[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 60 (Tuesday, April 5, 2022)]
[House]
[Pages H4164-H4165]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
REPORTING EFFICIENTLY TO PROPER OFFICIALS IN RESPONSE TO TERRORISM ACT
OF 2021
Mr. PAYNE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill
(H.R. 1540) to provide for joint reports by relevant Federal agencies
to Congress regarding incidents of terrorism, and for other purposes,
as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 1540
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 ``Reporting Efficiently to
Proper Officials in Response to Terrorism Act of 2021'' or
the ``REPORT Act''.
SEC. 2. DUTY TO REPORT.
(a) In General.--Whenever an act of terrorism occurs in the
United States, the Secretary of Homeland Security, the
Attorney General, the Director of the Federal Bureau of
Investigation, and, as appropriate, the head of the National
Counterterrorism Center, shall submit to the appropriate
congressional committees, by not later than one year after
the completion of the investigation concerning such act by
the primary Government agency conducting such investigation,
an unclassified report (which may be accompanied by a
classified annex) concerning such act.
(b) Content of Reports.--A report under this section
shall--
(1) include a statement of the facts of the act of
terrorism referred to in subsection (a), as known at the time
of the report;
(2) identify any gaps in homeland or national security that
could be addressed to prevent future acts of terrorism; and
(3) include any recommendations for additional measures
that could be taken to improve homeland or national security,
including recommendations relating to potential changes in
law enforcement practices or changes in law, with particular
attention to changes that could help prevent future acts of
terrorism.
(c) Exception.--
(1) In general.--If the Secretary of Homeland Security, the
Attorney General, the Director of the Federal Bureau of
Investigation, or, as appropriate, the head of the National
Counterterrorism Center determines any information described
in subsection (b) required to be reported in accordance with
subsection (a) could jeopardize an ongoing investigation or
prosecution, the Secretary, Attorney General, Director, or
head, as the case may be--
(A) may withhold from reporting such information; and
(B) shall notify the appropriate congressional committees
of such determination.
(2) Saving provision.--Withholding of information pursuant
to a determination under paragraph (1) shall not affect in
any manner the responsibility to submit a report required
under subsection (a) containing other information described
in subsection (b) not subject to such determination.
(d) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Act of terrorism.--The term ``act of terrorism'' has
the meaning given such term in section 3077 of title 18,
United States Code.
(2) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term
``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
(A) in the House of Representatives--
(i) the Committee on Homeland Security;
(ii) the Committee on the Judiciary; and
(iii) the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence; and
(B) in the Senate--
(i) the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs;
(ii) the Committee on the Judiciary; and
(iii) the Select Committee on Intelligence.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from New
Jersey (Mr. Payne) and the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Pfluger) each will
control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New Jersey.
General Leave
Mr. PAYNE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to that all Members
may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and
include any extraneous materials on this measure.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from New Jersey?
There was no objection.
Mr. PAYNE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1540, the REPORT Act.
In December of 2015, a terrorist attack in San Bernardino,
California, left 14 people dead and 22 wounded. Local law enforcement
and first responders were heroes that day, saving lives just as they do
every day across this Nation.
When terrorists strike our communities, Americans understandably have
questions, and they look to us, their elected Representatives, for
answers.
Our constituents want to know whether there were warnings or
indications of a potential attack; whether anything could have been
done to prevent it; and what can be done to thwart future attacks.
H.R. 1540, the REPORT Act, authored by Congressman Pete Aguilar,
seeks to ensure that Members of Congress can be more responsive to
their constituents by requiring better communication by Federal
agencies with Congress following an attack.
Specifically, the bill would require the Secretary of Homeland
Security, in coordination with the Attorney General and the FBI
Director, to submit to Congress an unclassified report within 1 year of
completing a terrorism investigation.
The report, which may include a classified annex, must include a
statement of facts regarding the attack; information on any homeland or
national security gaps that could be addressed to prevent future
attacks; and any recommendations for measures, including changes in the
law, that would improve homeland or national security.
This vital information needs to be shared by the executive branch
with the legislative branch to strengthen our Nation's terrorism
response and prevention efforts.
H.R. 1540 is a commonsense measure, and I urge my colleagues to
support it. I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. PFLUGER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
I rise today in support of H.R. 1540, the Reporting Efficiently to
Proper Officials in Response to Terrorism, or the REPORT Act.
Too many times, when a terrorism incident occurs within the United
States, consistent and accurate information is not communicated to
Congress. Many of us, especially from Texas, experienced this firsthand
recently, when a British national, Malik Faisal Akram, took hostages at
the Beth Israel Congregation in Colleyville, Texas.
And not only were the initial facts and circumstances of the incident
unclear, but many questions remain unanswered regarding Akram's travel
and admission into the United States.
This is completely unacceptable. Not only should Congress have all of
the necessary information regarding terrorist attacks and other
terrorism incidents, but the American people deserve to know what
happened and how our government is responding.
The REPORT Act requires the DHS Secretary, the Attorney General, the
FBI Director, and the Director of the National Counterterrorism Center,
to submit an unclassified report to Congress regarding any incident of
terrorism that occurs in the United States. The report must include the
following:
A statement of facts; any gaps in our homeland or national security
that could be addressed to prevent future acts of terrorism; and
recommendations for additional measures, or legislative issues, to
improve homeland or national security and prevent future acts of
terrorism.
I commend my colleagues, and specifically my colleague from
California, for bringing this legislation before the Homeland Security
Committee and to the floor today.
I urge Members to join me in supporting H.R. 1540, and I reserve the
balance of my time.
Mr. PAYNE. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 5 minutes to the
gentleman from California (Mr. Aguilar), the author of this commonsense
legislation.
Mr. AGUILAR. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague from New
Jersey for yielding some time.
[[Page H4165]]
I rise in support of my bill, H.R. 1540, the REPORT Act. I first
introduced the bill, as my colleague mentioned, after the 2015 attack
in San Bernardino, a community that I have been proud to represent.
This attack tragically took the lives of 14 people and wounded 22. If
not for the work of our first responders, more innocent lives would
have been lost that day.
The REPORT Act would ensure that lawmakers and law enforcement
agencies are better prepared to detect, prevent, and respond to future
incidents of terrorism.
If enacted, the Secretary of Homeland Security, in coordination with
the Attorney General and the FBI, would submit this unclassified report
to Congress whenever an act of domestic terrorism occurs in the United
States.
By requiring the executive branch to share their findings with
Congress, we, as representatives of our local communities, can act on
the recommendations for changes and practices or law to prevent attacks
and to protect all communities.
I appreciate my colleague from Texas talking about other incidents,
and we know that incidents of mass violence continue to happen across
our country, including the moment of silence that we had on the floor
last evening.
If we can work together to prevent one such incident from taking
place, Mr. Speaker, if both parties can unite to save one innocent
life, this legislation will have been a success.
I appreciate the Homeland Security Committee staff for working to get
this done, and my colleague from Texas and my colleague from New Jersey
for leading this effort.
I ask my colleagues for an ``aye'' vote.
Mr. PFLUGER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
I think this bill really strikes at the heart of what the
Constitution says. We are a coequal branch of government, and the check
and the balance on the executive branch, the executive agencies, is
very important. We are elected, and we have a responsibility to go to
our districts to report back about incidents that are affecting our
country negatively.
And it is heartbreaking to hear any sort of terrorist attack, any
sort of incident that is aimed at undermining our national security.
That is why this committee was formed in the wake of 9/11. The purpose
of our committee is to make sure that we have the ability to give the
tools to those that are carrying out these missions; whether they are
Customs and Border Protection, whether they are TSA agents, or any
other agency that is entrusted with protecting the American public.
We deserve to have that transparency, as we have mentioned in a
previous bill, and now to be able to report back. So I commend my
colleague for bringing this up. And it is my sincere hope, similar to
the other bills that we have discussed, that we can, as a coequal
branch of government, offer that check and that balance on the
executive branch, regardless of who is in power, regardless of the
administration, to provide the necessary tools to continue to protect
our country and all Americans.
Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers. I urge Members to support
this bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. PAYNE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of the time.
Mr. Speaker, our Nation faces a complex and evolving terrorism threat
landscape. We all celebrate the heroic first responders who save lives
when an attack occurs, but the American people also expect Congress to
respond to attacks and prevent future ones.
The REPORT Act is a commonsense bill that would ensure Congress has
the information necessary to do just that.
The REPORT Act received bipartisan support during the committee
consideration, and an earlier version of the bill passed the House in
the 115th Congress by voice vote.
I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 1540, the REPORT Act, and I
yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Payne) that the House suspend the rules
and pass the bill, H.R. 1540, as amended.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
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