    [House Hearing, 115 Congress]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]

                         UNITED STATES CAPITOL POLICE:
                            OPERATIONS AND WORKFORCE

    =======================================================================

                                    HEARING

                                   before the
                               COMMITTEE ON HOUSE
                                 ADMINISTRATION
                            HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                        3ONE HUNDRED FIFTEENTH CONGRESS

                                 SECOND SESSION

                                   __________

                                 JUNE 26, 2018

                                   __________

          Printed for the use of the Committee on House Administration

    [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

                           Available on the Internet:
             https://www.govinfo.gov/committee/house-administration

                                _________

                    U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE

     33-062                 WASHINGTON : 2018

                       Committee on House Administration

        GREGG HARPER, Mississippi,
                 Chairman

    ROBERT A. BRADY, Pennsylvania,       RODNEY DAVIS, Illinois, Vice
      Ranking Member                     Chairman
    ZOE LOFGREN, California              BARBARA COMSTOCK, Virginia
    JAMIE RASKIN, Maryland               MARK WALKER, North Carolina
                                         ADRIAN SMITH, Nebraska
                                         BARRY LOUDERMILK, Georgia

             UNITED STATES CAPITOL POLICE: OPERATIONS AND WORKFORCE

                                  ----------

                             TUESDAY, JUNE 26, 2018

                              House of Representatives,
                             Committee on House Administration,
                                                        Washington, DC.
        The Committee met, pursuant to call, at 11:09 a.m., in Room
    1310, Longworth House Office Building, Hon. Gregg Harper
    [Chairman of the Committee] presiding.
        Present: Representatives Harper, Davis, Walker, Brady, and
    Lofgren.
        Staff Present: Sean Moran, Staff Director; Kim Betz, Deputy
    Staff Director/Policy and Oversight; Steven Wall, Deputy
    General Counsel; Dan Jarrell, Legislative Clerk; Amanda Anger,
    Professional Staff Member; Matt Field, Director of Oversight;
    Erin McCracken, Communications Director; Jamie Fleet, Minority
    Staff Director; Khalil Abboud, Minority Deputy Staff Director;
    and Eddie Flaherty, Minority Chief Clerk.
        The Chairman. I now call to order the Committee on House
    Administration for today's hearing examining the operations and
    workforce of the United States Capitol Police.
        We will pause for a moment while that is set up.
        I want to thank everyone for being here today.
        The hearing record will remain open for 5 legislative days
    so Members may submit any materials they wish to be included.
        A quorum is present, so we may proceed.
        When Congress moved from Philadelphia to Washington, D.C.,
    in 1800, one man was hired to protect the U.S. Capitol
    Building. Nearly 30 years later, in 1828, the U.S. Capitol
    Police was born. Now in its 190th year, the USCP employs more
    than 2,200 officers and civilians, protects approximately 16
    million square feet of Capitol buildings and grounds, and
    manages a budget north of $400 million.
        The USCP plays a crucial role in protecting the legislative
    branch. The USCP's mission is to protect the Congress, its
    Members, employees, visitors, and the facilities so that
    Congress may fulfill its constitutional and legislative
    responsibilities in a safe, secure, and open environment to the
    people the institution serves.
        And we know that this is no small or easy task. The
    shooting incident that took place 1 year ago on the baseball
    field in Alexandria, Virginia, reminded us all of the ever-
    growing challenges faced by law enforcement in this country and
    around the world.
        We are grateful to law enforcement for their willingness to
    risk their lives in the protection of others. And we especially
    appreciate the men and women of the USCP, whose daily efforts
    and constant dedication ensure that this Congress may serve the
    Nation with as little danger or disruption as possible.
        Much of this has to do with the USCP's leadership. Chief
    Verderosa has led the USCP for 2 years and has more than 30
    years' experience with the department. That means he knows its
    operations inside and out. The Committee looks forward to
    discussing how the Chief's leadership has transformed the
    department and what his vision of the future looks like.
        We expect to hear from our panel on the challenges that
    USCP faces related to its strategic plan for operations and
    workforce development. These challenges include: promoting
    accountability through employee engagement and positive work
    environment; nurturing a culture of professionalism, inclusion,
    and performance-oriented management; becoming a data-driven,
    innovative, and continually learning organization; establishing
    and enforcing best practices, standard operating procedures,
    and internal controls; providing consistent, effective, and up-
    to-date training; recruiting and retaining a new generation of
    employees; and planning for future human capital and
    operational needs.
        It is our hope to examine the effectiveness of the USCP's
    management structure and human capital initiatives in
    bolstering the department's reputation as a leader in law
    enforcement operations.
        I thank our panel for their appearance before the Committee
    today.
        And I would now like to recognize the Ranking Member of the
    Committee, Mr. Brady, for the purpose of providing an opening
    statement.
        Mr. Brady.
        [The statement of The Chairman follows:]

                                COMMITTEE INSERT

        Mr. Brady. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And I want to thank you
    for calling this hearing today.
        I am glad to see the Chief, who I have known for a long
    time, and our union leader there, who, despite being a New York
    Giants fan, is not a bad guy. I appreciate our Acting Inspector
    General for stepping in while the board conducts its search.
        My dad was a police officer, and, since my time in
    Congress, I have been in support of Capitol Police; I have
    tried to support what the department needs. You have hard jobs,
    and I want you to know you have allies on the dais and on the
    House floor who want to help you, because all you are trying to
    do is help us.
        Last year's shooting at the baseball practice, as you
    mentioned, Mr. Chairman, and the tragedy of the train accident
    are nationally known examples of how important your work is.
    But the Chairman and I know that work happens every day, and I
    look forward to hearing what more we can do to support you. And
    I thank you for being here.
        And I yield back the balance of my time.
        [The statement of Mr. Brady follows:]

                                COMMITTEE INSERT

        The Chairman. The gentleman yields back.
        Does any other Member wish to be recognized for the
    purposes of an opening statement?
        Seeing none, I would now like to introduce our panel of
    witnesses.
        Chief Matthew R. Verderosa became the USCP's ninth Chief of
    Police when he assumed his position on March 21, 2016. As Chief
    of Police, Chief Verderosa oversees the entire police
    department, including its operations and administration, and he
    is a valued partner in the daily operations on Capitol Hill.
    The Chief has been with the department in numerous roles since
    1986, having worked his way up through the ranks and gaining a
    very unique law enforcement perspective along the way.
        Mr. Michael A. Bolton is the Acting Inspector General for
    the USCP. He assumed this position this year when the second
    USCP IG retired. Mr. Bolton has been with the IG's office since
    2006 and has more than 30 years of law enforcement and auditing
    experience in both the private and public sectors.
        And our last witness, Mr. Gus Papathanasiou--I hope I came
    close on that, Gus--is the Chairman of the USCP's Labor
    Committee for the Fraternal Order of Police. He has served on
    the union executive board since 2009 and became a Chairman in
    2016, and he is in his 16th year of employment with USCP.
        The Committee has received your written testimony. You will
    have 5 minutes to present a summary of that submission. You
    know the drill. The clock will be there. It will be green when
    it starts for 4 minutes, and it will turn yellow with a minute
    remaining, and then will turn red after the 5 minutes has
    expired.
        The Chair now recognizes our witnesses for the purposes of
    their opening statements, and I will begin with Chief
    Verderosa.
        Chief.

    STATEMENTS OF MATTHEW VERDEROSA, CHIEF OF POLICE, UNITED STATES
       CAPITOL POLICE; MICHAEL BOLTON, ACTING INSPECTOR GENERAL,
    UNITED STATES CAPITOL POLICE; AND GUS PAPATHANASIOU, CHAIRMAN,
     UNITED STATES CAPITOL POLICE LABOR COMMITTEE, FRATERNAL ORDER
                               OF POLICE

                     STATEMENT OF MATTHEW VERDEROSA

        Chief Verderosa. Thank you, sir.
        Good morning, Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member Brady, and
    Members of the Committee. Thank you for this opportunity to
    discuss the proactive efforts of the United States Capitol
    Police to protect Congress and secure the U.S. Capitol complex
    in an environment of increasing threats.
        I am joined here today by members of my executive team and
    the executive management team, including Chief of Operations
    Assistant Chief Steve Sund, Chief Administrative Officer Mr.
    Richard Braddock, and General Counsel Gretchen DeMar.
        I would also like to thank the Committee for their support
    of the department, our personnel, and our operations. Congress
    has been very generous in providing the resources necessary to
    support our crucial mission.
        Since I testified here last, we have seen many changes on
    Capitol Hill and within the department in response to current
    events and serious incidents. The reality is the Capitol
    remains an attractive target. Therefore, we must continually
    assess the risks and adjust our strategies for addressing any
    threats.
        As police officers, we do not know what we may face each
    day. We train and prepare so that we can respond to any threat
    in an instant because lives depend on it. We constantly work to
    ensure the department's tactics do not become predictable or
    routine and that our personnel are always prepared.
        It is with this in mind that we have worked to align these
    security realities with our strategic goals and available
    resources. Our top priorities continue to be the security
    initiatives that will mitigate vulnerabilities and enhance the
    overall safety of the complex. We constantly work to maintain a
    level of security necessary to balance access and security.
        Over the past year, the department has managed an ever-
    increasing number of demonstrations, has swiftly responded to
    critical incidents and civil disobedience, and has investigated
    numerous credible threats. At the same time, the number of
    visitors coming to the Capitol complex has steadily increased.
    In 2017, our officers screened 12.5 million individuals at
    building entrances and interior checkpoints.
        We are also aggressively pursuing all leads and
    investigating threats we receive. As a result of last June's
    active-shooter incident, there is a heightened awareness by
    individuals regarding their own personal security and the
    safety of the campus. Last year, the number of threat
    assessment cases that we opened and investigated nearly
    doubled.
        As I noted earlier, the department has grown and
    transformed to address new and emerging threats. We have also
    made great strides in implementing best practices to further
    our strategic efforts as a model law enforcement agency. We
    have developed and implemented more than 400 professional
    standards that were established by the Commission on
    Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, and we recently
    received our sixth consecutive CALEA accreditation.
        The department has also benefited from our Office of
    Inspector General through our business development
    recommendations. Since 2006, we have successfully closed nearly
    85 percent of the IG's 403 recommendations.
        Protecting congressional facilities goes hand-in-hand with
    our overall operational plans. When I testified before this
    committee last February, I outlined a multiyear strategy that
    provides additional physical security throughout the complex
    and addresses three critical mission sets.
        Chief among these projects is enhancing the garage
    security. We have added personnel and have installed physical
    security hardware at the entrances of some of the garages and
    will be in a position to complete that planned security
    perimeter as the Architect finishes its construction projects
    in the Rayburn and Cannon. Staffing for this important
    initiative should be in place by May of 2019.
        Another important tool that we have utilized is enhanced
    screening portals located at the House and Senate galleries.
    These were installed last summer. We are seeking additional
    resources in our Fiscal Year 2019 budget request to add the
    sworn personnel to staff these screening portals at the Visitor
    Center as well.
        With the recent addition of prescreeners at numerous posts
    outside of the House and Senate office buildings, we are
    increasing our abilities to better secure and screen at the
    building access points, reducing our exposure to threats.
    Having an officer, a visible deterrent, at every access point,
    especially at the high-volume entrances, ensures that any
    threat is met and stopped outside of our buildings.
        Our greatest assets are our employees. I am committed to
    working closely with the Capitol Police Board and Congress and
    the FOP to ensure that we continue to invest our resources into
    training, updating and replacing key equipment and systems, and
    ensure our employees have the tools they need.
        This includes identifying training, mentoring, and
    promoting those individuals within the department to be the
    next generation of leaders. Over the past year, we have
    promoted more than 90 officers. All the sworn personnel who
    have joined our command ranks bring a wealth of experience and
    expertise to the department.
        I would be remiss if I didn't note that, this week, Special
    Agent Crystal Griner is receiving the Julie Y. Cross Award from
    the Women in Federal Law Enforcement. This honor is bestowed
    upon an officer who acts with exceptional courage or heroism or
    for an unusual degree of stamina or willingness to go beyond
    the call of duty.
        I am very proud of Special Agent Griner's response to the
    active shooter last year, and I wanted to note publicly my
    appreciation to WIFLE for bestowing this honor upon Special
    Agent Griner.
        And, sir, as always, our mission continues to grow to be
    serving and protecting the Congress and the legislative
    process. I want to ensure that each one of our employees goes
    home safe every day. That is my main focus, and to keep this
    institution safe.
        Lastly, Mr. Chairman, I want to thank you again for the
    opportunity to provide an update for the department's
    priorities and activities. I know that we all are committed to
    keeping everyone who works in and around the Capitol complex
    safe and secure.
        And I am available to answer any questions you may have,
    sir.
        [The statement of Chief Verderosa follows:]

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        The Chairman. Thank you, Chief Verderosa.
        The Chair will now recognize Mr. Bolton for 5 minutes for
    the purposes of his opening statement.
        You might slide that a little closer to you there, Mr.
    Bolton.

                      STATEMENT OF MICHAEL BOLTON

        Mr. Bolton. Good afternoon. And thank you for the
    opportunity to appear before the Committee on House
    Administration to discuss the United States Capitol Police
    operations and workforce.
        My name is Mike Bolton. I am the Acting Inspector General
    for the United States Capitol Police. I have been Acting IG
    since April of 2018. I would like to thank the Committee for
    its sustained and unwavering support of the United States
    Capitol Police Office of Inspector General.
        The OIG is dedicated to ensuring that the department,
    board, and committees are accurately informed of audit and
    investigative reviews through the submission of our independent
    reports. These comprehensive reports serve the department in
    achieving the goals of their mission and providing a
    financially responsible operation as well as a safe and secure
    environment for all Members, staff, public employees, and
    visitors to the Capitol complex.
        However, none of this would be possible without the support
    of the Congress and that of the Capitol Police Board. We very
    much appreciate our discussions with you and your staff about
    our work and future projects. These discussions have provided
    us with a regular opportunity to provide the Committee with
    important updates about our activities, challenges, and focus.
        The Inspector General Act established for most agencies an
    OIG and sets its mission, responsibilities, and authority. The
    unique nature of the IG function can present a number of
    challenges for establishing and maintaining effective working
    relationships. To work most effectively together, the agency
    and its OIG need to clearly define what each considers a
    productive relationship and then consciously manage those goals
    in an atmosphere of mutual respect.
        By providing objective information for promoting government
    management, decisionmaking, and accountability, OIG contributes
    to the agency's success. OIG is an agent of positive change,
    focusing on eliminating waste, fraud, and abuse and identifying
    problems and recommendations for corrective actions by our
    agency leadership.
        OIG provides the agency, board, and Congress with objective
    assessments of opportunities to be more successful. Under the
    direct supervision of the Chief, OIG must keep the board and
    Congress fully informed of significant OIG activities.
        Given the complexity of management and policy issues, OIG
    and the agency may sometimes disagree on the extent of the
    problem and the need for and scope of corrective action.
    However, such disagreements should not cause the relationship
    between the OIG and the agency to become unproductive.
        Annually, the OIG prepares a summary of the most
    significant management challenges facing the department. The
    challenges reflect continuing vulnerabilities that OIG
    identified over the last several years as well as new and
    emerging issues the department will face in the coming year.
    Some of those areas that GAO considers its high-risk series may
    include leadership commitment, capacity, action plan,
    monitoring, demonstrated progress.
        In 2016, OIG began using the above criteria to measure the
    department's progress. Since our last report, the department
    has shown solid, steady progress for the majority of its top
    management and performance challenges.
        The top management challenges facing the department are
    protecting and securing the Capitol complex, strengthening
    cybersecurity strategies to address increasing threats, strong
    integrated internal control systems, managing Federal
    contracting more effectively, and human capital management.
        Of the five challenges of the 2017 list, at least four
    partially met all the criteria for removal from the performance
    and management challenges.
        OIG narrowed Challenge 1 from 2017, ``interagency
    communication, coordination, and program integration need
    improvement,'' to ``protecting and securing the Capitol
    complex'' because the department strengthened how intelligence
    on terrorism, homeland security, and law enforcement
    information is shared and coordinated with its Federal, State,
    and local partners.
        Challenge 5, human capital management, is still, however,
    in need of attention.
        For 2018, department challenges remain at five. Overall,
    progress has been made possible through the concerted actions
    of the Chief, the Chief Administrative Officer, and the
    leadership and staff within the department.
        Thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today. I
    will be very happy to answer any questions the Committee may
    have at this time.
        [The statement of Mr. Bolton follows:]

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        The Chairman. The gentleman yields back.
        The Chair will now recognize Mr. Papathanasiou for 5
    minutes.

                     STATEMENT OF GUS PAPATHANASIOU

        Mr. Papathanasiou. Thank you, sir.
        Good morning, Chairman Harper, Ranking Member Brady, and
    Members of this Committee. I would like to thank you for giving
    me the opportunity to testify before you on behalf of the
    United States Capitol Police Labor Committee Fraternal Order of
    Police. I am deeply humbled and honored.
        Before I begin my opening remarks, I would like to take a
    moment to thank Chairman Harper and Ranking Member Brady on
    their years of service and wish you both luck in retirement.
    You have been great allies for law enforcement, especially the
    Capitol Police.
        Ranking Member Brady, we have personally had many
    productive meetings throughout the years, and I am happy to see
    that you are leaving on top now that your Philadelphia Eagles
    are Super Bowl champions. Congratulations.
        As I enter my 16th year with the Capitol Police, I have
    been with the union's executive board, serving as the first
    vice chairman since 2009 and now as chairman since 2016. And
    joining me today are members of my executive board: First Vice
    Chairman Officer Keith McFaden, Second Vice Chairman Officer
    Vincent Summers; and legal counsel for the union, Megan Mechak.
        Our labor union plays a vital role in the operation and
    success of the Capitol Police. As outlined in our collective
    bargaining agreement, also known as the CBA, we contribute to
    effectively accomplishing the mission of the U.S. Capitol
    Police by fostering a positive and constructive relationship
    between management and the sworn employees. However, there is
    always room for improvement, and there is still work to be
    done.
        As the department continues to grow and the mission
    changes, we must adjust to these changes. I have been fortunate
    to have a good working relationship with Chief Verderosa and
    Assistant Chief Sund, but these relationships don't occur
    overnight. Collectively, we have worked on building a mutual
    respect for each other, which goes a long way. We meet
    regularly to resolve issues. Although we don't always agree, we
    are all committed to the success of the USCP.
        Some of the issues and concerns we have addressed in our
    meetings and will continue to pursue together include: officer
    morale; wellness of the officers on the front line; balance of
    work and family life; pay scale issues and pay cap issues.
        Unfortunately, we have many areas of disagreement,
    including: ignoring legally binding arbitration rulings;
    ignoring decisions by the Office of Compliance; CBA
    negotiations are at a standstill pending negotiability appeals
    filed before the Office of Compliance and pursued to the
    Federal appellate court; progressive discipline not being
    adhered to as outlined in the CBA.
        As a result of these issues and concerns, the union will
    continue to pursue and promote the following: fair treatment of
    all bargaining unit members; good faith negotiations; resist
    cuts to pensions to the USCP and all of Federal law
    enforcement; enhance law enforcement retirements as we outlined
    in the 2012 GAO actuary study; pursue the pay scale compression
    and increasing yearly pay cap; eliminate the biweekly pay cap
    so that officers don't lose benefits; promote resolving
    grievances at lower levels; promote the well-being of officers
    and improve working conditions, especially when officers are
    working long hours and under the elements of the weather on a
    daily basis; eliminate the hiring of retired double-dippers who
    take away positions from the bargaining unit employees.
        These are just some of the crucial issues we need to work
    on to make positive changes for both management and employees.
    These issues ultimately affect us all. At the end of the day,
    we are all one team, a team dedicated to the department's
    mission, which is to promote the safety of the congressional
    community.
        I am proud of the men and women of the U.S. Capitol Police
    that wear the badge with honor and dignity. I am proud to be
    their union leader. As we put our lives on the line on a daily
    basis, it is time we make positive changes.
        Thank you for allowing me to address this committee, and I
    look forward to any questions you may have. Thank you.
        [The statement of Mr. Papathanasiou follows:]

    [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        The Chairman. I want to thank each of you for your
    testimony.
        And it is now time for the Members to ask questions, and I
    will recognize myself for 5 minutes.
        And I will start with you, Mr. Bolton, if I may. I
    certainly want to thank you for being here today.
        In your testimony, you said that one of the USCP's top
    management challenges is human capital management. Can you
    describe this challenge a little more? And do you believe the
    USCP is doing enough to address that challenge?
        Mr. Bolton. Yes, sir. I would be glad to.
        Human capital is not unique, in a sense, to Capitol Police.
    It is all throughout Federal Government, especially in law
    enforcement, based on my experience. They are managing their
    human capital, but the issues that they have, like other
    Federal law enforcement agencies, is recruitment, retention,
    retirement benefits.
        And you always have that trying to balance between having
    adequate numbers of officers on post with your overtime and
    your restriction of that and being able to maintain the
    security that needs to be maintained.
        The Capitol Police are doing a good job in managing their
    human capital. There is always room for improvement.
        Just recently, just to bring up an issue with the recruit
    class 191, I believe it is, yes, 16 individuals ended up being
    disqualified or dropped from their training regimen. But
    keeping in mind that training is part of recruitment, in a
    sense, till the end. But they have taken other steps to even
    strengthen their training and recruitment since our report as
    well, and they have already taken those steps.
        So they are managing it, but there always needs room for
    improvement.
        The Chairman. Okay.
        Chief Verderosa, first of all, thank you for everything
    that you do and for what the men and women of the USCP do on a
    daily basis to protect this pretty massive campus that we have
    here.
        In the IG's last report detailing the top management
    challenges facing you and USCP, the IG's office found that the
    USCP must revise its performance management system and provide
    more meaningful goals and objectives to employees that link
    performance to the department's overall strategic plan and
    their goals.
        How do you monitor performance, and how do you ensure that
    the leadership goals of the department are carried throughout
    all layers of the department?
        Chief Verderosa. That is a great question, sir. I
    appreciate it.
        One of our initiatives is to transform our personnel
    evaluation system into a meaningful document that actually
    assesses not only the general goals of the strategic plan but
    specific benchmarks for what officers do in their particular
    area of responsibility.
        So we want the counseling session, when you bring someone
    in to talk about performance, to actually mean something. We
    want to tie it to promotional opportunities and also
    opportunities to transfer to specialty areas, to give
    incentives for better performance, increased motivation, that
    kind of thing.
        I think it is incredibly important, and our human resources
    are our most important asset, the people. I believe that all
    supervisors need to be able to communicate effectively with the
    people who work for them. People deserve to know where they
    stand. They deserve to know whether they are doing well,
    whether they need improvement.
        And that is a two-way street; that is a conversation. And
    as those conversations occur within the chain of command, we
    are better able to assess our individual employees and provide
    them with the meaningful feedback that they deserve.
        The Chairman. Great. Thank you.
        And I now recognize the Ranking Member, Mr. Brady, for 5
    minutes for questions.
        Mr. Brady. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
        First, for the Chief, in your testimony you discussed the
    new missions the police have undertaken--garage security in the
    old building, Members events, to name a few.
        I think that Congress has done okay in getting you the
    bodies and equipment you need for this year and next, but what
    about the future staffing and what about the equipment you need
    for the next 2, 3, and 4 years from now? What can we be doing
    today to make sure you can plan appropriately?
        Chief Verderosa. Thank you, sir. That is a great question.
        The resources we have requested are within the structural
    limit of what we can right now train in addition to our
    attrition. I think there are a number of initiatives that will
    help us maintain the workforce at sufficient numbers. For
    instance, over the last 5 years, we have had 27,000
    applications; we have hired about 500 employees. Our attrition
    is low. I think we have a great handle on--and thanks, in part,
    to great benefits and a great starting pay and a great payroll
    system. We want to maintain our employees, and we want to give
    them the best working conditions that we can do.
        As we finish our Capitol Police Board initiatives for
    providing mitigation to the vulnerabilities, we will seek to
    continue to try to draw down the difference between our mission
    responsibilities and the mission gap in personnel. I know that
    the Inspector General recently reviewed overtime usage, and
    they came to the same conclusion that other auditors had found
    in the past, that we are significantly understaffed. So I
    think, once we work on the new mission sets, we will be able to
    better hire and retain personnel to sort of bridge that gap
    between the necessary overtime and the mission responsibility.
        And that goes a long way to what the Chairman of the FOP is
    talking about--better quality work and off-duty experience.
        Mr. Brady. Thank you, Chief.
        And for Officer ``Papa,'' can you elaborate on the legally
    binding arbitration issues that you brought up in your
    testimony? And what exactly does that mean, and how does it
    impact your membership?
        Mr. Papathanasiou. Thank you, sir.
        Yes, we currently have several pending cases that are going
    to the courts. And the department has ignored arbitration
    rulings and rulings by the Office of Compliance that are
    legally binding. And the cases just drag on and on, wasting
    taxpayer money, you know, as far as we are concerned.
        You know, when an arbitrator and the Office of Compliance
    has ruled to bring officers back to work and the department
    just ignores it, I think it is just a cat-and-mouse game that
    legal counsel plays throughout the system to drag these cases
    on and on.
        So that is my answer to that question.
        Mr. Brady. Thank you.
        Mr. Chairman, on 9/11, when we had that catastrophe, I was
    in my office, and the police officers came coming in and
    knocking on all our doors and told us we had to leave. I didn't
    want to leave because I wanted to watch what was happening. And
    I said to them, I said, ``Well, why do we have to leave? And
    what are you doing? You are going to leave with me.'' They
    said, ``No, no. We've got to make sure the building is
    evacuated. We've got to run through the whole building.'' And I
    still resisted. They said, ``Please. We don't want to use
    force. Will you please leave?'' I said, ``Fine,'' you know.
        And then about 2, 3 days later on the House floor, getting
    a briefing from Homeland Security and the Senate, and there was
    a mysterious package in between the Senate and the House floor.
    Again, we had to evacuate, running down the steps, running out
    of shoes, some people. And, again, our Capitol Police were
    standing there, and they are coming in and we are rushing out.
        As you mentioned, Mr. Chairman, the incident on the
    baseball field, how they handled that. And some of them have
    lost their lives protecting us.
        I mean, when you leave your house, you give your loved ones
    a kiss goodbye and put on a bulletproof vest, and, hopefully--
    because I know my dad did the same thing--that you may see them
    again.
        So my question, I guess, to Gus--and the Chief can
    elaborate--what would you do if you heard a loud noise right
    now or you saw a mysterious package in the hallway?
        Mr. Papathanasiou. You want me to answer the question, or
    the Chief?
        Mr. Brady. Sure. You can answer it.
        Mr. Papathanasiou. All right.
        We have protocols in place, shelter in place. Obviously,
    you know, we want to go home to our loved ones, but there are
    policies and procedures in place for the department and the
    officers to follow.
        At the end of the day, like I said, you know, we want to
    keep the congressional community safe. We first need to know
    what is going on with the package or, you know, what the
    incident is. So, like you said earlier, the officers are
    running in. They are going to danger, you know?
        And we want to keep the congressional community safe. And,
    at the end of the day, we want to go home to our family, like
    you said. Most of all, we want you, the Members of Congress, to
    go home to your loved ones back in your districts or wherever
    you are from, and we want the staffers and the visitors, you
    know, to also go home to their loved ones and feel safe when
    they are here.
        And I think the Capitol Police has, as they have done in
    the past, they have done a good job, you know, the officers on
    this department, to run to danger, to protect everybody here in
    this institution, here on this campus, and also away from this
    campus. It is a lot to do, and I have the utmost confidence in
    the officers on this department to complete the mission.
        Mr. Brady. Thank you.
        And, Chief, thank you for the job that you do. You wanted
    to----
        Chief Verderosa. Appreciate it.
        I would like to follow up. And I support Gus and his
    statement in reference to this question, and I will simplify it
    a little bit. We work together. Whether we are officer,
    manager, or the Chief of Police, we are here to protect and
    serve Members.
        We often agree on many issues, the union and I and
    management officials. I can tell you without hesitation that
    the officers and employees of the Capitol Police are
    courageous, they are brave, and they are very dedicated. I
    think that plays out on a regular basis. I think you see that
    on a daily basis.
        We do have some differences. We do have some legal
    challenges. Respectfully, I see some of the arbitration and
    litigation cases through a different lens. I see it as
    exercising management's right to follow the designated appeal
    process of the Office of Compliance and the Federal circuit. I
    think there are a couple of challenges we need to get resolved,
    and I think, once those are resolved, I think all of the other
    issues will probably fall in place.
        So I value the professionalism of the union leadership and
    the union shop stewards. I think they play an integral role in
    helping me and Gus make positive change for the department.
        I think we see much more common ground than we see
    divisiveness. There are certain issues, whether it is a
    disciplinary matter, which is clearly a matter to be followed
    via the CBA--and through management's right to hold people
    accountable. It is in the contract. So we see how we interpret
    the contract a little differently.
        I think that most of those issues are few and far between,
    because 99.9 percent of the police department act on a daily
    basis within the rules and within the guidelines, and I think
    those are the exception and not the rule.
        So I hope that helps clarify the answer.
        Mr. Brady. Thank you, Chief. Thank you, and thank you, Gus,
    and thank your men and women, and thank your family. And my
    family and I thank you, and God bless you for the job you do to
    keep us safe.
        I yield back, sir.
        Chief Verderosa. Thank you, sir.
        The Chairman. The Chair now recognizes the Vice Chairman of
    the Committee, Mr. Davis, for 5 minutes.
        Mr. Davis. Thank you, Mr. Chairman and Ranking Member
    Brady.
        Thank you, Chief and Inspector General and Gus. I won't try
    and pronounce your last name correctly. But I do appreciate
    what each and every one of you do. And there is a, you know,
    big place in my heart for the Capitol Police officers that work
    here every single day, and I do my best to try and get to know
    and joke with each and every one of them, especially Gussy
    here.
        Can you tell Potter to get a little faster on the dog going
    in the Capitol today? I think he was harassing me about the
    football game. It is a really sore subject. Can you make sure
    that every football player works overtime somewhere else in 2
    years when we play again?
        Chief Verderosa. I am trying, sir.
        Mr. Davis. Yeah. Yeah.
        Chief Verderosa. Slowly.
        Mr. Davis. Not trying hard enough, obviously. But it is
    always great to have good competition, and you guys have a
    great operation.
        Chief, I want to start with you. Thanks again for being
    here today.
        Chief Verderosa. Yes, sir.
        Mr. Davis. I really do appreciate your leadership in making
    sure that the campus has, you know, safety in mind for Members,
    constituents, and visitors and they get a chance to see
    democracy in action.
        Part of your strategic plan is to become a continually
    learning organization by using lessons learned from successes
    and shortfalls. I think this is an important goal, especially
    when used to prevent something like last year's baseball
    practice. Thank you for what you did that day too. I
    appreciated your being there, and I think it was a great
    message to send to those Members who don't get to interact with
    you as much as I do and others.
        Without going into much detail on sensitive security
    matters, can you provide some examples of how the Capitol
    Police has learned from the shooting in Alexandria? And have
    you put new policies and procedures in place that you can talk
    to us about?
        Chief Verderosa. Yes, sir. I appreciate the question.
        Obviously, critical incidents cause you to reflect on what
    you do well and where you need to adjust your measures. You
    always have to continually adjust what you do. You don't want
    to create a pattern, and you don't want to get caught behind
    the curve. You want to always be leaning forward.
        So, as we look at, for instance, Member security at
    external events, obviously, we had been in a mode where we
    provided security for assignments of protection on a regular
    basis. We have since widened that net, and we have looked at
    better ways to be able to coordinate with outside law
    enforcement in areas where we feel that we can gain some
    support.
        For instance, since the shooting up until January, we
    coordinated over 400 off-campus Member liaisons with outside
    law enforcement coverage for townhall events, for venues where
    a Member is in their district and they are having an event open
    to the public. We get an incredible amount of cooperation from
    local law enforcement.
        We also have expanded our ability to protect with our own
    dignitary protection unit on various venues. And I think from
    the balance of the year from the shooting, we had 46
    deployments of dignitary protection, that enhanced coverage
    that we didn't have prior to that.
        And along those lines, as well, we are looking at coverage
    more globally. When I say that, we are looking at all the
    assets that we have that we bring to the table, many of which,
    thank you to the Congress for providing the resources for, such
    as our SWAT team, such as our hazardous devices unit, patrol
    officers. They are being transformed into providing coverage at
    events and venues where we didn't have that before.
        And, also, some of the things that came as a result of the
    shooting provided us with tools and technology to help us
    better assess those events to have more information so that we
    can either use that information to our advantage to provide
    coverage or we can pass on to our law enforcement partners who
    may be covering events for us out in the districts and States.
        Mr. Davis. And, Chief, I appreciate that. As somebody I
    know who has coordinated, as, you know, before last year, I
    wouldn't have thought about security at events, but now it is
    unfortunate. We get spoiled out here because we see security
    all around. We take it for granted, what your men and women do
    every day. I can't say thank you enough to David and to Crystal
    and to all of you as officers.
        I am going to ask one last question to Gus, but, before
    that, I want a one-word answer: Are you sure you guys have got
    the transponders program correctly----
        Chief Verderosa. Yes, sir.
        Mr. Davis [continuing]. For all detailees? Thank you. And
    it is double-checked?
        Chief Verderosa. They are checked.
        Mr. Davis. Thank you.
        Gus, do you find better communication right now between
    your members and the Chief and administration since the
    baseball shooting in getting a lot of your priorities for your
    members put in place?
        Mr. Papathanasiou. Yes, sir. The communication between
    myself and the Chief is night and day from what it was with the
    prior administration on this department. So things have
    changed, I think, for the better.
        But, like I said in my testimony, there is still work that
    needs to be done. And I would like to work with the Chief and
    the Assistant Chief and, you know, with my team, as well, to
    improve the department and get it headed in the right
    direction.
        Mr. Davis. Thank you.
        Mr. Papathanasiou. Thank you, sir.
        The Chairman. The Chair now recognizes the gentlewoman from
    California, Ms. Lofgren, for 5 minutes.
        Ms. Lofgren. Well, thank you very much.
        You know, as I was listening to the testimony, I was
    reflecting how transformed the Capitol Police are from when I
    first worked in the Capitol. Both Mr. Davis and I were staffers
    before we were elected to Congress, and when I was on the staff
    here, the Capitol Police were patronage. And I remember, you
    know, making friends with some of the officers. You know, they
    were officers, but they were really just students, and it was a
    way to have a job. And this has been completely transformed
    into a professional organization.
        And it is good to have this testimony today, hearing from
    everyone. Everyone acknowledges there are more things to do,
    but I think everyone has also acknowledged the progress that
    has been made. So that is a little piece of good news.
        I was reviewing the hearing that we had last year, and one
    of the questions I had, and it hasn't been answered yet, is,
    obviously, we do provide mutual aid to other organizations. I
    am not suggesting that that is wrong, but the primary focus is
    the protection of the U.S. Capitol.
        And I am assuming that we have written protocols for the
    provision of mutual aid, and I would like to see them. And it
    may be that we should do that in a confidential setting. You
    know, we don't want terrorists to know what the protocols are.
    But I would like to know what they are and review them.
        And I am wondering if we could arrange to do that at some
    point, Chief.
        Chief Verderosa. Certainly. We have memorandums of
    understanding with some of our partner agencies. We have,
    obviously, verbal agreements. In any emergency, we are going to
    respond as needed. Assuming that we have adequate protection
    here on the Hill----
        Ms. Lofgren. Right.
        Chief Verderosa [continuing]. We can respond under the law
    to emergency situations.
        We have a very good working relationship here in D.C. It is
    probably just because of the way the jurisdictions are designed
    here. There are so many different entities that have a part in,
    you could say, one major event, where the Park Police have The
    Mall, Metropolitan Police have Third Street and have some of
    the avenues----
        Ms. Lofgren. Right.
        Chief Verderosa [continuing]. And then we have Capitol
    Grounds.
        We meet regularly. We have a very close personal
    relationship. We meet with the board, particularly, on a
    quarterly basis. When there is a large event coming, whether it
    is the State of the Union or inaugural, we actually meet on a
    monthly basis.
        We also attend regularly liaison meetings. There was one
    yesterday at the Metropolitan Police. They have a weekly
    meeting where we discuss intel, large-scale events, and all the
    types of things that are going to occur.
        The relationship between the agencies has never been
    better. We have officers who sit on FBI task forces as task
    force officers. They are embedded within these other agencies,
    and they become collective in the team that provides us with
    the ability to, one--and particularly this is important when we
    are investigating threats. We have people who are situated, as
    such, on the violent crimes task force----
        Ms. Lofgren. Right.
        Chief Verderosa [continuing]. That are able to quickly talk
    to the resident agent in a particular area, and we get
    immediate response.
        Ms. Lofgren. Well, that is good news. I remember, after the
    9/11 attacks, one of the questions asked--we had a joint
    meeting with our Sergeant at Arms and the Capitol Police. And
    one member asked, ``When did the Secret Service call?'' And the
    answer was, ``Well, we're still waiting for the call.'' And
    that was, you know, a month later.
        Chief Verderosa. Right.
        Ms. Lofgren. So I think those incidents have caused us to
    work together.
        But I am still concerned about this scenario where you have
    a terrorist threat and their idea is to create a diversion to
    actually drain the protecters from their primary mission. And I
    am interested what protocols are in place to address that
    scenario. But we will do it outside of the public meeting.
        And I will just end with this. I think this is probably our
    last oversight hearing with the chair and ranking member, both
    of whom are retiring. I thank them both for their hard work and
    their caring about this department and everything else. And I
    certainly--I will be seeing them over and over again, but the
    interest that they have both shown in the department is really
    important, and we all recognize that and wish them well in the
    future.
        I yield back.
        The Chairman. The gentlewoman yields back. And we
    appreciate your kind words very much.
        The Chair will now recognize the gentleman from North
    Carolina, Mr. Walker, for 5 minutes.
        Mr. Walker. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
        Just one point I would like to make, as far as regarding
    Gus. I think, no matter what the position, if we had more
    people like you involved in day-to-day operations throughout
    the entire government, we would be a better place. I always
    love your spirit and your ability to connect and reach out. So
    keep up the good work.
        Mr. Bolton, your office identified several management
    challenges facing the USCP. The word ``several,'' is that more
    than 10? Less than 10? A good amount?
        Chief Verderosa. Five.
        Mr. Walker. Five, okay, including the need for strong
    integrated control systems. Can you tell us why these internal
    controls are so important to the Capitol Police operations? And
    can you provide some examples of where stronger internal
    controls are needed?
        Mr. Bolton. Internal controls for any agency is extremely
    important. What your internal control does, one, is gives you a
    repeatable business position, that whatever your day-to-day
    activities, whether it is time and attendance, accounting for
    sick leave, manpower, is a repeatable business despite no
    matter if someone retires--if Richard Braddock decided to
    retire tomorrow, we can continue on operations and have a
    continuous--without interruption.
        Internal controls also prevent, as in the Inspector General
    world, fraud, waste, and abuse. By having strong internal
    controls, it eliminates the potential for having fraud or
    waste, such as--and it is not that it happened, but even
    recently when we had a report on compensatory time, where we
    needed to have a little stronger internal control in deciding
    when it is scheduled overtime or unscheduled, it is comp time,
    where they are--and where we had, then, strong internal--where,
    if it is or unscheduled leave, that individual hasn't made the
    required 40 hours for that week. Now, if it is scheduled,
    obviously, they cancel it, and they can have that overtime. We
    just wanted to have a stronger internal control to prevent any
    potential----
        Mr. Walker. Sure.
        Mr. Bolton [continuing]. Of that problem. That is why it is
    very important throughout government to have strong internal
    controls.
        Mr. Walker. Absolutely.
        And a tough question here, but do you feel like these
    suggestions, these recommendations are being taken to the level
    of trying to implement some of these controls? Are they hearing
    the suggestions? Can you just briefly touch on that?
        Mr. Bolton. Yes, sir. In fact, I would say the Capitol
    Police, under the leadership of Matt, has done a very good job
    in closing our recommendations.
        Mr. Walker. How many have they closed? How many have you
    recommended, and how many have they closed?
        Mr. Bolton. From when we first initiated--and we started up
    in 2006--we have made a total of 403 recommendations to the
    department. Out of that, 344 have been closed.
        I just closed two additional recommendations this morning
    based on the response by the department and the paperwork. So
    they were at 61 this morning before I came over, and now they
    are down at 59.
        Now, granted, a majority of those recommendations are in
    the human resources, but that is going to be tied to a lot of
    the financial statement audits that we have. And some are
    repeat findings. A lot of that is, again, having those internal
    controls.
        Mr. Walker. Is it safe to say that some may never close
    because of the way that it is laid out?
        Mr. Bolton. I would say eventually it would be closed.
        Some of the recommendations do involve monetary
    considerations. Generally, that is what we try to avoid in the
    Inspector General--although sometimes you just can't avoid it.
    But we try not to place a burden on a department where it is
    going to be required for them to have an additional budget
    increase----
        Mr. Walker. Sure.
        Mr. Bolton [continuing]. In order to close it. We try to
    avoid those. Some of them are unavoidable.
        Mr. Walker. Fair.
        Chief, let me ask you a quick question here, if I could,
    please. How are the OIG recommendations instituted across the
    department from a long-term perspective?
        Chief Verderosa. Oh, it is critical to our long-term
    health. You know, I have been working with, first, GAO and then
    the Inspector General's Office for well over 10 years in
    looking at these. One of my goals--and, obviously, we want to
    improve as an agency----
        Mr. Walker. Sure.
        Chief Verderosa [continuing]. Always. I actually leverage
    the audit findings and recommendations. I actually ask for some
    of the more difficult audits to be conducted. Because I know
    that without the recommendations I may not get a lot of energy
    and resources. So I actually want the Inspector General to look
    at these things to help us.
        For instance, we have a swipe card system where we do time
    and attendance. Virtually every employee works a different
    schedule. I have 2,000 employees, and 1,900 of them are law
    enforcement officers that are working different shifts,
    different hours. They stay over for different reasons. They may
    have an arrest; they may have a demonstration.
        Every one of those personnel has to have their time and
    attendance certified within a 2-week period. It is very
    difficult to run around and chase people with a piece of paper.
    This year, we automated a lot of our time and attendance
    process. So now you can pick up a smartphone at home and dial
    in via VPN and certify your time in a timely manner.
        So we went from here on the continuum of internal controls,
    particularly in time and attendance, because 85 percent of my
    budget is payroll.
        Mr. Walker. Sure.
        Chief Verderosa. And I have a tremendous responsibility to
    safeguard the money the government provides to me. I am a
    steward of the government's money. We have moved the bar to
    about here. By the end of this year, through automation, I am
    hoping that we will have the bar here.
        My top priority for human resources and payroll processing
    is to remove the material weakness that we get on a financial
    statement audit on time and attendance processing, to at least
    downgrade it to the next level. So it is a goal. Long term, it
    is for the health of the agency.
        And I value Mr. Bolton's input. And I also value the union
    working with us and trying to find better ways to make that
    process easier to certify time and attendance. You know, let's
    make it easier, if we need to change the rules on swiping in,
    swiping out, or have drop-down menus for the time and
    attendance clerks. When the officers come to work, I want them
    to focus on security, not on their payroll or not on their HR
    issues. So it is very important that we look at it globally for
    the long-term health.
        Mr. Walker. Thank you, Chief. My time has expired.
        Thanks to all the panel for being here today.
        Chairman, I yield back.
        The Chairman. The gentleman yields back.
        I want to thank each of you for your time and the
    information you have given us.
        Without objection, all Members will have 5 legislative days
    to submit to the chair additional written questions for the
    witnesses, which, should we have any, we will forward to you
    and ask that you respond as promptly as possible so they can be
    made a part of the record.
        Without objection, this hearing is adjourned.
        [Whereupon, at 12:03 p.m., the Committee was adjourned.]

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