[House Report 114-495]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
114th Congress } { Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
2d Session } { 114-495
======================================================================
NO FLY FOR FOREIGN FIGHTERS ACT
_______
April 15, 2016.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the
State of the Union and ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Goodlatte, from the Committee on the Judiciary, submitted the
following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 4240]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on the Judiciary, to whom was referred the
bill (H.R. 4240) to require an independent review of the
operation and administration of the Terrorist Screening
Database (TSDB) maintained by the Federal Bureau of
Investigation and subsets of the TSDB, and for other purposes,
having considered the same, reports favorably thereon with an
amendment and recommends that the bill as amended do pass.
CONTENTS
Page
The Amendment.................................................... 1
Purpose and Summary.............................................. 2
Background and Need for the Legislation.......................... 2
Hearings......................................................... 3
Committee Consideration.......................................... 3
Committee Votes.................................................. 3
Committee Oversight Findings..................................... 3
New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures........................ 4
Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate........................ 4
Duplication of Federal Programs.................................. 5
Disclosure of Directed Rule Makings.............................. 5
Performance Goals and Objectives................................. 5
Advisory on Earmarks............................................. 5
Section-by-Section Analysis...................................... 5
The Amendment
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 ``No Fly for Foreign Fighters Act''.
SEC. 2. GAO STUDY ON THE TERRORIST SCREENING DATABASE.
(a) In General.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of
this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States shall conduct a
study and submit, to the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of
Representatives and the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate, a
report on--
(1) whether past weaknesses in the operation and
administration of the Terrorist Screening Database (hereinafter
referred to as the ``TSDB'') and subsets of the TSDB have been
addressed; and
(2) the extent to which existing vulnerabilities to the
United States may be addressed or mitigated through additional
changes to the TSDB and subsets of the TSDB, thereby enhancing
America's security and defenses.
(b) Required Information.--The study and report under subsection (a)
shall include information on the extent to which--
(1) information is being integrated into the TSDB from all
relevant sources across the government in a timely manner;
(2) agencies are able to comply with increased demands for
information to improve the TSDB;
(3) the TSDB, and relevant subsets of the TSDB, are
accessible to agencies, authorities, and other entities, as
appropriate; and
(4) the TSDB is capable of enabling users to identify known
or suspected terrorists in the most timely and comprehensive
manner possible.
Purpose and Summary
This legislation requires the U.S. Government
Accountability Office to conduct an independent review of the
operation and administration of the Terrorist Screening
Database and its subsets.
Background and Need for the Legislation
Pursuant to Homeland Security Presidential Directive 6, the
Terrorist Screening Center (TSC) was established to create and
maintain the U.S. government's consolidated watchlist--the
Terrorist Screening Database (TSDB)--and to provide for the use
of watchlist records during security-related and other
screening processes.\1\ The watchlisting and screening
processes are intended to support the U.S. government's efforts
to combat terrorism by consolidating the terrorist watchlist
and providing screening and law enforcement agencies with
information to help them respond appropriately during
encounters with known or suspected terrorists, among other
things.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\Homeland Security Presidential Directive/HSPD-6, Integration and
Use of Screening Information (Sept. 16, 2003).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) previously
conducted a study of the terrorist watchlist following the
December 25, 2009, attempted bombing of Northwest flight 253.
That study exposed certain weaknesses in how the Federal
Government nominated individuals to the terrorist watchlist and
gaps in how agencies used the list to screen individuals. The
GAO specifically recommended in its May 2012 unclassified
report that the Assistant to the President for Homeland
Security and Counterterrorism establish mechanisms or use
existing interagency bodies to routinely assess:
Lhow the watchlisting guidance has impacted
the watchlisting community--including its capacity to
submit and process nominations in accordance with
provisions in the guidance--and whether any adjustments
to agency programs or the guidance are needed, and
Lwhether use of the watchlist during agency
screening processes is achieving intended results,
including whether the overall outcomes and impacts of
screening on agency resources and the traveling public
are acceptable and manageable or if adjustments to
agency programs or the watchlisting guidance are
needed.
In July 2010, the Federal Government finalized guidance to
address these identified weaknesses in the watchlist
nominations process and to clarify how agencies are to nominate
individuals to the watchlist. In 2011, an interagency policy
committee began an initiative to assess the initial impacts the
changes in watchlisting guidance had on nominating agencies. At
the time the GAO report was published in 2012, agencies were
also pursuing staffing, technology, and other solutions to
address challenges in processing the volumes of information.
The GAO stated in its 2012 watchlisting report that
routine, government-wide assessments of the outcomes and
impacts of agencies' watchlist screening or vetting programs
could help ensure that these programs are achieving their
intended results or identify if revisions are needed. Such
assessments could also help identify broader issues that
require attention, determine if impacts on agency resources and
the traveling public are acceptable, and communicate to key
stakeholders how the nation's investment in the watchlist
screening or vetting processes is enhancing security of the
nation's borders, commercial aviation, and other security-
related activities.
Hearings
The Committee on the Judiciary held no hearings on H.R.
4240.
Committee Consideration
On January 12, 2016, the Committee met in open session and
ordered the bill H.R. 4240 favorably reported, with an
amendment, by voice vote, a quorum being present.
Committee Votes
In compliance with clause 3(b) of rule XIII of the Rules of
the House of Representatives, the Committee advises that there
were no recorded votes during the Committee's consideration of
H.R. 4240.
Committee Oversight Findings
In compliance with clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules
of the House of Representatives, the Committee advises that the
findings and recommendations of the Committee, based on
oversight activities under clause 2(b)(1) of rule X of the
Rules of the House of Representatives, are incorporated in the
descriptive portions of this report.
New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures
Clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of
Representatives is inapplicable because this legislation does
not provide new budgetary authority or increased tax
expenditures.
Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate
In compliance with clause 3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules
of the House of Representatives, the Committee sets forth, with
respect to the bill, H.R. 4240, the following estimate and
comparison prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget
Office under section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of
1974:
U.S. Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, January 29, 2016.
Hon. Bob Goodlatte, Chairman,
Committee on the Judiciary,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 4240, the ``No Fly
for Foreign Fighters Act.''If you wish further details on this
estimate, we will be pleased to provide them. The CBO staff
contact is Matthew Pickford, who can be reached at 226-2860.
Sincerely,
Keith Hall,
Director.
Enclosure
cc:
Honorable John Conyers, Jr.
Ranking Member
H.R. 4240--No Fly for Foreign Fighters Act.
As ordered reported by the House Committee on the Judiciary
on January 12, 2015.
H.R. 4240 would direct the Government Accountability Office
to prepare a study within 1 year of enactment on the operation
and administration of the Terrorist Screening Database
(commonly referred to as the Terrorist Watchlist) maintained by
the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The database consolidates
all terrorist information collected by the Federal Government
for all terrorist screening systems. The report to the Congress
would weigh whether weaknesses and vulnerabilities that have
been identified in the database have been corrected. Based on
the cost of similar studies, CBO estimates the report would
cost less than $500,000 over the 2016-2017 period; such
spending would be subject to the availability of appropriated
funds.
Because enacting the bill would not affect direct spending
or revenues, pay-as-you go procedures do not apply. CBO
estimates that enacting H.R. 4240 would not increase direct
spending or on-budget deficits in any of the four consecutive
10-year periods beginning in 2026.
H.R. 4240 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 Matthew
Pickford. The estimate was approved by H. Samuel Papenfuss,
Deputy Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.
Duplication of Federal Programs
No provision of H.R. 4240 establishes or reauthorizes a
program of the Federal Government known to be duplicative of
another Federal program, a program that was included in any
report from the Government Accountability Office to Congress
pursuant to section 21 of Public Law 111-139, or a program
related to a program identified in the most recent Catalog of
Federal Domestic Assistance.
Disclosure of Directed Rule Makings
The Committee estimates that H.R. 4240 specifically directs
to be completed no specific rule makings within the meaning of
5 U.S.C. 551.
Performance Goals and Objectives
The Committee states that pursuant to clause 3(c)(4) of
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, H.R.
4240, requires the U.S. Government Accountability Office to
conduct an independent review of the operation and
administration of the Terrorist Screening Database and its
subsets.
Advisory on Earmarks
In accordance with clause 9 of rule XXI of the Rules of the
House of Representatives, H.R. 4240 does not contain any
congressional earmarks, limited tax benefits, or limited tariff
benefits as defined in clause 9(e), 9(f), or 9(g) of Rule XXI.
Section-by-Section Analysis
The following discussion describes the bill as reported by
the Committee.
Sec. 1. Short title. Section 1 sets forth the short title
of the bill as the ``No Fly for Foreign Fighters Act.''
Sec. 2. GAO Study on the Terrorist Screening Database.
Section 2 provides that the GAO conduct a study and submit a
report on whether past weaknesses in the operation and
administration of the TSDB and subsets of the TSDB have been
addressed, and the extent to which vulnerabilities to the
United States may be addressed or mitigated through additional
changes to the TSDB.
[all]