[Senate Hearing 118-620]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
S. Hrg. 118-620
LEGISLATIVE BRANCH APPROPRIATIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2025
=======================================================================
HEARINGS
before a
SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE
COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS UNITED STATES SENATE
ONE HUNDRED EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION
on
H.R. 8772/S. 4678
AN ACT MAKING APPROPRIATIONS FOR THE LEGISLATIVE BRANCH FOR THE FISCAL
YEAR ENDING SEPTEMBER 30, 2025, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
__________
Architect of the Capitol
Congressional Budget Office
Government Accountability Office
Government Publishing Office
Library of Congress
United States Capitol Police
United States Senate Sergeant at Arms
__________
Printed for the use of the Committee on Appropriations
GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT
Available via the World Wide Web: https://www.govinfo.gov
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U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
55-311 PDF WASHINGTON : 2025
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COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
PATTY MURRAY, Washington, Chair
DIANNE FEINSTEIN, California \1\ SUSAN M. COLLINS, Maine, Vice
RICHARD J. DURBIN, Illinois Chair
JACK REED, Rhode Island MITCH McCONNELL, Kentucky
JON TESTER, Montana LISA MURKOWSKI, Alaska
JEANNE SHAHEEN, New Hampshire LINDSEY GRAHAM, South Carolina
JEFF MERKLEY, Oregon JERRY MORAN, Kansas
CHRISTOPHER A. COONS, Delaware JOHN HOEVEN, North Dakota
BRIAN SCHATZ, Hawaii JOHN BOOZMAN, Arkansas
TAMMY BALDWIN, Wisconsin SHELLEY MOORE CAPITO, West
CHRISTOPHER MURPHY, Connecticut Virginia
JOE MANCHIN, III, West Virginia JOHN KENNEDY, Louisiana
CHRIS VAN HOLLEN, Maryland CINDY HYDE-SMITH, Mississippi
MARTIN HEINRICH, New Mexico BILL HAGERTY, Tennessee
GARY PETERS, Michigan KATIE BRITT, Alabama
KYRSTEN SINEMA, Arizona \2\ MARCO RUBIO, Florida
DEB FISCHER, Nebraska
Evan Schatz, Staff Director
Elizabeth McDonnell, Minority Staff Director
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Subcommittee on the Legislative Branch
JACK REED, Rhode Island, Chairman
CHRISTOPHER MURPHY, Connecticut DEB FISCHER, Nebraska, Ranking
CHRIS VAN HOLLEN, Maryland Member
MARCO RUBIO, Florida
Professional Staff
Richard Braddock
Maria Calderon
Lucas Agnew (Minority)
Molly McCarty (Minority)
Administrative Support
Ann Tait Hall
\1\ Died September 29, 2023.
\2\ Appointed to Committee October 18, 2023.
\3\ Appointed to Subcommittee November 2, 2023. deg.
C O N T E N T S
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hearings
Wednesday, May 8, 2024
Page
Government Accountability Office................................. 1
Honorable Gene L. Dodaro, Comptroller General:
Prepared Statement of.................................... 6
Statement of............................................. 4
Government Publishing Office..................................... 1
Honorable Hugh N. Halpern, Director:
Prepared Statement of.................................... 15
Statement of............................................. 15
Congressional Budget Office...................................... 1
Honorable Dr. Phillip Swagel, Director:
Prepared Statement of.................................... 23
Statement of............................................. 21
Wednesday, March 15, 2024
Library of Congress.............................................. 45
Dr. Carla Hayden, Librarian of Congress:
Prepared Statement of.................................... 49
Statement of............................................. 48
Architect of the Capitol......................................... 45
Joseph Dipietro, Acting Architect of the Capitol:
Prepared Statement of.................................... 62
Statement of............................................. 61
Wednesday, May 22, 2024
United States Senate Sergeant at Arms andDoorkeeper.............. 75
Honorable Karen H. Gibson:
Prepared Statement of.................................... 79
Statement of............................................. 78
United States Capitol Police..................................... 75
Chief J. Thomas Manger, Chief of Police:
Prepared Statement of.................................... 85
Statement of............................................. 84
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back matter
List of Witnesses, Communications, and Prepared Statements.101
Nondepartmental Witnesses.......................................?? deg.
Subject Index:
Architect of the Capitol..................................... 103
Congressional Budget Office.................................. 103
Government Accountability Office............................. 103
Library of Congress.......................................... 103
United States Senate Sergeant at Arms and Doorkeeper......... 104
United States Capitol Police................................. 104
LEGISLATIVE BRANCH APPROPRIATIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2025
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WEDNESDAY, MAY 8, 2024
U.S. Senate,
Subcommittee of the Committee on Appropriations,
Washington, DC.
The subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 2:39 p.m., in
room SD-124, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. Jack Reed
(Chairman), presiding.
Present: Senators Reed, Murphy, Van Hollen, and Fischer.
U.S. GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE
GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
opening statement of senator jack reed
Senator Reed. Good afternoon. The subcommittee will come to
order. I'd like to welcome everyone to the first of our fiscal
year 2025 budget hearings for the Legislative Branch
Appropriation Subcommittee. I would also like to welcome
Ranking Member Fischer, when she arrives, with whom I work very
closely with. She's an extraordinary partner in our efforts.
I'm looking forward to continuing our work together and with
other Members of this Committee.
Today, we have with us the Government Accountability Office
Comptroller General, Gene Dodaro, Government Publishing Office
Director, Hugh Halpern, and Congressional budget office
Director, Phillip Swagel. I would like to thank you for joining
us here today to testify on your agencies' 2025 budget. I ask
unanimous consent that the witness's written statements be
placed in the hearing record.
Let me begin by again thanking the women and men of your
agencies who work every day to facilitate the work of the
Senate and the Congress. Without each of them, the Senate would
not be able to perform its constitutional responsibilities on
behalf of the American people.
The Legislative Branch agencies have submitted fiscal year
2025 budget requests. They account for a $544 million increase
over the fiscal year 2024 Legislative Branch enacted
appropriation. While we do not yet have subcommittee
allocations, the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 enacted
strict levels for appropriations, again, in fiscal year 2025.
As such, we'll be making very difficult decisions for the
allocation of resources provided to the Legislative Branch in
fiscal year 2025. It will then fall upon the heads of each
legislative branch agency to utilize those resources to meet
their respective missions while addressing the needs of their
workforce. This will not be an easy fiscal year, but I'm
confident that the Legislative Branch can meet this challenge.
For fiscal year 2025, the Government Accountability Office
(GAO) is requesting $915.9 million in appropriated funds, which
is an increase of $104 million over the fiscal year 2024
enacted level. This request would support a funded staffing
level of 3,600 positions to fill critical skill gaps and
fulfill GAO's mission to support Congress.
It's important to note that the return on investment over
the past 5 years is $113 for each $1 spent on GAO. The
agencies' request continues the work of GAO's Science
Technology Assessment and Analytics Team, which provides
Congress with critical foresight and oversight of science and
technology issues in a rapidly changing world.
In fiscal year 2025, this includes ongoing and future work
in aspects of artificial intelligence in both defense and
civilian applications, regenerative medicine, medical research,
and many other critical areas. The requested increase also
prioritizes reporting on government-wide cybersecurity
capabilities.
This will continue GAO's assessment of multiple
cybersecurity priorities such as the development and execution
of a comprehensive national cybersecurity strategy, the
cybersecurity of critical infrastructure, and the security of
Federal information systems. The GAO performs critical work on
behalf of the Senate, and I look forward to hearing from
Comptroller General Dodaro on his agency's work.
Today, we'll also be reviewing the Government Publishing
Office's request. The GPO is seeking appropriation of $136
million of fiscal year 2025, which is an increase of $4 million
over the fiscal year 2024 enacted level. The request for the
Congressional Publishing Account remains at the fiscal year
2024 enacted level of $83 million.
The agency is requesting an increase of nearly $4.3 million
for the public information programs of the superintendent
documents account to meet mandatory pay price level increases
and the cost of digitizing printed materials for easier access
by the public.
Additionally, the agency is requesting funding to support
the continued development and operations of the GovInfo and
XPub systems. The work that the agency performs on a daily
basis of the center is critical, and again, I look forward to
the director's testimony.
And we'll also hear from the Congressional Budget Office
(CBO). The CBO plays an important non-partisan role as it
strives to provide clear, and objective, timely analysis and
reporting on budgetary and economic information for the
Congress. The agency is requesting $73.5 million in fiscal year
2025, which is an increase of $3.5 million over fiscal year
2024 enacted levels.
This increase provides for the salary and benefit of the
agency's workforce, and to fund a slight increase in staff to
continue to improve the responsiveness of the agency to the
Congress, so that legislative work can be informed by the
important information provided by the CBO.
Director Swagel and I have discussed the agency's efforts
to provide timely responses to Congressional requests and other
important work the CBO is conducting to meet its mission. I
look forward to hearing from Director Swagel about the CBO's
work.
With this said, the goal of the Senate Appropriations
Committee is continue on a normal order for appropriations
bills. As such, this subcommittee will be aggressively working
to produce a thoughtfully crafted bill that can be considered
by the full Committee and the Senate in the coming months. I
look forward to the testimony of our witnesses, and to working
with Senator Fischer--who with precise timing has arrived. So I
may recognize her. Again, completely dependable, and thoroughly
in tune with the temple of the United States Senate.
Senator, I will recognize you for your comments. Thank you.
opening statement of senator deb fischer
Senator Fischer. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
The Chairman voted quicker than I did. He scurried down
there and got there ahead of me. But thank you all, I
appreciate you being here today, and I look forward to working
with Chairman Reed on the ability to craft a fiscally
responsible bill that will meet the needs of Congress and our
support agencies this year. I thank our three witnesses for
appearing before the subcommittee today and for your testimony.
Before I discuss the specific details of your budget
requests, I want to build upon Chairman Reed's comments
regarding this upcoming fiscal year. In fiscal year 2024, the
Legislative Branch's allocation was an over 2 percent cut from
the enacted funding level. Under the terms of the Fiscal
Responsibility Act, another reduction for our bill is possible
this year.
As we face an uncertain fiscal year, and the potential of
further cuts, legislative branch agencies need to be judicious
stewards of the resources. After years of significant spending
increases, the Federal Government as a whole must now exercise
more fiscal restraint. The Legislative Branch will be no
exception to that rule.
Mr. Dodaro, the Government Accountability Office holds an
important role in providing oversight of government spending
and preventing waste in Federal programs. For fiscal year 2025,
the GAO seeks an increase of $104 million in appropriated
funding. This is a substantial request. I'd like to hear from
you what is driving that need, and how you plan to maintain
current services in this difficult fiscal year?
Dr. Swagel, the Government Budget Office's fiscal year 2025
request focuses on personnel costs and sustaining current IT
capacity. In your testimony, I hope to hear how CBO is managing
personnel-related costs, and how your agency is working to
improve CBO's forecasting accuracy and transparency.
Mr. Halpern, the Government Publishing Office's request
will support the continued transition to digital products and
technologies. This will achieve savings while also increasing
accessibility for the American public. I look forward to
learning more about these efforts in your testimony.
Again, thank you to our witnesses for being here today, and
I hope to have a productive conversation on these budget
proposals.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Reed. Thank you, Senator Fischer. I will now ask
our witnesses--and we'll begin with Comptroller General Dodaro,
then Director Halpern, and then Director Swagel--to give brief
opening statements. No more than 5 minutes, and you all should
understand that your full text of your remarks is already in
the record.
Comptroller General, you're recognized.
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THE GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE
STATEMENT OF HON. GENE DODARO, COMPTROLLER GENERAL,
GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE
Mr. Dodaro. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman, Ranking
Member Fischer. It's good to be with you this afternoon. I'm
pleased to be here to talk about our fiscal year 2025 budget
request.
First, I want to thank the Subcommittee and both of you for
your support in the past. I believe we've returned a good
return on investment as a result of your confidence in us. Last
year, as a result of implementation of our recommendations,
over $70 billion accrued to the Federal Government in financial
benefits. Our return on investment over the last 6 years is
$133 for every $1 invested in us. We're helping to make
government more efficient and effective through our oversight.
Demand for our services remains high. We do work for over
93 percent of the standing committees of the Congress. In
addition to our support for the committees, we're also
receiving more and more requests for technical assistance from
individual member offices, particularly in science and
technology, as well as other areas.
This year so far, for the first half of the year, we've
filled the technical requests from over 215 Members offices and
committees. I'm very pleased to be able to provide this
service. I think it's important too, as there's been quite a
bit of turnover in the Congress. We're a reservoir of
institutional knowledge that can provide advice and support in
helping the Congress carry out its responsibilities.
Our request for 2025 would maintain the staffing of GAO at
what we're going to end fiscal year 2024 with. With Congress's
support, we've built up our capacity, particularly at
Congress's encouragement, in the science, technology, and
analytics area, as well as the national security area. These
areas are very important.
In the national security area, the most recent NDAA had 115
mandates for GAO studies. We're looking at mission-readiness
issues, particularly given the competition with China and
Russia. We are also reporting on the development of major
weapons systems as well as the modernization of the nuclear
weapons complex. We're also tracking funding to the Ukraine,
both in terms of military assistance as well as humanitarian
assistance.
In the science technology area, we're doing a lot of work
on artificial intelligence. We have work underway in generative
AI, both in terms of what's going on in the commercial sector,
as well as the implications for both the workforce and the
environment as well as other areas.
We also have work in a number of different areas, including
regenerative medicine and in the medical applications area,
like the development of antivirals for future pandemics. In
addition we are reporting on hypersonic weapons with the DOD
and other technical areas. We're also doing work on the
Columbia-class nuclear submarine.
We are looking into fraud. There has been epic fraud during
the pandemic. By our latest estimate between $233 and $521
billion was lost to fraud, and annually between 2018 and 2022.
And we have a lot of efforts underway to help the government
prevent fraud from occurring in the future.
Healthcare is another area the Federal government is
spending a lot of money on: 29 percent of Federal program
spending goes to Medicare and Medicaid. Last year, however,
there was over $100 billion reported in improper payments in
Medicare and Medicaid. We have a number of recommendations to
get the improper payment rate lower and under control.
In cybersecurity, I'm particularly concerned about critical
infrastructure protections. There is a lot of concern now about
China targeting our water systems and electricity grid systems.
The Federal Government really does not have enough knowledge
about the status of those areas because standards are voluntary
for the private sector to implement.
Lastly, I want to compliment the GAO workforce, our
dedicated talented people. For the last 3 years running we've
been designated the best place to work in government for mid-
size Federal agencies. That helps us attract and retain the
caliber of people we need to take on these difficult
assignments from the Congress.
I'm very, very pleased. I know you'll give careful
consideration to our request. I know there are difficult
decisions ahead. So, thank you for your attention. I'd be happy
to answer your questions at the appropriate time.
[The statement follows:]
GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT
Senator Reed. Thank you very much, Comptroller. And now,
Director Halpern, please.
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THE GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
STATEMENT OF HON. HUGH N. HALPERN, DIRECTOR, GOVERNMENT
PUBLISHING OFFICE
Mr. Halpern. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member
Fischer. It is good to see you again. It's good that we got the
band back together. I am pleased to appear today to testify in
favor of GPO's fiscal year 2025 appropriations request.
As you know, GPO is fundamentally a manufacturing
operation. We publish, produce, and maintain materials for all
three branches of government. And the way we operate is very
much as a private sector business.
Our 1,600 craftspeople and professionals produce virtually
all of Congress's documents, along with numerous other
publications, and we manufacture secure credential products
like the U.S. Passport and law enforcement credentials. We also
provide digital information through our trusted digital
repository, govinfo.gov, or by serving data to our partners
like the Library of Congress, which uses that data on sites
like congress.gov.
Only about 10 percent of the agency's operating budget is
directly appropriated, and most of that is to cover the cost of
Congress's own printing and publishing needs, as well as our
public information programs, including the Federal Depository
Library Program. We recovered the rest of our $1.3 billion
operating budget directly from our customers.
This year, we are requesting approximately $136 million,
including $83 million for Congressional publishing, nearly $42
million for our public information programs, and about $11.4
million for special projects funded by our revolving fund. This
represents about a 3.1 percent increase over last year, and
reflects the inflation in labor's labor and materials over the
past year.
Fully funding our requests will allow us to continue
recruiting the next generation of GPO teammates, and fund our
ongoing modernization efforts such as developing XPub, our next
generation composition engine, and adopting digital printing
technologies. Likewise, it will enable us to expand the depth
and breadth of our digital offerings like Congressionally-
mandated reports and the Congressional serial set.
Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member Fischer, thank you for your
past support of GPO. Supporting this committee and Congress, as
a whole, is always one of our top priorities.
I appreciate the opportunity to testify before the
Subcommittee today, and I look forward to any questions you may
have.
[The statement follows:]
Prepared Statement of The Honorable Hugh Nathanial Halpern
Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member Fischer and Members of the
Subcommittee, I am honored to appear before the Subcommittee on
Legislative Branch Appropriations to present the Government Publishing
Office's (GPO's) fiscal year 2025 appropriations request. I thank you
and your staff for your past support of GPO, and I look forward to
working closely with you again in the coming year. For fiscal year
2025, I am requesting appropriations in the amount of $136,089,000, an
increase of $4,090,000 over our FY 2024 appropriation.
This marks just the fourth time in a decade that GPO has requested
an increase in appropriated funds that incorporates increased labor and
materials costs while accommodating certain initiatives of importance
to Congress and the rest of the legislative branch. Our FY 2025
requests represent a 3.1 percent increase over FY 2024. They are also
7.7 percent lower than the Agency's all-time high appropriation of
$147.5 million in FY 2010.
GPO runs as a business enterprise and appropriated funds represent
a comparatively small portion of GPO's overall budget. For FY 2024,
about 90 percent of GPO's revenue came from billings of its other
Federal customers, including the State Department, the courts, the
Department of Defense, and many others. For FY 2025, we estimate that
direct appropriations will represent a similar portion of our overall
budget. And just as we occasionally need to adjust the rates we charge
our other customers, we also need to request adjustments to our
appropriation levels to ensure that we are meeting our statutory
obligation to recover our costs and provide for investments that will
yield additional efficiency and capability.
charting a course for the future
During fiscal year 2023, GPO made considerable progress in our
efforts to chart a new course for the Agency's future. First and
foremost, we closed our books for fiscal year 2023 with a net positive
income for the third consecutive year. All told, we had a net positive
income of $61.1 million in FY 2023 and did so while making the critical
investments in human capital and technology needed to thrive in the
years ahead.
One of our proudest achievements in FY 2023 was our work to fulfill
the statutory requirements of the ``Access to Congressionally Mandated
Reports Act'' [Public Law 117-263] to build a centralized repository
for the congressionally mandated reports that Federal agencies are
required to submit to Congress or committees. Fulfilling this mandate
required us to work closely with the Office of Management and Budget
(OMB) and our congressional stakeholders to make these reports publicly
available online within 1 year's time. We are proud to have met our
December 2023 deadline and to report that, as of April 24th, there are
315 congressionally mandated reports from 62 issuing agencies posted on
GovInfo.
In FY 2023, we also celebrated important milestones for our
Security and Intelligent Documents (SID) business unit. First, we
marked our first full year of production of the state-of-the-art Next
Generation Passports (NextGen), producing an impressive 22 million
NextGen passports for the State Department. Additionally, we had the
opportunity to celebrate the 15th Anniversary of our Stennis MS Secure
Production Facility, which has produced a total of 95 million passports
since 2008 and 9.5 million secure credentials since 2013.
We also initiated the Project Common Press with our congressional
partners, the first attempt to modernize the look and style of key
congressional publications since GPO opened its doors in 1861. Today,
advances in technology have provided us a level of flexibility with
congressional documents that we haven't had before, whether they are
displayed digitally or in print.
For example, GPO uses digital inkjet presses capable of cost-
effective printing on any size paper with a wide variety of features,
including color. Advances like these, coupled with a congressional
willingness to reexamine long-standing practices to improve outcomes
for lawmakers, staff, and the public, have led to the bicameral,
bipartisan Project Common Press effort to develop a new design template
for committee reports and hearings.
With the full support of the Joint Committee on Printing, GPO has
started the Project Common Press focus group work of gathering our
customer requirements for what a new format might look like. To date,
we have completed our first round of focus group meetings with the JCP
staff, House and Senate institutional officers, and House and Senate
committees. In light of their feedback, we are further refining our
designs and look forward to continuing that dialog with congressional
stakeholders in the coming year.
Last summer, GPO celebrated the 10 billionth retrieval of
government information from our websites, coinciding with the 30th
anniversary of the signing of the GPO Electronic Information Access
Enhancement Act [Public Law 103-40]. It's amazing to think of where our
digital presence is today when we consider that it all began with a
rudimentary, pre- Netscape Navigator site to post the Congressional
Record online in the mid-1990s.
Throughout fiscal year 2023 our ongoing efforts to modernize and
build a dynamic and welcoming workplace continued to attract attention.
In fact, we were notified that Forbes Magazine again rated us--now for
the third straight year--as one of America's Best Midsize Employers
while also recognizing us as one of the nation's Best Employers for
Veterans for the second consecutive year.
Those positive sentiments were also reflected in the results of our
first-ever employee climate survey designed to assess agency morale and
identify challenges, which found that 90 percent of respondents are
proud of the work they do at GPO and 76 percent agree that respect is
high among teammates. While there is always room for improvement, the
survey provided encouraging results we hope to build on in the years
ahead.
GPO's vision is of an America Informed and our mission is to
publish trusted information for the Federal Government to the American
people guided by four key values--honesty, kindness, effectiveness, and
inclusiveness. Our vision and mission are supported by our FY 2023-2027
Strategic Plan which is built on four strategic goals: to (1) Achieve
Operational Excellence; (2) Modernize and Innovate; (3) Ensure
Financial Stability; and (4) Develop the Workforce. (A copy of the plan
can be found here: https://www.gpo.gov/docs/default-source/mission-
vision-and-goals-pdfs/gpo_
strategicplan_fy23-27.pdf.)
It is with those goals in mind that we accepted the recommendations
of the Task Force on a Digital Federal Depository Library Program
(FDLP) last year to guide the evolution of the FDLP and build a strong
digital future for all our library partners and transition the program
to one that is primarily digital. We are currently moving forward on
those Task Force recommendations we can implement on our own. We have
also shared a set of legislative proposals with Congress to address
other Task Force recommendations and guide ensure our statutes support
the transition to a digital FDLP.
As we look to our future, GPO's single biggest current challenge is
attracting and maintaining a workforce prepared to fulfill our mission.
Dramatic shifts in the newspaper and publishing industries have
significantly diminished traditional sources of potential skilled labor
for us. It's a serious challenge. Fifty percent of our workforce is
eligible to retire in the next 4 years. That's one out of every two
proofreaders, presspeople, bookbinders, carpenters, electricians, IT
specialists, contracting officers, and a host of other trades and
professions working at GPO.
To ensure that GPO continues to attract and retain an exceptional
workforce in the years ahead, we have established the Recent Graduates
Program and restarted our Apprenticeship Program.
Designed to appeal to talented young graduates seeking a career,
the Recent Graduates Program attracted 22 new hires in its first year
and another 29 in FY 2023, its second full year of operation. The
Apprenticeship Program, created to help promising GPO teammates acquire
the skills needed to assume larger roles throughout the Agency,
welcomed its first eight participants and aims for 22 more in FY 2024.
We also created a new position, Production Technician, through
which the Agency provides promising individuals with 3 years of on-the-
job training to earn certification as fully credentialed bookbinders.
We have hired 56 Production Technicians in Washington and Stennis, MS
to date and are currently working to bring an additional 24 on board in
FY 2024.
a snapshot of gpo's business
GPO has three primary lines of business: (1) producing items
requested by our customers, either ourselves or through contracts with
other firms across the country; (2) making government information
available through libraries, the Internet, and direct distribution; and
(3) building the tools that our customers use to produce their own
content in formats that facilitate digital and physical distribution.
production
GPO's business portfolio consists of--
--our in-house production work for Congress and the Executive Branch.
--the passports and secure credentials we produce for the State
Department and other Federal agencies; and
--the print procurement and ancillary business services we provide to
a broad range of Federal agencies.
For Congress, in-house work includes the Congressional Record, the
House and Senate calendars, bills, resolutions, committee reports and
hearings, and the United States Code. For the executive branch, we
produce the Federal Register and Code of Federal Regulations, the
President's Budget, the Economic Report of the President, and many
other high-profile publications. Notably, daily production of the
Congressional Record and the Federal Register is like producing two
major city newspapers every day.
Additionally, our craftspeople frequently produce a wide array of
programs, invitations, and ceremonial and commemorative documents for
both the executive and legislative branches.
making government information available to the public
Still, another core enterprise of GPO is administering the Federal
Depository Library Program (FDLP), through which GPO provides important
public documents to the over 1,100 FDLP- affiliated libraries
nationwide, many of which are then also made available to the public at
no charge through our ISO-certified secure digital repository,
GovInfo.gov. Through the Catalog of U.S. Government Publications (CGP),
the public can identify and access over 1 million current and historic
government titles and resources housed in FDLP libraries throughout the
country or linked to in digital collections at libraries and Federal
agencies.
GPO's Superintendent of Documents and Library Services and Content
Management (LSCM) units support the FDLP libraries in the
identification and access to new government content, maintenance of
their tangible collections, digitization of aging and rare tangible
documents, and education, outreach, and training to ensure that the
staff of FDLP libraries can assist their patrons in finding government
information in both tangible and digital collections. Additionally,
LSCM distributes new tangible publications to the FDLP libraries.
The Superintendent of Documents also supervises a sales and
distribution program offering current, high-interest Federal
publications to the public. They also provide logistics and warehousing
services for Federal customers distributing printed materials.
building the tools to deliver on the vision of an america informed
As technology has evolved, GPO has updated its operations to keep
pace. With the development of GPO's proprietary MicroComp composition
engine in the 1980s, GPO got into the business of building tools that
would later be incorporated into our customers' workflows. Soon after
adoption by GPO, Congress incorporated MicroComp into its workflows in
the House and Senate offices of Legislative Counsel and the legislative
operations teams of the Clerk of the House and Secretary of the Senate.
While MicroComp is still in use today, GPO is hard at work on its
replacement, XPub, which will leverage several commercial and open-
source technologies to produce a composition system worthy of the 21st
century.
The current version of XPub is in the user acceptance testing phase
with the House and Senate for congressional bills, resolutions,
amendments, and public laws. When our customers adopt XPub, hopefully
later this year, features will include integration with House and
Senate XML authoring tools for bills and a new responsive HTML format
for congressional bills and public laws.
GPO also works closely with the Clerk of the House, the Secretary
of the Senate, the Library of Congress, and the Congressional Data Task
Force to develop and enhance United States Legislative Markup (USLM),
an XML standard in the Legislative Branch and a critical data format
for XPub.
GPO's ISO-certified secure digital repository, GovInfo, is also a
key technology for supporting our customers. The data in GovInfo
supports many public and private sector databases, such as
Congress.gov, through open application programming interfaces (APIs).
In FY 2023, there were 96 million average monthly information
retrievals from GovInfo's collection of more than 2.3 million content
packages--as we hit 1 billion annual retrievals for the first time
ever.
breaking down gpo's revenue
In fiscal year 2023, GPO's overall revenues totaled $1,229.8
million. Of that amount, $1,109 million--or about 90 percent--came from
direct billings to our non-congressional customers. This category
includes the Next Generation passports produced for the State
Department and secure credentials produced for numerous Federal
agencies, including the Capitol Police, government publications sales
and distribution, and Federal print procurement contracts managed by
GPO.
Another six percent--or $69 million--came from billings to Congress
for the provision of specific requested services, including the
Congressional Record, congressional hearings, bills, resolutions,
calendars, and other publications. Still another three percent--or $36
million-- came from appropriations we used to administer the Federal
Depository Library Program and provide critical public information
program services. And finally, the remaining one percent-- or $16
million--came from appropriations this Subcommittee provided to enable
GPO to make critical information technology and cybersecurity
investments for the future.
some key accomplishments
In fiscal year 2023, our first full year of operations under our
ambitious FY 2023--2027 Strategic Plan, GPO continued charting a new
course for success in this digital age and achieved some notable
successes:
Our GovInfo digital repository earned recertification to retain its
status as the world's only ISO 16363 Trustworthy Digital Repository and
hit a record of over 1.1 billion information retrievals in a single
year--the first time we have ever topped 1 billion retrievals in a
year.
Our Customer Services business unit awarded $496 million in
competitive contracts to private- sector printers nationwide supporting
thousands of jobs in all 50 states.
Our Security & Intelligent Documents business unit produced a total
of 21,889,000 Next Generation Passports for the U.S. Department of
State, and another 6,547,000 secure card credentials for our Federal
agency customers.
We closed 11 regional print procurement offices transitioning 58
customer service employees to remote work, saving $1 million per year
in rent and other costs.
We removed the antiquated Group 98 web presses that our new inkjet
presses have rendered obsolete and initiated a state-of-the-art RTB-480
machine that fully automates the paper roll-to- book form conversions.
We produced the Final Report from the January 6th Committee and the
latest report from the House Committee on Modernization with our new
XPub composition engine.
Our Creative Services and Digital Media Team won four awards from
Graphic Design USA for the high quality of their productions for
Federal agency customers.
For the 2d consecutive year, we designed the logo for the United
States Capitol Christmas tree, which came from Monongahela National
Forest in West Virginia this year.
Our Plant Operations unit was honored by the In-Plant Printing and
Mailing Association at their Annual Education Conference with the
IPMA's 2023 Innovation and Best of Show Awards for their inkjet press
work quality.
We had the privilege of producing the White House Holiday Greeting
Card for the fourth consecutive year as well as producing ``Holidays at
the White House,'' a White House tour book.
We completed Supplement IV of the Annual Supplements to the United
States Code via XPub.
And for the 27th consecutive year, GPO's independent outside
auditor provided us with an unmodified, or clean, opinion on our annual
financial statements.
gpo's fy 2025 appropriations request
GPO is requesting an increase in its FY 2025 appropriations to
$136,089,000, a $4,090,000 increase over our FY 2024 appropriation.
This increase will account for changes in our labor and raw materials
costs and fund certain ongoing projects of importance to our
congressional customers.
This would be GPO's only fourth proposed increase in appropriations
since FY 2014 and is 7.7 percent less than our FY 2010 appropriation.
Increased productivity through the adoption of new technologies has
been key to keeping GPO's appropriations needs down, providing new and
improved services at lower costs, and reducing overall headcounts.
Currently, we have 1,622 GPO teammates, compared to 2,284 in FY 2010.
One tool we used to keep our appropriations requests low was to
repurpose prior-year unexpended balances. We appreciate the willingness
of this Subcommittee and the Full Committee to allow GPO to use those
balances in support of programs and capital investments that benefit
the original purpose of the appropriated funds.
However, as I have informed your predecessors in recent years,
those balances are declining, forcing GPO to request additional funds
if we are to continue our current pace of development and innovation.
Our FY 2025 request includes $83,000,000 for congressional
publishing, the same amount as our FY 2024 appropriation. It is based
on our estimates of Congress' likely needs, informed by historical
trends, available unexpended balances, and increased raw materials and
labor costs. In constant dollar terms, it represents a 75 percent
reduction for congressional publishing appropriations since FY 1980 and
a 36 percent reduction since FY 2010.
Our request for our public information programs (PIP) account,
through which we administer the nationwide Federal Depository Library
Program, is $41,664,000. This represents an increase of $4,296,000--or
11.4 percent--over FY 2024, and will cover the costs of providing
Federal Government publications in digital and tangible formats to
1,100 Federal depository libraries nationwide, cataloging and indexing,
and distributing documents to recipients designated by law and
international exchanges. Rising labor and compensation costs as well as
increased materials costs are the driving factors behind this increase
in our FY 2025 PIP appropriation request. With this proposed increase,
the PIP appropriation will be just 1.8 percent higher than the amount
appropriated in FY 2010, but 29 percent lower in constant-dollar terms.
The final component of our overall appropriations request is for a
total of $11,425,000 for GPO's revolving fund to support capital
investments and information technology upgrades, which is $186,000 less
than amounts appropriated in FY 2024.
This component of our request is critically important to ensuring
that GPO can make the capital investments in equipment and technology
needed to continue providing Congress and our Federal agency customers
with the high level of service they expect. This appropriations request
will be used to support two specific longstanding priority capital
investment projects that will be familiar to the Subcommittee.
First, we are seeking direct appropriations support for our
continued development of the XPub composition system, which is intended
to replace our more than 40-year-old proprietary MicroComp composition
system.
XPub is a transformational project for GPO. It will enable GPO and
our customers to move to an all XML-composition workflow, simplifying
authoring and production while also providing data in a format where it
can easily be posted on the web, delivered to mobile devices, and
repurposed into e-books, mobile web applications, or other forms of
content delivery which contribute to openness and transparency in
Government.
XPub is being deployed on a product-by-product basis. In FY 2019,
GPO took a major step forward by publishing the 2018 Main Edition of
the United States Code, a nearly 60,000-page publication, through XPub.
Since then, GPO continues to work on bringing additional publications
into XPub's production process, with a focus on congressional bills,
resolutions, amendments, public laws, Statutes at Large, House and
Senate calendars, the Congressional Record, and the Federal Register.
In FY 2022, GPO obtained the internal authority to operate for the
upcoming production release of congressional bills and public laws.
This release is currently being tested by our House and Senate
customers and is slated to be in production with the House, Senate, and
GPO Bill End during FY 2024. Features in this release include
integration with House and Senate XML authoring tools for bills and a
new responsive HTML format for congressional bills and public laws.
Prior to FY 2022, much of the initial development of XPub had been
funded through the annual reprogramming of unexpended appropriations
with the Subcommittee's support, but given GPO's mostly static
appropriations requests in recent years, those prior-year funds have
been largely expended. In recognition of the importance of the XPub
project, the Subcommittee generously provided direct appropriations of
$3,370,000 in FY 2022, $5,630,000 in FY 2023, and $6,086,000 in FY
2024.
If approved, our $5,975,000 appropriation request will keep XPub
development and deployment on track in FY 2025. Once development is
complete, we hope to provide XPub to our customers as a software-as-a-
service (SAAS) application, ensuring that there is a dedicated stream
of income to support continued development of the platform without the
need for separate recurring appropriations.
The second component of GPO's request for increased capital
investment appropriations in FY 2025 relates to the continued
development of our peerless GovInfo online portal, the world's only
ISO-certified trusted digital repository. In recent years, the
Subcommittee directly appropriated funds to refresh GovInfo's
infrastructure and further develop its content collections. This year's
request of $5,450,000 for GovInfo is $75,000 more than the Subcommittee
provided in FY 2024, and it would be divided between infrastructure
investments ($1,800,000) and development investments ($3,650,000),
including development required to support the digitization of
historical content.
Investments in GovInfo support the distribution of much of the
legislative data that supports the Library of Congress' Congress.gov
site as well as the bulk data made available for other public uses. In
addition, GovInfo helps keep the costs of administering the Federal
Depository Library Program down by making hundreds of thousands of
critical Government publications available online free of charge,
obviating the need to print and distribute thousands of volumes
annually.
With the Subcommittee's sustained support, GPO has been able to add
hundreds of thousands of additional documents and publications to the
GovInfo online repository each year--over 195,000 content packages were
added in FY 2023--and the public's usage of GovInfo continues to grow,
with more than 96 million retrievals per month from GovInfo in FY 2023.
GPO successfully completed its recertification to retain ISO
certification as the world's only ISO-certified trusted digital
repository. With this designation, end users can be comfortable knowing
that information accessed via GovInfo is both safely secured and
authentic, two invaluable attributes for government information.
Lastly, before I conclude, I want to add that, as required by
section 1604(c) of the Legislative Branch Inspectors General
Independence Act, we have forwarded our Inspector General's request for
$7,540,000 in budget authority for FY 2025 as part of our FY 2025
Budget Submission. Currently that request is funded as part of GPO's
agency overhead--a component of the prices and rates GPO charges its
agency customers and Congress--and not as a separate appropriation.
Chairman Reed, Ranking Member Fischer, and Members of the
Subcommittee, thank you for this opportunity to present GPO's FY 2025
appropriations request, and for all the support you and your staff have
extended to us during these challenging past 2 years. This completes my
prepared statement, and I look forward to answering any questions you
may have.
Senator Reed. Thank you, Director Halpern.
Director Swagel, please.
------
CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
STATEMENT OF HON. DR. PHILLIP SWAGEL, DIRECTOR,
CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Dr. Swagel. Thank you, Chairman Reed, and Ranking Member
Fischer. Thank you for the opportunity to present this
Congressional Budget Office's budget request.
Let me start by thanking you for providing nearly the full
amount we requested for the current fiscal year, and more
broadly, for your continued support of the agency. CBO's
requesting an appropriation of $73.5 million for 2025. That's
an increase of $3.5 million, or 5 percent from the amount
provided in 2024 that would address increased costs from
inflation. It would sustain our investments in IT
infrastructure, and enable CBO to expand our staff in key
areas.
The CBO's mission is to provide nonpartisan analysis to the
Congress that's timely, rigorous, and transparent. My
commitment is to get you the information you need when you need
it. When legislation is heading to a vote, we provide cost
estimates, real time analysis of amendments, often hundreds or
even thousands, for the House NDAA for example.
We do analysis of large complex legislation such as the
reauthorization of the Farm Bill that we're working hard on
now. And we produce budget and economic projections, and
incorporate the effects of recent legislation and economic
developments. We're working on our update of the 10-year budget
right now for June release.
There's continued strong interest in CBO's work from the
Congressional leadership, from committees, and from members.
The additional resources we're requesting for this year would
allow CBO to do even better in terms of our responsiveness and
our transparency. The fiscal year 2024 funding we receive will
permit us to grow from about 267 people--that was at the end of
March--to 276 by the end of this year.
Our request for 2025 would allow us to grow by an
additional 9, that's 285, and I would say that staffing level
would allow CBO to fulfill the agency's requirements under the
Congressional Budget Act. In particular, CBO would add more
analysts in areas of particular Congressional focus; defense
and homeland security. Right now, we're advertising to hire
three more people in those areas. Also, economic implications
of fiscal policy, long-term projections, healthcare, including
Medicare and Medicaid, and others, and social security.
The requested increase is entirely for personnel expenses,
and that's largely to cover the salaries and benefits for
current employees, and then to a much lesser extent, to fund
the new staff I mentioned.
The non-personnel expenses will decline by about 3 percent,
and that's because some of our spending for information
technology in 2024 is for projects that we deferred over the
last year or so while operating under the continuing
resolution. And those expenses will not recur next year.
Let me just focus on the appropriations committees. So, we
will support the appropriators with real time provision by
provision estimates of the 12 annual appropriations bills, well
as any supplemental appropriations bills should they come, and
then, any continuing resolutions.
We will respond to thousands of requests for technical
assistance, and do cost estimates of amendments. And we're
ready to do this for the appropriators this year, you know,
again, on the schedule that the appropriators want, and getting
you the information when you need it.
In addition, we'll provide hundreds of cost estimates for
legislation that's required by statute, provide cost estimates
before a floor vote for nearly all bills. We'll publish dozens
of reports, both statutory reports and requested reports on a
wide variety of topics.
In summary, to achieve our goal of being as responsive as
possible and as transparent as possible, CBO requests an
increase of $3.5 million. With your support, we look forward to
continuing to provide timely and high-quality analysis to the
Congress.
Thank you very much, and I'm happy to answer your questions
[The statement follows:]
GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT
Senator Reed. Thank you very much, Doctor.
My first question for each of you, and if you could respond
as briefly as you think possible, because we'll follow up and
ask you for some written comments too.
Senator Reed. If the Legislative Branch fiscal year 2025
allocation requires your agency's budget to remain at the
fiscal year 2024 level, what are the impacts your agency's
ability to achieve its mission? And begin with, Doctor, so I go
on then down the line.
Dr. Swagel. Thank you. Looking ahead, we will be prudent in
our expansion. We're advertising for people. We'll hire people,
but I will make sure that we don't hire more than we can
support at CR level. You know, we will hire in the key areas;
healthcare, and national security, defense, and veterans, the
key things that we're advertising for now. So that will help
improve our responsiveness.
The additional people I would hope to hire with our fiscal
year 2025 request would let us do even more. So operating at
the CR, I think, we will do better than we did last year. But
there will still be areas where, you know, I would say we'll
have gaps, and it will affect our responsiveness.
Senator Reed. Very good.
IMPACT TO GAO OF A FLATLINE FISCAL YEAR 2025 ALLOCATION
Comptroller General.
Mr. Dodaro. Since 80 percent of our costs are salaries and
benefits, operating at a CR level means a smaller GAO with less
services to the Congress in meeting congressional demands and
priorities. This would be especially true in areas Congress has
specifically asked us to increase our capabilities.
A flat budget would erode our capabilities in the science
and technology area at a time when artificial intelligence is
exploding. It would undermine our abilities in the national
defense area to have the full coverage of all the mandates in
the NDAA. As I mentioned, there's 115 mandates, and we receive
a lot of requests from Committee Chairs and Ranking Members.
In addition to those mandates from the Congress, a flat
fiscal year 2025 budget allocation would impede our ability to
deal with fraud prevention in the Federal Government. I'm very
concerned that Federal Government is not anywhere near
adequately prepared. Fraud has become more sophisticated with
organized crime involved both domestically and internationally.
A flat budget would also undermine our ability to deal with the
cybersecurity issues. And particularly, in critical
infrastructure protections we are vulnerable but I think we're
vulnerable in weapon systems and our space programs. These are
all critical, important areas.
Since our costs are mostly people, less resources means we
can hire less people. Less staffing means less support for the
Congress.
Senator Reed. Thank you.
Director Halpern, please.
Mr. Halpern. Mr. Chairman, the short answer is whatever
level you're going to give us, we'll manage because that's what
we have to do. What we would ask is that if there are cuts
necessary, that we have a discussion about which accounts they
come out of.
So, the Appropriations Committee funds three accounts.
Congressional printing, which we estimate the amount that
Congress will need each year. So, there's probably some play in
that account. Similarly, the amounts that come out of our
revolving fund are for special projects. And while those are
important projects to the agency, if we have to defer them and
slow our rollout of some of those projects, we can do that.
Where we have a much tighter budget is in our public
information programs, because that is a directly appropriated
program. And we've asked for what we need, and should that
account be cut, it would likely mean we would either be unable
to backfill some of our librarian and other public information
specialist roles or that we wouldn't be able to meet the demand
that we have on that front.
So if, overall, you would need to trim our overall request,
our request to you is that we have a discussion about where
that comes from ahead of time so that we can best manage the
impact on the agency.
Senator Reed. Could you give us an example of your public
information role? One of the programs you're----
Mr. Halpern. Sure. The best recent example is Congress's
mandate to make Congressionally-mandated reports available. So,
there are lots of exceptions to what goes online, but
traditionally, these were reports that were received by
committees. They went into a filing cabinet and then they went
into an archive box.
Now, there's a process where we are working with the
agencies as they deliver those reports to you to get them
online to-date. We have, I think, as of yesterday, about 331
Congressionally-mandated reports over this Congress, and the
prior Congress, and from about 60-some-odd agencies. We're
trying to expand that and build that. If we don't have the
personnel to work on that, that mandate, that new mandate,
that's going to slow down our ability to comply with Congress's
mandate on that front.
Senator Reed. Thank you.
Comptroller to Dorado, you mentioned the mandates which you
received from Congress. Many of them emanated from the Armed
Services Committee. So, I will have a discussion with my
colleagues there. I'm being somewhat facetious.
What is the impact of these mandates? I mean, does it
prevent you from doing more valuable things, or is--you know,
just give me a sense because I----
Mr. Dodaro. I think the mandates are good. They're good
work. We have a dialogue with congressional staffers throughout
the process. Congress is focused on the big investments that
they have been making in areas such as defense, and the
Department of Energy, particularly on a nuclear weapons
modernization. So, I think the mandates are good.
We've worked with the committee on the new FAA
Reauthorization Bill where there are over 30 mandates for GAO.
In the Infrastructure Bill we are still working through 34
mandates for GAO. So, it's not just Armed Services. Just over
half our work now is a result of mandates, but I think they're
fine because we reach out early on when the bills are
introduced.
Since we have an ongoing dialogue with staff, the mandates
for GAO work are shaped appropriately. Our fiscal year 2025
request, would keep us at our current staffing level. However,
the cost of personnel has gone up, including, cost-of-living
increases, healthcare benefits, et cetera. We can meet all the
priorities of the Congress, but if we're operating at the same
funding level from fiscal year 2024 to fiscal year 2025, it's
probably in the order of 300 or 400 less people in GAO.
That would mean that if there's emerging issues that come
up where there's another, global crisis for example or there's
a domestic crisis it would be difficult for us to provide real
time oversight. For example, experts are expecting a big
hurricane season this year of more intense hurricane season.
GAO is always involved in reporting on national disasters. If
we are under a flatline budget we will not have flexibility to
take on other emerging domestic or international issues that
may come up.
I feel like we've got a good relationship with the
committees across the Congress to set priorities. If we have
the resources, we'll meet them. If not, we're going to have to
reprioritize and make tough decisions across all the
committees.
Senator Reed. Thank you very much.
Senator Fischer, please.
Senator Fischer. Thank you, Chairman Reed.
Mr. Dodaro, you were talking about the fraud prevention
work that you do. And you mentioned hiring new staff, and
having the resources for staff available to you to do that. But
along with hiring new staff for those audits and the
investigative service team, what efforts is GAO taking to
better find and eliminate fraud at the Federal level? The
number that you gave, from 2018 to 2022, is staggering.
Mr. Dodaro. Yes. One thing is to convince people of the
scope of the problem. In the unemployment insurance program
alone, we estimated between $100 billion and $135 billion of
fraud during the pandemic. The Inspector General from SBA
estimated about $200 billion in fraud in the PPP Program and
the EIDL Program.
I have a number of legislative proposals that I've given to
the Congress. We worked with the Congress in 2015 to put a
fraud prevention framework in place. Since 2016, agencies are
supposed to have dedicated resources and conduct risk
assessments, but they haven't done them. We need to do more in
depth work. For example----
Senator Fischer. How many haven't done them?
Mr. Dodaro. Most of the 40 programs that we have examined,
including several key agencies. We have 173 recommendations to
address these gaps. But just to give you one example, SBA, the
first fraud risk assessment they did was in February 2022,
after all the money had been allocated. Right now there isn't
enough effort to prevent fraud. That is the only effective way
to make progress.
You're going to catch some of these people. But most money
lost to fraud will not be recovered. At best, you'll get 10
percent back. The Department of Labor Inspector General
overseeing the Unemployment Insurance system is trying to
extend the statute of limitations for prosecuting fraud to 10
years rather than 5. I support that.
I'm trying to convince Congress to keep an analytic center
within the pandemic response accountability community made up
of the Inspectors General. It's very effective, but it's going
to go out of business soon. I think it ought to be made
permanent. I made a similar suggestion after the Recovery Act
back in 2009.
That operation was very effective in preventing fraud. It
was supposed to be picked up by Treasury but that never
happened. I recommended Congress make it permanent; but the
Congress never acted. Then during the pandemic with trillions
of dollars pouring out an analytic center needed to be
reestablished, but it was too late to prevent the fraud that
occurred.
Senator Fischer. Thank you.
Dr. Swagel, you talked about the cost estimates for nearly
every bill that passes through the House or the Senate, or in
the committee when it comes out of committee, and the workload
that you have there. For calendar years, 2024 and 2025, CBO
cost estimates that you're going to be conducting, cost
estimates for 900 authorizing bills each year. That's a 34
percent increase compared to 2023.
How are you going to be able to absorb that increase in
workload for cost estimates of authorizing bills? Can you tell
us something about the efficiencies that your agency can deploy
to improve the work product, the output, without sacrificing
the detail that you are able to include in that?
Dr. Swagel. So, my key goal is to have nearly every bill
have a cost estimate published before it goes to the floor. You
know, as soon as it comes out of a committee, but before it
goes to the floor of either chamber. We hit that 97 percent of
the time.
One of the key things we've done is to have more flexible
staff that we're hiring, since it's more generalists, where
they tend to be younger staff, and we cross train them across
different areas. So instead of someone who's only looking at,
like, you know, unemployment insurance, like Gene just talked
about, they'll be able to work on a portfolio of activities.
And so, for example, on the Farm Bill, which has just been an
all hands on deck exercise, you can imagine----
Senator Fischer. You're mentioning every committee that I'm
on. So, I'm trying hard not to take this personally.
Dr. Swagel. I wish I was----
Senator Fischer. It was Appropriations, with Armed Services
now, and now the Farm Bill, I think you mentioned FAA, too?
[Laughter.]
Dr. Swagel. So, you know, on the Farm Bill, that's just
across the agency, and we're drawing in people. So, that's
really been the key for us is, you know, maintaining the
expertise, but being more flexible and hiring people in a way
that's more flexible. So that's really a key initiative.
Senator Fischer. Thank you.
Mr. Dodaro, you're in the midst right now of a 5-year
multi-phase effort to modernize the agency's internal
information technologies. So, the IT infrastructure that you
have there.
In fiscal year 2025, you're requesting, I think, $3.75
million to build upon and continue that modernization effort.
Hopefully, that's going to give us more predictable operating
costs going forward. But given the nature of GAO's work, the
agency, you have to have, first of all, effective, but also
secure IT systems.
Can you give us an update on the status of that IT
modernization effort, and specifically what projects the agency
is undertaking to improve that infrastructure, please?
Mr. Dodaro. Yes. We're moving to a cloud-based
infrastructure. That will give us more flexibility and
predictability in operating costs. We've moved many
applications there already such as our email systems and our
Internet website. But we still need to modernize our document
management system and move it to the cloud.
The document management system houses all the information
we collect during an audit, and it includes a lot of sensitive
information that has to be protected. The system needs to be
moved to the cloud. The technology we are using now is over 30
years old. That's one of the main things we need to do during
this next year.
We also are going to been moving to get all our reports
published in the HTML format so they're more easily searchable
and accessible on any device. Those are the two main projects
that we're trying to complete during this period of time. This
will better serve our people, and make us more efficient
sharing the documentation. We will also be better able to
protect sensitive information with cloud-based security.
Senator Fischer. What reports are most searched for? What
agency gets the most hits?
Mr. Dodaro. I'd have to check the records for more detail,
but it'd be a safe bet to say Defense is one of the top areas
of demand for GAO reports. We do a lot of work in that area.
Healthcare is also a highly searched subject. GAO does a lot of
work in that area too. There is demand for almost everything
GAO produces.
GAO is a very well cited organization. I get a report every
morning of all the broadcast media, the print media, blogs, and
tweets where GAO's work is cited to make sure it's accurate. If
it's not accurate, I try to get it corrected as soon as
possible. Every day there's probably about 50 or so different
things in there.
And we push our reports out to different media groups.
People who cover healthcare, defense, or other key areas sign
up to regularly receive GAO reports. They automatically get
every report on that issue. Last year, GAO published about 670
reports, and of course, we send our expert witnesses to testify
before committees as well.
Senator Fischer. Thank you.
Mr. Dodaro. Sure.
Senator Fischer. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Senator Reed. Thank you very much, Senator Fischer.
Dr. Swagel, you're an essential part of the legislative
process. We can't move legislation without a score from CBO.
And you have a reputation for objectivity, thoroughness, and
transparency in your work. My assumption would be that if there
is budgetary pressure, something's going to give, and that
probably would be the thoroughness or the accuracy of your
work. So what's your, sort of, take on that?
Dr. Swagel. I mean, you know, as I said, my goal is what
you need when you need it. And that's often a key balancing, is
how thorough against the time that we have.
And, you know, if we didn't have the resources, didn't have
the people, those tradeoffs would be harder. You know, so I
won't sacrifice the integrity and the quality, but it's just
the comprehensiveness is where the tradeoff would come.
Senator Reed. Well, that'll impact our ability to function
properly and thoroughly. And in every field, we see situations
where our initial concept of the cost of a particular program
is much less than what it turns out to be, and you've gotten
into, as well as the Comptrollers guidance helped us immensely.
Mr. Halpern, you are working on your new system, the XPub
system. What's the status?
Mr. Halpern. So, the status is that we are--it's actually
farther along than it ever has been. Just to give you a sense
of what XPub will do and where it fits in the system; for
roughly four decades GPO has produced the software that allows
Congress to print. So, when you hit Control P, it's our
software that takes over.
The current software called MicroComp was originally
created when I was 12, and to say it's long in the tooth is an
understatement. XPub is that that program's replacement. The
good news is that XPub for bills, resolutions, and amendments,
is at the stage where it's ready for testing. And we believe
the House and Senate will begin that user acceptance testing
very shortly. We are very optimistic for how that testing will
go and its ability to function well in the Senate's IT
environment.
Once that is complete, then it will be up to the House and
the Senate for when they decide to roll this out to replace
MicroComp for bills, resolutions, and amendments. Once that
happens, we think you'll see some improvements because XPub
composes at least as fast, if not faster, than MicroComp, and
the public will see benefits because our current terrible text-
only display, and there's no other way to put it, will go away.
And a new modern HTML-based display will take its place for new
measures produced with XPub.
Once that's complete, we'll start moving to reports, and
hearings, and the Federal register, and the Congressional
record. But this Bill's resolutions and amendments is our first
major milestone, and we are on track to meet that.
Senator Reed. Thank you very much.
Comptroller General, we've all, and you've all talked about
the accelerating changes in technology, particularly AI. But we
also have in the world of medicine, mRNA, which was the
platform to produce the Covid vaccine. It seems every day
something new is being discovered, et cetera.
And how does your budget try to anticipate not just what we
know now, but within weeks, for days, a month, we'll discover?
Mr. Dodaro. Yes. We do strategic planning to look on a
longer time horizon. We have a strategic foresight center with
some futurists and experts. We've got a special panel on
science, technology, and engineering that has all the
presidents from national academies serving on it along with
people from academia and the private sector. We do a lot of
thinking ahead.
Right now, we're working on brain computer interfaces,
which has medical application for people with paralysis. These
can be either implantable or worn as a type of a headgear. And
in defense, we're talking about developing technologies to be
able to direct drones through waves processes.
GAO has done a lot of work in regenerative medicine.
There's a lot of legal and ethical issues in that subject.
We're also doing a lot of work on modeling for infectious
diseases. Quantum computing is another area producing change.
It will completely change encryption. We try to think ahead and
anticipate emerging changes in technology, AI, medicine,
defense and other areas.
For example, we publish two-page reports called Spotlights
on emerging technologies. Years ago we did one on deep fakes.
We started reporting on artificial intelligence back in 2018.
We did 50 reports on artificial intelligence before it exploded
on the national scene and captivated everybody's attention.
We have a lot of advisors. I pay attention to the defense
and intelligence community assessments that are made. I think
we have a good cadre of people in that area and that work
should continue.
Senator Reed. And your analysis extends into classified
material as well as unclassified?
Mr. Dodaro. Oh, absolutely.
Senator Reed. Let me ask Dr. Swagel on any comments you
have in this whole area of the new technology.
Dr. Swagel. You know, we face the same challenge trying to
be ready for legislation in such as--I want to get there with
our analysis before you do. You know, is that we're ready to
support you on things like AI, whether it's the legislation or
the effects of AI on the economy. It's something that we're
looking at very carefully.
It's a little early to say what the effect is on the
overall economy, but we're following the literature. We're
using it a little bit within CBO. We're converting one of our
models from an old programming language to a newer one, from
Fortran to Python. And there's AI tools that basically help
with the translation. They don't do it for us, but they help.
Senator Reed. Now, Fortran, that's a name that's from the
backside.
Dr. Swagel. Yes. I learned Fortran in high school.
Senator Reed. Well, I learned basic at West Point, so I'm a
behind you or head of you depending on the----
Senator Fischer.
Senator Fischer. Thank you, Chairman.
Mr. Halpern, GPO is working with the executive branch,
particularly OMB, to implement the access to Congressionally
Mandated Reports Act. And this law charged GPO with collecting
and making publicly available congressionally-mandated reports
from Federal agencies in one central online portal.
Since our last hearing, I know that you've done significant
work to implement that law. Is the executive branch proving to
be a constructive partner in meeting the requirements of the
law?
Mr. Halpern. I think, in general, the answer is yes. There
are always going to be pockets of different agencies where
complying with the requirements of the law may not be their
highest priority at the moment. We are doing a lot of outreach
to a variety of different agencies, and we are getting more and
more agencies that are participating regularly.
A good example is we're actually getting some assistance
from the public as well. A good friend of mine who writes a
transportation newsletter emailed me about 3 or 4 months ago
and said, ``Why isn't DOT submitting Congressionally-mandated
reports?'' And I said, ``Well, I don't know. You should ask
them.'' He did, and suddenly, DOT started making sure that we
were getting those documents.
So we're working through a variety of different channels to
make sure agencies understand their requirements under the law,
and we're trying to make this as easy for them as possible. So,
we've been doing this for about a year. We have over 330
reports as of yesterday, and we are hoping that that grows
exponentially in the year to come.
Senator Fischer. To me, it wouldn't make a lot of sense if
you would have to double-check every agency, you know, if you
would have to go through what reports were required of that
agency, and then check up on them. You can't depend on your
friend with the DOT reports all the time. So how do you address
that? Just to send reminders out?
Mr. Halpern. We send reminders. We work with our colleagues
at OMB. OMB Director, Young, is an old friend, and has been
very supportive of our efforts here. And we think as agencies
get acclimated to this particular requirement, it's going to be
easier for them to comply.
Eventually, we would like to, frankly, be in the business
of helping them comply with these kinds of rules by building
systems that will enable us to easily get this data from them,
both in a nice-looking PDF that looks great in print, but also
in structured data that we can then make available through
Gov.Info for those folks who want that information that way.
Senator Fischer. I know that GPO is also working with the
National Archives and Records Administration on the Center for
Legislative Archives Project, which will provide space for
Congress's important records for the next 50 years. While phase
1 of the project is complete, phase 2 has not moved past the
design stage. Can you give us an update on the Archives Project
especially the current status of phase 2, please?
Mr. Halpern. Absolutely. So, as you mentioned, phase 1 is
up and operational and will give Congress probably decades of
storage space. The goal is to get phase two, which will
complete that 50-year storage requirement.
Congress appropriated dollars for this project before the
pandemic, and for a whole lot of reasons, the project didn't
get launched before the pandemic hit. And we have been working,
basically, since we came back from the pandemic to get that
operational.
We know that that project will now cost more than Congress
previously appropriated for that. We are working very closely
with the archives, and Dr. Shogan has been a great partner here
in trying to get this project off the ground.
Right now, we are working with the staff at the National
Archives to establish a memorandum of agreement so that we can
move forward in two parts for phase 2. First part, we are going
to use the dollars that have already been appropriated to get
as far as we possibly can, and we think that will be most of
the build out of the space.
The second part of phase 2 will be things like shelving and
some of the environmental controls, and we'll have to work with
the Archives and Congress to get the funding that we need to
finish building that out.
We think we're very close. As I'm sure you can understand,
there is sometimes some bureaucratic inertia that we have to
overcome to get this done, but our primary mission is to
support Congress. And this is just another aspect of that, and
we will get this done.
Senator Fischer. Thank you.
One last question, please, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Reed. Please, go ahead.
Senator Fischer. Dr. Swagel, CBO's budget request
highlights the agency's efforts to enhance transparency of its
analysis and projections. In particular, the request notes that
CBO will work to explain analytical methods and release data
used in major reports.
How do you plan to continue recent efforts to promote that
transparency and CBO's work products, and how will the fiscal
year 2025 requests build on those existing efforts?
Dr. Swagel. No, thank you. It's a key priority for the
agency, and we've been working on it, and we'll continue to
work on it in a variety of ways. So some of it will be
publishing reports, looking at our models and explaining them,
and then interacting with outside groups.
As an example, our work on drug price negotiation, we
published an initial report and then did some presentations.
Industry groups came to us and they basically said you're
missing things on, you know, how drugs are--drug development is
financed.
We said, you're right. We changed the methodology. We went
back to them. You know, they're not going to say, oh, yes, it's
fine, but we're trying to be responsive. So that's one group.
Another group of efforts is posting data and then posting
parts of our models, essentially code snippets. And we're
trying to do the data in a way that's as flexible as possible
so outside groups can, you know, manipulate it in a good way
and tell the story that they want to tell.
I'll just give you one example, then I'll stop. We have an
annual series on income distribution that is started by Senator
Baucus, and now continued by Senator Wyden. He has directed us
to do this. And we publish the data that goes into that in a
spreadsheet, and then others will use it, and have given us
feedback. And we've taken that on board and since, we publish
more data because of that feedback.
Senator Fischer. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Reed. Well, thank you, Senator Fischer.
Gentlemen, thank you for your excellent testimony. As we
understand, we'll take all your advice into consideration. And
we have a challenging budget ahead of us, both Senator Fischer
and I, but your service is essential to our operation and to
the operation of the government. You do it well, and once
again, would you please thank all of the men and women who make
it happen?
ADDITIONAL COMMITTEE QUESTIONS
[The following questions were not asked at the hearing, but
were submitted to the agencies for response subsequent to the
hearing:]
Questions Submitted to Hon. Gene Dodaro, Comptroller General Dodaro,
Government Accountability Office
Questions Submitted by Senator Jack Reed
Question. The Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 resulted in strict
levels for appropriations in Fiscal Year 2024 and has similarly strict
levels for Fiscal Year 2025. As a result, the Committee will have to
make tough decisions regarding the allocation of resources in the
upcoming year. It will then be up to each legislative branch agency to
utilize those resources to meet their respective missions, while
addressing the needs of their workforce.
Please describe the impacts to your agency if the Fiscal Year 2025
allocation requires your agency's budget to remain at the Fiscal Year
2024 level. In particular, please describe the specific impacts the
allocation would have on your personnel as well as your ability to meet
the agency's short and long-term goals.
GAO Answer. A flat budget for the FY2025 year would have a
devastating effect on our ability to meet congressional needs. With
mandatory, annual personnel and inflationary cost increases, a flat
budget is a budget cut. We would not be able to maintain the size of
our current workforce. Thus, our capacity to respond to congressional
needs would be reduced.
We are a knowledge and people-based organization. Over eighty
percent of our budget is devoted to personnel costs. We would not be
able to achieve the necessary cost savings to operate under a flat
budget without reducing personnel costs. Thus, we would be forced to
reduce the size of the workforce. We would attempt to do this through
attrition and limiting hiring to only the most critical vacancies. If
we were not able to achieve the necessary reductions in the size of the
workforce through attrition, we would need to consider other options to
cut personnel costs, including furlough days, buy-outs, and a
reduction-in-force. We would also eliminate other personnel benefits
that we use to attract and retain staff, such as student loan
repayments.
We would also need to reduce audit support spending, including
limiting travel for important audit site visits and the purchase of
specialized data, such as prescription drug pricing data. We would also
pause efforts to modernize our IT systems and equipment and continue to
defer needed maintenance on the building. These actions increase the
risk of system or equipment failures, decrease efficiency, and
undermine our ability to conduct empirical research to respond to
Congressional needs.
With a smaller workforce, we would not be able effectively support
Congress. We routinely receive over 600 requests for reviews each year,
in addition to hundreds of requests for testimonies and technical
assistance. The 2024 NDAA alone required 115 GAO studies. With fewer
staff resources, it would take longer for us to get to these requests,
if at all. Each year our work yields tens of billions of dollars in
financial benefits and hundreds of programmatic and operational
benefits. In FY 2023 alone, our work generated about $70.4 billion in
financial benefits, a return of $84 on every dollar invested in GAO. We
also recorded over 1200 programmatic and operational benefits in the
areas of public health, national security, and public safety, among
others. With fewer staff resources and, in turn, fewer audits, we would
be unlikely to continue to deliver these levels of returns.
Our experience with past budget cuts has shown it takes years to
fully recover. For example, during the budget sequestration of the
early 2010s, the size of our workforce dropped from 3,350 FTE to below
2,850 FTE. It took us until 2022 to build back to this level of
capacity. To prevent furloughs during the sequestration, we delayed
much needed IT upgrades; this led to system failures, inefficiencies,
and cost increases. We are in the middle of our 5-year IT modernization
plan; we would again need to pause these efforts with a flat budget.
Limiting hiring, even for a year, also has long term staffing
consequences. This would be particularly problematic in areas we have
bolstered in recent years to meet Congressional priorities. This
includes science and technology, national security, healthcare,
computer security, and fraud prevention.
We recruit across the nation to bring on the top talent needed to
address the challenging public policy, management, and technical issues
we get asked to examine. A key source of talent for us is our intern
program, through which we hire many employees. Not being able to hire
graduating interns creates a chilling effect with the students and the
top-tier universities and colleges with whom we partner. Building back
the trust and confidence with the students and universities that we are
a reliable and viable employer takes time.
A flat budget for FY2025 would have both short- and long-term
consequences for GAO and our ability to serve Congress. It also reduces
the amount of congressional oversight over Federal programs at a time
when these programs and the domestic and international challenges
facing the United States have grown in scope and complexity.
______
Questions Submitted to Hon. Hugh Halpern, Director, Government
Publishing Office
Questions Submitted by Senator Jack Reed
Question. In GPO's FY 2025 budget request, the agency discusses the
investments it has made in modernizing internal printing and
information technology systems, and discusses some of the services it
provides to other Federal agencies. Those other Federal departments and
agencies are similarly working to leverage modern technology and
systems to improve their own communications.
Please describe how GPO is working with other Federal agencies on
strategies to procure and implement modernized printing and
transactional communications to improve these agencies direct
interactions with taxpayers, beneficiaries, veterans, and other
constituencies. In particular, please describe how GPO is encouraging
the use of color, cameras, modern interfaces and software, and other
existing technology and solutions to improve service and increase
efficiency in these modernizing efforts.
Answer. GPO is helping Federal agencies improve their
communications with the American people--and promote an American
informed--in several key ways. Perhaps the most prominent examples are
the capabilities we can now share with our customers through GovInfo
and XPub.
As you know, GovInfo is our online digital repository--the only ISO
16363 Trusted Digital Repository in the world--which supported over 1
billion downloads of public information in the past fiscal year. It is
a marvel made possible by the continued support of this Committee and
has transformed the way we make publications available to the public.
Where GPO once had to print more than 20,000 copies of the daily
Congressional Record and mail them across the country, we can now reach
millions of Americans by simply posting the daily Congressional Record
online, which we aim to do by the beginning of each new business day.
Each year, we also upload more than 100,000 digital packages (i.e.,
a published volume) to GovInfo, so the collection of government
information available at one's fingertips at www.govinfo.gov is
growing. We just added the complete set of United States Statutes at
Large dating back to 1789 to GovInfo, including the text of the
Declaration of Independence, Articles of Confederation, the
Constitution, amendments to the Constitution, treaties with Indians and
foreign nations, presidential proclamations, and treaties and
international agreements approved by the Senate.
One of GovInfo's most significant recent contributions to enhancing
our Federal customers' ability to communicate with the American people
has come through the development of the new Congressionally Mandated
Reports (CMR) web portal, which was created at the direction of
Congress.
Federal agencies are now required by law to send reports mandated
by Congress to GPO so that we can make them electronically available
through GovInfo's CMR portal, which went live in December 2023. As of
May 22nd, the portal had 352 CMRs posted by 66 agencies.
We are also encouraged that the development of our new composition
engine, XPub, is nearing completion after more than a decade of hard
work. XPub will fundamentally transform how GPO and Congress work
together to produce bills, resolutions, amendments, the Congressional
Record, committee reports, and other congressional publications. It
will improve our workflows' speed, accuracy, and efficiency and
decrease the likelihood of breakdowns in production.
The old system XPub is replacing is called MicroComp. It was put
into service in the early 1980s and is barely holding together. A
workhorse tool that has proven its worth over the past five decades,
MicroComp just really can't be modified any further to deliver the
functionality that Congress needs today. It is obsolete, challenging to
maintain, and prone to breakdowns.
The current version of XPub is in the user acceptance testing phase
with the House and Senate for congressional bills, resolutions,
amendments, and public laws. When our customers adopt XPub, hopefully
later this year, features will include integration with House and
Senate XML authoring tools for bills and a new responsive HTML format
for congressional bills and public laws. It is going to take some time
to transition to XPub fully, but once the shift is complete,
congressional users are going to be working with a much more user-
friendly and productive tool.
The development of XPub and other advances in printing technology
are providing us with an entirely new level of flexibility with
congressional documents, whether they are displayed digitally or in
print. For example, the new digital inkjet presses GPO employs are
capable of cost-effective printing on any size paper with a wide
variety of features, including color.
We hope to leverage our investment in XPub for other agencies,
whether that's OMB's production of the Budget of the United States, or
many other agencies that must submit reports to Congress. While it will
take time to build out other applications, we believe that XPub holds
promise for almost all our customers.
Advances like these, coupled with a congressional willingness to
reexamine long-standing practices to improve outcomes for lawmakers,
staff, and the public, have led to a bicameral, bipartisan effort to
develop a new design template for committee reports and hearings called
Project Common Press.
With the full support of the Joint Committee on Printing (JCP), GPO
has started the Project Common Press focus group work of gathering our
customer requirements for what a new format might look like. To date,
we have completed our first round of focus group meetings with the JCP
staff, House and Senate institutional officers, and House and Senate
committees. With their feedback, we are further refining our designs
and look forward to continuing that dialog with congressional
stakeholders in the coming year.
Beyond our work for Congress, GPO's Creative Services and Digital
Media team helps a great number of Federal agency customers apply the
latest in computer-assisted design technology and contemporary styles
to their publications and media products. Their work is exceptional,
and they have earned well-deserved recognition for the high-quality
products they created throughout this past year. In fact, after
reviewing more than 10,000 entries in 2023, Graphic Design USA magazine
conferred four Graphic Design awards on Creative Services for their
impressive work including the 2023 Capitol Christmas Tree logo for the
U.S. Forest Service; an Early Stages Development Guide for the District
of Columbia Public Schools; a Conflict De-escalation Toolkit for the
National Park Service; and the National Science Foundation's Office of
the Inspector General logo.
In addition, our Customer Services business unit, which manages our
print procurement and associated operations, also provides Federal
agency customers with a broad range of contemporary services employing
the latest in print and digital document production technologies.
For example, Customer Services contracts 508 compliance services
for customer agencies to make legacy PDF documents and forms more
accessible for citizens. Such services fulfill section 508 of the
Rehabilitation Act (29 U.S.C. Sec. 7949(d)) requirement that agencies
give disabled employees and members of the public access to information
comparable to that available to others. GPO provides Federal agencies
with 508 services that include compliance consulting as well as the
creation, remediation, and distribution of section 508 compliant PDF
files from legacy documents or electronic files.
Customer Services also provides customer agencies with contracted
scanning and digitization solutions of tangible documents, including
optical character recognition (OCR) for searchability, indexing, and
metadata creation to enhance access and efficiency of accessing records
for beneficiaries and veterans. Often these services include scanning
of microfiche and 35 mm slides or comparable outdated media and the
digitization of records consistent with National Archives and Records
Administration (NARA) archival standards.
Customer Services also provides expert-level guidance, support, and
contract management services through our 951-M Program. This program
provides equipment solutions for customer agencies seeking to deploy
sophisticated printing and reproduction technologies to enable them to
produce the high-quality products they need in-house to communicate
with veterans, beneficiaries, and taxpayers nationwide. This contract
vehicle also allows agencies to procure high-speed scanning and
digitization equipment and services, an increasingly popular product.
Question. The Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 resulted in strict
levels for appropriations in Fiscal Year 2024 and has similarly strict
levels for Fiscal Year 2025. As a result, the Committee will have to
make tough decisions regarding the allocation of resources in the
upcoming year. It will then be up to each legislative branch agency to
utilize those resources to meet their respective missions, while
addressing the needs of their workforce.
Please describe the impacts to your agency if the Fiscal Year 2025
allocation requires your agency's budget to remain at the Fiscal Year
2024 level. In particular, please describe the specific impacts the
allocation would have on your personnel as well as your ability to meet
the agency's short and long-term goals.
Answer. Aware of the possible funding constraints next year, GPO
developed our FY 2025 Budget with the goal of requesting adequate
resources to maintain key technology investments, fulfill all our
obligations to our congressional and Federal agency customers, and
continue the aggressive workforce development efforts we need to thrive
in the future.
We believe we succeeded in that goal. Our FY 2025 appropriations
request of $136,089,000 is comprised of three critical components, two
of which we requested be funded at or slightly below FY 2024 levels:
our FY 2025 request for the Congressional Publishing account remains
flat at the FY 2024 level of $83,000,000 and our FY 2025 Business
Operations Revolving Fund account request of $11,425,000 is slightly
below the $11,605,000 the Committee provided in FY 2024. It is through
this Building Operations Revolving Fund account that GPO funds critical
technology investments including the XPub composition engine and our
GovInfo online digital repository.
Overall, GPO's FY 2025 appropriation request of $136,089,000
represents a 3.1 percent increase over the FY 2024 appropriation of
$131,999,000. That increase is driven primarily by mandatory pay
increases and price level changes affecting our Public Information
Programs of the Superintendent of Documents (PIP) appropriations
account, the third component of GPO's FY 2025 request.
Nearly half (43 percent) of the PIP appropriation covers employee
compensation and benefits--in FY 2025 that would be $17.8 million of
the overall $41.7 million request. Should our FY 2025 PIP request not
be funded in its entirety, the mandatory Federal pay raise expected in
January 2025 may need to be funded by reducing staffing in the program
which could diminish the program's ability to accomplish its mission.
As such, we are particularly concerned about the operational
impacts of any reductions in our FY 2025 requested PIP appropriation,
and would welcome the opportunity to temper such impacts on our request
for the PIP account should the Committee not be able to fulfill GPO's
overall FY 2025 appropriations request.
Potential reductions to GPO's request for our other two
appropriations accounts would impact staffing in different ways. For
instance, while reductions to GPO's request for the Congressional
Publishing Appropriation account would not directly impact staffing,
they could cause some production costs, including mandatory pay raises,
to be under-recovered in publishing services provided to Congress.
Reductions to GPO's request for the Business Operations Revolving
Fund appropriation account would also not have a direct impact on
staffing, but could hinder the development of both the GovInfo and XPUB
initiatives funded through this appropriation. These investments have
been congressional priorities and support the transition to an all-
digital workflow and expanded and improved access to Government
information. Our FY 2025 appropriations request was designed to keep
these two initiatives on schedule and a reduction in funding would
likely cause improvements in these projects to slow down and fall
behind the current schedule.
______
Questions Submitted to Hon. Dr. Phillip Swagel, Director, Congressional
Budget Office
Questions Submitted by Senator Jack Reed
Question. The Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 resulted in strict
levels for appropriations in Fiscal Year 2024 and has similarly strict
levels for Fiscal Year 2025. As a result, the Committee will have to
make tough decisions regard- ing the allocation of resources in the
upcoming year. It will then be up to each legislative branch agency to
utilize those resources to meet their respective missions, while
addressing the needs of their workforce.
Please describe the impacts to your agency if the Fiscal Year 2025
allocation requires your agency's budget to remain at the Fiscal Year
2024 level. In particular, please describe the specific impacts the
allocation would have on your personnel as well as your ability to meet
the agency's short and long-term goals.
Answer. If the 2025 allocation required CBO to remain at its fiscal
year 2024 level, the agency would not be able to continue to add to its
workforce, and its responsiveness to the Congress would be constrained.
CBO's fiscal year 2024 appropriation of $70 million is enabling the
agency to grow from 267 at the end of March 2024 to 276 positions by
the end of September 2024. CBO will fill key positions in the areas of
healthcare, national security, and long-term analysis.
Operating at its fiscal year 2024 level in fiscal year 2025 would
result in gaps in the agency's responsiveness to the Congress. CBO's
fiscal year 2025 request of $73.5 million is designed to support
growing to 285 employees. Remaining at the fiscal year 2024 funding
level would preclude hiring additional analysts to improve the agency's
capabilities to produce dynamic analysis, long-term estimates, analysis
of defense weapons systems, and estimates of credit programs (like
student loan programs), as well as to enhance the agency's responsive-
ness in producing cost estimates and providing technical assistance.
To avoid having to shrink next year with a $70 million budget, CBO
would also have to take other steps to limit spending, possibly
including reducing the use of outside experts, shifting to more junior
personnel, deferring training, constraining the compensation of current
employees, and limiting purchases of data and information technology.
Such steps would diminish CBO's effectiveness.
SUBCOMMITTEE RECESS
Senator Reed. With that, unless you have a comment, I would
adjourn the hearing.
[Whereupon, at 2:46 p.m., Wednesday, May 8, the
subcommittee was recessed, to reconvene subject to the call of
the Chair.]
LEGISLATIVE BRANCH APPROPRIATIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2025
----------
WEDNESDAY, MAY 15, 2024
U.S. Senate,
Subcommittee of the Committee on Appropriations,
Washington, DC.
The subcommittee met at 2:32 p.m., in room SD-124, Dirksen
Senate Office Building, Hon. Jack Reed (Chairman), presiding.
Present: Senators Reed, Murphy, Van Hollen, and Fischer.
U.S. LIBRARY OF CONGRESS AND
ARCHITECT OF THE CAPITOL
OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR JACK REED
Senator Reed. Good afternoon. The Subcommittee will come to
order.
I would like to welcome everyone to the second of our
fiscal year 2025 budget hearings for the Legislative Branch
Appropriations Subcommittee.
Today, we have with us Dr. Carla Hayden, the Librarian of
Congress, and Mr. Joseph DiPietro, the Acting Architect of the
Capitol. I would like to thank you for joining us here today to
testify on your Agency's fiscal year 2025 budget request.
I would also like to welcome Ranking Member Fischer, with
whom I work very closely in the Senate, and thank her for her
cooperation.
Let me begin by, again, thanking the women and men of your
agencies who work every day to facilitate the work of the
Senate. Without each of them, the Senate would not be able to
perform its constitutional responsibilities on behalf of the
American people.
And I would ask unanimous consent that the witnesses'
written testimony be placed in the hearing record; without
objection, so ordered.
As I noted in our first hearing last week, the Legislative
Branch Agencies have submitted fiscal year 2025 budget request
that account for a $544 million increase over the fiscal year
2024 Legislative Branch enacted appropriation. While we do not
yet have subcommittee allocations, the Fiscal Responsibility
Act of 2023, enacted strict levels for appropriations again in
fiscal year 2025.
As I said in our previous hearing, we will be making very
difficult decisions for the allocation of resources provided to
the Legislative Branch in fiscal year 2025. It will then fall
upon the heads of each Legislative Branch Agency to utilize
those resources to meet their respective missions while
addressing the needs of their workforce. This will not be an
easy fiscal year, but I am confident that the Legislative
Branch can meet the challenge.
For fiscal year 2025, the Library of Congress is requesting
$943.7 million in spending authority, including $897.8 million
in appropriated funds, which is an increase of $46 million over
the fiscal year 2024 enacted level.
This request includes $625 million for Library of Congress
operations, $61.5 million in direct appropriations for the
operations of the Copyright Office, $145.5 million for the
operations of the Congressional Research Service, and $66
million for the National Library Service for the Blind and
Print Disabled.
The Library of Congress' budget request includes funding
for such things as the continuation of upgrades to
preservation, technical systems, and equipment used to digitize
and preserve collection items, increasing the digital
collections processing capacity and infrastructure at the
Library, and the continued support of the Veterans History
Project, the Louis-Houghton Civics and Democracy Initiative,
Teaching with Primary Sources, and many, many other important
initiatives.
Additionally, the request includes funds to continue to
expand the data analytics capacity of the Congressional
Research Service, the continued modernization of systems and
processes at the U.S. Copyright Office, and the continuation of
services at the National Library Services for the Blind and
Print Disabled.
The Library of Congress performs critical work that goes
far beyond serving the Legislative Branch. I look forward to
hearing from Dr. Hayden on the exceptional work of her Agency
to improve access to our Nation's treasures and Library
services for the American people, as well as hear about the
Agency's fiscal year 2025 budget request.
Today, we will also be reviewing the Architect of the
Capitol's fiscal year 2025 budget request.
Before I address the Architect of the Capitol's request, I
would like to thank Mr. DiPietro for stepping in to serve as
the second Acting Architect of the Capitol. He comes to this
role to continue the efforts started by Ms. Rexroat who served
as the caretaker of the Agency until a new Architect of the
Capitol is selected. Thank you very much.
The last few years have been a tumultuous time for the men
and women who work at the Architect of the Capitol, please
share our appreciation to your workforce for everything they do
to keep the facilities and grounds of the Capitol Complex
operational every day.
The Architect of the Capitol is seeking an appropriation of
just over $1 billion, which is an increase of $83.8 million
over the fiscal year 2024 enacted level.
While the fiscal year 2025 budget request includes many
important projects, it represents a small part of the Deferred
Maintenance, Capitol Renewal, and capital Improvement projects
that need to be addressed across the Capitol Complex. The
request includes funding to support such items as the
renovation of the Senate's Daniel Webster Page Residence, the
continued refurbishment of elevators within the Senate Office
Building, the Cannon Office Building renewal, the first phase
of the replacement of the sprinkler system within the Library
of Congress' Jefferson Building, the repairs to the fire alarms
within the Jefferson Building, and funding to support continued
infrastructure requirements resulting from security assessments
across the Capitol complex.
The increase also includes a number of new positions across
multiple jurisdictions that are intended to enhance the
operations of the Agency.
Again, thank you, Mr. DiPietro, for your service, and I
look forward to hearing the Acting Architect's testimony today.
Both agencies have presented very thoughtful budget
requests. However, in a challenging fiscal year, it will be
difficult to fulfill the requests of our Legislative Branch
agencies. The subcommittee will carefully review each budget
request and work to address the most critical needs of each
Agency to meet its mission and the needs of the workforce.
With that said, the goal of the Senate Appropriations
Committee is to continue the normal order for appropriations
bills. As such, this subcommittee will be aggressively working
to produce a thoughtfully crafted bill that can be considered
by the Full Committee and the Senate in the coming months.
And I look forward to the testimony of witnesses, and
obviously to working again with Senator Fischer toward this
goal.
Now, let me turn to the Ranking Member, Senator Fischer,
for her remarks.
OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR DEB FISCHER
Senator Fischer. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you to
our two witnesses today, Dr. Hayden and Dr. DiPietro, for being
with us this afternoon for our second Legislative Branch budget
hearing.
I want to begin by commenting on the upcoming fiscal year.
In fiscal year 2024, the Legislative Branch received an overall
cut compared to the enacted level. Under the terms of the
Fiscal Responsibility Act, a further cut to the Legislative
Branch's allocation for fiscal year 2025 is possible.
We face an uncertain and a likely volatile fiscal year
ahead. As we navigate the process and the potential for further
cuts, our agencies must be prudent and responsible with their
resources. I made this point in our first hearing and I want to
make it here as well.
Turning to the budget request, both the Library and AOC are
seeking substantial increases. I hope to hear from both of you
what your Agency's minimum needs are for fiscal year 2025 and
any cost savings that you plan to achieve.
Dr. Hayden, the Library of Congress has a new strategic
plan for the next 5 fiscal years that focuses on deploying new
technology and digital products to better serve Congress and
the American people.
For fiscal year 2025, the Library seeks a 5.1 percent
increase above last year's enacted level. In your testimony, I
look forward to hearing how the request will help execute the
new strategic plan.
Mr. DiPietro, you are the second Acting Architect of the
Capitol to come before our subcommittee in the last 2 years,
and I am sure you will agree that we need new and more
permanent leadership at the AOC. There is much work to be done
in stabilizing that Agency going forward, but I do appreciate,
totally appreciate everything you are doing to achieve that.
The AOC is requesting slightly over $1 billion for fiscal
year 2025, an almost 9 percent increase above the enacted
level. Given the scale of the resources at issue, we must
ensure that construction projects are properly scoped, on
schedule, and on budget. In your testimony, I hope to hear how
the AOC is improving its project management practices.
Thank you again to both of our witnesses for being here
today; and thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Reed. Thank you, Senator Fischer.
And now, let me recognize Dr. Hayden, please.
STATEMENT OF HON. DR. CARLA HAYDEN, LIBRARIAN OF
CONGRESS
Dr. Hayden. Thank you, Chairman Reed, Ranking Member
Fischer, for the opportunity to----
Senator Reed. Bring that microphone in as close as
possible.
Dr. Hayden. Thank you both for the opportunity to provide
testimony in support of the Library's fiscal 2025 budget. In
fiscal 2023 and 2024, the Library, with the support of
Congress, met its mission to, ``Engage, inspire, and inform the
Congress and the American people with a universal and enduring
source of knowledge and creativity in both traditional and
innovative ways.''
And today, with nearly 178 million items in the physical
collections, and many more in digital form, the Library remains
the steward of the largest collection of information and
resources ever assembled, not as a memorial, but as a living
source of knowledge and creativity for Congress and the
betterment of all.
I would like to also express my gratitude for the ongoing
support of the Library, from Congress, and this committee,
subcommittee in particular, for funding our IT investments. And
I would like to give special thanks for your support of the
Visitor Experience.
We will open the first permanent Treasures Gallery in June,
this June, and expect that the Youth Center, called The Source,
will open in 2025, in time for the Nation's Sesquicentennial in
2026.
I come before you today to discuss the Library of
Congress's fiscal 2025 appropriations request for $943.7
million, a 5.1 increase over the Library's fiscal 2024
appropriation. This request includes $38.9 million in mandatory
pay and price level increases, and the remaining increases
represent critical investments needed to meet the Library's
mission.
Recognizing that economic conditions are different than
they were 8 years ago when I became Librarian, we are
requesting the lowest programmatic increase of my tenure. The
two new requests for fiscal 2025 further the goals for the
Library's new strategic plan, A Library for All, to enhance
services, expand access, and strengthen capacity, and foster
innovation.
We are asking, first, for an investment to strengthen the
Library's infrastructure, including staff with advanced skills
to support digital collections processing and acquisition, as
we move increasingly toward digital as the preferred format.
This includes digital content in copyright deposits, which are
central to building our collection.
The second request supports collections handling for the
expanded exhibit spaces in the Thomas Jefferson Building that
will display over 1,000 items worth millions of dollars, a 50
percent increase over previous year's exhibit capacity. And
this request ensures that exhibit items are secure and
supported by an appropriate level of trained and experienced
staff.
And in keeping with our strategic goals, we are also
resubmitting three vital requests that were not funded in
fiscal 2024. The first will enable both CRS and the Office of
the Chief Information Officer to expand CRS's quantitative data
analysis and policy simulation capacity to analyze big data for
Congressional clients.
The second will enable the Library to meet the growing
demand for accessibility services to improve access to the
Library's digital products, materials, and services for
Americans with disabilities.
And in the third resubmission, the Library requests
expanded contracts and grant staffing as we face an attrition
rate as high as 28 percent, along with heavier workloads and
increasingly complex contracts, particularly for our IT-related
acquisitions.
In summary, the Library's 2025 congressional budget
justification advances the necessary work initiated in previous
years to move the Library forward while preserving our world-
class resources and making them accessible for those who will
come after us.
Chairman Reed, and Ranking Member Fischer, thank you again
for supporting the Library of Congress, and your consideration
of our fiscal 2025 budget request; and I will be very pleased
to take your questions.
[The statement follows:]
Prepared Statement of Hon. Dr. Carla Hayden, The Librarian of Congress
Chairman Reed, Ranking Member Fischer, and Members of the Subcommittee:
Thank you for the opportunity to provide testimony in support of
the Library's fiscal 2025 budget request.
The mission of the Library of Congress is to ``Engage, inspire and
inform the Congress and the American people with a universal and
enduring source of knowledge and creativity.'' Above all, the Library
exists to serve. Service to the Congress remains the foundation for the
Library's mission every day with analysis, policy consultations,
briefings, programs and constituent engagement. The U.S. Copyright
Office within the Library promotes creativity and knowledge by
administering the nation's copyright system for the benefit of all. And
service to the American people--Copyright users, researchers, visitors,
teachers, students, veterans, and blind and print disabled citizens,
among many others--delivered in countless ways, takes a user-centered
approach with access in person and in digital form.
The Library's resources are authoritative, expansive, and
evergreen. In a time of rapidly evolving technology in a fast-changing
world, the Library of Congress stands as it has for 223 years as the
steward of the largest collection of information and resources ever
assembled--not as a memorial but as a living source of knowledge and
creativity for Congress and the betterment of all. The Library meets
its responsibility to collect, preserve and share these treasures every
day by constantly renewing the collections and the services it provides
to the Congress and the American people. With congressional support,
the Library is extensively modernizing and optimizing systems,
processes, and staff. Throughout, the Library never stops its drive to
engage, inspire and inform, increasingly through digital means.
I would like to express my sincere gratitude for the ongoing and
extraordinary support that this committee and all of the Congress gives
to the Library. In particular, I appreciate the funding you have
provided for major Information Technology (IT) investments that we are
implementing and continuously improving to meet user expectations for
greater access and new and enhanced tools. These investments include
the Enterprise Copyright System (ECS); CRS's Integrated Research and
Information System (IRIS); the National Library Service's Braille Audio
Reading by Download (BARD) and next generation devices; the Library
Collections Access Platform (L-CAP); Congress.gov; and the Library's
core IT infrastructure and IT security.
I would also like to give special thanks for your support of the
Library's Visitor Experience initiative over the last 5 years. We are
excited to open the Treasures Gallery in June of this year and we
expect the Youth Center, named ``The Source,'' will open by the end of
2025, in time for the nation's semiquincentennial in 2026. Further, in
addition to the funds appropriated by the Congress, we have raised more
than $20 million in private donations for this project. We remain in
constant coordination with the Architect of the Capitol and are
grateful for the Committee's involvement to ensure the success of the
Orientation Gallery, a critical element of the project.
I come before you today to discuss the Library's fiscal 2025
appropriations request of $943.7 million, which represents a 5.1
percent increase over the Library's fiscal 2024 appropriation,
including $38.9 million in mandatory pay and price level increases. The
Library has absorbed especially high pay and inflationary increases
over the last 3 years, with a 5.3 percent pay raise and inflationary
increases at 3.4 percent in fiscal 2024 alone. The need to absorb these
increases threatens all that we do and has a permanent impact. This is
particularly the case for the Library of Congress, Salaries & Expenses
appropriation because it provides centralized support services to the
entire Library.
The budget request reflects the resources needed to sustain the
Library's mission of service to the Congress and the American people,
and its strategic priorities to be digitally enabled, user centered,
data informed, inclusive and welcoming, with meaningful collaboration
and partnership and active engagement with our communities. It builds
on multiyear strategic efforts to rebuild the information technology
foundation and to optimize advanced IT systems and business processes,
while at the same time enhancing access and customer services. And it
invests in the future, ensuring that the Library can safeguard and
support its collections, services, and workforce in person and online.
The request aligns with the strategic goals set forth in the new
fiscal 2024-2028 Strategic Plan, A Library for All: Expand access,
enhance services, strengthen capacity, and foster innovation. The goals
affirm the Library's user-centered mission of service. The Library's
formerly standalone Digital Strategy is now fully integrated into the
new Strategic Plan, in recognition that technology must be ``baked into
all that we do.'' Digital technology indeed permeates every aspect of
the Library as a modern knowledge institution, and it is used
deliberately and strategically to meet the needs of a quickly changing
world. None of the Library's strategic goals or themes in today's
context could be achieved without the contributions of digital
technology.
Recognizing that economic conditions are different than they were 8
years ago when I became Librarian, we are requesting the lowest
programmatic increase of my tenure--$11.3 million compared to the
highest at $55 million. We have minimized programmatic increases by
deferring those without critical impacts, not because our needs have
decreased, but out of concern for the impact of absorbing mandatory pay
and price level increases given current economic conditions and other
external forces. We have taken great care to make only programmatic
requests that are necessary and have a meaningful impact on our service
to the Congress and the American people.
The two new requests for fiscal 2025 further the goals in the new
Strategic Plan:
Digital Collections Processing Capacity and Infrastructure
In alignment with the Expand Access strategic goal, digital
collections processing capacity and infrastructure meet the strategic
objective to invest in end-to-end modernization of IT infrastructure to
support the centrality of digital collecting and strengthen staff
capacity with advanced skills in processing digital content and the
supporting IT systems. These resources are necessary to support a host
of IT infrastructure and systems to redesign and refresh workflows
critical for the Library to meet the objectives, principles and targets
to acquire, preserve and make accessible digital content as set forth
in the Library's Strategic Plan.
The new initiative for digital collections processing capacity and
infrastructure is essential as the Library increasingly moves toward
digital as the necessary preferred format for acquiring items for the
collections that were born digital or converted from analog form.
Existing digital systems that support most digital collections were
developed iteratively more than a decade ago and are in need of
investment to better standardize, integrate, and modernize to
accommodate the rapidly growing scale of digital collections growth.
The initiative will support the ongoing work to digitize and manage
materials from the collections, and the continued growth of
acquisitions in digital format. To achieve this, the request will
provide resources critical to upgrading and improving the IT systems,
workflows, and processes necessary to support ongoing work to digitize
and manage digital materials from our collections, and to support the
continued growth of acquisitions in digital format. Copyright deposits,
for example, are central to building the Library's collection, and it
is critical for it to be as easy as possible for digital content and
metadata delivered to the Copyright Office to be considered for
additions to the Library's collections. This request also includes
staffing with advanced skills to process and describe content to make
it accessible, as well as staff to support IT systems for digital
content management and processing.
Center for Exhibits and Interpretation Collections Handling
In pursuit of the Library's strategic goals to expand access and
enhance services by transforming in-person experiences the Library will
open more than 12,000 square feet of public space in the Thomas
Jefferson Building. The expanded exhibition spaces will display over
1,000 items at any given time, a nearly 50 percent increase from
previous years. A majority of the objects on view must be rotated every
6 months or less, which means that each item must be reviewed,
cataloged, mounted, installed, and deinstalled by trained and
experienced registrars. The level of permanent registrar and production
staff has remained flat for the last decade, and is not sufficient to
accommodate the support requirements to cover the expansion of the
Library's exhibition spaces. The Library has stewardship over the
collections, including those on display worth millions of dollars. This
request is put forward to ensure that additional items on exhibit are
secure and supported by an appropriate level of staff.
fiscal 2024 re-submissions
In keeping with our strategic goals, we are re-submitting three
vital requests that were not funded in the 2024 budget request. These
initiatives support the 2024-2028 strategic goals of expanding access,
enhancing service, strengthening capacity and fostering innovation. The
initiatives are:
CRS.--Expanding Data Analytics Capacity (Strengthening Capacity &
Fostering Innovation) will enable both CRS and the Office of the Chief
Information Office (OCIO) to expand CRS's quantitative data analysis
and policy simulation capacity. It will augment CRS's ability to
perform quantitative analysis of both research and operational ``big
data'' for congressional clients, establishing a base process and
increased capacity for in-depth data analysis. Congressional Members
and Committees have expressed interest in CRS investigating how
artificial intelligence (AI) technologies could enhance its work for
the Congress.
CRS is working to diversify its new product offerings. Examples
include the American Law Division's weekly Congressional Court Watcher
distributed to congressional clients interested in notable Federal
court cases, an infographic on Middle East Natural Gas, a podcast on AI
noting the availability of a published report on the same subject, and
a bill summary available in voice version.
CRS is also working to make finding reports and experts easier on
CRS.gov and exploring AI and machine learning for analyzing legislative
bills and text to expedite summaries and searches. CRS divisions are
developing interactive tools for Members, so that Members can determine
more easily and immediately how multiple policy approaches might impact
specific constituencies. CRS experts are also using big data to improve
their analysis. The request includes staffing to strengthen existing
capabilities and an investment in the tools and datasets required to
broaden the depth of quantitative analysis and models by leveraging big
data.
Language from the Joint Explanatory Statement, accompanying the
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 Public Law 117-328, directs CRS
to explore ways in which it could expand the ability to perform
quantitative analysis of research data and conduct a feasibility study.
The study was completed and presented to Oversight and Appropriations
Committees in the House and Senate. In September 2023, the Library
awarded a 1 year contract to pilot a small set of cloud-based
quantitative data models for CRS consistent with the guidance in the
feasibility study. CRS has also initiated an AI working group to
explore how AI technology can enhance work for the Congress.
Expanding the Digital Accessibility program (Expanding Access) will
more equitably enable the Library to meet its mission in the
information age. The Library's digital products, materials, and
services must be accessible to all, including those with disabilities.
With that in mind, the Library established a small digital
accessibility program in fiscal 2020 with one FTE. This office provides
in-house digital accessibility expertise and guidance for Library IT
projects and other digital initiatives, utilizing supplemental
resources from another office. Additional resources will mature the
enterprise digital accessibility program, expanding capacity to meet
growing Library demands for accessibility services including
consultation, compliance assessment, and remediation. Establishing
greater capacity and tools in the Digital Accessibility program will
enable the Library to meet growing demands for accessibility services
including consultation, compliance assessment, and remediation and to
improve access to the Library's digital products, materials, and
services for Americans with disabilities. Direct patron and staff
feedback, along with preliminary expert assessments, point to a large
gap between the Library's products, materials, and services and
Federal/international accessibility standards. The Library seeks to
expand the program so that accessibility is addressed at the same time
the Library enhances current digital products with custom development,
releases new IT development efforts, and procures new commercial-off-
the-shelf and software-as-a-service products. This includes training
staff and integrating accessibility from the beginning of the software
development lifecycle.
Expanded Contracting and Grants Directorate staffing (Strengthening
Capacity) is requested in response to the staffing shortages stemming
from increased contract complexity, and unusually high and sustained
FTE attrition. Expanded contracting staff will support comprehensive,
optimal acquisition planning, execution, contract management, and
oversight. The Library, like other Federal agencies, is facing
substantial attrition of its contracting staff as workloads increase
and contracts become more complex, particularly for IT-related
acquisitions. These are already hard-to-fill positions and a
government-wide shortage of contract specialists makes recruitment and
retention even more challenging. Additional staffing will support
technology innovation and development contracts, integrate digital
accessibility into the Library's IT acquisition process and contracts,
monitor the Library's 400-plus Contracting Officer's Representative
(COR) workforce, and strengthen oversight of policies and procedures.
The ability to properly handle increased contract volume and complexity
in areas such as development of major IT systems and digital
accessibility will be resolved. The requested funds will also be used
to integrate a web-enabled solution for the grants lifecycle to support
grant application, award, and management processes into the eAcquistion
system. By integrating the Grants Management System with the
eAcquisition System, an efficient, fully automated CGD office that
connects the grants process with the acquisition and financial IT
systems will be established.
In closing, the fiscal 2025 budget request carefully furthers the
modernization efforts of recent years and supports the goals of the new
fiscal 2024-2028 Strategic Plan. In a time of rapid change, in
technology, in society, and in the world, the Library has a
responsibility to preserve and use its resources for the greatest
benefit today and for decades to come. With the consistent support of
the Congress, the Library has never and will never stop enhancing and
extending its service to this country.
Chairman Reed, Ranking Member Fischer, and Members of the
Subcommittee, thank you again for supporting the Library of Congress
and for your consideration of our fiscal 2025 budget request.
Prepared Statement of Shira Perlmutter, Register of Copyrights and
Director, U.S. Copyright Office
Chairman Reed, Ranking Member Fischer, and Members of the Subcommittee,
Thank you for the opportunity to submit the United States Copyright
Office's fiscal 2025 budget request. The Copyright Office is tasked
with overseeing the national copyright registration and recordation
systems, advising Congress on copyright policy and legislation, working
with the Department of Justice and other Federal agencies on copyright
litigation and international matters, conducting administrative and
regulatory activity including with respect to statutory licenses, and
educating the public about copyright.
I am pleased to report that we have made significant progress on
our new Enterprise Copyright System (ECS), with several modules already
in production and being used by the public. In addition, processing
times for both registration and recordation services remain low. We are
well into our current initiative on artificial intelligence; coming up
on almost 2 years of smooth operations of our new small claims
tribunal; and actively engaged in regulatory work, including the ninth
section 1201 triennial rulemaking and a review of the designation of
the entities established by the Music Modernization Act (MMA). And
public engagement with the Office is breaking attendance records
through stakeholder events and targeted outreach around the country.
key accomplishments over the past year
Administration of the Copyright Act
Registration.--The Office continues to effectively administer the
national copyright registration and recordation systems. In fiscal
2023, we registered over 441,526 copyright claims involving millions of
works. Over the past 3 years, we have markedly improved registration
processing times: the average for examining all copyright claims stands
at 2.1 months for the first half of fiscal 2024. For fully electronic
claims that do not require correspondence, the average is just 1.2
months.\1\1 Electronic applications with physical deposits without
correspondence average 3 months, while paper applications have remained
at an average of 4.1 months for claims without correspondence.
Recordation.--In fiscal 2023, the Office recorded 16,592 documents
containing titles of 1,165,653 works, including 5,875 documents and
568,618 titles of works through the new self-service portal.\2\ Our
online recordation pilot, launched in April 2020, has significantly
shortened processing times, with the average from electronic submission
to generation of the public record now measured in weeks rather than
months. On August 1, 2022, we opened the pilot to all members of the
public and have seen an increase in users to over 80% of all
recordations. And while the pandemic caused some delays that resulted
in longer processing times for paper recordations, we have cut down
those times as well.\3\
Public Records.--The Office is the custodian of many kinds of
records related to registration and recordation. We are working to make
these records, many going back more than a hundred years, available
online. In fiscal 2023, we continued development of the Copyright
Public Records System (CPRS) (which includes both recordation and
registration records) and hosted 104,095 unique visitors. The CPRS has
expanded online access and research options by adding 1,143,779 card
catalog records. Furthermore, in 2023 we completed the consolidation of
offsite materials from three separate warehouses into our new storage
facility in Cabin Branch, Maryland. In February 2024, the facility was
dedicated as the Marybeth Peters Copyright Archive, in honor of the
eleventh Register of Copyrights.
Licensing.--The Office maintained our effective stewardship of over
$1.6 billion in statutory licensing revenues as of the end of fiscal
2023.\4\ For the sixth consecutive year, we received an unmodified or
``clean'' audit opinion of the fiscal 2022 statutory licensing
fiduciary asset financial statements.
Other Major Activities
The Copyright Office continues to provide advice and impartial
expertise to Congress and the courts, and information to the public.
Below are a few highlights:
Copyright Claims Board.--By the end of March 2024, over 800 claims
had been filed with the Copyright Claims Board (CCB), and it had issued
16 final determinations. Claims have come from forty-six states and
thirty-two countries. This past year the Office completed several
rulemakings to update the CCB's processes and operations. The CCB and
other Office staff have participated in scores of public events to
discuss and promote its use and have reached audiences in-person and
virtually from every area of the United States.
Initiative on Copyright and Artificial Intelligence.--In early
2023, the Office announced an initiative to examine the copyright law
and policy issues raised by generative AI, including the scope of
copyright in works incorporating AI-generated content and the use of
copyrighted materials in AI training. After convening public listening
sessions and hosting webinars to gather information, the Office
published a notice of inquiry in August 2023 that elicited over 10,000
comments by the December 2023 deadline. In February, we provided
Congress with a detailed update on our 2023 accomplishments (including
policy guidance on registration, litigation and Review Board
activities, and the notice of inquiry) and our plans for next steps.\5\
In 2024, the Office plans to issue a report in several sections, which
will be published separately as they are completed.\6\
Regulatory Work.--The Office has a number of rulemakings underway,
\7\ two of which are mandated by law. In July 2023, we commenced the
ninth triennial proceeding under section 1201 of the Digital Millennium
Copyright Act (DMCA) regarding temporary exemptions to section 1201's
prohibition against circumvention of technological measures that
control access to copyrighted works. We have solicited supporting and
opposing comments related to any newly proposed exemptions, using the
streamlined process of the prior two rulemakings. Public hearings were
held in mid-April.
In addition, under the Music Modernization Act (MMA), the Office
maintains an oversight role as directed by the statute, as well as
engaging in education and outreach activities. In January 2024, we
issued a notice of inquiry seeking public comments regarding the
periodic review of our designations of the mechanical licensing
collective (MLC) and digital licensee coordinator (DLC). The Office
also has a number of other open rulemakings underway, including
proposed group registration options for two-dimensional artwork and
updates to news websites, and proposed clarifications to regulations
involving termination rights and the MMA's blanket license.
Working with Congress and Other Agencies.--The Office provided
legal advice and assistance across the government regarding complex
areas of copyright law and policy, including Supreme Court and
appellate litigation and interagency collaboration on international
matters and trade. On March 12, we published a joint study on non-
fungible tokens and intellectual property with the U.S. Patent and
Trademark Office.\8\
Outreach and Education.--The Office engages in numerous outreach
activities to provide clear and accurate information on copyright law
and to raise awareness of the CCB and other Office resources and
programs. In fiscal 2023, we hosted or participated in 185 public
events and speaking engagements, surpassing the prior fiscal year by 25
percent. We engaged with many different audiences, from copyright
stakeholders to lawyers and intellectual property experts to students.
Our Public Information Office and our new reading room are now open and
provide in-person services by appointment. Last month, we launched a
webpage focusing on our economic research agenda and providing easy
access to data used in our 2022 study, Women in the Copyright
System.\9\
continuous development of information technology
The modernization of the Office's information technology (IT)
continues to be a top priority as well as a strategic goal. We are
committed to ongoing updates and improvements so as to avoid repeating
the experience of having to overhaul severely outdated legacy systems.
The Library transitioned to an agile IT development model that
emphasizes continuous development as well as rapid delivery of new
functions and features that optimize the stakeholder experience. We
have seen the benefits of this model for meeting evolving changes in
technology, providing secure and interconnected systems, and managing
contract cost increases.
Our Enterprise Copyright System (ECS) development includes
workstreams on registration, recordation, public records, and
licensing. Under the Library of Congress's centralized IT structure,
the Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO) is leading work on
user experience design and platform services--that is, the design and
architecture capabilities underpinning the ECS.
Historically, four workstreams (registration, recordation, public
records, and licensing), have been under the ECS rubric. The Office
also collaborates with OCIO on other business priorities enabled by
technology. Examples include our work to improve online access to
historical public records and to operate our new Contact Center, both
discussed below.
Recordation.--Our online recordation system was the first ECS
application to be released to the public, enabling recordation of
documents under section 205 of title 17. As noted above, in August 2022
full access was provided to all members of the public. We are now
incorporating user feedback to make iterative improvements as well as
to build new functionality for processing notices of termination. Once
that is done, recordation will transition to continuous development.
Copyright Public Records System (CPRS).--Our second ECS application
to be publicly released was a pilot for the new Copyright Public
Records System (CPRS). This system provides access to registration and
recordation data with advanced search capabilities, filters, and
improved interfaces for the public and for Office staff. The CPRS has
expanded online access and research options by adding 2,418,754 card
catalog records. It is poised to replace the existing Copyright Office
Online Public Catalog and become the Office's sole source of
authoritative online copyright information by summer 2025.
Registration.--Registration is the most complex of the Office's
services and the focus of the greatest public attention. During the
initial ECS development work, we have made considerable progress on
both the external (public) and internal (staff) components of the new
registration module with multiple application and deposit workstreams.
We have also established a new electronic Deposit (eDeposit)
development team to create the enhanced upload and rendering
capabilities necessary to support the submission of large numbers of
files submitted in one group application, such as photographs, and very
large files, such as feature-length motion pictures and television
episodes. This eDeposit system is intended to render electronic
deposits much more efficiently to staff for examination. With continued
support, we plan to conduct stakeholder testing of the upload
capabilities by the end of calendar 2024 and conduct testing of the
file-rendering functionality soon thereafter.
Licensing.--For the past 3 years, the Office has been developing
user experience design and initial automated workflows to replace
outdated licensing processes. We are focusing on implementing the
statement of account examination processes in ECS and transitioning all
royalty accounting processes onto the Legislative Branch Financial
Management System to streamline them and eliminate duplication. We
expect to make the redesigned licensing processes available for staff
use in early 2025.
Historical Public Records.--As part of the Office's commitment to
the preservation of and access to our historical records, we are
digitizing print and microfilm records and making them available
online. This includes the old card catalog, \10\ the Catalog of
Copyright Entries (CCEs), microfilm, and the record books. Digitization
is the first step, to be followed by metadata capture to enhance
searchability, with all records eventually available through the new
CPRS. Great progress has been made to digitize and make publicly
available the Office's 26,000 record books, which contain well over 26
million pages of records between 1870 and 1977. The first 500 books
were published on the Library's website in February 2022, \11\ and now
12,367 books are available online. Work is being done in reverse
chronological order from 1977, with the scanned books posted in
batches.
Contact Center.--The Office's modernization of customer contact
routing and reporting recently achieved a major milestone. Working with
the GSA Centers of Excellence, we implemented a best-in-class customer
relationship management (CRM) solution to enhance the public's
experience with the Office, enable robust data analytics, and provide
centralized knowledge management capabilities. This CRM solution builds
upon already implemented capabilities to more effectively track and
route calls and emails.
Copyright Public Modernization Committee.--In January 2021, the
Librarian of Congress appointed a Copyright Public Modernization
Committee (CPMC) to enhance communication with external stakeholders
about the technology-related aspects of the Office's modernization
initiative.\12\ The CPMC was originally established for a three-year
term and consisted of thirteen members from the publishing, music, and
photography sectors, libraries and archives, and other fields.\13\ It
has held public meetings twice a year as well as informal briefing
sessions. Given the value of the expertise and insights obtained, the
Library intends to reauthorize the CPMC for an additional term.
funding and update to 2025 budget request
The Copyright Office performs all of this work based on a
relatively modest budget. We appreciate the Congress' support and the
budget we have received in recent fiscal years. To summarize, we are
requesting an overall fiscal 2025 budget of $107 million in funding and
478 FTEs, of which $45.9 million would be funded through offsetting
fees collected in fiscal 2023 and prior years.
The Office's overall budget is composed of three separate budgets
or program areas:
(1) Basic Budget.--This funds most of the Office's operations and
initiatives, including the majority of payroll-related expenses
and the operations of the CCB. Historically, the Basic Budget
has been composed of a combination of appropriated dollars and
authority to spend fee revenue, with fees constituting close to
one half of this funding.
(2) Licensing Division Budget.--This is derived completely from
collections of licensing royalties payable to copyright owners
and filing fees paid by cable and satellite licensees pursuant
to statutory licenses administered by the Office.
(3) Copyright Royalty Judges (CRJ) Budget.--Although the CRJ program
is not part of the Office, we provide it with budget, financial
management, and administrative support on behalf of the
Library. CRJ appropriated funding supports payroll and
partially funds non-pay expenses that are not supported by fees
and royalty payments.
In recent years, we have used programmatic requests to implement
Congress' statutory requirements as well as to support Office services.
For example, the Office requested and obtained $3.2 million in
additional fiscal 2022 funding for the CASE Act \14\ to supplement our
unfunded fiscal 2021 work, including hiring the CCB staff. For fiscal
2023, the Office obtained a single program increase of $1.7 million to
provide for new positions involving cost analysis, economic analysis,
and statistical capabilities, as well as software to support valuable
skillsets that we currently do not have.\15\ The initial financial
support for our modernization initiative, funded for 5 years as part of
the fiscal 2019 budget, ended in fiscal 2023. In fiscal 2024, the
Office's single program increase of $4.3 million was obtained for three
new USCO positions and contract support to strengthen capacity and
sustain progress on continuous development. The other segment of
authorized modernization funding was for 7 years and ends in fiscal
2025.
For fiscal 2025, the Office requests an overall budget of $107
million in funding and 478 FTEs, of which $45.9 million would be funded
through offsetting fees collected in fiscal 2023 and prior years. This
budget would cover mandatary pay increases only. For fiscal 2025, we
have not requested additional appropriations for our IT work as we are
completing the last year of prior Congressional funding.
However, given that work to modernize our IT systems and services
is still underway, it is important to highlight that support through
appropriated funds will be needed. Both the Office and OCIO anticipate
a need for greater financial resources in fiscal 2026 to continue work
on all of our IT-related initiatives to timely meet user demands for
ECS functionality and to support continuous development for components
already in public release.
To summarize, our fiscal 2025 requests for each budget are as
follows:
--Basic Budget.--$96.9 million and 445 FTEs, comprising $38.025
million in offsetting fee collections (39%) and $58.8 million
(61%) in appropriated dollars. The request includes mandatory
pay-related and price level increases of $3.9 million.
--Licensing Division Budget.--$7.2 million and 26 FTEs, all of which
are to be funded from collection of licensing royalties payable
to copyright owners and filing fees paid by cable and satellite
licensees pursuant to statutory licenses administered by the
Office. The requested increase is to cover mandatory pay-
related and price level increases of $0.278 million.
--Copyright Royalty Judges Budget.--$3.3 million and 7 FTEs, with
$0.142 million to support mandatory pay-related and price level
increases. Of this total, royalties and participation fees
offset $0.629 million (for non-personnel-related expenses). The
remainder, $2.706 million in appropriated dollars, is to cover
the personnel and other related expenses of the three judges
and their staff.
* * *
The Copyright Office appreciates the Subcommittee's and Committee's
continued support of our work to further the Constitutional mission of
``promot[ing] the progress of science and useful arts,'' \16\ including
continuous IT development for the benefit of the users of our services.
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\1\ Registration processing times are posted on our website at
https://copyright.gov/registration/docs/processing-times-faqs.pdf. For
the October 1, 2023 to March 31, 2024 timeframe, 82% of all
registration claims were eService claims (online claims and electronic
deposits); 14% were deposit ticket claims (online claims with
separately mailed physical deposit materials); and about 1% were mail
claims (paper claim forms and physical deposits).
\2\ There are three primary types of documents that may be
submitted for recordation: transfers of copyright ownership, other
documents pertaining to a copyright, and notices of termination. The
pilot and newly released system are currently focused on only the first
category (section 205 documents).
\3\ Recordation processing times are posted on our website at
https://copyright.gov/re
cordation/. The Office of Copyright Records is currently processing
March 2023 basic (section 205) recordation filings and July 2023
notices of termination. Regardless of the processing time, the
effective date of recordation is the date the Copyright Office receives
the complete submission in acceptable form.
\4\ The Licensing Section is responsible for helping to administer
the various statutory licenses and similar provisions, including
secondary transmissions of radio and television programs by cable and
satellite systems; making and distributing phonorecords of nondramatic
musical works; and importing, manufacturing, and distributing digital
audio recording devices or media.
\5\ U.S. Copyright Office, Letter to Senators Coons and Tillis and
Representatives Issa and Johnson (Feb. 23, 2024), https://
copyright.gov/laws/hearings/USCO-Letter-on-AI-and-Copyright-Initiative-
Update.pdf.
\6\ For more details on the Office's work on artificial
intelligence, see our AI webpage, https://copyright.gov/ai.
\7\ U.S. Copyright Office, Rulemakings Landing Page, https://
copyright.gov/rulemaking.
\8\ U.S. Copyright Office and U.S. Patent and Trademark Office,
Non-Fungible Tokens and Intellectual Property: A Report to Congress
(March 2024), https://www.copyright.gov/policy/nft-study/Joint-USPTO-
USCO-Report-on-NFTs-and-Intellectual-Property.pdf.
\9\ The webpage and data are available at https://copyright.gov/
economic-research/.
\10\ The Office already digitized and made available online our
physical card catalog, which is available in the Virtual Card Catalog
(VCC), as well as the CCEs. See https://copyright.gov/
vcc/. The VCC Proof of Concept represents card records from 1870 to
1977, displayed in JPEG images, from the U.S. Copyright Card Catalog
collection. The images are presented in a similar filing order as found
in the physical card catalog. Initial work is underway to capture
metadata on these cards.
\11\ See U.S. Copyright Office, NewsNet 947, Copyright Office
Launches Digitized Copyright Historical Record Books Collection (Feb.
7, 2022), https://www.copyright.gov/newsnet/2022/947.html. The scans
are posted at https://www.loc.gov/collections/copyright-historical-
record-books-1870-to-1977/about-this-collection/.
\12\ Library of Congress, Announcement of Copyright Public
Modernization Committee, 86 Fed. Reg. 8044 (Feb. 3, 2021), https://
www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2021-02-03/pdf/2021-02194.pdf.
\13\ See Library of Congress Announces Copyright Public
Modernization Committee (June 22, 2021), https://www.loc.gov/item/prn-
21-034/library-of-congress-announces-copyright-public-mod
ernization-committee/2021-06-22/.
\14\ The fiscal 2022 budget for CASE Act implementation included
$1.0 million in one-time costs for office construction and furniture,
audiovisual system acquisition, and development of an online case
management system, and $2.2 million in recurring costs ($1.7 million
for salary, benefits, and related costs for the 8 FTEs and $500,000 for
systems operation and maintenance, printing, and other services).
\15\ Notably, that fiscal 2023 request was fully supported through
an increase in offsetting collections authority and did not require an
increase in appropriated dollars.
\16\ U.S. CONST. art. I, Sec. 8, cl. 8.
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Prepared Statement of Robert Randolph Newlen, Director, Congressional
Research Service
Chairman Reed, Ranking Member Fischer, and Members of the Subcommittee,
Thank you for the opportunity to present the fiscal 2025 budget
request on behalf of the Congressional Research Service (CRS). I would
also like to thank the Committee for its support of our fiscal 2024
request. CRS is currently deploying those resources to support the
118th Congress and to enhance our product and service offerings to
ensure that Congress continues to have access to the highest quality
research, analysis, information, and consultative support available.
This is my ninth month serving as interim director and it is a
privilege to serve the Congress and to work with the talented staff of
CRS. In addition to outlining CRS's budget requirements for the
upcoming fiscal year, my testimony will provide an overview of several
noteworthy CRS accomplishments in its support for Congress during
fiscal 2023. I will also bring the Subcommittee up to date on the
Service's progress with respect to several strategic initiatives and
the challenges ahead.
service to congress during fiscal 2023
As in previous years, CRS provided support to almost every Member
and committee office in fiscal 2023. CRS experts provided research,
analysis, and information across a wide range of legal and public
policy areas including: Federal funding for education; environmental
policy; foreign affairs; science and technology; regulation of the
financial sector; border security and immigration; and tax and fiscal
policy. CRS legislative attorneys advised congressional clients on the
implications of recent Supreme Court opinions; judicial ethics; social
media regulation; and intellectual property and privacy concerns raised
by artificial intelligence technology. In addition, analysts and
attorneys provided testimony before congressional committees on issues
related to Federal contracting; social security; strategic competition
in the arctic; congressional oversight; and seating a delegate of the
Cherokee Nation in the House of Representatives. The Service also
continued to provide support on questions regarding legislative and
budget process, congressional oversight, the annual appropriations
bills, and the confirmation of judicial and executive branch nominees.
During fiscal 2023, CRS hosted a variety of seminars and programs
for Members and staff including its annual Issues and Policies seminar;
a Legislative and Budget Process Institute; a series on legal research;
and the biennially scheduled Federal Law Update series. The Service
also conducted sessions on FEMA disaster assistance; cybersecurity and
infrastructure security; and seminar series on issues related to
financial services; disruptive technology; COVID 19; and defense. In
addition, CRS successfully launched its Congressional Legal Education
Forum (CLEF), a program that provides congressional staff a
foundational legal education in matters relevant to Congress's
legislative and oversight functions.
The Service posted 117 new videos to CRS.gov and published 36
podcasts on a variety of topics including: the Metaverse, judicial
conduct, the executive budget process, Federal research and development
(R&D) funding, defense topics, the role of the Federal government in
redistricting, and Medicare drug prices. In total, CRS experts
responded to over 76,000 congressional requests; prepared nearly 1,200
new products; updated over 1,800 existing products; and conducted over
300 seminars that were attended by approximately 13,000 congressional
participants, during fiscal 2023.
strategic initiatives
CRS continues to explore innovative approaches to enhance its
products and services, to expand access to all congressional users, and
to optimize utilization of agency resources. Congress's recent
investments in the modernization of CRS are yielding results. The
following is a brief summary of CRS's progress in achieving these
important goals.
Interactive Graphics and Other Visually-Based Products
CRS is developing new, visually-based products through the efforts
of its Data Visualization and GIS Section, within the Office of
Publishing (PUB), and under the guidance and oversight of the
Interactive Graphics Working Group (IGWG). During the past year, the
IGWG has worked to streamline the production of such products, address
technical issues that arise, facilitate innovation in interactive
displays, and expand interactive visual options. In addition, the Group
has explored adaptation of content into interactive infographics within
the CRS Insight product line; acquired additional libraries to support
more options for creating interactive graphic formats; and worked
closely with OCIO to ensure that CRS's IT infrastructure is more
compatible with its interactive graphic needs.
As of May 1, 2024, CRS's product line includes 48 Infographics and
26 interactive graphics. CRS is also working on the prototype of a new
``storymap'' product, a next-generation storytelling platform that puts
together multiple visual elements to create a narrative. These
innovative products present exciting possibilities for CRS to present
its research, analysis, and information to Congress in new, accessible,
and user-friendly formats.
Workforce Recruitment and Retention
CRS continues to recruit, retain, and professionally develop a
diverse, highly skilled workforce. During fiscal 2023, CRS developed
100 recruitment plans for merit selection positions, and attended over
20 recruiting events, many of which were sponsored by minority-serving
institutions and organizations with a focus on underrepresented groups.
Attendance at these events provided an opportunity to engage with a
variety of prospective candidates, to increase awareness of CRS's brand
as well as available employment and internship opportunities. The
Service also supported several paid summer internship opportunities
through the Student Diversity and Inclusion Internship Program. Updates
on diversity and inclusion efforts are communicated to staff through
messages from leadership, CRS's staff newsletter, and the Service's
internal Diversity and Inclusion website.
Exploring Artificial Intelligence Applications
Under the guidance of the CRS AIWG, CRS has initiated a number of
AI related activities including: the launch of an Artificial
Intelligence Research Portal to provide resources for CRS staff related
to the field of AI; evaluation of new, generative AI components of a
commercial legal research database; the development of an internal
inventory of potential use cases for incorporating AI into the work of
the Service; and the issuance of guidance to CRS staff prohibiting the
use of Chat GPT or other AI tools in their work for Congress without
prior CRS or Library approval.
In collaboration with the Library's OCIO, CRS is also exploring the
utilization of automated processes to expedite drafting, reviewing, and
publishing of bill summaries and the assignment of geographic and
organizational subject terms. These activities involve the evaluation
of models and methods using generative AI, traditional AI/Machine
Learning, and Natural Language Processing tools, and assessment to
identify baseline expectations for acceptable accuracy rates,
objectivity, and performance standards for machine-generated summaries
and subject terms. We are excited about the potential of AI but
proceeding cautiously.
IT Modernization/Integrated Research and Information Systems (IRIS)
CRS continues to work with the Library's Office of the Chief
Information Officer (OCIO) to modernize its IT infrastructure with the
deployment of new tools and software to enhance support to
congressional stakeholders. The Integrated Research and Information
System (IRIS) initiative is a multi-year effort to update the Service's
mission-specific information technology to provide CRS staff with the
best resources to create and deliver products and services to Congress.
Several applications have been successfully deployed to CRS users.
The Minerva request management application was released to users in the
fourth quarter of fiscal 2023; updates and enhancements continue
monthly. In addition, the Text Analysis Program (TAP) for supporting
bill summaries and bill comparisons was released in the second quarter
of fiscal 2024. CRS and OCIO continue to execute several additional
work streams to include CRS.gov website redesign with an enhanced
taxonomy and new search capability, authoring and document management,
and content management. CRS anticipates a release of the newly
redesigned CRS.gov website that includes an enhanced taxonomy and a new
search capability early in the fourth quarter.
Technical solutions have been designed and adapted to maintain
alignment with Library of Congress and Legislative Branch cloud
strategies. Projects are currently proceeding consistent with
contractual requirements, schedules, and resources. Solutions are being
informed by both internal CRS staff as well as congressional
stakeholders. These efforts are essential to modernizing CRS mission-
critical applications, to achieve the Library's ``digital first''
strategy and meet the growing needs of the Congress, in the areas of
information research, policy and data analysis, content creation, and
product delivery.
Congress.gov
The United States House of Representatives and Senate produce, and
own, the data that is accessible to Members of Congress, legislative
agencies, and the general public from Congress.gov. This fiscal year
marks an historic, behind-the-scenes accomplishment for authoritative
information provided by our data partners. First generation, 30--40-
year-old out-of-date systems and workflows are being retired.
The Library, including CRS, has worked closely with House and
Senate data owners to incorporate data standards and best practices
into the new systems and workflows that produce data for Congress.gov.
Along with the Library, CRS is deeply appreciative for our data
partners' initiatives to improve data quality by standardizing formats
for legislative documents. The United States Legislative Markup, or
USLM, is a legislative branch-wide standard that is integral to editing
and publishing interoperability within the legislative ecosystem.
Modernizing behind-the-scenes workflows advances our legislative data
partnerships in support of better tracking legislative information and
Member contributions through Congress.gov.
We are preparing for the future, and continue to bring historical
materials into Congress.gov. To date, researchers can access more than
3.2 million historical and contemporary items from Congress.gov. We
remain committed to working with our data partners, including the House
Clerk, to continually improve accuracy, timeliness, and completeness of
legislative information available from Congress.gov?the official
website for U.S. Federal legislative information.
CONAN Modernization
Known officially as the ``Constitution of the United States of
America: Analysis and Interpretation,'' CONAN serves as the official
record for Congress of the U.S. Constitution's interpretation. In 2019,
CRS collaborated with OCIO and the Law Library to introduce a website
for CONAN: constitution.congress.gov. The site features hundreds of
pages of updated constitutional analysis and content. During fiscal
year 2023, CRS legal staff continued to provide comprehensive analysis
of the Supreme Court's jurisprudence as it relates to every provision
of the U.S. Constitution, including the implications of recently
decided cases. To make CONAN more accessible to online users, new and
existing content has been drafted and revised in the form of short,
granular essays that focus on specific, discrete topics. CRS legal
staff have also begun the organizational work to begin preparing the
printed pocket parts to the decennial 2022 edition of CONAN, unless a
legislative fix obviates the need to continue to produce hardbound and
print publications of CONAN. Since the launch of the public website in
2019, CONAN online has received more than fifty million views and has
served as a valuable reference source for Congress and the public.
CRS has requested a legislative change to eliminate the requirement
to produce the hardbound version of CONAN, which is quickly outdated,
and rely exclusively on the CONAN website, which provides timely
updates.
Knowledge Management
CRS continues to develop and implement strategies to capture,
manage, preserve, and distribute institutional knowledge that it relies
upon to provide exceptional service to Congress. CRS staff utilize the
Research Portal, which is available on the Service's intranet, as a hub
for digital resources. It provides staff with quick and easy access to
information needed to research, analyze, and advise on legislative
issues. By the end of fiscal 2023, CRS staff had access to 46 research
portal sites. The Service sponsored multiple activities to facilitate
the sharing of information, knowledge, and best practices and enable
staff to learn from one another's experiences including quarterly
Knowledge Cafe's, an annual Summer Series on emerging technologies, and
communities of practice such as the SharePoint Users Group. In
addition, CRS continued its efforts to improve its onboarding and
offboarding procedures to ensure the timely transfer of knowledge held
by senior analysts, attorneys, and information professionals.
Access to Executive Branch Information
In addition to the legislative change regarding CONAN (see above),
CRS has requested an amendment of its authorizing statute to improve
access to executive branch information, which will enable the Service
to respond to requests from and provide products to Members and their
staff in a more timely and authoritative manner.
fiscal 2025 budget request and program increases
CRS's budget request for fiscal 2025 is 145.485 million dollars, an
increase of 9.405 million dollars (or 6.9 percent) over the amount
appropriated for fiscal 2024. The requested increase includes 6.579
million dollars for mandatory pay related and price level increases. It
also includes a programmatic increase to support continued enhancement
of the Service's quantitative data analysis capabilities and the
integration of artificial intelligence technology into CRS's workflow.
As in previous fiscal years, staff pay and benefits account for
approximately 90 percent of the amount requested by CRS.
Bolstering Quantitative Data Analysis Capabilities
CRS's requested program increase includes approximately 3.5 million
dollars \1\ and 1 FTE to enhance the Service's capability to perform
quantitative data analysis and policy simulation, including the
modeling of ``big data'' sets, for congressional clients. In recent
years, CRS has observed growing demand from Members and Committees, to
provide this type of analytical support. In the Joint Explanatory
Statement accompanying the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023,
Congress encouraged CRS ``to explore ways to expand its ability to
perform quantitative analysis of research data . . . '' and directed
the Service to ``engage with an external entity to produce a report
detailing the feasibility of CRS engaging in the analysis and modeling
of big data sets by highlighting the information technology
infrastructure, staffing, and analytical support required to establish
and maintain such a capability.''
While CRS has conducted some limited quantitative analysis and
policy simulation, currently it lacks the capacity to provide this
service on a broader scale. In response to the direction provided in
the Joint Statement, CRS contracted with a company in fiscal 2022, to
conduct a study identifying the IT infrastructure, staffing, and
analytical support required to establish and maintain a greater data
analytics capability. In September 2023, CRS procured a vendor to pilot
a small set of cloud based quantitative data models consistent with the
recommendations in the study. Enhancing this area of its service
offerings, would enable CRS to provide congressional requestors with a
more granular view of the impact of legislative proposals on various
demographic groups, as well as the interaction of such policies with
other programs.
CRS's Health Insurance Pricing Project has reached a significant
milestone with the launch of the cloud-based data pipeline solution,
ingesting vast volumes of publicly available health insurance pricing
data. CRS has revolutionized its infrastructure and capability to
process big data files and compare healthcare costs across health
insurers, medical procedures, and healthcare providers. This
achievement is particularly promising considering ongoing legislation
such as H.R. 7593--the ``Modernizing the Congressional Research
Service's Access to Data Act.'' While this bill is still pending, its
potential passage underscores the importance of CRS's preparedness to
efficiently share and process (big) data files with other agencies.
CRS is also exploring opportunities to integrate artificial
intelligence (AI) applications into the day-to-day work of the Service.
The Service established an Artificial Intelligence Working Group (AIWG)
to make recommendations to CRS leadership on best practices and
operational processes necessary for the adoption of AI technologies.
CRS's adoption of AI technology promises to create efficiencies in the
development and publication of its products for Congress.
CRS would utilize 2.826 million dollars of the requested amount to
set up and maintain a secure cloud computing environment, and to
contract personnel (data scientists, programmers, and digital interface
designers) to develop and maintain data analysis models and projects in
that environment. The funds would also be used to invest in the
software, modeling tools, and training necessary to develop these
capabilities. An additional 643 thousand dollars is requested on behalf
of the Library's Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO) to hire
1 FTE and provide contractual support to design and support the systems
needed to implement the program.
In addition to the initiatives outlined above, CRS's priorities for
fiscal 2025 include hosting a successful New Member Seminar in January
2025 for the newly elected Members of the 119th Congress; continuing
efforts to strengthen the diversity and inclusiveness of its workforce
and working environment; and supporting continuous integration and
development of a modernized IT infrastructure. As always, CRS will
focus primarily on the delivery of timely, authoritative products,
services and programming tailored to meet the needs of the 119th
Congress.
conclusion
Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member Fischer, and Members of the
Subcommittee, CRS values its role as Congress's trusted resource and is
committed to providing exceptional research, analysis, and information
to meet the needs of every Member and committee. On behalf of my
colleagues at CRS, I thank you again for your continued support and
your consideration of our fiscal 2025 request.
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\1\ This programmatic request is shared between CRS ($2.826
million) and the Library's Office of the Chief Information Officer
($0.643 million/1 FTE).
Senator Reed. Thank you, Dr. Hayden.
Mr. DiPietro, please.
STATEMENT OF MR. JOSEPH DIPIETRO, ACTING ARCHITECT OF
THE CAPITOL, ARCHITECT OF THE CAPITOL
Mr. DiPietro. Good afternoon, Chairman Reed, Ranking Member
Fischer, thank you for the opportunity to provide testimony on
the Architect of the Capitol's fiscal year 2025 budget request.
I would also like to thank the members of your staff,
particularly Richard Braddock and Molly McCarthy, for their
expertise, solution-mindedness, and consistent professionalism.
I welcome this opportunity to share more about the Agency's
work in preserving the historic buildings and grounds that
inspire our Nation in serving the 30,000 daily occupants and
three million annual visitors to the Capitol Campus.
To begin, I would like to acknowledge and express my
gratitude to the 2,400 dedicated AOC employees who work
diligently to support the daily operations of Congress, the
Supreme Court, the Library of Congress, and the many other AOC-
managed locations, which cover 18.4 million square feet of
historic facilities, 570 acres of grounds, and thousands of
works of art that make up our historic Campus.
In addition to supporting the daily operations of Congress,
the Architect at a Capitol inspires the public by providing
tours and exhibits of the U.S. Capitol, the surrounding
grounds, and the U.S. Botanic Garden. Our staff remains
committed to this cause.
While the Commission works through the process of
appointing a permanent Architect, I am honored to serve in this
interim role, leading the women and men who work tirelessly to
accomplish our mission. I am continually amazed by their
professionalism and dedication to service.
The Architect of the Capitol's $1.03 billion fiscal year
2025 budget request is focused on three key priorities,
physical security, life safety, and the critical infrastructure
needs of the Capitol Campus.
Additionally, the budget request ensures adequate funding
is available for the staffing levels necessary to oversee our
planning and project management needs and to deliver quality
services to Congress. Through the Agency's strategic
initiatives, we continue to offer world-class service and do
the deep work that leads to transformational growth. This focus
enables the Agency to build a safer, more inclusive, and more
effective workplace.
Across the Agency, we dedicate time and attention to safety
training, processes, procedures, and operations. This budget
request recognizes these essential measures with a concentrated
effort to avoid hazards, risks, and interruptions.
Security is a key priority. With the support of this
subcommittee and oversight committees, the AOC has made
significant progress to improve security--improve the security
posture across the Campus. The AOC also coordinates daily with
our partners across the Campus to improve security for staff
and visitors. Improving physical security is imperative to the
operation of the Campus, and we will continue to maintain
critical infrastructure while remaining prepared to respond to
new developments.
The critical infrastructure needs of the Capitol Campus
also remain a top priority. AOC employees work behind the
scenes day and night to provide Congress, the Supreme Court,
and the Library with facilities and infrastructure to conduct
their business. The AOC is committed to a long-term approach to
facilities management focused on maintaining and preserving the
Capitol Campus while also modernizing these facilities.
With aging infrastructure comes many challenges, the AOC is
developing an Enterprise Asset Management System that will
provide a structured approach for developing, coordinating, and
controlling asset-related activities. An established asset
management system will provide additional detail to improve
data-driven fiscal decisions and prioritize projects that
reduce backlog.
As you know well, the safety, physical security, and
critical infrastructure needs of the Capitol Campus are a 24-
hour-a-day operation that could simply not be accomplished
without hard work. As I close my statement today, I would again
like to thank the AOC staff for their professionalism and
dedication.
Chairman Reed, Ranking Member Fischer, Members of the
Subcommittee, thank you again for your continued support and
consideration of the Architect of the Capitol's fiscal year
2025 budget request.
[The statement follows:]
Prepared Statement of Joseph R. DiPietro, Acting Architect, Architect
of the Capitol
Chairman Reed, Ranking Member Fischer, and Members of the
Subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity to present the Fiscal Year
(FY) 2025 budget request for the Architect of the Capitol (AOC). We are
committed to working closely with you and your staff to ensure the AOC
meets the needs and expectations of the U.S. Senate in service to the
American people.
On behalf of myself and the AOC leadership team, allow me to
express our deep gratitude to the 2,400 hardworking, devoted AOC
employees who tirelessly carry out their duties each day to support the
functions of Congress, the Supreme Court, the Library of Congress
(Library), and the many other AOC-managed facilities.
I joined the AOC in 2023 as the Chief of Operations. This office
oversees the lifecycle operations and maintenance of the Capitol
campus's buildings, grounds, gardens and infrastructure. In this role,
I establish policies, standardize procedures, and coordinate operations
and facility management functions across the AOC's operational
jurisdictions.
As you know, I was asked to take the mantle of agency leadership as
the Acting Architect effective February 9, 2024. Leading our team is
both an honor and great responsibility which I take with dedication and
care. One of my initial goals is to work closely with AOC staff to
continue to foster trust and confidence in AOC leadership and emphasize
our appreciation for their exceptional work. I am committed to
transparent and timely communication to ensure accountability and
coordination with this Subcommittee, Congress and AOC-internal
entities.
i. overview
The AOC plays a vital role in supporting the day-to-day operations
of Congress, the Supreme Court and the Library. Our staff works
tirelessly to preserve and maintain over 18.4 million square feet of
facilities, 570 acres of grounds, and thousands of works of art. This
24 hour a day, seven day a week operation works in concert to preserve
our historic buildings and improve aging infrastructure.
The FY 2025 budget request of $1.03 billion reflects an 8.8 percent
increase from the FY 2024 enacted funding. It builds upon the
accomplishments of the previous fiscal year by addressing critical and
urgent priorities such as physical security, life safety and critical
infrastructure needs of the Capitol campus. Furthermore, this budget
request includes funding to increase staffing levels necessary to
oversee planning, acquisition and project management in order to
deliver quality services to Congress. The FY 2025 budget submission
acknowledges the fiscal challenges facing our nation and the Committee.
Prioritizing Physical Security & Life Safety
Ensuring physical security and life safety is paramount.
With your support, the AOC has made significant strides in
enhancing security measures across the campus. Projects identified
after the completion of the physical security assessment in 2022 are
prioritized to implement consistent security standards campuswide. The
FY 2025 budget request aligns with our coordinated approach to address
security projects, consisting of significant construction or system
replacement requirements to support the missions of the United States
Capitol Police and House and Senate Sergeants at Arms.
The life safety of our workforce and visitors is also a critical
focus. Across the agency, we dedicate time and attention to safety
training, processes, procedures and operations. This budget request
recognizes these essential measures, with projects and requests that
focus on supporting our concentrated effort to avoid hazards, risks and
interruptions.
ii. supporting the senate community
The AOC's FY 2025 budget request highlights significant priorities
for the Senate office buildings and Senate operations. Developed in
close collaboration with this Subcommittee and the Senate Committee on
Rules and Administration, the FY 2025 budget request ensures that the
critical needs for the Senate office buildings and operations are met.
The Daniel Webster Page Residence project will repair the
building's infrastructure deficiencies, correct non-accessible
conditions, and modernize the facility to ensure safety and meet the
needs of the Senate Page Program. The FY 2025 budget request for phase
two of this project is critical to support this historic building's
interior and exterior restoration needs. In phase two the AOC plans to
upgrade the interior spaces, modernize the elevator and mechanical
systems, address interior non-compliant accessibility conditions,
improve the site landscape and hardscape, repair the roofing system,
remove and rebuild the foundation and footings at lightwells and the
east stair, implement a stormwater management system, and replace the
electrical distribution panel. These improvements will provide an
accessible and reliable building with improved comfort, convenience and
functionality that fits within the appropriate aesthetic of a
residential-scale dormitory and school located within a historic
building.
Two addtional priorities in the FY 2025 budget request are the
Senate Committee Hearing Room Upgrades and Elevator Refurbishment
Programs. This funding request covers the second year of a
comprehensive renewal of the Senate's 32 hearing rooms and related
infrastructure over a projected 15-20-year period. The Senate Elevator
Refurbishment Program budget request covers 1 year of a multi-year
program to refurbish and modernize 46 elevators and associated elevator
machine rooms in the Senate buildings. Senate elevators require full
refurbishment every 15-20 years. The work will be scheduled to
refurbish one elevator per bank at a time, which will minimize
disruption to the Senate community. The budget request will provide
funding to refurbish six elevators a year at an estimated cost of
$500,000 for each elevator.
iii. modern management of aging infrastructure
Aging facilities and infrastructure pose ongoing challenges
exacerbated by increasing material costs and competition for skilled
laborers. The AOC's funding request addresses essential issues like
hearing room modernization, mechanical system replacements, and fire
alarm and sprinkler replacement. The AOC is committed to a long-term
approach to facilities management--focused on maintaining and
preserving the Capitol campus while also modernizing these facilities.
The AOC is also developing an Enterprise Asset Management system to
provide a structured approach for developing, coordinating and
controlling asset-related activities across their life cycle. An
established asset management system will provide additional detail to
improve data-driven fiscal decisions and prioritize projects. This
approach will also help address backlog and deferred maintenance needs.
iv. recognizing employee accomplishments & meeting mission requirements
The AOC remains focused on improving employee development and
morale. Our Human Capital Strategy revolves around three pillars:
talent acquisition, talent development, and engagement and retention of
employees.
The AOC's talent acquisition goal is to attract, recruit and
onboard a highly skilled and diverse workforce to meet the agency's
current and future mission needs. Once on our team, we work to develop
and retain these talented employees. Notably, our staff accomplished
more than 40,000 individual staff and career development trainings in
FY 2023 and have completed 22,000 trainings year-to-date in FY 2024.
The AOC is dedicated to providing training and resources for our
employees to excel in their roles and support seamless operations.
v. conclusion
On behalf of the hardworking public servants at the AOC, I extend
our gratitude to this Subcommittee for your ongoing support. Your
dedication and partnership in service to the American people is
integral to our daily operations and mission accomplishment. Chairman
Reed, Ranking Member Fischer, and Members of the Subcommittee, thank
you for your time and support in consideration of the AOC's FY 2025
budget request.
BUDGET LEVELS AND AGENCY IMPACTS
Senator Reed. Thank you very much. Thank you both for your
excellent testimony.
Senator Fischer has left to vote. She will return. But let
me lead off with, I think, an obvious question. Both Senator
Fischer and I have indicated how challenging this budget is,
something you already know.
So I will ask each of you, beginning with Dr. Hayden, if
you have to operate at or below the 2024 level, what are the
impacts to your Agency's ability to achieve your mission? Dr.
Hayden.
Dr. Hayden. One of the first effects would be a decrease in
our buying power, which would actually, at the 2024 level, cut
the Library by approximately $39 million due to mandatory pay
and inflationary non-pay. And the 5.1 increase that the Library
has for 2025, 85 percent of that is for inflation and pay and
non-pay.
So the first thing we would do, and we have been doing it,
in fact, is take a very, very conservative approach to hiring
and holding off on new hires because our greatest asset is our
staff, and we would want to make sure we protect them. So to
avoid layoffs, furloughs, we would implement, and we have been
implementing, very conservative hiring plans.
We would also have to reduce our software development
spending, that would affect our modernization projects that are
going along quite nicely. And we would definitely have to
reduce our public events and programs. That would be the
immediate.
Senator Reed. Thank you. Mr. DiPietro, please.
Mr. DiPietro. Okay. So being held flat at the 2024 levels
would be challenging. We have got a number of projects that we
have included in the 2025 budget for the Senate Office
buildings that deal with modernization of the elevators. We
have funding in place that we are requesting for hearing room
modernization.
We have requested additional funds to develop a facilities
plan for the Senate to start looking at the facility needs of
the jurisdiction. There is a $50 million request for the Page
Residence to have enough funding in place so that we can
modernize that residence, which involves moving the pages out
of there into some swing space so we can go in there and
completely modernize the building and then allowing them to
move back.
There is multiple-year money in there for some water line
replacements inside one of our office buildings. And then we
have funding in place for additional personnel that we are
seeking within some of the jurisdictions, but within our
Capitol construction operations appropriation. We are asking
for additional personnel to support human resources for hiring,
for our acquisition and contracting piece that we have there to
help us award contracts more efficiently. There is additional
funding in there for AOC University to hire four additional
personnel.
AOC University is the training arm of the AOC. It is a new
initiative that we have. Last year, through AOC University, we
had over 40,000 trainings that were taking place by our
employees in 2023. So far this year, we are over 22,000. So
depending on where the cuts came from, it can impact any of
those initiatives.
LIBRARY INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY PRIORITIES
Senator Reed. Thank you both. Again, it is important for us
to understand the consequences as we move forward. I appreciate
that.
Dr. Hayden, one of your major priorities, and you have
indicated it several times, is modernization of the Library,
and again, if we are operating under a constrained budget, what
are your highest information technology priorities for fiscal
year 2025, and how would they be impacted?
Dr. Hayden. With our first priority to maintain the most
valuable asset, the people. The second would be to continue the
modernization projects that have been started over the last
several budget cycles. They are ongoing, and they would have to
slow down.
And that would include services for the public and
Congress, Congress.gov, the CRS Initiative, really the
Enterprise Copyright System that has made great strides and has
a lot of public and stakeholder interest, the National Library
for the Blind and Print Disabled Modernization with the e-
Reader projects, and then the core of the Library's
modernization effort in terms of collections, the Library
Collections Access Platform (L-CAP) is for that. So that would
be very difficult for us to continue without support.
Senator Reed. And a lot of that would be reducing the
proposed technology purchases, both hardware and software.
Dr. Hayden. Right. We have a number of legacy systems that
are beyond their expiration date.
Senator Reed. Thank you. Mr. DiPietro, everyone running an
organization these days is looking for valuable talent. And one
of the factors is can they have care for their children? How
would the ability to provide child care subsidies affect your
ability to recruit, retain highly skilled professionals?
Mr. DiPietro. So being able to provide a child care subsidy
I think would help us recruit folks that work in our
jurisdictions, the trades folks, and some of our lower graded
employees, being able to give them something towards that would
be very important.
We have a human capital strategy that has three different
pillars. The first is talent acquisition, so identifying
talented people to work for the Agency. The second pillar is
development of that talent, and then the third one is retaining
that talent. So I believe that child subsidy would help us to
retain the folks that we are able to recruit and train here at
the AOC.
Senator Reed. Thank you very much. In the absence of
Senator Fischer, let me recognize Senator Murphy.
Senator Murphy. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. Welcome
to both of you. Thank you for the fantastic work you do on
behalf of our country, and on behalf of all the folks who work
on this Campus.
I just have one question, or one line of question is for
you, Mr. DiPietro. I now have a new goal when it comes to the
restoration of the Mountains and Clouds. I would like for it to
be completed before I die.
And I care about it, as you know, but I will state it for
the record because the sculpture that sits in the middle of the
Hart Atrium is a product of a part-time Connecticut resident,
Alexander Calder, who did much of his modeling and construction
of his big sculpture work in Litchfield County, Connecticut.
But also as a fan and patron of the arts, I think it is
kind of weird that we continue to have half a piece of art in
the Hart Atrium. It was as if you had a painting in your
office, somebody lopped off half of it, and you just kept the
other half up on the wall for 10 years. That is essentially
what we have done with Mountains and Clouds. But I have never
seen anything go this slow.
And it sort of strikes me. I know I have dealt with
multiple architects and multiple staff members, and everybody
pledges to be doing the right thing, but it has always felt to
me like the Architect does the minimal amount possible to try
to get the Clouds back up there. And that it is only because of
people like me pushing that we make any progress at all. It
just does not stand to reason that it would take two decades to
get this work of art back to its original form.
So what can you tell us about the status of this project?
And are we--is there any chance that before I leave the Senate,
or at least before I die, we can get the Clouds back up there?
Mr. DiPietro. So Architect of the Capitol has been working
with the Calder Foundation and the Secretary of the Senate on
that project. So there is no appropriated money associated with
that project from AOC that we are using for that. It is all
coming through the Foundation.
So we have been working with the Foundation, we have been
working with the Secretary of the Senate on being able to
receive money from the Foundation. So we can do the piece of
work that the Architect is responsible for.
So that would be, you know, the Foundation is going to
rebuild the Clouds and put all that back together. And then to
be able to get all that--get the materials into the building,
it is a considerable effort to be able to do that, and so we
are working with them on the design of that.
I believe some funding was just donated to Congress for
that from the Foundation. And we have been working with them to
get the design started on that portion of the project.
Senator Murphy. Have you delivered to the Foundation a
schedule that you would like them to operate under?
Mr. DiPietro. Yes, I believe we have. But I would have to
have my staff get back to you with that.
Senator Murphy. Yes. I mean, I think it is worthwhile for
the Architect to drive the time line rather than the Foundation
to drive the time line, or for me to drive the time line. I
think it would be nice to be able to give some certainty as to
when this work of art, very deeply rooted in my State of
Connecticut, is back to full form.
So you certainly hear my frustration. My staff for 12 years
now has heard my frustration about this, and I look forward to
continue to work with you on it.
Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Reed. Thank you very much, Senator Murphy. Let me
take up, and begin a second round as we anticipate the return
of Senator Fischer.
Mr. DiPietro, the Architect of the Capitol plays a critical
role in the Presidential Inauguration, and I know you are
already beginning to plan along with many other agencies. And I
know we don't want to discuss law enforcement, sensitive topics
in a hearing like this, but in general, how are preparations
going for the inauguration?
Mr. DiPietro. I think our preparations for the inauguration
are going well. We received the funding in our last fiscal year
to be able to support that. We have issued a contract for the
construction of the stand on the west side of the Capitol. We
have plans in place to start with some of the security
preparations come August timeframe, or so, which will get us
ready to start building that stand after Labor Day, that we
should be ready to start doing that.
So I think we have what we need to be able to support that
effort. Our Capitol Building jurisdiction and our chief
security officer are leading that for the AOC.
Senator Reed. And any particular challenges you have
already identified?
Mr. DiPietro. We have been working through those. We had
some challenges with respect to fencing, and things like that,
but we have worked with our partners in the Sergeant at Arms
and in the U.S. Capitol Police to resolve those.
LIBRARY'S VISITOR EXPERIENCE
Senator Reed. Thank you very much.
And Dr. Hayden, you have been extremely supportive of the
Library's efforts to transform the visitor experience at the
Library of Congress, and I think you mentioned you have good
news. And if you would like to elaborate on that, please do so.
Dr. Hayden. And we have worked closely with the Architect
of the Capitol during this whole project, and we are extremely
thankful to this subcommittee for its support because in less
than four weeks, and I can give a date, June the 10, there will
be a grand opening of the David M. Rubenstein Treasures
Gallery.
And this will allow the Library to showcase some of the
all-American treasures in our collection, from the contents of
Abraham Lincoln's pockets the night he was assassinated; I got
a chance to help install that. Precious manuscripts, artifacts,
other rare collection items, and then adjacent to that gallery
and in the Great Hall to the opening of that, we will also be
opening two new gift shops in the Jefferson Building in the
beginning of June.
And then as of June the 1, I am looking at my colleague,
but we have been working on this for so long together, that
construction will begin on the new Youth Center called The
Source, named by young people. And school groups will be able
to come in, the young and the young at heart.
And then this coming September, construction activities
will begin on the cornerstone of that experience, our first
Orientation Gallery. And we are very excited about that. And
just thank Congress for working with us on this.
Senator Reed. Well, let me thank both of you, because it
was a collaboration, and I deeply appreciate, and look forward
to the opening.
With that, let me recognize Senator Fischer.
LIBRARY'S DIGITAL COLLECTIONS & STRATEGY
Senator Fischer. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And welcome again
to our panel today.
Dr. Hayden, core to the new strategic plan is expanding the
Library's capacity and infrastructure for the digital
collections. This includes new IT investments and improving
staff skill sets in processing and handling digital content, to
further these initiatives, the Library is requesting 13 new FTE
and $3.4 million in new resources.
Can you explain to us the strategic plan's vision for
digital collections and how the fiscal year 2025 request will
support collection's capacity, please?
Dr. Hayden. The title of the Library's Strategic Plan that
was launched recently is ``A Library for All''; and having the
digital capacity to expand access to the collections is vital
to that. The Library is now receiving more digital material
than ever before. And we know that the future is digital. And
more and more of the collections that are coming to the Library
are, as they call it, born digital. And that means the only way
that people can obtain access to the collections will be in a
digital format.
And in a very short period of time, we have to collect the
digital materials, different from analog materials. They can
wait. But the digital content is coming in, it is like a fire
hose now. Just for instance, since 2019, in 2023, we received
12.7 million digital collections. That is three times since
2019.
And so the current systems that we have, those out-of-date
legacy systems can't ingest and make accessible that content.
And we need staff that also can work with that. And that
includes our IT staff as well.
So the request allows us to modernize the IT
infrastructure, to increase the workflows and the processes,
more efficient management, more improved service for the
access, and then preserving that digital content as well. So
the funding request really aligns with the Library's strategic
plan of being accessible in the e-preferred future.
Senator Fischer. Thank you.
Dr. Hayden. It is exciting.
Senator Fischer. It is. Can you tell me who qualifies for a
job like that? Say I just, I want to do that, I want to be able
to go through and help catalog that, what kind of background do
I need? Is it mostly in IT?
Dr. Hayden. Well, there are various people who are
involved.
Senator Fischer. I guess I wouldn't qualify then.
Dr. Hayden. And it is a great recruitment tool in terms of
digital natives that are looking at interesting projects. And
so you have--they are actually teams, the people who are
working on software development and also looking at the
transition to the cloud. You have some straight technicians,
but you also have content librarians and curators and subject
matter specialists.
Senator Fischer. So it is a melding?
Dr. Hayden. It is a melding. And we have these teams that
are working together.
Senator Fischer. Great.
Dr. Hayden. Very exciting time.
Senator Fischer. Thank you. Mr. DiPietro, as I mentioned in
my opening statement, the AOC must improve on keeping projects
on time and on budget. A number of recent high-profile projects
have resulted in significant delays and cost overruns. These
project management issues appear to be systemic within the
Agency.
Since you joined the AOC last year, what challenges have
you witnessed with the Agency's planning, acquisition, and
project management practices?
Mr. DiPietro. Thank you for that question. Maybe if I
explain a little bit about how we manage projects that might
help. So ideally, projects begin with some type of engineering
or feasibility study that helps inform decision-makers on the
general scope, the cost, the schedule of a project.
That also allows our Agency to determine the best way to
execute that project from like an acquisition standpoint. So
there is the traditional way of doing things where you hire a
designer and they put together a design, a set of construction
documents. They give it to the AOC and we bid it out and then
we hire a contractor and then they construct the project for
us.
There is other ways of doing it where you hire one
contractor to design and build the entire project. It depends
on the type of project you are doing, and then there's other
forms of acquisition.
But what that study does is it allows us to determine the
best way to proceed with a project, and it allows the
stakeholders to be in a better position to make a decision on
if they want to continue with the project. And if they do, then
you move into a design process. And there is different elements
of the design, different phases.
You start out in a schematic design phase. You move to what
we call design development. And then finally, the last phase is
your construction documents, where you put together plans and
specifications that a contractor uses to construct what you
want them to build.
And as we move through each one of those phases, what
happens is we get a better idea of the scope and the cost and
the schedule of the project. So adhering to that form of
project management or that system for project management gives
us the best chance of having success with the project.
So not skipping steps and making sure we adhere to them, I
think, is the best way to ensure that we are doing a good job
in project management.
Senator Fischer. As the project goes through those steps,
you have time then also to take a considerate review of where
the project is at during that too; did that happen before?
Mr. DiPietro. It should be happening as we are going
through it. Sometimes we are a little bit rushed to do
projects, and things get condensed in the project cycle. But
overall, I think that is the best approach to making sure that
we deliver projects on time, on budget, and within the scope.
LIBRARY STAFF ATTRITION AND RECRUITMENT
Senator Fischer. Thank you. Dr. Hayden, we have seen some
attrition rates in staffing between 23- and 28 percent over the
last three fiscal years. What is causing such a high attrition
rate within this team? And along with the new personnel
requested, what strategies will the Library utilize to try and
stabilize that staffing issue?
Dr. Hayden. The request for this year is really targeted to
one of the units that has the highest--one of the highest
attrition rates, the Contracting Office. This is a Government-
wide challenge, and OPM has deemed these contracting
specialist, as hard-to-fill positions, and we know that.
Over the past 3 years, in Library, the Contracts and Grants
Directorate has an attrition rate between 23 and 28 percent.
And part of that is due to the increased volume and complexity
of the contracts, especially the IT procurement.
Senator Fischer. So is it an issue of--is it an issue of
hiring the wrong person to begin with?
Dr. Hayden. Oh. No.
Senator Fischer. Or just difficulty in the job?
Dr. Hayden. No.
Senator Fischer. Problems with the team? What is it?
Dr. Hayden. First, in terms of recruiting. It is a very
high-demand position with contracting, very competitive. Staff
are leaving for higher pay and other benefits, and the
increased volume and complexity of the types of contracts, so
it has a high burnout as well, and expanding workloads. When
staff members can see a better opportunity, they take it. We
are really working on making sure that in this office, we are
very attentive to not only incentives, but also the fact that
we will have a cycle and to keep it, you know, at as low a
level as we can, but these are hard positions, they are
competitive.
Senator Fischer. Thank you.
Senator Reed. Thank you, Senator Fischer. Senator Van
Hollen, please.
`A LIBRARY FOR ALL' MISSION AND STATUS
Senator Van Hollen. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And thank you
both for your service. It is great to be here to listen to your
testimony.
Dr. Hayden, you continue to make Maryland and Baltimore
proud with your leadership at the Library of Congress. As you
well know, one of the founding principles of the Pratt Library
in Baltimore, which you led for years, was open access.
Enoch Pratt, when he began that library in 1882, said, and
I quote, ``That it would be for all, rich and poor without
distinction of race or color''; provided everybody handled the
books carefully and returned them when they were finished; I
know you have that same mandate, mission, vision for the
Library of Congress, and that underpins the Library of
Congress' A Library for All strategic plan and digitization
effort.
Could you, Dr. Hayden, just speak a little bit to where you
are in that process? Because I, like you, believe that when we
have such an amazing national treasure and resource, we need to
do everything we can to share it with the American people.
Dr. Hayden. Well, we actually are making sure we share it
with everyone. We have the first Braille Edition of a strategic
plan, the Library is very excited about making it possible for
our patrons of the National Library for the Blind and Print
Disabled able to see that the title page that says, ``The
Library of Congress is a library for you''; and the entire
mission is to engage everyone, Congress and the American
people, we are continuing and using the tools of the future to
do that.
And so we will be expanding access through our digital
collections and digital access. Our website is our digital
front door, and more and more items will be available in that
format, as well as being able to have the programming that we
have accessible wherever anybody has a device, and even audio.
So the entire plan is to make sure that we are not only
providing access, but that we are looking to a future that will
include all types of formats.
We are still going to have physical materials coming in for
the next--and I know my staff are saying, okay, 50, 100 years,
but there will be things coming in in the analog, and so we are
preparing for that. We are also supporting our staff and making
sure that they can grow with this new push that we have had.
And so it is an exciting time for the Library, and it is
definitely a way to connect to all public libraries, and school
libraries, and campus, and university libraries. And I often
have said that in Baltimore, if I had had the Rosa Parks Papers
to pull up to show a 10-year-old when they had that disturbance
to see what Rosa Parks felt, and now they are digitized, that
we could actually, anyone, anywhere could read what she felt.
LIBRARY COLLECTION STORAGE
Senator Van Hollen. That is a wonderful example. And thank
you for your--all your efforts to bring those treasures to
everybody and make them more accessible. Of course, as we put
more of the collection online, the Library has a vast
collection of books, documents, music, and artifacts that need
to be properly stored and preserved. And to that end, the
Library has been engaged in an effort to build and move
collections to storage modules at Fort Meade in the State of
Maryland.
Could you speak to the progress of that effort and next
steps, especially at storage modules six and seven, I believe
they are--it is supposed to be completed in the coming years?
Dr. Hayden. And that really speaks to what is going on with
the need to have a hybrid approach. We will still be
collecting. So six and seven, in fact, module six is about, I
believe, and we will--I will make sure that we get this for the
record, filling up, and the plans, and we are working closely
and we have worked closely with the Architect of the Capitol on
the design for module eight, and anticipating that there will
ultimately be at least nine of those storage units.
Ft. Meade Module Update--As of June 2024, Ft. Meade
Module 6 is filled to 70 percent capacity. At its
current fill rate Module 6 will reach full capacity by
June 2025 just more than 1 year before Module 7 will
become available for collection storage. The Library of
Congress is currently establishing plans to utilize
space at the Cabin Branch facility to bridge the gap
between Module 6 and Module 7.
And as the design over the years has changed from a single
structure to now double-sided, and so there have been advances
in that, but that plan is in place and moving along on
schedule.
Senator Van Hollen. Terrific. I know the committee, the
subcommittee supports that effort.
Dr. DiPietro, again, thank you for your service. And as you
know, the Office of the Architect of the Capitol has had a
challenging few years, particularly difficult last year after
the previous Architect was removed, and the leadership has had
to be rebuilt without a permanent Architect yet in place.
I know you joined the team in 2023, and have just been in
the role of acting secretary for a few months, but can you
speak to your efforts to restore trust in the leadership and
morale among the 2,400 AOC employees?
Mr. DiPietro. Certainly. Thank you for that question. So
over the last year, not just myself, but our entire leadership
team, we have been working to bring in new folks, our Agency's
C-suite, which is kind of like our Board for the Agency, we
have hired a new chief of staff, we hired a new chief financial
officer, a new chief security officer, we just recently on-
boarded a new chief administrative officer.
So we have a lot of new folks that are on that C-suite, and
everybody is committed to working with our partners, and doing
the best that we can to support the employees, the Architect of
the Capitol. The one thing I can tell you that, you know,
having been here just over a year, is we have got excellent
employees, really great folks who are frontline, who do the job
of maintaining our buildings every day. I am very proud to be
able to work with them. And you know, we are looking to fully
support them and do the best we can to advance their careers.
Senator Van Hollen. Thank you. And thank you for all your
efforts to restore confidence. And thank you for your good
words about your team. Take care. Thank you.
Senator Reed. Thank you, Senator Van Hollen.
On behalf of Senator Fischer and myself, thank you for your
excellent testimony. We look forward to working with you. We
understand this is a challenging time for budgets, but we also
understand how essential, critical, and important your work is,
both as the Library of Congress and as the Architect of the
Capitol.
With that, Senator Fischer.
Senator Fischer. Thank you very much.
ADDITIONAL COMMITTEE QUESTIONS
[The following questions were not asked at the hearing, but
were submitted to the agencies for response subsequent to the
hearing:]
Questions Submitted to Library of Congress and the Architect of the
Capitol
Questions Submitted by Senator Jack Reed
impact of flat budget in fiscal 2025
Question. The Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 resulted in strict
levels for appropriations in Fiscal Year 2024 and has similarly strict
levels for Fiscal Year 2025. As a result, the Committee will have to
make tough decisions regarding the allocation of resources in the
upcoming year. It will then be up to each legislative branch agency to
utilize those resources to meet their respective missions, while
addressing the needs of their workforce.
Please describe the impacts to your agency if the Fiscal Year 2025
allocation requires your agency's budget to remain at the Fiscal Year
2024 level. In particular, please describe the specific impacts the
allocation would have on your personnel as well as your ability to meet
the agency's short and long-term goals.
Answer. The Library's fiscal 2025 budget submission requested an
increase of $46 million over the fiscal 2024 funding levels. The
Library's request includes $29.8 million in mandatory pay-related
costs, $9.2 million in non-pay price level increases, and $11.3 million
for programmatic increases. Operating at the fiscal 2024 level in
fiscal 2025 will in effect result in a reduction of $39 million
requested for mandatory pay-related costs and non-pay inflationary
increases. This is an effective cut of 4.2% to the Library's funding in
order to maintain fiscal 2024 level of service.
The fiscal 2025 request represents the most modest increase put
forward in the current Librarian's tenure, with the majority of the
increase consisting of mandatory pay and inflationary non-pay items.
Operating at the fiscal 2024 funded level will disrupt and diminish the
execution of the Library's long-term strategy of modernizing and
optimizing systems, processes, and services to Congress outlined in the
Library's Fiscal 2024-2028 Strategic Plan, ``A Library for All.''
A flat budget, with an effective reduction of $29.8 million
(equivalent to approximately 172 FTE) requested for mandatory pay in
fiscal 2025, will affect the Library's workforce and its services in
ways that risk diminishing the Library's all-important service to the
Congress and the American people.
With approximately 64 percent of the Library's budget supporting
staff pay, and Congressional Research Service (CRS) pay representing
close to 90 percent of their budget, the Library has limited options
for absorbing additional funding cuts from its non-pay accounts. The
Library's first priority will be to protect its experienced workforce
base by slowing or freezing hiring and not backfilling all but the most
critical positions. Although constantly advancing technology allows the
Library and its staff to operate more efficiently, it cannot replace
key capabilities that directly serve the Congress and the American
people, for example CRS analysts, librarians with specialized
expertise, Copyright attorneys, IT project managers, and the staff who
lead constituent tours of the Jefferson Building. Maintaining critical
staff skills is key to executing the Library's mission and strategic
goals to expand access, enhance services, strengthen capacity, and
foster innovation.
Degradation of Library services affects not only fiscal 2025, but
also diminishes future support and services inherent in the skillsets
of tenured staff and new specialized staff. The limitation on hiring
and challenges in retention will directly affect timeliness of service
to the Congress and the American people.
--Staff would lack mentors, leading to lost institutional knowledge
and affecting transfer of skills and knowledge;
--Fewer preservation actions would threaten the safety of the most
valuable collections;
--Exhibitions and events would be delayed or curtailed;
--Copyright registration processing would not be able to keep up with
demand;
--CRS' productivity and work products would significantly be
impacted; and
--Services of the National Library Service for the Blind and Print
Disabled (NLS), including book and magazine production and
distribution, braille digitization, and support for network
Libraries, would be affected.
Ultimately, absorbing the fiscal 2025 pay increases will result in
fewer FTE and, with fewer people, the Library will lose capacity for
service, resulting in lower levels of support. The non-pay portion of
the Library's budget will be forced to absorb $9.2 million in
inflationary price level increases. There is little room for cutting
programs or shifting costs since operations are interlinked throughout
the Library, meaning that progress made in recent years will be
diminished.
Over the last several years the Congress has been highly supportive
of the Library's IT modernization and optimization plans, funding
multiple initiatives to replace a multitude of legacy systems. To
prevent more drastic measures on the personnel side, absorbing
inflationary costs would have also have an impact on these programs.
The development plans for these programs in fiscal 2025 and 2026 would
be revised as necessary to operate within the fiscal constraints, not
stopping but slowing development and implementation. Progress on recent
initiatives such as the Library's Digital Library Services platform,
continuous development for Congress.gov, and enhancing CRS's ability to
perform quantitative analysis of both research and operational ``big
data'' for congressional clients would be reduced. Progress on other
recent initiatives such as continuous development for Copyright's
Enterprise Copyright System (ECS), enterprise architecture and upgrades
to NLS systems and services to patrons will also be delayed.
The Library will also not be able to start the new programmatic
initiatives requested in the fiscal 2025 budget. These five initiatives
have key places in the Library's strategy--scaling up capacity,
modernizing and optimizing our processes and systems to manage the
explosive growth in digital collections, enhancing the visitor
experience with the Library, maintaining hard-to-fill contracting
capacity, enhancing CRS's quantitative analysis and AI capabilities,
and expanding the Digital Accessibility Program. Most importantly, not
receiving funding for the Digital Collections Processing initiative
will impact the Library's ability to provide connectivity and capacity
to directly support the dramatic growth in digital format acquisitions
and the e-preferred strategy.
Additionally, other non-pay areas of support will be affected,
decreasing support to the Congress and service to the American people.
Examples of impacted programs and services include, but are not limited
to:
--Public outreach and services--reading room hours, Library events
and signature programs such as the National Book Festival and
Congressional Dialogues.
--Financial management capabilities and support for cross-serviced
Legislative Branch Agencies.
--Custodial services and reduced cleanliness levels in all areas of
the Library's campus.
Additionally, the Library will monitor the congressional actions
for fiscal 2025 appropriations as they relate to the Financial
Responsibility Act. Possible sequestration and further reductions would
lead to more severe reduction strategies across all Library programs.
SUBCOMMITTEE RECESS
Senator Reed. I will adjourn the hearing.
[Whereupon, at 3:21 p.m., Wednesday, May 15, the
subcommittee was recessed, to reconvene subject to the call of
the Chair.]
LEGISLATIVE BRANCH APPROPRIATIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2025
----------
WEDNESDAY, MAY 22, 2024
U.S. Senate,
Subcommittee of the Committee on Appropriations,
Washington, DC.
The subcommittee met at 2:30 p.m., in room SD-124, Dirksen
Senate Office Building, Hon. Jack Reed (Chairman), presiding.
Present: Senators Reed, Murphy, Van Hollen, and Fischer.
SERGEANT AT ARMS AND DOORKEEPER OF THE SENATE, UNITED STATES SENATE
UNITED STATES CAPITOL POLICE
OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR JACK REED
Senator Reed. Good afternoon. The Subcommittee will come to
order.
First, Chief Manger, I understand the Department is today
grieving the passing of one of its officers, a 21-year Veteran
of the Force. I simply want to express my gratitude and my
sympathies to the Officer's family, and to the Department for
your loss.
Mr. Manger. Thank you, Senator.
Senator Reed. I would like to welcome everyone, to the last
of our fiscal year 2025 budget hearings for the Legislative
Branch Appropriations Subcommittee.
Today, we have with us the Senate Sergeant at Arms, Ms.
Karen Gibson; and the Chief of the United States Capitol
Police, Chief J. Thomas Manger. I would like to thank you for
joining us here today to testify on your Agencies' fiscal year
2025 budget request. And I ask unanimous consent that the
witnesses' written testimony be placed in the hearing record.
Hearing no objection; so ordered.
Let me begin by again thanking the women and men of your
agencies for the work that they do every day to facilitate the
work of the Senate. It is because of their work that the Senate
is able to perform its constitutional responsibilities on
behalf of the American people.
As I said in our two previous hearings, the Legislative
Branch Agencies have submitted fiscal year 2025 budget requests
that account for a $544 million increase over the fiscal year
2024 Legislative Branch enacted appropriations, while we do not
yet have subcommittee allocations, the Fiscal Responsibility
Act of 2023 enacted strict levels for appropriations again in
fiscal year 2025. As such, we will be making very difficult
decisions for the allocation of resources provided to the
Legislative Branch in fiscal year 2025.
It will then fall upon the heads of each Legislative Branch
Agency to utilize those resources to meet their respective
missions while addressing the needs of their workforce. This
will not be an easy fiscal year, but I am confident that the
Legislative Branch can meet this challenge.
For fiscal year 2025, the Sergeant at Arms is requesting
$345 million in appropriated funds, which is an increase of $34
million over the fiscal year 2024 enacted level. I would like
to thank General Gibson and her team for finding additional
efficiencies within the Agency's budget request, which has
allowed for reduced funding request.
The requested increases provide funding for the annual cost
of living adjustment, related cost, and locality pay, 17 new
positions to support various Sergeant at Arms organizational
elements, and salary adjustments for onboard personnel.
Further, it provides funding for the Stars of Valor Fellowship
Program.
The increase also provides for enhanced security, the
continued modernization efforts within the organization,
support for the Residential Security System Program, and State
Office Security, and the continuation of cybersecurity
enhancements.
General Gibson, thank you again for all that you and your
team do to support the Senate community.
Today we will also be reviewing the United States Capitol
Police's fiscal year 2025 budget request. Again, I would like
to thank you, Chief Manger, and your team for all that you do
to ensure the safety of the Capitol. It is a remarkable task,
and you and your colleagues do it extremely well.
Included in this year's Department's budget request is a
request for an appropriation of $906 million for the United
States Capitol Police, which is an increase of $114.8 million
from the fiscal year 2024 enacted level. This is an increase in
both the salaries and the general expense appropriations. This
increase provides for the annualization of salaries for onboard
personnel in fiscal year 2024, increased over time for core
mission and the upcoming Presidential Inauguration, funding for
a new sworn and civilian set of positions, and the cost of
living increase, and other miscellaneous salary payments.
The requested increase also provides for increased
protective services support, and protective intelligence
capabilities, contract to support for information technology
activities to include cybersecurity efforts, funding to support
the continuation of the Contracted Security Guard Program,
technical and physical security equipment lifestyle replacement
and upgrades, operational training programs, officer wellness
initiatives, and various other non-personnel related costs.
The Department's request also supports four additional
positions within the U.S. Capitol Police Office of Inspector
General to address its expanding role, as well as a small
increase in general expenses to maintain and enhance its
operational capacity.
As we continue to grow the Department, it is important for
us to also grow the capabilities of the Inspector General in
order to keep pace with its oversight responsibilities.
Additionally, the Department's budget request includes $49
million to support various continually--continuity of
operations and continuity of government preparedness efforts.
I look forward to hearing from both of our witnesses in
today's hearing.
Today, we will also be joined by Senator Murray, the Chair
of the Senate Appropriations Committee.
And now, I will turn to the Ranking Member, and my
colleague, Senator Fischer, for any remarks she might have.
OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR DEB FISCHER
Senator Fischer. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And thank you,
General Gibson and Chief Manger, for being with us this
afternoon to discuss the fiscal year 2025 budget requests for
your agencies.
Before I begin, I also want to express my sincere
condolences to the family and to the Department, Chief Manger.
You have our support during this difficult time.
I want to thank the men and women of the U.S. Capitol
Police and the Senate Sergeant at Arms for all the work they do
to keep Congress, the Capitol Campus, and State offices safe
and secure.
In recent years, the threat environment facing the
Legislative Branch has increased significantly. I appreciate
the work of both agencies to meet this evolving mission and
security environment.
As Chairman Reed has mentioned, we face a difficult fiscal
year ahead. While we will do all we can to support your
agencies and their mission requirements, it is important that
every Legislative Branch Agency be judicious stewards of their
resources and achieve cost savings where possible.
General Gibson, for fiscal year 2025, the SAA seeks a
roughly 12 percent increase above last year's enacted level,
the request includes funding for physical and cybersecurity
initiatives and additional FTEs to support operations across
the Agency. In your testimony, I hope to hear how the SAA is
implementing the significant resources provided in fiscal year
2024, including hiring for the new personnel positions that
were funded. Additionally, I look forward to hearing how the
fiscal year 2025 request will meet the security needs of the
Senate.
Chief Manger, the Department is requesting $906 million, an
increase of 14.5 percent, above the fiscal year 2024 enacted
level. The request includes new funding for congressional
continuity of operations and an additional 118 funded FTE. I
look forward to learning more about how the Department's fiscal
year 2025 request plans to meet the increasing threat climate
facing Congress.
In this difficult fiscal environment, we will carefully
consider the needs of all our security related agencies and
ensure their coordination and cooperation.
I thank our witnesses again for being here today, and I
look forward to your testimony.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Reed. Thank you very much, Senator Fischer.
And now I will ask our witnesses, beginning with General
Gibson, to give a brief opening statement, of approximately 5
minutes, to allow adequate time for questioning. Of course, the
written testimony has already been made part of the record.
General Gibson, you are recognized.
------
SERGEANT AT ARMS AND DOORKEEPER OF THE SENATE, UNITED STATES SENATE
STATEMENT OF HONORABLE KAREN H. GIBSON, SERGEANT AT
ARMS AND DOORKEEPER OF THE SENATE, UNITED
STATES SENATE
General Gibson. Thank you, Senator. Chairman Reed, Ranking
Member Fischer, and Members of the Subcommittee, I appreciate
the opportunity to testify in support of the Sergeant at Arms'
fiscal year 2025 budget request.I want to thank the
subcommittees for supporting our initiatives, which have
allowed us to improve security, modernize operations, and
further enhance Senate services.
Senate security is among my foremost responsibilities. In
the wake of numerous disruptive demonstrations both on and off
Campus, we have conducted extensive proactive outreach and
education to Senate and committee offices. We provide security
awareness briefings, advise on best practices for event
planning, arrange security escorts, and streamline coordination
to address unwanted visitors and disruptive groups.
We coordinate with the Capitol Police to request local law
enforcement support for off-Campus events and to provide
security assessments and improvements at members' homes.
Regarding State office security, I appreciate the enactment of
Senate Bill 3222, which exempts certain security-related square
footage and costs from State Office allowances.
I am grateful to Senator Klobuchar, to you, Senator
Fischer, and to the entire Senate for this bill. Senators no
longer have to choose between safety needs, like secure
reception areas, and operational requirements, such as space
for caseworkers. We have also expanded a program with the
Federal Protective Service that allows Federal security
officers at commercial State offices, if requested. And our
cabinet shop has designed an attractive, cost-effective,
lockable cabinet to safely store State office IT and security
equipment.
We also work tirelessly to protect the Senate from
increasingly sophisticated cyber threats, collaborating with
the Capitol Police, the FBI, and others to identify, defend
against, and mitigate critical cyber incidents.
Last year, we conducted the Senate's most comprehensive
cybersecurity assessment ever, and its results validated the
success of our efforts.
The Sergeant at Arms' mission extends beyond security as we
work to modernize services for the Senate community through
efforts like the Digital Media Hub, which allows users to
search and store official photos and order customizable prints
all in one place, and a new Learning Center with online
training tools and course registration and tracking.
Our recording studio has fully implemented closed
captioning for committee broadcasts and will soon roll out a
program to provide QR codes to attendees at hearings so they
can monitor a live stream of the hearing with closed captioning
via smartphone. We plan to build an app for Senate staff to
access Employee Assistance Program resources on the go and will
improve the flag ordering process through an online storefront
and flag satellite office in Hart.
We will also modify the Senate Employment Bulletin so that
job seekers can apply for positions through an automated
interface that allows offices to search the applicant pool with
modern tools.
For fiscal year 2025, we request $345 million and 1,054
positions to support senators, their staff, and constituents:
``This is a decrease from our initial request and takes our
budget request down from more than 12 percent to about 11
percent.''
We seek $5 million in no-year funding to continue the
hearing room renovations that replace aging audiovisual
equipment, $2.5 million for the Senate Residential Security
System Program, and $6.3 million for the Stars of Valor
Fellowships Program, which will fund fellowships in Senate
offices across the country for wounded or disabled veterans and
Gold Star family members.
Other specific requests include a $4 million increase for
cybersecurity tools and contracts, $4.3 million for a human
capital management system to automate workforce management
processes, $1.5 million for the Help Desk IT contract, and $1.3
million to expand IT enterprise services.
To ensure commonly used applications and services are
backed up and archived, we request $1 million to host and
support them on reliant infrastructure with secure backup. Due
to increasing prices for IT equipment and licenses, we also
request $775,000 for the Economic Allocation Fund. On a similar
note, we seek a $3 million increase to address rising Federal
rent and construction costs, to harden State office reception
areas and to improve State office readiness. We seek $506,000
for an electronic gallery pass project, and $600,000 to support
the 60th Presidential Inauguration.
Of the 17 additional positions requested, four support
critical functions for the Chief Information Officer and two
support implementation of a Senate Intern Resource Office.
Other FTEs address security, operations, and human capital
shortfalls.
I remain deeply committed to supporting the needs of the
Senate, as does my entire team. We are grateful to this
committee for its support, and I am thankful for the dedicated
staff of the Sergeant at Arms and for ongoing collaboration
with partners to keep the Senate secure and functioning
efficiently.
I thank you for the opportunity to testify on our fiscal
year 2025 budget request and look forward to your questions.
[The statement follows:]
Prepared Statement of the Honorable Karen H. Gibson, Sergeant at Arms
and Doorkeeper of the Senate
Chairman Reed, Ranking Member Fischer, and members of the
subcommittee, I appreciate the opportunity to testify in support of the
Sergeant at Arms' Fiscal Year 2025 budget request.
I want to thank the subcommittee for supporting our initiatives,
which have allowed us to improve security, modernize operations and
further enhance the services we provide to the Senate community.
Senate security is among my most important responsibilities. In the
wake of increasing confrontations and demonstrations on and off-campus,
our offices of Member Outreach and Security Coordination and Security
Planning and Police Coordination have conducted extensive proactive
outreach and education to Senate and committee offices, providing
security awareness briefings for Senators and staff, advising on best
practices for event planning, arranging security escorts during
Members' domestic travel, coordinating with the Capitol Police to
request local law enforcement support for events off Capitol grounds,
streamlining coordination to address unwanted visitors or disruptive
demonstration groups, and coordinating with the Capitol Police to
conduct residential security assessments. In 2023, more than 4,200
requests for law enforcement assistance were addressed.
The Risk and Threat Management office works closely with the
Capitol Police's Threat Analysis Section to identify and track hundreds
of potential threats to Senators and pass timely information about
potentially destabilizing events near Senate offices or near Senators'
homes. We look forward to an even closer partnership once the Capitol
Police stand up their Protective Intelligence Operations Center.
We are completing our second year of the Residential Security
Support Program for home security improvements based on assessments
conducted by the Capitol Police. The program covers the cost of
equipment, installation, and monitoring services, and we are working
with offices and the Capitol Police to provide additional security
assessments at Members' homes. SAA staff have also worked with the
Committee on Rules and Administration, the Architect of the Capitol
(AOC), and the Capitol Police to install Proximity Card Readers in
seven Senate personal offices, five committee offices, and two support
offices. Additional requests are pending installation or design.
In response to lessons learned, the Senate Operations Center has
streamlined and refined communication processes in conjunction with the
Capitol Police to ensure rapid dissemination of critical information
about emergencies and campus access issues, reducing the time that
Members and staff must wait for instructions on actions to take in an
emergency.
One of the most complicated software builds completed this Congress
was the creation of an Emergency Preparedness (EP) Mobile Application
for the entire Senate. This application makes emergency preparedness
information available room by room, allowing a Senate staffer to find
information about evacuation, sheltering in place, or internal
relocation regardless of their location, whether in a committee space,
an office, the cafeteria, or the Senate-side of the Capitol. This app
and all its information remain available even if the network is down.
This significant upgrade to the emergency preparedness tools in the
Senate was made possible through collaboration between the Chief
Information Officer organization and Office of Emergency Preparedness.
The Office of Emergency Preparedness also provides training to
prepare Members and staff for emergencies. Last year, the Office
conducted almost 250 training sessions for 2,900 staff. They have
innovated their offerings to provide interactive courses on Webster,
allowing Senate staff to refresh their knowledge at any time. The
Office also provides more detailed training for the Senate's 287 Office
Emergency Coordinators and worked with them to update the Emergency
Action Plans of 148 offices and 79 Continuity of Operation Plans. With
the security of the entire Senate community in mind, the Office also
trained over 40 members of the credentialed press on Capitol Hill
emergency procedures and the use of escape hoods.
To improve security in over 420 state offices, the State Office
Operations team worked with the Capitol Police and local law
enforcement to provide security training at 43 Senators' state offices.
Working closely with the Federal Protective Service (FPS), to date they
have facilitated 89 state office facility security assessments and
enrolled 37 Senators in a new program that allows them to request FPS
Protective Security Officers at commercial state offices, a service
previously only available in Federal buildings.
State Office Operations also provided initial physical security
enhancements and existing system upgrades for 167 offices and conducted
more than 500 service calls to maintain, repair, test, and inspect
state office physical security systems. At this time, 99% of state
offices have adopted some level of SAA-recommended and funded security
enhancements.
A significant uptick in disruptive demonstrations prompted
development of a tip sheet outlining best practices for state offices.
Utilizing the new State Office Demonstration Room, State Office
Operations provided security training and consultations to more than
500 staff representing 83 Senators over the last year. We continue the
rollout of a state office alert and notification service to monitor,
evaluate, and distribute customized emergency notifications directly to
Senators and staff across the country, informing Senate users over
125,000 times of severe weather incidents, civil unrest, and major
crime events near Senate offices.
Finally, the State Office Operations team, the SAA Cabinet Shop,
and the Chief Information Officer collaborated to create a lockable IT
cabinet for safely storing state office IT and security equipment.
These attractive cabinets improve office operations and aesthetics by
masking noise and neatly securing Senate network equipment and wiring.
The previous alternative to this cabinet cost upwards of $14,000 and
took almost six weeks to construct. We built the new IT Security
Cabinet in house and installed the first one in only four days!
To address persistent and increasingly significant cyber threats,
our Chief Information Officer blocks, defends, and mitigates critical
cyber events 24 hours a day. We have worked closely with the Capitol
Police, the FBI, and other organizations in the cyber defense community
to ensure the Senate receives early warning of penetration attempts,
new indicators of compromise, and evolving adversary tactics. To
improve the user experience while prioritizing security, in late 2025
we will move to a modern and centralized identity management system
with single sign on to the network. Finally, in 2023, we successfully
conducted the Senate's most comprehensive cybersecurity assessment
ever, validating the success of our collective efforts. We plan to
continue these assessments annually.
Of course, we also monitor traditional areas of risk. Senate Post
Office staff screen mail for over 180 locations within the Capitol
complex and last year safely processed and delivered more than 4.4
million incoming mail items while flagging nearly 800 suspicious
mailings.
The SAA mission extends beyond security to include administrative
and logistical support to the Senate community. I am proud of our
efforts to improve and modernize those services as well.
One of the Chief Information Officer's most significant innovation
projects is to migrate multiple stand-alone Senate services from old,
legacy platforms to modern, integrated hubs. The first phase of this
project migrates several services to ServiceNow, a hub for requesting
IT support, tracking Help Desk tickets, submitting customer
satisfaction surveys, and sharing IT knowledge base articles. We plan
to expand ServiceNow by migrating three additional legacy systems to
the hub: CAPFOR, which allows Members and staff to order items and
services for their Capitol offices; TranSAAct, which allows offices to
request many Sergeant at Arms services, review bills, link to
frequently used websites, and log into other Senate applications
without re-entering credentials; and Asset Manager, the Senate
inventory system. When complete, this migration will eliminate a number
of manual workflows, streamline asset management, and enable data-
driven decisions.
The Senate Recording Studio has implemented closed captioning for
all D.C.-based committee broadcasts and for some field hearings,
enhancing accessibility by providing deaf and hard-of-hearing
individuals with access to committee content. The Recording Studio also
introduced the unofficial vote count tally displayed on the Senate
floor channel, modernizing the broadcast of Senate proceedings. These
improvements were made at the same time the studio broadcast more than
1,100 hours of Senate floor coverage and 613 hearings, while producing
481 TV studio shows and 755 radio shows. The Audio-Visual team also
assisted with 801 events, and the Video Post-Production Department
fulfilled 447 work requests, including 608 hours of editing.
In response to customer requests, Senate Photographic Services
created a new photo browser, the Digital Media Hub, which provides a
central location for offices' visual and media assets, including
photos, videos, graphics, and audio files. It includes more than 1.4
million images and videos and allows users to search through photos,
order customizable prints, and upload and store all office photography
in one place. Importantly, the Hub is compliant with Senate Archival
and National Archiving best practices. Senate Photographic Services
staff also covered 3,400 assignments, photographing more than 70,000
images and producing nearly 34,000 photo prints, a 35% increase over
2022.
The Employee Assistance Program (EAP) provides some of the SAA's
most popular services. In 2023, almost 5,600 employees attended EAP
training or participated in wellbeing activities, and more than 3,500
employees accessed resources for personalized information and referrals
addressing childcare, parenting, adult care, aging, education, legal
concerns, or financial issues. The EAP also offers LifeCare, which
helps Senate staff find everything from childcare services to
specialized kits for college-bound children, and from licensed care
options for elderly parents to home repair services. EAP has hired an
additional counselor to help address the growing demand for staff
resilience support.
The Joint Office of Training and Development rolled out a Learning
Center hub that allows staff to register for all classes offered in the
Senate and access online training tools. The Learning Center also
allows managers to assign specific training to staff members and ensure
that Senate-required anti-harassment, cybersecurity, and ethics
training is completed.
Printing, Graphics and Direct Mail (PGDM) is working with Senate
office customers to transition to a digital editing tool, PageProof,
which will streamline the editing process. PGDM is also working to
enhance the flag ordering process for Senate offices and constituents
through the Direct XPress storefront and a flag satellite office in
Hart. Ninety offices currently utilize Direct Xpress, placing more than
5,300 online flag orders through the system.
The Senate Employment Office improved its services to Senate
offices and job seekers with a new website, virtual information
sessions, online resources, and an updated resume bank, which has grown
from 1,100 registrants in 2020 to 5,500 in 2023. We will soon roll out
an enhancement to the Job Advertisements in the Senate Employment
Bulletin, which will provide unique job links for new job ads. Job
seekers will be able to apply for positions in Senate offices through
an automated collection process, and office staff will be able to
search the applicant pool with a modern set of tools. The Senate
Employment Bulletin will have a modern and dynamic look, and job
seekers will be able to filter search criteria and set up email job
alerts.
This year, the SAA established a new office for Program Management
and Congressional Transition. The office is preparing for transition to
the 119th Congress by updating transition materials for incoming
Senators. We plan for early and consistent consultation with incoming
and departing Senators, the Secretary of the Senate, the AOC, the
Government Printing Office, and the General Services Administration to
ensure a smooth transition for all parties.
We are also coordinating with partners across the Capitol,
including the Secretary of the Senate, Capitol Police, and AOC, on our
move out of the Postal Square Building and with the AOC and Senate
Superintendent's office as we prepare to fully renovate Webster Hall in
a way that does not to interrupt services to the Page program.
Our Chief Financial Officer is overseeing implementation of the
OneStream budget formulation application, which will be used to
complete our annual budget and other critical business functions such
as comprehensive financial reporting, salary forecasts, and expenditure
tracking.
Our Financial Management team is also working closely with the
Senate Financial Systems Program Office on an ``eProcurement'' project
to migrate procurement related accounting functions from a custom
application within the Financial Management Information System to an
off-the-shelf software application within PeopleSoft.
Taken together, these two projects--one for budgeting and one for
contract accounting--will enable the Senate PeopleSoft General Ledger
to be a single source of entry ensuring data integrity and accurate
reporting. This joint project between the Office of the Secretary and
the Office of the Sergeant at Arms is an example of how well our two
offices collaborate. Many thanks to Secretary Ann Berry and Mr. Dan
Rubenstein with the Financial Systems Program Office for the
collaboration that made this innovation possible.
We continue replacing aging audiovisual equipment and systems in
Senate Hearing Rooms and are working with this Committee, the Committee
on Rules and Administration, and the AOC to avoid equipment failure. We
installed a self-service Postal kiosk in the Dirksen basement and
expanded notary services to the Senate community. The Passport Office
brought back ``Passport Day on the Hill'' and is currently hosting its
second Global Entry/TSA PreCheck event on the Senate side of the
Capitol.
These are not the only in-person activities to return to the Senate
campus. We hosted representatives from 24 emergency response, emergency
management, and related organizations in our National Preparedness
Month Fair this year. In addition, our Wellness Fair saw record
attendance, and 36 offices participated in the 2024 State Office
Conference.
I am proud of our contributions to the U.S. Senate, many of which
would not be possible without collaboration with partners, including
the Secretary of the Senate, the AOC, Capitol Police, the Federal
Protective Service, the General Services Administration, the Government
Printing Office, our counterparts in the House of Representatives,
local law enforcement agencies across the country, the Senate Financial
System Program Office, and the Superintendent of the Senate. We have
worked together to improve security and services for the Senate, and I
look forward to continuing that work in the coming year.
For FY25, we request $345,006,000 and 1,054 Full Time Equivalent
(FTE) positions. This increase of $34,189,000 and 17 positions includes
$199,544,000 in our five-year expense account, $131,685,000 in our
salary account, and $7,500,000 in our no-year accounts to renovate
hearing rooms and for the Senate Residential Security System Program,
as well as $6,277,000 in no-year funding to support the Stars of Valor
Fellowships Program.
Senate resolutions adopted in the 117th Congress created the
fellowship programs for wounded or disabled veterans and Gold Star
family members, and the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration
finalized regulations for the program in March of this year. The
program will provide 24-month, full-time fellowships in Senate offices
across the country, with salary and benefits paid by the Sergeant at
Arms. The fellowships are expected to provide first-hand experience for
Gold Star family members and wounded or disabled veterans while
allowing Senate offices to benefit from the fellows' expertise and
resilience.
Out of the 17 additional positions we are requesting, four FTEs
will support critical functions for the Chief Information Officer. Two
positions will support the implementation of a Senate Intern Resource
Office to share best practices for intern hiring, assist interns
regarding their work environment, and promote awareness of internship
opportunities in historically underrepresented communities. The
remaining FTEs address additional needs in Capitol Operations, the
Employee Assistance Program, Human Resources, Support Operations, the
Executive Office, and the Office of Security, Emergency Preparedness
and Continuity.
Our specific requests include a $4,000,000 increase for
cybersecurity. This money will go toward existing Governance, Risk and
Compliance contracts, security operations, and audit contracts to fully
implement a Risk Management Program. It will also fund cybersecurity
tools to protect our supply chain, replace end-of-life-hardware, and
cover recurring costs associated with implementing Zero Trust
cybersecurity initiatives.
The SAA requests $4,300,000 to purchase a Human Capital Management
System that will streamline operations and automate business processes
associated with workforce management. With over 1,000 employees to
support, we have outgrown our piecemeal legacy systems and manual
processes, which are both slow and prone to error, and must replace
them with a modern system that integrates scheduling, time, attendance,
leave tracking, payroll, overtime, and compliance.
Growing demands for data warehousing, long-term data retention, and
file size growth (e.g., from digital media and database files) directly
impacts storage capacity. Accounting for additional resources will be
essential to meet the Senate's on-demand data storage needs.
Accordingly, we request $1,265,000 to support the increased growth of
enterprise services offered to the Senate and increased resiliency and
high availability within our secondary data center.
The widespread adoption of Microsoft 365 services, including Teams,
OneDrive, and SharePoint Online, has increased the need for backup,
archiving and export capabilities for these services when Senators
depart. We must ensure these critical services are hosted on redundant
and supported infrastructure with secure backup and request an
additional $1,051,000 to do so.
Our largest contract is for Senate IT support. With the projected
award of a new contract for the Senate Help Desk IT support, we request
$1,500,000, to allow for a three-month transition period to ensure
there is no impact on service to Senate offices.
We also request $775,000 for the Economic Allocation Fund that
supports software and hardware purchases by Senate offices and
committees. This reflects higher prices for IT equipment and licenses
requested by Senate offices.
We seek a $3,077,000 increase for State offices to address rising
Federal rent and construction costs, to harden secure reception areas,
and to improve state office readiness. A $65,000 increase for Capitol
Operations will allow us to design and build additional custom IT
cabinets for state offices to safely house and secure Senate IT
equipment.
Our recent migration to a standardized phone system across all
state offices and DC requires a more robust Wide Area Network
Maintenance Contract, so we request $218,000 to support Internet
services and secure connections between the DC campus and all state
offices.
In FY25, we request $506,000 for an e-Gallery pass project, which
will allow Senators to provide constituents with electronic passes for
the Senate Galleries or for events such as swearing-in day at the
beginning of each Congress. The e-Gallery pass will enable
communication in real-time to passholders. For example, if a Senator
was taking photographs with a student group who also had e-Gallery
passes, an email to all pass holders could direct them to a change in
location for the photograph.
We also request $600,000 as one-time funding to support the 60th
Inaugural Ceremonies. Funding will cover technical equipment such as
large-scale video boards and development of event management and
credentialing software utilized by the Joint Congressional Committee on
Inaugural Ceremonies.
We seek $400,000 to build an EAP app to make employee assistance
accessible on mobile phones, $120,000 for contract labor for surge
support in the ID Office during the 119th Congressional ID renewal
period and to replace end of lifecycle ID printers, a $100,000 increase
to reimburse the Capitol Police for expenses incurred when they support
Congressional delegations abroad, and $35,000 for a Page Program
onboarding application to ensure efficient onboarding and to increase
the security of sensitive personal information.
We remain dedicated to meeting the personal, physical, and
cybersecurity needs of the Senate, as well as providing essential
administrative and logistical support. We do so, seeking at all times
to improve our effectiveness and customer satisfaction.
Thank you for your committed support of the Senate Sergeant at Arms
and for the opportunity to discuss our accomplishments and our FY25
budget request.
Senator Reed. Thank you very much, General.
Chief Manger, please.
------
UNITED STATES CAPITOL POLICE
STATEMENT OF CHIEF J. THOMAS MANGER, CHIEF OF POLICE,
UNITED STATES CAPITOL POLICE
Mr. Manger. Chairman Reed, Ranking Member Fischer, and
Members of the subcommittee, thank you for your continued
support of the women and men of the United States Capitol
Police.
The support of Congress has allowed the Department to
invest in critical aspects of its operation and address mission
requirements of an increasing threat environment. To support
the mission, the Department has prioritized staffing and the
expansion of training, policy, and administrative functions,
all of which ensure that USCP is positioned to meet the demands
of today and into the future.
This support that Congress has allowed the Department has
ensured that our mission requirements can be met. I can
confidently tell you the Capitol is safer today than it was
prior to January 6. Specifically, our 2025 budget reflects the
Department's three key budget drivers, protecting the Capitol
complex, countering the increasing threat environment to ensure
member safety, and bolstering recruitment and retention.
Protecting the Capitol from threats while at the same time
protecting members, staff, and the public is a complex
operation that requires planning, coordination, and investment
in physical and technical security; thus, the 2025 budget
request provides funding needed to invest in security planning,
equipment, and technology upgrades.
The Department's 2025 budget also includes a request for
no-year funding to support the Congressional Continuity of
Operations, or C-COOP. The major driver behind this request is
the Department's need for an independent, in-house, and
deployment capability to allow it to respond to changing
environments. This funding will allow the Department to
replicate the functions of the USCP Command Center at any C-
COOP site to the fullest extent possible.
Our country is in the midst of a historical rise in
threats. Over the past year, we have seen a dangerous rise in
acts of violence against Members of Congress, their families,
and staff. This changing landscape requires that the Department
take a proactive approach to threat investigations and member
protection by enhancing its intelligence gathering and sharing
capabilities.
The number of increasingly--the number and increasing
complexity of threats against members requires the acquisition
of a cutting-edge technology that can help the Department
navigate the increasingly sophisticated climate that the cyber
universe provides to criminal actors.
The fiscal year 2025 budget request is reflective of the
Department's constant need to stay one step ahead of those who
seek to do you harm. A significant focus for the Department
centers on member safety in their home States and districts.
With funding provided by Congress for the purpose of enhanced
member protection, the Department created the Protective
Intelligence Operations Center, or PIOC.
The PIOC serves as the Department's fusion center by
centralizing member protection functions to include
investigation intake, air operations monitoring, the tracking
of Congressional details, intelligence analysis, and the
Department's newly created Residential Security Program. This
new protection model will allow the Department to increase its
ability to protect members, whether they are here in D.C. or
away from the Capitol complex.
Thus, our 2025 budget request also focuses heavily on
increases to both sworn and civilian staffing levels. We are
requesting $642 million to fund salaries and benefits for 2,247
sworn employees and 583 civilian employees. This represents
approximately 75 percent of the Department's total annual
budget request.
One of the most critical aspects in protecting the campus
members, staff, and visitors is our ability to utilize mutual
aid from our law enforcement partners in the National Capitol
region and throughout the country, this aid acts as a force
multiplier for large-scale events at the Capitol or to assist
in the protection of members and their families when outside of
the Capitol region.
Increasing the Department's ranks continues to be a key
priority. Given the increasing numbers of threats, it is not
surprising that the bulk of our staffing efforts are focused on
continued expansion of the Department's Protective Services
Bureau, or PSB, which includes the Dignitary Protection
Division. With the support of Congress, the Department's
staffing levels have increased, but we still have more to do,
especially as we work to right-size the organization to curb
overtime.
There is more work to do, and we must do it within the
context of a strategic, holistic, and deliberate strategy.
Long-term strategies take time to develop and implement in a
coordinated fashion. Working in close collaboration with
Congress, I am confident that our upward trajectory will
continue.
Thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today.
And I look forward to your questions.
[The statement follows:]
Prepared Statement of J. Thomas Manger, Chief, United States Capitol
Police
Chairman Reed, Ranking Member Fischer, and Members of the
Subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity to present the United
States Capitol Police (USCP or Department) budget request for Fiscal
Year (FY) 2025. The Department greatly appreciates the Subcommittee's
continued support of the women and men of the U.S. Capitol Police, who
courageously carry out their duties of protecting the Members of
Congress, the Capitol Complex, and the legislative process each and
every day. The support of Congress has allowed the Department to invest
in critical aspects of its operation and address the mission
requirements of an increasing threat environment. I can confidently
tell you that the Capitol is safer today than it was prior to January
6. We must continue this upward trajectory. To that end, the Department
FY2025 budget request includes $906 million to fulfill our mission.
The USCP mission is unlike any other. Protecting the Congress
requires a 24/7, no-fail operation. Our teams work around the clock to
staff doors, corridors, plazas, garages, and street corners; to protect
Members of Congress in and outside of the Capitol Complex; to gather,
analyze, and disseminate intelligence; to oversee physical and
technical security measures; and to plan and respond to demonstrations.
To support this mission the Department has prioritized staffing and the
expansion of the training, policy, and administrative functions, all of
which ensure the USCP is positioned to meet the demands of today and
into the future.
The Department continues to move forward and improve its
operations. Earlier this year, the Department formally implemented the
reorganization plan approved by the Committees. The new organizational
structure is a reflection of the Department's growth and
transformation, and is designed to enhance program oversight and
operational efficiencies in response to recommendations provided by the
Office of the Inspector General (OIG). For example, the Department's
policy, audit, and training functions are now centralized under the new
Assistant Chief of Police for Standards and Training Operations, and
includes training liaisons that work in coordination with all
Department components for maximum efficiency and accountability.
Likewise, the reorganization established the Intelligence Services
Bureau, fully centralizing functional oversight of intelligence
analysis and streamlining information gathering and dissemination. The
reorganization also established the Office of the Chief of Staff to
manage the Howard C. Leibengood Center for Wellness, the Office of
Accountability and Improvement, the Office of Equity and Inclusion, and
the Public Information Office. In short, the reorganization
demonstrates the Department's continuing efforts to enhance its
operating posture in a post-January 6 environment.
The Department's FY 2025 budget request reflects the need to keep
pushing forward with our progress. It provides the resources needed to
continue the modernization of internal operations and shift toward a
more protective model of law enforcement. Specifically, the FY 2025
budget request reflects the Department's three key budget drivers:
1. Protecting the Capitol Complex,
2. countering the increasing threat environment to ensure Member
safety, and
3. bolstering recruitment and retention.
I will focus on each of these key areas in turn.
capitol complex protection
Protecting the Capitol Complex from threats while, at the same time
protecting Members, staff, and the public, is a complex operation that
requires planning, coordination, and investment in physical and
technical security.
The Department's operational planning and coordination efforts
continue to improve substantially following January 6. The Department's
multi-phased approach to the event planning processes and the
establishment of the Incident Action Plans (IAPs) for all large and
high-profile events, was a major paradigm shift. The IAPs serve as a
comprehensive blueprint for intelligence, operational, command, and
communication plans. The Department also engages in inter-agency
coordination calls before all large and high-profile events, pre- and
post-event officer briefings, after-action reports, and other measures
designed to improve overall coordination and efficiency. The
Department's FY 2025 budget request will allow us to continue
improvements to these planning and command and control coordination
functions.
Ensuring the Department's physical and technical security
capabilities are sufficiently staffed and state-of-the art is another
key objective of the Department's efforts to increase the physical
security of Members and the Capitol Complex. The Department must keep
abreast of advancements in technology to ensure it can properly
identify, monitor, and deter threats, whether they exist on the ground
or in cyber space. Thus, the FY 2025 budget request provides the
funding needed to invest in security planning, equipment, and
technology upgrades.
The Department's FY 2025 budget also includes a request for no-year
funding to support the Congressional Continuity of Operations (C-COOP).
The major driver behind this request is the Department's need for an
independent, in-house response and deployment capability to allow it to
respond to changing environments, and, ultimately, to support our
mission to protect Members of Congress. This funding will allow the
Department to replicate the functions of the USCP Command Center at any
C-COOP site to the fullest extent possible, to include a mobile
capability to support the immediate use of command and control and
Leadership Coordination Center requirements for Congressional
leadership. This requests also provides for Information Technology
equipment to establish connectivity and radio communication
capabilities, as well as physical security requirements including
deployable screening equipment, mobile vehicle barriers, mobile kiosks,
and deployable barriers. Through close coordination with the Capitol
Police Board and other stakeholders, the Department's budget request
reflects a multi-year strategy to develop and implement one aspect of
this multi-faceted program. This request will ensure the appropriate
flexibility to procure the equipment necessary to build out C-COOP
initiatives and implement as each phase is ready.
increasing threat climate
Our country is in the midst of an historical rise in threats that
is flamed by the current climate of heated political rhetoric; it is
both unprecedented and alarming. Over the past year, we have seen a
dangerous rise in acts of violence against Members of Congress, their
families, and staff. This changing landscape requires that the
Department take a proactive approach to threats investigation and
Member protection by enhancing its intelligence gathering and sharing
capabilities. The number and increasing complexity of threats
against Members requires the acquisition of cutting-edge technology
that can help the Department navigate the increasingly sophisticated
climate the cyber universe provides to criminal actors. We need to
identify and deter threats before they materialize. The FY 2025 budget
request is reflective of the Department's constant need to stay one
step ahead of those who seek to do you harm.
A significant focus for the Department centers on Member security
in their home states and districts. With funding provided by Congress
for the purpose of enhanced member protection, the Department created
the Protective Intelligence Operations Center (PIOC). The PIOC serves
as the Department's fusion center by centralizing Member protection
functions, to include investigations intake, air operations monitoring,
the tracking of Congressional details, intelligence analysis, and the
Department's newly created residential security program. This new
protection model allows the Department to increase its ability to
protect Members whether they are in or away from the Capitol Complex.
recruitment and retention
When I joined the Department nearly 3 years ago, I recognized that
staffing was a critical vulnerability. In fact, the Department had been
understaffed for years. It took January 6 and the pandemic to make that
clear. I immediately took action to maximize our capacity to hire and
train new recruits to build the Department's bench strength, and I am
proud of what we have accomplished to date. The Department simply
cannot operate without the women and men who protect, serve, and
support our mission, day in and day out. They are tough, resilient, and
committed. I cannot emphasize that enough.
Thus, our FY 2025 budget request focuses heavily on increases to
both sworn and civilian staffing levels. We are requesting $642 million
to fund salaries and benefits for 2,247 sworn employees and 583
civilian employees. This represents approximately 75 percent of the
Department's total annual budget request and includes funding to cover
items such as overtime costs and to support the Department's student
loan repayment program.
As we approach the next election, the Department's staffing posture
could not be more critical. The demands on our staff have already
accelerated as we prepare for upcoming conventions and Member
campaigns, while simultaneously handling an increasing workload as we
investigate and deter threats, plan and coordinate large-scale events,
and deploy specialty units to manage demonstrations--all while
protecting Congress, staff, and the public on a daily basis. But our
efforts are paying off and we are on the right track. Indeed, the
Inspector General noted in a recent report that the Department has
improved internal and external coordination of major events with an
enhanced emphasis on inter-agency crisis management.
One of the most critical aspects in protecting the Campus, Members,
staff and visitors is the ability to utilize mutual aid from our law
enforcement partners in the National Capitol Region (NCR) and
throughout the country. This aid acts as a force multiplier for large
scale events at the Capitol, or to assist in the protection of Members
and their families when outside of the NCR. I would like to thank this
Committee and the Congress for providing the vital funding for the USCP
to reimburse agencies who assist the Department by supplying mutual aid
and look forward to working with the Committee to extend this critical
tool.
Increasing the Department's ranks continues to be a key priority,
for both sworn and civilian personnel. The FY 2025 budget request
emphasizes the centrality of this objective to the Department's overall
strategic plan. Given the increasing number of threats, it is not
surprising that the bulk of our staffing efforts are focused on the
continued expansion of the Department's Protective Services Bureau, or
PSB, which includes the Dignitary Protection Division. As threats to
Members of Congress, their families, and staff continue to dominate our
attention, the Department has been forced to shift resources to support
threat-based protective details, Congressional events outside of the
U.S. Capitol grounds, residential security assignments, and Member
escort details. These efforts cannot succeed without increased funding.
We have made--and continue to make--good use of the funding
Congress has provided to us thus far. Specific, new initiatives to
increase our PSB ranks include a program to recruit lateral, entry-
level, and reemployed annuitants. The program provides a direct path
for external applicants to fill Special Agent or Investigator
positions. While the Department continues to hire from within, this new
recruitment campaign has provided another mechanism to increase
staffing levels across all operational areas by expanding the scope of
our applicant pool. The Department's FY 2025 budget request reflects
this new hiring strategy and includes funding to support an increase of
126 Special Agents, half through these new, external hiring initiatives
and half through internal selection.
While the Department's efforts to expand staffing are robust and
remain our number one priority, we, like other law enforcement
agencies, face challenges recruiting qualified personnel. Nation-wide,
law enforcement agencies are experiencing record levels of attrition.
Compounding the problem is the fact that officers hired during the
post-9/11 surge are now eligible--or required--to retire. In addition
to the new hiring initiatives described above, the Department's budget
provides funding to continue our strategy of hiring and training 288
new recruits every year to increase sworn capabilities within Uniformed
Operations. Equally important to the Department's efforts to maintain
its operational posture are the administrative and support functions
that are the backbone of the Department. Without an adequately staffed
administrative infrastructure, particularly in the Offices of Human
Resources and Information Services, the Department's operational
mission cannot be maintained, much less enhanced.
With the support of Congress, the Department's staffing levels have
increased, but we still have more to do, especially as we work to
right-size the organization and curb overtime to support more
sustainable work-life balances for our workforce. A key element of this
effort came in FY 2023, when the USCP, at the request of Congress,
hired an outside vendor to conduct an extensive, Department-wide
analysis of the five pillars that make up the organization--mission,
staffing, structure, training, and technology. The result was the
Concept of Operations report, which was delivered at the end of
February of this year. The Concept of Operations report provides 30
recommendations, as well as a valuable framework and implementation
roadmap that will allow the Department to develop a model for
integrated decisionmaking and strategic planning to better inform
future operations and resource requirements. The Department is
currently in the process of evaluating the recommendations to consider
which to implement and how. While this work is ongoing, the Department
has included funding in the FY 2025 budget request to build the initial
infrastructure in three areas--staffing, training, and technology--that
closely align with USCP initiatives already underway.
conclusion
The events of January 6 shifted the Department's priorities and
accelerated the timeline for executing them. The Department and its
workforce have risen to meet the evolving demands placed on the USCP in
recent years. From addressing over 95% of the OIG January 6
recommendations, to implementing the reorganization, to developing
innovative hiring strategies, the Department has made great strides.
None of this would have been possible without the support of this
subcommittee.
However, as I stated at the outset, we are not done. There is more
work to do. And we must do it within the context of a strategic,
holistic, and deliberate strategy. Long term strategies take time to
develop and implement in a coordinated fashion. Working in close
collaboration with the Congress, I am confident that our upward
trajectory will continue.
Thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today. I look
forward to your questions.
Senator Reed. Well, thank you very much, Chief and General.
The first question, which I pose to all of our witnesses, is
that in this very difficult budget time, if you have to operate
close to the 2024 budget, what are the key elements that you
will lose?
Could you allude to that, General?
General Gibson. Certainly. Thank you, Senator. I have given
this question, and my whole team has given this question, a lot
of thought. First, I would start with the reasons why our
budget continues to grow. First is inflationary factors, which
account for a significant portion of the $3 million additional
dollars we are seeking for State Office Operations, in that
Senators haven't moved to different offices, they are not more
lavish spaces, and they aren't bigger, but the landlords have
raised the rent, and that is not something we control.
Similarly, the $775,000 for the Economic Allocation Fund is
the cost of purchasing the same equipment we always have for
offices. And even the COLA, the Senate authorized Cost of
Living Allowance, reflects that inflation.
Another reason our budget continues to grow is new programs
that we have begun, such as, the Residential Security System
Program and the Stars of Valor Fellowships Program. A third
reason would be numerous modernization projects. I could list a
number of those.
The final reason, and really this is a key driver that we
should discuss separately in greater detail, is the costs
associated with operating in the digital domain. While we may
be recording votes by pencil in the Chamber, the demand and
reliance on data elsewhere is booming, and the costs of
managing, storing, and securing data are going up for a broad
number of reasons, particularly when you operate in the unique
way that the Senate does. I would like to explore that
separately with the committee.
If we had a flat-line budget, first, we would institute a
hiring freeze. I would inform Sergeant at Arms' employees not
to expect, probably, a cost of living allowance in 2025. I
think we could look at some of those new projects or
modernization efforts and either postpone them or downscale
them. Hearing room renovations could be slowed. We could slow
the pace of the Stars of Valor Fellowships. We could postpone
things like electronic gallery passes.
The two other areas we could look at would be accepting
greater risk, particularly for cybersecurity, or changing some
of our standard ways of operating, specifically related to the
way we retain, store, and secure data.
Before making any of those changes, I would consult with
this Committee, with the Committee on Rules and Administration,
and with the bipartisan Senate leadership. I think that would
be a very useful conversation for us to have, regardless of the
budget outcome.
Senator Reed. Thank you, General.
Chief, the same question; if you have a flat-line budget,
what do you have to sacrifice?
Mr. Manger. So we have made tremendous strides over the
last 3 years in terms of addressing the deficiencies, the
shortcomings, the failures that were identified after January
6. And much of that required additional staffing. Certainly a
recognition that just staffing to fill the number of posts that
we might have around the complex is not going to help us in
terms of the increasing workload due to threats, you look at
the number of demonstrations that we are handling, and that
sort of thing.
So I think that if we were not able to get the additional
resources that we are asking for, we would have to go back to
just making sure we were just staffing all the necessary posts.
But some of the advances that we have made in terms of our
response capability to demonstrations, to a lot of the large
events that occur in and around the Capitol, we would go back
to having to hold officers over, pull them off posts, backfill
with overtime, which was the model for many years here. And we
have tried to get away from that for a number of reasons. But
we would go back to more of that model.
But I think that what would be most frustrating is that I
have talked for, the last couple of years, and I think the
committee is aware of the increase in the number of threats
that we are dealing with today compared to four or 5 years ago.
And it shows no sign of abating. And so our ability to address
those threats, investigate those threats, provide additional
safety and security for staff, for members, for the district
staffs across the country, would be halted.
Because much of what we are asking for in this budget is
directly related to member security and safety with regard to
those threats. And I think that we would continue to struggle
to keep up with the workload because we would not have the
additional staffing that we need to really investigate those
cases the way we would like to.
Senator Reed. Thank you. General, the chief information
officer of your office is using the ServiceNow Governance,
Risk, and Compliance module to automate identification. You
talked about the need for much more sophisticated cyber
operations. How is this implementation going?
General Gibson. That implementation, Senator, is going
well. We have been pleased. ServiceNow is a top-tier industrial
product that is used across many sectors of the economy. It is
modern and it is secure. It allows for improved business
processes and office productivity. It offers faster deployment
of technical services and ability to scale quickly. It provides
us with useful trends that allow us to allocate resources as
needed for issues that pop up on our networks. We also use it
for IT service management, otherwise known as the ``help
desk''.
Some of our budget request for fiscal year 2025 is to
migrate a number of other discrete, kind of bespoke,
disconnected platforms across the Senate to ServiceNow. We
think that will serve us well.
Senator Reed. In this year's budget, you are asking for
ServiceNow, Information Technology Operations Management
module, which I presume is an enhanced version of the current
system. And what will that add?
General Gibson. What we would like to do is migrate three
additional systems that people currently access elsewhere to
ServiceNow. One is CAPFOR, which is how offices ask for items
for Capitol office spaces, such as keys, furniture, special
cleaning services, and room rearrangment.
Another is Asset Manager. It is a separate discrete system
that maintains an inventory of all the equipment that is issued
to offices. The third system is TranSAAct. TranSAAct is more
than 20 years old. The code is so old it is very difficult to
modify. In fact, we pay several million dollars for coders who
can still keep that system going. We would like to migrate
those three systems in fiscal year 2025 to ServiceNow.
Senator Reed. Thank you. Well, as someone who studied basic
at West Point, maybe I could qualify for your new----
General Gibson. Senator, we are always hiring.
Senator Reed. Thank you. Thank you. It is nice of to know.
Senator Fischer, please.
Senator Fischer. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I have a question
for both of you to begin, please. In fiscal year 2024, the
Legislative Branch Act provided significant increases to both
the agencies for expenses, salary, hiring new personnel. As we
know, the bill came halfway through the fiscal year, giving you
limited time to implement those increases. I want to hear how
executing the fiscal year 2024 funding increases, how that is
going, particularly how the pace of hiring the newly funded FTE
positions is progressing?
As we face a difficult outlook here for fiscal year 2025, I
think it is important to make sure that your agencies can fully
implement those fiscal year 2024 resources and hiring before we
consider fiscal year 2025.
So Chief, would you like to begin, please?
Mr. Manger. It is always a challenge when you can get the
positions, but the challenge is, can you actually recruit,
hire, and train the people and actually get them out in the
field. I know this from my previous jobs where I worked years,
and years, and years and seemed to never be able to get ahead
of attrition. I can tell you that for the last 3 years, we have
not only gotten ahead of attrition, but we have added around
100 additional sworn officers each year.
And so this is great news, especially when you look around
the country at what is happening in police departments around
the country that are having no success in increasing their
numbers.
So there is a lot of reasons for that, and many of them are
the support that this Committee and Congress has given the
Capitol Police so that we are competitive, both for sworn and
civilian ranks, when we advertise a position, we are
competitive in terms of being able to compete with other
government agencies, other law enforcement agencies.
I certainly have to give a shout-out to my recruiting folks
who do a phenomenal job at making sure the interest and the
number of applications that we get continues to be through the
roof.
Senator Fischer. Are you on pace with allocating those
resources? Are you ahead of schedule on them? My concern is,
you had a late start with the resources that you were given
there. Where are you on that? Do you feel pretty comfortable
with how it is going?
Mr. Manger. Yes, I do. In fact, we were looking at this
year, we are doing an academy class every month, we looked at
this year and actually had to make sure that we weren't running
over our allocation, because we were keeping up. Yes, we are
doing better with sworn, we are still working on the civilian
side as well, but we are making progress with both.
Senator Fischer. Good. General, how are you doing?
General Gibson. Senator, if I may, I would like to provide
the specific details and numbers separately following the
hearing. I can tell you in some areas we have done well, and
one area, specifically, remains a challenge. For additional
security positions, such as the Residential Security System
Program, we have made progress to fill our positions. Those
positions are very important to our execution of the security
mission.
Hiring for the Employee Assistance Program has not been an
issue, nor has it been an issue to hire staff to synchronize
activities across the Sergeant at Arms, including for our
interaction with the Rules Committee. I think we have seen a
benefit there, as well as in some additional hiring for our
Continuity of Government Programs.
The key area where we remain challenged is in the CIO. We
have double digits of vacancies, may be over 30, hence the
request for only four additional positions for the CIO in
fiscal year 2025. We recognize that we do still have many
vacancies to fill there. That is probably our greatest
challenge.
Senator Fischer. Okay. So you are being realistic about the
request that you are making----
General Gibson. I believe so. Yes. Yes.
Senator Fischer [continuing]. When you know you have a lot
more vacancies, but you are realistic in that area.
General Gibson. Particularly in that area, yes.
Senator Fischer. Good. Thank you.
Senator Reed. Well, thank you very much, Senator Fischer,
let me----
Senator Fischer. I was still going.
Senator Reed. Oh. I am sorry.
Senator Fischer. Did you think I was buzzing out, Mr.
Chairman?
Senator Reed. My mistake. I apologize.
Senator Fischer. General Gibson, the request highlights
that for fiscal year 2024 and fiscal year 2025, the priority
for the Office of Security, Emergency Preparedness, and
Continuity its modernization of security capabilities,
particularly Campus access control improvements, and predictive
threat analysis through open source monitoring and software. I
would like to know more about those efforts that you are
having. What improvements is the SAA making in access control,
and how do all these new technologies factor in that, please?
General Gibson. Access control, Senator, is largely the
installation of proximity card readers in a number of offices.
Unfortunately, as we began to install these, it was slower than
many people hoped. It is very much a group effort, and I
believe we are on track now. We have prioritized requests from
the offices and committees. We have worked together with the
Architect of the Capitol and the Capitol Police to streamline
the design for those systems and order parts in advance. We
hold project meetings twice a month, and we have regular,
transparent reporting to the Rules Committee on the progress of
proximity card reader installation.
In terms of threat tracking, it is really less about the
introduction of additional technologies, and more about the
infusion of some very strong leadership on our team. I see
great value-add in the research and the additional analysis
that has been done regarding the threats that are being
identified against senators, as well as a much closer
collaboration and partnership with the Capitol Police.
I look forward to the stand-up of the PIOC, the Protective
Intelligence Operations Center. We will have a seat in there as
we do in the Command Center, and I think that will be a very,
very useful and fruitful partnership.
Senator Fischer. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Reed. Well, thank you, Senator Fisher. I apologize
for being preemptive. Truly.
Let me recognize Chairman Murray, please.
Senator Murray. Thank you, Chair Reed. This hearing is
really important because the Office of the Senate Sergeant at
Arms and the Capitol Police do work that is absolutely critical
to every single one of us on this Committee.
Sergeant Gibson, Chief Manger, I want to thank both of you
and all of your teams for all that you do. Every member, every
staffer, every visitor here in our Nation's Capitol owes you a
huge debt of gratitude for keeping this place running and
keeping it safe. So it is important to me, the work you do and
the sacrifices your team makes never go unacknowledged or get
taken for granted.
At every hour, whether it is weekends, holidays, every
single day, members of the Capitol Police are here making sure
that we have security of the Nation's Capitol, and we all
probably walked by several of them as we came here. So I want
both of you to know that I think I speak for all of our
colleagues when I say we are incredibly grateful for the work
you do, and I want to make sure we get you the resources that
you need in the year ahead.
And before I do get to my questions, I do understand that
you lost an officer this morning. Echoing my colleagues from
earlier, I want to extend my condolences to the Officer's
family and to your entire Department.
Chief Manger, let me start with you. The Department has
worked really hard to recruit and train and deploy the
necessary personnel to address the increased mission
requirements resulting from the current threat environment
towards Congress. Do you have sufficient personnel to support
the Dignitary Protection Division and meet your operational
mission without burning out your current protective agents?
Mr. Manger. In a word, no. That was one of the priorities
in the last couple of years to ensure that we increase the
staffing in our Dignitary Protection Division. The demand has
increased, and in fact, the model in which we provide
protection needed to be enhanced as well for a number of
reasons.
I know that we have officers that work double shifts
routinely. We have to stop that. It is not healthy for the
officers, and it is not really a healthy way for us to schedule
people, knowing that people have to work the amount of overtime
that some of these agents have to work. So you will see in the
fiscal year 2025 year budget requests for additional personnel,
as you saw in fiscal year 2024, and I think that is one of the
priorities for us.
Senator Murray. Good. You answered Senator Fischer on
recruitment. How is recruitment going for that? Do you need the
additional slots, or is it the recruitment?
Mr. Manger. We need the additional slots, and in addition
to the recruiting on just the Uniformed Service side where you
get a lot of uniformed services officers that want to move into
that career opportunity and work DPD. We are also instituting
another strategy where we are hiring people straight into, to
be dignitary protection agents. And so we have got both of
those strategies to try and ensure that we are recruiting----
Senator Murray. And how is recruitment going on that?
Mr. Manger. It is going okay. That was just started. I
think we have only gotten one class through so far, of the
folks that we hired directly to DPD. So it is something we just
started. And if we get the positions, I think we will have no
trouble finding folks that either want to come directly in, or
some of these younger officers who are looking to become
special agents and work in DPD.
Senator Murray. Okay. With the increased threat levels that
we are seeing, how are things going with the enhancement of the
Department's Protective Intelligence Capability?
Mr. Manger. It is going well. It is just trying to keep up
with the caseload. And I think what we have in place is
working, but it is the volume that we have got to address. And
so we have got good folks, good training, I think with the
partnership with the folks in our Intelligence Bureau, working
with our Investigations Division, we have got a good system. We
just need more people. And that is the reason for the request
in the fiscal year 2025 budget.
Senator Murray. Okay. And Sergeant Gibson, the SSA
requested two full-time equivalent positions to support the
Senate Intern Resource Office. How will this office actually
support Senate interns while also maintaining the independence
of Senate employing offices?
General Gibson. Certainly. Thank you, Senator, for that
question. This office would be intended to complement offices'
efforts and certainly not in any way be redundant, duplicative
or competitive. Our intent would be, in partnership with the
Secretary of the Senate, to promulgate and share best practices
for hiring, to provide a draft handbook for offices, and to
offer guidance, training, support, and assistance to interns
regarding their working environment. We want to connect with
offices on funding rules and regulations for internships to
ensure those are commonly understood and followed.
We also hope to coordinate and facilitate a variety of
seminars and programs that could be standardized across various
Senate offices. Perhaps special tours that are offered, like
climbing to the top of the Dome, or meeting with other offices
in the Senate, perhaps the Parliamentarian's Office, where
interns could learn about the Senate as an institution. We
would work to make things like that available to interns of
every office and committee.
Senator Murray. Okay, thank you.
General Gibson. Um-hum.
Senator Murray. And Sergeant Gibson, let me ask you about
the Residential Security System Program, it is an important
part, I know, of this multi-layered security plan for senators
and their families. How is the implementation of that going?
General Gibson. I think it is going well, Senator. Thank
you. We have obligated and expensed approximately $4 million
since fiscal year 24 appropriations bill was enacted. We have
signed memorandums of understanding with 19 senators.
Senator Murray. So we are seeing increased use?
General Gibson. Oh, yes. Yes. And I would highlight, we
have had, in the last 5 years, 122 residential security
assessments of senators. Considering that there are probably
190, 185 Senate residences, if you count Washington and Home
States, 123 of those, have had residential security assessments
that we conduct with the Capitol Police.
Senator Murray. And are you confident that the requested
funding level is sufficient to support the requests that you
are getting for this?
General Gibson. It has been thus far. I think if every
senator signed a memorandum of understanding for their home, we
might need to seek additional funding. But to date, it has been
adequate.
Senator Murray. Okay, thank you. And thank you, Mr.
Chairman. And I think it is really critical that we all
understand the importance of making sure this Committee has the
resources it needs for the personnel. So thank you.
Thank you very much, Madam Chairman.
Senator Van Hollen, please.
Senator Van Hollen. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And thank both
of you for your service and your testimony.
And Chief Manger, I am sorry about the loss of one of your
officers recently.
And for those of my colleagues who don't know this, Chief
Manger at one point was the chief of police in Montgomery
County, Maryland, my home county. And we were very glad to
share him with the United States Congress. Thank you for all
your work.
And to Sergeant at Arms Gibson, thank you as well.
So my question is to really both of you, in turn, which is,
you know, we are at a very polarized time in our country,
politically. We all witnessed the attacks on the Capitol of
January 6, 2001 (sic). We don't know what the outcome of the
November elections will be, but what we do know is we should be
prepared for anything. So what each of your offices doing to
prepare for the inauguration? And what each of your offices
doing to prepare for whatever day it is that we count the
ballots?
Maybe starting with you, Chief Manger.
Mr. Manger. So we have spent the last three-and-a-half
years preparing for the election, the next January 6, or
whenever we count the ballots, and the next inauguration. And I
will tell you, with confidence; that we are prepared for those.
We still have work to do in terms of sustained--you know,
building a model that can be sustained for years to come. But
we are ready for these events upcoming.
Much of this has to do with staffing, but it also has to do
with training. It has to do with equipment. And it has to do,
much to do with our ability to get mutual aid here on the
Campus when we need it. And the funding that this Committee and
Congress gave to us to get that mutual aid, to be able to
reimburse police agencies that assist us, whether they are
assisting us here on this Campus, which we have done many, many
times, or assist us across the country with events that perhaps
we can't get out to, but they can provide the security, has
been invaluable.
And so just that we--there were things that we needed to do
over the last 3 years just to provide the protection, security,
and safety that we needed to on this campus every day. And we
have accomplished so many things and we are in a good position
right now.
As I mentioned earlier, I think that the number of threats,
the caseload there of investigations that we have to do, some
of the follow-up that is required in some of those
investigations, that is where we need to continue to increase
our staffing so we can keep up with that increased workload.
But I can assure you that we are positioned exactly where we
need to be and we will be prepared for the next inauguration.
Senator Van Hollen. Thank you. Thank you, Chief.
General Gibson. Thank you, Senator. I would like to
highlight some of the things that have changed since January,
2021. First, from a physical security perspective, the House
and Senate Sergeants at Arms, together with the Architect of
the Capitol and the Chief of Police, conducted a Campus
physical security assessment in 2022, and then prioritized
funding to address shortcomings and to reinforce the building
and the grounds.
We now have a 24-hour fence, which you may have seen
deployed several times. It can go up very rapidly and come down
rapidly. We have developed standardized guidelines, as a
Capitol Police Board, for determining when the fence should go
up. The Capitol Police Board itself, I think, has demonstrated
a much more sound decisionmaking process than what was
evidenced in 2021.
And I say that having been part of a team that, on behalf
of the House of Representatives in February 2021, looked at the
shortcomings of the Capitol Police and House security in the
wake of January 6.
We also have processes in place now, as the chief has
mentioned, for requests for assistance, whether that is mutual
aid from other law enforcement or from the Department of
Defense. The processes are understood, and the requests can be
generated relatively rapidly. And very importantly, we have the
legislation that allows the chief of police to declare an
emergency and ask for assistance without having to convene the
Capitol Police Board to approve his actions in advance.
There have also been significant improvements in
intelligence: he lash-up with other agencies, the elevation of
the intelligence function within the Capitol Police Department
to a Bureau, and hiring very qualified professionals to work
there, who are working very closely with a broad variety of law
enforcement.
I receive those briefings and updates, and I can tell you
they are much superior to what was in place several years ago.
From a Sergeant at Arms perspective, we have increased our
ability to have situational understanding and awareness of what
is happening. I was at a meeting this morning off Campus, and I
was receiving near real-time updates on what was happening with
the suspicious package that was delivered at the RNC
Headquarters, just south of the Capitol.
We also have an ability to communicate that information and
have refined our systems after a couple of hiccups to
communicate what is happening from a security perspective to
the Senate community. We have also hired more trauma-informed
counselors for our Employee Assistance Program to instill a
greater sense of psychological safety on the part of staff,
some of whom were quite shaken on January 6. So we are
strengthening our mental readiness.
The Department has also put in place some very
standardized, structured and disciplined event planning
processes and teams, and we participate in that. We are
committed to a robust planning process for January 6, and for
the inauguration, and are already having discussions with
Secret Service, FBI, and others about what is expected on those
days.
Senator Van Hollen. Well, thank you. Thank you both. That
is reassuring. I do want to say something about the mutual aid,
because it is a reminder that not only were Capitol Hill Police
attacked on that day, so were police from the District of
Columbia, and other places. I am glad we are getting more
prepared.
On the issue of the fence, I want to thank you and the
Sergeant at Arms Office for working with me, and former Senator
Blunt, and others. We were very opposed to having a fence that
created a fortress-like atmosphere because we want the Capitol
to be open, but we also wanted to make sure that when
necessary, we had the means to put in those barriers. So thank
you for working on that.
And on your internship program, I am glad you are putting
that together as someone who is very instrumental in creating
the Senate-paid Internship Program. We look forward to working
with you and your office on that.
General Gibson. Thank you, Senator.
Senator Van Hollen. Thank you.
Senator Reed. Thank you very much, Senator Van Hollen. Let
me ask a few more questions, and then recognize Senator
Fischer.
Chief, one of the issues that has always been prevalent
over the last several years is the excess overtime you have to
charge. Can you give us a sense of whether we are retaining and
hiring enough personnel so that overtime is not such a critical
issue?
Mr. Manger. It is getting better. We still have a ways to
go. Not that anyone wants a history lesson, but the Capitol
Police was chronically understaffed for many, many years. And
so we are getting to a point, and I can tell you, especially on
the uniformed services side, we are now doing things the way
they should have been done for a long time. I mean, we are not
having to pull an officer off a post every time a demonstration
occurs, every time something occurs on the Plaza. We have folks
that are able to be first responders to events without having
to pull people off posts and then backfill them with overtime.
So it is improving. But the reason I keep asking for
additional positions, especially on the protection services
side, is because we are understaffed on DPD. We don't have--we
are still making people work double shifts, and the overtime is
still much higher than it should be for an Agency to keep their
officers well rested and healthy.
So as we continue to add agents that are doing threat
investigations, as we continue to add agents that are being--
for dignitary protection, you will see the overtime demands go
down in those bureaus as well.
Senator Reed. Very good. I believe, and I might be in
error, that at one time you coordinated with local police for
dignitary protection when an individual member is in their home
district or elsewhere. Is that still the case?
Mr. Manger. We still do have memorandums of understanding
with departments across the country to assist us when needed to
provide protection, whether it is threat based or whether it is
a member who has a detail.
Senator Reed. All right. General, one of the issues you
mentioned is the Employee Assistance Program as a critical
resource, and you also alluded to the mobile application. Could
you amplify what you mean by that and how critical it is?
General Gibson. Certainly. Thank you, Senator. We have seen
nothing but an increase in demand for the services of EAP. It
is a tremendous way to improve the overall health and wellness
of the workforce. We have expanded our staff considerably, and
we now extend the hours when appointments can be made from 8:00
in the morning to 9:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. These are
considerable investments. They are very worthy investments. We
think they improve productivity of offices, and they help with
employee retention. Many staff feel very stressed, whether it
is from the work environment here at the Capitol, or in a State
Office where staff may be confronting very disgruntled, unhappy
constituents, or just the stress of life itself. Having a
resource like EAP can make the difference between choosing to
continue serving the Senate, or saying this is too much, I have
got to find another place to work. When that happens, the
Senate office is faced with hiring and training a new person to
perform that work.
We want to build an EAP app because, even though 99 percent
of Senate offices have had someone in the last year who used
Employee Assistance Program resources, it is really important
to increase the availability of the resources at any time, and
to lower any sense of stigma that might be felt for seeking
that kind of assistance.
We can lower those barriers by increasing accessibility and
access to information, making it available on a phone, and
providing some early intervention and perhaps some health
assessment tools. We can boost employee engagement and track
personal wellness. There are a variety of other things that we
think we can do that will both lower that barrier to access and
decrease stigma, and that will enable employees to have EAP
access at any time.
Senator Reed. So if an employee feels particularly
stressed, they can get on the app and be connected to a
counselor quickly?
General Gibson. Potentially, I think if it was a real
emergency. But I think it would be perhaps some meditation
tools and resources that you could see who to call for this,
who to call for that, if it really is an emergency.
Senator Reed. Very good. Thank you.
Senator Fischer, please.
Senator Fischer. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
General Gibson, as you know, the Rules Committee has now
released the regulations for the fellowship programs for our
Wounded and Disabled Veterans and Gold Star family members.
Congress provided SAA with $6.3 million to set up the program.
These are really, I think, important fellowship programs. The
fellows and the Senate as a whole are going to benefit from
them. With the regulations that are now released, and funding
on hand, can you give us an update on the fellowships and a
time line, if you have a time line in place, on when we may be
expecting to see our first group of fellows?
General Gibson. Thank you, Senator. I would like to provide
the detailed time line separately. When you asked the question
about which of our vacancies we have been able to fill, this is
one we were able to fill. Lindsey Brand is the coordinator. She
is a veteran and a former fellowship holder, and she feels very
strongly about this program. She is a fantastic person, very
enthusiastic, a great person to have leading this program.
I think we will begin to see some fellows towards the end
of this year. Lindsey is a recent employee of ours and has
begun to work with the Rules Committee. I would like to provide
the detailed time line of when we will see our fellows
arriving, but we are very excited about this program. Thank
you.
Senator Fischer. Thank you very much. For both of you, it
is extremely important, obviously, that the Capitol Campus both
has its physical security and its cyber security. That is also
important for our State offices and staff as well. How is the
threat environment out there towards our State offices? I know
it varies by members, varies by States, but how is that
evolving, and how do your agencies coordinate with those State
offices when it comes to physical security?
General Gibson. Senator, thank you for the question. Our
State Office Operations team and our Senate Operations Center
coordinate daily with State offices. In terms of the threat,
there are also environmental threats that we track very
closely, including tornadoes, floods, and other things that may
threaten Senate offices. There is typically an awareness if
that is going to happen at the local level already, but we
certainly track those very closely as well as any kind of
damage that may result. We are also able to share information
very promptly about potential demonstrations, and then alert
the Capitol Police to work with local law enforcement when that
is needed.
We notify State offices if there is a demonstration planned
outside their building, perhaps sometimes even targeting their
office. Then those offices can make a decision if they want to
close early that day, or if they want to telework. We
communicate that kind of information as we receive it.
We are very thankful for the legislation, as I mentioned in
my opening comments, that ensure security enhancements don't
count as part of the square footage allowances for State
offices. And we have made a strong push to create secure
reception areas, as modeled in the State Office Demonstration
Room in the basement of the Russell Senate Office Building.
We are working through a pilot to provide ballistic film on
some office windows that will not appear, to Senator Van
Hollen's comments, like a fortress, but it will add additional
security, and we are very excited about that.
You did ask about the threat. I think there have always
been angry constituents. By having some of these security
measures in place can help, even if it is simply a camera and a
locked door. We have specific instances we can point to where
staff saw someone in full tactical gear outside their office
buzzing the button, and staff did not open the door. We have
had people who have taken baseball bats to secure reception
areas' glass, and the glass has held.
I think these security enhancements are really important.
The most critical thing we can do, though, to keep those folks
secure is to ensure they are trained and that they know things
like keeping the door locked.
Senator Fischer. Yes. Thank you.
Mr. Manger. So I think General Gibson had a very good,
comprehensive answer. I just would add one issue of swatting.
This is we have seen it, it sort of comes in waves, and so we
have been working with, I know that 911 centers around the
country have been trying to do a better job at identifying
those swatting calls and not just dispatching them without any
context.
And I also am aware that the FBI is actually making a
little bit more headway in terms of making some arrests, many
of them overseas, so the more arrests we can make, the more
deterrence there might be from people trying to, you know,
continue this activity.
Senator Fischer. Very good. Thank you. Thank you, Mr.
Chairman.
Senator Reed. Well, thank you very much, Senator Fischer.
And let me thank you, General Gibson, and Chief Manger.
This concludes the Legislative Branch Appropriations
Subcommittee Hearing regarding fiscal year 2025 funding for the
Senate, Sergeant at Arms, and the United States Capitol Police.
Again, I thank General Gibson and Chief Manger for
testifying today.
ADDITIONAL COMMITTEE QUESTIONS
The hearing record will remain open for 7 days, allowing
Members to submit statements and/or questions for the record,
which should be sent to the subcommittee by close of business
on Wednesday, May 29, 2024.
[The following questions were not asked at the hearing, but
were submitted to the agencies for response subsequent to the
hearing:]
No questions were submitted for the record.
CONCLUSION OF HEARINGS
Senator Reed. This concludes the scheduled hearings for
fiscal year 2025 budget request from Legislative Branch
agencies.
The committee now stands adjourned.
[Whereupon, at 3:30 p.m., Wednesday, May 22, subcommittee
was recessed, to reconvene subject to the call of the Chair.]
LIST OF WITNESSES, COMMUNICATIONS, AND PREPARED STATEMENTS
----------
Page
Architect of the Capitol, Questions Submitted to................. 73
DiPietro, Joseph R., Acting Architect, Architect of the Capitol:
Prepared Statement of........................................ 62
Statement of................................................. 61
Dodaro, Hon. Gene, Comptroller General, Government Accountability
Office:
Questions Submitted to....................................... 40
Statement of................................................. 4
Fischer, Deb, U.S. Senator From Nebraska, Opening Statement of
Gibson, Honorable Karen H., Sergeant at Arms and Doorkeeper of
the Senate, Prepared Statement of.............................. 79
Halpern, Honorable Hugh Nathanial, Director, Government
Publishing Office:
Prepared Statement of........................................ 15
Questions Submitted to....................................... 41
Statement of................................................. 15
Hayden, Hon. Dr. Carla, The Librarian of Congress:
Prepared Statement of........................................ 49
Statement of................................................. 48
Library of Congress, Questions Submitted to...................... 73
Manger, J. Thomas, Chief, United States Capitol Police:
Prepared Statement of........................................ 85
Statement of................................................. 84
Newlen, Robert Randolph, Director, Congressional Research
Service, Prepared Statement of................................. 57
Perlmutter, Shira, Register of Copyrights and Director, U.S.
Copyright Office, Prepared Statement of........................ 52
Reed, Senator Jack, U.S. Senator From Rhode Island:
Opening Statement of
Questions Submitted by
Swagel, Hon. Dr. Phillip Director, Congressional Budget Office:
Questions Submitted to....................................... 43
Statement of................................................. 21
SUBJECT INDEX
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Page
ARCHITECT OF THE CAPITOL
I. Overview...................................................... 63
II. Supporting the Senate Community.............................. 63
III. Modern Management of Aging Infrastructure................... 64
IV. Recognizing Employee Accomplishments & Meeting Mission
Requirements................................................... 64
V. Conclusion.................................................... 64
`A Library For All' Mission and Status........................... 71
Additional Committee Questions................................... 73
Budget Levels and Agency Impacts................................. 64
Impact of Flat Budget in Fiscal 2025............................. 73
Library:
Collection Storage........................................... 72
Information Technology Priorities............................ 65
Staff Attrition and Recruitment.............................. 70
Library's Digital Collections & Strategy......................... 68
Library's Visitor Experience..................................... 67
CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
Additional Committee Questions................................... 40
CBO:
Budget Request and its Consequences for Staffing and Output.. 24
Enhancing Transparency....................................... 28
Requested Information and Authorities........................ 26
Strengthening Responsiveness................................. 28
Impact to GAO of a Flatline Fiscal Year 2025 Allocation.......... 31
__________
__________
GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE
Fiscal Year 2025 Budget Request.................................. 6
GAO's Mission.................................................... 14
Connect.......................................................... 14
__________
GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
A Snapshot of GPO's Business..................................... 17
Breaking Down GPO's Revenue...................................... 18
Building the Tools to Deliver on the Vision of an America
Informed....................................................... 18
Charting a Course for the Future................................. 16
GPO's FY 2025 Appropriations Request............................. 19
Making Government Information Available to the Public............ 18
Production....................................................... 17
Some Key Accomplishments......................................... 19
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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
Additional Committee Questions................................... 73
Architect of the Capitol......................................... 45
Conclusion....................................................... 61
Continuous Development of Information Technology................. 54
Fiscal:
2024 Re-Submissions.......................................... 51
2025 Budget Request and Program Increases.................... 60
Funding and Update to 2025 Budget Request........................ 56
Key Accomplishments Over the Past Year........................... 53
Service to Congress During Fiscal 2023........................... 57
Strategic Initiatives............................................ 58
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UNITED STATES CAPITOL POLICE
Additional Committee Question.................................... 100
Capitol Complex Protection....................................... 86
Conclusion....................................................... 88
Increasing Threat Climate........................................ 87
Recruitment and Retention........................................ 87
__________
UNITED STATES SERGEANT AT ARMS AND DOORKEEPER OF THE SENATE, UNITED
STATES SENATE
Additional Committee Questions................................... 100
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