[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 10]
[Senate]
[Pages 13761-13776]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




        DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2007

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the hour of 3 p.m. 
having arrived, the Senate will proceed to the immediate consideration 
of H.R. 5441, which the clerk will report.
  The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (H.R. 5441) making appropriations for the Department 
     of Homeland Security for the fiscal year ending September 
     30th, 2007, for other purposes.

  The Senate proceeded to consider the bill which had been reported 
from the Committee on Appropriations with an amendment to strike all 
after the enacting clause and insert in lieu thereof the following:

     That the following sums are appropriated, out of any money in 
     the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, for the Department 
     of Homeland Security for the fiscal year ending September 30, 
     2007, and for other purposes, namely:

                                TITLE I

                 DEPARTMENTAL MANAGEMENT AND OPERATIONS

            Office of the Secretary and Executive Management

       For necessary expenses of the Office of the Secretary of 
     Homeland Security, as authorized by section 102 of the 
     Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 112), and executive 
     management of the Department of Homeland Security, as 
     authorized by law, $90,122,000: Provided, That not to exceed 
     $40,000 shall be for official reception and representation 
     expenses.

              Office of the Under Secretary for Management

       For necessary expenses of the Office of the Under Secretary 
     for Management, as authorized by sections 701 through 705 of 
     the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 341 through 345), 
     $166,456,000: Provided, That not to exceed $3,000 shall be 
     for official reception and representation expenses: Provided 
     further, That of the total amount provided, $8,206,000 shall 
     remain available until expended solely for the alteration and 
     improvement of facilities, tenant improvements, and 
     relocation costs to consolidate Department headquarters 
     operations.

                 Office of the Chief Financial Officer

       For necessary expenses of the Office of the Chief Financial 
     Officer, as authorized by section 103 of the Homeland 
     Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 113), $26,018,000.

                Office of the Chief Information Officer

       For necessary expenses of the Office of the Chief 
     Information Officer, as authorized by section 103 of the 
     Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 113), and Department-
     wide technology investments, $306,765,000; of which 
     $79,521,000 shall be available for salaries and expenses; and 
     of which $227,244,000 shall be available for development and 
     acquisition of information technology equipment, software, 
     services, and related activities for the Department of 
     Homeland Security, and for the costs of conversion to 
     narrowband communications, including the cost for operation 
     of the land mobile radio legacy systems, to remain available 
     until expended: Provided, That none of the funds appropriated 
     shall be used to support or supplement the appropriations 
     provided for the United States Visitor and Immigrant Status 
     Indicator Technology project or the Automated Commercial 
     Environment: Provided further, That the Chief Information 
     Officer shall submit to the Committees on Appropriations of 
     the Senate and the House of Representatives, not more than 60 
     days after the date of enactment of this Act, an expenditure 
     plan for all information technology projects that: (1) are 
     funded under this heading; or (2) are funded by multiple 
     components of the Department of Homeland Security through 
     reimbursable agreements: Provided further, That such 
     expenditure plan shall include each specific project funded, 
     key milestones, all funding sources for each project, details 
     of annual and lifecycle costs, and projected cost savings or 
     cost avoidance to be achieved by the project.

                        Analysis and Operations

       For necessary expenses for information analysis and 
     operations coordination activities, as authorized by title II 
     of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 121 et seq.), 
     $298,663,000, to remain available until September 30, 2008, 
     of which not to exceed $5,000 shall be for official reception 
     and representation expenses.

[[Page 13762]]



                      Office of Inspector General

       For necessary expenses of the Office of Inspector General 
     in carrying out the provisions of the Inspector General Act 
     of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.), $87,185,000, of which not to exceed 
     $100,000 may be used for certain confidential operational 
     expenses, including the payment of informants, to be expended 
     at the direction of the Inspector General.

                                TITLE II

               SECURITY, ENFORCEMENT, AND INVESTIGATIONS

    United States Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology

       For necessary expenses for the development of the United 
     States Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology 
     project, as authorized by section 110 of the Illegal 
     Immigration Reform and Immigration Responsibility Act of 1996 
     (8 U.S.C. 1221 note), $399,494,000, to remain available until 
     expended: Provided, That of the total amount made available 
     under this heading, $200,000,000 may not be obligated for the 
     United States Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator 
     Technology project until the Committees on Appropriations of 
     the Senate and the House of Representatives receive and 
     approve a plan for expenditure prepared by the Secretary of 
     Homeland Security that--
       (1) meets the capital planning and investment control 
     review requirements established by the Office of Management 
     and Budget, including Circular A-11, part 7;
       (2) complies with the Department of Homeland Security 
     information systems enterprise architecture;
       (3) complies with the acquisition rules, requirements, 
     guidelines, and systems acquisition management practices of 
     the Federal Government;
       (4) includes a certification by the Chief Information 
     Officer of the Department of Homeland Security that an 
     independent verification and validation agent is currently 
     under contract for the project;
       (5) is reviewed and approved by the Department of Homeland 
     Security Investment Review Board, the Secretary of Homeland 
     Security, and the Office of Management and Budget; and
       (6) is reviewed by the Government Accountability Office.

                     Customs and Border Protection


                         salaries and expenses

       For necessary expenses for enforcement of laws relating to 
     border security, immigration, customs, and agricultural 
     inspections and regulatory activities related to plant and 
     animal imports; purchase and lease of up to 4,500 (3,500 for 
     replacement only) police-type vehicles; and contracting with 
     individuals for personal services abroad; $5,285,874,000; of 
     which $3,026,000 shall be derived from the Harbor Maintenance 
     Trust Fund for administrative expenses related to the 
     collection of the Harbor Maintenance Fee under section 
     9505(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C. 
     9505(c)(3)) and notwithstanding section 1511(e)(1) of the 
     Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 551(e)(1)); of which 
     not to exceed $45,000 shall be for official reception and 
     representation expenses; of which not less than $172,676,000 
     shall be for Air and Marine Operations; of which such sums as 
     become available in the Customs User Fee Account, except sums 
     subject to section 13031(f)(3) of the Consolidated Omnibus 
     Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (19 U.S.C. 58c(f)(3)), 
     shall be derived from that account; of which not to exceed 
     $150,000 shall be available for payment for rental space in 
     connection with preclearance operations; of which not to 
     exceed $1,000,000 shall be for awards of compensation to 
     informants, to be accounted for solely under the certificate 
     of the Secretary of Homeland Security: Provided, That for 
     fiscal year 2007, the overtime limitation prescribed in 
     section 5(c)(1) of the Act of February 13, 1911 (19 U.S.C. 
     267(c)(1)) shall be $35,000; and notwithstanding any other 
     provision of law, none of the funds appropriated by this Act 
     may be available to compensate any employee of United States 
     Customs and Border Protection for overtime, from whatever 
     source, in an amount that exceeds such limitation, except in 
     individual cases determined by the Secretary of Homeland 
     Security, or the designee of the Secretary, to be necessary 
     for national security purposes, to prevent excessive costs, 
     or in cases of immigration emergencies.


                        automation modernization

       For expenses for customs and border protection automated 
     systems, $461,207,000, to remain available until expended, of 
     which not less than $318,490,000 shall be for the development 
     of the Automated Commercial Environment: Provided, That none 
     of the funds made available under this heading may be 
     obligated for the Automated Commercial Environment until the 
     Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and the House of 
     Representatives receive and approve a plan for expenditure 
     prepared by the Secretary of Homeland Security that--
       (1) meets the capital planning and investment control 
     review requirements established by the Office of Management 
     and Budget, including Circular A-11, part 7;
       (2) complies with the Department of Homeland Security 
     information systems enterprise architecture;
       (3) complies with the acquisition rules, requirements, 
     guidelines, and systems acquisition management practices of 
     the Federal Government;
       (4) includes a certification by the Chief Information 
     Officer of the Department of Homeland Security that an 
     independent verification and validation agent is currently 
     under contract for the project;
       (5) is reviewed and approved by the Department of Homeland 
     Security Investment Review Board, the Secretary of Homeland 
     Security, and the Office of Management and Budget; and
       (6) is reviewed by the Government Accountability Office.


                        TECHNOLOGY MODERNIZATION

       For expenses for customs and border protection technology 
     systems, $131,559,000, to remain available until expended: 
     Provided, That of the funds made available under this 
     heading, $100,000,000 may not be obligated until the 
     Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and the House of 
     Representatives receive and approve a plan for expenditure 
     prepared by the Secretary of Homeland Security that--
       (1) meets the capital planning and investment control 
     review requirements established by the Office of Management 
     and Budget, including Circular A-11, part 7;
       (2) complies with the Department of Homeland Security 
     information systems enterprise architecture;
       (3) complies with the acquisition rules, requirements, 
     guidelines, and systems acquisition management practices of 
     the Federal Government;
       (4) includes a certification by the Chief Information 
     Officer of the Department of Homeland Security that an 
     independent verification and validation agent is currently 
     under contract for the project;
       (5) is reviewed and approved by the Department of Homeland 
     Security Investment Review Board, the Secretary of Homeland 
     Security, and the Office of Management and Budget; and
       (6) is reviewed by the Government Accountability Office.


 air and marine interdiction, operations, maintenance, and procurement

                    (including rescission of funds)

       For necessary expenses for the operations, maintenance, and 
     procurement of marine vessels, aircraft, unmanned aerial 
     vehicles, and other related equipment of the air and marine 
     program, including operational training and mission-related 
     travel, and rental payments for facilities occupied by the 
     air or marine interdiction and demand reduction programs, the 
     operations of which include the following: the interdiction 
     of narcotics and other goods; the provision of support to 
     Federal, State, and local agencies in the enforcement or 
     administration of laws enforced by the Department of Homeland 
     Security; and at the discretion of the Secretary of Homeland 
     Security, the provision of assistance to Federal, State, and 
     local agencies in other law enforcement and emergency 
     humanitarian efforts, $472,499,000, to remain available until 
     expended: Provided, That no aircraft or other related 
     equipment, with the exception of aircraft that are one of a 
     kind and have been identified as excess to United States 
     Customs and Border Protection requirements and aircraft that 
     have been damaged beyond repair, shall be transferred to any 
     other Federal agency, department, or office outside of the 
     Department of Homeland Security during fiscal year 2007 
     without the prior approval of the Committees on 
     Appropriations of the Senate and the House of 
     Representatives.
       In addition, of the funds appropriated under this heading 
     in title II of the Department of Homeland Security 
     Appropriations Act, 2006 (Public Law 109-90; 119 Stat. 2068) 
     for a covert manned surveillance aircraft, $14,000,000 are 
     rescinded.


                              construction

       For necessary expenses to plan, construct, renovate, equip, 
     and maintain buildings and facilities necessary for the 
     administration and enforcement of the laws relating to 
     customs and immigration, $288,084,000, to remain available 
     until expended.

                  Immigration and Customs Enforcement


                         salaries and expenses

       For necessary expenses for enforcement of immigration and 
     customs laws, detention and removals, and investigations; and 
     purchase and lease of up to 2,740 (2,000 for replacement 
     only) police-type vehicles; $3,740,357,000, of which not to 
     exceed $7,500,000 shall be available until expended for 
     conducting special operations under section 3131 of the 
     Customs Enforcement Act of 1986 (19 U.S.C. 2081); of which 
     not to exceed $15,000 shall be for official reception and 
     representation expenses; of which not to exceed $1,000,000 
     shall be for awards of compensation to informants, to be 
     accounted for solely under the certificate of the Secretary 
     of Homeland Security; of which not less than $102,000 shall 
     be for promotion of public awareness of the child pornography 
     tipline; of which not less than $203,000 shall be for Project 
     Alert; of which not less than $5,400,000 may be used to 
     facilitate agreements consistent with section 287(g) of the 
     Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1357(g)); and of 
     which not to exceed $11,216,000 shall be available to fund or 
     reimburse other Federal agencies for the costs associated 
     with the care, maintenance, and repatriation of smuggled 
     illegal aliens: Provided, That none of the funds made 
     available under this heading shall be available to compensate 
     any employee for overtime in an annual amount in excess of 
     $35,000, except that the Secretary of Homeland Security, or 
     the designee of the Secretary, may waive that amount as 
     necessary for national security purposes and in cases of 
     immigration emergencies: Provided further, That none of the 
     funds in this Act or any other appropriations

[[Page 13763]]

     Act may be used to fund any activity other than those 
     activities funded in fiscal year 2005 to facilitate 
     agreements consistent with section 287(g) of the Immigration 
     and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1357(g)): Provided further, 
     That of the total amount provided, $15,770,000 shall be for 
     activities to enforce laws against forced child labor in 
     fiscal year 2007, of which not to exceed $6,000,000 shall 
     remain available until expended.


                       federal protective service

       The revenues and collections of security fees credited to 
     this account, not to exceed $516,011,000, shall be available 
     until expended for necessary expenses related to the 
     protection of federally-owned and leased buildings and for 
     the operations of the Federal Protective Service.


                        automation modernization

       For expenses of immigration and customs enforcement 
     automated systems, $20,000,000, to remain available until 
     expended: Provided, That of the funds made available under 
     this heading, $16,000,000 may not be obligated until the 
     Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and the House of 
     Representatives receive and approve a plan for expenditure 
     prepared by the Secretary of Homeland Security that--
       (1) meets the capital planning and investment control 
     review requirements established by the Office of Management 
     and Budget, including Circular A-11, part 7;
       (2) complies with the Department of Homeland Security 
     information systems enterprise architecture;
       (3) complies with the acquisition rules, requirements, 
     guidelines, and systems acquisition management practices of 
     the Federal Government;
       (4) includes a certification by the Chief Information 
     Officer of the Department of Homeland Security that an 
     independent verification and validation agent is currently 
     under contract for the project;
       (5) is reviewed and approved by the Department of Homeland 
     Security Investment Review Board, the Secretary of Homeland 
     Security, and the Office of Management and Budget; and
       (6) is reviewed by the Government Accountability Office.


                              construction

       For necessary expenses to plan, construct, renovate, equip, 
     and maintain buildings and facilities necessary for the 
     administration and enforcement of the laws relating to 
     customs and immigration, $101,281,000, to remain available 
     until expended.

                 Transportation Security Administration


                           aviation security

       For necessary expenses of the Transportation Security 
     Administration related to providing civil aviation security 
     services under the Aviation and Transportation Security Act 
     (49 U.S.C. 40101 note; Public Law 107-71; 115 Stat. 597), 
     $4,751,580,000, to remain available until September 30, 2008, 
     of which not to exceed $10,000 shall be for official 
     reception and representation expenses: Provided, That of the 
     total amount made available under this heading, not to exceed 
     $3,790,132,000 shall be for screening operations, of which 
     $141,400,000 shall be available only for procurement of 
     checked baggage explosive detection systems and $171,500,000 
     shall be available only for installation of checked baggage 
     explosive detection systems; and not to exceed $961,448,000 
     shall be for aviation security direction and enforcement 
     presence: Provided further, That of the funds appropriated 
     under this heading, $25,000,000 shall not be obligated until 
     after the Secretary of Homeland Security submits to the 
     Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and the House of 
     Representatives a detailed report in response to findings in 
     the Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector 
     General report (OIG-04-44) concerning contractor fees: 
     Provided further, That security service fees authorized under 
     section 44940 of title 49, United States Code, shall be 
     credited to this appropriation as offsetting collections and 
     shall be available only for aviation security: Provided 
     further, That the sum herein appropriated from the General 
     Fund shall be reduced on a dollar-for-dollar basis as such 
     offsetting collections are received during fiscal year 2007, 
     so as to result in a final fiscal year appropriation from the 
     General Fund estimated at not more than $2,331,580,000 
     Provided further, That any security service fees collected in 
     excess of the amount made available under this heading shall 
     become available during fiscal year 2008: Provided further, 
     That notwithstanding section 44923 of title 49, United States 
     Code, the share of the cost of the Federal Government for a 
     project under any letter of intent shall be 75 percent for 
     any medium or large hub airport and not more than 90 percent 
     for any other airport, and all funding provided by section 
     44923(h) of title 49 United States Code, or from 
     appropriations authorized under section 44923(i)(1) of title 
     49, United States Code, may be distributed in any manner 
     determined necessary to ensure aviation security and to 
     fulfill the Government's planned cost share under existing 
     letters of intent: Provided further, That Members of the 
     United States House of Representatives and United States 
     Senate, including the leadership; and the heads of Federal 
     agencies and commissions, including the Secretary, Under 
     Secretaries, and Assistant Secretaries of the Department of 
     Homeland Security; the United States Attorney General and 
     Assistant Attorneys General and the United States attorneys; 
     and senior members of the Executive Office of the President, 
     including the Director of the Office of Management and 
     Budget; shall not be exempt from Federal passenger and 
     baggage screening: Provided further, That beginning in fiscal 
     year 2007 and thereafter, reimbursement for security services 
     and related equipment and supplies provided in support of 
     general aviation access to the Ronald Reagan Washington 
     National Airport shall be credited to this appropriation and 
     shall be available until expended solely for these purposes.


                    surface transportation security

       For necessary expenses of the Transportation Security 
     Administration related to providing surface transportation 
     security activities, $37,200,000, to remain available until 
     September 30, 2008.


           transportation threat assessment and credentialing

       For necessary expenses for the development and 
     implementation of screening programs of the Office of 
     Transportation Threat Assessment and Credentialing, 
     $29,700,000, to remain available until September 30, 2008.


                    transportation security support

       For necessary expenses of the Transportation Security 
     Administration related to providing transportation security 
     support and intelligence under the Aviation and 
     Transportation Security Act (Public Law 107-71; 115 Stat. 
     597; 49 U.S.C. 40101 note), $618,865,000, to remain available 
     until September 30, 2008.


                          federal air marshals

       For necessary expenses of the Federal Air Marshals, 
     $699,294,000.

                       United States Coast Guard


                           operating expenses

       For necessary expenses for the operation and maintenance of 
     the United States Coast Guard not otherwise provided for; 
     purchase or lease of not to exceed 25 passenger motor 
     vehicles, which shall be for replacement only; payments under 
     section 156 of Public Law 97-377 (42 U.S.C. 402 note; 96 
     Stat. 1920); and recreation and welfare; $5,534,349,000, of 
     which $340,000,000 shall be for defense-related activities; 
     of which $24,255,000 shall be derived from the Oil Spill 
     Liability Trust Fund to carry out the purposes of section 
     1012(a)(5) of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 
     2712(a)(5)); and of which not to exceed $10,000 shall be for 
     official reception and representation expenses: Provided, 
     That none of the funds made available by this or any other 
     Act shall be available for administrative expenses in 
     connection with shipping commissioners in the United States: 
     Provided further, That none of the funds made available by 
     this Act shall be for expenses incurred for yacht 
     documentation under section 12109 of title 46, United States 
     Code, except to the extent fees are collected from yacht 
     owners and credited to this appropriation.


                environmental compliance and restoration

       For necessary expenses to carry out the environmental 
     compliance and restoration functions of the United States 
     Coast Guard under chapter 19 of title 14, United States Code, 
     $10,880,000, to remain available until expended.


                            reserve training

       For necessary expenses of the Coast Guard Reserve, as 
     authorized by law; operations and maintenance of the reserve 
     program; personnel and training costs; and equipment and 
     services; $123,948,000.


              acquisition, construction, and improvements

                    (including rescissions of funds)

       For necessary expenses of acquisition, construction, 
     renovation, and improvement of aids to navigation, shore 
     facilities, vessels, and aircraft, including equipment 
     related thereto; and maintenance, rehabilitation, lease and 
     operation of facilities and equipment, as authorized by law; 
     $1,145,329,000, of which $19,800,000 shall be derived from 
     the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund to carry out the purposes 
     of section 1012(a)(5) of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 
     U.S.C. 2712(a)(5)); of which $24,750,000 shall be available 
     until September 30, 2011, to acquire, repair, renovate, or 
     improve vessels, small boats, and related equipment; of which 
     $14,000,000 shall be available until September 30, 2011, to 
     increase aviation capability; of which $92,268,000 shall be 
     available until September 30, 2009, for other equipment; of 
     which $20,680,000 shall be available until September 30, 
     2009, for shore facilities and aids to navigation facilities; 
     and of which $993,631,000 shall be available until September 
     30, 2011, for the Integrated Deepwater Systems program: 
     Provided, That the Commandant of the Coast Guard is 
     authorized to dispose of surplus real property, by sale or 
     lease, and the proceeds shall be credited to this 
     appropriation as offsetting collections and shall be 
     available until September 30, 2009: Provided further, That 
     the Secretary of Homeland Security shall submit to the 
     Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and the House of 
     Representatives, in conjunction with the President's fiscal 
     year 2008 budget, a review of the Revised Deepwater 
     Implementation Plan that identifies any changes to the plan 
     for the fiscal year; an annual performance comparison of 
     Deepwater assets to pre-Deepwater legacy assets; a status 
     report of legacy assets; a detailed explanation of how the 
     costs of legacy assets are being accounted for within the 
     Deepwater program; an explanation of why many assets that are 
     elements of the Integrated Deepwater System are not accounted 
     for within the Deepwater appropriation under this heading; a 
     description of the competitive process conducted in all 
     contracts and subcontracts exceeding $5,000,000 within the 
     Deepwater program; a description of how the Coast Guard is 
     planning for the human resource needs of Deepwater assets; 
     and the earned value management system gold card data for 
     each Deepwater asset: Provided further, That the Secretary 
     shall submit to the Committees on Appropriations of the 
     Senate and the House of

[[Page 13764]]

     Representatives a comprehensive review of the Revised 
     Deepwater Implementation Plan every 5 years, beginning in 
     fiscal year 2011, that includes a complete projection of the 
     acquisition costs and schedule for the duration of the plan 
     through fiscal year 2027: Provided further, That the 
     Secretary shall annually submit to the Committees on 
     Appropriations of the Senate and the House of 
     Representatives, at the time that the President's budget is 
     submitted under section 1105(a) of title 31, United States 
     Code, a future-years capital investment plan for the Coast 
     Guard that identifies for each capital budget line item--
       (1) the proposed appropriation included in that budget;
       (2) the total estimated cost of completion;
       (3) projected funding levels for each fiscal year for the 
     next five fiscal years or until project completion, whichever 
     is earlier;
       (4) an estimated completion date at the projected funding 
     levels; and
       (5) changes, if any, in the total estimated cost of 
     completion or estimated completion date from previous future-
     years capital investment plans submitted to the Committees on 
     Appropriations of the Senate and the House of 
     Representatives:
     Provided further, That the Secretary shall ensure that 
     amounts specified in the future-years capital investment plan 
     are consistent to the maximum extent practicable with 
     proposed appropriations necessary to support the programs, 
     projects, and activities of the Coast Guard in the 
     President's budget as submitted under section 1105(a) of 
     title 31, United States Code, for that fiscal year: Provided 
     further, That any inconsistencies between the capital 
     investment plan and proposed appropriations shall be 
     identified and justified.
       In addition, of the funds appropriated under this heading 
     in title II of the Department of Homeland Security 
     Appropriations Act, 2006 (Public Law 109-90; 119 Stat. 2087), 
     $79,200,000 are rescinded from the unexpended balances 
     specifically identified in the Joint Explanatory Statement 
     (House Report 109-241) accompanying that Act for the Fast 
     Response Cutter, the service life extension program of the 
     current 110-foot Island Class patrol boat fleet, and 
     accelerated design and production of the Fast Response 
     Cutter.
       In addition, of the funds appropriated under this heading 
     in title II of the Department of Homeland Security 
     Appropriations Act, 2006 (Public Law 109-90; 119 Stat. 2087), 
     $1,933,000 are rescinded from the unexpended balances 
     specifically identified in the Joint Explanatory Statement 
     (House Report 109-241) accompanying that Act for the covert 
     surveillance aircraft.
       In addition, of the funds appropriated under this heading 
     in title II of the Department of Homeland Security 
     Appropriations Act, 2006 (Public Law 109-90; 119 Stat. 2087), 
     $1,835,000 are rescinded from the unexpended balances 
     specifically identified in the Joint Explanatory Statement 
     (House Report 109-241) accompanying that Act for the 
     automatic identification system.


                         alteration of bridges

       For necessary expenses for alteration or removal of 
     obstructive bridges, as authorized by section 6 of the 
     Truman-Hobbs Act (33 U.S.C. 516), $15,000,000, to remain 
     available until expended.


              Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation

       For necessary expenses for applied scientific research, 
     development, test, and evaluation; and for maintenance, 
     rehabilitation, lease, and operation of facilities and 
     equipment; as authorized by law; $17,573,000, to remain 
     available until expended, of which $495,000 shall be derived 
     from the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund to carry out the 
     purposes of section 1012(a)(5) of the Oil Pollution Act of 
     1990 (33 U.S.C. 2712(a)(5)): Provided, That there may be 
     credited to and used for the purposes of this appropriation 
     funds received from State and local governments, other public 
     authorities, private sources, and foreign countries for 
     expenses incurred for research, development, testing, and 
     evaluation.


                              retired pay

       For retired pay, including the payment of obligations 
     otherwise chargeable to lapsed appropriations for this 
     purpose, payments under the Retired Serviceman's Family 
     Protection and Survivor Benefits Plans, payment for career 
     status bonuses, concurrent receipts and combat-related 
     special compensation under the National Defense Authorization 
     Act, and payments for medical care of retired personnel and 
     their dependents under chapter 55 of title 10, United States 
     Code, $1,063,323,000.

                      United States Secret Service


                protection, administration, and training

       For necessary expenses of the United States Secret Service, 
     including purchase of not to exceed 755 vehicles for police-
     type use, of which 624 shall be for replacement only, and 
     hire of passenger motor vehicles; purchase of motorcycles 
     made in the United States; hire of aircraft; services of 
     expert witnesses at such rates as may be determined by the 
     Director of the Secret Service; rental of buildings in the 
     District of Columbia, and fencing, lighting, guard booths, 
     and other facilities on private or other property not in 
     Government ownership or control, as may be necessary to 
     perform protective functions; payment of per diem or 
     subsistence allowances to employees where a protective 
     assignment during the actual day or days of the visit of a 
     protectee requires an employee to work 16 hours per day or to 
     remain overnight at a post of duty; conduct of and 
     participation in firearms matches; presentation of awards; 
     travel of Secret Service employees on protective missions 
     without regard to the limitations on such expenditures in 
     this or any other Act if approval is obtained in advance from 
     the Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and the House 
     of Representatives; research and development; grants to 
     conduct behavioral research in support of protective research 
     and operations; and payment in advance for commercial 
     accommodations as may be necessary to perform protective 
     functions; $918,028,000, of which not to exceed $25,000 shall 
     be for official reception and representation expenses: 
     Provided, That up to $18,000,000 provided for protective 
     travel shall remain available until September 30, 2008: 
     Provided further, That the United States Secret Service is 
     authorized to obligate funds in anticipation of 
     reimbursements from Federal agencies and entities, as defined 
     in section 105 of title 5, United States Code, receiving 
     training sponsored by the James J. Rowley Training Center, 
     except that total obligations at the end of the fiscal year 
     shall not exceed total budgetary resources available under 
     this heading at the end of the fiscal year.


                  INVESTIGATIONS AND FIELD OPERATIONS

       For necessary expenses for investigations and field 
     operations of the United States Secret Service, not otherwise 
     provided for, including costs related to office space and 
     services of expert witnesses at such rate as may be 
     determined by the Director of the Secret Service, 
     $304,205,000; of which not to exceed $100,000 shall be to 
     provide technical assistance and equipment to foreign law 
     enforcement organizations in counterfeit investigations; of 
     which $2,366,000 shall be for forensic and related support of 
     investigations of missing and exploited children; and of 
     which $6,000,000 shall be a grant for activities related to 
     the investigations of missing and exploited children and 
     shall remain available until expended.


     acquisition, construction, improvements, and related expenses

       For necessary expenses for acquisition, construction, 
     repair, alteration, and improvement of facilities, 
     $3,725,000, to remain available until expended.

                               TITLE III

                       PREPAREDNESS AND RECOVERY

                              PREPAREDNESS

                     Management and Administration

       For salaries and expenses of the Office of the Under 
     Secretary for Preparedness, the Office of the Chief Medical 
     Officer, and the Office of National Capital Region 
     Coordination, $30,572,000, of which $8,000,000 shall be for 
     the National Preparedness Integration Program: Provided, That 
     none of the funds made available under this heading may be 
     obligated for the National Preparedness Integration Program 
     until the Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and the 
     House of Representatives receive and approve a plan for 
     expenditure prepared by the Secretary of Homeland Security: 
     Provided further, That not to exceed $7,000 shall be for 
     official reception and representation expenses.

                    Office for Domestic Preparedness


                        state and local programs

       For grants, contracts, cooperative agreements, and other 
     activities, including grants to State and local governments 
     for terrorism prevention activities, notwithstanding any 
     other provision of law, $2,393,500,000, which shall be 
     allocated as follows:
       (1) $500,000,000 for formula-based grants and $350,000,000 
     for law enforcement terrorism prevention grants under section 
     1014 of the USA PATRIOT ACT (42 U.S.C. 3714): Provided, That 
     the application for grants shall be made available to States 
     within 45 days after the date of enactment of this Act; that 
     States shall submit applications within 90 days after the 
     grant announcement; and that the Office for Domestic 
     Preparedness shall act within 90 days after the grant 
     announcement: Provided further, That not less than 80 percent 
     of any grant under this paragraph to a State (other than 
     Puerto Rico) shall be made available by the State to local 
     governments within 60 days after the receipt of the funds.
       (2) $1,172,000,000 for discretionary grants, as determined 
     by the Secretary of Homeland Security, of which--
       (A) $745,000,000 shall be for use in high-threat, high-
     density urban areas;
       (B) $210,000,000 shall be for port security grants for the 
     purposes of section 70107(a) through (h) of title 46, United 
     States Code, which shall be awarded based on risk 
     notwithstanding subsection (a), for eligible costs as defined 
     in subsections (b)(2), (3), and (4);
       (C) $5,000,000 shall be for trucking industry security 
     grants;
       (D) $12,000,000 shall be for intercity bus security grants;
       (E) $150,000,000 shall be for intercity passenger rail 
     transportation (as defined in section 24102 of title 49, 
     United States Code), freight rail, and transit security 
     grants; and
       (F) $50,000,000 shall be for buffer zone protection grants:
     Provided, That for grants under subparagraph (A), the 
     application for grants shall be made available to States 
     within 45 days after the date of enactment of this Act; that 
     States shall submit applications within 90 days after the 
     grant announcement; and that the Office for Domestic 
     Preparedness shall act within 90 days after receipt of an 
     application: Provided further,  That not less than 80 percent 
     of any grant under this paragraph to a State shall be made 
     available by the State to local governments within 60 days 
     after the receipt of the funds.

[[Page 13765]]

       (3) $40,000,000 shall be available for the Commercial 
     Equipment Direct Assistance Program.
       (4) $331,500,000 for training, exercises, technical 
     assistance, and other programs:
     Provided, That none of the grants provided under this heading 
     shall be used for the construction or renovation of 
     facilities, except for a minor perimeter security project, 
     not to exceed $1,000,000, as determined necessary by the 
     Secretary of Homeland Security: Provided further, That the 
     proceeding proviso shall not apply to grants under 
     subparagraphs (B), (E), and (F) of paragraph (2) of this 
     heading: Provided further, That grantees shall provide 
     additional reports on their use of funds, as determined 
     necessary by the Secretary of Homeland Security: Provided 
     further, That funds appropriated for law enforcement 
     terrorism prevention grants under paragraph (1) and 
     discretionary grants under paragraph (2)(A) of this heading 
     shall be available for operational costs, to include 
     personnel overtime and overtime associated with Office for 
     Domestic Preparedness certified training, as needed: Provided 
     further, That the Government Accountability Office shall 
     report on the validity, relevance, reliability, timeliness, 
     and availability of the risk factors (including threat, 
     vulnerability, and consequence) used by the Secretary for the 
     purpose of allocating discretionary grants funded under this 
     heading, and the application of those factors in the 
     allocation of funds to the Committees on Appropriations of 
     the Senate and the House of Representatives on its findings 
     not later than 45 days after the date of enactment of this 
     Act: Provided further, That within 7 days after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall provide the 
     Government Accountability Office with the threat and risk 
     methodology and factors that will be used to allocate 
     discretionary grants funded under this heading.


                     firefighter assistance grants

       For necessary expenses for programs authorized by the 
     Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 
     2201 et seq.), $655,000,000, of which $540,000,000 shall be 
     available to carry out section 33 of that Act (15 U.S.C. 
     2229) and $115,000,000 shall be available to carry out 
     section 34 (15 U.S.C. 2229a) of that Act, to remain available 
     until September 30, 2008: Provided, That not to exceed 5 
     percent of this amount shall be available for program 
     administration.


                emergency management performance grants

       For necessary expenses for emergency management performance 
     grants, as authorized by the National Flood Insurance Act of 
     1968 (42 U.S.C. 4001 et seq.), the Robert T. Stafford 
     Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 
     et seq.), the Earthquake Hazards Reduction Act of 1977 (42 
     U.S.C. 7701 et seq.), and Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1978 
     (5 U.S.C. App.), $205,000,000: Provided, That total 
     administrative costs shall not exceed 3 percent of the total 
     appropriation.

              radiological emergency preparedness program

       The aggregate charges assessed during fiscal year 2007, as 
     authorized in title III of the Departments of Veterans 
     Affairs and Housing and Urban Development, and Independent 
     Agencies Appropriations Act, 1999 (42 U.S.C. 5196e), shall 
     not be less than 100 percent of the amounts anticipated by 
     the Department of Homeland Security necessary for its 
     radiological emergency preparedness program for the next 
     fiscal year: Provided, That the methodology for assessment 
     and collection of fees shall be fair and equitable and shall 
     reflect costs of providing such services, including 
     administrative costs of collecting such fees: Provided 
     further, That fees received under this heading shall be 
     deposited in this account as offsetting collections and will 
     become available for authorized purposes on October 1, 2007, 
     and remain available until expended.

             United States Fire Administration and Training

       For necessary expenses of the United States Fire 
     Administration and for other purposes, as authorized by the 
     Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 
     2201 et seq.) and the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 
     101 et seq.), $45,887,000.

           Infrastructure Protection and Information Security

       For necessary expenses for infrastructure protection and 
     information security programs and activities, as authorized 
     by title II of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 
     121 et seq.), $525,056,000, of which $442,547,000 shall 
     remain available until September 30, 2008: Provided, That of 
     the amount made available under this heading, $20,000,000 may 
     not be obligated until the Secretary submits to the 
     Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and House of 
     Representatives the report required in House Report 109-241 
     accompanying the Department of Homeland Security 
     Appropriations Act, 2006 (Public Law 109-90) on resources 
     necessary to implement mandatory security requirements for 
     the Nation's chemical sector and to create a system for 
     auditing and ensuring compliance with the security standards.

                  FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY

                 Administrative and Regional Operations

       For necessary expenses for administrative and regional 
     operations, $249,499,000, including activities authorized by 
     the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4001 et 
     seq.), the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency 
     Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.), the Earthquake 
     Hazards Reduction Act of 1977 (42 U.S.C. 7701 et seq.), the 
     Defense Production Act of 1950 (50 U.S.C. App. 2061 et seq.), 
     sections 107 and 303 of the National Security Act of 1947 (50 
     U.S.C. 404, 405), Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1978 (5 U.S.C. 
     App.), and the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 101 et 
     seq.): Provided, That not to exceed $3,000 shall be for 
     official reception and representation expenses.

             Readiness, Mitigation, Response, and Recovery

       For necessary expenses for readiness, mitigation, response, 
     and recovery activities, $240,000,000, including activities 
     authorized by the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 
     U.S.C. 4001 et seq.), the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief 
     and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.), the 
     Earthquake Hazards Reduction Act of 1977 (42 U.S.C. 7701 et 
     seq.), the Defense Production Act of 1950 (50 U.S.C. App. 
     2061 et seq.), sections 107 and 303 of the National Security 
     Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 404, 405), Reorganization Plan No. 3 
     of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.), and the Homeland Security Act of 
     2002 (6 U.S.C. 101 et seq.): Provided, That of the total 
     amount made available under this heading, $30,000,000 shall 
     be for Urban Search and Rescue Teams, of which not to exceed 
     $1,600,000 may be made available for administrative costs.

                         Public Health Programs


                     (including transfer of funds)

       For necessary expenses for countering potential biological, 
     disease, and chemical threats to civilian populations, 
     $33,885,000: Provided, That the total amount appropriated 
     and, notwithstanding any other provision of law, the 
     functions, personnel, assets, and liabilities of the National 
     Disaster Medical System established under section 2811(b) of 
     the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300hh-11(b)), 
     including any functions of the Secretary of Homeland Security 
     relating to such System, shall be permanently transferred to 
     the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services 
     effective January 1, 2007.

                            Disaster Relief


                     (including transfer of funds)

       For necessary expenses in carrying out the Robert T. 
     Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 
     U.S.C. 5121 et seq.), $1,640,000,000, to remain available 
     until expended: Provided, That of the total amount provided, 
     not to exceed $15,000,000 shall be transferred to the 
     Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General 
     for audits and investigations related to natural disasters 
     subject to section 503 of this Act.

            Disaster Assistance Direct Loan Program Account

       For administrative expenses to carry out the direct loan 
     program, as authorized by section 319 of the Robert T. 
     Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 
     U.S.C. 5162), $569,000: Provided, That gross obligations for 
     the principal amount of direct loans shall not exceed 
     $25,000,000: Provided further, That the cost of modifying 
     such loans shall be as defined in section 502 of the 
     Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 661a).

                      Flood Map Modernization Fund

       For necessary expenses under section 1360 of the National 
     Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4101), $198,980,000, 
     and such additional sums as may be provided by State and 
     local governments or other political subdivisions for cost-
     shared mapping activities under section 1360(f)(2) of such 
     Act, to remain available until expended: Provided, That total 
     administrative costs shall not exceed 3 percent of the total 
     appropriation.

                     National Flood Insurance Fund


                     (including transfer of funds)

       For activities under the National Flood Insurance Act of 
     1968 (42 U.S.C. 4001 et seq.), and the Flood Disaster 
     Protection Act of 1973 (42 U.S.C. 4001 et seq.), 
     $128,588,000, which is available as follows: (1) not to 
     exceed $38,230,000 for salaries and expenses associated with 
     flood mitigation and flood insurance operations; and (2) not 
     to exceed $90,358,000 for flood hazard mitigation which shall 
     be derived from offsetting collections assessed and collected 
     under section 1307 of the National Flood Insurance Act of 
     1968 (42 U.S.C. 4001 et seq.), to remain available until 
     September 30, 2008, including up to $31,000,000 for flood 
     mitigation expenses under section 1366 of that Act, which 
     amount shall be available for transfer to the National Flood 
     Mitigation Fund until September 30, 2008: Provided, That in 
     fiscal year 2007, no funds in excess of: (1) $70,000,000 for 
     operating expenses; (2) $692,999,000 for commissions and 
     taxes of agents; (3) such sums as necessary for interest on 
     Treasury borrowings shall be available from the National 
     Flood Insurance Fund; and (4) not to exceed $50,000,000 for 
     flood mitigation actions with respect to severe repetitive 
     loss properties under section 1361A of that Act and 
     repetitive insurance claims properties under section 1323 of 
     that Act, which shall remain available until expended: 
     Provided further, That total administrative costs shall not 
     exceed 3 percent of the total appropriation.

                     National Flood Mitigation Fund


                     (including transfer of funds)

       Notwithstanding subparagraphs (B) and (C) of subsection 
     (b)(3), and subsection (f), of section 1366 of the National 
     Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 4104c), $31,000,000, 
     to remain available until September 30, 2008, for activities 
     designed to reduce the risk of flood damage to structures 
     pursuant to such Act, of which $31,000,000 shall be derived 
     from the National Flood Insurance Fund.

                 National Pre-Disaster Mitigation Fund

       For a pre-disaster mitigation grant program under title II 
     of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster

[[Page 13766]]

     Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5131 et seq.), 
     $149,978,000, to remain available until expended: Provided, 
     That grants made for pre-disaster mitigation shall be awarded 
     on a competitive basis subject to the criteria in section 
     203(g) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 5133(g)), and notwithstanding 
     section 203(f) of such Act, shall be made without reference 
     to State allocations, quotas, or other formula-based 
     allocation of funds: Provided further, That total 
     administrative costs shall not exceed 3 percent of the total 
     appropriation.

                       Emergency Food and Shelter

       To carry out an emergency food and shelter program under 
     title III of the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act 
     (42 U.S.C. 11331 et seq.), $151,470,000, to remain available 
     until expended: Provided, That total administrative costs 
     shall not exceed 3.5 percent of the total appropriation.

                                TITLE IV

            RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT, TRAINING, AND SERVICES

           United States Citizenship and Immigration Services

       For necessary expenses for citizenship and immigration 
     services, $134,990,000.

                Federal Law Enforcement Training Center


                         salaries and expenses

       For necessary expenses of the Federal Law Enforcement 
     Training Center, including materials and support costs of 
     Federal law enforcement basic training; purchase of not to 
     exceed 117 vehicles for police-type use and hire of passenger 
     motor vehicles; expenses for student athletic and related 
     activities; the conduct of and participation in firearms 
     matches and presentation of awards; public awareness and 
     enhancement of community support of law enforcement training; 
     room and board for student interns; a flat monthly 
     reimbursement to employees authorized to use personal mobile 
     phones for official duties; and services as authorized by 
     section 3109 of title 5, United States Code; $207,634,000, of 
     which up to $43,910,000 for materials and support costs of 
     Federal law enforcement basic training shall remain available 
     until September 30, 2008; of which $300,000 shall remain 
     available until expended for Federal law enforcement agencies 
     participating in training accreditation, to be distributed as 
     determined by the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center for 
     the needs of participating agencies; and of which not to 
     exceed $12,000 shall be for official reception and 
     representation expenses: Provided, That the Center is 
     authorized to obligate funds in anticipation of 
     reimbursements from agencies receiving training sponsored by 
     the Center, except that total obligations at the end of the 
     fiscal year shall not exceed total budgetary resources 
     available at the end of the fiscal year.


     acquisition, construction, improvements, and related expenses

       For acquisition of necessary additional real property and 
     facilities, construction, and ongoing maintenance, facility 
     improvements, and related expenses of the Federal Law 
     Enforcement Training Center, $63,246,000, to remain available 
     until expended: Provided, That the Center is authorized to 
     accept reimbursement to this appropriation from government 
     agencies requesting the construction of special use 
     facilities.

                         Science and Technology


                     management and administration

       For salaries and expenses of the Office of the Under 
     Secretary for Science and Technology and for management and 
     administration of programs and activities, as authorized by 
     title III of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 181 
     et seq.), $106,414,000: Provided, That of the amount provided 
     under this heading, $60,000,000 shall not be obligated until 
     the Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and the House 
     of Representatives receive and approve an expenditure plan by 
     program, project, and activity; with a detailed breakdown and 
     justification of the management and administrative costs for 
     each; prepared by the Secretary of Homeland Security that has 
     been reviewed by the Government Accountability Office: 
     Provided further, That the expenditure plan shall include the 
     method utilized to derive administration costs in fiscal year 
     2006 and fiscal year 2007: Provided further, That not to 
     exceed $3,000 shall be for official reception and 
     representation expenses.


           research, development, acquisition, and operations

       For necessary expenses for science and technology research, 
     including advanced research projects; development; test and 
     evaluation; acquisition; and operations; as authorized by 
     title III of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 181 
     et seq.); $712,041,000, to remain available until expended: 
     Provided, That no university participating in the University-
     based Centers of Excellence Program shall receive a grant for 
     a period in excess of 3 years: Provided further, That none of 
     the funds provided under this heading shall be made available 
     for management and administrative costs.

                   Domestic Nuclear Detection Office


                     MANAGEMENT AND ADMINISTRATION

       For salaries and expenses of the Domestic Nuclear Detection 
     Office and for management and administration of programs and 
     activities, $30,468,000: Provided, That no funds will be made 
     available for the reimbursement of individuals from other 
     Federal agencies or organizations in fiscal year 2008: 
     Provided further, That not to exceed $3,000 shall be for 
     official reception and representation expenses.


                 RESEARCH, DEVELOPMENT, AND OPERATIONS

       For necessary expenses for radiological and nuclear 
     research, development, testing, evaluation and operations, 
     $234,024,000, to remain available until expended; and of 
     which not to exceed $65,000,000 shall be made available for 
     transformation research and development; and of which no less 
     than $40,000,000 shall be made available for radiation portal 
     monitor research and development: Provided, That of the 
     amount provided, $80,000,000 shall not be obligated until the 
     Secretary of Homeland Security provides notification to the 
     Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and the House of 
     Representatives that the Domestic Nuclear Detection Office 
     has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with each 
     Federal entity and organization: Provided further, That each 
     Memorandum of Understanding shall include a description of 
     the role, responsibilities, and resource commitment of each 
     Federal entity or organization for the domestic nuclear 
     global architecture.


                          SYSTEMS ACQUISITION

       For expenses for the Domestic Nuclear Detection Office 
     acquisition and deployment of radiological detection systems 
     in accordance with the global nuclear detection architecture, 
     $178,000,000, to remain available until September 30, 2009; 
     and of which no less than $143,000,000 shall be for radiation 
     portal monitors; and of which not to exceed $5,000,000 shall 
     be for the Surge program: Provided, That none of the funds 
     provided for the Sodium Iodine Manufacturing program shall be 
     made available until a cost-benefit analysis on the Advance 
     Spectroscopic Portal monitors is submitted to the Committees 
     on Appropriations of the Senate and the House of 
     Representatives by the Secretary of Homeland Security and 
     reviewed by the Government Accountability Office.

                                TITLE V

                           GENERAL PROVISIONS

       Sec. 501. No part of any appropriation contained in this 
     Act shall remain available for obligation beyond the current 
     fiscal year unless expressly so provided herein.
       Sec. 502. Subject to the requirements of section 503 of 
     this Act, the unexpended balances of prior appropriations 
     provided for activities in this Act may be transferred to 
     appropriation accounts for such activities established under 
     this Act: Provided, That balances so transferred may be 
     merged with funds in the applicable established accounts and 
     thereafter may be accounted for as one fund for the same time 
     period as originally enacted.
       Sec. 503. (a) None of the funds provided by this Act, 
     provided by previous appropriations Acts to the agencies in 
     or transferred to the Department of Homeland Security that 
     remain available for obligation or expenditure in fiscal year 
     2007, or provided from any accounts in the Treasury of the 
     United States derived by the collection of fees available to 
     the agencies funded by this Act, shall be available for 
     obligation or expenditure through a reprogramming of funds 
     that: (1) creates a new program; (2) eliminates a program, 
     project, or activity; (3) increases funds for any program, 
     project, or activity for which funds have been denied or 
     restricted by the Congress; (4) proposes to use funds 
     directed for a specific activity by either of the Committees 
     on Appropriations of the Senate or House of Representatives 
     for a different purpose; or (5) contracts out any function or 
     activity for which funds have been appropriated for Federal 
     full-time equivalent positions; unless the Committees on 
     Appropriations of the Senate and the House of Representatives 
     are notified 15 days in advance of such reprogramming of 
     funds.
       (b) None of the funds provided by this Act, provided by 
     previous appropriations Acts to the agencies in or 
     transferred to the Department of Homeland Security that 
     remain available for obligation or expenditure in fiscal year 
     2007, or provided from any accounts in the Treasury of the 
     United States derived by the collection of fees available to 
     the agencies funded by this Act, shall be available for 
     obligation or expenditure for programs, projects, or 
     activities through a reprogramming of funds in excess of 
     $5,000,000 or 10 percent, whichever is less, that: (1) 
     augments existing programs, projects, or activities; (2) 
     reduces by 10 percent funding for any existing program, 
     project, or activity, or numbers of personnel by 10 percent 
     as approved by the Congress; or (3) results from any general 
     savings from a reduction in personnel that would result in a 
     change in existing programs, projects, or activities as 
     approved by the Congress; unless the Committees on 
     Appropriations of the Senate and the House of Representatives 
     are notified 15 days in advance of such reprogramming of 
     funds.
       (c) Not to exceed 5 percent of any appropriation made 
     available for the current fiscal year for the Department of 
     Homeland Security by this Act or provided by previous 
     appropriations Acts may be transferred between such 
     appropriations, but no such appropriations, except as 
     otherwise specifically provided, shall be increased by more 
     than 10 percent by such transfers: Provided, That any 
     transfer under this section shall be treated as a 
     reprogramming of funds under subsection (b) of this section 
     and shall not be available for obligation unless the 
     Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and the House of 
     Representatives are notified 15 days in advance of such 
     transfer.
       (d) Notwithstanding subsections (a), (b), and (c) of this 
     section, no funds shall be reprogrammed within or transferred 
     between appropriations after June 30, except in extraordinary

[[Page 13767]]

     circumstances which imminently threaten the safety of human 
     life or the protection of property.
       Sec. 504. None of the funds appropriated or otherwise made 
     available to the Department of Homeland Security may be used 
     to make payments to the ``Department of Homeland Security 
     Working Capital Fund'', except for the activities and amounts 
     allowed in the President's fiscal year 2007 budget, excluding 
     sedan service, shuttle service, transit subsidy, mail 
     operations, parking, and competitive sourcing: Provided, That 
     any additional activities and amounts shall be approved by 
     the Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and the House 
     of Representatives 30 days in advance of obligation.
       Sec. 505. Except as otherwise specifically provided by law, 
     not to exceed 50 percent of unobligated balances remaining 
     available at the end of fiscal year 2007 from appropriations 
     for salaries and expenses for fiscal year 2007 in this Act 
     shall remain available through September 30, 2008, in the 
     account and for the purposes for which the appropriations 
     were provided: Provided, That prior to the obligation of such 
     funds, a request shall be submitted to the Committees on 
     Appropriations of the Senate and the House of Representatives 
     for approval in accordance with section 503 of this Act.
       Sec. 506. Funds made available by this Act for intelligence 
     activities are deemed to be specifically authorized by the 
     Congress for purposes of section 504 of the National Security 
     Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 414) during fiscal year 2007 until the 
     enactment of an Act authorizing intelligence activities for 
     fiscal year 2007.
       Sec. 507. The Federal Law Enforcement Training Center shall 
     lead the Federal law enforcement training accreditation 
     process, to include representatives from the Federal law 
     enforcement community and non-Federal accreditation experts 
     involved in law enforcement training, to continue the 
     implementation of measuring and assessing the quality and 
     effectiveness of Federal law enforcement training programs, 
     facilities, and instructors.
       Sec. 508. None of the funds in this Act may be used to make 
     a grant allocation, discretionary grant award, discretionary 
     contract award, or to issue a letter of intent totaling in 
     excess of $1,000,000, or to announce publicly the intention 
     to make such an award, unless the Secretary of Homeland 
     Security notifies the Committees on Appropriations of the 
     Senate and the House of Representatives at least 3 full 
     business days in advance: Provided, That no notification 
     shall involve funds that are not available for obligation.
       Sec. 509. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no 
     agency shall purchase, construct, or lease any additional 
     facilities, except within or contiguous to existing 
     locations, to be used for the purpose of conducting Federal 
     law enforcement training without the advance approval of the 
     Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and the House of 
     Representatives, except that the Federal Law Enforcement 
     Training Center is authorized to obtain the temporary use of 
     additional facilities by lease, contract, or other agreement 
     for training which cannot be accommodated in existing Center 
     facilities.
       Sec. 510. The Director of the Federal Law Enforcement 
     Training Center shall schedule basic or advanced law 
     enforcement training (including both types of training) at 
     all four training facilities under the control of the Federal 
     Law Enforcement Training Center to ensure that these training 
     centers are operated at the highest capacity throughout the 
     fiscal year.
       Sec. 511. None of the funds appropriated or otherwise made 
     available by this Act may be used for expenses of any 
     construction, repair, alteration, or acquisition project for 
     which a prospectus, if required by the Public Buildings Act 
     of 1959 (40 U.S.C. 3301), has not been approved, except that 
     necessary funds may be expended for each project for required 
     expenses for the development of a proposed prospectus.
       Sec. 512. None of the funds in this Act may be used in 
     contravention of the applicable provisions of the Buy 
     American Act (41 U.S.C. 10a et seq.).
       Sec. 513. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the 
     authority of the Office of Personnel Management to conduct 
     personnel security and suitability background investigations, 
     update investigations, and periodic reinvestigations of 
     applicants for, or appointees in, positions in the Office of 
     the Secretary and Executive Management, the Office of the 
     Under Secretary for Management, Analysis and Operations, 
     Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Directorate for 
     Preparedness, and the Directorate of Science and Technology 
     of the Department of Homeland Security is transferred to the 
     Department of Homeland Security: Provided, That on request of 
     the Department of Homeland Security, the Office of Personnel 
     Management shall cooperate with and assist the Department in 
     any investigation or reinvestigation under this section: 
     Provided further, That this section shall cease to be 
     effective at such time as the President has selected a single 
     agency to conduct security clearance investigations under 
     section 3001(c) of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism 
     Prevention Act of 2004 (Public Law 108-458; 50 U.S.C. 435b) 
     and the entity selected under section 3001(b) of such Act has 
     reported to Congress that the agency selected under such 
     section 3001(c) is capable of conducting all necessary 
     investigations in a timely manner or has authorized the 
     entities within the Department of Homeland Security covered 
     by this section to conduct their own investigations under 
     section 3001 of such Act.
       Sec. 514. (a) None of the funds provided by this or 
     previous appropriations Acts may be obligated for deployment 
     or implementation, on other than a test basis, of the Secure 
     Flight program or any other follow on or successor passenger 
     prescreening programs, until the Secretary of Homeland 
     Security certifies, and the Government Accountability Office 
     reports, to the Committees on Appropriations of the Senate 
     and the House of Representatives, that all 10 of the 
     conditions contained in paragraphs (1) through (10) of 
     section 522(a) of the Department of Homeland Security 
     Appropriations Act, 2005 (Public Law 108-334; 118 Stat. 1319) 
     have been successfully met.
       (b) The report required by subsection (a) shall be 
     submitted within 90 days after the certification required by 
     such subsection is provided, and periodically thereafter, if 
     necessary, until the Government Accountability Office 
     confirms that all 10 conditions have been successfully met.
       (c) During the testing phase permitted by subsection (a), 
     no information gathered from passengers, foreign or domestic 
     air carriers, or reservation systems may be used to screen 
     aviation passengers, or delay or deny boarding to such 
     passengers, except in instances where passenger names are 
     matched to a Government watch list.
       (d) None of the funds provided in this or previous 
     appropriations Acts may be utilized to develop or test 
     algorithms assigning risk to passengers whose names are not 
     on Government watch lists.
       (e) None of the funds provided in this or previous 
     appropriations Acts may be utilized for data or a database 
     that is obtained from or remains under the control of a non-
     Federal entity: Provided, That this restriction shall not 
     apply to Passenger Name Record data obtained from air 
     carriers.
       Sec. 515. None of the funds made available in this Act may 
     be used to amend the oath of allegiance required by section 
     337 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1448).
       Sec. 516. None of the funds appropriated by this Act may be 
     used to process or approve a competition under Office of 
     Management and Budget Circular A-76 for services provided as 
     of June 1, 2004, by employees (including employees serving on 
     a temporary or term basis) of United States Citizenship and 
     Immigration Services of the Department of Homeland Security 
     who are known as of that date as Immigration Information 
     Officers, Contact Representatives, or Investigative 
     Assistants.
       Sec. 517. (a) None of the funds appropriated to the United 
     States Secret Service by this Act or by previous 
     appropriations Acts may be made available for the protection 
     of a person, other than persons granted protection under 
     3056(a) of title 18, United States Code, and the Secretary of 
     the Department of Homeland Security.
       (b) Notwithstanding (a) of this section, the Director of 
     the United States Secret Service may enter into a fully 
     reimbursable agreement to perform such service for protectees 
     not designated under 3056(a) of title 18, United States Code.
       Sec. 518. The Secretary of Homeland Security, in 
     consultation with industry stakeholders, shall develop 
     standards and protocols for increasing the use of explosive 
     detection equipment to screen air cargo when appropriate.
       Sec. 519. (a) The Secretary of Homeland Security is 
     directed to research, develop, and procure new technologies 
     to inspect and screen air cargo carried on passenger aircraft 
     at the earliest date possible.
       (b) Existing checked baggage explosive detection equipment 
     and screeners shall be utilized to screen air cargo carried 
     on passenger aircraft to the greatest extent practicable at 
     each airport until technologies developed under subsection 
     (a) are available.
       (c) The Transportation Security Administration shall report 
     air cargo inspection statistics within 15 days of the close 
     of each quarter of the fiscal year to the Committees on 
     Appropriations of the Senate and the House of 
     Representatives, by airport and air carrier, including any 
     reasons for non-compliance with the second proviso of section 
     513 of the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations 
     Act, 2005 (Public Law 108-334; 118 Stat. 1317), within 45 
     days after the end of the quarter.
       Sec. 520. (a) None of the funds available for obligation 
     for the transportation worker identification credential 
     program shall be used to develop a personalization system 
     that is executed without fair and open competition for both 
     the implementation and production of the program and 
     identification cards.
       (b) The Transportation Security Administration shall 
     certify to the Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and 
     the House of Representatives not later than December 1, 2006, 
     that the competition required under subsection (a) has been 
     achieved.
       Sec. 521. None of the funds made available in this Act may 
     be used by any person other than the privacy officer 
     appointed under section 222 of the Homeland Security Act of 
     2002 (6 U.S.C. 142) to alter, direct that changes be made to, 
     delay, or prohibit the transmission to Congress of any report 
     prepared under paragraph (5) of such section.
       Sec. 522. No funding provided by this or previous 
     appropriation Acts shall be available to pay the salary of 
     any employee serving as a contracting officer's technical 
     representative (COTR) or anyone acting in a similar or like 
     capacity who has not received COTR training.
       Sec. 523. Except as provided in section 44945 of title 49, 
     United States Code, funds appropriated or transferred to 
     Transportation Security Administration ``Aviation Security'', 
     ``Administration'' and ``Transportation Security

[[Page 13768]]

     Support'' in fiscal years 2004, 2005, and 2006 that are 
     recovered or deobligated shall be available only for 
     procurement and installation of explosive detection systems 
     for air cargo, baggage, and checkpoint screening systems, 
     subject to section 503 of this Act.
       Sec. 524. Not later than 120 days after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security 
     shall report to the Committees on Appropriations of the 
     Senate and the House of Representatives on the progress that 
     the Department has made in implementing the requirements of 
     section 537 of the Department of Homeland Security 
     Appropriations Act, 2006 (Public Law 109-90; 119 Stat. 2088), 
     including information on the current procedures regarding 
     access to sensitive security information (SSI) by civil 
     litigants and the security risks and benefits of any proposed 
     changes to these procedures: Provided, That the Secretary 
     shall revise DHS MD 11056 to provide that when a lawful 
     request is made to publicly release a document containing 
     information designated as SSI, the document shall be reviewed 
     in a timely manner to determine whether any information 
     contained in the document meets the criteria for continued 
     SSI protection under applicable law and regulation and shall 
     further provide that all portions that no longer require SSI 
     designation be released, subject to applicable law, including 
     sections 552 and 552a of title 5, United States Code.
       Sec. 525. Rescission. From the unobligated balances from 
     prior year appropriations made available for Transportation 
     Security Administration ``Aviation Security'' and 
     ``Headquarters Administration'', $4,776,000 are rescinded.
       Sec. 526. The Department of Homeland Security Working 
     Capital Fund, established under section 403 of the Government 
     Management Reform Act of 1994 (31 U.S.C. 501 note; Public Law 
     103-356), shall continue operations during fiscal year 2007.
       Sec. 527. Rescission. Of the unobligated balances from 
     prior year appropriations made available for the 
     ``Counterterrorism Fund'', $16,000,000 are rescinded.
       Sec. 528. Rescission. From the unobligated balances from 
     prior year appropriations made available for Transportation 
     Security Administration ``Aviation Security'', $61,936,000 
     are rescinded.
       Sec. 529. None of the funds made available in this Act may 
     be used to enforce section 4025(1) of Public Law 108-458 if 
     the Assistant Secretary (Transportation Security 
     Administration) determines that butane lighters are not a 
     significant threat to civil aviation security: Provided, That 
     the Assistant Secretary (Transportation Security 
     Administration) shall notify the Committees on Appropriations 
     of the Senate and the House of Representatives 15 days in 
     advance of such determination including a report on whether 
     the effectiveness of screening operations is enhanced by 
     suspending enforcement of the prohibition.
       Sec. 530. Rescissions. Of the unobligated balances from 
     prior year appropriations made available for Science and 
     Technology, $55,000,000 for ``Management and Administration'' 
     and $145,000,000 from ``Research, Development, Acquisition, 
     and Operations'' are rescinded: Provided, That of the total 
     amount rescinded from ``Management and Administration'', 
     $30,000,000 shall be from the contingency fund and 
     $25,000,000 shall be from the Homeland Security Institute.
       Sec. 531. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the 
     Secretary of Homeland Security shall consider the Hancock 
     County Port and Harbor Commission in Mississippi eligible 
     under the Federal Emergency Management Agency Public 
     Assistance Program for all costs incurred for dredging from 
     navigation channel in Little Lake, Louisiana, sediment 
     deposited as a result of Hurricane George in 1998: Provided, 
     That the appropriate Federal share shall apply to approval of 
     this project.
       Sec. 532. The Department of Homeland Security shall, in 
     approving standards for State and local emergency 
     preparedness operational plans under section 613(b)(3) of the 
     Robert T. Stafford Disaster and Emergency Assistance Act (42 
     U.S.C. 5196b(b)(3)), account for the needs of individuals 
     with household pets and service animals before, during, and 
     following a major disaster or emergency: Provided, That 
     Federal agencies may provide assistance as described in 
     section 403(a) of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster and 
     Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170b(a)) to carry out 
     the plans described in the previous proviso.
       Sec. 533. Rescission. From the unexpended balances of the 
     United States Coast Guard ``Acquisition, Construction, and 
     Improvements'' account specifically identified in the Joint 
     Explanatory Statement (House Report 109-241) accompanying the 
     Department of Homeland Security Act, 2006 (Public Law 109-90) 
     for the development of the Offshore Patrol Cutter, 
     $20,000,000 are rescinded.
       Sec. 534. Transfer. All obligated and unobligated balances 
     of funds, totaling not less than $98,552,000, for the 
     Transportation Security Laboratory shall be transferred from 
     the Science and Technology ``Research, Development, 
     Acquisition, and Operations'' account to the Transportation 
     Security Administration ``Transportation Security Support'' 
     account effective October 1, 2006.
       Sec. 535. (a)(1) Within 45 days after the close of each 
     month, the Chief Financial Officer of the Department of 
     Homeland Security shall submit to the Committees on 
     Appropriations of the Senate and the House of Representatives 
     a monthly budget execution report that sets forth the total 
     obligational authority appropriated (new budget authority 
     plus unobligated carryover), undistributed obligational 
     authority, amount allotted, current year obligations, 
     unobligated authority (the difference between total 
     obligational authority and current year obligations), 
     beginning unexpended obligations, year-to-date costs, and 
     year-end unexpended obligations, of the Department of 
     Homeland Security.
       (2) The information required under paragraph (1) shall be 
     provided for each Departmental component and the Working 
     Capital Fund at the level of detail shown in the table of 
     detailed funding recommendations displayed at the end of the 
     Statement of Managers accompanying the conference report on 
     this Act.
       (3) Each report submitted under paragraph (1) shall include 
     for each Department of Homeland Security component the total 
     full-time equivalent for the prior fiscal year, the on-board 
     total full-time equivalent on September 30 of the prior 
     fiscal year, the estimated total full-time equivalent for the 
     current fiscal year, and the on-board total full-time 
     equivalent on the last day of the month for the applicable 
     report.
       (b) Obligation authority and transfer authority provided 
     under section 503 and 504 of this Act shall not be available 
     unless on the date of a notification under section 503 and 
     504, the Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and House 
     of Representatives have received the most recent report 
     required by subsection (a) of this section.
       Sec. 536. None of the funds provided by this or previous 
     appropriations Acts or transferred to the Department of 
     Homeland Security that remain available for obligation or 
     expenditure in fiscal year 2007, or provided from any 
     accounts in the Treasury of the United States derived by the 
     collection of fees available to the agencies funded by this 
     Act, shall be available for obligation or expenditure for the 
     Office of the Federal Coordinator for Gulf Coast Rebuilding 
     effective October 1, 2006, unless the Committees on 
     Appropriations of the Senate and the House of Representatives 
     receive a reprogramming notification for fiscal year 2006 
     pursuant to section 503 of Public Law 109-90 and a budget 
     request and expenditure plan for fiscal year 2007 for this 
     office.
       Sec. 537. The Federal Law Enforcement Training Center 
     instructor staff shall be classified as inherently 
     governmental for the purpose of the Federal Activities 
     Inventory Reform Act of 1998 (31 U.S.C. 501 note).
       Sec. 538. Section 7209(b)(1) of the Intelligence Reform and 
     Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 (Public Law 108-458; 8 
     U.S.C. 1185 note) is amended by striking from ``(1) 
     Development of plan.--The Secretary'' through ``7208(k)).'' 
     and inserting the following:
       ``(1) Development of plan and implementation.--
       ``(A) The Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation 
     with the Secretary of State, shall develop and implement a 
     plan as expeditiously as possible to require a passport or 
     other document, or combination of documents, deemed by the 
     Secretary of Homeland Security to be sufficient to denote 
     identity and citizenship, for all travel into the United 
     States by United States citizens and by categories of 
     individuals for whom documentation requirements have 
     previously been waived under section 212(d)(4)(B) of the 
     Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(d)(4)(B)). 
     This plan shall be implemented not later than 3 months after 
     the Secretary of State and the Secretary of Homeland Security 
     make the certifications required in subsection (B), or June 
     1, 2009, whichever is earlier. The plan shall seek to 
     expedite the travel of frequent travelers, including those 
     who reside in border communities, and in doing so, shall make 
     readily available a registered traveler program (as described 
     in section 7208(k)).
       ``(B) The Secretary of Homeland Security and the Secretary 
     of State shall jointly certify to the Committees on 
     Appropriations of the Senate and the House of Representatives 
     that the following criteria have been met prior to 
     implementation of Section 7209(b)(1)(A)--
       ``(i) the National Institutes of Standards and Technology 
     has certified that the card architecture meets the 
     International Organization for Standardization ISO 14443 
     security standards, or justifies a deviation from such 
     standard;
       ``(ii) the technology to be used by the United States for 
     the passport card, and any subsequent change to that 
     technology, has been shared with the governments of Canada 
     and Mexico;
       ``(iii) an agreement has been reached with the United 
     States Postal Service on the fee to be charged individuals 
     for the passport card, and a detailed justification has been 
     submitted to the Committees on Appropriations of the Senate 
     and the House of Representatives;
       ``(iv) an alternative procedure has been developed for 
     groups of children traveling across an international border 
     under adult supervision with parental consent;
       ``(v) the necessary technological infrastructure to process 
     the passport cards has been installed, and all employees at 
     ports of entry have been properly trained in the use of the 
     new technology;
       ``(vi) the passport card has been made available for the 
     purpose of international travel by United States citizens 
     through land and sea ports of entry between the United States 
     and Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean and Bermuda; and
       ``(vii) a single implementation date for sea and land 
     borders has been established.''.
       Sec. 539. Notwithstanding any time limitation established 
     for a grant awarded under title I, chapter 6, Public Law 106-
     31, in the item relating to Federal Emergency Management 
     Agency--Disaster Assistance for Unmet Needs, the

[[Page 13769]]

     City of Cuero, Texas, may use funds received under such grant 
     program until September 30, 2007.
       This Act may be cited as the ``Department of Homeland 
     Security Appropriations Act, 2007''.

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from New Hampshire.
  Mr. GREGG. Mr. President, today we begin consideration of the 
Homeland Security appropriations bill. I begin by thanking the members 
of the Committee on Appropriations for helping bring the bill out of 
committee. It was brought out unanimously.
  I especially thank the ranking member of the committee and the senior 
Senator from the State of West Virginia, but also the senior Senator in 
the Senate, Senator Byrd, for his support and efforts as ranking member 
not only of this subcommittee but of the full committee, of course, and 
his role in authoring and designing this bill. It has been very 
constructive. Obviously, he does not agree with everything in it. That 
is inevitable, especially with the allocation we were equipped with, 
but his help has been significant in moving the bill forward.
  I also thank Senator Cochran who, once again, has been extremely 
tolerant of this subcommittee--not only tolerant but supportive. He was 
put in a very difficult position by the administration in the manner in 
which they sent up their budget in this area, in that they put in a 
plug number of about $1.4 billion, a number that everyone knew was not 
going anywhere. They knew it wasn't going anywhere when they sent it up 
here. It didn't go anywhere last year when they sent the same number up 
here, a number they claimed they could support by increasing the fees 
on airline travel, and then taking those moneys and putting them to the 
border. It was a concept which has been rejected by the Congress 
before. They knew it would be rejected this time.
  They used it basically as a stalking horse to claim expenditures 
which were not then supported by funding. The reason it is not 
supported is that it makes no sense to raise the fee on airline 
passengers for security purposes on airlines and then take that money 
and put it into the border activity. We have significant fees on 
airline passengers today. That money is used primarily for TSA and FAA 
in order to assist in making sure our air traffic is secure. It is an 
appropriate fee. An increase at this time, which is not related to 
airline traffic, makes little sense.
  Senator Cochran was confronted with a situation with this bill where 
he basically had to find about $1.4 billion in order to reach the 
President's level of funding, that the President asked for Homeland 
Security without any real way to do that except to take it from other 
accounts. He was very generous with this committee. He was not able to 
do the full amount, but he did a significant amount, and we very much 
appreciate his support. He used to be chairman of the subcommittee when 
it first started and he understands the needs.
  The issue of the Homeland Security Department is almost a Dickins 
story because it takes a lot of twists and turns. Some of it is not 
very pretty. Some of it is good. Some of it is not. The problem we have 
is that the Department was put together in haste. A lot of different 
agencies that had a lot of different cultures, some of which were doing 
their tasks very well--such as the Coast Guard and the Secret Service--
were put into the Department, and others which had always had a 
problem, a structural problem such as immigration, were put into the 
Department. Then new responsibility was put on the Department with a 
new focus.
  Every agency theoretically within the Department is primarily focused 
on the issue of national security and protecting us from an attack such 
as September 11, but within the agency, in order to have continuity of 
activity, there were departments put into it which did not have as 
their primary purpose Homeland Security.
  The most significant example of that, of course, is FEMA, which 
basically deals with disasters. Most of the disasters it deals with 
involve natural disasters, which obviously are not a function of 
terrorist activity, although it is, obviously, also a lead agency 
should we have a terrorist event such as occurred on September 11. FEMA 
played a major role there and did a very good job, by the way. FEMA's 
management of post-September 11 issues was handled with excellence.
  The Department has a lot of different functions within it. It has now 
been going for about 3\1/2\ years. I have had the good fortune to chair 
this committee for about 2 years. It is pretty obvious the Department 
has not yet shaken out all the problems it has. In fact, the problems 
keep coming at us relative to management.
  I asked my staff to take a look at the Department and all the reviews 
that have been done by outside groups which we basically sanction, such 
as the Inspector General and the GAO and other accounting agencies 
which go in and take a look at functions of the Federal Government and 
conclude whether those functions are being done well.
  Homeland Security probably leads the Government in the number of 
reviews that have been done because it is a new agency and because 
there are problems obviously. I asked my staff to put together a list 
of all the different reviews and tie those lists to the management 
chart of the Department so that we could see just how much the 
Department has and has not accomplished in the area of reviews. It 
became an overwhelming task. They put together the chart, but there 
were so many reviews that had occurred that essentially they had to 
just summarize by numbers the different reviews.
  This is the management chart of the Department of Homeland Security. 
For example, there have been seven reviews of the chief financial 
officer. All of them have concluded system failures. The Under 
Secretary for Management has had eight reviews that have concluded a 
lack of plan; six reviews, systems management failures; and one review 
that said there was a mismanagement of funds.
  Regarding the Chief Information Officer, the conclusion is that IT 
management has been lacking in 18 different reviews.
  On and on it goes. Of course, the grand prize winner, regrettably, is 
FEMA, which has had 180 major reviews by GAO or the inspector general 
or other sources of significant credibility--180 reviews have concluded 
the process has failed, and 7 reviews have concluded that management 
controls have failed. In fact, there is such a current problem of 
mismanagement and ineptness that this chart cannot be kept up to date, 
regrettably.
  Just today we have gotten our most recent review, again, by the 
Government Accounting Office. They conclude with the US VISIT Program: 
Contract management and oversight for the Visitor and Immigration 
Status Program needs to be strengthened. This is US VISIT, an 
absolutely critical program we have. We have had six reviews of US 
VISIT of this depth, and all of them have concluded there are 
significant concerns.
  To take an example of the depth of the problem with this Department, 
agency by agency, there was a review of Federal Protective Services 
which basically said they lacked strategic planning, that they had no 
structure for strategic planning in July of 2004, that they needed to 
enter into an immediate understanding with GSA as to what they should 
be doing relative to planning and how they should be resolving billing 
issues within that Department. On and on the report went, with very 
specific ideas as to how to improve the Department.
  As of today, virtually nothing has happened in the Federal Protective 
Services Agency to try to correct the problems enumerated in the 2004 
GAO report.
  What is the result of that? The result is that the Federal Protective 
Services Agency has a $42 million structural deficit, which they do not 
have any idea how they will correct.
  That is just one slice of this overall pie which, regrettably, is the 
Department of Homeland Security. This is not to say that the Department 
does not have very conscientious, hard-working,

[[Page 13770]]

dedicated public servants. It does. It has a panoply of them--those 
folks who are on the front lines on the border, whether they are 
immigration officers or border agents, the people in TSA who are 
working very hard to try to straighten out the lines in the airport and 
still provide security, the Secret Service, the Coast Guard, FEMA 
people trying to answer the problems of a small flood or issues with 
what happened in New Orleans. These people are all working very hard, 
but there is a systematic failure within this Department which is 
massive. It is, unfortunately, permeating the entire Department. It has 
to be of significant concern to us as a Congress.
  Just a recent report estimated that maybe as much as $18 billion--
that is a staggering number--$18 billion of the money we spent on 
Katrina has been misallocated, they believe fraudulently handled, but, 
clearly, it did not get the results they were supposed to get. Whether 
it was a trailer sitting in a field somewhere that never got used or 
whether it was debit cards used to buy bedding, the fact is that is 
potentially $18 billion.
  I cannot believe the number is that big. I think that has to be an 
overestimate. There is no way that size number could have been 
mismanaged. But say it is half; say it is $9 billion. Do you know what 
we could do with $9 billion in this country today? We could do a lot of 
good things. Just in this Department alone, if we had $9 billion 
focused on the Coast Guard and on Border Patrol and immigration, an 
infusion of that type of money--I had to pull teeth to get an extra 
$1.9 billion in the last supplemental. If we got $9 billion, we could 
make sure our borders were secure and no one could come into the 
country illegally. The number of people coming into the country 
illegally would dry up if we had those resources for the borders. It is 
a real issue with real implications.
  All the reports are not just paper documents. They all mean 
taxpayers' dollars are not being used effectively. Even though the 
people on the front lines are trying their hardest, there are issues 
that have to be addressed. The main thing we are saying to this agency, 
this Department--and I know they are trying hard, I know the Secretary 
is trying hard, everyone down there is trying hard--somehow we have to 
get ahold of this. We have to get some management structure so we do 
not get this constant flow of failure, of review.
  The way this committee has tried to do it is essentially to try to 
prioritize. We essentially said: There are some things we have to do 
right. Even in the context of all these problems we have, we have to do 
some things right. The first thing we have to do right is to address 
the threat. The threat, obviously, is weapons of mass destruction. The 
potential of a weapon of mass destruction being used in America is the 
single biggest threat we have as a nation today. It is real.
  It is regrettable that there are a number of people in the country, 
especially the press, who do not take it seriously, but it is a serious 
problem which we have as a nation because there are, unfortunately, 
people out there who are fundamentally evil who genuinely believe their 
way to a fuller life and a great existence is to essentially kill 
hundreds, potentially thousands, of Americans and try to destroy 
Western culture. That is their purpose. These people are sophisticated. 
They have the capacity, if given the wherewithal, to use a weapon that 
could do massive damage to our Nation. We cannot underestimate this 
threat simply because we have gotten through 4 years.
  Let me congratulate those who work on the front line. As I said, 
there are some hard-working, committed people. Four years of hard work 
have kept us free from an attack, and that, I guess, is the bottom 
line. So maybe my statement before was a bit harsh because you have to 
congratulate the success in the fact that we have not been attacked in 
the last 4 years. But the documentation is also real that we have real 
issues with this Department. But if we are to continue to be successful 
in thwarting a weapon of mass destruction attack, we must put resources 
in those areas. But they must be used effectively.
  We have the Science and Technology Directorate of this group. They 
have no plan, as far as we can tell. They want more money, and I would 
be happy to give them more money. I would be enthusiastic about putting 
more money into their operations if I felt there was some sort of 
coherent plan as to what they were going to do with those funds. In 
fact, it is just the opposite. You get just the opposite feeling from 
the Science and Technology Directorate.
  You have the NMDS, the nuclear detection group, which is working 
hard. They are up and running in Nevada. They are trying to develop 
systems. Well, they started from nothing. Basically, they wanted a lot 
of money to get started. We asked that they give us some directions as 
to how they were going to do that, and they have started to do that. So 
they are moving on the right path. But what we basically said is: We 
will give you the money as you produce the plan that produces the 
results.
  We have to be ready for a domestic nuclear event, and we have to try 
to stop it before it happens. But it also has to be done in a coherent 
and comprehensive way rather than an illogical way or in a way that 
appears to be haphazard. There is progress being made there. That is 
where we want to focus our dollars, quite honestly. We want to focus 
our dollars in this effort. I have been joined by Senator Byrd in 
trying to address the weapons of mass destruction threat. That is the 
No. 1 thing.
  The second thing we want to focus on and we have tried to focus on is 
the issue of border security because you really have to know who is 
coming into the country if you are going to be able to claim you have 
addressed the issue of threat. Because, sure, there are homegrown 
terrorists in America, unfortunately. There is no question about it. 
But we also know there are an awful lot of people out there--and we saw 
it again just this week--primarily coming out of the Mideast but also 
out of Southeast Asia, who want to do us harm and whose purpose is to 
do us harm--and they are open about it--- who have put out epistles to 
their followers that their cause should be to attack America and 
Americans within and outside of our country.
  So we really need to know who is coming across our borders. And then, 
of course, we have the secondary issue, which is we have a large number 
of people coming into our country illegally who wish us no harm. In 
fact, it is just the opposite. They wish to take advantage of the 
American dream, to get a job and support their families. They come here 
to get work--and especially across the southern border--but they are 
coming here illegally, and that is not appropriate. So we need to get 
control over our borders.
  So about 2 years ago, when I took over this job, of being in charge 
of this committee, we started to ramp up significantly our commitment 
to border security. With this bill, should this bill be successful and 
be passed, we will have increased the number of border agents by 40 
percent; we will have increased the number of detention beds by about 
30 percent; we will have dramatically increased our commitment to the 
Coast Guard; we will have dramatically increased our commitment to ICE; 
and we will have put in place and started up the US-VISIT Program, 
which I still have reservations about as to how effective it is going 
to be, but it seems to be moving in the right direction and people are 
working hard on it. Our purpose has been to retool the borders so we 
can be sure within a few years we can control the borders.
  Now, I happen to be of the belief that we should put this on the fast 
track. It should not be 5 years from now, it should be next year. But 
that has not happened, primarily because of resources. However, we have 
made dramatic strides in this area.
  Now, there has been a disagreement here between ourselves and the 
administration on this point. In fact, when we brought our first budget 
forward, which significantly increased the number of border agents by 
about 1,000--actually 1,500 when you coupled the supplemental with the 
bill--we were

[[Page 13771]]

strongly resisted by the administration because we took money out of 
other accounts--primarily State and local first responder funds--and 
moved it over to Border Patrol. We did the same thing to add the 
detention beds. That was done with the support of the Senate and, in 
the end, with the support of the House. That was a success. It was such 
a success, in fact, that now the administration claims it was their 
idea, even though at the time they opposed it.
  Now, we have tried to move forward. This year, we put $1.9 billion 
into the supplemental to try to address the capital needs of the border 
issue, such as the aircraft, the fact that our aircraft we are flying 
down there are 40 years over their useful life, the helicopters are 20 
years over their useful life; the fact that the Coast Guard is on a 
program of building coastal security capability, but it is on a program 
that won't build out until 2023, and we think that should be 
accelerated to 2015; the fact that we only had one unmanned vehicle on 
the southern border--or anywhere on the borders, for that matter--and 
that one unmanned vehicle crashed, and we need to replace it and add 
more. And we have a lot of technology needs and also just plain old-
fashioned cars and desks and training capability, things we felt we 
needed on the capital side.
  Well, as to that idea, although the Congress thought it made sense, 
the administration did not. They took the number and converted it. We 
are happy to have the money. Initially, the Department was not even 
happy to have the money, but they took the money, and they converted it 
to operational needs, adding another 1,000 agents, adding another 4,000 
beds, adding operational costs, and also some capital needs. I think 
the helicopters were covered. The planes were not upgraded. There were 
unmanned vehicles that would be purchased. So that was a point of 
disagreement, but at least we were on the right track.
  But the practical effect of that bill was we created what is known as 
a fiscal tail, which meant that as you added operational costs in the 
supplemental, you had to add additional money in the main bill in order 
to pay for the operational needs which would be ongoing, which meant 
that the basic bill was stressed, first because it did not have full 
funding because of the $1.4 billion hold that was put in it by the 
setting up of a fee system, which everybody knew was not going to work, 
and secondly because of the tail that came out of this supplemental, 
which meant we had to pick up about $600 million of cost we had not 
planned to pick up in this bill in order to maintain the costs which 
had been put in the supplemental, which we felt should have, instead, 
been capital costs rather than operational costs.
  So the practical effect of that gets us to this bill we have today, 
which is a bill which continues the movement toward securing the 
borders but does not do it in as robust a way as I would like. I am not 
going to be disingenuous about it. I am not going to come to the floor 
and say this is the greatest thing since sliced bread. It is not. It is 
a step in the right direction. And because of Senator Cochran's and 
Senator Byrd's support in getting a bigger allocation in this bill than 
it might have appropriately gotten in light of what was sent up by the 
administration, it is a fairly significant step. It adds an additional 
1,000 agents. It adds an additional 1,000 detention beds. But that 
means we are still short of where we need to be. Even though we have 
increased agents by 40 percent and detention beds by 30 percent, we are 
still way short of where we need to be to be able to say, with 
confidence, we are going to be able to stop the people who are coming 
across our borders, especially our southern border, in the near term, 
detain them, and make sure the bad ones are sent back and the other 
folks are put through some system that works.
  That brings us to another issue involving border security, which is 
this whole question of immigration reform. There is no question in my 
mind that you cannot get substantive long-term border control unless 
you have immigration reform, which means some sort of guest worker 
program for people who want to come here and work. People who are 
getting paid $5 a day in Mexico and can make $50 a day in the United 
States, who have a family to feed, are going to come to the United 
States. That is just human nature. That is what they are going to do. 
That is what they have to do in order to survive and take care of their 
families. We have to come up with a way where those people can come 
across our borders and we will know who they are, why they are here, 
where they are going, and where they are working.
  Now, the Senate has passed an immigration bill, which I voted for, 
and the House has passed an immigration bill. But the conference 
process does not seem to be going forward very well. Well, the bill 
here, ironically, sets out some parameters which might help move this 
whole thing along, if we want to do a comprehensive immigration bill.
  I think there is general consensus developing around here to a 
concept which was put forward by Senator Isakson of Georgia during the 
immigration debate that we should have a trigger mechanism, basically, 
which would essentially say: When you accomplish these goals in the 
area of border security, then you can move to the next step in the area 
of bringing along a guest worker program.
  What this bill does is basically give us some pretty specific ideas 
as to what those goals should be. What should be the ascertainable 
standards which we should set that need to be accomplished and, if and 
when accomplished, should kick in a guest worker program? And there are 
a couple of ideas of how you approach the guest worker program, but the 
ascertainable standards are really pretty obvious. They first should be 
definite. They cannot be vague. They cannot be standards which are 
gameable. But if you look at what we need on the border, you do not 
need vagueness. You can be pretty precise. In fact, you can get right 
down to the numbers.
  If we had 20,000 border agents, we know we would have the necessary 
border agents. If we had about 40,000 detention beds--that doesn't mean 
firm beds. There are lots of ways to do detention beds. You could use 
old military bases. You could use present military bases. But if you 
had the capacity to hold up to 40,000 people who come across our 
borders illegally, that would give you the necessary numbers to do the 
process. If you had about five to nine UAVs, depending on whether you 
were going to use UAVs on the northern border, that would be a number 
that was ascertainable. If you had a Coast Guard build-out which said 
it would be completed by the year 2015, that would be a number that 
would be ascertainable. Those are numbers you could put in. If you had 
a US-VISIT Program that met certain standards, so that when a person 
comes across the border they get fingerprinted in a way that would 
allow the FBI database to be actually activated in real time, that 
would be an ascertainable standard. And if you had a readable 
employment card that had biometrics as its base, that would be an 
ascertainable standard.
  If you just did those items as your ascertainable standards, you 
would have in place what is necessary to put forward an effective 
border security commitment. And you could follow that, when those had 
been reached--and they could be reached in a very short time if you 
wanted to put the resources in it; this is not years, this could be 
reached very quickly--you could put forward a guest worker program 
which could follow on rather quickly. I have ideas as to how the guest 
worker program should work, and other people do, but there certainly is 
a way to do it that makes sense and is fair to people who want to come 
into this country and work for a living, even those who are already 
here illegally, without creating amnesty. So this bill sets out, 
basically, parameters for accomplishing that. It gives a path that 
could be followed to accomplish that goal, and I hope it will be 
supported for that reason.
  As I have said, the bill is not everything we need, and the 
Department is not clearly where we need to have it. But in the context 
of the resources

[[Page 13772]]

which were available to us, this bill is very much a step in the right 
direction. It will add significantly to the number of border agents.
  It will add significantly to the number of detention beds. When you 
combine it with the supplemental, there will be 2,000 new border agents 
and 5,000 new beds. It puts in place some of the mechanisms to try to 
make sure the technology is appropriately addressed.
  The place where it is most lacking, to be fair in disclosure, is with 
the Coast Guard because the Coast Guard buildout remains a 2023 
exercise under this bill versus what should have been a 2015 buildout 
exercise. That is unfortunate. Had we gotten what we needed in the 
supplemental, we could have changed that. We didn't. So we will come 
back to that issue. I wouldn't be surprised if there are other 
supplementals floating through here and the Coast Guard has a fair and 
legitimate claim on funds for national defense in those supplementals; 
if not, in the next appropriations rounds.
  So that is where we stand today. It is a bill on the right track. It 
doesn't solve all the problems. It deals with an agency which is trying 
hard, with good people, committed to the purpose of protecting us but 
an agency which has very significant issues of management and systems 
controls.
  I appreciate the courtesy of the Senate in listening to me for this 
length of time. I especially appreciate the courtesy of the Senator 
from West Virginia for his constructive efforts and his help in 
bringing the legislation this far.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from West Virginia.
  Mr. BYRD. Mr. President, the Senate has before it the fiscal year 
2007 Homeland Security appropriations bill. I commend our chairman. I 
am debating whether I should say ``who has no peer.'' I think I will 
stick with that. He has no peer when it comes to knowledge of the 
subject matter and as one who cares deeply about his country, his 
committee, its work, and about the needs that exist for appropriating 
adequate funds. I commend him. I commend his staff. They have done 
excellent work on this legislation.
  This chairman makes it his business to know what are the facts 
concerning the needs out there; who makes it his business, once he 
knows the facts, to go after the weaknesses, the soft spots, and, with 
a great determination, to do the task ahead.
  I commend the thousands of men and women who are on the front lines 
defending America's homeland. They do serve the Nation every hour of 
every day. Senator Gregg has tried to allocate limited--and I say 
limited, I stress the word ``limited''--resources to respond to those 
threats that present the greatest risk. He does not have the funds to 
deal with all the threats, but he has sought to respond to those 
threats that present the greatest risk. In doing so, Senator Gregg has 
included a number of improvements to the President's budget, 
particularly with regard to border security, baggage explosives 
detention, fire grants, and emergency management. However, there is a 
limitation to the ability of this chairman, or any chairman--a 
limitation to the ability of the Appropriations Committee--to address 
the problems in the President's budget.
  The bill is $515 million below the President's request, and only 4 
percent higher than last year. There are funding shortfalls for port 
security, border security, rail security, and first responder grants. 
These shortcomings are largely a result of the administration's ill-
considered proposal for the Appropriations Committees to enact an 
increase in the aviation passenger tax. While the President claims 
credit for a robust budget for securing our borders, his actual budget 
is hollow, hollow, hollow. The White House knew when it sent the budget 
to the Congress that the funding relied on a tax hike on air 
travelers--a tax hike that the Congress had already rejected. How about 
that.
  The Appropriations Committees lack jurisdiction to increase the 
aviation passenger tax and, of course, we could not do so in this bill. 
As a result of the President's proposal, the funding for homeland 
security in this bill is not only lean, it is also very lean. So I 
again commend Chairman Gregg for his masterful work in putting together 
this bill, but serious security problems remain.
  The Department of Homeland Security is now in its fourth year of 
existence, as Senator Gregg has explained. While many of its legacy 
agencies, such as the Coast Guard, Customs and Border Protection, and 
the Secret Service, continue to operate effectively, the Department 
itself certainly has become the gang that can't shoot straight. Nearly 
5 years after 9/11, key issues, such as fixing FEMA, such as 
establishing chemical security standards, such as inspecting cargo on 
commercial aircraft and inspecting air passengers for explosives, such 
as securing our ports and making sure that State and local governments 
have effective mass evacuation plans, are all languishing at the 
Department. The list of issues that are festering at the Department 
goes on and on, and these problems are not merely bureaucratic hassles. 
These are issues that imperil the safety of Americans--Americans--as 
they go about their daily lives. That is you and you and you and you 
out there in the plains, the prairies, the Rockies, the Alleghenies, 
you citizens, the safety of you citizens as you go about your daily 
lives.
  Only 5 percent of the 11 million cargo containers coming into this 
country are opened for inspection. We know that terrorists desire to 
bring a dirty bomb into this country. Over 6 billion pounds of cargo is 
placed on commercial airlines each year, and virtually none of that 
cargo is inspected. How about that. Do you feel any safer? How do you 
feel about that, now that I have said that?
  The Environmental Protection Agency reports that 123 chemical plants 
located throughout the Nation--and in particular in the Kanawha Valley 
in southern West Virginia--could each potentially expose more than a 
million people if a chemical release occurred. How does that make you 
feel? Yet according to the Government Accountability Office, only 1,100 
of the 15,000 chemical facilities in this country are known to comply 
with voluntary security standards. Yet the administration has done 
virtually nothing to either require compliance or create incentives for 
the chemical industry to secure its facilities. Only 37 of the 448 
airports in this country have acquired new technology to inspect 
airline passengers for explosives as they board airplanes. Does that 
make you nervous when you go up to the ticket counter to buy a plane 
ticket?
  There are in this country, in prisons, more than 550,000 criminal 
aliens in prisons in this country who have not been identified by the 
Department for removal from the country. Does that make you feel any 
safer? How about that. When they get out of prison, they may be walking 
the streets in your neighborhood. Where? In your neighborhood. They 
need to be removed from this country as soon as they finish their 
prison terms.
  The so-called millennium bomber crossed the U.S.-Canadian border in 
Washington State intending to blow up the control tower at Los Angeles 
International Airport. Just last month, 17 homegrown--get that, 17 
homegrown--alleged terrorists were arrested in Toronto. Yet there are 
only 1,000 Border Patrol agents stationed along the northern border. 
That means that one lonely Border Patrol agent is responsible for 
patrolling 5.5 miles of the border.
  Nearly 5 years after 9/11, most of our first responders still do not 
have interoperable communications equipment.
  Can you believe that? Nearly 5 years after 9/11, most of our first 
responders still do not have interoperable communications equipment. 
Can you believe that? I have pressed for that most basic need for our 
first responders for nearly 5 years. This subcommittee is on top of its 
work, but it needs more resources.
  We all learned after Hurricane Katrina that FEMA is no longer up to 
the task of responding to a catastrophic disaster, whether the disaster 
is a terrorist attack or a natural disaster. According to the 
administration's own statistics, only 27 percent of State and 10 
percent of urban area

[[Page 13773]]

plans were rated as adequate to cope with a catastrophic event.
  In addition to failing to address known vulnerabilities, the 
Department of Homeland Security is turning into a case study for failed 
management. The GAO and the DHS inspector general have documented 
numerous financial management and procurement failures at the 
Department. The Department of Homeland Security information systems are 
not secure. The GAO alone has completed 494 evaluations of DHS 
programs. The DHS Office of the Inspector General is spread so thinly 
that it was unable to follow through on 616 different allegations of 
wrongdoing last year.
  The Department continues to allow valuable homeland security dollars 
to gather dust in the Treasury rather than getting the money out to 
State and local governments where the money can actually be used to 
secure our ports and mass-transit systems or to purchase interoperable 
communications equipment.
  In the fiscal year 2006 Homeland Security appropriations report, we 
directed the Department to send Congress a report by February 10 
providing an expedited schedule for awarding homeland security grants. 
Last week, 5 months late, we got the report. The report detailed the 
Department's plan to award 20 different grant programs in the last 
month of the fiscal year. Congress approved funds last October, yet the 
funds will sit here in Washington for almost a year. Last week was the 
1-year anniversary of the London train bombing. Yet under the 
Department's plan rail and transit security funding that was 
appropriated by Congress last October will not be awarded until this 
September. The same malaise applies to grants to secure our ports, our 
buses, for securing buffer zones around nuclear and electrical plants, 
and grants to hire more firefighters. What is the administration 
waiting for? Does there have to be another horrendous attack with 
thousands of deaths before this Department will shake out of its nearly 
comatose state?
  The Department's record should cause every citizen--that is you and 
you and you and you--alarm. The Department's record should cause every 
citizen alarm. It is a record that was entirely predictable. While I 
supported the creation of a Department of Homeland Security, I voted 
against the legislation that created this unwieldy behemoth. In 
consolidating 22 agencies into 1 department, the Congress created an 
organization that was destined from the beginning to have failures. 
This was a department that was created out of political expediency in 
the basement of the White House, not through careful analysis.
  In the months following 9/11, the President feared that the Congress 
was taking the initiative on securing the homeland. So the President 
directed a small White House team, cloaked in secrecy in the bowels of 
the White House, to draft a reorganization of homeland security 
agencies. No security experts were present. The political wizards 
conjured up this witch's brew. The result was a massive governmental 
reorganization rushed through the Congress in a matter of months. Do 
you remember that? I remember it. I expressed my concerns about it.
  As I said in the fall of 2002--did you get that--in the fall of 2002, 
4 years ago:

       If we take this giant step, our homeland defense system 
     will likely be in a state of chaos for the next few years.
       People may begin to read in the newspapers about startup 
     problems in this vast new Department. These kinds of high-
     profile debacles could carry over to the Transportation 
     Security Administration, the Customs Service, FEMA, the Coast 
     Guard, or any of the agencies.

  That is what I said.
  For this administration, the illusion of security--like seeing a 
waterfall in the desert, an illusion--created by this Department and 
spawned in the White House cellar was more important than a careful 
plan for actually making Americans safer. Perhaps I should say that 
again. For this administration, the illusion of security created by 
this Department and spawned in the White House cellar was more 
important than a careful plan for actually making Americans safer. For 
this administration, it is OK to do homeland security on the cheap. For 
years, I have come to this floor, and others have come to this floor, 
and documented examples of the ways in which the administration 
relegates homeland security to a low priority--border security, rail 
and transit security, port security, chemical security, funds for 
firefighters, and the list goes on and on.
  This year, the administration proposed to cut the firefighter grant 
program by 45 percent. It was proposed to eliminate the SAFER Program, 
a congressional initiative that helps local governments hire more 
firefighters. The Department failed to transmit to the Congress the 
statutorily mandated needs assessment of our firefighters. I wonder 
whether the report is locked in someone's desk because it concluded 
that our fire departments still lack the resources necessary to 
purchase equipment capable of responding to a terrorist attack.
  Nearly 5 years after 9/11 and nearly 1 year after Hurricane Katrina 
proved that our first responders are not ready to deal with a 
catastrophic disaster, the President proposes to cut first responder 
grants by 13 percent below fiscal year 2006 and 33 percent below fiscal 
year 2005.
  There is another example of the rob-Peter-to-pay-Paul approach the 
administration takes to securing our homeland. Last week, the 
administration notified the Congress of a serious shortfall within the 
Federal Protective Service, the agency that secures over 1 million 
Federal employees and visitors to our Federal buildings. Rather than 
request additional funding for the shortfall or increase the fees 
charged to Federal agencies to cover the shortfall, the administration 
is proposing that we cut funding for explosives countermeasures and for 
detaining and removing illegal aliens to pay for the shortfall. Can you 
imagine that? The President tells the Nation that border security is a 
critical priority for our national security--and he is right, that is 
what it is. The President pushes the Congress to get tough on illegal 
immigration, and then his administration proposes to cut funding for 
detaining and removing illegal aliens. And in a world where we see 
explosions of improvised explosive devices killing American soldiers 
every day and with the Madrid and London train bombings, the 
administration wants to cut funds for developing explosives 
countermeasures here in the United States. What kind of confusion 
reigns at the other end of the avenue, at the White House? Does 
Presidential rhetoric now excuse rolling the dice with the safety of 
millions of Americans?
  Today, the Senate has before it the fourth Homeland Security 
appropriations bill that the Senate has considered since the Department 
was created. Under the leadership of the first chairman of the 
subcommittee, Thad Cochran, and under the leadership of the current 
chairman, Senator Judd Gregg, the Senate has striven to provide the 
Department with the resources it needs to do its job and to give clear 
direction for improving its efforts to secure the homeland. And it has 
been an uphill fight.
  I am pleased that, in this bill, Chairman Judd Gregg included a 
number of provisions that will improve the operations of the Department 
of Homeland Security. I hope that the administration downtown will 
listen to his lead and that the administration will follow his lead.
  Hardly a week goes by that the administration does not remind 
Americans of the continuing threat of terrorist attacks. As we debate 
the bill this week, I will offer two amendments to fill some of the 
gaps in border security and port security that were created as a result 
of the administration's unworkable proposal to finance $1.2 billion of 
the Department's budget through increased aviation passenger taxes. I 
will also support amendments that will be offered to increase funding 
for first responders and for rail and transit security. I encourage 
Congress to demand more of the Department of Homeland Security and more 
than rhetoric from the President.
  Again, I applaud Chairman Gregg for the expertise he brings to the 
bill, for

[[Page 13774]]

the labor he expends, for his determination, his concern, and for the 
foresightedness he brings to the bill.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from New Hampshire is recognized.
  Mr. GREGG. Mr. President, I appreciate the kind comments of the 
Senator from West Virginia. I especially appreciate his very insightful 
review of the issues here, most of which I agree with, some of which I 
may have some disagreement with, but mostly I am in total agreement. He 
used the analogy of a hill. I sometimes feel that he and I are like 
Sisyphus on this hill. I am not sure we are going to make it to the 
top, because they keep pushing the stone back down on us.
  In any event, the effort is being made. We are trying to secure our 
borders and make sure that we are safer from weapons of mass 
destruction. And the Department, as he said--and I think it is 
important to stress this--is filled with people conscientious and 
committed to protecting America, and the issues which are raised are 
ones of resources and systems and support. Those can be resolved when 
you have good people working, and I think we can resolve them.
  I look forward to hearing more from the Senator as he brings forward 
his amendments.
  I ask unanimous consent that the committee substitute to H.R. 5441 be 
considered and agreed to; provided that no points of order are waived 
thereon and that the measure, as amended, be considered original text 
for purpose of further amendment.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The committee amendment in the nature of a substitute was agreed to.
  Mr. GREGG. I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from North Dakota.
  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, I listened to my colleague from West 
Virginia in his description of amendments he intends to offer. It is a 
description of the legislation. This Appropriations subcommittee is a 
very important subcommittee and raises a good many issues dealing with 
the security of our country. I want to talk about them briefly, and 
then I want to talk about something that occurred last week.
  First, with respect to homeland security, a book was written a while 
back about October 11, 2001. We talk about September 11, 2001. On 9/11/
2001, a tragedy was visited on this country when airplanes loaded with 
fuel crashed into the Trade Centers, the Pentagon, and a field in 
Pennsylvania, and thousands died. It was a devastating terrorist attack 
against our country. That was on 9/11/2001.
  According to information in a book printed some while ago, on October 
11 of that same year, a CIA agent with a code name Dragonfire reported, 
and apparently through the Presidential daily briefings, the head of 
the CIA, Mr. Tenet, reported to the President, that they had picked up 
a rumor or intelligence had gathered information that a 10-kiloton 
nuclear weapon had been stolen from the Soviet arsenal, or the Russian 
arsenal, and had been taken to New York City and was to be detonated in 
a major American city by a terrorist organization.
  Graham Allison, who wrote the book ``Nuclear Terrorism,'' described 
the plot that was told to the CIA by an agent called Dragonfire. As a 
result of that description 1 month after 9/11 that there might be a 10-
kiloton Russian nuclear weapon in this country already set to be 
detonated in an American major city, there was great concern, 
obviously. Many people were apoplectic about what was happening. This 
did not become the product of news stories, for obvious reasons. But 
the administration and others responded to it with some concern.
  About a month later, it was apparently discerned that this was not a 
credible threat, or at least the circumstances that brought that threat 
were not credible. But as they post-mortemed that period, they 
discovered it was probably perfectly credible: We know the Russians had 
10-kiloton nuclear weapons; they had built them. They don't have the 
best command and control of their nuclear weapons. It is perfectly 
plausible that someone might have stolen or purchased a 10-kiloton 
nuclear weapon and it was not outside the scope of probability that 
someone might have brought a nuclear weapon into this country and a 
terrorist organization could well have detonated a nuclear weapon, all 
of which caused great concern.
  We have roughly 30,000 strategic and tactical nuclear weapons in this 
world. The disappearance of one to a terrorist organization, in the 
hands of a terrorist organization will cause a terrorist act in a major 
city unlike any we have ever seen.
  It is interesting that when the Defense authorization bill comes to 
the floor of the Senate, we spend billions and billions of dollars 
defending against a rogue nation or a terrorist acquiring a nuclear 
weapon, putting it on the tip of an intercontinental ballistic missile 
and shooting it at our country at 18,000 miles an hour. So we are 
spending billions on an antiballistic missile system to try to hit a 
bullet with a bullet. It is my judgment--and I think the judgment of 
most people who evaluate what is the most likely threat against our 
country--that the most likely threat is a container ship pulling up to 
a dock at a seaport in this country at about 3 miles with a container 
on board, with a weapon of mass destruction inside that container that 
has not been inspected. That is a far more likely threat to this 
country than a nuclear-tipped intercontinental ballistic missile 
acquired by a rogue nation or a terrorist organization. Yet we are 
spending thousands of times more money on the antiballistic missile 
program than we are on port security.
  It is why port security is of such great importance to this country. 
We have a large border, and we had some discussion with respect to the 
immigration bill about border security--border security with respect to 
immigration, yes, but also with respect to keeping terrorists out. But 
our borders not only include the landmass between Mexico and the U.S. 
and Canada and the U.S, our borders include port facilities and a 
substantial number--I believe the number is close to 6 million 
containers on ships each year come into this country, with a very small 
percentage of them actually investigated or inspected. That is why port 
security is so very important.
  It is also the case, as my colleague from West Virginia has 
described, that first responders in this country will almost inevitably 
be first to respond to not only a terrorist act should one occur in the 
future, but first responders will likely be first in contact with the 
terrorists. It is a fact that one of the terrorists who flew an 
airplane into a building in this country on 9/11/2001 was apprehended 
for speeding in the State of Maryland but apparently was not on a 
watchlist and so was given a speeding ticket and then drove off.
  It is likely that the first acquaintance with a terrorist or a 
terrorist act will be someone in local government--local police, county 
sheriff, a local emergency crew, an ambulance. That is the first 
responder.
  We have just had testimony from sheriffs and local police officers 
about the issue of critical interoperability of communications. Is the 
local police organization able to communicate with the highway patrol? 
Can the highway patrol communicate with the fire department? Can the 
police communicate with the fire department? All of that is very 
important. Yet at the same time we ask these questions, the President 
is recommending very substantial cuts in these programs--Byrne grants, 
law enforcement block grants, COPS Program, and others. It is exactly 
the wrong time, in my judgment, to retreat. At the same time violent 
crime is increasing, by the way, the President is recommending those 
same cuts.
  With respect to this issue of the Department of Homeland Security, it 
is very important we get it right. My colleague, Senator Judd Gregg, I 
know works hard on these issues, as does my colleague from West 
Virginia, Senator Byrd. I hope this week, as we work our way through 
this legislation, we can thoughtfully consider amendments and evaluate 
those that will strengthen

[[Page 13775]]

this bill and perhaps discard those that will not we will come out of 
it with legislation that will give us the feeling that we have improved 
substantially homeland security in our country.
  Homeland security is also about hometown security because that is 
where homeland security starts--with first responders.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to speak as in morning 
business. I would like to speak for a few minutes about a drought tour 
I took last week.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.


                      Agriculture Disaster Relief

  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, we have a portion of North Dakota, and it 
extends down into South Dakota, parts of Missouri, Illinois, all the 
way down to Texas, where a very severe drought is occurring. I want to 
talk about meetings in Flasher, ND, Moffit, ND, and Zeeland, ND. 
Zeeland is a town of 118 people. I drove up to Zeeland the other day 
and 170 farmers and ranchers were there, in a town of 118 people. As we 
drove into that town and looked off to the left, we saw what looks like 
the gravel infield or sand infield of a baseball diamond, a field that 
is supposed to have grass where cows can graze. There is no grass. It 
looks like a bowling ball. That is because there is a devastating 
drought occurring in that region.
  We have a lot of folks who have cattle, and you either feed cattle or 
you have to sell them. It is just that simple. People are very 
concerned.
  No. 1, we need hay and grazing opened on CRP land so farmers can get 
at forage to feed these cows. I had people stand up at meetings and 
say: I have 200 to 300 cows, and I have nothing to feed them. The 
pasture is bare.
  Those cows are either going to be fed or put on a truck and sent to 
market immediately.
  There was a man, Wes Mastel, a 24-year-old rancher who just started 2 
years ago. He had to sell his herd of 114 cows. He had nothing to feed 
them. The stories are pretty devastating.
  The thermometer on the MacIntosh County Bank the other day read 100, 
101 degrees with wind just drying out the soil, sucking out the 
moisture--what little moisture that does exist in the soil.
  We have this developing, abiding drought that is devastating to 
ranchers. I raise the question because I have offered three times now 
disaster relief for 2006 when we had torrential rains and 2 million 
acres couldn't be planted or were planted and washed away completely.
  We had a disaster in the gulf region. That was called Katrina. The 
torrential rains in North Dakota didn't have a name, but they were 
torrential rains. They destroyed crops. The drought doesn't have a 
name. It destroys crops.
  The question is: What can we do about it? We have always, prior to 
this, reached out to family farmers and said: We want to help you; in 
times of trouble, we want to help.
  Last December, the Senate passed a disaster relief bill. The House 
would not accept it. The President, in fact, very frontally said: If it 
comes to me, I will veto it. Usually it is a Presidential adviser who 
recommends a veto. That wasn't the case. The President said: I will 
veto it, so it didn't go anywhere.
  A couple of months ago on the emergency supplemental, I attached, 
once again, a disaster relief bill. It got to conference with the 
House, and it was again jettisoned. The President again said he opposed 
it.
  So I attached a disaster relief bill to the Agriculture 
appropriations bill that was marked up in the full committee just 
recently. We are going to see again. Times change, things change. My 
hope is the President will understand this is a very serious problem 
and will relent and decide he wants to help.
  I am informing the chairman and ranking member of the full 
Appropriations Committee today that it is my intention to modify the 
amendment I added to the Agriculture appropriations bill to include the 
2006 drought because we must, it seems to me, respond to this disaster. 
The failure to respond to it means that fewer and fewer people will be 
living out on the land in this country, and that takes something 
significant away from the character of this country. This is not new. 
We have always reached out in times of trouble.
  I would ask anybody who thinks there is not trouble out there to just 
take a drive--take a drive in the drought area and then ask yourself, 
if you had 300 cows that were your responsibility on your ranch, what 
on Earth would you feed them? And if there is nothing to feed them, you 
are going to market and you are out of business. It is that simple.
  So, first and foremost, my colleague, Senator Conrad, and I, and 
others, have asked the Secretary of Agriculture to release haying and 
grazing opportunities on CRP lands. That is very important. It is 
important that it be done now, not later. The Department of Agriculture 
always drags its feet and always opens CRP land for haying and grazing 
too late, after the major 4-H opportunities are gone or after the 4-H 
capability is dramatically diminished. So my hope is that the Secretary 
of Agriculture will heed the call this time and open that land for 
haying and grazing immediately to give some relief to those ranchers.
  As I said, this is not just about North Dakota. My colleague, Senator 
Bond from Missouri, and our colleagues from Illinois and others--
Illinois, last year, had the third driest year since 1895. There are 
other areas of this country that are suffering the ravages of drought. 
Again, my hope is that this Congress will understand the urgency.
  I was at this meeting in Zealand, ND, of 170 ranchers. They talked 
about the drought. Even without the drought, what is happening to them, 
the average farmer and rancher in North Dakota is spending $18,000 a 
year in additional energy costs. The big, major integrated oil 
companies are walking to the bank with bundles of money sucked right 
out of the pocketbooks of working Americans, ranchers, and farmers, 
especially because they are heavy users of energy. It is unbelievable 
the toll it is imposing all across this country. But when you add a 
drought, which has destroyed pastures and destroyed the ability to feed 
your cattle, and then continue to impose this additional burden of 
energy costs, in my judgment, it is a recipe for destruction all across 
rural America.
  Some people may think it doesn't matter. I have spoken before to my 
colleagues about a fellow named Rodney Nelson in North Dakota who is a 
cowboy poet and who wrote a long question for this country: Does part 
of this country's character depend on having folks on the farm and on 
the ranch as well? Farmers and ranchers, small towns and big towns, 
isn't all of that together part of the character of this country? He 
asked the question: What is it worth? What is it worth for a kid to 
know how to weld a seam? What is it worth for a kid to know how to 
overhaul a tractor, how to plow a straight furrow, how to teach a calf 
to suck from a pail? What is it worth for a kid to know all of these 
things? What is it worth for a kid to know how to grease a combine, how 
to hang a door, how to build a lean-to? What is it worth?
  There is only one university in this country where that is taught and 
that is on the family farm. Those kids who come off our farms and go to 
small towns and big cities, who bring with them that nourishment of 
family values from America's farms and ranches to small towns and big 
cities is what renews our country. If this Congress ever decides that 
farms don't matter, those Americans who live out under a yard light 
trying to raise a family and raise a crop and raise some livestock, if 
this Congress ever decides they don't matter, we will have lost 
something very substantial for this country.
  So for now, we need the Secretary of Agriculture immediately to 
release CRP land for haying and grazing so we can get some feed to 
those cattle in drought areas, No. 1. No. 2, we need this President to 
back away from his threat to veto disaster aid, and we need to amend 
the provision that I put in the Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee 
to extend it to 2006, which I intend to do.

[[Page 13776]]

  Mr. President, we have a lot of choices to make in this country. Our 
country has a responsibility in this world to respond to all kinds of 
things. We are a world leader. I think that it is important for us to 
respond around the world. But first and foremost, it is important for 
us to respond here at home and take care of things here at home.
  I am just telling you when the sign at the bank and the sign downtown 
in your town shows 105 degrees or 102 degrees and the wind is blowing 
30 miles an hour and the pasture looks like a bowling ball and there is 
nothing for the cattle to eat and you are suffering through a drought, 
this Congress has a responsibility to act--and sooner rather than 
later.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor.

                          ____________________