[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 97 (Tuesday, June 11, 2019)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E740-E741]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  STRENGTHENING LOCAL TRANSPORTATION SECURITY CAPABILITIES ACT OF 2019

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                        HON. SHEILA JACKSON LEE

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, June 10, 2019

  Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 2539, 
``Strengthening Local Transportation Security Capabilities Act of 
2019.''
  H.R. 2539 requires DHS to prioritize the assignment of officers and 
intelligence analysts from TSA and DHS I&A to locations with 
participating State, local, and regional fusion centers in 
jurisdictions with a high-risk surface transportation asset.
  The tragic events of 9/11 thrust the issue of physical security into 
public domain as never before and set in motion responses that have re-
shaped transportation in unforeseen ways.
  H.R. 2539 authorizes DHS to develop, through the Federal Law 
Enforcement Training Centers, a training program to enhance the 
protection, preparedness, and response capabilities of law enforcement 
agencies with respect to terrorism and other serious incidents at 
surface transportation assets.
  In addition, threats to health, such as the spread of pandemics, 
present significant challenges to transport planning and operations.
  Railway stations and airports are some of the most densely populated 
sites anywhere.
  From 2009, all the flights originating, bound to or flying over the 
United States had their list of passengers cross-referenced by a 
central no-fly list managed by the TSA.
  Security involves many steps, from restricting access to airport 
facilities, fortifying cockpits, the setting of no-fly lists, to the 
more extensive security screening of passengers.
  Screening now involves more rigorous inspections of passengers and 
their baggage at airports, including restrictions on what can be 
personally carried in airplanes such as gels and liquids.
  Considering the emergence of global supply chains, the emphasis in 
freight transport security is gradually shifting into a more 
comprehensive but complex approach.
  The large number of ports, the vast fleet of global shipping and the 
range of products carried in vessels, and the difficulty of detection 
has made the issue of security in shipping an extremely difficult one 
to address.
  The less regulated and greater international dimensions of the 
shipping industry have made it vulnerable to security breaches.
  We need appropriate security measures to protect the susceptibility 
of American lives against possible acts of violence and terrorism.
  The growth in the use of information technologies and their 
associated networks have opened new forms of vulnerability as control 
and management systems can be remotely accessed.

[[Page E741]]

  This has resulted in complex interconnected corporate information 
networks that can be hacked and disrupted.
  Trained officials and security experts work arduously to assess and 
mitigate the safety of passenger flow at transportation hubs.
  Taken together, the bill's provisions enhance the capabilities of 
local transportation security stakeholders to prevent and respond to 
terrorist attacks and other serious incidents.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 2539 
to strengthen our nations' ports of transportation to prevent and 
respond to terrorist attacks.

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