[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 12]
[House]
[Pages 16795-16797]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




            NEXT GENERATION RADIATION SCREENING ACT OF 2008

  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules 
and pass the bill (H.R. 5531) to amend the Homeland Security Act of 
2002 to clarify criteria for certification relating to advanced 
spectroscopic portal monitors, and for other purposes, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 5531

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Next Generation Radiation 
     Screening Act of 2008''.

     SEC. 2. MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING REGARDING ADVANCED 
                   SPECTROSCOPIC PORTAL MONITORS.

       (a) In General.--Title XIX of the Homeland Security Act of 
     2002 is amended by adding at the end the following new 
     sections:

     ``SEC. 1908. ADVANCED SPECTROSCOPIC PORTAL MONITORS.

       ``(a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
       ``(1) The consequences of radiological or nuclear terrorism 
     would be catastrophic.
       ``(2) A system such as the Advanced Spectroscopic Portal 
     (ASP) is intended to improve the process of screening 
     passengers and cargo to prevent the illicit transport of 
     radiological and nuclear material.
       ``(3) A system such as the ASP can always be improved, even 
     after it is deployed.
       ``(4) There is no upper limit to the functionality that can 
     be incorporated into an engineering project of this 
     magnitude.
       ``(5) Delaying deployment of the ASP to increase 
     functionality beyond what is minimally required for 
     deployment may limit the ability of the United States to 
     screen passengers and cargo for radiological and nuclear 
     material.
       ``(6) There are operational differences between primary and 
     secondary screening procedures. Consideration should be given 
     to the implication these differences have on the minimum 
     functionality for systems deployed for use in primary and 
     secondary screening procedures.
       ``(b) Agreement on Functionality of Advanced Spectroscopic 
     Portal Monitors.--The Director of the Domestic Nuclear 
     Detection Office and the Commissioner of Customs and Border 
     Protection shall enter into an agreement regarding the 
     minimum required functionality for the deployment of ASP by 
     United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
       ``(c) Report to Congress.--Not later than 60 days after the 
     date of the enactment of this section, the Secretary shall 
     provide Congress with the signed memorandum of understanding 
     between the Office and CBP.

     ``SEC. 1909. CRITERIA FOR CERTIFICATION.

       ``(a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
       ``(1) In developing criteria for Advanced Spectroscopic 
     Portal (ASP) performance, special consideration should be 
     given to the unique challenges associated with detecting the 
     presence of illicit radiological or nuclear material that may 
     be masked by the presence of radiation from naturally 
     occurring radioactive material or legitimate radioactive 
     sources such as those associated with medical or industrial 
     use of radiation.
       ``(2) Title IV of division E of the Consolidated 
     Appropriations Act, 2008 (Public Law 110-161) requires the 
     Secretary to submit to Congress a report certifying that `a 
     significant increase in operational effectiveness will be 
     achieved' with the ASP before `funds appropriated under this 
     heading shall be obligated for full-scale procurement of 
     Advanced Spectroscopic Portal Monitors', and requires that 
     `the Secretary shall submit separate and distinct 
     certifications prior to the procurement of Advanced 
     Spectroscopic Portal Monitors for primary and secondary 
     deployment that address the unique requirements for 
     operational effectiveness of each type of deployment.'.
       ``(b) Specification of Significant Increase in Operational 
     Effectiveness.--

[[Page 16796]]

       ``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall, in accordance with 
     the requirements of title IV of division E of the 
     Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2008, and in consultation 
     with the National Academies, develop quantitative metrics 
     that demonstrate any significant increased operational 
     effectiveness (or lack thereof) of deploying the ASP in 
     Primary and Secondary Screening sites, as determined by 
     United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
       ``(2) Metrics.--The metrics referred to in paragraph (1) 
     shall include the following:
       ``(A) A quantitative definition of `significant increase in 
     operational effectiveness'.
       ``(B) All relevant threat materials.
       ``(C) All relevant masking scenarios.
       ``(D) Cost benefit analysis in accordance with the Federal 
     Accounting Standards Advisory Board Generally Accepted 
     Accounting Principles.
       ``(E) Any other measure the Director and the Commissioner 
     determine appropriate.
       ``(c) Consideration of External Reviews in the Decision To 
     Certify.--In determining whether or not to certify that the 
     ASP shows a significant increase in operational 
     effectiveness, the Secretary may consider the following:
       ``(1) Relevant reports on the ASP from the Government 
     Accountability Office.
       ``(2) An assessment of the ASP by the Independent Review 
     Team led by the Homeland Security Institute.
       ``(3) An assessment of the ASP in consultation with the 
     National Academies.
       ``(4) Any other information the Secretary determines 
     relevant.

     ``SEC. 1910. AUTHORIZATION OF SECURING THE CITIES INITIATIVE.

       ``(a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
       ``(1) The Securing the Cities Initiative of the Department 
     uses next generation radiation detection technology to detect 
     the transport of nuclear and radiological material in urban 
     areas by terrorists or other unauthorized individuals.
       ``(2) The technology used by partners in the Securing the 
     Cities Initiative leverages Advanced Spectroscopic Portal 
     (ASP) technology used at ports of entry.
       ``(3) The Securing the Cities Initiative has fostered 
     unprecedented collaboration and coordination among its 
     Federal, State, and local partners.
       ``(b) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized 
     to be appropriated to the Director of the Domestic Nuclear 
     Detection Office of the Department $40,000,000 for fiscal 
     year 2009 and such sums as may be necessary for each 
     subsequent fiscal year for the Securing the Cities 
     Initiative.''.
       (b) Conforming Amendment.--The table of contents in section 
     1(b) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 is amended by 
     inserting after the item relating to section 1907 the 
     following new items:

``Sec. 1908. Advanced spectroscopic portal monitors.
``Sec. 1909. Criteria for certification.
``Sec. 1910. Authorization of Securing the Cities Initiative.''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Mississippi (Mr. Thompson) and the gentleman from Florida (Mr. 
Bilirakis) will each control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Mississippi.


                             General Leave

  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent 
that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their 
remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under 
consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Mississippi?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this 
measure, and yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I rise today to express my strong support for H.R. 5531, the Next 
Generation Radiation Screening Act of 2008, and I ask my colleagues to 
support this bill. I would like to congratulate Ranking Member King for 
offering this legislation. I thank him for continuing to work in a 
bipartisan manner in accepting some of our recommendations to improve 
the bill in his amendment in the nature of a substitute, which passed 
out of our committee unanimously.
  This legislation reflects the committee's oversight of next 
generation radiation portal monitors. It fits well within our package 
of DHS authorization bills, since H.R. 5531 will greatly improve DHS's 
operational effectiveness in the areas of border and port security, 
domestic preparedness, and nuclear detection.
  Specifically, H.R. 5531 will put in motion a plan to deploy next 
generation radiological detection technology at our ports of entry to 
help more effectively and more efficiently scan cargo as it enters the 
United States. Al Qaeda and other terrorist groups, as well as rogue 
nations, have made clear their plans to obtain fissile material and 
aspirations to detonate a radiological or nuclear device in the United 
States.
  Events around the world continue to sharpen our focus on this growing 
threat. Just last year, it was reported that Pakistan was expanding its 
nuclear program, constructing new facilities capable of producing 
weapons grade plutonium. In November of last year, three men were 
arrested in Slovakia for illegally possessing highly enriched uranium. 
That same month, a coordinated attack took place in South Africa's most 
secretive nuclear facility, where a laptop containing sensitive 
information was stolen, only to be recovered during a shoot-out with 
guards.
  It is imperative that we implement the best, most effective 
technology at our disposal to protect the American people from attack. 
This bipartisan legislation requires firm benchmarks for the Domestic 
Nuclear Detection Office to measure progress and to ensure that only 
the best technology is installed at our borders.
  It also requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to clearly define 
what he considers a significant increase in operational effectiveness, 
the standard required by law to procure and deploy Advanced 
Spectroscopic Portals, or ASPs.
  The Department expects to complete its certification this fall. H.R. 
5531 will ensure the certification criteria are clearly laid out and 
quantified before a final decision is made. The bill also authorizes 
$40 million for the Securing the Cities Initiative, which my committee 
strongly supports. The initiative employs the concept of defense in-
depth, and deploys an array of detection technologies, both stationary 
and mobile, throughout New York City, for added layers of security.
  This initiative shows what is possible when Federal, State, and local 
authorities cooperate. Certainly, it is a model that can be replicated 
in other major U.S. cities.
  H.R. 5531 will ensure that both the ASP program and the Securing the 
Cities Initiative are operationally effective and cost-effective too. I 
urge my colleagues to support this important legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BILIRAKIS. I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I rise today in support of H.R. 5531, the Next Generation Screening 
Act, sponsored by my Homeland Security Committee ranking member, Peter 
King. Since 2003, the Department of Homeland Security has deployed 
radiation detectors at our Nation's ports of entry. The Department has 
also engaged in an aggressive research and development program to test, 
evaluate, and deploy the next generation of radiation detection 
technology to detect and identify radioactive material.
  This technology, known as the Advanced Spectroscopic Portals, has the 
potential to provide improved detection capabilities, while reducing 
the number of nuisance alarms caused by the legitimate transport of 
non-threat-related radioactive material, such as cat litter and 
fertilizer.
  H.R. 5531 requires the Director of the Domestic Nuclear Detection 
Office and Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection to enter 
into an agreement regarding the minimum standards of operational 
functionality in order to deploy ASP systems. This legislation also 
clarifies what is meant by previously passed statute.
  Last year's omnibus appropriations bill stated the Secretary shall 
submit separate and distinct certifications prior to the procurement of 
Advanced Spectroscopic Portal monitors for primary and secondary 
deployment that address the unique requirements for operational 
effectiveness for each type of deployment. H.R. 5531 requires the 
Secretary to develop a quantitative definition of significant increase 
in operational effectiveness and develop appropriate metrics for 
measuring this effectiveness.
  In addition to authorizing the ASP program, this bill also authorizes 
the Securing the Cities Initiative, a pilot program to prevent the 
illicit transport of radiological material in the

[[Page 16797]]

New York City metropolitan area. The Securing the Cities Initiative has 
fostered unprecedented collaboration and coordination among its 
Federal, State, and local partners, and has advanced the security of 
the New York metropolitan region.
  The bill authorizes $40 million for the initiative, the same amount 
that was appropriated in fiscal year 2008 to ensure its continuation in 
fiscal year 2009.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to join me in supporting 
this important bill.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, 
and if the gentleman from Florida is prepared to close, I am prepared 
to go after him.
  Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, before I yield back the remaining time, I 
just want to emphasize how important I believe it is for the House to 
consider both an authorization and appropriations bill for the 
Department of Homeland Security this year.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as 
I may consume.
  In closing, I once again want to express my strong support for H.R. 
5531, the Next Generation Radiation Screening Act of 2008. I again 
thank Ranking Member King for offering this legislation and for 
continuing to work in a bipartisan manner as we move legislation to 
make our country more secure.
  This bill will help to ensure the state-of-the-art technology that 
allows our Customs and Border Protection officers to effectively and 
efficiently scan cargo is procured and deployed. This was the promise 
of the Advanced Spectroscopic Portal Monitors program.
  We have to make sure that the ASP delivers and provides significant 
improvement of operational effectiveness. Al Qaeda and other terrorist 
groups are interested in attacking us with dirty bombs, and we must do 
everything we can to find and intercept these materials. That means 
looking for materials not just at our borders and ports, but inside the 
United States too, and that is why authorizing the Securing the Cities 
Initiative is so important.
  I am proud to support this critical bill that also advances the 
important process of providing congressional input to improve the 
Department. H.R. 5531 represents an important step in protecting the 
country from nuclear terrorism, and I urge my colleagues to support it.
  Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5531, 
the Next Generation Screening Act of 2008, and I urge my colleagues to 
support passage of this critical homeland security bill.
  I introduced H.R. 5531 on March 5, 2008, to enhance the effectiveness 
of the Department of Homeland Security's radiation detection 
capabilities. Over the past several years, the Department of Homeland 
Security has made significant progress in deploying radiation detectors 
at our Nation's ports of entry. While this capability provides a 
critical layer in our defense against radiological and nuclear 
terrorism, Customs officials are overburdened by alarms due to 
radioactive material that is not a threat, such as medical 
therapeutics, cat litter, and fertilizer.
  To reduce this burden on Customs officials, the Domestic Nuclear 
Detection Office within the Department of Homeland Security, initiated 
an aggressive research program to develop, test, evaluate, and deploy 
the next generation of radiation detection technology. This technology, 
known as the Advanced Spectroscopic Portal, or ASP, is capable of 
identifying, as well as detecting, radioactive material.
  Preliminary results from actual field tests of the ASP systems show a 
reduction in nuisance alarms by a factor of 20. This means that ports 
such as the Port of Long Beach in California could reduce the number of 
radiological alarms that require secondary inspection from 500 per day 
to 20 per day--resulting in an enormous savings in time and resources 
for Customs officials.
  Although technical progress has been made, the ASP system has not yet 
been deployed. There have been a series of delays with the ASP program 
due to miscommunication or misunderstanding between the government 
agencies involved, the stakeholders, and additional certification 
requirements established by the Congress.
  Therefore, this bill addresses system capability, which appears to be 
the largest source of miscommunication between the agency preparing the 
ASP--the Domestic Nuclear Detection Office--and the agency responsible 
for using the ASP in the field--Customs and Border Protection.
  Specifically this legislation directs the Director of the Domestic 
Nuclear Detection Office and the Commissioner of Customs and Border 
Protection to enter into a memorandum of understanding regarding the 
minimum standards of operational functionality in order to deploy ASP 
systems. This is not in any way an attempt to rush development of a 
system, but merely a requirement to spell out in plain English what 
type of system is required by those who will be operating that system 
in the field.
  This legislation also clarifies a provision in title IV of division E 
of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2008, Public Law 110-161, which 
requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to submit a report to 
Congress certifying that ``a significant increase in operational 
effectiveness will be achieved'' with the ASP system before ``funds 
appropriated under this heading shall be obligated for full-scale 
procurement of Advanced Spectroscopic Portal Monitors'' and requires 
that ``the Secretary shall submit separate and distinct certifications 
prior to the procurement of Advanced Spectroscopic Portal Monitors for 
primary and secondary deployment that address the unique requirements 
for operational effectiveness of each type of deployment.''
  H.R. 5531 requires the Secretary to develop a quantitative definition 
of ``significant increase in operational effectiveness'' and develop 
appropriate metrics for measuring this effectiveness.
  In addition to authorizing the ASP program, this bill also authorizes 
the Securing the Cities Initiative, which is a successful program that 
enhances security in the New York City metropolitan region. Funding for 
the Securing the Cities Initiative is used to deploy next generation 
radiation detection technology to detect the illicit transportation of 
nuclear and radiological material in urban areas. The Securing the 
Cities Initiative has fostered unprecedented collaboration and 
coordination among its Federal, state, and local partners and has 
enhanced the security of the New York Metropolitan region. H.R. 5531 
authorizes $40 million for this vital program, which is the same amount 
appropriated in Fiscal Year 2008, to ensure its continuation in Fiscal 
Year 2009.
  The full Committee on Homeland Security approved H.R. 5531 by 
unanimous voice vote on June 26, 2008. I urge all Members to join me in 
supporting passage of this bill.
  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of 
my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Mississippi (Mr. Thompson) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 5531, as amended.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a 
quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not 
present.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.
  The point of no quorum is considered withdrawn.

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