[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 198 (Tuesday, December 5, 2017)]
[House]
[Pages H9633-H9637]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          SECRET SERVICE RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION ACT OF 2017

  Mr. RUTHERFORD. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 3731) to provide overtime pay for employees of the United 
States Secret Service, and for other purposes, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 3731

       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 Recruitment 
     and Retention Act of 2017''.

     SEC. 2. EXTENSION OF OVERTIME PAY EXCEPTION THROUGH 2018 FOR 
                   PROTECTIVE SERVICES.

       (a) In General.--The Overtime Pay for Protective Services 
     Act of 2016 (5 U.S.C. 5547 note) is amended--
       (1) in the section heading for section 2, by striking 
     ``2016'' and inserting ``2016 through 2018''; and
       (2) by striking ``during 2016'' each place it appears and 
     inserting ``during 2016 through 2018''.
       (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) 
     shall take effect as if enacted on December 31, 2016.
       (c) Report on Extensions.--Not later than January 30, 2018, 
     and January 30, 2019, the Director of the Secret Service 
     shall submit to the Committee on Homeland Security and the 
     Committee on Oversight and Government Reform of the House of 
     Representatives and the Committee on Homeland Security and 
     Governmental Affairs of the Senate a report on the effects of 
     the amendment made by subsection (a)(2). The report shall 
     include, with respect to the previous calendar year--
       (1) the total number of United States Secret Service 
     personnel receiving premium pay above the premium pay 
     limitation in subsection (a) of section 5547 of title 5, 
     United States Code;
       (2) the total amount of premium pay for that calendar year 
     paid to United States Secret Service personnel above the 
     premium pay limitation in such subsection;
       (3) the mean and median amount of premium pay paid to 
     United States Secret Service personnel above the premium pay 
     limitation in such subsection;
       (4) the greatest amount paid to United States Secret 
     Service personnel above the premium pay limitation in such 
     subsection and the number of employees who received that 
     amount;
       (5) notwithstanding the amendments made by subsection (a), 
     the total number of United States Secret Service personnel 
     who were not fully compensated for service because of the 
     premium pay earnings limitation in section 118 of the 
     Treasury and General Government Appropriations Act, 2001 (5 
     U.S.C. 5547 note);
       (6) the total amount of premium pay United States Secret 
     Service personnel would have been paid but for the premium 
     pay earnings limitation in such section; and
       (7) a list of United States Secret Service personnel who, 
     within the calendar year, received premium pay above the 
     premium pay limitation in subsection (a) of section 5547 of 
     title 5, United States Code, and separated from the agency, 
     including the type of separation in each case.

     SEC. 3. REPORT OF THE COMPTROLLER GENERAL OF THE UNITED 
                   STATES.

       Not later than 1 year after the effective date of this 
     section, the Comptroller General of the United States shall 
     complete a study and submit to the Committee on the Judiciary 
     of the House of Representatives, the Committee on the 
     Judiciary of the Senate, the Committee on Oversight and 
     Government Reform of the House of Representatives, and the 
     Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of 
     the Senate a report on the extent of the progress made by the 
     United States Secret Service in implementing the 
     recommendations of the United States Secret Service 
     Protective Mission Panel, including in particular those items 
     pertaining to training and personnel enumerated in the 
     Executive Summary to Report from the United States Secret 
     Service Protective Mission Panel to the Secretary of Homeland 
     Security dated December 15, 2014.

     SEC. 4. RESCISSIONS.

       (a) Rescission of Unobligated Balances in the Department of 
     Justice Assets Forfeiture Fund.--Of the unobligated balances 
     available under the Department of Justice Assets Forfeiture 
     Fund, $10,000,000 is hereby permanently rescinded.
       (b) Authorization to Rescind Future Unobligated Balances in 
     the Department of Justice Assets Forfeiture Fund.--There is 
     authorized to be rescinded from the unobligated balances 
     available under the Department of Justice Assets Forfeiture 
     Fund $7,000,000 in fiscal year 2018 and $3,000,000 in fiscal 
     year 2019.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Florida (Mr. Rutherford) and the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson 
Lee) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Florida.

                              {time}  1230


                             General Leave

  Mr. RUTHERFORD. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks 
and include extraneous material on H.R. 3731, currently under 
consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Florida?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. RUTHERFORD. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 3731, the Secret 
Service Recruitment and Retention Act of 2017.
  This bipartisan legislation was introduced by my distinguished 
colleague, Mr. Katko, and negotiated between the House Judiciary 
Committee and the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. It 
would make small, but significant, changes to the Federal law to ensure 
that the men and women of the United States Secret Service are fairly 
compensated for performing their duties.
  This bill is necessary because, under current law, many Secret 
Service agents have hit the lawful cap that restricts overtime pay in 
some circumstances. This means that the brave men and women standing 
post, for example, at 2 a.m. in the morning are doing so for free. This 
is, without question, an untenable situation.
  H.R. 3731 makes two important changes to the law to address this 
problem.
  First, it raises the overtime cap to ensure that these agents are 
paid.
  Second, it includes a reporting requirement, directing the Government 
Accountability Office to study the

[[Page H9634]]

Service's implementation of the recommendations of the Protective 
Mission Panel, or PMP. This change is intended to help address the 
recruitment and retention issues at the Secret Service.
  Mr. Speaker, this legislation will ensure that the Secret Service is 
able to recruit and retain an elite group of dedicated law enforcement 
officers. This is an issue that rises above party affiliation, or 
ideology. The protection of the President, the First Family, and others 
is something that, obviously, we all should want as American citizens.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this important 
legislation, and I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, let me, first of all, thank my good friend, Mr. Katko, 
who is the original sponsor; and I am proud to be an original cosponsor 
of this legislation. We serve on the Homeland Security Committee and 
have oversight over the Secret Service, as does the aspects of this 
legislation, as relates to Judiciary has oversight as well. So ensuring 
that our men and women, who put their lives on the line daily, are 
protected is an important initiative. As I said earlier, I am proud to 
be an original cosponsor, along with my colleague from New York (Mr. 
Katko).
  The Secret Service Recruitment and Retention Act of 2017 is intended 
to provide overtime pay for employees of the United States Secret 
Service. Currently, the premium pay for protective services, under the 
Overtime Pay for Protective Services Act of 2016, has severe earning 
limitations, or otherwise caps, which many of these men and women have 
reached.
  Due to earnings limitations put in place through 5 U.S.C. 5547, many 
Secret Service employees are not receiving timely or full payment for 
the hours they work. The requirements of protective operations directly 
contrast with the intent of an annual pay cap, as the protective 
mission requires continued, uninterrupted coverage for our protectees, 
beyond the control of the Secret Service. I think that is an important 
point.
  And I want my colleagues to know that I wholly support that our 
protectees are protected wherever they go. But I would be remiss if I 
did not express my concern on the number of trips that the Secret 
Service today has had to make on outings for entertainment, Mar-a-Lago, 
which I think is over 100 times, and the enormous amount of money and 
burden that is being placed on the Federal Government.
  This does not mean that I do not want these individuals to be 
compensated. And might I stop for a moment to thank the Secret Service, 
who I have known and have seen working over the years that I have 
served in the United States Congress in many different ways. Let me 
personally thank them for their service and for their professional 
service, dedicated service, and longstanding service and commitment to 
sacrificing their life for their protectee.
  I would say that this problem often requires individuals to work over 
the amount of premium pay, for which they are able to be legally paid, 
due to the annual cap. We have seen the extent to which Secret Service 
members are stretched in this administration alone. Providing 
protection for the President, his family members, and other high 
officials requires depth within the agency to ensure protectees are 
covered as well as their respective posts when pulled away. As I made 
the point, these various family members and President go in many ways 
off of the path of their government service related to the people of 
the United States.
  It is my hope that we are able to eventually work collaboratively on 
a more permanent fix to this problem since the Secret Service cannot 
administratively control protective overtime, which is dependent on the 
schedules of the protectees. Raising the pay cap will aid the Secret 
Service in reducing attrition rates and retaining personnel, which is 
what this bill purports to do. I truly want to make sure that happens.
  Exit interview data indicates the pay cap issue is the number one 
concern among employees leaving the Secret Service. We must ensure that 
we are employing the best available candidates when dealing with the 
protection of America's highest diplomats. Therefore, pay should not be 
a deterrence in the recruitment and/or retention of Secret Service 
agents, and it is crucial that we retain them.

  Departing employees said raising the pay cap would have had an effect 
on their decision to leave, and they would have stayed. They are 
leaving the Secret Service for other positions in the Federal 
Government with equal pay and less travel.
  The U.S. Secret Service is currently protecting a historic number of 
protectees--about 25 percent more protectees--than during the Obama 
administration. In comparison to the previous five Presidential 
administrations--Bush 41 to Obama--for the first 6 months in office, 
Trump administration Secret Service protectees had more travel stops 
and travel days than any other President.
  As such, the operational tempo for protective activities have 
remained higher than normal. Protective overtime hours for special 
agents are about 15 to 20 percent higher when compared to CY 2015, the 
last non-Presidential campaign year.
  For CY 2017, as of 9-30-17, the Secret Service anticipates 
approximately 1,200 personnel will exceed the statutory pay cap.
  The costs related to protective overtime in excess of the pay cap for 
CY 2017 is estimated at $10.5 million. The same costs are projected for 
2018, if the protective tempo remains unchanged.
  I, therefore, support this bill, and I urge my colleagues to do the 
same. Any way that we can help protect the protectees, and keep these 
well-experienced, committed, dedicated agents, willing to sacrifice 
their lives, from leaving, so that we can also recruit, is a vital step 
forward. I hope not only is this bill passed by the House, but I also 
hope passed quickly by the Senate to be able to be signed by the 
President of the United States.
  Ensuring that our men and women, who put their lives on the line 
daily, are protected is an important initiative. I am proud to be an 
original co-sponsor along with my colleague Mr. Katko from New York.
  ``The Secret Service Recruitment and Retention Act of 2017'' is 
intended to provide overtime pay for employees of the United States 
Secret Service.
  Currently, the premium pay for protective services under the 
``Overtime Pay for Protective Services Act of 2016'' has severe earning 
limitations, or otherwise caps, which many of these men and women have 
reached.
  Due to earnings limitations put in place through 5 U.S.C. 5547, many 
Secret Service employees are not receiving timely or full payment for 
the hours they work.
  The requirements of protective operations directly contrast with the 
intent of an annual pay cap, as the protective mission requires 
continued, uninterrupted coverage for our protectees, beyond the 
control of the United States Secret Service.
  This often requires individuals to work over the amount of premium 
pay for which they are able to be legally paid due to the annual cap.
  We have seen the extent to which the Secret Service members are 
stretched in this administration alone. Providing protection for the 
President, his family members and other high officials require depth 
within the agency to ensure protectees are covered as well as their 
respective posts when pulled away.
  It is my hope that we are able to eventually work collaboratively on 
a more permanent fix to this problem since the Secret Service cannot 
administratively control protective overtime, which is dependent on the 
schedules of the protectees.
  Raising the pay cap will aid the Secret Service in reducing attrition 
rates and retaining personnel, which is what this bill purports to do.
  Exit interview data indicates the pay cap issue is the number #1 
concern among employees leaving the Secret Service. We must ensure that 
we are employing the best available candidates when dealing with the 
protection of America's highest diplomats. Therefore, pay should not be 
deterrence in the recruitment and/or retention of Secret Service 
agents.
  Departing employees said raising the pay cap would have had an effect 
on their decision to leave the agency. (They are leaving the Secret 
Service for other positions in the federal government with equal pay 
and less travel.)
  The USSS is currently protecting a historical high number of 
protectees--about 25 percent more protectees than during the Obama 
Administration.
  In comparison to the previous five presidential administrations (Bush 
41 to Obama), for the first six months in office, Trump Administration 
Secret Service protectees had more travel stops and travel days than 
any other.

[[Page H9635]]

  As such, the operational tempo for protective activities has remained 
higher than normal. Protective overtime hours for special agents are 
about 15 to 20 percent higher when compared to CY 2015--the last non-
presidential campaign year.
  For CY 2017, as of 9/30/17, the Secret Services anticipates 
approximately 1,200 personnel will exceed the statutory pay cap.
  The costs related to protective overtime in excess of the pay cap for 
CY 2017 is estimated at $10.5 million. The same costs are projected for 
CY 2018, if the protective tempo remains unchanged.
  I therefore, support this bill and urge my colleagues to do the same.
  Mr. Speaker, we must do everything we can to protect our United 
States Secret Service personnel and ensure an effective process for 
recruitment and retention of these agents.
  These agents play a vital role in our democratic system both here at 
home and abroad. Their keen attention to details and adequate response 
to dangerous situations around the world cannot be measured in dollar 
signs.
  Beyond protecting the President, Vice-President, their families and 
other identified individuals, the Secret Service plays a vital role in 
representing the United States interest around the world through 
criminal investigation activities that span the gamut from anti-
counterfeiting operations to now encompassing financial crimes, 
identity theft, counterfeiting, computer fraud, and computer-based 
attacks on the nation's financial, banking, and telecommunications 
infrastructure, among other areas.
  For all these reasons, I therefore, support this bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. RUTHERFORD. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from 
New York (Mr. Katko), my good friend, and sponsor of the bill.
  Mr. KATKO. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 3731, 
the Secret Service Recruitment and Retention Act of 2017, because I 
believe in the need to pay the hardworking men and women of the United 
States Secret Service for the critical work that they perform in 
dedication to the security of America's leaders.
  While most Americans know the Secret Service for its role in 
protecting the President and First Family, many are unaware of the 
additional substantial roles and countless hours worked by special 
agents, uniformed division officers, technical personnel, and 
intelligence professionals. These jobs require extensive travel, often 
on short notice, as well as sometimes working multiple weeks in a row 
without a day off, because the security of our Nation's leaders depend 
on our constant vigilance.
  This legislation demonstrates an important recognition of the men and 
women who wake up every day to dedicate their lives to the protection 
of America's leadership and financial systems. This agency has 
struggled to improve employee morale in recent years, due, in large 
part, to strict overtime pay caps that prevent adequate compensation 
for their work. It is very common, nowadays, in the Secret Service for 
agents, starting as early as June, to be working multiple hours a week 
of overtime, and sometimes as many as over 100 hours a month for free 
because they have reached the cap.
  This, in turn, leads to challenges in retention and recruitment, 
further exacerbating staffing shortages. In 2017, the agency estimates 
that 1,200 employees at Secret Service will exceed the statutory pay 
cap, losing approximately $10 million in overtime pay, unless we, in 
Congress, step up.
  I wish to thank each of the bipartisan cosponsors for their support 
of this bill, which took the cooperation of multiple committees to 
bring to the floor. And I want to thank my colleague, Ms. Jackson Lee, 
for her continued support on bipartisan measures. It is a sign that 
when you join hands across the aisle, good things can happen.
  In particular, I thank Chairman Goodlatte of the Judiciary Committee 
for bringing this legislation up today, as well as Chairman Gowdy and 
Ranking Member Cummings of the Oversight and Government Reform 
Committee for their support. I also thank my colleague, Mr. Rutherford, 
for managing this bill on the floor today. And I thank Chairman McCaul, 
Ranking Member Thompson, and Ranking Member Watson Coleman of the 
Homeland Security Committee for their recognition of this legislation's 
importance to the Secret Service and for their support.
  Further, I would like to explicitly thank two staffers who were truly 
instrumental in coordinating the movement of this bill: Kevin Ortiz of 
the Oversight and Government Reform Committee, and Robert Parmiter of 
the Judiciary Committee.
  Mr. Speaker, this bill provides overdue relief to an agency whose 
dedication knows no bounds. As we enjoy this holiday season, I can 
think of no better Christmas gift to the hardworking men and women at 
the Secret Service than the fair compensation that is owed to them for 
their hard work in securing our Nation.
  Mr. Speaker, for this reason, I strongly urge all of my colleagues to 
support this bill, and I urge the Senate to quickly take up and pass 
this bill.
  Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from 
New York (Mr. Nadler), the ranking member of the House Judiciary 
Committee.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 3731. This bill would raise 
the cap on overtime pay for Secret Service agents through next year.
  These agents pursue the unique dual role of the Secret Service, which 
consists of protective and investigative functions. Secret Service 
agents are most commonly known for their role in protecting the 
President, Vice President, their families, and other dignitaries. Their 
duties, however, also involve rotations into units that investigate 
threats against our financial system, certain types of identity theft, 
and related cybercrimes.
  This bill before us today is before us because the demands on these 
agents have increased significantly under the Trump administration. 
President Trump seems to travel to properties in Florida, New Jersey, 
and Virginia almost every weekend, and the number of individuals in the 
Trump administration under Secret Service protection has exceeded 40, 
in comparison to just over 30 under the Obama administration. 
Protective overtime hours for special agents are 15 to 20 percent 
higher than those during the last non-Presidential campaign year.
  Because of the increased workload, many Secret Service personnel will 
hit the statutory pay cap this year, and next. This bill would raise 
the cap through calendar year 2018. This change is necessary to allow 
Secret Service agents to be compensated for the extraordinary rigors 
and time demands placed upon them as they work diligently to fulfill 
their critical mission. The adjustment is necessary for the retention 
of well-trained agents and the recruitment of new ones.

  I also note that the bill would require GAO to conduct a study of the 
Secret Service's implementation of recommendations concerning training 
and personnel made 3 years ago by the Secret Service Mission Panel. 
Congress will benefit from receiving a progress report on this effort.
  The various provisions of this bill will help make the Secret Service 
a more effective agency in pursuing its dual mission.
  Mr. Speaker, I, therefore, support H.R. 3731 and ask that my 
colleagues do the same.
  Mr. RUTHERFORD. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from 
Georgia (Mr. Jody B. Hice), who is a member of the Committee on 
Oversight and Government Reform.
  Mr. JODY B. HICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the gentleman 
for yielding.
  Mr. Speaker, we all know that the United States Secret Service is one 
of the Federal Government's premier law enforcement agencies.
  The agency's critical mission is to protect the President, his 
family, and other senior government officials. Agency personnel may 
also provide protection at high-profile events. It has a zero-fail 
mission; therefore, it is vital that the Secret Service is fully 
staffed with nothing but the best.
  Unfortunately, the agency has faced tremendous staffing problems. The 
Committee on Oversight and Government Reform released a bipartisan 
report in 2015, finding the Secret Service has faced challenges related 
to hiring and retaining personnel.

[[Page H9636]]

  


                              {time}  1245

  The report states that the staffing crisis threatens to jeopardize 
its critical mission. Staffing issues have persisted, although the 
agency has implemented a series of reforms to help get its hiring and 
attrition problems under control.
  The consequence of these hiring and attrition problems is that the 
agency does not have enough personnel to fulfill its zero fail 
protective mission. This means existing personnel are working excessive 
overtime.
  With all the overtime, many Secret Service personnel have reached the 
cap on premium pay set in law. As a result, agents are not paid for 
overtime hours if doing so would result in compensation above the cap 
during any biweekly pay period. These max-outs, as they are known, 
contribute to the agency's low morale and unsurprisingly cause the rate 
of attrition to spike.
  Congress first lifted the pay cap for the Secret Service in 2016 to 
help the agency handle the demands of staffing the Presidential 
campaign. However, nearly 1,300 employees are at risk of exceeding the 
pay cap in 2017.
  Due to the extraordinary staffing problems facing the agency, this 
bill extends the pay cap waiver provided last year until the end of 
2018. Employees will receive compensation up to the basic pay currently 
given to members of the Executive Schedule, Level II.
  Every Secret Service employee who has exceeded the cap or who is at 
risk of doing so because of excessive overtime will receive additional 
compensation under this bill.
  I want to be clear. This bill is narrowly targeted to fix a problem 
currently facing the agency and does so in a timely manner.
  The Secret Service cannot continue to rely on expensive overtime, and 
Congress fully expects the agency to get its hiring attrition problems 
under control. To this end, the bill also requires a report by the 
Government Accountability Office focused on the Secret Service's 
implementation of recommendations found in the 2014 Protective Mission 
Panel report.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
  Mr. RUTHERFORD. Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the 
gentleman from Georgia.
  Mr. JODY B. HICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, the recommendations, which 
include reforming the recruiting and hiring process, hiring additional 
personnel, and implementing a zero tolerance disciplinary system, are 
instructive and will help the Secret Service develop a world class 
human resource system.
  Mr. Speaker, in closing, I would like to thank the House Judiciary 
Committee, the Homeland Security Committee, along with the Oversight 
and Government Reform Committee on putting forth this important 
legislation and bringing it to the floor in a timely manner.
  Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the extra time and I urge all Members to 
support this bill.
  Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from 
Maryland (Mr. Cummings), the chairman and ranking member of the 
Oversight and Government Reform Committee.
  Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding, and 
I rise to support H.R. 3731, the Secret Service Recruitment and 
Retention Act of 2017, which Congressman Katko and I cosponsored.
  The bill would authorize an increase in the annual salary and the 
overtime limit for the men and women of the Secret Service so they can 
be paid for the significant overtime they have already worked in 2017 
and will be working in 2018.
  Last year, the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform 
unanimously passed the Overtime Pay for Protective Services Act of 
2016. The bill authorized overtime pay for more than 1,400 Secret 
Service agents and the thousands of hours they worked in the 2016 
Presidential campaign year.
  Although non-campaign years are usually significantly less demanding, 
the size of President Trump's family, their frequent travel, and the 
need to secure their multiple residences have caused more than 1,000 
Secret Service agents to reach the annual pay cap in 2017. These 
demands on the Secret Service will remain extremely high and require 
substantial resources.
  In December 2015, the Oversight Committee unanimously adopted a 
report concluding that the Secret Service``. . . is experiencing a 
staffing crisis that threatens to jeopardize its critical mission.''
  Our report found that this was due in large part to ``. . . 
significant cuts imposed by the Budget Control Act of 2011.''
  The report recommended that Congress ensure that the Secret Service 
has sufficient funds to restore staffing to the required levels.
  Providing this much-needed overtime pay relief is an essential step 
towards fulfilling the committee's recommendation. The hardworking men 
and women of the Secret Service put their lives on the line every day 
and make tremendous personal sacrifices for our country.
  We cannot expect the Secret Service to recruit and retain the best of 
the best and be the elite of the elite if they are not even being 
compensated for the hours that are demanded of them.
  Congress has a responsibility to provide the resources they need. I 
am proud to join my colleagues in this bipartisan effort to do just 
that, and I urge my colleagues to support this bill.
  Mr. RUTHERFORD. Mr. Speaker, I have no other Members to speak on this 
bill.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Let me acknowledge Mr. Cummings for his leadership on this 
legislation. I believe the combination of Members who are sponsoring 
this legislation and the work of the Oversight and Government Reform, 
Homeland Security, and Judiciary Committees clearly speak to almost the 
crisis of the issue and what we are dealing with.
  As we come to a close, Mr. Speaker, I am hoping that my colleagues 
will vote for this legislation in resounding numbers and I hope that 
the Senate will hotline this legislation so that it can immediately get 
to the desk of the President.
  I would also ask that we recognize that we must do everything we can 
to protect our United States Secret Service personnel and ensure an 
effective process for recruitment and retention of these agents.
  I am glad there is an element in this legislation that will allow for 
a review of all of these issues and that the Congress will have a role 
in assessing how we can work with the Secret Service agency to improve 
its performance, its retention, and certainly to say to those 
hardworking agents that we appreciate them, by way of compensation.
  These agents play a vital role in our democratic system both here at 
home and abroad. Their keen attention to details and adequate response 
to dangerous situations around the world cannot be measured in dollar 
signs.
  Beyond protecting the President, Vice President, their families, and 
other identified individuals, the Secret Service plays a vital role in 
representing the United States' interests around the world through 
criminal investigation activities that span the gamut from 
anticounterfeiting operations to now encompassing financial crimes; 
identity theft, which has exponentially grown in the United States; 
counterfeiting; computer fraud; and computer-based attacks on the 
Nation's financial, banking, and telecommunications infrastructure, 
among other areas.
  Congress is standing up to make its voice known and to make 
appropriate changes.
  I think it is appropriate for the administration in this instance, 
the Commander in Chief, to stand up as well and review the extensive 
travel and the burdens that are being placed on the Secret Service 
agents and their families. They are not complaining, but I think it 
behooves any good leader to look at what can be improved and what can 
be corrected in order to ensure the astuteness, the excellence, and the 
safety and security of the protectees and those agents who are out 
there on the line sacrificing or willing to sacrifice their life.
  For all of these reasons, I therefore support this bill. Mr. Speaker, 
I ask my colleagues to vote for this legislation, H.R. 3731, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. RUTHERFORD. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.

[[Page H9637]]

  Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentlewoman from Texas for helping 
to bring this bill to the floor today. I congratulate my good friend 
from New York, Mr. Katko, on this legislation. It is going to be very 
important to our men and women of the Secret Service who put their 
lives on the line every day in dedication to their service.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to encourage all of my colleagues to support H.R. 
3731, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, I support the passage of H.R. 3731 today 
to strengthen the resolve of our men and women in the Secret Service to 
continue performing their essential duties in protecting the President 
while receiving the appropriate compensation for their efforts which go 
beyond normal working hours. This legislation ensures that a pay cap is 
no longer a barrier to paying Secret Service agents who stand watch at 
all hours of the night, often racking up significant overtime. The 
current pay cap restricts the Secret Service from paying their 
employees what is due to them.
  Director Alles believes this legislation to be such an important 
initiative to pass that he personally came to discuss it with me as 
Chairman of the Judiciary Committee with oversight of the Secret 
Service. I am glad that we are, in a bipartisan way, enabling the men 
and women of the Secret Service to now receive the necessary 
compensation for the significant overtime work they perform.
  The GAO reporting requirement in the legislation will also provide to 
Congress important analysis of how well the Secret Service has 
implemented the recommendations of the Protective Mission Panel. 
Knowing these results will help in conducting crucial oversight of the 
agency.
  I urge my colleagues to support this important legislation.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Florida (Mr. Rutherford) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 3731, 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. RUTHERFORD. 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.

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