Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, today I rise to recognize the retirement of Robert N. Campbell III, Vice Chairman of Deloitte & Touche USA LLP and National Sector Leader of Deloitte's U.S. State Government practice. Bob will soon retire after 39 years with Deloitte.

During his tenure with Deloitte, Bob has worked closely with government leaders to address and resolve their critical policy, financing, and operational issues. He has advised leaders of major federal agencies, over 40 states and several major local governments on a variety of issues spanning human services, higher education, K 12 education, student loan finance, employment, economic development, public health care, Medicaid, mental health, developmental disabilities, revenue and taxation, and central finance and administration.

Mr. Campbell is a frequent writer and speaker on public policy and management issues. He recently co-authored the book States of Transition addressing the big issues currently facing our nation's governors. In recent years he has been quoted in Washington Technology, Federal Times, Government Technology, Consulting Magazine, Computer World, The Hill, USA Today, and other leading publications. He has also addressed a number of conferences and associations including the National Association of Auditors, Comptrollers and Treasurers, the Council of State Governments, and Governing Magazine's Government Performance Conference.

During his tenure at Deloitte, Bob has held a variety of senior leadership roles and was awarded the firm's annual Curtis Award for Partnership Values.

Bob received a Bachelor's degree with honors majoring in business and history from Austin College in 1971 and a Master's Degree from the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs, University of Texas in 1973. He has served on various community boards and committees and is presently a member of the Advisory Board of the LBJ School of Public Affairs and on the Chancellors Council Executive Committee of the University of Texas System.

Mr. Speaker, in closing, Bob Campbell has demonstrated passion and excellence in helping governments address and resolve critical policy, financing, and operational issues. His insights have helped governments across the country achieve better results for the citizens they serve.

On behalf of the people of the 10th Congressional District, I would like to thank Bob for his years of service and wish him continued success in the years to come.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2096) to advance cybersecurity research, development, and technical standards, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on this bill, as amended, now under consideration.

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

Mr. Speaker, today Congress has a historic opportunity to lay the groundwork to defend our Nation against cyberattacks. We're not just talking about mischievous online activity, but actions that could bring America to its knees.

Unfortunately, this is not science fiction. America is under attack, not by armies advancing on our beaches or planes overhead, but in the virtual world, where those who intend to do us harm have already penetrated our Federal and private computer networks and continue to plot relentlessly to bring down our critical infrastructure. Our water supply, nuclear facilities, air traffic control systems, electrical grid, and defense and banking systems are all vulnerable to a crippling attack.

General Keith Alexander, Director of the National Security Agency, said it is not a matter of if, but when a cyber Pearl Harbor occurs. We are just simply fortunate that a computer-based attack has not brought physical harm to Americans, but that is not for a lack of trying.

China has already successfully stolen some of our biggest military secrets, such as information about the F 35 Joint Strike Fighter, the Department of Defense's biggest weapons program ever. Now they know the program well enough not only to copy it, but to guard against it. Similar attacks continue unabated on our military's computer systems. Hackers trick soldiers into downloading viruses onto their computers, after which every keystroke is recorded. Mr. Speaker, our military secrets are being stolen every day.

Imagine if agents of a foreign government were breaking into the Pentagon and stealing top secret documents, paper files. It would not be tolerated. It would be all over the front page of The Washington Post. And yet in the virtual world, that is occurring. In fact, the October 2011 Report to Congress on Foreign Economic Collection and Industrial Espionage states it is part of China and Russia's national policy to try to identify and take sensitive technology which they need for their own development. In fact, they train and have a cyberwarfare college.

The degradation of our national security and intellectual property from cybertheft threatens to weaken us where we have historically been strong. The NSA calculates that Russia and China have stolen $1 trillion in American intellectual property, the biggest

transfer of wealth in history. Their philosophy is: Why invent when you can steal it?

Besides nation-states, there are groups such as Anonymous, LulzSec, and AntiSec who indulge in nonstate ``hacktivism.'' Their agenda is to bully, embarrass, and steal from those that they disagree with philosophically or politically. They think nothing of closing down Web sites, hacking into email and voice mail, and taking sensitive information from those who don't do their bidding.

There has been a lot of hard work going into this Cyberweek and a lot of thought to find solutions. As cochair of the Center for Strategic and International Studies Commission on Cybersecurity for the 44th President, I helped draft recommendations for securing the country's government networks and critical infrastructures.

As a member of the Speaker's Cyber Task Force and chairman of the House Cybersecurity Caucus, I helped present those recommendations to Congress in the legislation we have seen this week. The historic legislation the House votes on this week incorporates many of these recommendations.

This bill, the Cybersecurity Enhancement Act, gives the National Institute of Standards and Technology the authority to set security standards for Federal computer systems and develop checklists for agencies to follow.

Why is that important?

It hardens our Federal networks. Every Federal agency has been hacked into by agents of a foreign power, by activists. Every Federal agency, including the Pentagon, has been hacked into. This bill will harden those Federal networks and make them less vulnerable to such an attack.

It also creates a Federal/university/private sector task force to coordinate research and development. It establishes cybersecurity research and development grant programs and improves the quality of our cyber workforce by creating a scholarship program.

Importantly, it creates an education and awareness program for computer hygiene. When you talk to the NSA, they tell you that computer hygiene accounts for the majority of cyberattacks. This would remedy the majority of vulnerabilities that we face.

And finally, it sets forth procurement standards for hardware and software that will minimize security risks. This will also have a ripple effect in the private sector so that they will also adopt such procurement standards.

Other legislation we saw that passed yesterday facilitates the sharing of threat information between the public and private sector, which controls most of our critical infrastructure. While it's not part of this bill, I think it's important to make the analogy that what we did yesterday was simply allow the Federal Government to share signature threat information with the private sector, similar to a police officer sharing with a homeowner a threat that they see of someone breaking into their house and then telling them how they can better protect their house and lock the door without the door being opened.

These commonsense reforms are a baseline of what we need to secure our infrastructure. We must take action before life is lost and our economy and defenses have been weakened to the point of damaging our country.

One of the biggest failures after 9/11 was the knowledge that the attacks could have possibly been prevented with better intelligence information-sharing and protective measures. There was also a lack of imagination.

And while we can't change the past, we can use it as a lesson, as we go forward in our modern cyberworld, a world in which our water supply, defense systems, nuclear power plants, electrical grid, banking systems, FAA, and other critical infrastructures are vulnerable to cyberthieves, -attacks, and -terrorists.

We know what has to be done. Mr. Speaker, the time to act is now.

With that, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Hall), my good friend and colleague, the chairman of the Science and Technology Committee.

Let me just as a point of personal privilege say and give my thanks to the gentleman from Rhode Island (Mr. Langevin), my good friend, colleague, cochair of the Cybersecurity Caucus, for your vision, your leadership on this very, very important issue. As you know and I know, we were very into this issue of cybersecurity 6 years ago, before it was really cool to be into cybersecurity. So thank you so much for your leadership.

With that, Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Thornberry), my good friend and colleague and also the chairman of the Speaker's Cybersecurity Caucus.

Mr. Speaker, does the gentleman from Illinois have any additional speakers?

Then I reserve the balance of my time.

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

Let me first recognize Mr. Lipinski for his excellent leadership. We've been pushing this bill. It's the second Congress in which we've pushed it. I certainly hope that this time it goes to the Senate and gets signed into law.

Mr. Lipinski, you've been a real leader on cybersecurity. It has been an honor to serve with you on the Science and Technology Committee together. Let me, again, thank you for all of your great efforts.

At a time of intense partisanship, when there is so much acrimony on

both sides of the aisle, it is refreshing to see a moment when we can come together as Americans first, regardless of party affiliation, and do something that's right. Cybersecurity is in the best interest of the Nation. Defending the United States is a fundamental element under the Constitution. So, for me, personally, to see us come together like we have today is a very refreshing thing.

My father flew in a B 17 over Europe in 35 bombing missions. He was a bombardier. At that time, the state of warfare was very kinetic. They handed down a better country to this generation, but we're faced with a new threat. They're not bombs of his era, of his day, but, rather, digital bombs that can be dropped at any time and that have dropped on this government--on the Federal Government--and on our private sector. Bombs that have stolen trillions of dollars of intellectual property. Bombs that have committed espionage and stolen our military secrets. And bombs that could be conducted in a cyberwarfare attack.

I think the thing that keeps me up most at night is the idea of cyberwarfare, because we know what our offensive capability is. We know what we can do and conduct as a Nation against another nation. That technology in the wrong hands, in a country's like Iran, can cause great devastation against the interests of the United States, can bring down power grids, can bring down financial institutions. Every critical infrastructure tied to the Internet is vulnerable to this type of attack. So I believe that this legislation will protect this Nation from such attacks.

We all came up here to serve, not for ego, not for title but, at the end of the day, to make a difference, to make a fundamental difference in the lives of Americans. So I believe a moment like this is a great moment in which we can reflect back on later in our lives and think, you know, I made a difference. This bill protects Americans and future generations.

Let me thank all of those who have been involved in this critical legislation and, particularly, Mr. Lipinski for your patriotism to this country and for what you've done in getting this to move forward.

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

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise to commemorate the 33rd anniversary of the enactment of the Taiwan Relations Act.

Since the end of World War II, the United States and Taiwan have fostered a close relationship that has been of enormous strategic and economic benefit to both countries. When the United States shifted diplomatic relations from Taiwan to the People's Republic of China in January 1979, Congress moved quickly to pass the Taiwan Relations Act (TRA) to ensure that the United States would continue its robust engagement with Taiwan in the areas of commerce, culture, and security cooperation. With President Carter's signature on April 10, 1979, this important and lasting piece of legislation became the Law of the Land and served as the statutory basis for U.S.-Taiwan relations going forward.

After 33 years, the TRA still stands as a model of congressional leadership in the history of our foreign relation, and, together with the 1982 ``Six Assurances,'' it remains the cornerstone of a very mutually beneficial relationship between the United States and Taiwan. Through three decades marked by momentous social, economic, and political transformations, Taiwan has remained a trusted ally of the United States that now shares with us the ideals of freedom, democracy and self-determination. The foresight of the TRA's drafters in providing that ``the United States will make available to Taiwan such defense articles and defense services . . . to enable Taiwan to maintain a sufficient self-defense capability,'' and affirming ``the preservation and enhancement of the human rights of all the people on Taiwan'' as explicit objectives of the United States, has contributed in large measure to make Taiwan what it is today--a vibrant, open society governed by democratic institutions.

Though the people of Taiwan now enjoy fundamental human rights and civil liberties, they continue to live day after day under the ominous shadow cast by over 1400 short and medium-range ballistic missiles that the People's Republic of China (PRC) has aimed at them. The PRC persists in claiming Taiwan as a `renegade province,' refusing to renounce the use of force to prevent formal de jure independence, even codifying its right to military action via passage of the so-called ``Anti-Secession Law'' on March 14, 2005. The United States Congress strongly condemned the ``Anti-Secession Law'' in House Concurrent Resolution 98, passed on March 16, 2005.

The TRA affirmed that the United States' decision to establish diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China was based on the expectation that the future of Taiwan would be determined by peaceful means. Furthermore, it stipulates that it is the policy of the United States ``to consider any effort to determine the future of Taiwan by other than peaceful means . . . a threat to the peace and security of the Western Pacific area and of grave concern to the United States.'' The unambiguous and principled stance contained in these provisions has been instrumental to the maintenance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait for more than thirty years, in spite of the growing military threat posed by the PRC.

I therefore invite my colleagues to join me in commemorating the 33rd anniversary of the TRA, to further underline our unwavering commitment to the TRA and our support for the strong and deepening relationship between the U.S. and Taiwan.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the Civil Air Patrol. Born on December 1, 1941 in the days before the horrific attack on Pearl Harbor, the Civil Air Patrol is comprised of patriotic Americans whose flying skills and bravery have come to the rescue of this great nation again and again.

In World War II, as German U-boats sank American ships along our coasts and threatened our war effort, thousands of volunteers from the Civil Air Patrol risked their lives to safeguard our shores and deter the enemy's efforts. These ``sub chasers'' spotted 143 German submarines, attacking 57 and sinking 2.

This volunteer force was so successful that after the war President Harry Truman signed a law making the Civil Air Patrol a benevolent, non-profit organization. Congress followed suit and in 1948 permanently established the organization as the auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force. Its three primary missions, as established by law, are emergency services, cadet programs, and aerospace education.

Today the Civil Air Patrol educates young people about aviation and aerospace and encourages them to engage in civic and military leadership. It continues to save lives by participating in 90 percent of the Air Force's inland search and rescue missions. And when it comes to natural disasters, volunteers of the Civil Air Patrol can be counted on to assist more than 1,600 communities across America. They also work with the American Red Cross on humanitarian missions, coming to the rescue when other means of transportation are not available.

In the last year, Civil Air Patrol volunteers participated in 1,016 search and rescue missions and helped save 113 lives. This volunteer organization leads the way for similar groups around the world and sets an example for other countries who wish to have the same success. We can be proud that America's Civil Air Patrol is the gold standard for search and rescue, aerospace education, and emergency services operations.

So today we not only congratulate the Civil Air Patrol on 70 years of outstanding service, but we also thank them for coming to the aid of this great nation time and time again. Their bravery and civic leadership serve as a beacon of pride to the grateful Americans they serve.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the balanced budget amendment to the Constitution.

Our debt burden in this country is so heavy, it is no longer simply a financial issue; it is a moral issue. We have spent and spent, racking up astronomical debt that will dampen the American Dream for our children and grandchildren. If we continue on this path, we will guarantee that future generations will have unsustainable tax burdens, monstrous inefficient bureaucracies, and a lifestyle so diminished that it will no longer resemble the America that we all know and love.

That is not what our Founding Fathers had in mind when they formed this great Nation. In fact, in 1798, Thomas Jefferson wrote, ``I wish it were possible to obtain a single amendment to our Constitution. I mean an additional article taking from the Federal Government the power of borrowing.'' Thomas Jefferson could never in his wildest dreams have imagined that our debt would one day top $14 trillion, threatening our very way of life. And unfortunately, this is a problem that only gets worse--every year that we produce a budget, our spending grows.

Ronald Reagan had it right when he said, ``No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. A government program is the nearest thing on Earth we'll ever see to eternal life.'' And that was back in the 1980s when our debt was a fraction of what it is now.

Our debt has grown so out of control that it not only saddles future generations with our irresponsibility, but it poses a national security threat to our country today. Former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Mike Mullen, recently stated that our increasing debt is the biggest threat we have to our national security. We are playing with fire. And it is time to stop, and it is time to do the right thing.

Not only do 49 States have balanced budget amendments, but Americans all across the country have to balance their household budgets. It is time for Congress to do the same and balance America's checkbook.

Some of our friends on the other side of the aisle agree. In a recent letter to House Members, the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. DeFazio) asked his colleagues to buck their leadership and vote for the balanced budget amendment. He said, going against it is a ``strategic mistake,'' and I agree. His party's leadership evidently disagrees. And a recent headline in USA Today says it all: ``House Dems will Block Balanced Budget Amendment.'' Unfortunately, they will be on the wrong side of history.

It is time for us to take a stand and do the right thing. Let's stand on the side of our children and our grandchildren and on the side of Jefferson and Reagan and with those who believe that the safety and security of our country should come before our short-term, insatiable appetite for ever-increasing government spending. The time is now. Let's support the balanced budget amendment and put an end to the fiscal insanity that threatens this great country.

I thank my good friend and colleague from Texas (Mr. Farenthold) for his support of my legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of our Nation's veterans and in support of this legislation, which would designate the post office located at 122 North Holderrieth Boulevard in Tomball, Texas, as the ``Tomball Veterans Post Office.''

It is appropriate, Mr. Speaker, that on the first legislative day after Veterans Day that this House would honor its veterans for their sacrifice and fidelity to our country. I cannot think of a more deserving community than Tomball, Texas, in my district.

Mr. Speaker, I just returned this weekend from visiting our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan and meeting with the President of Pakistan. I also visited our wounded warriors at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany on Veterans Day.

I'm pleased to report that our men and women in uniform are doing tremendous work and have made extraordinary progress in the war on terror. I was also humbled by our troops' sacrifice and unwavering commitment to our mission.

In Afghanistan, I witnessed the fruits of our soldiers' labor. For the first time, women are being educated and Afghans are enjoying freedoms, the likes of which they could only dream about under the Taliban's brutal regime.

In Iraq, where Saddam Hussein and his henchmen once brutalized the Iraqi people and silenced their voices, democracy is beginning to take shape. Today the Iraqi people are free to express their diverse points of view and engage in the same kind of political discourse that we are engaged in here right now in this very Chamber.

It is because of our soldiers that this is possible; that the American people can be safe from terror and tyranny; and that others around the world, for the first time in their lives, experience the freedoms which we so often take for granted.

I am so proud of our soldiers and what they have accomplished-- soldiers like Marine Corporal Jeffrey Johnson of Tomball, who lost his life in Afghanistan in 2010 defending America and what our country stands for in the world.

Last year I attended Jeffrey's funeral in the small town of Tomball, where over 30,000 people--30,000 grateful Americans--lined up in the streets to show their respect for a true American hero. This unbelievable outpouring of support demonstrated that patriotism and love of country are still alive and well in America.

It's thanks to veterans like Jeffrey Johnson and so many others from Texas and across this great country that this is possible; and, for that, we must honor our men and women who have served in uniform.

That is also why I'm active with the Veterans History Project at the Library of Congress, which preserves and makes accessible the personal accounts of American war veterans so that future generations may hear directly from veterans and better understand the realities of war.

My father, a World War II veteran who flew bombing missions over Nazi Germany, always reminded me that his generation, often called the Greatest Generation, handed down a better America to my generation.

That same can be said for today's veterans, such as Tomball heroes like Jeffery Johnson, whose sacrifices are building a better America today.

And so to all of America's veterans, let me say on behalf of this distinguished body, thank you for your service, and I urge my colleagues to join me in passing this legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak in recognition and support of Republic of South Sudan which will tomorrow become Africa's 54th country. As a co-chair of the House Sudan Caucus, I am grateful for the accomplishment of this successful milestone in the Comprehensive Peace Agreement process that has ended Sudan's 22-year civil war. In the past two decades, this civil war and famine took the lives of approximately two million people in Sudan.

The ability for South Sudan to declare for itself its own country is a testament to what can be achieved when a unified international community made of nation states, international organizations, and non- governmental organizations all come together to foster peace and assist in the resolution of difference between peoples.

Yet, the people of South Sudan still face many challenges. There is more infrastructure

to be built, governmental processes to be developed, and a new currency to be established. There are also unsettled issues with its neighbor, the Republic of Sudan, such as ending violence and suffering in Darfur, a long-term oil revenue sharing agreement, border demarcation, fair distribution of debts, and establishing the qualifications for citizenship.

Tomorrow, we will celebrate the birth of a new nation. However, with this tremendous event should come a renewed commitment from the world to preserve peace and cultivate a bright and stable future for the South Sudanese people.

I thank the gentleman from Florida for yielding time and I commend him for this legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of this bill and in defense of the Constitution. The Founding Fathers clearly intended for Congress to have the power to commit this Nation into armed conflict.

Article I, section 8 of the Constitution states that Congress shall have the power to declare war. Our first Commander in Chief, George Washington, knew that when he said, ``The Constitution vests the power of declaring war in Congress; therefore, no offensive expedition of importance can be undertaken until after they shall have deliberated upon the subject and authorized such a measure.''

That is exactly what this bill is about, and President Obama, when he was a Senator, knew this when he said that, ``The President does not have power under the Constitution to authorize a military attack in a situation that does not involve stopping an actual or imminent threat to the Nation.''

He went on further to say that, ``No law can give Congress a backbone if it refuses to stand up as the co-equal branch the Constitution made it.''

I couldn't agree more with him, but, unfortunately, as President, Mr. Obama appears to no longer agree with his prior interpretation of the Constitution, and in reviewing the War Powers Act, we can argue that it is unconstitutional, but that is for the Supreme Court to decide.

In applying the War Powers Act to the facts here in this case, it is clear that the President failed to comply with the requirements to get congressional approval; and when we examine the merits of the case for involvement in Libya, this administration has wholly failed to define a clear national interest, mission, or goal.

Why are we there? Are we there to kill Qadhafi or to provide humanitarian aid? And since when does humanitarian aid come from a missile launched from a Predator drone? And who are these rebels that we are supporting? The administration has failed to provide Congress with a clear answer to this question, but we do know that some of them are tied to terrorist organizations.

The bill introduced by my good friend from Florida (Mr. Rooney) reasserts Congress' role as a coequal branch of government, and it sends a clear message to the President that he must get congressional approval before he commits this Nation to war, as he stated when he was in the United States Senate.

With that, Mr. Speaker, I urge a ``yes'' vote on this bill.

Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. Chairman, my amendment will increase spending by $50 million for Customs and Border Protection's Air and Marine operations. It will include funding for at least 2 UAV systems, as well as much needed helicopters and marine vessels to assist CBP operations along the border.

This amendment will provide the resources to increase the number of flight crews, training, and ground operations needed to support the mounting requests for aerial surveillance missions and boat crews to patrol the rivers and lakes along our border.

CBP air marine support supplements our agents on the ground, allowing CBP to deploy fewer agents in a specific area. CBP air marine currently operates 7 UAVs and intends to grow the fleet to a total of 18 to 24 by 2016.

I have seen the benefits of these missions personally, along with my good friend and colleague from the Homeland Security Committee, Mr. Cuellar, to whom I yield at this time.

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

Point of Order

Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. Chairman, this amendment will increase funding for Operation Stonegarden by $10 million. And while the underlying bill increases funding from $50 million to $55 million, it is not enough.

Operation Stonegarden is a grant program that provides funding to county-level governments along the border to prevent, protect against, and respond to border security issues as well as enhance cooperation and coordination between Federal, State, and local agencies.

At the last House Homeland Security Emergency Communications, Preparedness, and Response Subcommittee hearing, Sheriff Gonzalez of Zapata County and Sheriff Larry Dever of Arizona explained the need for drastic increases in this funding. While $55 million is woefully inadequate when spread around, I believe an additional $10 million would advance the cause.

With that, I yield again to my good friend from Texas.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Point of Order

Mr. Chairman, this is just a question for my good friend from Alabama.

It's my understanding that these moneys are actually offset by the Under Secretary of Management's office. There is not an increased outlay.

Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. Chairman, this amendment will increase funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the salaries and expenses in order to increase the number of Border Enforcement Security Task Force teams.

I, along with Mr. Cuellar, have been down to the border and seen the direct benefits of the BEST teams in terms of interdicting the southbound flow of cash and weapons. It's my sincere hope that with additional resources we could stop the flow of weapons going south into Mexico, but also seize the cash and asset forfeiture money that could then, in turn, help pay for our border security operations.

With that, I yield to my good friend from Texas.

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

Point of Order

Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. Chairman, this amendment will increase funding by $10 million for border security fencing, infrastructure and technology. Secretary Napolitano's cancellation of the Secure Border Initiative delays the deployment of technology to secure the border.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

The backbone of the new proposed system, integrated fixed towers, will not be in place until January 2013. In place of SBInet, a new border surveillance technology plan has been developed that abandons the fixed sensor tower nature of the original SBInet plan and replaces it with multiple technologies. As a result, the new plan consists of a reduced number of sensor towers envisioned in the SBInet plan, and in their place, lower cost technologies such as mounted radar and camera systems, portable and imaging systems, and thermal imaging devices.

The Secretary said that technology will not be deployed to cover the entire southern border until the year 2025. I believe that is unacceptable. This amendment provides funding for readily available technology that we can deploy quickly to secure the border before that timeframe.

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

Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

This amendment will increase funding for the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Office of Detention and Removal. While the underlying bill does increase funding by $26 million, we need more.

DRO is the primary enforcement arm within ICE for the identification, apprehension and removal of illegal aliens from the United States. DRO is severely underresourced. It is overwhelmed and does not have the resources to do its job. ICE has stated repeatedly that they simply don't have the manpower and resources to deport illegal aliens, even criminal aliens identified through the 287(g) program. The Federal Government has its responsibility, and it needs to step up to the plate.

With that, I yield back the balance of my time.

Point of Order

Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

This amendment will nearly triple the amount of funding for the popular 287(g) program, which authorizes the Secretary of Homeland Security to permit specially trained State and local law enforcement officers to apprehend, investigate or detain aliens during a predetermined time frame and under Federal supervision by ICE.

It is an important force multiplier for ICE in allowing for enhanced capabilities to detain and remove illegal aliens identified by local law enforcement during the course of their duties.

With that, I yield back the balance of my time.

Point of Order

Offered By: Mr. McCaul

Amendment No. 55: Page 3, line 9, after the dollar amount,

insert ``(reduced by $10,000,000)''.

Page 16, line 24, after the dollar amount, insert

``(increased by $10,000,000)''.

Page 18, line 23, after the dollar amount, insert

``(increased by $10,000,000)''

Offered By: Mr. McCaul

Amendment No. 56: Page 3, line 9, after the dollar amount,

insert ``(reduced by $10,000,000)''.

Page 16, line 24, after the dollar amount, insert

``(increased by $10,000,000)''.

Offered By: Mr. McCaul

Amendment No. 57: Page 3, line 9, after the dollar amount,

insert ``(reduced by $10,000,000)''.

Page 16, line 24, after the dollar amount, insert

``(increased by $10,000,000)''.

Page 17, line 10, after the dollar amount, insert

``(increased by $10,000,000)''

Offered By: Mr. McCaul

Amendment No. 58: Page 3, line 9, after the dollar amount,

insert ``(reduced by $10,000,000)''.

Page 7, line 13, after the first dollar amount, insert

``(increased by $10,000,000)''.

Page 12, line 6, after the dollar amount, insert

``(increased by $10,000,000)''.

Offered By: Mr. McCaul

Amendment No. 53: Page 3, line 9, after the dollar amount,

insert ``(reduced by $50,000,000)''.

Page 7, line 13, after the first dollar amount, insert

``(increased by $50,000,000)''.

Page 7, line 21, after the dollar amount, insert

``(increased by $50,000,000)''.

Offered By: Mr. McCaul

Amendment No. 54: Page 3, line 9, after the dollar amount,

insert ``(reduced by $10,000,000)''.

Page 45, line 18, after the dollar amount, insert

``(increased by $10,000,000)''.

Page 47, line 10, after the dollar amount, insert

``(increased by $10,000,000)''.