DHS Reform and Improvement Act
Latest action. Referred to the subcommitteeA smaller panel inside a standing committee with jurisdiction over a slice of its subject matter. Most hearings and the first markup usually happen here.Read the full definition (opens a new tab) on Biotechnology, Horticulture, and Research.
DHS Reform and Improvement Act
This bill amends the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to revise or expand protections against terrorism in Department of Homeland Security (DHS) requirements for visas, border and maritime security, aviation, surface transportation, food and agriculture, emergency communications, medical preparedness, agency management, flood insurance, cybersecurity, chemical and biological defense, immigration and customs, and the prevention of trafficking in cultural property.
The bill establishes:
an Office of Biometric Identity Management to share biometric data with agencies, foreign governments, and private entities;
a National Computer Forensics Institute to be operated by the U.S. Secret Service;
a Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, and Explosives Office;
an Office of Policy to coordinate strategic planning and relationships with outside stakeholders;
an Acquisition Review Board; and
DHS positions of chief financial officer, chief procurement officer, chief acquisition officer, and chief security officer.
DHS must: (1) disseminate information to prevent drone attacks; (2) establish task forces and cooperate with foreign governments on border enforcement and security at airports and ports; (3) authorize the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to provide employees and services to ports in exchange for a fee; and (4) defend food, agriculture, and veterinary systems from terrorism and other high-consequence events.
Visa security requirements are provided for: (1) the Department of State to assign employees to visa-issuing diplomatic and consular posts to screen applications against criminal, national security, and terrorism databases; (2) a visa security advisory opinion unit within the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE); and (3) the CBP to screen electronic passports though an embedded chip and utilize facial recognition technology.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) must enter into memoranda of understanding with other DHS offices to award grants to:
public transportation agencies to improve security under the Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007;
high-risk urban areas and state, local, and tribal governments to protect against terrorism under the Urban Area Security Initiative (UASI) and the State Homeland Security Grant Program (SHSGP); and
The summary continues for 24 more paragraphs. Read it in full on Congress.gov
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on November 18, 2016. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on December 16, 2016: Referred to the Subcommittee on Biotechnology, Horticulture, and Research.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 114th Congress (2015-16), 329 of the 10,233 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 3.2 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
Michael McCaul (R-TX) introduced it on November 18, 2016. No cosponsors are recorded.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on November 18, 2016, 3583 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 3555 days ago, on December 16, 2016.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 114th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2017 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers