Rep. Loretta Sanchez and Rep. Chris Carney Hold a Hearing On the Secure Border Initiative Network

Political Transcript Wire › August 21, 2009

Linked as:

Extract

Rep. Loretta Sanchez and Rep. Chris Carney Hold a Hearing On the Secure Border Initiative Network

(CORRECTED COPY: CORRECTIONS THROUGHOUT)

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY, SUBCOMMITTEE ON BORDER, MARITIME AND GLOBAL COUNTERTERRORISM AND SUBCOMMITTEE ON MANAGEMENT, INVESTIGATIONS AND OVERSIGHT HOLD A JOINT HEARING ON THE SECURE BORDER INITIATIVE NETWORK

OCTOBER 24, 2007

SPEAKERS: SUBCOMMITTEE ON BORDER, MARITIME AND GLOBAL COUNTERTERRORISM REP. LORETTA SANCHEZ, D-CALIF. CHAIRWOMAN REP. JANE HARMAN, D-CALIF. REP. ZOE LOFGREN, D-CALIF. REP. SHEILA JACKSON-LEE, D-TEXAS REP. JIM LANGEVIN, D-R.I. REP. HENRY CUELLAR, D-TEXAS REP. AL GREEN, D-TEXAS REP. BENNIE THOMPSON, D-MISS. EX OFFICIO

REP. MARK SOUDER, R-IND. RANKING MEMBER REP. BOBBY JINDAL, R-LA. REP. DAVE REICHERT, R-WASH. REP. MICHAEL MCCAUL, R-TEXAS REP. GUS BILIRAKIS, R-FLA. REP. PETER T. KING, R-N.Y. EX OFFICIO

SUBCOMMITTEE ON MANAGEMENT, INVESTIGATIONS AND OVERSIGHT REP. CHRIS CARNEY, D-PA. CHAIRMAN REP. PETER A. DEFAZIO, D-ORE. REP. YVETTE D. CLARKE, D-N.Y. REP. ED PERLMUTTER, D-COLO. REP. BENNIE THOMPSON, D-MISS. EX OFFICIO

REP. MIKE D. ROGERS, R-ALA. RANKING MEMBER REP. THOMAS M. DAVIS III, R-VA. REP. MICHAEL MCCAUL, R-TEXAS REP. PETER T. KING, R-N.Y. EX OFFICIO

WITNESSES: GREGORY GIDDENS, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, SECURE BORDER INITIATIVE, DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

ROBERT W. GILBERT, CHIEF PATROL AGENT, TUCSON SECTOR, U.S. BORDER PATROL, DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

RICHARD STANA, DIRECTOR, HOMELAND SECURITY AND JUSTICE ISSUES, GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE

ROGER KRONE, PRESIDENT, NETWORK AND SPACE SYSTEMS, BOEING INTEGRATED DEFENSE SYSTEMS

JERRY MCELWEE, VICE PRESIDENT, ADVANCED SYSTEMS, BOEING COMPANY

[*] SANCHEZ: The subcommittee will come to order.

The Subcommittee on Border, Maritime and Global Counterterrorism, and the Subcommittee on Management, Investigation and Oversight are meeting today to receive testimony on "The Future of Border Security: Can SBInet Succeed?"

Good afternoon.

And I'd like to thank our witnesses for appearing before us today and for providing our subcommittees with a briefing on SBInet several weeks ago.

We are very interested in the progress being made on SBInet and the impact that this will have on improving our nation's border security.

There are several different projects within SBInet. And while it will be useful to get an update on all of them, of course we're particularly concerned to hear about Project 28.

Our subcommittees have closely followed the Project 28 process and the delays that have been a part of that. And we were led to believe at our June 7th hearing that this Project 28 would be operational by June 13th. And you already know of my extreme disappointment with respect to that.

So there needs to be more open communication about what's going on in our nation's border security and the SBInet projects between the committee and the department and its contractors.

And I hope that we can use today's hearing to better understand the issues that caused those delays, to get an update on the actual status of Project 28, and to understand what that experience means for the rest of the SBInet program.

A virtual fence, I think many of us here are counting that a useful -- a virtual fence will be a useful tool for the Border Patrol. And that's why we all want to ensure that Project 28 and future projects work for the department's needs.

And I think -- I believe, I really do believe that many of us here want this to succeed, want SBInet to succeed, we want to enhance our border security. So I look forward to the completion of that project. And I look forward to making sure that SBInet actually works for the American people.

So I'd like to thank Chairman Thompson and Chairman Carney and Ranking Members King, Souder and Rogers for their interest in this topic also. And the chair will now recognize the ranking member of the Border, Maritime and Global Counterterrorism Subcommittee, the gentleman from Indiana, for his opening statement.

SOUDER: Thank you, Madam Chair.

I want to say first that my thoughts and prayers are with you and your fellow Californians as these wildfires are raging.

When our nation faces a crisis, terrorism or natural disaster, all appropriate and available government resou...

See the full content of this document