I would like to thank my colleague, Ranking Member King, for his support as well as his staff. They have been very good. I would like to recognize the Democratic staff: Jessica Flanigan, Rosaline Cohen, Michael Stroud, everybody. I have something to insert in the Record to recognize their value.

Mr. Speaker, it is quite clear that this is a good bill. It is in the best interest of the country. It is completion of the 9/11 vulnerability report. I urge its adoption.

Mr. Speaker, while I commend the work on H.R. 1, I rise today to express my disappointment that the provision to afford our Transportation Security Officers, TSOs, the collective bargaining rights and whistleblower protections they deserve is excluded from the Conference Report. Mr. Speaker, our TSOs are not second class citizens and should not be treated as such.

In 2001, when the Transportation Safety Administration, TSA, was created, Congress vested power to set TSO compensation, leave, and other basic employment rights with the Secretary of Transportation. When TSA was moved to the Department of Homeland Security, this authority remained. While this authority was helpful in getting TSA up and running, the TSOs now need to be treated like all other TSA employees--fairly and equitably. This provision would have restored the labor rights of approximately 43,000 TSOs and provided them with veterans' preference, anti-discrimination protections, retirement, whistle-blowing, and collective bargaining rights.

Restoring basic employment rights is critical to recruiting and retaining TSOs. We do not need to look far to see what low morale can do to the health, recruitment, and retention of the Department of Homeland Security workforce. According to a GAO report released this month, TSOs account for approximately a third of the total workforce and their attrition rates are higher than the normal for the Federal Government. It is unfortunate that we are failing to provide the most basic labor protections to our front line workers who perform an important job and work to keep us all safe; rights that are afforded to thousands of workers in the Federal Government.

I commit to my colleagues today that as Chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security I will continue work to ensure that our TSOs are afforded the rights and protections they deserve.

Additionally, Mr. Speaker, let the record reflect that in addition to the staff that I recognized earlier, the following individuals did a service to our Nation in helping the Conference develop legislation to make America more secure.

Michael Stroud

Denise Krepp

Craig Sharman

Tom Finan

Veronique Pluviose-Fenton

Alison Rosso

Jacob Olcott

Chris Beck

Matt Washington

Jeff Greene

Erin Murphy

Michael Beland

Erin Daste

Tamla Scott

Tyrik McKeiver

Stephan Vina

Diane Bean

Brian Turbyfill

Angela Rye

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, for affording me the opportunity to recognize the good work of Majority staff of the Committee on Homeland Security.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I would like to congratulate the 2007 Miss Mississippi Pageant winner, Kimberly Nicole Morgan.

Kimberly, a 24-year-old native of Oxford, MS, is the daughter of Elzie and Valerie Morgan. Kimberly, a music teacher at Madison Shannon Palmer High School in Quitman County, MS, is no stranger to wearing a crown. A former Miss Alcorn State University 2005, she has also reigned as Miss Freshman 2001-2002 and Miss Southwest in 2006. She currently serves as Miss Heritage, respectively.

Kimberly obtained a bachelor's degree in vocal music from Alcorn State University in 2006. She was actively involved in the ASU Gospel Choir, Beaute Noire Modeling Squad, and the ASU Student Government Association. Kimberly won the coveted Miss Mississippi crown as the pageant celebrated its 50th anniversary. As Miss Mississippi, Kimberly will compete in the Miss America pageant where she will spread her platform issue G.O.T.M.I.L.K.!, Golden Opportunity Toward Music Increasing Literacy in Kids, a weekly after-school program of music instructions. Kimberly understands that most children of low income and rural communities lack linguistic development, adaptation to their environment, basic child development, and overall school performance. G.O.T.M.I.L.K.!, is a method that can use music in the teaching of reading to enhance motivation and the abilities of children because the subject has so many similarities. Her goal is to teach everyone to become proficient in reading, writing, and mathematics as well as aims for students to become proficient in making and learning music.

``Words can't express what I am feeling,'' Morgan said after being crowned by Miss Mississippi, ``God has answered my prayers''. Kimberly, the second African-American woman crowned Miss Mississippi during its 50 year history, won a scholarship and hopes to become the fifth Mississippian to win the Miss America Pageant. Kimberly was chosen from a field of 47 contestants during the week-long pageant. This is an enormous step for Mississippi and its progress towards African-American women breaking through the color barrier by successfully competing as equals and being considered equally as intelligent, beautiful human beings.

Ms. Morgan, a god-fearing, family-oriented, selfless woman has had the same dreams of music, education, mentoring to the youth, and pageants since the age of 7. After viewing a Miss Mississippi Pageant as a child, Kimberly proclaimed to her classmates that she wanted to be Miss America. ``All the other kids were saying they wanted to be doctors and lawyers, and I raised my hand and said I wanted to be Miss America.''

I am very proud of Ms. Morgan and all of her accomplishments. She is truly a vision of grace and beauty, and I look forward to seeing her represent the State of Mississippi in the Miss America Pageant in 2008.

Please join me today in congratulating Ms. Kimberly Nicole Morgan. I am certain she will represent our State in an extraordinary way.

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to clause 1 of rule XXII and by direction of the Committee on Homeland Security, I move to take from the Speaker's table the

bill (H.R. 1) to provide for the implementation of the recommendations of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States, with a Senate amendment thereto, disagree to the Senate amendment, and agree to the conference asked by the Senate.

Mr. Speaker, as you know, the House has passed its own language as it relates to the issuance of the TWIC cards. We have negotiated for the last 2 months with our Senate colleagues and, for the most part, we have a bipartisan agreement on the issuance of the transportation security cards to convicted felons.

That agreement talks about many of the things my colleague referenced in the report. It talks about treason, it talks about sedition, it talks about espionage, all those things.

Therefore, I think carrying it to the level that my colleague would want to carry it is not in the spirit of the conference report that we are negotiating with our colleagues in the Senate.

It is bipartisan. We have been meeting for 2 months to craft a language. It's good language.

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

I now yield as much time as she may consume to the gentlelady from Texas (Ms. Jackson-Lee).

Mr. Speaker, for the record, I would like to say to my colleague from Tennessee, this bipartisan agreement was worked out in the spirit of making sure that those individuals who work in various capacities in high-risk areas, that they are, in fact, not security risks. So what we have done, we have taken espionage, we have taken sedition, we have taken treason, any felony crime of terrorism, crime involving a transportation security incident, improper transportation of hazardous material, unlawful possession, use, sale, distribution, manufacture, purchase, receipt, transfer, shipping, transporting, import, export, storage of or dealing with an explosive device, we have gone into great detail in defining those disqualifying areas.

In addition to that, we have laid out interim disqualifying criminal offenses that go toward unlawful possession, sale, manufacture, purchase, distribution of firearms; extortion, bribery, smuggling, immigration violations; distribution, possession with intent to distribute or importation of controlled substance; arson, kidnapping, rape, assault with intent to kill; robbery, conspiracy, fraudulent entry into a seaport, a violation of the Racketeering Influence and Corrupt Organization Act. Mr. Speaker, we have gone in great detail to list as many offenses as we could.

Now, from what I understand from the gentlelady's motion that we are debating, the only issue is that you don't want the Secretary of Homeland Security to have the ability to look at these things and say whether or not they should be modified. Now, if we are wrong in our interpretation, that is fine, but as we look upon what you have before us today, that is the only thing.

If we can't trust the people who run the Department to make certain administrative decisions, then who can we trust? And it is in this spirit that we left that particular modification language there for the Secretary to look at any unforeseen crime that may or may not have been excluded in this disqualifying criminal offense.

So clearly, Mr. Speaker, it was a bipartisan effort, and we wish to offer it.

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

Our Secretary of Homeland Security is appointed by the President. I would think that he would appoint the best qualified person, someone who would have the interests of this country at heart every second that he or she may be in that position. So to take the ability of an individual who is running a department from making certain decisions is not in our best interests.

We should not micromanage the Department of Homeland Security. We should let the Secretary of Homeland Security run the Department. He should have the administrative authority to do it. This would not be in the best interests of us. We do not do this in other secretarial departments.

And so, again, Mr. Speaker, in the interest of identifying crimes that are disqualifying, but notwithstanding the fact that the Secretary should have some discretion over running his or her Department regardless of what that Department may be, this is the bipartisan spirit in the conference that we reached.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. LaTourette).

Mr. Speaker, I have one additional speaker. I yield 1 minute to the gentlelady from Texas (Ms. Jackson- Lee).

Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I would like to recognize the life of Mr. Charles Tisdale, a fearless champion of civil rights within the African-American community. Mr. Tisdale was the owner of The Jackson Advocate Newspaper, which gave a voice to African-Americans in Jackson and throughout the state of Mississippi.

Charles Tisdale, an Alabama native who fought for civil rights as owner and publisher of Mississippi's oldest black-owned newspaper was born November 5, 1926, in Athens, Alabama. Tisdale purchased The Jackson Advocate in 1978 from the newspaper's first owner, Percy Green. For 20 years, Mr. Tisdale's influential talk show on WMPR in Jackson, often took elected leaders, both black and white, to task for not effectively serving their communities.

Mr. Tisdale was not only a civil rights activist but a front-line leader. He did not write from a dark room but led several marches, putting his life in danger to advance the civil rights of African- Americans in his community. Tisdale's civil rights record extends back to the 1960s, when he joined Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in protest marches. Mr. Tisdale was with Dr. King when the civil rights crusader was assassinated in Memphis.

Mr. Tisdale often faced repercussions for his outspoken nature. He received several death threats, some of which resulted in his newspaper office in Jackson being firebombed on two separate occasions. The last occurrence was in 1998, when gasoline was doused over furniture and molotov cocktails were thrown through the windows. The 1998 attack resulted in $100,000 damages. Clinton Moses, of Jackson, later pleaded guilty to the crime and told authorities that Louis Armstrong, a member of the Jackson City Council paid him $500 to commit the firebombing. Mr. Armstrong was never charged in the case. Throughout the years of adversity, Mr. Tisdale continued his courageous fight.

Despite sagging circulation of the Jackson Advocate over the past five years, the newspaper continued to receive several honors, including the National Black Chamber of Commerce Newspaper of the Year, the Nation of Islam Freedom Fighter Award and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference Journalism Award. Mr. Tisdale's reputation spread far beyond the state of Mississippi. The National Newspaper Publishers Association, a trade association of more than 200 black-oriented community newspapers, has named one of its top awards after him.

He took the lead in publishing articles on civil rights violations and was unrelenting in his fight against racism, injustice, discrimination and corruption by government officials. He never gave up on a story and in the end the truth always prevailed.

I will always remember Charles Tisdale as a man of extraordinary courage, who cared deeply about the struggles of African-Americans fighting for justice.

Please join me today in honoring a truly courageous civil rights leader, Mr. Charles Tisdale.

Mr. Speaker, I stand here today as Chairman of the

Committee on Homeland Security in support of H.R. 556, the Foreign Investment and National Security Act of 2007. This bill provides necessary reform by formalizing and streamlining the structure and duties of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, CFIUS. This reform combines an understanding of the need for ensuring that foreign investment in the U.S. is in the security interests of the American public with an appreciation for global commerce in the 21st century. Indeed, this bill addresses many of the concerns raised about CFIUS over the past year, especially with regard to its current lack of transparency and oversight. This bill rectifies these concerns by formally establishing CFIUS and its membership, while also streamlining how and when CFIUS review will be conducted. This bill sends an important message to the country and the world: The United States will continue to encourage the international flow of commerce in a manner that demands the security of our country.

Mr. Speaker, the bill formalizes the CFIUS membership and requires the following to serve: (1) Secretaries of Treasury, Homeland Security, Commerce, Defense, State, and Energy; (2) Attorney General; Director of National Intelligence (ex officio); and Secretary of Labor (ex officio); and (3) The heads of any other executive department, agency, or office, as the President determines appropriate, generally on a case-by-case basis.

Under this bill, CFIUS will conduct a review of any transaction by or with any foreign person which could result in the foreign control of any person engaged in interstate commerce in the U.S. to determine the effects of the transaction on the national security of the U.S. CFIUS will determine whether to conduct an investigation of the effects of the transaction on the national security of the U.S. if the initial review of the transaction results in the determination that: The transaction threatens to impair the national security of the U.S. and that the threat has not been mitigated during or prior to the review of the transaction; the transaction is a foreign government-controlled transaction; the transaction would result in control of any critical infrastructure of or within the U.S. by or on behalf of any foreign person, if CFIUS determines that the transaction could impair national security, and that such impairment to national security has not been mitigated by assurances provided to CFIUS; or The lead agency recommends, and CFIUS concurs, that an investigation be undertaken.

Mr. Speaker, I believe that our colleagues in the Senate made remarkable contributions to this bill. For example, I think that its determination to eliminate the option for CFIUS to conduct a second 45- day review at the end of the investigation stage was a wise one. As a result of this change, CFIUS will be required to be efficient and will demonstrate our country's recognition of the importance of not hampering foreign investment that avoids hindering our national security. The Congressional Research Service's independent report, for instance, found that, for all the merger and acquisition activity in 2005, 13 percent of it was from foreign firms acquiring U.S. firms. This is up from 9 percent nearly 10 years before. This statistic shows that foreign investment in the U.S. is vital to our economy.

I must mention, however, my concern with one of the changes to the bill, as passed by my colleagues in the Senate, which eliminates an important role of the Secretary of Homeland Security. Both bills establish the Secretary of the Treasury as the Chairperson of CFIUS. Whereas the original House-passed bill required that the Secretaries of Homeland Security and Commerce be Vice Chairpersons of CFIUS, the current bill eliminates the Vice Chairpersons and, instead, calls for the Secretary of the Treasury to designate, as appropriate, a member or members of CFIUS to be the ``lead agency or agencies'' on behalf of CFIUS for each covered transaction, and for negotiating any mitigation agreements or other conditions necessary to protect national security. In addition, the lead agency or agencies will work on all matters related to the monitoring of the completed transaction. The ``lead agency'' role is particularly important because if the Secretary of the Treasury and the head of the lead agency jointly determine that a transaction will not impair the national security of the U.S. in certain cases, then an investigation will not be required.

The Department of Homeland Security has played a vital role with regard to CFIUS cases in the past and has an unparalleled institutional understanding of such cases. In its involvement with such cases, it represents the need to protect our homeland from attack and to ensure that our critical infrastructure is protected and available to the American public during, and in the aftermath of, an attack. In 2006, the Department was involved in each of the 113 CFIUS filings and, in 15 instances, the Department requested mitigation agreements. Thus far in 2007, the Department has been involved in each of the 80 filings and has requested five mitigation agreements. Furthermore, a large number of these filings regard the ownership of critical infrastructure, which is a major initiative of the Department. The Department's past involvement with CFIUS and its mission to protect our country only underscores its need to be second to none when CFIUS reviews cases. That the Department no longer has a clearly articulated leadership role in this process negates its understanding of such matters and undercuts a developing expertise of this new Department. Once this bill is enacted into law, I hope that the Secretary of the Treasury will appoint the Department of Homeland Security as one of the lead agencies in all CFIUS cases, unless there is an explicit reason to do otherwise. The need to protect our homeland is too vital--and the Department's role therein too intrinsic--for it to be left without a leadership position in all CFIUS filings.

This bill, nevertheless, brings the necessary reform to the CFIUS process. Incidents such as Dubai Ports World and China National Offshore Oil Corporation's attempted bid for control of an oil company, Unocal, raised an increased awareness regarding transactions that should receive CFIUS review. Importantly, though, this bill does not represent an isolationist reaction to these incidents but, instead, balances the need for continued foreign investment in the U.S. with the need to review that investment's impact on national security and our critical infrastructure.

Only through this legislation will CFIUS have a formal budget, membership, and a clear mission--protecting American security while maintaining a free and growing economy.

In closing, let me thank my colleagues on the Financial Services Committee for their leadership on this legislation, especially my Democratic colleagues Chairman Frank as well as Representative Carolyn Maloney and Representative Joseph Crowley of New York. I would also like to thank my colleagues in the Senate.

I encourage my colleagues to pass this legislation with strong bipartisan support.

Mr. Speaker, I'd like to thank my dear friend and colleague, Mr. Lewis of Georgia for leading this effort.

The murder and subsequent miscarriage of justice in the unresolved civil rights cases still remains this country's biggest transgression. The first step towards erasing the injustices that has haunted the families of the victims is to, as a nation, acknowledge and give due diligence to these unsolved murders.

According to the FBI, there are roughly 100 unsolved homicide cases from that time period. Among those is the murder of Emmett Till--for whom the bill is named--an African-American teenager who was brutally beaten and shot in 1955. His killers tied a cotton gin to his neck and threw his body into a Mississippi river. That became a major event in the civil rights movement. Two men were prosecuted for the crime but were acquitted.

H.R. 923 authorizes $10 million annually for fiscal years 2008-2017 for the Justice Department to hire special investigators to work on solving civil rights crimes dating back to before 1969.

Justice being served in these cases is a reality. To name a few examples in Mississippi: The 1994 conviction of Byron De La Beckwith for his role in the assassination of Medgar Evers. The 2005 conviction of Edgar Ray Killen for his role in the deaths of Schwerner, Chaney and Goodman, the three civil rights workers in Mississippi in 1964. The conviction was based, in part, on new evidence that he had boasted of the killing at a Ku Klux Klan rally and to others over the three decades after the crime; and most recently, James Ford Seale, convicted last Thursday, June 14, 2007, for his role in the abduction of two Charles Eddie Moore and Henry Hezekiah Dee, the African-American teenagers in Meadville, Mississippi, in 1964.

This bill provides an honest effort to bring closure to the more than 40 families of unresolved civil rights cases in Mississippi.

Such as the Family of Charles Brown of Yazoo City, Miss., 1957--A white man shot Brown, who was visiting the white man's sister. The Justice Department handed the case over to the state.

The Family of Jessie Brown of Winona, Miss., 1965--The 1965 NAACP annual report claimed white farmer R.M. Gibson killed Brown.

The Family of Eli Brumfield of McComb, Miss., 1961--Police officer B. F. Elmore alleged self-defense after shooting Brumfield. Police claimed Brumfield jumped from his car with a pocket knife after police pulled him over for speeding.

The Family of Silas (Ernest) Caston of Jackson, Miss., 1964--Caston was shot by a local police officer. CORE and NAACP filed a civil suit against Deputy Sheriff Herbert Sullivan. The result of that suit is unknown.

The Family of Vincent Dahmon of Natchez, Miss., 1966--Dahmon, 65, was shot in the head around the time of a march in support of James Meredith.

The Family of Woodrow Wilson Daniels of Water Valley, Miss., 1958-- Sheriff Buster Treloar, identified by four witnesses as the man who beat Daniels to death in a prison, was freed after 23 minutes of deliberation by an all-white jury. ``By God,'' Treloar said after the trial. ``Now I can get back to rounding up bootleggers and damn niggers.''

The Family of Pheld Evans of Canton, Miss., 1964--Medgar Evers identified Evans as having been killed under mysterious circumstances.

The Family of J. E. Evanston of Long Lake, Miss., 1955--Evanston's body is fished out of Long Lake in December. Evanston was a teacher in the local elementary school.

The Family of Jasper Greenwood of Vicksburg, Miss., 1964--Greenwood was found shot to death near his car on a rural road. Police said the slaying was not racially motivated.

The Family of Jimmie Lee Griffin of Sturgis, Miss., 1965--Griffin was killed in a hit-and-run accident. A coroner's report revealed Griffin was run over at least twice.

The Family of Luther Jackson of Philadelphia, Miss., 1959--Jackson was killed by police after he and his girlfriend were found talking in their car, which was stalled in a ditch. Police claim Jackson attacked them.

The Family of Ernest Jells of Clarksdale, Miss., 1964--Jells was accused of stealing a banana from a grocery and pointing a rifle at pursuing police officers. The officers were exonerated.

The Family of John Lee of Goshen Springs, Miss., 1965--Lee's body was found beaten on a country road.

The Family of Willie Henry Lee of Rankin County, Miss., 1965--Lee, who was known to have attended civil rights meetings, was found beaten on a country road. An autopsy revealed he died by strangulation from gas.

The Family of George Love of Indianola, Miss., 1958--Love was killed in a gun battle with police who believed he was responsible for a murder and arson. He was later cleared of any connection to the murder.

The Family of Sylvester Maxwell of Canton, Miss., 1963--Maxwell's castrated and mutilated body was found by his brother-in-law less than 500 yards from the home of a white family.

The Family of Robert McNair of Pelahatchie, Miss., 1965--McNair was killed by a town constable.

The Family of Clinton Melton of Sumner, Miss., 1956--Elmer Otis Kimbell was cleared in Melton's death. Kimbell claimed Melton fired at him three times before he returned fire with a shotgun. No gun was found in Melton's car or on his body.

The Family of Booker T. Mixon of Clarksdale, Miss., 1959--Mixon's body was found lying on the side of the road, completely nude. Police claimed it was a hit-and-run, though family members cited his naked body and the extensive amount of flesh torn from his body as evidence of murder.

The Family of Nehemiah Montgomery of Merigold, Miss., 1964-- Montgomery, 60, was shot by police after allegedly refusing to pay for gas. Police were acquitted, and the shooting was called justifiable homicide.

The Family of Sam O'Quinn of Centreville, Miss., 1959--O'Quinn, derided by some local whites for being ``uppity,'' was shot after joining the NAACP.

The Family of Hubert Orsby of Pickens, Miss., 1964--Orsby's body was found in the Black River. It was reported that he was wearing a t-shirt with ``CORE,'' written on it, representing the Congress of Racial Equality.

The Family of William Roy Prather of Corinth, Miss., 1959--Prather, 15, was killed in an anti-black Halloween prank. One of eight youths involved was indicted on manslaughter charges.

The Family of Johnny Queen of Fayette, Miss., 1965--A white off-duty constable was named in the pistol slaying of Johnny Queen. The shooting was not connected to any arrest.

The Family of Donald Rasberry of Okolona, Miss., 1965--Rasberry was shot to death by his plantation boss.

The Family of Jessie James Shelby of Yazoo City, Miss., 1956--Shelby, 23, was fatally wounded by a police officer who claimed he shot Shelby because he resisted arrest.

The Family of Ed Smith of State Line, Miss., 1958--A grand jury refused to indict L.D. Clark in the death of Smith, who was shot in his yard in front of his wife. Clark later reportedly bragged about the killing.

The Family of Eddie James Stewart of Crystal Springs, Miss., 1966-- Stewart was reportedly beaten and shot while in police custody. Police claimed he was shot while trying to escape.

The Family of Isaiah Taylor of Ruleville, Miss., 1964--Taylor was shot by a police officer after allegedly lunging at him with a knife. The shooting was ruled a justifiable homicide.

The Family of Freddie Lee Thomas of LeFlore County, Miss., 1965-- Federal investigators looked into the death of Thomas, 16. Thomas's brother believed he was murdered as a warning against black voter registration. The result of the investigation is unknown.

The Family of Saleam Triggs of Hattiesburg, Miss., 1965--The body of Mrs. Triggs was found mysteriously burned to death.

The Family of Clifton Walker of Adams County, Miss., 1964--Walker was killed by a shotgun blast at close range. The result of a federal investigation is unknown; and a host of others.

We must act--not only to bring these criminals to justice, but to also cleanse our Nation of this stain. The unsolved case of Emmett Till and other victims of the civil rights movement represent a terrible chapter in our Nation's history. Over the years there have been sporadic efforts to prosecute some of the civil rights era slayings that were ignored at the time. We need to address these injustices before it is too late--before they become permanent scars on our Nation's history. It is essential that Congress pass this legislation mandating a well-coordinated and well-funded effort to investigate and prosecute unsolved crimes from the civil rights era.

Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.

Mr. Chairman, the amendment I offer tonight will ensure that businesses can continue their current level of participation in contracting opportunities with the Department of Homeland Security.

The current governmentwide goal for small minority and disadvantaged business's participation established by the SBA is 23 percent. The current language of this bill places that contracting goal within the Department of Homeland Security at 3 percent.

Small businesses are often best able to provide the kind of innovative technologies we need to protect this Nation. This language would strike the 3 percent language, returning small business participation at DHS to the governmentwide goals.

Mr. Chairman, I urge my colleagues to adopt this amendment.

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

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

Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the last word.

Mr. Chairman, it's been 5 years since the Department of Homeland Security was established. November's election demonstrated that the Nation agreed with the Democrats' new direction for America.

In the movie A Few Good Men, Tom Cruise asked Jack Nicholson for the truth. Nicholson's response: You can't handle the truth.

Mr. Chairman, can the minority handle the truth? I submit to you today that the minority cannot, in fact, handle the truth. Mr. Chairman, the truth is that the minority can hear the heart of the American people no more than they could before November.

Truth is, Mr. Obey has made this process way more transparent than it was under the minority's watch. The truth is, we have much more of an efficient process. Most importantly, the truth is that there are no earmarks in this bill that we're debating here today.

The appropriations measure has been on the floor for 12 hours and still

counting. Eight motions for the committee to rise later, the minority continues to stifle progress, the minority continues to foster trivial debate to defer and deter us from our mission.

Perhaps the minority's not in touch with the interests of our Nation. The Nation is interested in leadership that remembers not to forget. The Nation is looking for leadership that remembers 9/11, leadership that remembers Katrina, leadership that realizes that there are still vulnerabilities that we need to address to prevent the next terrorist attack or natural disaster.

Chairman Price has showed leadership by addressing these issues in this bill, as my committee addressed in H.R. 1, 1401 and 1684.

We owe Department employees, we owe the Department's management, and we owe our great country the passage of this appropriations measure.

Mr. Chairman, I invite my colleagues in the majority to join me as chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee in passing a measure that brings us one step closer to protecting this Nation.

Homeland security is not a partisan issue. Mr. Chairman, it's an American issue. If we agree on that, then let's end this obstruction and pass this bill.

Mr. Chairman, I appreciate the gentleman giving me the time.

Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong support of H.R. 2638. This legislation goes a long way to meeting the Nation's homeland security needs. It also provides funding in a number of areas at the Department of Homeland Security that have repeatedly been shortchanged.

Specifically, the bill before us today provides DHS with $36.3 billion, a $2.1 billion increase over the President's request. Additionally, H.R. 2638 addresses many of the areas identified in the authorization bill that the Committee on Homeland Security developed.

The House overwhelmingly approved the authorization bill in early May. At the same time, it also is shaped by many of the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission, as well as programmatic changes called for in H.R. 1, legislation that I authored and that passed the House in January on a bipartisan basis.

For instance, this bill includes $78 million to double the amount of cargo screened on passenger aircraft. This would put TSA on the path of inspecting 100 percent of cargo, a key provision in H.R. 1.

Chairman Price is to be commended for producing a bill that makes the homeland more secure, especially given the tight budget constraints. We all know that to get border security right, we need to put more trained ``boots on the ground.'' H.R. 2638 provides funding for 3,000 additional Border Patrol agents to bring the number of agents to 17,819 by the end of the fiscal year.

It also makes some major enhancements to the operations of the Department. It mandates that all grants and contracts can only be used for projects that comply with Davis-Bacon. It also allows State and local governments to set chemical security rules that are stronger than those issued by the Federal Government. And it sets information protection standards for vulnerability and security plans for chemical facilities.

I support this bill and urge its passage.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to introduce the Emergency Child Care Services Act of 2007 which reaffirms the Federal Government's commitment to helping children and families as they recover from acts of terrorism, major disasters or other emergencies.

After Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, more than 3,000 licensed child care facilities along the Gulf Coast were damaged or destroyed. Parents needed a safe place to leave their children while working, looking for employment, cleaning debris from their homes, filing

claims with their insurance companies or working with Federal, State and local agencies to address their disaster-related needs.

However, while 3,045 licensed child care centers were eligible, just 10 centers in Louisiana and only one in Mississippi received Federal assistance. There were 1,690 eligible centers in my home state of Mississippi alone. I understand that numerous centers are still going through the appeals process with FEMA and have yet to rebuild and reopen.

I introduced this legislation to amend the Stafford Act to ensure that emergency child care is recognized as a ``critical service'' in the aftermath of a terrorist attack, major disaster or other emergency.

While provisions of the Stafford Act provide assistance to private nonprofit facilities that provide critical services, emergency child care is not listed as one. Passage of this measure will designate emergency child care as a critical service and let families know that in the time of a disaster, the need for childcare will not be forgotten.

In an effort to rebuild and restore child care operations in my home State of Mississippi, the Mississippi Early Care and Education Infrastructure Initiative was formed by Mississippi State University in partnership with Chevron, Save the Children, and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.

The goals of the Initiative were to quickly reopen the thousands of child care centers damaged or destroyed by the hurricanes, to retrain staff and upgrade curriculum materials and play equipment, and to prepare for future emergencies.

Further, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services approved child care waivers for $60 million so that parents were provided with vouchers for 60 days for much-needed child care services while working or looking for work. These waivers lifted Federal requirements for State matching funds and went directly to the States to administer their Child Care and Development Funds. There was a huge bottleneck with this process and numerous centers and parents were unaware of these resources. Further, many parents that received these vouchers were unable to find operational child care facilities.

I applaud the efforts of the Initiative fonned in Mississippi and am thankful that the Department of Health and Human Services responded quickly to the affected states. June 1st marks the beginning of 2007 hurricane season. We must be sure to let families know that the Federal Government is doing its part to ensure that critical services are available in the event of another large-scale disaster or even a major terrorist attack. Enactment of the Emergency Child Care Services Act is the way to do it.

I appreciate the yielding of the time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of the Alien Smuggling and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2007.

During consideration of the Homeland Security authorization bill earlier this month, I made a commitment to my colleagues that the House would

have the opportunity to vote on maritime smuggling legislation. I am pleased to have been able to work with the Judiciary and Transportation Committees to craft this critical homeland security legislation. It addresses not only alien smuggling at sea, but also alien smuggling by land and air.

Specifically, the Alien Smuggling and Terrorism Prevention Act includes tough new penalties for those who recruit, encourage, transport, or shield from detection aliens who cross our land, maritime, or air borders illegally. These enhanced penalties are essential to discouraging criminals from building tunnels in remote parts of the desert to smuggle aliens across our borders.

We know that the same people that smuggle drugs into our country are ready and willing to smuggle individuals who would do us harm. In fact, in January we learned of a plot to smuggle about 20 would-be terrorists into the United States from Mexico for $8,000 a head. The drug dealers called them ``Osama's guys.''

The bill requires that interdicted smugglers and aliens be run against all available terrorist watch lists. This is an important step in protecting America from terrorists.

I would especially like to commend the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Hill) for authoring this commonsense enforcement legislation. He is to be commended for his commitment to border security.

Again, Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleagues for working together on this important legislation and urge all Members to give it their support.

Madam Chairman, I rise today to commend Chairman Ike Skelton and the staff of the Armed Services Committee for working to strengthen the National Guard. Support of the men and women who so bravely serve our Nation as citizen-soldiers is critical to our nation's security.

Inclusion of several National Guard provisions in H.R. 1585, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008, sends a powerful message to our first military responders around the nation that we recognize their numerous contributions, many of which extend far beyond war fighting. As chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security, I am heartened that this legislation provides resources to the Guard's needs here at home for missions relevant to homeland security and sustainability in our States.

Over the last 5 years, the Guard has nobly accepted and completed missions in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere abroad. True to form, Guardsmen and women from almost every State have sacrificed a great deal, including in some instances their lives, to stay true to the motto of ``always ready, always there.''

Provisions in this legislation will provide $1 billion to address the strain on Guard and Reserve units in the States who are facing critical equipment shortages. For the first time, we will ensure that State Guard units are prepared for homeland security missions such as disaster response. Equally important is language in this bill that will encourage integration between the National Guard Bureau and other Defense components, such as Northern Command, who share responsibility for protecting the homeland.

In short, this legislation incorporates key recommendations from the Commission on the National Guard and Reserve. It takes us a step closer toward closing the gap between Guard units categorized as ready and Guard units resourced to be ready.

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to announce my support for the COPS Improvements Act of 2007. Although the COPS Act was originally introduced in 1994, its reauthorization is a clear indication of this Congress' dedication to passing legislation with the intent of securing our streets and providing for first responders, all of whom are vital to securing our Nation. The COPS Improvements Act is a post-9/11 legislation implementing a homeland security policy, specifically in the areas of terrorism preparedness, intelligence gathering, interoperability and other concerns we have in our communities across America.

The Committee on Homeland Security supports the COPS Improvements Act authorizing $600 million per year to hire officers to engage in their communities across a variety of policing duties, including counter- terrorism. The Amtrak Police Department, whose officers are on the frontlines of transportation security, will be given the resources to hire and train officers to perform intelligence, anti-terror, and other homeland security duties protecting our railroads.

The COPS Improvements Act is also applauded by the Committee on Homeland Security for authorizing $350 million per year for COPS technology grants. Among the grants established, many were dedicated to the development of interoperable communication technologies. The improvement of interoperable communications is vital to homeland security. It ensures there is communications connectivity between and among civilian authorities, local first responders, and the National Guard in the wake of a national emergency. This is a vital lesson we have painfully learned in the aftermath of emergency responders facing a lack of centralized coordination during a terrorist attack such as 9/ 11.

The reauthorization of the COPS legislation is important to the protection of our citizens and from domestic and foreign threats. I, and the Committee on Homeland Security, promote the COPS Improvements Act of 2007 as it is legislation that assists in protecting all Americans. But, I want to be clear--the Committee on Homeland Security should work with my colleagues in other committees to ensure these grants are used for their intended purpose and do not somehow exceed their legislative bounds. I look forward to discussing this issue further with Chairman Conyers and others. Terrorism is an issue we at the Committee take very seriously and believe the COPS Improvements Act can serve a vital role in reducing and responding to a possible terrorist event.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlelady for her gracious 5 minutes to talk on this rule.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this rule. The Committee on Homeland Security is the only committee explicitly charged with overseeing the Department's organization and administration.

We don't take this responsibility lightly. This Congress, we have held dozens of oversight hearings. The topics of each hearing may have been different, but the basic message from the Department was pretty much the same:

Don't blame us for not having our House in order. We have high turnover. We don't have a headquarters. We don't have the authorities we need to be a leader on issues such as bio-preparedness and cybersecurity. We don't have the authorities we need to integrate 22 agencies into one competent unit.

H.R. 1684 takes away all the excuses. Under this bill, the Department is provided the resources, accountability and authority needed to finally become the Federal agency that Congress envisioned and the American people deserve.

Every day, we get another reminder of the urgent nature of the homeland security mission. Just yesterday, we learned that six individuals are in custody on charges of plotting to attack the U.S. Army base at Fort Dix. We don't need to have the luxury of giving DHS time to step up to the challenges of becoming a functional organization.

I introduced, Mr. Speaker, this bipartisan bill with Ranking Member King. The full committee, by recorded vote of 26-0, voted to order it favorably to the House.

I am pleased that the Rules Committee is allowing so many amendments to be considered today. I look forward to an active debate and the opportunity to present my manager's amendment. The manager's amendment is a product of discussion with other Members of the House and other House committees who have jurisdictional interest in aspects of this legislation.

I'm very pleased to bring this bill to the floor for consideration by the full House. Today, Members of the House of Representatives will have an opportunity to do something they have not been able to do in 2 years. They will get to cast a vote in favor of authorizing the Department of Homeland Security.

What's more, Mr. Speaker, they will get to vote to restore funding to critical first-responder programs that the President's budget would eliminate or severely cut.

Mr. Speaker, I urge a ``yes'' vote on the rule and on the underlying bill.