[House Report 115-182]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


115th Congress    }                                     {       Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 1st Session      }                                     {      115-182

======================================================================



 
REPORTING EFFICIENTLY TO PROPER OFFICIALS IN RESPONSE TO TERRORISM ACT 
                                OF 2017

                                _______
                                

 June 15, 2017.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the 
              State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

  Mr. McCaul, from the Committee on Homeland Security, submitted the 
                               following

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 625]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Homeland Security, to whom was referred 
the bill (H.R. 625) to provide for joint reports by relevant 
Federal agencies to Congress regarding incidents of terrorism, 
and for other purposes, having considered the same, report 
favorably thereon with an amendment and recommend that the bill 
as amended do pass.

                                CONTENTS

                                                                   Page
Purpose and Summary..............................................     2
Background and Need for Legislation..............................     2
Hearings.........................................................     3
Committee Consideration..........................................     3
Committee Votes..................................................     3
Committee Oversight Findings.....................................     3
New Budget Authority, Entitlement Authority, and Tax Expenditures     3
Congressional Budget Office Estimate.............................     3
Statement of General Performance Goals and Objectives............     4
Duplicative Federal Programs.....................................     4
Congressional Earmarks, Limited Tax Benefits, and Limited Tariff 
  Benefits.......................................................     5
Federal Mandates Statement.......................................     5
Preemption Clarification.........................................     5
Disclosure of Directed Rule Makings..............................     5
Advisory Committee Statement.....................................     5
Applicability to Legislative Branch..............................     5
Section-by-Section Analysis of the Legislation...................     5
Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported............     6

    The amendment is as follows:
    Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the 
following:

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

  This Act may be cited as the ``Reporting Efficiently to Proper 
Officials in Response to Terrorism Act of 2017'' or the ``REPORT Act''.

SEC. 2. DUTY TO REPORT.

  (a) Duty Imposed.--Whenever an act of terrorism occurs in the United 
States, it shall be the duty of the Secretary of Homeland Security, in 
coordination with the Attorney General, the Director of the Federal 
Bureau of Investigation, and, as appropriate, the head of the National 
Counterterrorism Center, to submit, within one year of the completion 
of the investigation concerning such act by the primary Government 
agency conducting such investigation, an unclassified report (which may 
be accompanied by a classified annex) to Congress concerning such act.
  (b) Content of Reports.--A report under this section shall--
          (1) include a statement of the facts of the act of terrorism 
        referred to in subsection (a), as known at the time of the 
        report;
          (2) identity any gaps in national security that could be 
        addressed to prevent future acts of terrorism; and
          (3) any recommendations for additional measures that could be 
        taken to improve homeland security, including potential changes 
        in law enforcement practices or changes in law, consistent with 
        the Constitution, with particular attention to changes that 
        could help prevent future acts of terrorism.
  (c) Exception.--The duty established under subsection (a) shall not 
apply in instances in which the Secretary of Homeland Security, the 
Attorney General, the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, 
or the head of the National Counterterrorism Center determines that the 
information required to be reported could jeopardize an ongoing 
investigation or prosecution. In such instances, the Secretary shall 
notify Congress of such prior to the first anniversary of the 
completion of the investigation described in such subsection.
  (d) Definition.--In this section, the term ``act of terrorism'' has 
the meaning given such term in section 3077 of title 18, United States 
Code.

                          PURPOSE AND SUMMARY

    The purpose of H.R. 625 is to require Secretary of Homeland 
Security, in coordination with the Attorney General, the 
Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the head 
of the National Counter Terrorism Center (NCTC) to submit 
reports to Congress upon completion of an investigation into an 
incident of terrorism.

                  BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

    The threat of terror attacks in the United States remains 
high. According to Director of National Intelligence Daniel 
Coats, ``US-based homegrown violent extremists (HVEs) will 
remain the most frequent and unpredictable Sunni violent 
extremist threat to the US homeland. . . . The threat of HVE 
attacks will persist, and some attacks will probably occur with 
little or no warning.''\1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\Daniel Coats, Director of National Intelligence, Congressional 
Testimony before the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, 
``Worldwide Threat Assessment of the US Intelligence Community,'' May 
11, 2017.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    According to Committee on Homeland Security assessments, 
the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) has carried out or 
attempted nearly 200 attacks against the U.S. and Western 
allies.
    As incidents of ``lone wolf'' or small scale terrorists 
attacks seem to be increasing, Congress needs to keep apprised 
of the investigations and continue to explore ways to prevent 
such attacks. The post-investigation report required by this 
bill will provide Congress insight into the ways terrorists 
exploit our systems and generate legislative solutions to try 
to prevent similar attacks in the future.
    The Committee acknowledges that officials from the 
Department of Homeland Security, Federal Bureau of 
Investigation, and Office of the Director of National 
Intelligence provide regular briefings to Congress on terror 
threats. The reports required in this legislation will provide 
additional information, including important after-action 
analysis and lessons learned.
    This bill will improve Congress' ability to conduct 
oversight and ensure effective and efficient counterterrorism 
programs and policies by requiring the production of a joint 
report detailing the facts of the case--and by providing DHS, 
the Department of Justice, the Federal Bureau of Investigation 
and the National Counter Terrorism Center the opportunity to 
propose improvements that address any known weaknesses in U.S. 
homeland security.

                                HEARINGS

    No hearings were held on H.R. 625 in the 115th Congress.

                        COMMITTEE CONSIDERATION

    The Committee met on May 3, 2017, to consider H.R. 625, and 
ordered the measure to be reported to the House with a 
favorable recommendation, as amended, by voice vote. The 
Committee took the following actions:
    The Committee agreed to H.R. 625, as amended, by voice 
vote.
    The following amendments were offered:
    An Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute offered by Miss 
Rice of New York (#1); was AGREED TO by voice vote.

                            COMMITTEE VOTES

    Clause 3(b) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives requires the Committee to list the recorded 
votes on the motion to report legislation and amendments 
thereto.
    No recorded votes were requested during consideration of 
H.R. 625.

                      COMMITTEE OVERSIGHT FINDINGS

    Pursuant to clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives, the Committee has held oversight 
hearings and made findings that are reflected in this report.

   NEW BUDGET AUTHORITY, ENTITLEMENT AUTHORITY, AND TAX EXPENDITURES

    In compliance with clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules 
of the House of Representatives, the Committee finds that H.R. 
625, the Reporting Efficiently to Proper Officials in Response 
to Terrorism Act of 2017, would result in no new or increased 
budget authority, entitlement authority, or tax expenditures or 
revenues.

                  CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE ESTIMATE

    The Committee adopts as its own the cost estimate prepared 
by the Director of the Congressional Budget Office pursuant to 
section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974.

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                      Washington, DC, May 30, 2017.
Hon. Michael McCaul,
Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 625, the Reporting 
Efficiently to Proper Officials in Response to Terrorism Act of 
2017.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Mark 
Grabowicz.
            Sincerely,
                                                        Keith Hall.
    Enclosure.

H.R. 625--Reporting Efficiently to Proper Officials in Response to 
        Terrorism Act of 2017

    H.R. 625 would require the Department of Homeland Security 
(DHS) to report to the Congress when an act of terrorism occurs 
in the United States. The report would identify weaknesses in 
national security and recommend additional measures to improve 
homeland security and prevent terrorist acts. In recent years 
there have been few incidents of domestic terrorism, so CBO 
expects that implementing H.R. 625 would require a small number 
of reports each year, on average. Based on the cost of similar 
activities, CBO estimates that providing the reports would cost 
less than $500,000 annually; such spending would be subject to 
the availability of appropriated funds.
    Enacting the legislation would not affect direct spending 
or revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply. 
CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 625 would not increase net 
direct spending or on-budget deficits in any of the four 
consecutive 10-year periods beginning in 2028.
    H.R. 625 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and 
would not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal 
governments.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Mark Grabowicz. 
The estimate was approved by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy 
Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.

         STATEMENT OF GENERAL PERFORMANCE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

    Pursuant to clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives, H.R. 625 contains the following 
general performance goals and objectives, including outcome 
related goals and objectives authorized.

                      DUPLICATIVE FEDERAL PROGRAMS

    Pursuant to clause 3(c) of rule XIII, the Committee finds 
that H.R. 625 does not contain any provision that establishes 
or reauthorizes a program known to be duplicative of another 
Federal program.

   CONGRESSIONAL EARMARKS, LIMITED TAX BENEFITS, AND LIMITED TARIFF 
                                BENEFITS

    In compliance with rule XXI of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives, this bill, as reported, contains no 
congressional earmarks, limited tax benefits, or limited tariff 
benefits as defined in clause 9(e), 9(f), or 9(g) of the rule 
XXI.

                       FEDERAL MANDATES STATEMENT

    The Committee adopts as its own the estimate of Federal 
mandates prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget 
Office pursuant to section 423 of the Unfunded Mandates Reform 
Act.

                        PREEMPTION CLARIFICATION

    In compliance with section 423 of the Congressional Budget 
Act of 1974, requiring the report of any Committee on a bill or 
joint resolution to include a statement on the extent to which 
the bill or joint resolution is intended to preempt State, 
local, or Tribal law, the Committee finds that H.R. 625 does 
not preempt any State, local, or Tribal law.

                  DISCLOSURE OF DIRECTED RULE MAKINGS

    The Committee estimates that H.R. 625 would require no 
directed rule makings.

                      ADVISORY COMMITTEE STATEMENT

    No advisory committees within the meaning of section 5(b) 
of the Federal Advisory Committee Act were created by this 
legislation.

                  APPLICABILITY TO LEGISLATIVE BRANCH

    The Committee finds that the legislation does not relate to 
the terms and conditions of employment or access to public 
services or accommodations within the meaning of section 
102(b)(3) of the Congressional Accountability Act.

             SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS OF THE LEGISLATION

Section 1. Short title

    This section provides that this bill may be cited as the 
``Reporting Efficiently to Proper Officials in Response to 
Terrorism Act of 2017'' or the ``REPORT Act''.

Sec. 2. Duty to report

    This section requires the Secretary of Homeland Security, 
in coordination with other appropriate Federal officials to 
submit, an unclassified report (which may be accompanied by a 
classified annex) to Congress concerning that incident within 
one year of completion of the investigation.
    The report is required to (1) Include a Statement of the 
facts of the incident; (2) Identify gaps in national security 
that could be addressed to prevent future attacks; and (3) 
Provide any recommendations for additional measures that could 
be taken to improve homeland security including potential 
changes in law enforcement practices or changes in law, 
consistent with the Constitution, that could help prevent 
future attacks.
    This section includes an exception to the requirement to 
provide a report if such report could jeopardize an ongoing 
investigation or prosecution. This section also defines the 
term ``incident of terrorism'' as an event declared by the 
Federal Bureau of Investigation to be an act of terrorism.

         CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW MADE BY THE BILL, AS REPORTED

    As reported, H.R. 625 makes no changes to existing law.

                                  [all]