[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 127 (Tuesday, July 20, 2021)]
[House]
[Pages H3703-H3705]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               DOMAINS CRITICAL TO HOMELAND SECURITY ACT

  Ms. CLARKE of New York. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules 
and pass the bill (H.R. 3264) to amend the Homeland Security Act of 
2002 to require research and development to identify and evaluate the 
extent to which critical domain risks within the United States supply 
chain pose a substantial threat to homeland security, and for other 
purposes.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 3264

       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 ``Domains Critical to Homeland 
     Security Act''.

     SEC. 2. CRITICAL DOMAIN RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT.

       (a) In General.--Subtitle H of title VIII of the Homeland 
     Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 451 et seq.) is amended by 
     adding at the end the following new section:

     ``SEC. 890B. HOMELAND SECURITY CRITICAL DOMAIN RESEARCH AND 
                   DEVELOPMENT.

       ``(a) In General.--
       ``(1) Research and development.--The Secretary is 
     authorized to conduct research and development to--
       ``(A) identify United States critical domains for economic 
     security and homeland security; and
       ``(B) evaluate the extent to which disruption, corruption, 
     exploitation, or dysfunction of any of such domain poses a 
     substantial threat to homeland security.
       ``(2) Requirements.--
       ``(A) Risk analysis of critical domains.--The research 
     under paragraph (1) shall include a risk analysis of each 
     identified United States critical domain for economic 
     security to determine the degree to which there exists a 
     present or future threat to homeland security in the event of 
     disruption, corruption, exploitation, or dysfunction to such 
     domain. Such research shall consider, to the extent possible, 
     the following:
       ``(i) The vulnerability and resilience of relevant supply 
     chains.
       ``(ii) Foreign production, processing, and manufacturing 
     methods.
       ``(iii) Influence of malign economic actors.
       ``(iv) Asset ownership.
       ``(v) Relationships within the supply chains of such 
     domains.
       ``(vi) The degree to which the conditions referred to in 
     clauses (i) through (v) would place such a domain at risk of 
     disruption, corruption, exploitation, or dysfunction.
       ``(B) Additional research into high-risk critical 
     domains.--Based on the identification and risk analysis of 
     United States critical domains for economic security pursuant 
     to paragraph (1) and subparagraph (A) of this paragraph, 
     respectively, the Secretary may conduct additional research 
     into those critical domains, or specific elements thereof, 
     with respect to which there exists the highest degree of a 
     present or future threat to homeland security in the event of 
     disruption, corruption, exploitation, or dysfunction to such 
     a domain. For each such high-risk domain, or element thereof, 
     such research shall--
       ``(i) describe the underlying infrastructure and processes;
       ``(ii) analyze present and projected performance of 
     industries that comprise or support such domain;
       ``(iii) examine the extent to which the supply chain of a 
     product or service necessary to such domain is concentrated, 
     either through a small number of sources, or if multiple 
     sources are concentrated in one geographic area;
       ``(iv) examine the extent to which the demand for supplies 
     of goods and services of such industries can be fulfilled by 
     present and projected performance of other industries, 
     identify strategies, plans, and potential barriers to expand 
     the supplier industrial base, and identify the barriers to 
     the participation of such other industries;
       ``(v) consider each such domain's performance capacities in 
     stable economic environments, adversarial supply conditions, 
     and under crisis economic constraints;
       ``(vi) identify and define needs and requirements to 
     establish supply resiliency within each such domain; and
       ``(vii) consider the effects of sector consolidation, 
     including foreign consolidation, either through mergers or 
     acquisitions, or due to recent geographic realignment, on 
     such industries' performances.
       ``(3) Consultation.--In conducting the research under 
     paragraph (1) and subparagraph

[[Page H3704]]

     (B) of paragraph (2), the Secretary may consult with 
     appropriate Federal agencies, State agencies, and private 
     sector stakeholders.
       ``(4) Publication.--Beginning one year after the date of 
     the enactment of this section, the Secretary shall publish a 
     report containing information relating to the research under 
     paragraph (1) and subparagraph (B) of paragraph (2), 
     including findings, evidence, analysis, and recommendations. 
     Such report shall be updated annually through 2026.
       ``(b) Submission to Congress.--Not later than 90 days after 
     the publication of each report required under paragraph (4) 
     of subsection (a), the Secretary shall transmit to the 
     Committee on Homeland Security of the House of 
     Representatives and the Committee on Homeland Security and 
     Governmental Affairs of the Senate each such report, together 
     with a description of actions the Secretary, in consultation 
     with appropriate Federal agencies, will undertake or has 
     undertaken in response to each such report.
       ``(c) Definitions.--In this section:
       ``(1) United states critical domains for economic 
     security.--The term `United States critical domains for 
     economic security' means the critical infrastructure and 
     other associated industries, technologies, and intellectual 
     property, or any combination thereof, that are essential to 
     the economic security of the United States.
       ``(2) Economic security.--The term `economic security' 
     means the condition of having secure and resilient domestic 
     production capacity, combined with reliable access to the 
     global resources necessary to maintain an acceptable standard 
     of living and to protect core national values.
       ``(d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized 
     to be appropriated $1,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2022 
     through 2026 to carry out this section.''.
       (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents in section 
     1(b) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 is amended by 
     inserting after the item relating to section 890A the 
     following new item:

``Sec. 890B. Homeland security critical domain research and 
              development.''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
New York (Ms. Clarke) and the gentleman from New York (Mr. Katko) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from New York.

                              {time}  1345


                             General Leave

  Ms. CLARKE of New York. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that 
all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their 
remarks and include extraneous material on this measure.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from New York?
  There was no objection.
  Ms. CLARKE of New York. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  Madam Speaker, I rise today to support H.R. 3264, the Domains 
Critical to Homeland Security Act. America's economy depends on diverse 
and resilient supply chains that ensure an uninterrupted flow of goods 
and services to the Nation.
  Disruptions, whether caused by natural disasters or manmade events, 
can reduce the availability and integrity of critical supplies. This 
has significant Homeland Security implications.
  For example, the COVID-19 pandemic revealed vulnerabilities in the 
Nation's medical supply chains, which caused persistent shortages for 
personal protective equipment and testing supplies; most of which is 
manufactured overseas. And the recent ransomware attack on Colonial 
Pipeline showed how a brief shutdown of a major gas pipeline can drive 
up prices and lead to gas shortages.
  H.R. 3264 would authorize DHS to conduct research and development 
into supply chain risks for critical domains of the U.S. economy. The 
research would include a risk analysis for each critical domain to 
identify weaknesses that pose a substantial homeland security threat.
  The bill would also require DHS to report on the results of its 
research annually through fiscal year 2026. This report will allow the 
public and private sectors to take meaningful action to mitigate risk 
and to ensure the long-term economic security of the United States.
  Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation, and 
I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. KATKO. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague from New York for her words in 
support of H.R. 3264, a bill I introduced called the Domains Critical 
to Homeland Security Act. We are now a year and a half into the COVID 
pandemic and, as a country, have yet to make substantial progress in 
making our supply chains more secure and resilient.
  America's economic and homeland security depends on the flow of 
goods, services, information, and technology across our physical and 
virtual borders. And as we all know, COVID-19 exposed many risks and 
flaws to our critical supply chains; flaws that we now must address.
  Over the past year and a half, we painfully discovered that China was 
a world leader in the production of personal protective equipment. And 
despite being the epicenter of the pandemic, China was in a privileged 
position, blocking the rest of the world's access to PPE at a time of 
maximum need.
  China selfishly was able to plan ahead with its asymmetrical 
knowledge of what would be needed, choosing to put the U.S. and the 
rest of the world at risk. It has become clear that the United States 
is overly reliant on many important goods from China, such as 
semiconductors, rare earth minerals used in electronics, and active 
ingredients in pharmaceuticals, all of which could put Americans' 
security and resilience at risk. It has become clear that many future 
supply chain vulnerabilities are likely unknown to us, even now.
  With COVID, we learned these lessons the hard way. Now is the time to 
act by proactively identifying these risks. We can't allow ourselves to 
be behind the curve in the next national or global disaster. We need to 
take action and get ahead of the curve and do our best to serve our 
country. That means we need to stop talking about it and finally put 
pen to paper.
  To do this--to keep our supply chain secure--and to prevent similar 
disruptions from crippling our economy and jeopardizing our resiliency 
posture, Homeland Security needs to identify and analyze weak links in 
the U.S. global supply chains and work to prioritize where efforts need 
to be focused to strengthen those most critical to our homeland.
  My bill requires Homeland Security to do just that; to look at 
critical supply chains, identify weaknesses, and prioritize 
vulnerabilities in a way that allows for meaningful action in years 
ahead to address them. This is really just commonsense legislation. It 
is about being prepared.
  Requiring Homeland Security to report on these vulnerabilities to our 
economic security annually to Congress and the public will allow for 
the first time a unifying document that accounts for the security 
implications of current and future economic decisions, and enable a 
prioritized policy response to spur action.
  It is crucial that Homeland Security lean into its unique position as 
the only executive department that deals with both the national 
security and economic prosperity of the Nation, and lead the United 
States Government as a preeminent economic security agency in the 
decades to come.
  This is a natural maturation of Homeland Security's unique vantage 
point sitting on top of 16 critical infrastructure sectors where it 
stitches together a holistic national risk picture.
  We can no longer take for granted the resiliency of our economy. We 
need to work to ensure that all modes of travel are safe, to facilitate 
trade through our ports of entry, and to keep our networks free from 
cyberattacks.
  Madam Speaker, I thank my friend, Chairman Thompson, for being an 
original cosponsor, as well as all my committee colleagues for 
unanimously supporting this bipartisan legislation in committee. 
Economic security is homeland security, and I urge my colleagues to 
support this bill.
  Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. CLARKE of New York. Madam Speaker, I have no more speakers, and I 
reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. KATKO. Madam Speaker, I have no further speakers. I urge Members 
to support this bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. CLARKE of New York. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of 
my time.
  Madam Speaker, I urge passage of H.R. 3264 to improve America's 
economic and homeland security, and I thank the gentleman from New York

[[Page H3705]]

for his forward-leaning legislation in introducing this bill.
  Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Clarke) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 3264.
  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. BISHOP of North Carolina. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the 
yeas and nays.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to section 3(s) of House Resolution 
8, the yeas and nays are ordered.
  Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further proceedings on this motion 
are postponed.

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