U.S. Response:  House Panel Approves Homeland Security Bill

The House Select Committee on Homeland Security voted 5-4 Friday to approve legislation to create a homeland security department (see GSN, July 18).  The full House of Representatives is expected to consider the legislation as early as Wednesday.

The bill generally adheres to the Bush administration’s proposal for the department, according to the Washington Post.  The legislation would transfer 22 U.S. agencies — including the Coast Guard, Customs Service, Federal Emergency Management Agency and the enforcement arm of the Immigration and Naturalization Service — to the new department (see GSN, July 12).

One area of contention for the committee was a Dec. 31 deadline for airports to inspect every passenger’s baggage for explosives, according to the Post.  While airport executives have said they could not meet the deadline for installing the needed technology, Democrats on the committee were against the extension.

“When the next bombs explode on an airplane, I don’t want to look those families in the eye and say we were waiting for some new kind of technology,” said New Jersey Democrat Robert Mendez (Miller/Eilperin, Washington Post, July 20).

Many members of the House, including Democrats on the committee who voted against the bill, said they expected it to receive bipartisan support, the Post reported.

“As long as there’s a fair process, I think the bill will pass, and probably with a very large vote,” said House Democratic Caucus Chairman Martin Frost (D-Texas).

Representative Tim Roemer (D-Ind.), who has criticized the Bush administration’s plan for the department, said there is probably little that would hinder the bill’s speedy approval in the full House (see GSN, July 15).

“Some days I feel the creation of this Homeland Security Department is like a boulder rushing down the mountain, accumulating more moss and rocks and pebbles, and nobody wants to stand in front of it to change or stop it,” he said (Juliet Eilperin, Washington Post, July 21).

Senate

The Senate Governmental Affairs Committee is expected to finish drafting the Senate version of homeland security department legislation by Wednesday, the Post reported.  Committee Chairman Joseph Lieberman (D-Conn.) has released recommendations that generally follow the White House proposal.  Lieberman, however, wants to give the proposed department more access to intelligence information (Miller/Eilperin, Washington Post).

Senate Democrats have indicated they plan to challenge the White House only on small details of the proposed homeland security department and not the bulk of the plan, the Post reported.

“It’s hard to find a member of Congress who’s against creating a department of homeland security,” Lieberman said.  “I haven’t found one.”

Some senators, however, have said that Congress is moving too fast in attempting to complete work on the proposed department by the one-year anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, according to the Post.  Congress might be giving too much power to the executive branch, said Senator Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.).

“We’re scared to death and here we are, rushing a massive reorganization into effect,” Byrd said.  “In the meantime, who’s watching the store?” (Eilperin, Washington Post).

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