[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 119 (Monday, July 27, 2015)]
[House]
[Pages H5491-H5494]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                SECRET SERVICE IMPROVEMENTS ACT OF 2015

  Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 1656) to provide for additional resources for the Secret 
Service, and to improve protections for restricted areas, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 1656

       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 ``Secret Service Improvements 
     Act of 2015''.

     SEC. 2. PRESIDENTIAL APPOINTMENT OF DIRECTOR OF THE SECRET 
                   SERVICE.

       Section 3056 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by 
     adding at the end:
       ``(h) The Director of the Secret Service shall be appointed 
     by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the 
     Senate. The Director of the Secret Service is the head of the 
     Secret Service.''.

     SEC. 3. RESTRICTED BUILDING OR GROUNDS.

       Section 1752(a) of title 18, United States Code, is 
     amended--
       (1) in paragraph (3), by striking ``or'' at the end;
       (2) in paragraph (4), by inserting ``or'' at the end; and
       (3) by inserting after paragraph (4) the following:
       ``(5) knowingly, and with the intent to enter a restricted 
     building or grounds, causes any object to enter any 
     restricted building or grounds, when, or so that, such 
     object, in fact, impedes or disrupts the orderly conduct of 
     government business or official functions;''.

     SEC. 4. THREATS AGAINST FORMER VICE PRESIDENTS.

        Section 879(a)(4) of title 18, United States Code, is 
     amended by striking ``section 3056(a)(6)'' and inserting 
     ``paragraph (6) or (8) of section 3056(a)''.

     SEC. 5. INCREASED TRAINING.

       Beginning in the first full fiscal year after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the Director of the Secret Service 
     shall increase the annual number of hours spent training by 
     officers and agents of the Secret Service, including officers 
     of the United States Secret Service Uniformed Division 
     established under section 3056A of title 18, United States 
     Code and agents operating pursuant to section 3056 of title 
     18, United States Code, including joint training between the 
     two.

     SEC. 6. TRAINING FACILITIES.

       The Director of the Secret Service is authorized to 
     construct facilities at the Rowley Training Center necessary 
     to improve the training of officers of the United States 
     Secret Service Uniformed Division established under section 
     3056A of title 18, United States Code and agents of the 
     United States Secret Service, operating pursuant to section 
     3056 of title 18, United States Code.

     SEC. 7. HIRING OF ADDITIONAL OFFICERS AND AGENTS.

       The Director of the Secret Service is authorized to hire 
     not fewer than--
       (1) 200 additional officers for the United States Secret 
     Service Uniformed Division established under section 3056A of 
     title 18, United States Code; and
       (2) 85 additional agents for the United States Secret 
     Service Presidential Protective Detail, operating pursuant to 
     section 3056 of title 18, United States Code.

     SEC. 8. EVALUATION OF VULNERABILITIES AND THREATS.

       (a) In General.--The Director of the Secret Service shall 
     devise and adopt improved procedures for evaluating 
     vulnerabilities in the security of the White House and 
     threats to persons protected by the Secret Service, including 
     threats posed by unmanned aerial systems or explosive 
     devices.
       (b) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the Director of the Secret Service 
     shall report on the implementation of subsection (a) to--
       (1) the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of 
     Representatives;
       (2) the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate;
       (3) the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of 
     Representatives;
       (4) the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 
     Affairs of the Senate; and
       (5) the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform of the 
     House of Representatives.

     SEC. 9. EVALUATION OF USE OF TECHNOLOGY.

       (a) In General.--The Director of the Secret Service, in 
     consultation with the Under Secretary for Science and 
     Technology of the Department of Homeland Security, and other 
     experts, shall devise and adopt improved procedures for--
       (1) evaluating the ways in which technology may be used to 
     improve the security of the White House and the response to 
     threats to persons protected by the Secret Service; and

[[Page H5492]]

       (2) retaining evidence pertaining to the duties referred to 
     in paragraph (1) for an extended period of time.
       (b) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the Director of the Secret Service 
     shall report on the implementation of subsection (a) to--
       (1) the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of 
     Representatives;
       (2) the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate;
       (3) the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of 
     Representatives;
       (4) the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 
     Affairs of the Senate; and
       (5) the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform of the 
     House of Representatives.

     SEC. 10. EVALUATION OF USE OF ADDITIONAL WEAPONRY.

       The Director of the Secret Service shall evaluate the 
     practicability of equipping agents and officers with weapons 
     other than those provided to officers and agents of the 
     Secret Service as of the date of enactment of this Act, 
     including nonlethal weapons.

     SEC. 11. SECURITY COSTS FOR SECONDARY RESIDENCES.

       (a) In General.--The Presidential Protection Assistance Act 
     of 1976 (18 U.S.C. 3056 note) is amended by striking section 
     4 and inserting the following:

     ``SEC. 4. NOTIFICATION REGARDING EXPENDITURES ON NON-
                   GOVERNMENTAL PROPERTIES.

       ``The Secret Service shall notify the Committees on 
     Appropriations of the House and Senate of any expenditures 
     for permanent facilities, equipment, and services to secure 
     any non-Governmental property in addition to the one non-
     Governmental property designated by each protectee under 
     subsection (a) or (b) of section 3.''.
       (b) Conforming Amendments.--The Presidential Protection 
     Assistance Act of 1976 (18 U.S.C. 3056 note), as amended by 
     this Act, is further amended--
       (1) in section 3(b), by striking ``any expenditures by the 
     Secret Service'' and all that follows through ``imposed under 
     section 4'' and inserting ``any expenditures by the Secret 
     Service for permanent facilities, equipment, and services to 
     secure the non-Governmental property previously designated 
     under subsection (a) are subject to the requirements set 
     forth in section 4''; and
       (2) in section 5(c), by striking ``within the limitations 
     imposed under section 4''.

     SEC. 12. ESTABLISHMENT OF ETHICS PROGRAM OFFICE.

       Subject to the oversight of the Office of Chief Counsel of 
     the United States Secret Service, the Director of the Secret 
     Service shall establish an Ethics Program Office, consisting 
     of a minimum of 2 employees, to administer the provisions of 
     the Ethics in Government Act of 1978, as amended, and to 
     provide increased training to employees of the United States 
     Secret Service.

     SEC. 13. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

       It is the sense of Congress that an assessment made by the 
     Secretary of Homeland Security or the Director of the Secret 
     Service with regard to physical security of the White House 
     and attendant grounds, and any security-related enhancements 
     thereto should be accorded substantial deference by the 
     National Capital Planning Commission, the Commission of Fine 
     Arts, and any other relevant entities.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Virginia (Mr. Goodlatte) and the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Johnson) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Virginia.


                             General Leave

  Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks 
and to include extraneous materials on the bill currently under 
consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Virginia?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, the Secret Service has two primary missions: criminal 
investigations and protection of the President, Vice President, and 
other dignitaries. As a result, the Secret Service is entrusted with 
protecting some of our most valuable assets. This is an extremely 
difficult, high-profile mission, in an environment with zero margin for 
error.
  The Secret Service is comprised of many outstanding and upstanding 
men and women who do excellent work; however, over the last few years, 
a series of embarrassing scandals, security failures, and instances of 
poor judgment have rocked the Secret Service. These incidents range 
from agents' use of prostitutes while on official travel to Colombia; 
to an incident in the Netherlands involving intoxicated agents; to the 
agency's failure to initially apprehend fence jumper Omar Gonzalez, who 
was later arrested inside the White House.
  Following these incidents, the President appointed a new director of 
the Secret Service, Joseph Clancy, who has implemented a number of 
reforms. The President also appointed a panel of experts to recommend 
changes to the Secret Service. Through this committee's oversight and 
the recommendations of the panel, it is clear that, despite Director 
Clancy's initiatives, legislative action is still necessary.
  We must ensure that the agency's officers and agents are properly 
trained in order to successfully identify potential threats and prevent 
them from materializing, as well as to ensure that the agency has the 
tools it needs to carry out its mission.
  H.R. 1656, the Secret Service Improvements Act of 2015, is bipartisan 
legislation introduced to provide much-needed resources to the agency 
and implement many of the U.S. Secret Service Protective Mission 
Panel's recommendations for improvements for the agency. I am pleased 
to have worked on this legislation with Judiciary Committee Ranking 
Member Conyers, Crime Subcommittee Chairman Sensenbrenner, and Ranking 
Member Jackson Lee.
  This bill makes much-needed improvements to the Secret Service. These 
improvements strengthen the security of the President, other 
protectees, and the White House complex; enhance Secret Service 
officers' and agents' training; and increase the agency's manpower.
  This legislation also improves transparency and accountability within 
the agency by requiring Senate confirmation of the Director of the 
Secret Service. The person entrusted to not only protect the President, 
but to also head a $1.5 billion Federal law enforcement agency, should 
be subject to the same process of advice and consent of the Senate as 
his counterparts at other comparable agencies.
  Finally, this legislation creates an ethics office within the office 
of the general counsel in order to respond to rectify and help prevent 
misconduct at the agency.
  The resources and improvements provided by this legislation will help 
to reform the Secret Service and to restore the trust that Congress, 
the President, and the American people must have in the vital tasks 
that the Secret Service carries out every single day.
  This bill passed unanimously from the Judiciary Committee, and I urge 
my House colleagues to join me in support of the legislation.
  I reserve the balance of my time.

                              {time}  1600

  Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  H.R. 1656, the Secret Service Improvements Act, will assist the 
Secret Service with its critical mission of protecting the President 
and Vice President and other dignitaries as well as with its 
investigative role in protecting our Nation's financial infrastructure 
against criminal threats.
  This important bill was introduced by the bipartisan leadership of 
the Judiciary Committee: Chairman Bob Goodlatte, Ranking Member John 
Conyers, Crime Subcommittee Chairman Jim Sensenbrenner, and Crime 
Subcommittee Ranking Member Sheila Jackson Lee.
  H.R. 1656 was developed to address shortcomings related to the Secret 
Service that have come to light in recent years.
  Unfortunately, the image of this once revered agency has been 
tarnished both because of the misbehavior of agents and of the 
performance issues that have resulted in security lapses. Last fall, 
the Judiciary Committee held an important oversight hearing to review 
the operation of this vitally important agency.
  Then-Acting Director Joseph Clancy, who has since taken on the job on 
a more permanent basis, came before the committee to discuss the 
mission of the agency and issues relating to recent lapses in security 
that could have jeopardized the individuals the agency is sworn to 
protect. In particular, the committee engaged in a frank discussion 
about the unacceptable incident last September in which a man was able 
to jump over the White House's fence, run past Secret Service officers, 
and enter the White House.

[[Page H5493]]

  We learned that, while there were performance errors made by some of 
the officers that day, the protective mission of the Secret Service has 
been jeopardized largely because the agency has been allowed to fall 
into a state of disrepair. Personnel levels are unacceptably low; the 
long hours on duty leave little time for training; equipment and 
technological systems are not upgraded or integrated sufficiently; and 
the culture of the agency has suffered from poor leadership.
  These conclusions were confirmed and expanded upon by the review 
panel established by Department of Homeland Security Secretary Jeh 
Johnson in the wake of the White House's intrusion last year. H.R. 1656 
was introduced to address several categories of these challenges to the 
mission of the Secret Service: leadership, resources, training, 
authorities, and personal conduct:
  With respect to leadership, the bill requires the position of 
Director of the Secret Service to be confirmed by the Senate after the 
Presidential nomination;
  With respect to resources, the bill authorizes the hiring of 
additional personnel and requires a review of the agency's use of 
technology, an area of concern based on past security lapses;
  With respect to training, the bill requires more training for agents 
and Uniformed Division officers, and it also authorizes the 
construction of better training facilities;
  With respect to authorities, the bill allows the agency to 
investigate threats against former Vice Presidents in the same way it 
investigates threats against former Presidents;
  With respect to personal conduct, the bill establishes an Ethics 
Program Office that will emphasize the need for agency personnel to 
conduct themselves according to established ethical standards.
  The goal of this bill is to prevent future security lapses similar to 
what the agency has experienced in recent years and to protect against 
even more sophisticated threats that could result in far more harm.
  This is a strong, bipartisan bill that, I hope, will soon become law. 
Therefore, I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of it today.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the 
gentlewoman from the District of Columbia (Ms. Norton).
  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I certainly appreciate my good friend from 
Georgia for yielding to me to speak on this Secret Service reform bill 
and on the work of the chairman of the committee, Mr. Goodlatte from 
Virginia, on this bill.
  Our Oversight and Government Reform Committee held several hearings 
on Secret Service reform, and much of the content, I am pleased to say, 
is reflected in H.R. 1656. There, of course, have been an increasing 
number of fence jumpers in recent years, but it took a stunning 
penetration to the very interior of the White House by Omar Gonzalez 
last year to make it clear that the reform of the Secret Service was 
urgent.
  At hearings, we learned that there had never been--not once--a top-
to-bottom review of the Secret Service in its more than 100 years of 
existence. This was, clearly, urgently needed; so Secretary Jeh Johnson 
appointed the first independent review panel. What it found was, across 
the board, weakness and flaws in the United States Secret Service.
  Although its mission has expanded greatly over the years, today, the 
Secret Service simply does not reflect the post-9/11 experience, much 
less that of today's ISIL and domestic terrorism. The fence jumpers had 
already shown that the Secret Service could not be expected to meet its 
zero failure mission.
  Today's bill shows that Congress takes the reform of the Secret 
Service very seriously. The funding, which is usually missing from such 
reform these days, is authorized, and the bill adopts much of the 
independent review's recommendations:
  Instead of blaming overworked uniformed Secret Service and agents who 
have been working 6 and 7 days a week for 12 hours a day because of no 
additional personnel, the bill authorizes the addition of 80 agents and 
200 Uniformed Division personnel, which is virtually what the 
independent review panel recommended;
  The bill increases the number of hours of training to meet the Secret 
Service's expanded mission;
  It faces the need to make greater use of technology, and it even 
takes note of a post-fence jumper phenomenon, the unmanned drones that 
have become a new form of fence jumping.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentlewoman has expired.
  Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield the gentlewoman an 
additional 1 minute.
  Ms. NORTON. I appreciate that.
  Mr. Speaker, the space in front of the White House is a First 
Amendment park. I was invited down to a commemoration by citizens, who 
come every Monday to urge the reform of our gun laws.
  To respond to fence jumping, some had talked of making it difficult 
for the public to come to that space in front of Pennsylvania Avenue. 
At hearings, I was assured that that was not necessary; and this bill 
backs that up. Spikes have been added for the fence jumpers, making it 
difficult to jump over, but Mr. Speaker, I was pleased to see today 
that the public continues to use Pennsylvania Avenue as the First 
Amendment space it has always been.
  Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my 
time.
  Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, again, I thank the gentleman from Georgia 
and the ranking member of the committee, Mr. Conyers, as well as Mr. 
Sensenbrenner and the ranking member of the subcommittee, Ms. Jackson 
Lee.
  I urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 
1656, the ``Secret Service Improvements Act of 2015.''
  The ``Secret Service Improvements Act,'' is important because it will 
provide vital resources and strengthen protections of this important 
agency.
  The Secret Service agency is one of the most elite law enforcement 
organizations in the world and has earned this reputation by providing 
140 years of unparalleled service to this nation.
  However, the Secret Service is facing a number of challenges, 
including the need for more resources, better training, better use of 
technology, and a better understanding of emerging threats.
  This bill addresses each of these needs.
  I am particularly pleased that Section 14 of this bill incorporates 
my amendment to create an Ethics Program Office to fully and 
effectively implement and administer the ethics laws, regulations, and 
policies governing Secret Service employees.
  In recent years, the image of this once-revered agency has been 
tarnished--both because of misbehavior of agents and performance issues 
that resulted in security lapses.
  Much of the negative attention on the personal behavior of Secret 
Service agents was initially prompted by the revelations in 2012 
involving the solicitation of prostitutes by agents of the Secret 
Service in Cartagena, Colombia.
  At the time, it was reported that a dozen Secret Service agents 
engaged the services of prostitutes before a presidential visit to 
Colombia for the Summit of the Americas.
  I attended that Summit and was appalled to have learned of the 
behavior of some of the agents.
  In my capacity as Ranking Member of the Judiciary's Subcommittee on 
Crime and Senior Member of the Committee on Homeland Security, I 
examined the Cartagena incident, and met with then-Director Mark 
Sullivan to express my concern and press for strong corrective action.
  In fact, I have engaged in persistent oversight with respect to 
issues involving the Secret Service, ranging from the intrusion into 
the White House last year to the 2009 incident in which a couple evaded 
security to attend a state dinner at the White House honoring the Prime 
Minister of India.
  I have met with Directors of the Secret Service on multiple occasions 
over the past several years to discuss and address performance and 
misconduct issues.
  Agent misconduct of the sorts that have taken place in recent years 
is unacceptable.
  It is more than offensive--it jeopardizes the ability of the agency 
to carry out its core mission.
  To address misconduct issues and ethical lapses by Secret Service 
personnel, the manager's amendment includes a provision I developed, in 
cooperation with the Secret Service, that will help elevate the issue 
of ethical conduct at the agency through the creation of an Ethics 
Program Office.
  With respect to other issues related to the protection provided by 
the Secret Service, it is

[[Page H5494]]

clear that the agency has been operating at an unacceptable level of 
resources.
  The agency is understaffed at the agent and Uniform Division levels, 
resulting in shifts that are too long and which leave inadequate time 
for training.
  The agency also needs to better use state-of-the-art technology and 
communications equipment.
  All of these deficiencies contributed to the security breakdowns that 
allowed a man to climb over the White House fence, evade Secret Service 
officers while running across the White House lawn, and then run into 
the White House itself.
  The goal of H.R. 1656 is to prevent future such incidents--and to 
protect against even more sophisticated threats that could result in 
far more harm.
  This bill also would require that future directors of the Secret 
Service, after nomination by the President, be subject to Senate 
confirmation.
  The current Director, Joseph Clancy, appears to be doing a good job 
in reinvigorating that agency, and we do not propose this as a 
criticism of him, or the President's selection of him, in any way.
  However, this position--as is the case with the directors of the 
other law enforcement components of the Department of Homeland 
Security--should be Senate-confirmed, reinforcing the need to appoint 
the most highly-qualified candidates and elevating the position in 
stature.
  With the consideration of this legislation today, we recognize that 
it is unfortunately the case that the Secret Service has recently 
failed to live up to its high standards with respect to the protection 
it provides our President and others.
  By adopting the ``Secret Service Improvements Act,'' we can help 
restore the agency so that it will be better prepared to achieve its 
mission.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Goodlatte) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 1656, 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. GOODLATTE. 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, further 
proceedings on this motion will be postponed.

                          ____________________