Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 2009

Bill: 110-s-3181
Sponsor: Sen. Byrd, Robert C. [D-WV]
Introduced: 2008-06-23 in the Senate
Policy area: Economics and Public Finance
Subjects: Admission of nonimmigrants
Agriculture and Food
Air cargo
Air piracy
Airline passenger traffic
Airports
Alabama
Aliens
Animal diseases
Animals
Appropriations
Armed Forces and National Security
Armed forces reserves
Aviation safety
Border patrols
Bridges
Chief financial officers
Chief information officers
Citizenship
Claims
Coast guard
Competitive bidding
Congress
Congressional investigations
Crime and Law Enforcement
Criminal aliens
Customs administration
Department of Homeland Security
Deportation
Detention of persons
Disaster insurance
Disaster loans
Disaster relief
District of Columbia
Electronic government information
Emergency Management
Emergency communication systems
Emergency housing
Emergency medicine
Environmental Protection
Evacuation of civilians
Explosives
Families
Federal Emergency Management Agency
Federal aid to transportation
Federal employees
Federal law enforcement officers
Federal office buildings
Federal officials
Finance and Financial Sector
Fire fighters
Fire prevention
Flood control
Floods
Food relief
Foreign Trade and International Finance
Forest fires
Government Operations and Politics
Government liability
Government procurement
Government trust funds
Grants-in-aid
Harbors
Health
Housing and Community Development
Hurricanes
Immigrants
Immigration
Infrastructure
Inspectors general
Islands
Labor and Employment
Louisiana
Maps
Marine and coastal resources, fisheries
Medical research
Military pensions
Military training
Mississippi
New Mexico
New York State
Nuclear terrorism
Oil pollution
Pennsylvania
Personnel management
Police training
Protection of officials
Radiation
Radiation victims
Relocation
Rescission of appropriated funds
Research and development
Research centers
Road construction
Science, Technology, Communications
Secret service
Security measures
Strategic planning
Survivors' benefits
Transportation and Public Works
Transportation safety
Trucking
Vice Presidents
Visas
Water Resources Development
West Virginia

Summary:
action_date: 2008-06-23
text: 
Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 2009 - Makes appropriations for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for FY2009 for: (1) the Offices of the Secretary, the Under Secretary for Management, the Chief Financial Officer, the Chief Information Officer, the Federal Coordinator for Gulf Coast Rebuilding, and the Inspector General; (2) Customs and Border Protection (CBP), including for customs and border protection fencing, infrastructure, and technology; (3) Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), including for detention and removal operations (including to improve efforts to identify and remove aliens convicted of a crime and sentenced to imprisonment who are judged deportable) and the Federal Protective Service; (4) the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), including for screening operations and explosives detection systems and for Federal Air Marshals; (5) the Coast Guard; (6) the Secret Service; (7) the Office of the Under Secretary for National Protection and Programs Directorate, including for the U.S. Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology (U.S.-VISIT) project and the Office of Health Affairs; (8) the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), including for the U.S. Fire Administration; (9) Citizenship and Immigration Services (CIS); (10) the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center; (11) the Office of the Under Secretary for Science and Technology; and (12) the Domestic Nuclear Detection Office.

Prohibits the use of funds for: (1) implementation, on other than a test basis, of the Secure Flight program or other passenger prescreening program until prescribed conditions have been met; (2) amending the oath of allegiance required under the Immigration and Nationality Act; (3) deployment or operation of a DHS human resources management system; (4) preventing an individual from importing a personal-use quantity of a prescription drug from Canada; or (5) developing a national identification card.

Requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to obtain new technologies to screen air cargo on passenger aircraft. Requires incremental quarterly increases in the screening of such cargo. 

Requires the President to provide single payments to police and fire stations and criminal justice facilities that were damaged by Hurricanes Katrina or Rita in 2005.

action_date: 2008-06-23
text: 

(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary has been expanded because action occurred on the measure.)

Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 2009 - 
Title I: Department of Homeland Security Departmental Management and Operations - 
Makes appropriations for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for FY2009 for the Offices of the Secretary, the Under Secretary for Management, the Chief Financial Officer, the Chief Information Officer, the Federal Coordinator for Gulf Coast Rebuilding, and the Inspector General.

Title II: Security, Enforcement, and Investigations
 - Makes appropriations for FY2009 for: (1) U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), including for automated systems, customs and border protection fencing, infrastructure, and technology, and air and marine interdiction, operations, maintenance, and procurement, and construction; (2) U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), including for activities to promote awareness of the child pornography tipline, reimbursement of other agencies for costs associated with the repatriation of smuggled illegal aliens, detention and removal operations (including to improve efforts to identify and remove aliens convicted of a crime and sentenced to imprisonment who are judged deportable), the Federal Protective Service, and automated systems; (3) the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), including for aviation security (including screening operations and explosives detection systems), surface transportation security, transportation threat assessment and credentialing, transportation security support, and for Federal Air Marshals; (4) the Coast Guard, including for environmental compliance and restoration, reserve training, acquisition, construction, and improvements, alteration of bridges, research, development, test, and evaluation, and retired pay; and (5) the U.S. Secret Service, including for acquisition, construction, improvements, and related expenses.

Title III: Protection, Preparedness, Response, and Recovery
 - Makes appropriations for FY2009 for: (1) the Office of the Under Secretary for National Protection and Programs Directorate, including for infrastructure protection and information security programs and activities, the United States Visitors and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology Project (US-VISIT), and the Office of Health Affairs; and (2) the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), including for grants for state and local programs, firefighter assistance, and emergency management performance, the U.S. Fire Administration, disaster relief and the disaster assistance direct loan program account, the Flood Map Modernization Fund, the National Flood Insurance Fund, the National Flood Mitigation Fund, the National Pre-Disaster Mitigation Fund, and emergency food and shelter. Rescinds specified funds for Cerro Grande fire claims.

Title IV: Research and Development, Training, and Services
 - Makes appropriations for FY2009 for: (1) U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (CIS), including funding for the E-Verify program to assist U.S. employers with maintaining a legal workforce and to support implementation of the REAL ID Act to develop an information sharing and verification capability with states; (2) the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, including for acquisition, construction, improvements, and related expenses; (3) the Office of the Under Secretary for Science and Technology, including for research, development, acquisition, and operations; and (4) the Domestic Nuclear Detection Office, including for research, development, testing, evaluation, and operations and for systems acquisition and deployment. 

Title V: General Provisions
 - (Sec. 501) Sets forth limitations and prohibitions on the availability, use, reprogramming, or transfer of funds for specified programs and activities under this Act. 

(Sec. 507) Designates the Federal Law Enforcement Training Accreditation Board to lead the federal law enforcement training accreditation process. Requires the Director of the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center to schedule basic or advanced law enforcement training at all four training facilities under the Center's control to ensure that these centers are operated at the highest capacity throughout the fiscal year. 

(Sec. 513) Prohibits: (1) the obligation of funds for implementation of the Secure Flight program or other follow on or successor passenger prescreening program, on other than a test basis, until the Secretary has certified and the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has reported that prescribed conditions have been met; and (2) during the testing phase, information gathered from passengers, foreign or domestic air carriers, or reservation systems from being used to screen aviation passengers, or delay or deny boarding to such passengers, except where passenger names are matched to a government watch list.

(Sec. 514) Prohibits the use of funds made available in this Act to amend the oath of allegiance required under the Immigration and Nationality Act.

(Sec. 515) Prohibits the use of funds appropriated by this Act to process or approve a competition under Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-76 for services provided as of June 1, 2004, by employees of CIS who are known as Immigration Information Officers, Contact Representatives, or Investigative Assistants. 

(Sec. 517) Directs the Secretary to research, develop, and procure new technologies to inspect and screen air cargo carried on passenger aircraft at the earliest date possible. Requires existing checked baggage explosive detection equipment and screeners to be used to screen air cargo carried on such aircraft to be used to the greatest extent practicable at each airport until the new technologies are available. Requires TSA to report to the Appropriations Committees on air cargo inspection statistics by airport and air carrier. Requires incremental quarterly increases in the screening of such cargo.

(Sec. 520) Makes any funds appropriated or transferred to TSA &quot;Aviation Security,&quot; &quot;Administration,&quot; and &quot;Transportation Security Support&quot; for FY2004-FY2007, which are recovered or deobligated, available only for procurement and installation of explosive detection systems for air cargo, baggage, and checkpoint screening systems, subject to notification. 

 

(Sec. 531) Prohibits the use of funds in this Act for deployment or operation of a DHS human resources management system.

(Sec. 532) Prohibits the use of funds in this Act in FY2009 to enforce provisions of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 regarding the prohibition on air passengers carrying butane lighters unless the Assistant Secretary (TSA) reverses the determination of July 19, 2007, that butane lighters are not a significant threat to civil aviation security.

(Sec. 539) Prohibits funds to be used to conduct, or implement the results of, a competition under OMB Circular A-76 for activities performed with respect to the Coast Guard National Vessel Documentation Center.

(Sec. 542) Prohibits the use of funds made available in this Act for CBP or any agency or office within DHS to prevent an individual from importing a prescription drug from Canada if: (1) such individual is not in the business of importing a prescription drug; and (2) such drug complies with specified provisions of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and is not a controlled substance or a biological product. Makes this section applicable only to individuals transporting on their person a personal-use quantity of the prescription drug, not to exceed a 90-day supply.

(Sec. 544) Prohibits the use of funds in this Act from being used for planning, testing, piloting, or developing a national identification card.

(Sec. 547) Authorizes the liquidation of the National Bio and Agro-defense Facility at Plum Island, New York. Allows the proceeds of the sale to be used to offset the costs of the Facility and certain expenses related to the sale.

(Sec. 548) Provides for Secret Service protection for the Vice President and spouse, after completion of the Vice President's term of office upon a finding of significant danger.

(Sec. 549) Directs the President to provide single payments for eligible costs under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to police and fire stations and criminal justice facilities that were damaged by Hurricanes Katrina or Rita in 2005. Prohibits the President from reducing the amount of assistance provided to a local government under that Act more than once for each such type of facility for which that local government is receiving assistance. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2008-06-23
text: Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 830.
action_date: 2008-06-23
text: Committee on Appropriations. Original measure reported to Senate by Senator Byrd. With written report No. 110-396.
action_date: 2008-06-23
text: Committee on Appropriations. Original measure reported to Senate by Senator Byrd. With written report No. 110-396.
action_date: 2008-06-23
text: Introduced in Senate
action_date: 2008-06-19
text: Committee on Appropriations. Ordered to be reported without amendment favorably.
action_date: 2008-06-18
text: Committee on Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security. Approved for full committee consideration without amendment favorably.