[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 56 (Monday, April 1, 2019)]
[House]
[Pages H2930-H2931]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       TERRORIST AND FOREIGN FIGHTER TRAVEL EXERCISE ACT OF 2019

  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules 
and pass the bill (H.R. 1590) to require an exercise related to 
terrorist and foreign fighter travel, and for other purposes, as 
amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 1590

       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 ``Terrorist and Foreign 
     Fighter Travel Exercise Act of 2019''.

     SEC. 2. EXERCISE ON TERRORIST AND FOREIGN FIGHTER TRAVEL.

       (a) In General.--In addition to, or as part of exercise 
     programs currently carried out by the Department of Homeland 
     Security, to enhance domestic preparedness for and collective 
     response to terrorism, promote the dissemination of homeland 
     security information, and test the security posture of the 
     United States, the Secretary of Homeland Security, through 
     appropriate offices and components of the Department and in 
     coordination with the heads of appropriate Federal 
     departments and agencies, shall develop and conduct an 
     exercise related to the detection and prevention of terrorist 
     and foreign fighter travel.
       (b) Exercise Requirements.--The exercise required under 
     subsection (a) shall include--
       (1) a scenario involving--
       (A) persons traveling from the United States to join or 
     provide material support or resources to a terrorist 
     organization abroad; and
       (B) terrorist infiltration into the United States, 
     including by United States citizens and foreign nationals;
       (2) coordination with appropriate Federal departments and 
     agencies, foreign governments, and State, local, Tribal, and 
     territorial agencies, including law enforcement agencies and 
     representatives from the National Network of Fusion Centers; 
     and
       (3) coordination with appropriate private sector and 
     community stakeholders.
       (c) Report.--Not later than 60 days after the completion of 
     the exercise required under subsection (a), the Secretary of 
     Homeland Security shall, consistent with the protection of 
     classified information, submit to the Committee on Homeland 
     Security of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 
     Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate an 
     after-action report presenting the initial findings of such 
     exercise, plans for quickly incorporating lessons learned 
     into future operations of the Department of Homeland 
     Security, and any proposed legislative changes informed by 
     such exercise.
       (d) Definition.--In this section, the term ``material 
     support or resources'' has the meaning given such term in 
     section 2339A of title 18, United States Code.

     SEC. 3. EMERGING THREATS IN THE NATIONAL EXERCISE PROGRAM.

       Clause (i) of section 648(b)(2)(A) of the Post-Katrina 
     Emergency Management Reform Act of 2006 (6 U.S.C. 748(b)(2)) 
     is amended by inserting ``and emerging'' after ``credible''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from

[[Page H2931]]

Mississippi (Mr. Thompson) and the gentleman from Mississippi (Mr. 
Guest) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Mississippi (Mr. Thompson).


                             General Leave

  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent 
that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their 
remarks and include extraneous material on the measure.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Mississippi?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as 
I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 1590, the Terrorist and 
Foreign Fighter Travel Exercise Act of 2019.
  Mr. Speaker, in the almost 18 years since the September 11 terrorist 
attacks, threats to the American public have become increasingly 
complex and today include threats posed by foreign fighters.
  In 2015, the Committee on Homeland Security's Task Force on Combating 
Terrorism and Foreign Fighter Travel issued a bipartisan report that 
included a number of recommendations.
  H.R. 1590 requires the Department of Homeland Security to develop and 
conduct a foreign fighter exercise that could be built into existing 
DHS domestic preparedness exercises. Importantly, after the exercise, 
DHS is required to submit an after-action report to Congress detailing 
the initial findings, plans for incorporating lessons learned, and any 
legislative changes informed by this exercise.
  A very similar version of this legislation passed the full House last 
Congress. I am pleased that, through the markup process, modest 
modifications were made to improve the measure.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge the passage of H.R. 1590, and I reserve the 
balance of my time.
  Mr. GUEST. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of my bill, H.R. 1590, 
the Terrorist and Foreign Fighter Travel Exercise Act of 2019. This 
legislation seeks to better position the United States Government and 
relevant State, local, and private-sector agencies to detect and 
prevent terrorist and foreign fighter travel.
  In 2015, the Committee on Homeland Security developed a bipartisan 
task force to investigate the threat from individuals leaving the 
United States to join terrorist groups abroad. The task force reported 
that nearly 4,500 individuals from Western countries, with over 250 
from the United States, traveled to join Islamic terrorist groups. It 
goes on to detail 32 findings and over 50 recommendations to address 
this national security issue.
  During both the 114th Congress and the 115th Congress, former 
Representative and now Senator Martha McSally introduced this 
legislation. Both times, the bill passed unanimously in the House.
  Senator McSally previously stated: ``The abilities of these hardened 
fighters to return to the United States is a legitimate security 
concern to the homeland. Catching individuals who are looking to join 
the ranks and train with ISIS and other terrorist organizations prior 
to their initial departure is equally important and should be a goal 
for law enforcement as well.''
  Mr. Speaker, these words still ring true today. Just last year, an 
Ohio man was arrested at the John Glenn International Airport trying to 
fly to Kazakhstan. His intent was to be smuggled into Afghanistan to 
train with ISIS with the possibility of conducting terrorist projects 
in the United States.
  According to an FBI release on this matter, when the terrorist was 
asked what sort of training he wished to receive, he allegedly stated 
that he wanted to receive ``weapons experts training, planning, 
executing, hit and run, capturing high-value targets, ways to break 
into homes and avoid security.''
  The ability of these foreign fighters to return to the United States 
is a legitimate security concern. Preventing their initial departure 
should be a law enforcement priority as well.
  Furthermore, last year, the White House released the National 
Strategy to Combat Terrorist Travel. It ``outlines how the United 
States Government will expand coordination and maximize the full 
capabilities of Federal departments and agencies to identify, detect, 
and deter terrorists from transiting international borders.''
  One of the Strategy's primary goals is to identify and deter 
terrorists before they travel, to enhance intelligence gathering and 
analysis, and to improve the sharing of terrorist-related identity 
data.

                              {time}  1630

  H.R. 1590 complements and supports these efforts.
  The bill requires the Secretary of Homeland Security, in coordination 
with the appropriate Federal, State, local, Tribal, and territorial 
agencies, foreign governments, and appropriate private-sector entities, 
to develop and conduct an exercise related to the detection and 
prevention of terrorist and foreign fighter travel.
  The bill also requires the Secretary to produce an after-action 
report to Congress, presenting the findings of the exercise and to 
quickly incorporate those lessons learned into future operations of the 
department.
  Finally, it requires that the National Exercise Program be designed 
to include emerging threats.
  I cannot stress enough the importance of H.R. 1590. This bill 
represents continued action in combating terrorism and ensuring the 
safety of our Nation. As the threats of terrorism continue to evolve, 
we must remain vigilant in our resolve to combat our enemies.
  Our Nation's law enforcement, of all jurisdictions, whether it be 
Federal or local, need to have access to the valuable information and 
resources that this bill would provide so that our communities can be 
protected from terrorist activity.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge all Members to join me in supporting this 
bipartisan and commonsense bill. I urge the adoption of this bill, and 
I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, before I close, let me 
compliment the gentleman on the passage of this bill. This is, I 
believe, his maiden bill before the House of Representatives, and, from 
one Mississippian to another, I want to congratulate him for that.
  Mr. Speaker, because terrorists are constantly seeking new ways to 
cause harm and spread fear, we must continuously work to keep pace with 
the evolving threat landscape.
  H.R. 1590 seeks to strengthen the Nation's abilities to close the 
gaps in how we identify and assess threats from terrorist foreign 
fighters. As such, I support it and ask my colleagues to support it as 
well.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Mississippi (Mr. Thompson) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 1590, 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. THOMPSON of Mississippi. 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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