Department of Homeland Security Inspector General Transparency Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the gentleman from New Jersey yielding me time.

Mr. Speaker, my bill, H.R. 5633, the Department of Homeland Security Inspector General Transparency Act, seeks to provide Congress and the public greater insight into the findings of the independent body charged with overseeing the third-largest Federal department.

The DHS Office of Inspector General has the dual mission of detecting waste, fraud, and abuse within the Department and promoting economy, efficiency, and effectiveness of Departmental resources.

Since the establishment of the Department in 2003, Congress has looked to the DHS OIG to provide independent, fact-based analysis into departmental programs, activities, and personnel.

Historically, the DHS OIG has provided critical oversight of the Department, including audits of FEMA following Hurricane Katrina, whistleblower retaliation at the Coast Guard, and conditions at Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facilities.

Troublingly, for the past 2 years, reports regarding substantiated whistleblower retaliation or misconduct by senior DHS officials have been withheld from Congress and the public.

Last year, the Government Accountability Office released a report that brought to light significant and longstanding operational weaknesses at the DHS OIG that GAO concluded have impacted the quality and timeliness of the OIG's work.

Separately, an independent government watchdog, the Project on Government Oversight, in July 2021, found that the DHS OIG has repeatedly impeded and delayed ongoing investigations into alleged improper handling of intelligence and whistleblower retaliation.

My bill seeks to ensure that the DHS OIG operates in a more transparent manner with Congress and the public.

Specifically, the legislation requires that the DHS OIG, when it substantiates allegations of whistleblower retaliation or misconduct by senior Department officials, provide those reports to Congress and publish them on its website.

This legislation also requires additional reporting by the DHS OIG in its semiannual report to Congress.

When enacted, the semiannual report would be required to include a description of every ongoing audit, inspection, and evaluation, as well as data on the number and types of complaints and tips that OIG receives.

Finally, H.R. 5633 requires the inspector general to notify Congress if the head of any DHS component or office fails to respond to a DHS OIG request in a timely manner.

The Department of Homeland Inspector General Transparency Act has bipartisan support and was reported out of committee by voice vote.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my House colleagues to support this legislation.

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