[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 112 (Friday, July 25, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Pages S9954-S9955]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY APPROPRIATIONS BILL

  Mr. FEINGOLD. Mr. President, I want to add my thoughts to the debate 
on the Department of Homeland Security appropriations bill for fiscal 
year 2004.
  First, I want to take this opportunity to thank the distinguished 
chairman and distinguished ranking member of the Appropriations 
Subcommittee on Homeland Security for working so diligently on this 
bill before us. These leaders had the difficult job of allocating a 
very limited amount of money for one of the Nation's most pressing 
needs and they have done an admirable job.
  I also thank this Nation's first responders. They are the ones who 
are on the front lines of this fight against terrorism. They are the 
ones who will be the first to react to any future attack upon our 
Nation. These brave men and women must, at a moment's notice, be ready 
to respond to a host of possible horrifying scenarios, including those 
involving nuclear, radiological, biological, and chemical devices.
  Congress has been working hard to support our first responders, 
including providing almost $3.9 billion in this appropriations bill. I 
am particularly pleased that the committee chose to maintain the 
successful firefighter assistance grants and fund them at $750

[[Page S9955]]

million rather than the President's requested $500 million. I thank the 
committee for their wisdom in this matter.
  Although this bill does a lot to help our first responders, it does 
not do enough. As my colleagues know, the Council on Foreign Relations 
recently released the report of an independent task force chaired by 
former Senator Warren B. Rudman. The title of this report says it all: 
``Emergency Responders: Drastically Underfunded, Dangerously 
Unprepared.'' I supported Senator Byrd and others in trying to address 
the drastic underfunding of our first responders pointed out in the 
Rudman Report and am disappointed that we in the Senate were unable to 
do more.
  I point out to my colleagues that I do not take lightly my decision 
to vote in favor of spending more money. Fiscal responsibility is one 
of my highest priorities and I constantly look for ways to limit 
government spending. I am honored that the Concord Coalition and others 
have recognized me for my efforts in this regard. Although fiscal 
responsibility remains one of my highest priorities, the fight against 
terrorism is also a high priority. I regret that the Republican budget 
resolution did not provide adequate funding for homeland security, 
choosing instead to place tax cuts as its highest priority. I agree 
with the distinguished Senators from Connecticut and Michigan that we 
ought to pay for increased funding in this bill by reviewing tax breaks 
for those making over a million dollars. This is a reasonable way to 
approach the current underfunding of this top priority.
  I would like to draw attention to the fact that local first 
responders, emergency preparedness professional associations, and 
others have responded to the tragic events of 9/11 by re-examining 
emergency response procedures, compiling lessons learned, and 
developing new and innovative practices to best deal with possible 
terrorist attacks. Unfortunately, the Rudman Report found that ``(T)he 
task Force found insufficient national coordination of efforts to 
systematically capture and disseminate best practices for emergency 
responders.'' First responders in Wisconsin back up this finding.
  The Department of Homeland Security is supposed to be gathering and 
disseminating first responder best practices to all relevant parties. I 
am concerned that they are not adequately fulfilling their 
responsibility in this area. I understand that the newly formed 
Department of Homeland Security has many important responsibilities and 
is being pulled in many different directions. I am concerned, however, 
that the Department is wasting an important opportunity to increase the 
efficiency of our first responders. The Rudman Report recommends 
establishing a national institute to collect and disseminate best 
practices for first responders. This would ``allow all emergency 
responders to learn from past experiences and improve the quality of 
their efforts, thereby assuring taxpayers the maximum return on their 
investment in homeland security.''
  I offered an amendment directing the Department to report on its 
efforts to assess and disseminate best practices and its plans for 
improving the coordination and sharing of such information. This 
amendment was designed to prompt the Department into action so that all 
of us can reap the benefits of shared best practices. I am pleased that 
the Senate adopted this amendment.
  I am also concerned that in our hasty efforts to protect the homeland 
we may be sacrificing some of our civil liberties. One item of 
particular concern to me is the use of data-mining by the Department of 
Homeland Security. Such programs give the Government the ability to 
peer into virtually every facet of an individual's life, including 
credit card use, bank statements, health records, and on and on. 
Congress must make sure that civil liberties are being protected and so 
must carefully monitor Government entities that may try to use data-
mining technology. I am pleased that the Senate adopted my amendment 
requiring the Comptroller General to conduct a review and report to 
Congress on the development and use of data-mining by the Department of 
Homeland Security.
  I will vote for this bill. This legislation includes many good 
elements, such as the funds available for first responders. However, I 
must also express my disappointment that funding for homeland security, 
one of our highest priorities, is being forced to play second fiddle to 
tax cuts. This is unacceptable and I hope we in Congress will soon 
rectify this situation.

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