Date: 2015-06-23
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. as a senior member of the Homeland Security Committee. I rise in strong support of H.R. 2390 "Homeland Security Universitybased Centers Review Act." I support this bipartisan legislation which requires an annual report be sent to Congress to assess the universitybased centers for homeland security program and provide recommendations for appropriate improvements. Mr. Speaker. the research that our designated institutions conduct is imperative to the current progress and future success of protecting our nations greatest asset. the American people. I join my colleagues in working to safeguard our investment by requiting annual reports that give detailed reviews of how our funding is being spent and more effective ways we can use the information yielded from these studies in a real world applicable way. This bill requires a review of the Department of Homeland Securitys (DHS) efforts to identify key areas of study needed to support the homeland security mission. and criteria that the Department utilized to determine those key areas for which the Department should maintain. establish. or eliminate universitybased centers. DHSs mission is to ensure a homeland that is safe. secure. and resilient against terrorism and other hazards. H.R. 2390 supports that mission by overseeing the funding of a universitybased research program that invests in the homeland security. science and technology of the DHS. It is imperative that we have oversight of how the funds are being used to meet DHSs university program criteria and this bill requires a review of how universitybased research is identified. prioritized. and funded. The Centers of Excellence (COE) network is an extended consortium of hundreds of universities conducting groundbreaking research to address homeland security challenges. Sponsored by the Office of University Programs. the COEs work closely with the homeland security community to develop customerdriven. innovative tools and technologies to solve realworld challenges. The Institute for Infectious Animal Diseases (IIAD) and Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station. have used this program to develop a mobile Certificate of Veterinary Inspection (CVI) application to support veterinary practitioners submitting animal health certificate records from the field. This realtime information sharing is an alternative to email or webbased systems. and helps improve communication between veterinarians and state animal health offices by supporting certificate submission from the field. The Homeland Security Universitybased Centers Review Act requires a review of the Department of Homeland Securitys criteria and metrics to measure demonstrable progress achieved by universitybased centers in fulfilling Department taskings. and mechanisms for delivering and disseminating the research results of designated universitybased centers within the Department and to other Federal. State. and local agencies. Mr. Speaker. because these funds are used to enrich our future generations of leaders and it is important that the different universitybased centers reach out and collaborate among a diverse array of academic institutions. particularly with historically Black colleges and universities (HBCU) and minority serving institutions. I applaud Rankin Member THOMPSON for including specific language that reaches out to diverse universities. specifically often overshadowed historically Black colleges and universities. HBCU such as Texas Southern University. in my Congressional district. is preparing technically savvy Homeland Security professionals for Maritime Transportation Security. All educational institutions who meet criteria should be eligible to participate in the Department of Homeland Securitys University Program. This bill supports the programs mission needs of building a stable community of homeland security researchers and educators at U.S. colleges and universities. Fostering a homeland security culture within the academic community through research and educational programs is a great partnership between government and our education institutions. Strengthening U.S. scientific leadership in homeland security research and education giving our students a competitive ranking on a global level. Generating and disseminating knowledge and technical advances to advance the homeland security mission helps to recruit future partners and participants. Integrating homeland security activities across agencies engaged in relevant academic research will help partners work in concert to develop critical technologies and analyses to secure the nations security interest. The Department of Homeland Securitys Science and Technology Centers of Excellence develop multidisciplinary. customerdriven. homeland security science and technology solutions and help train the next generation of homeland security experts. The Homeland Security Universitybased Centers Review Act regulates the institutions designated with this distinguished honor of training the next generation of leaders in the scientific and technological fields. Raising the visibility and status of the government sponsored programs creates an environment where each institution has to take responsibility for the use of their funds and prove those uses furthered the mission needs of DHS. Mr. Speaker. I am proud to support this bipartisan bill and strongly urge all of my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 2390.