Tsa Opportunities to Pursue Expanded Networks for Business Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. McCAUL. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 6459) to amend the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to require a strategy to diversify the technology stakeholder marketplace regarding the acquisition by the Transportation Security Administration of security screening technologies, and for other purposes.

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Mr. McCAUL. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 6459, the TSA Opportunities to Pursue Expanded Networks for Business Act, also known as the TSA OPEN for Business Act, sponsored by the ranking member of the Committee on Homeland Security, Mr. Thompson.

This bipartisan legislation seeks to improve how TSA partners with the private sector to offer innovative technologies for passenger screening. In particular, this bill aims to bolster access for small businesses to TSA's acquisition process and better serve the public.

Specifically, this bill directs the TSA administrator to develop a strategy to diversify the stakeholder marketplace used to acquire advanced security technologies. This strategy must include plans to assist small businesses with navigating the agency's acquisitions and procurement processes, which are often overly bureaucratic.

Additionally, the bill will help establish public-private partnerships that will direct venture capital toward emerging, promising technologies.

Madam Speaker, our airline industry still remains the crown jewel of targets for international terrorists. The public deserves to have the best security in place throughout America's transportation and aviation sector, and it is incumbent upon the TSA to create a streamlined way of identifying and deploying advanced security technologies.

Since its creation, TSA has struggled to expand participation by small businesses and direct resources towards promising technologies. Ranking Member Thompson's legislation reduces bureaucratic hurdles, while promoting private sector innovation.

Madam Speaker, I want to thank the ranking member for introducing this excellent legislation, as well as the chairman of the Subcommittee on Transportation and Protective Security, Mr. Katko, for his leadership on this issue.

This legislation offers a bipartisan approach to improving opportunities for small businesses seeking to partner with TSA, and improves the security of our Nation's transportation systems.

Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.

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Mr. McCAUL. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, in closing, I thank Ranking Member Thompson for bringing this legislation.

When a lot of people look at TSA, they look at the lines and the screening that takes place. Sometimes I often think they don't get the respect that they deserve.

TSA does a lot more than screening at airports. It screens overseas; it has intelligence leads to stop terrorists from coming into the country; and, most importantly, it stops terrorists with the latest threat that we have that I can say publicly now: turning laptops into bombs and toxic gas. That is a threat that keeps me up at night with U.S.-bound passengers from airports like Istanbul, Cairo, and Riyadh into JFK Airport and other airports, but also domestic flights. It is important that we pass this bill that the ranking member introduced to make sure that TSA has the best technology available to stop that threat.

I am proud to say that we have worked in a bipartisan fashion to ensure that the moneys have been appropriated to buy these new technologies and new machines that outdated technology cannot see or screen but the updated technology can. We owe it to the American people to deploy this new technology as soon and quickly as possible, given the immediate threat to the United States and the airline sector.

Madam Speaker, I think this is an excellent bill. I fully support it, and I urge my colleagues to support it as well.

Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

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