Homeland Security Committee Passes Bipartisan Portman Bill to Shine Light on Security Risks Posed by Foreign Ownership of Federally-Leased Properties

Press Release

Today, the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee passed bipartisan legislation led by U.S. Senators Rob Portman (R-OH) and Gary Peters (D-MI) to determine if office space leased by the federal government is owned by federal entities. The Secure Federal Leases from Espionage And Suspicious Entanglements Act (Secure Federal LEASEs Act) will require the identification of all individuals who own or benefit from partial ownership of a property that will be leased by the federal government for high-security use. The bill, which will encourage federal agencies to better evaluate and anticipate the security risks of leasing foreign-owned property, was drafted in response to a 2017 Government Accountability Office (GAO) report which indicated that federal agencies were vulnerable to espionage and other cyber intrusions because foreign actors could gain unauthorized access to spaces used for classified operations or to store sensitive data. The legislation now awaits action on the Senate floor.

"I am glad the committee has passed the Secure Federal LEASEs Act, which will address a serious national security risk," said Senator Portman. "Our federal agencies need to know who owns the properties that house their personnel and sensitive information so they can take appropriate steps to mitigate the risk of espionage and unauthorized cyber and physical access to buildings. Our bill will ensure that the federal government has access to leased properties' ownership information so we can better protect our people and information. I urge all of my colleagues to support this legislation when it comes to the Senate floor."

NOTE: In 2017, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) discovered that several federal agencies were leasing high-security office space in foreign-owned properties, including six Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) and three Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) field offices, which store law enforcement evidence and other sensitive data. Agencies are often unaware of foreign ownership of their office spaces. While many of the foreign owners identified in the GAO report were companies based in allied states such as Canada, Norway, Japan or South Korea, other properties were owned and managed by entities based in more adversarial nations. The report noted that Chinese-owned properties, in particular, presented security challenges because of the country's proclivity for cyberespionage and the close ties between private sector companies and the Chinese government. The GAO report highlighted the dangers posed by these properties, indicating that "leasing space in foreign-owned buildings could present security risks such as espionage, unauthorized cyber and physical access to the facilities, and sabotage."

The Secure Federal LEASEs Act will close the security loopholes identified by the GAO by directing General Services Administration (GSA) to design a verification system that identifies a property's owners if the space will be used for high-security purposes. While GSA and other federal agencies have made positive changes in response to the GAO's 2017 report, this bipartisan legislation will ensure that current best practices are followed uniformly throughout government, and that improved practices will be implemented in the near future. The bill also requires GSA and federal agencies to include provisions in their leasing agreements which will, for high-security spaces, limit property owners' physical access to government-rented space.

Source