[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 36 (Friday, March 2, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2563-S2565]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           TEXT OF AMENDMENTS

  SA 321. Ms. LANDRIEU proposed an amendment to amendment SA 275 
proposed by Mr. Reid (for himself, Mr. Lieberman, and Ms. Collins) to 
the bill S. 4, to make the United States more secure by implementing 
unfinished recommendations of the 9/11 Commission to fight the war on 
terror more effectively, to improve homeland security, and for other 
purposes; as follows:

       On page 233, line 11, after ``the Secretary'' insert 
     ``shall include levees in the list of critical infrastructure 
     sectors and''.
                                 ______
                                 
  SA 322. Mrs. FEINSTEIN submitted an amendment intended to be proposed 
to amendment SA 275 proposed by Mr. Reid (for himself, Mr. Lieberman, 
and Ms. Collins) to the bill S. 4, to make the United States more 
secure by implementing unfinished recommendations of the 9/11 
Commission to fight the war on terror more effectively, to improve 
homeland security, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on 
the table; as follows:

       On page 236, line 17, insert before the period ``and a 
     description of how ongoing critical infrastructure 
     initiatives developed by the Department in coordination with 
     State and local governments, such as the Automated Critical 
     Asset Management System, were used in the assessments''.
                                 ______
                                 
  SA 323. Mrs. FEINSTEIN submitted an amendment intended to be proposed 
to amendment SA 275 proposed by Mr. Reid (for himself, Mr. Lieberman, 
and Ms. Collins) to the bill S. 4, to make the United States more 
secure by implementing unfinished recommendations of the 9/11 
Commission to fight the war on terror more effectively, to improve 
homeland security, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on 
the table; as follows:

       On page 23, strike lines 11 through 15, and insert the 
     following:
       (a) Curriculum.--The Secretary, acting through the Chief 
     Intelligence Officer, shall--
       (1) develop curriculum for the training of State, local, 
     and tribal government officials relating to the handling, 
     review, and development of intelligence material; and
       (2) ensure that the curriculum includes executive level 
     training.
                                 ______
                                 
  SA 324. Mr. SCHUMER submitted an amendment intended to be proposed to 
amendment SA 275 proposed by Mr. Reid (for himself, Mr. Lieberman, and 
Ms. Collins) to the bill S. 4, to make the United States more secure by 
implementing unfinished recommendations of the 9/11 Commission to fight 
the war on terror more effectively, to improve homeland security, and 
for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

       On page 389, after line 13, add the following:

     SEC. 15__. ENHANCEMENT OF THE NATIONAL DOMESTIC PREPAREDNESS 
                   CONSORTIUM.

       The National Domestic Preparedness Consortium shall include 
     the National Center for Homeland Security Studies of the 
     State University of New York.
                                 ______
                                 
  SA 325. Mr. COBURN submitted an amendment intended to be proposed to 
amendment SA 275 proposed by Mr. Reid (for himself, Mr. Lieberman, and 
Ms. Collins) to the bill S. 4, to make the United States more secure by 
implementing unfinished recommendations of the 9/11 Commission to fight 
the war on terror more effectively, to improve homeland security, and 
for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

       On page 106, between the matter preceding line 7 and line 
     7, insert the following:

     SEC. 204. COMPLIANCE WITH THE IMPROPER PAYMENTS INFORMATION 
                   ACT OF 2002.

       (a) Definitions.--In this section, the term--
       (1) ``appropriate committees'' means--
       (A) the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 
     Affairs of the Senate; and
       (B) the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform of the 
     House of Representatives; and
       (2) ``improper payment'' has the meaning given that term 
     under section 2(d)(2) of the Improper Payments Information 
     Act of 2002 (31 U.S.C. 3321 note).
       (b) Requirement for Compliance Certification and Report.--
     The Secretary shall not award any grants or distribute any 
     grant funds under any grant program under this Act or an 
     amendment made by this Act, until the Secretary submits a 
     report to the appropriate committees that--
       (1) contains a certification that the Department has for 
     each program and activity of the Department--
       (A) performed and completed a risk assessment to determine 
     programs and activities that are at significant risk of 
     making improper payments; and
       (B) estimated the total number of improper payments for 
     each program and activity determined to be at significant 
     risk of making improper payments; and
       (2) describes the actions to be taken to reduce improper 
     payments for the programs and activities determined to be at 
     significant risk of making improper payments.
                                 ______
                                 
  SA 326. Mr. CARDIN proposed an amendment to amendment SA 275 proposed 
by Mr. Reid (for himself, Mr. Lieberman, and Ms. Collins) to the bill 
S. 4, to make the United States more secure by implementing unfinished 
recommendations of the 9/11 Commission to fight the war on terror more 
effectively, to improve homeland security, and for other purposes; as 
follows:

       At the end of title XV, add the following:

     SEC. __. STUDY OF MODIFICATION OF AREA OF JURISDICTION OF 
                   OFFICE OF NATIONAL CAPITAL REGION COORDINATION.

       (a) Study.--The Secretary, acting through the Director of 
     the Office of National Capital Region Coordination, shall 
     conduct a study of the feasibility and desirability of 
     modifying the definition of ``National Capital Region'' 
     applicable under section 882 of the Homeland Security Act of 
     2002 to update the geographic area under the jurisdiction of 
     the Office of National Capital Region Coordination.
       (b) Factors.--In conducting the study under subsection (a), 
     the Secretary shall analyze whether modifying the geographic 
     area under the jurisdiction of the Office of National Region 
     Coordination will--
       (1) improve coordination among State and local governments 
     within the Region, including regional governing bodies, and 
     coordination of the efforts of first responders;
       (2) enhance the ability of such State and local governments 
     and the Federal Government to prevent and respond to a 
     terrorist attack within the Region; and
       (3) affect the distribution of funding under the Homeland 
     Security Grant Program.
       (c) Report.--Not later than 6 months after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit a report to 
     Congress on the study conducted under subsection (a), and 
     shall include in the report such recommendations (including 
     recommendations for legislation to amend section 882 of the 
     Homeland Security Act of 2002) as the Secretary considers 
     appropriate.
                                 ______
                                 
  SA 327. Mr. CARDIN proposed an amendment to amendment SA 275 proposed 
by Mr. Reid (for himself, Mr. Lieberman, and Ms. Collins) to the bill 
S. 4, to make the United States more secure by implementing unfinished 
recommendations of the 9/11 Commission to fight the war on terror more 
effectively, to improve homeland security, and for other purposes; as 
follows:

       At the end of title XV, add the following:

     SEC. 15__. NATIONAL CAPITAL REGION MUTUAL AID.

       Section 7302 of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism 
     Prevention Act of 2004 (42 U.S.C. 5196 note) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)--
       (A) in paragraph (4), by striking ``, including its agents 
     or authorized volunteers,''; and
       (B) in paragraph (5), by striking ``or town'' and all that 
     follows and inserting ``town, or other governmental agency, 
     governmental authority, or governmental institution with the 
     power to sue or be sued in its own name, within the National 
     Capital Region.'';
       (2) in subsection (b)(1), in the matter preceding 
     subparagraph (A), by striking ``, the Washington Metropolitan 
     Area Transit Authority, the Metropolitan Washington Airports 
     Authority, and any other governmental agency or authority''; 
     and
       (3) in subsection (d), by striking ``or employees'' each 
     place that term appears and inserting ``, employees, or 
     agents''.

[[Page S2564]]

                                 ______
                                 
  SA 328. Mr. CARDIN proposed an amendment to amendment SA 275 proposed 
by Mr. Reid (for himself, Mr. Lieberman, and Ms. Collins) to the bill 
S. 4, to make the United States more secure by implementing unfinished 
recommendations of the 9/11 Commission to fight the war on terror more 
effectively, to improve homeland security, and for other purposes; as 
follows:

       At the appropriate place, insert the following:

     SEC. __. APPLICABILITY OF DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA LAW.

       Section 24301 of title 49, United States Code, is amended 
     by adding at the end the following:
       ``(n) Applicability of District of Columbia Law.--In the 
     case of Maryland, any lease or contract entered into by the 
     National Railroad Passenger Corporation after the date of the 
     enactment of this subsection shall be governed by the laws of 
     the District of Columbia.''.
                                 ______
                                 
  SA 329. Mr. DOMENICI (for himself and Mr. Bingaman) submitted an 
amendment intended to be proposed to amendment SA 275 proposed by Mr. 
Reid (for himself, Mr. Lieberman, and Ms. Collins) to the bill S. 4, to 
make the United States more secure by implementing unfinished 
recommendations of the 9/11 Commission to fight the war on terror more 
effectively, to improve homeland security, and for other purposes; as 
follows:

       At the appropriate place, insert the following:

     SEC. __. LASER VISA EXTENSION.

       (a) Short Title.--This section may be cited as the ``Laser 
     Visa Extension Act of 2007''.
       (b) Prohibition on Certain Travel Restrictions for 
     Temporary Visitors From Mexico.--
       (1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), the 
     Secretary of Homeland Security shall permit a national of 
     Mexico to travel up to 100 miles from the international 
     border between Mexico and the State of New Mexico if such 
     national--
       (A) possesses a valid machine-readable biometric border 
     crossing identification card issued by a consular officer of 
     the Department of State;
       (B) enters the State of New Mexico through a port of entry 
     where such card is processed using a machine reader;
       (C) has successfully completed any background check 
     required by the Secretary for such travel; and
       (D) is admitted into the United States as a nonimmigrant 
     under section 101(a)(15)(B) of the Immigration and 
     Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(B)).
       (2) Exception.--On a case-by-case basis, the Secretary of 
     Homeland Security may limit the travel of a national of 
     Mexico who meets the requirements of subparagraphs (A) 
     through (D) of paragraph (1) to a distance of less than 100 
     miles from the international border between Mexico and the 
     State of New Mexico if the Secretary determines that the 
     national was previously admitted into the United States as a 
     nonimmigrant and violated the terms and conditions of the 
     national's nonimmigrant status.
                                 ______
                                 
  SA 330. Ms. CANTWELL (for herself, Mr. Levin, Mrs. Murray, Mr. Craig, 
and Mr. Crapo) submitted an amendment intended to be proposed to 
amendment SA 275 proposed by Mr. Reid (for himself, Mr. Lieberman, and 
Ms. Collins) to the bill S. 4, to make the United States more secure by 
implementing unfinished recommendations of the 9/11 Commission to fight 
the war on terror more effectively, to improve homeland security, and 
for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

       At the appropriate place, insert the following:

     SEC. __. NORTHERN BORDER PROSECUTION REIMBURSEMENT.

       (a) Short Title.--This section may be cited as the 
     ``Northern Border Prosecution Initiative Reimbursement Act''.
       (b) Northern Border Prosecution Initiative.--
       (1) Initiative required.--From amounts made available to 
     carry out this section, the Attorney General, acting through 
     the Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance of the 
     Office of Justice Programs, shall carry out a program, to be 
     known as the Northern Border Prosecution Initiative, to 
     provide funds to reimburse eligible northern border entities 
     for costs incurred by those entities for handling case 
     dispositions of criminal cases that are federally initiated 
     but federally declined-referred. This program shall be 
     modeled after the Southwestern Border Prosecution Initiative 
     and shall serve as a partner program to that initiative to 
     reimburse local jurisdictions for processing Federal cases
       (2) Provision and allocation of funds.--Funds provided 
     under the program shall be provided in the form of direct 
     reimbursements and shall be allocated in a manner consistent 
     with the manner under which funds are allocated under the 
     Southwestern Border Prosecution Initiative.
       (3) Use of funds.--Funds provided to an eligible northern 
     border entity may be used by the entity for any lawful 
     purpose, including the following purposes:
       (A) Prosecution and related costs.
       (B) Court costs.
       (C) Costs of courtroom technology.
       (D) Costs of constructing holding spaces.
       (E) Costs of administrative staff.
       (F) Costs of defense counsel for indigent defendants.
       (G) Detention costs, including pre-trial and post-trial 
     detention.
       (4) Definitions.--In this section:
       (A) The term ``eligible northern border entity'' means--
       (i) any of the following States: Alaska, Idaho, Maine, 
     Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North 
     Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Washington, and 
     Wisconsin; or
       (ii) any unit of local government within a State referred 
     to in claluse (i).
       (B) The term ``federally initiated'' means, with respect to 
     a criminal case, that the case results from a criminal 
     investigation or an arrest involving Federal law enforcement 
     authorities for a potential violation of Federal criminal 
     law, including investigations resulting from multi-
     jurisdictional task forces.
       (C) The term ``federally declined-referred'' means, with 
     respect to a criminal case, that a decision has been made in 
     that case by a United States Attorney or a Federal law 
     enforcement agency during a Federal investigation to no 
     longer pursue Federal criminal charges against a defendant 
     and to refer the investigation to a State or local 
     jurisdiction for possible prosecution. The term includes a 
     decision made on an individualized case-by-case basis as well 
     as a decision made pursuant to a general policy or practice 
     or pursuant to prosecutorial discretion.
       (D) The term ``case disposition'', for purposes of the 
     Northern Border Prosecution Initiative, refers to the time 
     between a suspect's arrest and the resolution of the criminal 
     charges through a county or State judicial or prosecutorial 
     process. Disposition does not include incarceration time for 
     sentenced offenders, or time spent by prosecutors on judicial 
     appeals.
       (c) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized 
     to be appropriated to carry out this section $28,000,000 for 
     fiscal year 2008 and such sums as may be necessary for each 
     succeeding fiscal year.
                                 ______
                                 
  SA 331. Ms. CANTWELL submitted an amendment intended to be proposed 
to amendment SA 275 proposed by Mr. Reid (for himself, Mr. Lieberman, 
and Ms. Collins) to the bill S. 4, to make the United States more 
secure by implementing unfinished recommendations of the 9/11 
Commission to fight the war on terror more effectively, to improve 
homeland security, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on 
the table; as follows:

       At the appropriate place, insert the following:

     SEC. __. COMPREHENSIVE STRATEGY TO REDUCE GLOBAL POVERTY AND 
                   ELIMINATE EXTREME GLOBAL POVERTY.

       (a) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:
       (1) The 9/11 Commission found that a ``comprehensive U.S. 
     strategy to counter terrorism should include economic 
     policies that encourage development, more open societies, and 
     opportunities for people to improve the lives of their 
     families and to enhance prospects for their children's 
     future''.
       (2) Global poverty creates conditions that give rise to 
     terrorism.
       (b) Declaration of Policy.--It is the policy of the United 
     States to promote the reduction of global poverty, the 
     elimination of extreme global poverty, and the achievement of 
     the United Nations Millennium Development Goal of reducing by 
     one-half the proportion of people worldwide, between 1990 and 
     2015, who live on less than $1 per day.
       (c) Comprehensive Strategy.--
       (1) Strategy required.--The President, acting through the 
     Secretary of State and in consultation with the heads of 
     other appropriate departments and agencies of the Government 
     of the United States, international organizations, 
     international financial institutions, the governments of 
     developing and developed countries, United States and 
     international nongovernmental organizations, civil society 
     organizations, and other appropriate entities, shall develop 
     and implement a comprehensive strategy to further the United 
     States foreign policy objective of promoting the reduction of 
     global poverty, the elimination of extreme global poverty, 
     and the achievement of the United Nations Millennium 
     Development Goal of reducing by one-half the proportion of 
     people worldwide, between 1990 and 2015, who live on less 
     than $1 per day.
       (2) Content.--The strategy required under paragraph (1) 
     shall include specific and measurable goals, efforts to be 
     undertaken, benchmarks, and timetables to achieve the 
     objectives described in such paragraph.
       (3) Guidelines.--The strategy required under paragraph (1) 
     should adhere to the following guidelines:
       (A) Continued investment in existing United States 
     initiatives related to international poverty reduction, such 
     as the United States Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, 
     Tuberculosis, and Malaria Act of 2003 (22 U.S.C. 7601 et 
     seq.), the Millennium Challenge Act of 2003 (22 U.S.C. 7701 
     et seq.), the

[[Page S2565]]

     Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Initiative, and trade 
     preference programs for developing countries.
       (B) Increasing overall United States development assistance 
     levels while at the same time improving the effectiveness of 
     such assistance.
       (C) Enhancing and expanding debt relief.
       (D) Leveraging United States trade policy where possible to 
     enhance economic development prospects for developing 
     countries.
       (E) Coordinating efforts and working in cooperation with 
     developed and developing countries, international 
     organizations, and international financial institutions.
       (F) Mobilizing and leveraging the participation of 
     businesses, United States and international nongovernmental 
     organizations, civil society, and public-private 
     partnerships.
       (G) Coordinating the goal of poverty reduction with other 
     development goals, such as combating the spread of 
     preventable diseases such as HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and 
     malaria, increasing access to potable water and basic 
     sanitation, and reducing hunger and malnutrition.
       (H) Integrating principles of sustainable development into 
     policies and programs.
       (d) Reports.--
       (1) Initial report.--Not later than one year after the date 
     of the enactment of this Act, the President, acting through 
     the Secretary of State, shall transmit to the appropriate 
     congressional committees a report that describes the strategy 
     required under subsection (c).
       (2) Subsequent reports.--Not less than once every year 
     after the submission of the initial report under paragraph 
     (1) until and including 2015, the President shall transmit to 
     the appropriate congressional committees a report on the 
     status of the implementation of the strategy, progress made 
     in achieving the global poverty reduction objectives 
     described in subsection (c)(1), and any changes to the 
     strategy since the date of the submission of the last report.
       (e) Definitions.--In this Act:
       (1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
     ``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
       (A) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on 
     Appropriations of the Senate; and
       (B) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on 
     Appropriations of the House of Representatives.
       (2) Extreme global poverty.--The term ``extreme global 
     poverty'' refers to the conditions in which individuals live 
     on less than $1 per day, adjusted for purchasing power parity 
     in 1993 United States dollars, according to World Bank 
     statistics.
       (3) Global poverty.--The term ``global poverty'' refers to 
     the conditions in which individuals live on less than $2 per 
     day, adjusted for purchasing power parity in 1993 United 
     States dollars, according to World Bank statistics.

                          ____________________