[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 20 (Tuesday, February 7, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E155]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 INTRODUCTION OF THE BILL TO CONSOLIDATE PROGRAMS AT THE DEPARTMENT OF 
            JUSTICE AND ENACT THE CAMPUS SAFETY ACT OF 2011

                                 ______
                                 

                     HON. ROBERT C. ``BOBBY'' SCOTT

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, February 7, 2012

  Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, today I am introducting a bill to 
consolidate programs at the Department of Justice in order to create an 
offset for the costs in another bill I previously introduced this 
Congress, the Center to Advance, Monitor and Preserve University 
Security, ``CAMPUS,'' Safety Act. This consolidation bill is intended 
to allay the concerns some of my colleagues have expressed about the 
lack of an offset in the CAMPUS Safety Act. This bill will offset a 
majority of the costs of the the CAMPUS Safety Act, using the same 
offsets used in the Senate companion to the CAMPUS Safety Act, S. 1749, 
as introduced by Senator Mark Warner. When the CAMPUS Safety Act is 
considered, we will merge the two bills together for consideration.
  In order to alleviate a majority of the costs of the CAMPUS Safety 
Act, this bill requires that the Office of Dispute Resolution of the 
Department of Justice and the jurisdiction and employees of that office 
be transferred to the Office of Legal Policy at the Department and 
funded through the general administration appropriation of the Office 
of Legal Policy. This was proposed in the President's 2012 budget and 
also by Senator Coburn in his ``Back in Black'' report. This bill also 
requires the Attorney General to implement policies that will result in 
at least $1 million in savings through consolidating ineffective or 
duplicative programs.
  This bill is important because it helps to pay for the CAMPUS Safety 
Act, which is vitally important to our Nation's institutions of higher 
education. The CAMPUS Safety Act will create a National Center of 
Campus Public Safety, ``Center,'' which will be administered through 
the Department of Justice. The Center will train campus public safety 
agencies, encourage research to strengthen college safety and security, 
and serve as a clearinghouse for the dissemination of relevant campus 
public safety information. By having this information in one central 
location, institutions of higher education will be able to easily 
obtain the best information available on ways to keep campuses safe and 
secure and how to respond in the event of a campus emergency. This bill 
was introduced in the House in the 110th and 111th Congresses and 
passed both times by voice vote.
  As Ranking Member of the Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Crime, 
Terrorism and Homeland Security and a Member of the Education and 
Workforce Committee, I strongly urge my colleagues to sign on to the 
CAMPUS Safety Act to help schools keep their campuses safe and free 
from violence.

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