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STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS
By Mr. PADILLA (for himself and Mr. Moran):
S. 4246. A bill to direct the Secretary of Transportation to establish a pilot program to provide grants related to advance air mobility infrastructure, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
Mr. PADILLA. Mr. President, I rise to speak in support of the Advanced Aviation Infrastructure Modernization Act, which I introduced today.
Next-generation propulsion aircraft, including electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft, are poised to revolutionize how people and cargo move within and between cities, suburban, and rural areas. These advanced air mobility technologies also present the potential to transform how we link historically underserved communities and deploy a new type of transportation that does not require physical roads or rails.
As localities, regions, and States consider how to integrate the advent of these technologies and the opportunities to relieve traffic congestion and improve mobility options, a modest Federal investment can help communities ensure that cutting-edge, clean, quiet aviation technologies can be best integrated into existing and future transportation networks.
That is why I am proud to introduce this bill to help States and localities keep pace with this growing sector. It would establish a pilot program to help State, local, and Tribal governments to prepare for anticipated advanced air mobility operations and ensure communities can take advantage of the potential benefits of the safe integration of these technologies in our Nation's airspace.
I want to thank Senator Moran for coleading this bill with me, and I hope our colleagues will join us in support of this bill that will help communities prepare for the development and deployment of advanced air mobility technologies and related infrastructure.
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By Mr. PADILLA (for himself, Mr. Menendez, and Mr. Brown):
S. 4247. A bill to amend the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 1965 to establish university centers to encourage certain economic development, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
Mr. PADILLA. Mr. President, I rise to speak in support of the University Centers for Growth, Development, and Prosperity Act, which I introduced today.
The U.S. Economic Development Administration created the University Center Program to allow institutions of higher education and consortia to establish and maintain university centers, with the understanding that our higher education institutions play a critical role in our Nation's economic growth.
University centers are Federal partnerships that leverage the assets of higher learning institutions to strengthen regional economic growth by promoting innovation, entrepreneurship, and job creation. They encourage economic development in economically distressed regions, which helps spur job growth, high-skilled regional talent pools, and business expansion.
Despite EDA's important work, many communities across the country have yet to benefit from the Agency's programs, including smaller communities, communities of color, and rural areas experiencing higher rates of poverty.
The current University Center Program is not specifically authorized by Congress and is instead part of EDA's Technical Assistance Program.
That is why I am proud to introduce legislation that would codify and expand the University Center Program, leverage more resources for minority-serving institutions, and support a greater diversity of innovation and entrepreneurship in their communities. California has thriving institutions, including Chico State and Fresno State, that will be able to scale their impact with new resources. By prioritizing the establishment of new university centers at colleges and universities that serve significant populations of underserved students, we can strengthen regional economies and help close the racial wealth gap.
Specifically, the bill establishes an EDA University Center Program to help universities collaborate with economic development districts, trade adjustment assistance centers, and other economic development technical assistance and service providers to develop and implement comprehensive economic development strategies and other economic development planning at the local, regional, and State levels, with a focus on innovation, entrepreneurship, and workforce development.
It also prioritizes the participation of minority-serving institutions as part of the University Center Program. Minority-serving institutions provide incredible opportunities for so many low-income and first-generation students. I am proud that my State of California is home to 174 Hispanic-serving institutions and 51 emerging Hispanic-
serving institutions the highest amount in the country.
As a Senator representing one of the most diverse States in the country, I am proud to work with my colleagues to ensure that we work to improve the equity of EDA programming and help increase the participation of minority-serving institutions.
I want to thank Congressman Pete Aguilar for introducing this bill with me, and I hope our colleagues will join us in support of this effort.
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By Mr. DURBIN (for himself, Ms. Baldwin, Mr. Brown, Ms. Cantwell,
Mr. Carper, Ms. Duckworth, Ms. Klobuchar, Mr. Schatz, Mr.
Warnock, Mr. Murphy, Mr. Blumenthal, Mrs. Feinstein, and Mr.
Whitehouse):
S. 4255. A bill to authorize dedicated domestic terrorism offices within the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Justice, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation to analyze and monitor domestic terrorist activity and require the Federal Government to take steps to prevent domestic terrorism; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
Mr. DURBIN. 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, as follows:
S. 4255
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act of 2022''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act--
(1) the term ``Director'' means the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation;
(2) the term ``domestic terrorism'' has the meaning given the term in section 2331 of title 18, United States Code;
(3) the term ``Domestic Terrorism Executive Committee'' means the committee within the Department of Justice tasked with assessing and sharing information about ongoing domestic terrorism threats;
(4) the term ``hate crime incident'' means an act described in section 241, 245, 247, or 249 of title 18, United States Code, or in section 901 of the Civil Rights Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3631);
(5) the term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of Homeland Security; and
(6) the term ``uniformed services'' has the meaning given the term in section 101(a) of title 10, United States Code.
SEC. 3. OFFICES TO COMBAT DOMESTIC TERRORISM.
(a) Authorization of Offices to Monitor, Analyze, Investigate, and Prosecute Domestic Terrorism.--
(1) Domestic terrorism unit.--There is authorized a Domestic Terrorism Unit in the Office of Intelligence and Analysis of the Department of Homeland Security, which shall be responsible for monitoring and analyzing domestic terrorism activity.
(2) Domestic terrorism office.--There is authorized a Domestic Terrorism Office in the Counterterrorism Section of the National Security Division of the Department of Justice--
(A) which shall be responsible for investigating and prosecuting incidents of domestic terrorism;
(B) which shall be headed by the Domestic Terrorism Counsel; and
(C) which shall coordinate with the Civil Rights Division on domestic terrorism matters that may also be hate crime incidents.
(3) Domestic terrorism section of the fbi.--There is authorized a Domestic Terrorism Section within the Counterterrorism Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, which shall be responsible for investigating domestic terrorism activity.
(4) Staffing.--The Secretary, the Attorney General, and the Director shall each ensure that each office authorized under this section in their respective agencies shall--
(A) have an adequate number of employees to perform the required duties;
(B) have not less than one employee dedicated to ensuring compliance with civil rights and civil liberties laws and regulations; and
(C) require that all employees undergo annual anti-bias training.
(5) Sunset.--The offices authorized under this subsection shall terminate on the date that is 10 years after the date of enactment of this Act.
(b) Joint Report on Domestic Terrorism.--
(1) Biannual report required.--Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, and each 6 months thereafter for the 10-year period beginning on the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security, the Attorney General, and the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation shall submit a joint report authored by the domestic terrorism offices authorized under paragraphs (1),
(2), and (3) of subsection (a) to--
(A) the Committee on the Judiciary, the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, and the Select Committee on Intelligence of the Senate; and
(B) the Committee on the Judiciary, the Committee on Homeland Security, and the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence of the House of Representatives.
(2) Contents.--Each report submitted under paragraph (1) shall include--
(A) an assessment of the domestic terrorism threat posed by White supremacists and neo-Nazis, including White supremacist and neo-Nazi infiltration of Federal, State, and local law enforcement agencies and the uniformed services; and
(B)(i) in the first report, an analysis of incidents or attempted incidents of domestic terrorism that have occurred in the United States since April 19, 1995, including any White-supremacist-related incidents or attempted incidents; and
(ii) in each subsequent report, an analysis of incidents or attempted incidents of domestic terrorism that occurred in the United States during the preceding 6 months, including any White-supremacist-related incidents or attempted incidents;
(C) a quantitative analysis of domestic terrorism for the preceding 6 months, including--
(i) the number of--
(I) domestic terrorism related assessments initiated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, including the number of assessments from each classification and subcategory, with a specific classification or subcategory for those related to White supremacism;
(II) domestic terrorism-related preliminary investigations initiated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, including the number of preliminary investigations from each classification and subcategory, with a specific classification or subcategory for those related to White supremacism, and how many preliminary investigations resulted from assessments;
(III) domestic terrorism-related full investigations initiated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, including the number of full investigations from each classification and subcategory, with a specific classification or subcategory for those related to White supremacism, and how many full investigations resulted from preliminary investigations and assessments;
(IV) domestic terrorism-related incidents, including the number of incidents from each classification and subcategory, with a specific classification or subcategory for those related to White supremacism, the number of deaths and injuries resulting from each incident, and a detailed explanation of each incident;
(V) Federal domestic terrorism-related arrests, including the number of arrests from each classification and subcategory, with a specific classification or subcategory for those related to White supremacism, and a detailed explanation of each arrest;
(VI) Federal domestic terrorism-related indictments, including the number of indictments from each classification and subcategory, with a specific classification or subcategory for those related to White supremacism, and a detailed explanation of each indictment;
(VII) Federal domestic terrorism-related prosecutions, including the number of incidents from each classification and subcategory, with a specific classification or subcategory for those related to White supremacism, and a detailed explanation of each prosecution;
(VIII) Federal domestic terrorism-related convictions, including the number of convictions from each classification and subcategory, with a specific classification or subcategory for those related to White supremacism, and a detailed explanation of each conviction; and
(IX) Federal domestic terrorism-related weapons recoveries, including the number of each type of weapon and the number of weapons from each classification and subcategory, with a specific classification or subcategory for those related to White supremacism; and
(ii) an explanation of each individual case that progressed through more than 1 of the stages described under clause
(i)--
(I) including the specific classification or subcategory for each case; and
(II) not including personally identifiable information not otherwise releasable to the public; and
(D) certification that each of the assessments and investigations described under subparagraph (C) are in compliance with all applicable civil rights and civil liberties laws and regulations.
(3) Hate crimes.--In compiling a joint report under this subsection, the domestic terrorism offices authorized under paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) of subsection (a) shall, in consultation with the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice and the Civil Rights Unit of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, review each Federal hate crime charge and conviction during the preceding 6 months to determine whether the incident also constitutes a domestic terrorism-related incident.
(4) Classification and public release.--Each report submitted under paragraph (1) shall be--
(A) unclassified, to the greatest extent possible, with a classified annex only if necessary; and
(B) in the case of the unclassified portion of the report, posted on the public websites of the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Justice, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
(5) Nonduplication.--If two or more provisions of this subsection or any other law impose requirements on an agency to report or analyze information on domestic terrorism that are substantially similar, the agency may produce one report that complies with each such requirement as fully as possible.
(c) Domestic Terrorism Executive Committee.--There is authorized a Domestic Terrorism Executive Committee, which shall meet on a regular basis, and not less regularly than 4 times each year, to coordinate with United States Attorneys and other key public safety officials across the country to promote information sharing and ensure an effective, responsive, and organized joint effort to combat domestic terrorism.
(d) Focus on Greatest Threats.--The domestic terrorism offices authorized under paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) of subsection (a) shall focus their limited resources on the most significant domestic terrorism threats, as determined by the number of domestic terrorism-related incidents from each category and subclassification in the joint report for the preceding 6 months required under subsection (b).
SEC. 4. TRAINING TO COMBAT DOMESTIC TERRORISM.
(a) Required Training and Resources.--The Secretary, the Attorney General, and the Director shall review the anti- terrorism training and resource programs of their respective agencies that are provided to Federal, State, local, and Tribal law enforcement agencies, including the State and Local Anti-Terrorism Program that is funded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance of the Department of Justice, and ensure that such programs include training and resources to assist State, local, and Tribal law enforcement agencies in understanding, detecting, deterring, and investigating acts of domestic terrorism and White supremacist and neo-Nazi infiltration of law enforcement and corrections agencies. The Attorney General shall make training available to Department prosecutors and to Assistant United States Attorneys on countering and prosecuting domestic terrorism. The domestic- terrorism training shall focus on the most significant domestic terrorism threats, as determined by the quantitative analysis in the joint report required under section 3(b).
(b) Requirement.--Any individual who provides domestic terrorism training required under this section shall have--
(1) expertise in domestic terrorism; and
(2) relevant academic, law enforcement, or other community- based experience in matters related to domestic terrorism.
(c) Report.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 6 months after the date of enactment of this Act and twice each year thereafter, the Secretary, the Attorney General, and the Director shall each submit a biannual report to the committees of Congress described in section 3(b)(1) on the domestic terrorism training implemented by their respective agencies under this section, which shall include copies of all training materials used and the names and qualifications of the individuals who provide the training.
(2) Classification and public release.--Each report submitted under paragraph (1) shall--
(A) be unclassified, to the greatest extent possible, with a classified annex only if necessary;
(B) in the case of the unclassified portion of each report, be posted on the public website of the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Justice, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation; and
(C) include the number of Federal incidents, investigations, arrests, indictments, prosecutions, and convictions with respect to a false report of domestic terrorism or hate crime incident.
SEC. 5. INTERAGENCY TASK FORCE.
(a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Attorney General, the Director, the Secretary, and the Secretary of Defense shall establish an interagency task force to analyze and combat White supremacist and neo-Nazi infiltration of the uniformed services and Federal law enforcement agencies.
(b) Report.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the interagency task force is established under subsection (a), the Attorney General, the Secretary, and the Secretary of Defense shall submit a joint report on the findings of the task force and the response of the Attorney General, the Secretary, and the Secretary of Defense to such findings, to--
(A) the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate;
(B) the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate;
(C) the Select Committee on Intelligence of the Senate;
(D) the Committee on Armed Services of the Senate;
(E) the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives;
(F) the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of Representatives;
(G) the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence of the House of Representatives; and
(H) the Committee on Armed Services of the House of Representatives.
(2) Classification and public release.--The report submitted under paragraph (1) shall be--
(A) submitted in unclassified form, to the greatest extent possible, with a classified annex only if necessary; and
(B) in the case of the unclassified portion of the report, posted on the public website of the Department of Defense, the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Justice, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
SEC. 6. FEDERAL SUPPORT FOR ADDRESSING HATE CRIME INCIDENTS
WITH A NEXUS TO DOMESTIC TERRORISM.
(a) Community Relations Service.--The Community Relations Service of the Department of Justice, authorized under section 1001(a) of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000g), may offer the support of the Service to communities where the Department of Justice has brought charges in a hate crime incident that has a nexus to domestic terrorism.
(b) Federal Bureau of Investigation.--Section 249 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(f) Federal Bureau of Investigation.--The Attorney General, acting through the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, shall assign a special agent or hate crimes liaison to each field office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation to investigate hate crimes incidents with a nexus to domestic terrorism (as such term is defined in section 2 of the Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act of 2022).''.
SEC. 7. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.
Nothing in this Act, or any amendment made by this Act, may be construed to authorize the infringement or violation of any right protected under the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States or an applicable provision of Federal law.
SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated to the Department of Justice, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Homeland Security, and the Department of Defense such sums as may be necessary to carry out this Act.
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By Ms. STABENOW (for herself, Mr. Boozman, Mr. Leahy, Mr. Hoeven,
Mr. Brown, Mr. Marshall, Ms. Klobuchar, Mrs. Capito, Mr.
Bennet, Mr. Tillis, Mrs. Gillibrand, Ms. Collins, Ms. Smith,
Mr. Grassley, Mr. Booker, Mrs. Fischer, Mr. Warnock, Mr.
Cornyn, Mr. Casey, Mr. Lujan, Mr. Durbin, Ms. Hassan, Ms.
Duckworth, and Mr. Kelly):
S. 4257. A bill to amend the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 to establish requirements for infant formula cost containment contracts, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.
Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I remember being a new mom and then a new grandma, and all you want to do is hold your baby close and savor every single moment. Instead, parents across the country right now are in a panic--forced to search high and low to find baby formula, the safe baby formula that they need, any safe baby formula.
Almost half of all of our babies born in the United States receive their baby formula through a really important program called WIC--the Women, Infants, and Children program--that we are so proud of, and it is something that has made sure that safe baby formula and healthy food is available for pregnant moms and for babies throughout the first years of a baby's life. So, as all of this has happened now with this emergency--and it is a huge emergency, a huge crisis--there are no options here when children--you know, when babies need to eat. When babies are born, they need safe baby formula.
This has been an ``all hands on deck'' moment for all of us. That is why, as chair of the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee--and I am so proud the Presiding Officer is a member of our committee, is a very valued member of our committee--I am joined with our ranking member, John Boozman, to introduce legislation today to make sure that the USDA can be as flexible as possible in getting our moms and dads and, most importantly, babies the critical baby formula that they need right now.
We are doing this in conjunction with the House, which also has bipartisan legislation. It is my understanding that they will be voting on that soon, and I am hopeful that we can do the same thing. This should be something that brings us all together as quickly as possible.
As an example, the reason we need the bill dealing with WIC--and there is a lot and so much positive that comes from this program. But right now, we make sure that there are safety standards, high-quality safety standards, and that we negotiate, through a competitive process, the best price for moms and babies, but we now need to have flexibility so when a family--for instance, maybe, in Traverse City, MI, or in Lansing or in Detroit--goes to a grocery store and there is only one brand on the shelf and it is not the brand under the WIC contract, that they can buy it. If that is the only thing available, they need to be able to use their WIC support to be able to purchase that.
That is something that our USDA Secretary has jumped into gear to be able to make that happen, but we have got to make sure that that can continue, or we have got to make sure if a parent, again, goes to the store and there are different sizes of formula cans or different prescriptions that normally would not fit under the WIC contract, that they can waive those because we have to be able to get whatever is safe baby formula to families as quickly as possible.
These may sound like small things, but they are the difference right now between whether or not our families on WIC are able to actually get the formula that they need.
In order to make sure that that continues, we have introduced legislation that will guarantee that the flexibilities the USDA needs will continue beyond the public health pandemic flexibilities that they are currently operating under. They have short-term flexibilities because of the public health pandemic. We want to make sure this is permanent and that whether it is a recall, a safety recall, a supply chain breakdown--whatever it is--that, with all hands on deck, the USDA has the capacity--the authority, the tools--to be able to move forward and make sure that they can respond as quickly as possible.
We also want to guarantee that formula manufacturers that want to compete for these WIC contracts have a plan in place to respond to any kind of shortage so we don't have this situation happen again. There is just no excuse, frankly, for what happened here.
I want to thank Secretary Vilsack and the USDA for moving quickly once they were notified about the Abbott plant shutdown.
I am deeply concerned that they were not given a heads-up earlier. The FDA was working for months, evidently--for a few months--with Abbott around concerns as it related to the safety standards and so on at the plant, and the USDA needed to know sooner so that they could prepare sooner. They understand how serious this is, what an emergency it is. So, when they found out, they went immediately into gear to make sure that our moms and babies, if at all possible, in any way possible, could get what they need. That has to be a top priority, not just for the moms and babies on WIC; all moms, all parents, all babies need to make sure that it is an ``all hands on deck'' and that we are moving as fast as possible.
That is why I also want to thank President Biden and the FDA for working with other baby formula manufacturers to increase supplies.
Supplies are going up. I am very anxious to see more manufacturers of baby formula. I think we, as in every area, it seems, of our economy, have too much consolidation--that is certainly true here--and we need more competition, and we need more baby formula manufacturers competing for our contracts. We need to have a contract that gives the best price to WIC's moms and dads and babies, but we need to make sure that we have as many large and small companies that are competing for that to be able to make sure that we have the formula available and that we are getting the very best price.
I also want to thank them for carefully and thoughtfully opening up imports from the European Union. We certainly have other countries that have the same very high safety standards that we do. We have got to make sure that anything that comes in is of the very highest safety standard.
We know that, right now, we have got to make sure that baby formula is on the shelf. Children--babies--need this every day, not ``let's wait a month or 2 months.'' This is like today that this needs to be happening. Again, there needs to be a sense of urgency to do whatever we can related to this issue and look at all aspects of it to make sure that this does not happen again, if at all possible. This should not be happening again.
Within our WIC bill, we are focused on what we can do to support the USDA to have the maximum flexibilities to support moms and babies and on what we can do to make sure the manufacturers are prepared if something like this were to happen--some shortage--down the road. We need to make sure that we are looking at every aspect of this and acting now, as fast as possible, and then preparing for the future.
I want to thank, again, Senator Boozman and welcome all of our Members on both sides of the aisle to join us in what, I hope, will be legislation that moves very, very quickly.
The Access to Baby Formula Act is something that every single Member of the U.S. Senate should be supporting so that we can move this legislation out as quickly as possible, working with the House, and getting this done.
____________________
SOURCE: Congressional Record Vol. 168, No. 85
The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
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