Homeland Security Capabilities Preservation Reporting Act of 2026

Floor Speech

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Mr. CARTER of Louisiana. Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Walkinshaw for yielding.

I rise today in support of my bill, H.R. 8874, the Homeland Security Capabilities Preservation Reporting Act of 2026.

In the aftermath of the September 11 attacks, it became evident that cities across the United States could become targets for terrorist attacks and that they lacked the capacity and resources to independently build the critical capabilities needed to prevent, protect against, and respond to terrorist attacks and other catastrophic events.

Beginning in 2003, urban areas across the Nation began receiving dedicated counterterrorism grants from the Department of Homeland Security through the Urban Area Security Initiative, or UASI.

For more than two decades, this program has equipped our local first responders with advanced tools, equipment, and training necessary to protect their communities. These investments have built critical capabilities that strengthen preparedness and emergency responses across the region.

However, maintaining these capabilities cannot be sustained by locals alone. They require reliable, predictable Federal funding. Unfortunately, unpredictable changes to DHS' risk formula, which determines which areas receive funding, have often created year-to-year uncertainty, leaving many cities wondering whether their counterterrorism funding will suddenly disappear. Recently, these funding changes have been politically arbitrary.

We saw this danger firsthand last year, when under the leadership of former Secretary Kristi Noem, the Department of Homeland Security attempted to abruptly remove historically funded cities--including, in my district, the city of New Orleans--from this program.

Former Secretary Noem tried to cut our Federal counterterrorism funding support in the same year our community suffered the horrific attack on Bourbon Street in New Orleans on New Year's Day, which killed 14 people and injured dozens more. It took a lawsuit to stop them.

Here is the bottom line: Expecting locals to independently finance the massive security required for everyday safety--let alone high- profile events like Mardi Gras, the World Cup, or Super Bowl--is unrealistic and unfair. Abruptly turning off these resources is dangerous.

Congress previously acknowledged the value of UASI funding to communities by requiring a one-time report in the 2023 National Defense Authorization Act, examining how DHS could help cities transition when they lose grant eligibility.

I am grateful to former Congresswoman Val Demings for championing this previous NDAA provision and for her leadership in recognizing the need to support communities if they transition out of the UASI program. However, a one-time report leaves Congress in the dark going forward. We need ongoing data to monitor vulnerable communities after they are removed from the program and identify whether their security capabilities are at risk of degrading.

That is why I introduced H.R. 8874, the Homeland Security Capabilities Preservation Reporting Act of 2026. This bipartisan bill closes this oversight gap by requiring FEMA to submit recurring reports every 3 years on how cities manage and maintain their federally funded counterterrorism and security capabilities after they lose UASI funding.

This bill will improve public safety across the Nation and ensure our communities are never left defenseless, which is why it is endorsed by the Major Cities Chiefs Association, the U.S. Conference of Mayors, the National League of Cities, and the National Fusion Center Association, to name a few.

I thank Ranking Member Bennie Thompson and Representative Gimenez for their partnership on this bill. I urge all my colleagues to support this vital, commonsense legislation.

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