[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 7 (Wednesday, January 11, 2017)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E47]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]





   MEMORANDUM REGARDING AUTHORIZATION OF THE DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND 
                                SECURITY

                                  _____
                                 

                           HON. PAUL D. RYAN

                              of wisconsin

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, January 11, 2017

  Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin. Mr. Speaker, I submit the following memorandum 
regarding authorization of the Department of Homeland Security:

       We, the chairs of the committees with jurisdiction over the 
     Department of Homeland Security or its components, are hereby 
     recording our agreement on the following principles for the 
     115th Congress:
       1. The Department of Homeland Security (``the Department'') 
     and its components should be authorized on a regular basis to 
     ensure robust oversight and improve its operation.
       2. Committees with jurisdiction over the Department and its 
     components will prioritize the authorization of the 
     Department and any unauthorized or expiring component in that 
     committee's authorization and oversight plan.
       3. To the maximum extent practicable, the committees with 
     jurisdiction over unauthorized or expiring components of the 
     Department shall coordinate with the Committee on Homeland 
     Security to produce a comprehensive authorization bill for 
     the Department.
       4. The Committee on Homeland Security shall coordinate with 
     the committees with jurisdiction over unauthorized or 
     expiring components of the Department in the development of 
     any comprehensive authorization bill for the Department.
       5. The Committee on Homeland Security and the committees 
     with jurisdiction over components of the Department shall 
     jointly develop a process for the vetting and pre-clearing of 
     base text and amendments offered at subcommittee and full 
     committee markups of a DHS authorization bill in the 
     Committee on Homeland Security that fall within the 
     jurisdiction of a committee other than or in addition to the 
     Committee on Homeland Security.
       6. The committees will expedite consideration of any 
     comprehensive authorization bill for the Department, 
     including timely resolution of any matters subject to a 
     sequential or additional referral.
       7. To the extent that there are policy differences between 
     the committees regarding a provision of the comprehensive 
     authorization bill for the Department, the committees will 
     make best efforts to resolve any such dispute.
       8. The Committee on Homeland Security Committee shall not 
     include any provision in a comprehensive authorization bill 
     that the chair of the Committee on Ways and Means has 
     determined to be a revenue provision or a provision affecting 
     revenue. If the chair of the Committee on Ways and Means 
     makes such a determination, nothing in this agreement shall 
     be construed to preclude that chair from exercising an 
     additional or sequential referral over the measure, or a 
     point of order under clause 5(a) of Rule XXI of the Rules of 
     the House of Representatives.
       9. Nothing in this agreement shall be construed as altering 
     any committee's jurisdiction under rule X of the Rules of the 
     House of Representatives or the referral of any measure 
     thereunder.
       10. Further, nothing in this memorandum precludes a further 
     agreement between the committees with regard to the 
     implementation of a process to ensure regular comprehensive 
     authorizations of the Department.
           Signed,
     Gregg Walden, Chair,
       Committee on Energy and Commerce.
     Devin Nunes, Chair,
       Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.
     Jason Chaffetz, Chair,
       Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.
     Bill Shuster, Chair,
       Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.
     Michael T. McCaul, Chair,
       Committee on Homeland Security.
     Bob Goodlatte, Chair,
       Committee on the Judiciary.
     Lamar Smith, Chair,
       Committee on Science, Space and Technology.
     Kevin Brady, Chair,
       Committee on Ways and Means.

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