[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 148 (2002), Part 17]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 23276]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




        H.R. 5005--CREATION OF A DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                        HON. CAROLYN B. MALONEY

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, November 14, 2002

  Mrs. MALONEY of New York. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of 
H.R. 5005, the Homeland Security Act of 2002.
  As a New Yorker, I know all too well the importance of a secure 
homeland. On September 11th, my constituents and I witnessed firsthand 
the devastation caused by terrorist attacks and we understand the 
urgent need to find new ways to improve the nation's safety. Because of 
this, in July, I felt it was my duty to vote for H.R. 5005, the House 
version of the Homeland Security legislation and I will do so again 
today.
  H.R. 5005, the bill currently before us, creates a permanent, 
cabinet-level Department of Homeland Security, headed by a Secretary of 
Homeland Security who shall be appointed by the President, with the 
consent of the Senate. As stated by my colleagues, the legislation 
consolidates 22 federal agencies into one new Department responsible 
for intelligence analysis and dissemination, science and technology, 
border and transportation security, and emergency preparedness and 
response.
  I had hoped that the conference committee would have corrected a 
number of flaws in the House bill. I appreciate that H.R. 5005 is 
slightly better on worker protections, however, I am still very 
concerned that the final product includes troubling provisions that 
weaken civil service protections for the new Department's employees, 
undermines Freedom of Information Act compliance, and disregards the 
need for accountability for corporation by giving blanket immunity to 
companies that produce anti-terrorist devices.
  Yet, we have to do everything we can to prevent a tragedy like 9/11. 
We have to make sure we can respond as quickly as possible to future 
attacks. The Homeland Security Act will help us reduce our 
vulnerability to terrorism and ensure that the nation becomes better 
prepared.
  Securing our homeland must be made a priority. I urge my colleagues 
to support H.R. 5005.

                          ____________________