[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 91 (Friday, July 1, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1422-E1424]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    FBI MAKING PROGRESS ADAPTING TO NEW ROLE, BUT MORE NEEDS TO BE 
                              ACCOMPLISHED

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. FRANK R. WOLF

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, June 30, 2005

  Mr. WOLF. Mr. Speaker, I held a news conference today to provide an 
update on actions taken by the Science-State-Justice-Commerce, SSJC, 
Appropriations subcommittee, which I chair, in assisting the FBI in its 
transformation efforts since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 
2001.
  I submit for the record my press statement as well as a white paper 
which outlines in detail the SSJC subcommittee's work:

                            Press Statement

                   (By Representative Frank R. Wolf)

       Good morning. Thank you for coming.
       As chairman of the subcommittee with oversight of the FBI, 
     I wanted to provide you with an update of the Science-State-
     Judiciary-Commerce subcommittee's role in the transformation 
     of the FBI since 9/11 now that our bill has cleared the 
     House.
       9/11 changed America forever. Terrorism is no longer just 
     something you read about happening somewhere else in the 
     world. Terrorism came to our shores on 9/11. Everyone always 
     will remember where they were and what they were doing on 9/
     11. More than 30 people from my congressional district were 
     killed on 9/11; the pilot of the plane flown into the 
     Pentagon lived just a short distance from my house.
       Sadly, several more of my constituents have made the 
     ultimate sacrifice fighting the war on terror. The servicemen 
     and women from across the country serving in harm's way in 
     Afghanistan and Iraq deserve our deepest gratitude. They are 
     doing an incredible job.
       It is also important that we recognize those people 
     protecting us here at home. The FBI along with other federal, 
     state and local law enforcement agencies are doing good work 
     to ensure that terrorists don't strike again on American 
     soil. They all have tough jobs and are all making great 
     sacrifices.
       I have the highest respect for the thousands of FBI agents 
     serving their country. I know many of them. They are 
     extremely dedicated and work incredibly long hours to protect 
     our country and their fellow citizens. The price they and 
     their families are paying is enormous.
       Prior 9/11, the FBI's primary charge was solving crimes. 
     Now, preventing crimes--more specifically, acts of 
     terrorism--is priority one. This is a monumental shift, and 
     runs counter to everything almost every FBI agent in the past 
     was trained to do.

[[Page E1423]]

       While the FBI is making progress adapting to its new role, 
     it also has made some missteps. Director Mueller deserves a 
     lot of the credit for the changes that already have been made 
     at the bureau. He also would be the first to admit there 
     is still a long way to go.
       Change is never easy. We all resist it. But the changes 
     being asked of the FBI are critical to the safety of every 
     American.
       Some believe an MI-5 approach would be better. But both the 
     9/11 Commission and the WMD Commission recommended against 
     implementing such a plan. The Bush Administration also is 
     opposed to the idea. That debate is over. It's time to move 
     forward.
       The task at hand is not easy, and I know FBI agents are 
     working round-the-clock--and around the globe--to ensure our 
     safety. We have to remember that transforming the FBI is an 
     ongoing process, and is not going to happen overnight.
       I take my role as chairman of the SSJC subcommittee very 
     seriously. I have worked hard to learn everything I can about 
     the FBI and the other law enforcement agencies under the 
     jurisdiction of the subcommittee. I am also deeply committed 
     to ensuring that Congress provide the proper--and necessary--
     oversight of the transformation of the bureau.
       I, and the subcommittee staff--both majority and minority--
     have spent countless hours with Director Mueller and the 
     leadership of the FBI over the last 3\1/2\ years. We have 
     pushed the bureau, the Justice Department and the Bush 
     Administration to do the very best job possible--and more.
       As you will recall, it was the SSJC subcommittee that asked 
     for the full House Appropriations Committee's Surveys and 
     Investigations staff to study the failure of the bureau's 
     Virtual Case Files program, including the FBI's contracting 
     procedures and management procedures related to the computer 
     system.
       When Director Mueller began submitting his plans to 
     reorganize the bureau in the spring of 2002, I wanted to be 
     confident that the path being pursued was the correct one. 
     Toward that end, I put together what I call the ``FBI 
     Transformation Task Force'' Made up of staff from the 
     Government Accountability Office, the National Academy of 
     Public Administration, the Congressional Research Service, 
     the FBI, the Justice Department and majority and minority 
     staff of the House Appropriations Committee, the task force 
     regularly reviews the bureau's progress.
       We also have consulted with staff from both the 9/11 
     Commission and WMD Commission as well as staff from the 
     Department of Justice's Office of the Inspector General.
       In June of 2002, the subcommittee held the first of what 
     have now become annual hearings to review the FBI's 
     restructuring. Director Mueller testified at that first 
     hearing and appeared again in 2003 and 2004. This year's 
     hearing is slated for September.
       These hearings are different from the annual budget 
     hearings held each spring where agency heads come up to the 
     Hill and layout their spending priorities. These hearings 
     have focused solely on the transformation of the bureau. The 
     assessments of task force members such as GAO's David Walker 
     and NAPA's Dick Thornburgh--the attorney general under 
     President George H. W. Bush--have been candid and often 
     times pointed.
       Not only has the task force served as a ``review'' board 
     for the FBI, it has developed a number of proposals that 
     ultimately have been incorporated into the annual spending 
     bills that fund the bureau. I should note that the 
     subcommittee has provided the bureau with a significant 
     increase in funding, from $3.2 billion in FY 2001 to $5.2 
     billion in FY 2005, to help meet the new challenges it faces. 
     That is an increase of 61 percent.
       Attached to the copy of my remarks you have is a white 
     paper that breakdown the FBI changes by categories--such as 
     ``Organizational Change,'' ``Training,'' and ``Interagency 
     Counterterrorism Task Forces''--to help you better grasp the 
     scope and breadth of these reforms. I won't go through every 
     one of the reforms listed on the white paper, but I do want 
     to highlight some, such as:
       Creating a Directorate of Intelligence (Service-within-a-
     Service) to specifically focus on intelligence analysis;
       Funding a portion of the National Counterterrorism Center 
     to bring agencies from throughout the government to work 
     together to combat terrorism;
       Creating the Science and Technology Advisory Board made up 
     of former senior-level intelligence and DOD staff to provide 
     independent advice to the director on emerging issues;
       Among the members of the advisory board:
       Arthur Money, former assistant secretary of defense for 
     command, control, communications and intelligence and DOD's 
     former chief information officer.
       Craig Fields, former chairman of the Defense Science Board.
       John Hamre, president of CSIS and former deputy secretary 
     of defense.
       Providing new personnel authorities and increased funding 
     to attract and retain agents, analysts and support staff;
       Mandating joint training between agents and analysts and 
     with other members of the intelligence community;
       Transferring more than 500 agents from working drug cases 
     to terrorism;
       Creating the College of Analytical Studies to train 
     intelligence analysts;
       Enhancing the FBI's capability to communicate classified 
     information with the intelligence community and state and 
     local law enforcement;
       Increasing the number of translators by 79 percent, 
     including a 269 percent increase in Arabic translators from 
     the levels funded in fiscal year 2001;
       Creating the University Education Program, the Sabbatical 
     Program, and the Fellows Program to enhance opportunities for 
     employees to receive advanced degrees, and
       Changing the FBI's budget structure to match its new 
     mission.
       There are more reforms proposed in the FY 2006 bill, which 
     the House approved on June 16.
       Among them:
       The creation of an associate deputy director for national 
     security to oversee and coordinate the activities of the 
     executive assistant director for counterterrorism and 
     counterintelligence and the national security activities of 
     the Directorate of Intelligence, as recommended by the WMD 
     Commission and accepted by President Bush yesterday.
       The FY 2006 bill also requires the U.S. attorney general to 
     submit a report to the subcommittee on its actions to 
     implement the recommendations of the WMD Commission.
       I should note that in a recent speech before the First 
     Circuit Judicial Conference, Judge Silberman, the co-chair of 
     the WMD Commission, clearly advocated the need for the 
     attorney general to exercise more authority over the FBI.
       As former deputy attorney general himself, Judge Silberman 
     told the conference ``attorneys general in my view have 
     exercised far too little management supervision over the 
     bureau. I actually think the DNI's (Director of National 
     Intelligence) influence will enable the attorney general to 
     have greater visibility into the bureau's operations.'' I 
     agree that the attorney general has to be seriously engaged 
     in the transformation of the FBI.
       In addition, the bill provides the FBI with additional 
     resources to improve information technology oversight and 
     program management and requires the DOJ inspector general to 
     provide regular reports to the subcommittee on the FBI's 
     progress in replacing its case management system.
       I wanted to take this opportunity to point out what is 
     happening at the FBI because sometimes the `good' things are 
     not considered news and are often overlooked. I think that 
     once you look at the attached white paper you will agree that 
     a great number of positive, forward-leaning steps are being 
     taken at the FBI.
       Yet, more still needs to be accomplished. Some other ideas 
     that should be considered:
       Creating a DARPA-like organization for the FBI.
       Creating a Chief Operating Officer who would be responsible 
     for overseeing the day-to-day management of the FBI, thereby 
     freeing up the director and deputy director to focus on 
     investigations and long-term strategic management issues.
       This is one of the recommendations of the Science and 
     Technology Advisory Board.
       Pushing to expand the FBI's ``bench'' when it comes to 
     information technology.
       The Science and Technology Advisory Board believes the FBI 
     is making progress but can go even further if it has the 
     ability to go after the best and the brightest and provide 
     them the same career opportunities as other branches in the 
     bureau.
       The FY 2006 House-passed bill provides a $17 million 
     increase for this, which is $10 million above the request.
       Change is not going to happen overnight nor will it be 
     totally embraced by every agent in the field. It is going to 
     take time. Unfortunately, time is not completely on our side. 
     That is why the subcommittee pushes so hard and is why we 
     continue to have these annual `review' hearings.
       I am committed to working to make the FBI better. This is 
     all part of a process. It's long and it's involved. Strides 
     have been made, but more still needs to be done. With the 
     action of the subcommittee, the 9/11 Commission, the WMD 
     Commission and the White House's recent decision to embrace 
     nearly all of the recommendations of the WMD Commission, the 
     key will be having the commitment to carry this out.
       Thank you.
                                  ____


                 White Paper--FBI Transformation Since
                                  9/11

       Since 9/11, the House Science-State-Justice-Commerce (SSJC) 
     Appropriations subcommittee has worked with a number of 
     groups and organizations, including the National Academy of 
     Public Administration (NAPA), the Government Accountability 
     Office, the Congressional Research Service, the 9/11 
     Commission, the WMD Commission and the Justice Department's 
     Office of the Inspector General, to review the FBI's plans to 
     transform itself from an organization that solves crimes into 
     one which prevents crimes.
       Below is a listing of steps the SSJC has taken to assist in 
     the FBI's transformation:


                                Funding

       Provided the FBI with a 61 percent funding increase between 
     FY 2001 and FY 2005.
       FY 2001 funding: $3.2 billion.
       FY 2005 funding: $5.2 billion.
       FY 2006 funding (House-passed): $5.7 billion.


                         Organizational Change

       Approved the transfer of more than 500 agents from drugs to 
     terrorism.

[[Page E1424]]

       Created the Directorate of Intelligence (Service-within-a-
     Service) to exclusively focus on intelligence.
       The FY 2006 bill creates an associate deputy director for 
     national security to oversee and coordinate the activities of 
     the executive assistant director for counterterrorism and 
     counterintelligence and the national security activities of 
     the Directorate of Intelligence, as recommended by the WMD 
     Commission and accepted by President Bush yesterday.
       The FY 2006 bill requires the U.S. attorney general to 
     submit a report to the subcommittee on its actions to 
     implement the recommendations of WMD Commission.
       Created the Science and Technology Advisory Board to 
     provide independent advice to the director on emerging 
     issues.


                interagency Counterterrorism Task Forces

       The SSJC subcommittee approved and funds:
       103 Joint Terrorism Task forces.
       National Joint Terrorism Task Force.
       Participation in the National Counter
     terrorism Center.
       Foreign Terrorist Tracking Task Force.
       Terrorist Screening Center.


                                Training

       Created an FBI training program at Northwestern's Kellogg 
     School of Management.
       Created the College of Analytical Studies to focus on 
     analytical training.
       Continued to fund training programs above the level 
     requested.
       FY 2005 funding: $10 million above the budget request. ($85 
     million)
       FY 2006 funding (House-passed): $10 million above the 
     budget request. ($102 million)
       Fully funded requests to renovate Quantico, the FBI's 
     training facility.
       FY 2005 funding: $21 million.
       FY 2006 funding (House-passed): $15 million.
       The FY 2006 House-passed bill:
       Directs the FBI to work with NAPA to improve training 
     programs for first-line supervisors, mid-level managers and 
     executives.
       Directs the FBI to create a management succession plan.
       Directs the FBI to ensure that analysts and agents train 
     together and that the FBI conduct joint training sessions 
     with other intelligence community agencies.
       Directs the FBI to expand the University Education Program, 
     the Sabbatical Program, the Fellows Program and the use of 
     the Foreign Service Institute.
       Directs the FBI to develop experienced FBI employees to 
     teach analytical classes at the College of Analytical Studies 
     instead of depending on contractors and personnel from other 
     agencies.


                         Information Technology

       Directed the full House Appropriations Committee's Surveys 
     and Investigations staff to study the FBI's failure to 
     implement a new case management system.
       Increased funding above the request to improve information 
     technology management FY 2006 funding (House-passed): $10 
     million above the budget request. ($21 million)
       Increased funding to improve access to information and 
     information sharing.
       FY 2005 funding: $12 million. ($13.5 million)
       FY 2006 funding (House-passed): $11 million above the 
     budget request. ($54 million)
       Funded the bureau's new Integrated Data Warehouse project 
     to data mine counterterrorism data to find terrorism 
     connections.
       Provided funding above the request for additional secure 
     space to enhance the sharing of classified information within 
     the intelligence community.
       FY 2005 funding: $20.5 above the budget request. ($20.5 
     million)
       FY 2006 funding: $5 million above the budget request. 
     ($25.5 million)
       The FY 2006 bill requires the inspector general to provide 
     the subcommittee with regular updates on the status of the 
     bureau's replacement case management system.


                          Language Translation

       Increased the number of translators by 79 percent, 
     including a 269 percent increase in Arabic translators from 
     the levels funded in fiscal year 2001.
       Created the National Virtual Translation Center to work 
     with other members of the intelligence community to address 
     translation priorities.


                       Retention and Recruitment

       Provided report language for retention and relocation 
     bonuses, critical pay exemptions for intelligence staff (more 
     than $175,000 per year) authority to create an FBI Reserve 
     Service and additional authority to waive mandatory 
     retirements.
       Provided funding to implement retention and recruitment 
     programs.
       FY 2005 funding: $30 million above the budget request. ($30 
     million)
       FY 2006 funding (House-passed): $5 million above the budget 
     request. ($35 million)
       Directed the FBI to work with NAPA to ensure that new 
     personnel authorities provided to attract and retain staff in 
     FY 2005 are effectively utilized.


                          Administrative Staff

       Recognized that analysts are required to perform too many 
     administrative tasks and directed the FBI to focus its hiring 
     efforts on filling vacant administrative and support staff. 
     The FY 2006 bill provides $5 million above the request for 
     additional administrative staff.


                            Human Resources

       The FY 2006 bill directs the FBI to establish an Office of 
     Human Resources to be tasked with, at a minimum, (1) ensuring 
     that employee rating systems match the FBI's priorities 
     including intelligence and security; (2) ensuring the number 
     of pay authorities and funding provided to attract and retain 
     staff are used effectively; (3) developing leadership and 
     succession planning programs, and (4) considering ways to 
     give field offices more flexibility in hiring administrative 
     staff.

                          ____________________