Dhs Special Events Program and Support Act

Floor Speech

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Ms. TITUS. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 6229, the DHS Special Events Program and Support Act.

Nevada's First District, that I am proud to represent, hosts hundreds of high-profile events each year that require considerable security measures to keep safe the southern Nevadans and the thousands of visitors who attend these events.

While State and local law enforcement take the primary responsibility in providing support for local events, many occasions, from the Super Bowl to Formula One races, require additional Federal support to ensure that security measures are hardened to prevent and protect against bad actors intending to do harm.

Through October of this year, about 35 million visitors have come to Las Vegas. This includes 5 million who came for conventions, 330,000 who attended the Super Bowl, and 300,000 who were there recently for Formula One.

Major events like this don't just occur in my district. They occur all around the country. Our country hosts some of the world's greatest events, as you have heard. In communities across the United States, special events routinely draw visitors from around the country and around the world, necessitating large-scale security coordination and assistance from the Federal Government.

Our next decade will be crucial for the United States as we host several large-scale events that will draw millions of visitors. These will require enhanced security coordination. They include the World Cup, the Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games, Men's and Women's Rugby World Cup, and the Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games, that in addition will give our country the opportunity to show off to the rest of the world that we are the unparalleled sports, entertainment, and hospitality capital.

My bill, H.R. 6229, the DHS Special Events Program and Support Act, will enable the Federal Government to support these local jurisdictions in safely hosting these events.

The SEAR program within DHS helps to provide this supplemental Federal support on an ad hoc basis, but it has never been authorized into law. This legislation does just that and in turn fortifies the existing program to better equip law enforcement authorities to prevent, mitigate, and respond to threats to events that happen in all our districts.

Importantly, it codifies the standardized SEAR process into law, ensures DHS maintains its risk-based methodology for event review, and allows expedited consideration or reconsideration of events that receive an initial SEAR designation.

I thank Representative Richard Hudson of North Carolina for partnering with me on this legislation to codify the SEAR program, as well as Representatives Robert Menendez of New Jersey, Anthony D'Esposito of New York, and Jared Moskowitz of Florida for cosponsoring the bill. I thank the chairman and ranking member for bringing it to the floor, and I urge all Members to vote in support of this bipartisan measure.

Ms. CLARKE of New York.

Mr. Speaker, authorizing SEAR's great work will ensure that DHS may continue providing risk assessments and support to certain preplanned special events across the United States.

I thank Representatives Titus of Nevada and Hudson of North Carolina for introducing this bill, which will strengthen Homeland Security and protect our greatest community events from terrorism or other security threats.

Mr. Speaker, I urge all my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on H.R. 6229, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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