GRASSLEY MEASURE WOULD ENSURE TOTAL NIPC TRANSFER TO DHS
Key network security personnel and equipment must be retained in National Infrastructure Protection Center (NIPC) if and when unit is transferred from FBI to proposed Dept. of Homeland Security (DHS), Sen. Grassley (R-Ia.) said Mon. Senate version of DHS bill (HR-5005), which continued to be debated on Senate floor Mon. afternoon, would meld NIPC and several other federal entities into cabinet-level department, including separate divisions for critical infrastructure protection and intelligence analysis. Grassley introduced amendment late last week that would ensure FBI didn’t interfere with transition of its cybersecurity experts and related technology to DHS. If FBI isn’t specifically instructed to bring such assets to DHS, “the transfer of important institutional knowledge” to department could be thwarted, he said.
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FBI reform legislation (S-1974) would be attached to homeland security bill under separate Grassley amendment. Measure by Grassley and Senate Judiciary Committee Chmn. Leahy (D-Vt.) “would improve accountability withing the Bureau” by expanding jurisdiction of Dept. of Justice inspector general to include internal probes within FBI, Grassley said. It also would improve protections for FBI whistleblowers and require agency to provide additional reports to Congress on its investigation statistics. Senate hasn’t voted on Grassley amendments.
Senate late last week approved by voice vote amendment to HR-5005 by Sen. Wellstone (D-Minn.) that would prevent DHS from awarding contracts to companies that relocated outside U.S. to avoid paying taxes. Supporters of amendment said measure was necessary to rein in corporate abuses and to prevent companies from gaining competitive advantage over others that paid their fair share of taxes. Sen. Dodd (D- Conn.) said: “Corporations have a right to determine where they should incorporate and what is best for their business, just like we have a right to determine how hard-earned U.S. tax dollars should be spent.”
Sen. Gramm (R-Tex.) said amendment would “create an economic war” that instead would deter corporations from setting up shop in U.S., since govt. practically would force such companies to stay. Gramm said he didn’t understand why Congress was passing laws “that sound as if they are right out of Nazi Germany.” He said Wellstone and his supporters were implementing bad policy for no other reason than “to get a big applause” from constituents: “This amendment is not going to become law. I intend to work very hard to see that it doesn’t.”
Senate continued to debate HR-5005 past our Mon. deadline, focusing on amendment by Sens. Thompson (R-Tenn.) and Warner (R-Va.) that would remove language from bill that would create, separate from position of DHS dir., Senate- confirmed homeland security dir. within White House. Thompson said: “The White House already has an Office of Homeland Security… The President must have his own advisers who work for him.”