Social Media Working Group Act of 2015

Floor Speech

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Mr. McCAUL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 623, the
Social Media Working Group Act of 2015, which was introduced by
Congresswoman Brooks, Congressman Payne, and myself.

Social media is becoming an important tool before, during and after
disasters. This becomes more and more obvious after every incident and
was especially prevalent both after Hurricane Sandy and the Boston
bombings. Almost two years ago, when two pressure cooker bombs exploded at the finish line of the Boston Marathon, local emergency managers and law enforcement turned to social media to alert the public, solicit assistance, and offer comfort to the city. Incidents like these point
to the fact that authorities must embrace the use of social media as a
way to both collect and disseminate information in the management of a
disaster.

Last year, I visited the headquarters of the American Red Cross with
the author of this legislation, Congresswoman Brooks. One of the
highlights of our visit was the Red Cross Digital Disaster Operations
Center, where, in partnership with Dell, the Red Cross built the first-
ever social media operations center for humanitarian relief. I was
impressed to see how the Red Cross is communicating with disaster
survivors through social media and how social media is changing the way
we are able to prepare for and respond to disasters.

In the last Congress, the Committee on Homeland Security's
Subcommittee on Emergency Preparedness, Response and Communications
held two hearings on the impact of social media before, during and
after disasters. These hearings informed the writing of this
legislation which authorizes and enhances the Department's Virtual
Social Media Working Group to ensure best practices and lessons learned
are shared with appropriate stakeholders, including the private sector,
and ensure our first responders understand the ever changing dynamic of
using social media.

This measure passed the House floor with almost 400 votes in the
113th Congress, demonstrating its importance and bipartisan support. I
urge Members to join me in supporting this bill today.

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