Statements On Introduced Bills And Joint Resolutions

Floor Speech

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By Mr. DURBIN (for himself, Mr. SPECTER, and Mrs. MURRAY):

S. 3176. A bill to further the mission of the Global Justice Information Sharing Initiative Advisory Committee by continuing its development of policy recommendations and technical solutions on information sharing and interoperability, and enhancing its pursuit of benefits and cost savings for local, State, tribal, and Federal justice agencies; to the Committee on the Judiciary.

Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, today I am introducing the Department of Justice Global Advisory Committee Authorization Act of 2010. This legislation will make it easier and less costly for local, state, tribal and federal agencies to share public safety and criminal justice information and to better protect our communities. I am pleased to be joined by Senator Arlen Specter, the chairman of the Crime and Drugs Subcommittee, and Senator Patty Murray in introducing this legislation. I look forward to working with all my colleagues to see it enacted into law.

Ensuring the public's safety often depends on effective information sharing. In recent years, criminal gangs, fugitives, illegal trafficking networks, cybercriminals and terrorist organizations have increased their ability to operate across jurisdictional boundaries. However, too often the public safety agencies charged with combating these threats have operated without all the information that should be available to them. Inconsistent information-sharing protocols and databases that are not interoperable with one another are barriers the law enforcement and public safety communities have identified. Quite simply, if we want to combat the threats of the 21st century, we need a 21st century information-sharing framework.

The U.S. Department of Justice has long recognized the need to bring law enforcement and public safety stakeholders together to take on this challenge of improving information sharing. In 1998, the Justice Department established the Global Justice Information Sharing Initiative Advisory Committee, also known as the ``Global Advisory Committee''. Chartered under the Federal Advisory Committee Act, the Global Advisory Committee brings together key representatives from law enforcement, judicial, correctional, and public safety agencies to advise the Attorney General on information-sharing policies, practices and technical solutions.

Over the years, the Global Advisory Committee has developed a strong track record of consolidating stakeholder views and developing consensus information-sharing solutions that local, state, tribal and federal agencies all agree upon. The Committee has recruited experts on a pro bono basis to develop new interoperable technological standards, and they have already developed a criminal justice information sharing standard--the Global Justice XML Data Model--and a broader justice and homeland security information exchange--the National Information Exchange Model--that enable agencies to convert their own database information into a common format which can be shared.

The Global Advisory Committee also created the ``National Criminal Intelligence Sharing Plan,'' a blueprint for agency intelligence-sharing procedures that has been endorsed by the Departments of Justice and Homeland Security. And the Committee has drafted ``Fusion Center Guidelines'' which have helped communities throughout the country establish information-sharing ``fusion centers'' for responding to security threats. The Justice Department plans to involve the Committee in crafting new information-sharing strategies and protocols for combating gang violence, improving correctional information, and sharing fugitive information.

In addition to its work developing information-sharing standards, the charter and bylaws of the Global Advisory Committee prioritize civil liberties and privacy protection and promote database security and shared information accuracy. The Committee has established a working group specifically dedicated to protecting privacy and information quality, and has also created resources to help jurisdictions develop privacy and civil liberties programs.

The Global Advisory Committee's work has already led to cost savings in the design and procurement of interoperable information systems. These cost-saving benefits are likely to grow if the Committee's information-sharing standards become increasingly adopted and if interoperability among local, state, tribal and federal databases increases. With Congress's help, the Committee can revolutionize efficient information-sharing among public safety and law enforcement agencies, which will both lower information technology costs and help prevent and fight crime.

While the Global Advisory Committee's value has been recognized throughout the law enforcement and public safety communities, it has not yet been recognized by Congress. The legislation I am introducing today will give Congress's blessing to the Committee by authorizing the Justice Department to provide it with technical and financial support and dedicated funding.

Currently, under the Federal Advisory Committee Act, the Global Advisory Committee must terminate and reestablish itself every two years, but my legislation will keep the Committee in continuous operation. The bill also directs the Committee to make recommendations to the Attorney General on interoperability and information-sharing practices and technologies, and to report to Congress at least annually on its recommendations. My legislation also expresses the sense of Congress that agencies across the country should adopt the Global Advisory Committee's recommendations in order to improve their information sharing. The bill further directs the Attorney General to submit a report to Congress regarding the state of information sharing between corrections and law enforcement agencies through the Interstate Compact for Adult Offender Supervision, including suggestions for improvement.

This legislation has been endorsed by the National District Attorneys Association, the National Sheriffs Association, the National Narcotics Officers' Associations' Coalition, the National Criminal Justice Association, the National Association of Counties, the American Probation and Parole Association, the American Correctional Association, the Association of State Correctional Administrators, and the National Consortium for Justice Information and Statistics, SEARCH.

The Global Advisory Committee has already achieved great success in bringing together local, state, tribal and federal agencies to develop consensus information-sharing solutions. With Congressional authorization and a consistent funding stream, the Committee can build upon that success in a way that will benefit justice and public safety agencies across the nation. I urge my colleagues to support this important legislation.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be printed in the RECORD

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