[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 434 Engrossed in House (EH)]

<DOC>
H. Res. 434

                In the House of Representatives, U. S.,


    Resolved, That upon the adoption of this resolution the bill, H.R. 719, 
entitled ``TSA Office of Inspection Accountability Act of 2015'', with the 
Senate amendment thereto, shall be considered to have been taken from the 
Speaker's table to the end that the Senate amendment thereto be, and the same is 
hereby, agreed to with the following amendment:
     In lieu of the matter proposed to be inserted by the amendment of the 
Senate, insert the following:

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``TSA Office of Inspection Accountability Act 
of 2015''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) Consistent with Federal law and regulations, for law enforcement 
        officers to qualify for premium pay as criminal investigators, the 
        officers must, in general, spend on average at least 50 percent of their 
        time investigating, apprehending, or detaining individuals suspected or 
        convicted of offenses against the criminal laws of the United States.
            (2) According to the Inspector General of the Department of Homeland 
        Security (DHS IG), the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) does 
        not ensure that its cadre of criminal investigators in the Office of 
        Inspection are meeting this requirement, even though they are considered 
        law enforcement officers under TSA policy and receive premium pay.
            (3) Instead, TSA criminal investigators in the Office of Inspection 
        primarily monitor the results of criminal investigations conducted by 
        other agencies, investigate administrative cases of TSA employee 
        misconduct, and carry out inspections, covert tests, and internal 
        reviews, which the DHS IG asserts could be performed by employees other 
        than criminal investigators at a lower cost.
            (4) The premium pay and other benefits afforded to TSA criminal 
        investigators in the Office of Inspection who are incorrectly classified 
        as such will cost the taxpayer as much as $17 million over 5 years if 
        TSA fails to make any changes to the number of criminal investigators in 
        the Office of Inspection, according to the DHS IG.
            (5) This may be a conservative estimate, as it accounts for the cost 
        of Law Enforcement Availability Pay, but not the costs of law 
        enforcement training, statutory early retirement benefits, police 
        vehicles, and weapons.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Administration.--The term ``Administration'' means the 
        Transportation Security Administration.
            (2) Assistant secretary.--The term ``Assistant Secretary'' means the 
        Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security (Transportation Security) of 
        the Department of Homeland Security.
            (3) Inspector general.--The term ``Inspector General'' means the 
        Inspector General of the Department of Homeland Security.

SEC. 4. INSPECTOR GENERAL AUDIT.

    (a) Audit.--Not later than 60 days after the date of the enactment of this 
Act, the Inspector General shall analyze the data and methods that the Assistant 
Secretary uses to identify Office of Inspection employees of the Administration 
who meet the requirements of sections 8331(20), 8401(17), and 5545a of title 5, 
United States Code, and provide the relevant findings to the Assistant 
Secretary, including a finding on whether the data and methods are adequate and 
valid.
    (b) Prohibition on Hiring.--If the Inspector General finds that such data 
and methods are inadequate or invalid, the Administration shall not hire any new 
employee to work in the Office of Inspection of the Administration until--
            (1) the Assistant Secretary makes a certification described in 
        section 5 to the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of 
        Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
        Transportation of the Senate; and
            (2) the Inspector General submits to such Committees a finding, not 
        later than 30 days after the Assistant Secretary makes such 
        certification, that the Assistant Secretary utilized adequate and valid 
        data and methods to make such certification.

SEC. 5. TSA OFFICE OF INSPECTION WORKFORCE CERTIFICATION.

    (a) Certification to Congress.--The Assistant Secretary shall, by not later 
than 90 days after the date the Inspector General provides its findings to the 
Assistant Secretary under section 4(a), document and certify in writing to the 
Committee on Homeland Security of the House of Representatives and the Committee 
on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate that only those Office of 
Inspection employees of the Administration who meet the requirements of sections 
8331(20), 8401(17), and 5545a of title 5, United States Code, are classified as 
criminal investigators and are receiving premium pay and other benefits 
associated with such classification.
    (b) Employee Reclassification.--The Assistant Secretary shall reclassify 
criminal investigator positions in the Office of Inspection as noncriminal 
investigator positions or non-law enforcement positions if the individuals in 
those positions do not, or are not expected to, spend an average of at least 50 
percent of their time performing criminal investigative duties.
    (c) Projected Cost Savings.--
            (1) In general.--The Assistant Secretary shall estimate the total 
        long-term cost savings to the Federal Government resulting from the 
        implementation of subsection (b), and provide such estimate to the 
        Committee on Homeland Security of the House of Representatives and the 
        Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate by not 
        later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act.
            (2) Contents.--Such estimate shall identify savings associated with 
        the positions reclassified under subsection (b) and include, among other 
        factors the Assistant Secretary considers appropriate, savings from--
                    (A) law enforcement training;
                    (B) early retirement benefits;
                    (C) law enforcement availability and other premium pay; and
                    (D) weapons, vehicles, and communications devices.

SEC. 6. INVESTIGATION OF FEDERAL AIR MARSHAL SERVICE MISCONDUCT.

    Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, or as 
soon as practicable, the Assistant Secretary shall submit to the Committee on 
Homeland Security of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 
Science, and Transportation and the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate--
            (1) materials in the possession or control of the Department of 
        Homeland Security associated with the Office of Inspection's review of 
        instances in which Federal Air Marshal Service officials obtained 
        discounted or free firearms for personal use;
            (2) information on specific actions that will be taken to prevent 
        Federal Air Marshal Service officials from using their official 
        positions, or exploiting, in any way, the Service's relationships with 
        private vendors to obtain discounted or free firearms for personal use; 
        and
            (3) information on specific actions that will be taken to prevent 
        the Federal Air Marshal Service from misusing Government resources.

SEC. 7. STUDY.

    Not later than 180 days after the date that the Assistant Secretary submits 
the certification to Congress under section 5(a), the Inspector General of the 
Department of Homeland Security shall submit to the Committee on Homeland 
Security of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, 
and Transportation and the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 
Affairs of the Senate a study--
            (1) reviewing the employee requirements, responsibilities, and 
        benefits of criminal investigators in the TSA Office of Inspection with 
        criminal investigators employed at agencies adhering to the Office of 
        Personnel Management employee classification system; and
            (2) identifying any inconsistencies and costs implications for 
        differences between the varying employee requirements, responsibilities, 
        and benefits.

SEC. 8. INDEPENDENT AUDIT OF FEDERAL AIR MARSHAL SERVICE PERSONNEL ISSUES.

    Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
Inspector General shall submit to the Committee on Homeland Security of the 
House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation and the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs 
of the Senate a study that--
            (1) reviews the Federal Air Marshal Service's existing personnel 
        policies and procedures for identifying misuse of Government resources; 
        and
            (2) reviews the administration of the Federal Air Marshal Service's 
        existing code of conduct or integrity policies with respect to instances 
        of misconduct.
            Attest:

                                                                          Clerk.