[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 28 (Tuesday, February 11, 2020)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E168-E169]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




PROTECTING CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE AGAINST DRONES AND EMERGING THREATS 
                                  ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                        HON. CEDRIC L. RICHMOND

                              of louisiana

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, February 10, 2020

  Mr. RICHMOND. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 4432, the 
``Protecting Critical Infrastructure Against Drones and Emerging 
Threats Act.''
  As Chairman of the Cybersecurity, Infrastructure Protection, and 
Innovation Subcommittee, I have made it a priority to understand the 
security challenges facing our critical infrastructure and to figure 
out solutions.
  My district in Louisiana has one of the nation's highest 
concentrations of critical infrastructure--including pipelines, 
refineries, ports, and stadiums.
  I have talked with owners and operators of critical infrastructure in 
my district and across the nation about the security issues they're 
facing, and there is always one common theme: Drones.
  Drones are hardly a new technology, but they do present policymakers 
at every level of government with serious challenges.
  It's a challenging issue because drone technology is an important 
tool in infrastructure security, providing situational awareness over 
critical infrastructure.
  At the same time, we know bad actors can use drones to move 
explosives, conduct surveillance and mapping activities, and carry out 
cyber attacks.

[[Page E169]]

  The weaponization of drones is not just a potential concern--we have 
seen it happen.
  Late last summer, drones were used to strike oil installations in 
Saudi Arabia, halting half of the country's oil production. And, in 
late 2018, reports of drone activity near the runway at Gatwick Airport 
outside London grounded hundreds of flights.
  The Federal government is aware of the security threats posed by 
drones, but we don't have a full picture of where and how often 
unauthorized drone activity is happening near our critical 
infrastructure.
  Owners and operators of chemical facilities regulated under the 
Chemical Facilities Antiterrorism Standards program have complained 
that no one in the Federal government collects information about 
unauthorized drone activity over their facilities.
  Our operators want to share important threat information that can 
inform our antiterrorism efforts but there's no one to collect it.
  We must do better.
  H.R. 4432 would require DHS to establish a way for owners and 
operators to voluntarily report information about unauthorized drone 
activity over their facilities. DHS would then use that information to 
develop a threat assessment on unmanned aerial systems and other 
emerging threats.
  H.R. 4432 marks an important step forward for DHS in its partnership 
with the private sector and in gaining full situational awareness about 
the threats posed by drones in the U.S.
  I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.
  I want to note my concerns with the President's FY 2021 budget 
request for the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency 
(CISA).
  Despite bipartisan agreement that CISA needs more resources to deal 
with more frequent and sophisticated cyber attacks, the budget slashes 
DHS' cybersecurity arm by $250 million. Inexplicably, it calls for a 
$10 million cut for cybersecurity support for State and local 
governments, at a time when they are increasingly targeted by foreign 
adversaries and criminal hackers.
  Worse still, it would eliminate funding for DHS' chemical 
antiterrorism security program that was established under the 
leadership of former Secretary Chertoff in response to intelligence 
suggesting chemical facilities would be a ripe target for terrorists.
  Chemical facilities remain a target for terrorists, and I am 
disturbed by the Administration's poor judgment related to this 
important antiterrorism program.
  With that, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 4432.

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