[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 177 (Wednesday, December 2, 2009)]
[House]
[Pages H13411-H13413]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1315
REDUNDANCY ELIMINATION AND ENHANCED PERFORMANCE FOR PREPAREDNESS GRANTS 
                                  ACT

  Mr. CUELLAR. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 3980) to provide for identifying and eliminating redundant 
reporting requirements and developing meaningful performance metrics 
for homeland security preparedness grants, and for other purposes, as 
amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 3980

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Redundancy Elimination and 
     Enhanced Performance for Preparedness Grants Act''.

     SEC. 2. IDENTIFICATION OF REPORTING REDUNDANCIES AND 
                   DEVELOPMENT OF PERFORMANCE METRICS FOR HOMELAND 
                   SECURITY PREPAREDNESS GRANT PROGRAMS.

       (a) In General.--Title XX of the Homeland Security Act of 
     2002 (6 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 
     the following new section:

     ``SEC. 2023. IDENTIFICATION OF REPORTING REDUNDANCIES AND 
                   DEVELOPMENT OF PERFORMANCE METRICS.

       ``(a) In General.--The Administrator shall, for grants 
     under sections 2003 and 2004 and any other grants specified 
     by the Administrator, submit a report to the appropriate 
     committees of Congress by not later than 120 days after the 
     date of the enactment of the Redundancy Elimination and 
     Enhanced Performance for Preparedness Grants Act, and by 
     October 1st every 2 years thereafter, that--
       ``(1) identifies redundant rules, regulations, and 
     requirements for reporting by recipients of such grants, and 
     includes a plan for eliminating such identified redundancies 
     and requirements;
       ``(2) includes a plan for developing and improving the 
     performance metrics required under section 2022(a)(4) for 
     such grants; and
       ``(3) includes an assessment of each program under which 
     such grants are awarded.
       ``(b) Plan Requirements.--Each plan under subsection (a)--

[[Page H13412]]

       ``(1) shall be developed in coordination with State, local, 
     tribal, and territorial governments; and
       ``(2) shall include a proposed timeline for actions to 
     implement the plan.
       ``(c) Program Assessment Requirements.--Each program 
     assessment under subsection (a)(3) shall include--
       ``(1) a brief summary of the program purposes, objectives, 
     and performance goals, and of the key findings of the 
     assessment;
       ``(2) an assessment of the quality of the program's 
     performance metrics, and the extent to which necessary 
     performance data are collected;
       ``(3) a summary of how the program's strengths and 
     weaknesses are impeding or contributing to its failures or 
     successes, including reasons for any substantial variation 
     from the targeted level of performance of the program;
       ``(4) a description of the extent to which any trends, 
     developments, or emerging conditions affect the need to 
     change the mission of the program or the way that the program 
     is being carried out;
       ``(5) an identification of the best practices used in the 
     program for allocating resources in an efficient and 
     effective manner that resulted in positive outcomes and the 
     key reasons why such practices resulted in positive outcomes;
       ``(6) recommendations for program modifications to improve 
     the results that the program achieves;
       ``(7) a summary of key results of the program assessment 
     that support maximizing the amount of funds appropriated for 
     the program; and
       ``(8) an assessment of the quality of customer service 
     offered to recipients of funds under the program and a 
     strategy for improving such service.''.
       (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents in section 
     1(b) of such Act is amended by adding at the end of the items 
     relating to title XX the following new item:

``Sec. 2023. Identification of reporting redundancies and development 
              of performance metrics.''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Texas (Mr. Cuellar) and the gentleman from Alabama (Mr. Rogers) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas.


                             General Leave

  Mr. CUELLAR. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and 
insert extraneous materials on the bill under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Texas?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. CUELLAR. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this bill and yield 
myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, Congress instructed FEMA in the Post-Katrina Emergency 
Management Reform Act of 2006 and in the Implementing Recommendations 
of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007 to develop performance metrics for 
its homeland security grants programs. As the House Committee on 
Homeland Security discovered in our October 27 subcommittee hearing I 
held with my ranking member hearing on emergency communications, these 
requirements remain poorly implemented and difficult to comprehend. 
What is most disconcerting is that FEMA still cannot determine our 
Nation's overall preparedness or how homeland security grants have 
helped to protect our Nation from acts of terrorism.
  It is for these reasons that I come to you today to ask for your 
support of H.R. 3980, the Redundancy Elimination and Enhancement 
Performance for Preparedness Grants Act. This legislation would require 
FEMA to work in conjunction with State, local, tribal and territorial 
stakeholders to develop a plan to do the following things:
  Streamline homeland security grant reporting requirements, rules and 
regulations to eliminate redundant reporting;
  Create a strategy including a timetable for establishing the much-
needed performance metrics for grant programs to ensure that the funds 
are being directed to the areas where they will be best spent;
  Require FEMA to take an inventory of each of the homeland security 
grant programs to include the purpose, objectives and performance goals 
for each.
  The plan will be submitted to the appropriate congressional 
committees no later than 120 days after the bill's enactment.
  It will be updated biannually to ensure that the committee is able to 
maintain a watchful eye and the oversight on redundancies in the law 
that might confuse the grant recipients at the local level.
  This bill will help identify inefficiencies with the DHS grants 
programs and this bill will increase the quality of service received by 
DHS grant recipients.
  I urge all of my colleagues to support this important legislation.

         House of Representatives, Committee on Transportation and 
           Infrastructure,
                                 Washington, DC, December 1, 2009.
     Hon. Bennie G. Thompson,
     Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security, Washington, DC.
       Dear Chairman Thompson: I write to you regarding H.R. 3980, 
     the ``Redundancy Elimination and Enhanced Performance for 
     Preparedness Grants Act''.
       H.R. 3980 contains provisions that fall within the 
     jurisdiction of the Committee on Transportation and 
     Infrastructure. I recognize and appreciate your desire to 
     bring this legislation before the House in an expeditious 
     manner and, accordingly, I will not seek a sequential 
     referral of the bill. However, I agree to waive consideration 
     of this bill with the mutual understanding that my decision 
     to forgo a sequential referral of the bill does not waive, 
     reduce, or otherwise affect the jurisdiction of the Committee 
     on Transportation and Infrastructure over H.R. 3980.
       Further, the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 
     reserves the right to seek the appointment of conferees 
     during any House-Senate conference convened on this 
     legislation on provisions of the bill that are within the 
     Committee's jurisdiction. I ask for your commitment to 
     support any request by the Committee on Transportation and 
     Infrastructure for the appointment of conferees on H.R. 3980 
     or similar legislation.
       Please place a copy of this letter and your response 
     acknowledging the Committee on Transportation and 
     Infrastructure's jurisdictional interest in the Committee 
     Report on H.R. 3980 and in the Congressional Record 
     consideration of the measure in the House.
       I look forward to working with you as we prepare to pass 
     this important legislation.
           Sincerely,
                                                James L. Oberstar,
     Chairman.
                                  ____

                                         House of Representatives,


                               Committee on Homeland Security,

                                 Washington, DC, December 1, 2009.
     Hon. James L. Oberstar,
     Chairman, Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, 
         House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
       Dear Chairman Oberstar: Thank you for your letter regarding 
     H.R. 3980, the ``Redundancy Elimination and Enhanced 
     Performance for Preparedness Grants Act,'' introduced by 
     Congressman Henry Cuellar on November 2, 2009.
       I appreciate your willingness to work cooperatively on this 
     legislation. I acknowledge that the Committee on 
     Transportation and Infrastructure has a jurisdictional 
     interest in certain provisions of H.R. 3980. I appreciate 
     your agreement to not seek a sequential referral of this 
     legislation and I acknowledge that your decision to forgo a 
     sequential referral does not waive, alter, or otherwise 
     affect the jurisdiction of the Committee on Transportation 
     and Infrastructure.
       Further, I recognize that your Committee reserves the right 
     to seek appointment of conferees on the bill for the portions 
     of the bill over which your Committee has a jurisdictional 
     interest and I agree to support such a request.
       I will ensure that this exchange of letters is included in 
     the legislative report on H.R. 3980 and in the Congressional 
     Record during floor consideration of the bill. I look forward 
     to working with you on this legislation and other matters of 
     great importance to this nation.
           Sincerely,
                                               Bennie G. Thompson,
                                                         Chairman.

  I reserve the balance of my time, Mr. Speaker.
  Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 3980, sponsored 
by my good friend from Texas (Mr. Cuellar) who I'm pleased to serve 
with on the Emergency Communications, Preparedness, and Response 
Subcommittee.
  Since 2006, Congress has mandated FEMA to measure the Nation's level 
of preparedness, as well as the effectiveness of State and local 
homeland security grant programs administered by FEMA. Both the Post-
Katrina Reform Act of 2006 and the 9/11 Act of 2007 require FEMA to 
develop metrics that can be used to identify and close gaps in 
preparedness with homeland security resources. These include the 
Comprehensive Assessment System, the Target Capabilities List, and the 
State Preparedness Report.
  Unfortunately, the various preparedness metrics developed since 2006 
have not been properly integrated by FEMA, resulting in duplicative 
reporting requirements that put an undue burden

[[Page H13413]]

on State and local governments. State and local homeland security grant 
programs are essential to achieving and maintaining preparedness 
capabilities, and they can be strengthened and improved with input from 
stakeholders and the establishment of sound performance metrics.
  This bill seeks to improve the way grant programs are administered 
and managed by FEMA, and will ensure that Congress is informed of the 
ongoing planning at FEMA for improving measures of preparedness and 
eliminating duplicative requirements placed on grantees.
  I urge my colleagues to support the measure, and I yield back the 
balance of my time.
  Mr. CUELLAR. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, as you heard, this is commonsense legislation that will 
streamline FEMA's efforts to enhance our Nation's preparedness and 
response capacity. All we're trying to do is to make sure that we get 
rid of any unnecessary rules and regulations that cause our local folks 
problems. Number two, we're also trying to make sure that we measure 
the results. If we're going to spend billions of dollars on grants, 
we've just got to make sure that we measure those particular results.
  The bottom line is, Mr. Speaker, we're trying to focus on the 
customers, and the customers are the recipients of these grants. I 
certainly want to thank our ranking member, Mr. Rogers. He's done an 
outstanding job there in the committee. I look forward to working with 
him not only on this legislation to make it law but certainly on other 
pieces of legislation. I urge all my colleagues to vote ``aye.''
  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 
3980, the ``Redundancy Elimination and Enhanced Performance for 
Preparedness Grants Act.''
  This legislation, introduced by Mr. Cuellar, the Chairman of the 
Subcommittee on Emergency Communications, Preparedness and Response, 
requires FEMA to assess the performance of its homeland security grant 
program and work towards addressing any identified deficiencies.
  The legislation was developed based on finding from an October 
subcommittee hearing where FEMA testified as to the status of the 
agency's efforts to establish performance measurements for preparedness 
grants.
  At the hearing, we learned that that FEMA's efforts to implement 
statutory performance metrics-related requirements are fragmented and 
poorly integrated. As a result, FEMA is unable to measure how the $29 
billion in homeland security grants appropriated since 2002 have 
improved the nation's overall level of preparedness. Without these much 
needed performance metrics, FEMA continues to impose redundant grant 
reporting requirements on State and local governments including those 
in my home State of Mississippi.
  Not only are these redundant reporting requirements costly and time-
consuming for State and local officials to prepare, but there is 
significant evidence that, taken together, they still do not provide 
FEMA with information necessary to measure the return on investment 
from federal grants.
  Although there have been some improvements in FEMA's administration 
of homeland security grants, such as the improvements in grant guidance 
and technical assistance provided to State and local applicants, we 
still have a ways to go.
  H.R. 3980 would complement these efforts by directing FEMA to work 
with State and local stakeholders to identify and eliminate these 
redundant grant reporting requirements.
  Specifically, H.R. 3980 would eliminate much of the red-tape and 
improve the performance of FEMA grant programs. The bill requires FEMA 
to develop a strategy, with timelines, to establish performance metrics 
for its homeland security grants and provides direction to complete a 
program assessment of its homeland security grants. These steps are 
designed to improve the agency's performance, productivity and 
accountability to the taxpayers. It will also provide Congress with 
better information on FEMA's performance to allow us to conduct more 
effective oversight and ensure that taxpayer money is being used 
efficiently and effectively.
  Again, thank you for the consideration of this important legislation.
  Ms. RICHARDSON. Mr. Speaker, as a member of the Homeland Security 
Committee, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 3980, the Redundancy 
Elimination and Enhanced Performance for Preparedness Grants Act. This 
legislation directs FEMA to streamline its grants reporting process to 
make it more efficient and informative, and it eliminates redundant 
requests for information.
  I would like to acknowledge Speaker Pelosi and Chairman Thompson for 
their leadership in bringing this important bill to the floor. I would 
also like to thank my colleague Congressman Cuellar, who worked so hard 
authoring this important legislation holding FEMA accountable for our 
taxpayer dollars.
  Mr. Speaker, on October 27, as a member of the Subcommittee on 
Emergency Communication, Preparedness, and Response, I heard testimony 
from both FEMA officials and state and local government officials about 
the new grants tracking program currently being tested. State and local 
officials, including the mayor of Los Angeles in my home state of 
California, urged the federal government to reconsider their use of 
this program. In the words of the mayor, ``all the reports that it 
generates provide no guidance or value for assessing homeland security 
investments.''
  H.R. 3980 directs FEMA to identify and address the problems it is 
experiencing with grants reporting and tracking. This legislation is 
almost a direct response to the concerns raised to Congressman Cuellar 
and me by the mayor of Los Angeles about the FEMA grants reporting 
process. I am proud that this legislation addresses those concerns. 
When it comes to homeland security and taxpayer dollars, we simply 
cannot afford to be wasting time or money on programs that offer no 
guidance or value. So I am pleased to champion H.R. 3980, which 
addresses this problem.
  In conclusion, Mr. Speaker, I support this bill because it will make 
our grant process more efficient and informative. Redundant reporting 
requirements will be eliminated, and communities and organizations will 
be able to better focus on doing the work they need to do to keep our 
nation safe.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 3980.
  Mr. CUELLAR. I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Cuellar) that the House suspend the rules and 
pass the bill, H.R. 3980, as amended.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. CUELLAR. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.

                          ____________________