Today we welcome chad wulf, the acting secretary of the department of Homeland Security, thank you for being with us this morning. Mister secretary the fyi 21 budget proposes 49. 7 billion, in neck discretionary funding. For the department of Homeland Security. While this is a cut of 750 million below the current year level, the budget also proposes transferring United States secret service to the treasury department. I want to be clear that absent any inactive law to affect such a transfer this subcommittee will continue to include funding, for the secret service and its bill when including funding for the secret service in the total the budget requests for fbi 21 is actually 1. 7 eight billion above the current year level there are some things the proposed budget which we will find strong bipartisan support, such as funding for the coast guard cutter there are also support support for proposals we should not expect to see funded in the house bill. Among those the expansion of detention detention which i believe are unnecessary. Particularly in light of hyperactive needs, which is to hire customs officers, to speed trade and travel at the ports of entry. Most are todays hearing will likely focus on Immigration Enforcement and Border Security, including serious cases of the abuse of authority by some the age s personnel and contractors. While the mistreatment of migrants is inexcusable i would be remiss, if i did not also recognize the dedication and commitment of the vast majority of women and men of the department of Homeland Security, who carry out the departments and help protect the American Public and our country from a wide range of threats. This includes rescuing and giving aid to americans following natural disasters, defending us again cyberattacks, if securing our airports, and investigating child exploitation. And trafficking. It subcommittee will continue to work with you to make sure they have the resources needed to carry out the departments many critical missions. Members of the subcommittee also have, the responsibility to make sure, the department and its personnel carry out its mission responsibly, lawfully efficiently and humanely. We have always endeavor, to work collaboratively with you and your predecessors, fix problems, where needed and we will continue to try and do so hopefully, with better cooperation from the department. Unfortunately that is getting harder and harder to do. Ive been a member of the subcommittee, since its creation shortly after, the 9 11 terrorist attacks. I cannot remember time when there was less consensus about immigration and Border Security, and from my point of view a systemic disregard for the rights of migrants, and detained population, and the asylum laws of this country. And it steele to shut down the flow of migrants coming to United States, across our southern border, the administration has implemented multiple new programs, to expedite the removal process. Each of which erodes the Due Process Rights of migrants to seek asylum, or other forms of relief from the dangers that they fear. At every turn, and response to the question of how to balance departments dual missions of Immigration Enforcement and protecting Asylum Seekers, the administration has aired excuse of lee and determinately on the side of enforcement and removal regardless of the circumstances. The socalled migrant protection protocol or mpp is a clear and heartbreaking example. Mpp has been implemented was only the most superficial effort, to ensure migrants return to mexico, will in fact be protected, have food, shelter, health care, security and the ability to return for their immigration hearings. Only the most superficial efforts, have been made to ensure migrants, have meaningful access to counsel, access which should at the very least, be equivalent do what they would have if they had not been placed in mpp. The devaluing, the rights of migrants, goes beyond even the design, of these new programs. Under mvp guidelines, vulnerable populations, are not supposed to be placed in the program. Yet there is a steady stream, a reports of pregnant women, individuals with Serious Health issues, or disability, including children and lgbt migrants, being placed into the program and in some cases, having to harm as a result. Mister secretary, i doubt that we will come to agreement, on whether this administrations immigration policies, strike the right balance. Changing these policies, fall under the jurisdiction of the authorizing committees. However it is squarely, within this committees jurisdiction to ensure that the administrations policies and the use of funds, to implement them. Do not run afoul of the treatment of migrants and Due Process Rights and asylum laws. Carrying out our oversight responsibilities, requires us to have access to the full range of information about how the programs we are funding, are being implemented. Unfortunately, the department and its agencies are not always forthcoming. With all the requested information. While appropriations liaison and budget officials from cbp ice and uscis, usually do their best to get us the information, we need to do our work. They are often not sufficiently empowered to do so. As a result we are often stonewalled in getting the requested information. Mister secretary as a of the department of Homeland Security you set the tone and establish the rules that will guide the department in meeting our goals and make sure they are protecting our american values. If we are to be successful in achieving these goals we need your support and your cooperation in performing our oversight function. And i truly hope that it will be forthcoming. Before i turn to acting secretary for a summary of his written statement, the checks which will be included in the hearing record, let me first recognize our distinguish Ranking Member mister slash man for any remarks hes wants to take to make. Thank you mister secretary on a personal note i, would like to thank you for the way that you have been so courteous, Successful Union staff have reached out to us on numerous occasions, and for stepping up to at a very difficult time in our countrys history to take on this Herculean Task so my personal note of task to you in yourself sir. I would like to thank you for meeting with us today at the department of Homeland Security s fiscal year 2021 budget request. This is again an awesome responsibility that you have undertaken. Im willing to work with you as we work as we move forward. As always theres a lot to absorb within the departments request, their lot of new initiatives, a lot of threats that we are trying to cover, i look forward to hearing for the individual components, in the hearings planned over the next two months. I think the chairwoman for putting together a schedule that will allow us to get into more specifics with each component and despite the fact that the chair and i agree on some issues and disagree on other issues we work very well together and there is a tremendous amount of respect and madam chair i totally thank you for that. Thank you for those currencies. Theres a lot of great work being done it is clear that the people the department are working hard every day to keep our country safe, and again ive had the opportunity to visit many dhs sites and offices with the chair and other members on both sides, and across this country to hear from your people on the dedication and commit commitment shown by the people of dhs on our country. Please pass along our thanks for the work theyre doing every day on the clock. Last year we saw an unprecedented crisis at our southwest quarter, im glad we can come to a Fourth Corner agreement, to provide humanitarian aid, i relieve some of the stress on customs and Border Protection, to help move the unaccompanied minors to hhs care. However the crisis is still ongoing, we are still seeing tens of thousands of migrants apprehended at the border every month, we are seeing operational challenges, and ice in uscis, as those components grapple with the overwhelming case loads, of migrants who are already in the country, but i am optimistic that we can to get Work Together to address these challenges, and i can continue to impart to our distinguished chair, but there are so many places where we can actually agree what our security technology, humanitarian aid, increases for Cybersecurity Research increase in investment in our great United States coast guard assets including trade travel investigations and enforcement even the request to continue construction on the border wall system is within our ballpark im going to continue to work with you and with the president to support his initiatives and his request for Border Security im help hopeful that together, both sides of the aisle, both sides of the capital we can continue to come to agreements and solutions. I look forward to your testimony today, and the departments proposed investments and initiatives, im has thankful to be here and to the chair i yield back. Thank you mister flash men and i would recognize the chairwoman. I think chairman chairwoman allergy, and Ranking Member for holding this hearing today thank you i hope you have a good long term in this position that has not been the case so far i want to thank all our witnesses for joining us the department of Homeland Securitys mission to secure our nation from pervasive threats its not an easy task in new york we know we have to ensure safety different parts of dhs must effectively coordinate and cooperate while simultaneously working within the federal state and local agencies thats why the state of affairs at the department of Homeland Security is so troubling as i told the last acting secretary who testified before our committee it seems like the car is driving off the cliff, and no one to take the wheel. Three short years the department of Homeland Security, has been through five secretaries. Your four predecessors, instituted inhumane policies of ripping children from their families, jailing decent people for non violent infractions. And ensuring the integrity of our borders, and enforcing immigration laws are difficult, and necessary jobs but this administration has taken it too far with a heartless obsession with Immigration Enforcement ive recently received calls from local officials in my district was heartbreaking news that our young people are being pulled over roughed up by ice in force meant officers for no apparent reason this creates a culture of fear, and works directly against the Community Policing work local Law Enforcement does on a daily basis. To build trust and keep us safe. In addition to the department deployed cbp personnel from the southern border, to augment isis interior enforcement operations. This action was meant to punish localities like the one i represent, that refused to participate in the cruel and unlawful Immigration Enforcement Mission Initiatives it also came on the heels of another decision meant to target my constituents suspension of cbp trust and travel programs in new york which will affect more than 200,000 new yorkers by the end of the year. Turning to fiscal year 2021 the budget yet again calls for the unnecessary hiring of an additional 2844 isis Law Enforcement officers and for proposes an outrageous increase to 60,000 detention beds the administration appears to have learned nothing from as democrats will not fund unnecessary or his Campaign Promises of the president. Particular for an agency who lacks transparency and whose enforcement tactics are out of control. Request again this is the point, by focusing on a political agenda instead of security and security our homeland. The budget will cut 239 million, from the urban Area Security and the steve. Which assists high threat, high density urban areas, with the consequences of attacks would be most catastrophic. In 228 million, from the hate stone land security grant program. These cuts could have disastrous consequences, late last year my district had terrible semitic attack the cuts, you propose are a slap in the face to my constituents who live in constant fear that they wont have the security and funding needed given this sharp rise of such attacks. The committee remains eager to support the departments corps emission but we will not be a part of a political act that distracts from the real threats facing our homeland. I look forward to a productive discussion today thank you. Now i would like to recognize, the Ranking Member of the Committee Miss granger. Thank you madam chair moment, thank uber for coming before the subcommittee today, to presents the 2021 budget for Homeland Security, you assumed anonymous responsibility is acting secretary of the department, we recognize that, there are 240,000 men and women you are leaving, who work tirelessly to protect our nation. Often without the proper credit. In my home state of texas, we share the longest retro border of any state, and have an important relationship with our neighbors to the south. I appreciate your understanding of our unique situation, i know that you remain committed to securing our borders. Keeping our communities safe, ensuring the legal trade and travel, and survival to our cnn action. Just two days ago i was in gallon texas, with depositary secretary of defense, to see firsthand where our investments important security have produced results. It is my six trip to the border during this crisis. Hundreds of miles of improved border fencing have been built, or under construction. Partnership of the department of defense is aligned Border Patrol agents to get back to their mission of securing the border, and that is what they deserve. I was amazingly, aware of new technologies that are being developed where they can spot persons coming across our border in time to apprehend them, safely i would encourage all the Committee Members to travel to the border, and see some of these improvements, particularly Cooperation Among sections, and the technology being used. Unfortunately with, these improvements we continue to have a crisis on our hands and the facts are undeniable. In 2018 400,000 people, were apprehended at the border. Which is an unbelievable number. Of unauthorized border crossings. Last year that number more than doubled, and nearly 1 million, marking a 12 year high. Its claims for an asylum grow up, the Immigration Courts number grows, back would backlog of cases are now fiveyear years long. Less important issue we have is the high amount of Illegal Drugs being carried across our border, and the criminals who are bringing those drugs in, and also children. This is something we need to be very aware of and i remain hopeful of that our colleagues on the other side of the aisle will help us address these very real issues, i commend the president for using authority under his jurisdiction, to address these issues head on. Mr. Wolf, i think your proposed budget for fiscal year 2021, shows how the department can will take action, if given sufficient resources. As always i will continue to work with the administration, to find solutions for these challenges, i do want always to be aware, that the criminal action at the border, and criminals coming across, our border these are not people that are seeking asylum, these are people who are carrying drugs, and thank you madam chairman i yield back. Before we hear from the secretary, i would like to remind members that they will be called for questioning, based on the seniority of those president , when the hearing was called to order, alternating between minority and majority members. To ensure that everyone also has ability to ask questions, i would ask each member to try to stay within the allotted five minutes per round. Mister secretary please begin your statement. Chair woman alert, and distinguished members of the subcommittee, it is privilege to appear before you today, to discuss our mission to keep our nation safe. And present the budget for our department. Im prepared to address the threats of today and tomorrow, fiscal 21 budget, its not only a reflection of that priorities those priorities but how to achieve them. The disbands airline sea and domains. We stand watch for the nation 24 hours a day trainers extra days years they safety safeguard unc from terrorists, and others who seek us harm. Balancing security and freedom of movement with karen precision. As i often say Economic Security is all month security, and the department plays a Critical Role in this mission. The president s budget ensures that our workforce has the resources it needs to execute these critical responsibilities. This includes 49. 8 billion in that discretionary funding, and an additional 5. 1 billion the Disaster Relief fund to support response to and recovery from disasters in the homeland. Our Budget Priorities remain consistent with recent years, bid include securing have orders and forcing our laws, securing cyberspace in critical infrastructure, transportation security and american preparedness. Recognizing the threats to the homeland are more dynamic than ever before, the by positions us to respond to a number of emerging threats, including those emanating from nations states. Department also remains focused on how to manage the u. S. Governments response to the ground a virus. Dhs remains focused on assisting travelers arriving at our airports of entry land ports of entry and maritime ports of entry. As you are where the Department Took action early on to prohibit chinese nationals, to the administration took action to provide the administration took action for this. Additionally flights of american citizens arrived from china, or american citizens with chinese travel, have been funneled and enforced medical screening. I would say that this is an evolving risk, and we are assisting our resources and our measures on a day by day week by week progress. We will continue to closely monitor the situation and adjust our men measures as necessary. Department must continue to grow our digital defensive cybersecurity, in scope and severity, the department maintains an enhanced posture on the security front. President s budget invest 1. 7 billion in Cybersecurity Infrastructure security agency, to strengthen our cyber and uber mission. This is an increase of 150 million, above the president s fyi 20 budget requests. Security of our nations border also remains a primary focus of the administration for the department. Most notably the budge includes two billion for the construction of approximately eight two miles of new border wall system as well as additional funding of technology and staffing. While securing our borders is of utmost importance the importance is to pass our laws as written. Also removing criminal aliens from the United States. It includes over three billion to make sure that we have the resources we need to execute the law. As true today as it was 9 11, the counterterrorism remains a top focus for the department. Importantly the president has increased funding for to target violence or terrorism by. The budget also invest in modernizing the fleet of the United States coast guard, provides 550 million to fund the construction of a second polar security cutter, which protects our interest in the polar asian. Also offer patrol cutter. Another investment for the coast guard. While physical capabilities and technology are our greatest asset, are the men and women of the department. And as our threats evolve, capabilities girl, newtown is needed to execute our mission. In the budget, for the department, we see 500 new cybersecurity employees across the department, being asked for, the cbp 750 new Border Patrol agents, hundred 26 new support staff. As well as funding to sustain, the 300 Border Patrol processing coordinators again that congress provides resources for in 19 and if i20. 420 new ice attorneys and tsa staff. Budget provides an overall pay increase for dhs employees, including a 3 pm 3 increase, four uniform coast guard men and women. These are feels the priorities included in the budget. Department has been mentioned has one of the most diverse and complex mission sets in government, i continue to be amazed by the professionalism of the men and women of the dhs. Instead of demonizing our workforce we need to thank them for what theyre doing every day. They are beyond reproach, we should sleep better at night knowing that they are on duty. I asked you for your support and providing in the resources needed to keep them American People and our home on secure in the fyi 21 budget request. Thank you for the opportunity to be here today i look forward to your questions. Thank you mister secretary. Mister secretary the budget proposes funding for an average daily population of 60, 000, this is a drastic increase, of 14, 726, over the capacity funded in fei 2020. And it would require an additional 710 Million Dollars. This is remarkable, when considering that after accounting for the proposed transfer of the secret service, to department of treasury, that the budget request proposes an overall increase, of 1. 7 eight billion dollars, above the fire 2020 enacted level. Yet there is no funding for capitalization programs like the Fast Response cutters, and the agency 1 30 aircraft, which are critical to search and see this is your rescue excuse me and i also counter drug operations, and disastrous spots. Do you have any analysis, that supports a detention of 60,000 in fiscal year 2021 . Yes chairwoman, we have a model, that drives the number of bids that we requested a year, we have share that with the committee, i will continue to share that if we have an i will be happy to share it. We share it with a number of folks. That is the past data, that current trends, and looks seasonality, looks as a number of factors, that we need to ice needs to do its mission, but i will say that we had a surge last year, made june in july the number of over 100,000 and many of those months coming across the border illegally, that were released into the u. S. , again there is detail to that enforcement cycle that ice will then have to go, into communities and for those that are here illegally, that our criminals and the like, they will have to continue to remove those individuals, the only way to remove them is to detain them. So yes im happy to share Additional Information if we dont already have it, and that is the number the president s budget. Actually that is of concern, that you have not shared this information that youve shared it with a number of folks whoever that happens to be, but that has not been shared with the subcommittee and being that we, oversee how funds are spent, and the reason for which approach the administration has requested certain things i think its critical that number one, above all, the subcommittee should be the first to get that information. My second question is, over the last, years the department has ruled out several new programs that actually result in the removal of migrants directly from cbp custody, instead of being transferred to ice. These programs include the marker protection protocols, the asylum claim review, the humanitarian asylum review process and the increased use of electronic nationality verification. Moreover, this committee has provided increased funding for alternatives to detention programs which follows Asylum Seekers to live in their communities. Where these programs factored into the 60,000 ice requirement and if the answer is yes, we need to see that analysis. And i will just add to that, why havent we . It is factored. Many of the programs you mention, chairwoman, our new initiative so have not been fully implemented, whether we talk about harper if youre the others to continue to implement those measures, but flights, these are all efforts to ensure that those that are seeking meritorious claims can have their day in Immigration Court heard in an effective manner so were hoping to the through a number of ways, we are hoping to do that in months and not years, as has been the case in the past so, part of the effort, and have these programs and im happy to walk through these, is to make sure we root out fraud but again those that have meritorious claims, we make sure they get their day in court quickly so that we know that they either have the right to be here in the u. S. Or they dont and we effectuate that decision automatically instead of the years and years that this traditionally took. We will ask some further questions about those programs in the impact it has on immigrants but i want to emphasize that the importance of this subcommittee getting the analysis and those things that youre asking for, rather than where some folks are. My time is almost up so im going to yield to the next member. Thank, you madam chairman. Again, mister secretary, thank you for being here today. Secretary, i want to talk with you about something that is obviously affecting the world and of course is impacting the United States, the coronavirus situation. First and foremost, i want my colleagues, the people in the room to know that you have been so cooperative, you call me early about the inception of this crisis and have kept me abreast and i thank you for that. We are all keeping a watchful eye on this critically important situation. I have received updates from the medical side and have been kept abreast by others involved in this crisis. We certainly want to be responsive to needs. Can you kindly clarify what exactly your department specific areas of responsibility are when it comes to the coronavirus because fortunately there has been a Strong National cdc is involved as relates to Homeland Security, what is your purview, sir . It certainly is a whole government approach the administration is pursuing regarding this, specifically for the department, we are there to support, again, the department of health and Human Services as they outline a medical strategy to deal with the coronavirus. We are there to support them and to adjust our operations. Specifically the department was involved early on in the funneling of all flights from china, 11 different airports. We were involved in standing up medical contracts through our sea w. And the sea of the office. Individually come out this aircraft, first they will see a cbp officer, than a normal immigration officer, then we will go to a contract medical screening, again, the department has set up in those 11 airports and then if necessary will be referred to cdc medical professionals as where to determine accordion is a did or not. We do than airports. We also do that it points of entry. We do this a maritime ports of entry, so we have a number of cargo ships arriving every day in china securing goods but we also have crew that have perhaps visited affected areas, so we have coast guard involved, cbp involved, it is a whole of departmental effort to make sure we are instituting the measures of the president has put in place, to include the travelers, reactions to make sure again that the American Public is safe and secure. Well, thank you, sir, and count me in for our full support of your endeavors and that of the other departments as we combat this critically important situation and crisis. Mister secretary, during my time in congress ive come to learn and appreciate a Critical Role that research and development plays in securing our nation and providing seed money for innovative goods and services. What is dhs doing to prepare to meet this nations future Homeland Security needs and, as a followup to that, how is the science and Technology Directorate leveraging scientific expertise and resources for National Laboratories, universities . We do that in a variety of different ways. Certainly we do that at our component level with the funding they have. The operators know the most part by technology and capabilities we needed. So we use the funding in those components to mostly acquire commercial off the shelf products that are here ready to go today, and then we have a little bit longer term idea. We talk about our science and Technology Directorate that is investing in those technologies that are perhaps already today but will be in a short timeframe. We are looking at that one to two to threeyear period, and really in that Department Missions life, fantasizing Technology Director had a little bit of a longer tale, what is five or ten years out, i think at the time, we have seen we need the capabilities a lot sooner than that so we will continue to invest in. That s and he uses that not only centers of excellence that they received funding from congress on, but also the National Laboratory to do that, to invest in some of the high tech expertise that if you dont have onsite, that obviously Different National laboratories around the country do so we have agreements with them to continue to utilize their expertise as well so it expands the spectrum from technology that we need today relatively soon from Operational Requirements to those technologies that can either be approved on or can be invested in with other elements of the u. S. Government. Thank, you mister secretary. Since my time is about up, i thank you for your response and madam chair, i yield back. Mister secretary, your predecessor established a review of the migrant protection protocols last fall. Can you share with us what dhs is done in response to the red team recommendations, particularly with regard to ensuring migrants had meaningful access to Legal Counsel . So, weve done a number of things. We set the previous acting secretary, took that Red Team Report and sent it out to the department to say, okay, we would like to see your responses so again, cbp, uscis manly. These were the results of that red team and then we would like to see the responses, some initial responses came, back and we had two different times to do that. Some initial responses came back. With sunday implement those and a more fulsome response we forthcoming as well. We continue to do a number of things to improve the program that we have heard from the chair whenever mothers about access to council. We continue to look at that and everyone who comes into mpp receives a medical screening each and every time they come into that program so if theres three or four times are coming back across the border to go to Immigration Court, every time theyre looking at a medical screening, every time theyre meeting with uscis officers. I interrupt for a minute . Because time is so limited. You are saying you are continuing to look at access to council. What are you looking at and what can you do and what are you doing . Of course, they have access to council i so the question that weve been discussing with the Committee Staff and others is, how do we continue to improve on that . So, one thing that we are doing is showing, we have a no your rights video so that is something the very specific to the mpp Court Process that does not occur in the interior Immigration Court so it is a continuous running video, no your rights, Committee Staff and the chairwoman has asked if we can do that in person. Were taking a look at that with our operational components to have that the alive, and something that is not done in domestic Immigration Courts today. I want to interrupt for a minute, because i was in laredo last week and i was concerned that the know your rights video was shown on a Small Television in a room with fans so loud that it was very difficult for migrants to hear or understand so this is obviously unacceptable and must be addressed immediately. I dont know if youre aware of that. I was not concerned about the television and the fans ive made a note of it will take a look at it. Additionally yesterday, your hearing for the Senate Appropriations committee faces it many migrants, in the mpp program and not showing up for hearings, and you attributed that as lack of valid asylum claims. Do you have an analysis to justify that claim, can you provide that to the committee . My comment was, again we are seen roughly, 50 of folks who dont show up, to continue that to continue the immigration proceedings which is roughly the same that we see within the interior courts or interior proceedings as well so part of that is, not having a claim some can simply just choose not to be part of the program any longer. If they dont like how the program is going, they dont like the weight, they dont like a number of things they can simply choose and leave. That is hard data to have. There is a number of reasons why individual may not continue to proceed with our immigration proceedings, under the mpp program. My comments yesterday was to draw the parallels between the noshow rate that we see in the interior, and specifically what we are seeing mpp courts as well. I would like to see if there is a better analysis, to see why they are not showing up. And if there is something we can do to improve the system. We asked because we have been made aware of several of the facts are the factors that hit their ability to appear, for the appearings, theyre lack of understanding of the process, shelters are far from the border, the requirement to be present by 4 am, at our ports is often both logistically shall enjoying an unsafe, migrants may not know how or have the ability to communicate with the u. S. Government. That they need to postpone due to health reasons, or that the migrants have been kidnapped. So it seems there are many reasons, why some may not be there for the hearing in our system, it seems to me you should protect those who need the most. I would hope that we can avoid jumping to unsubstantiated conclusions and give us better understanding of where we go from here. I see my time is almost up thank you. I would just say that we continue to work with a number of ngos regarding the program to, make sure that they have enough information, again that they are communicating with the migrants that are in the mpp program and we will continue to do that, one thing that i did, shortly after becoming in the chair, we heard a number of folks saying that they did have access to our facilities this would be curious people who are curious about this ngos nonprofits, Catholic Charities and others, they wanted to understand better about these facilities. We have done that they can now come into these areas and even though they may not be part of the proceedings they might not be part of that, they can see what is going on. We are not trying to hide anything, we want to make sure we do this in a safe environment so we will continue to work with the committee and staff to see how we can improve this program, make sure that folks understand what the program is about and what the procedures are. So i commit to doing that with you. Thank you very much thank you madam chair. Miss granger, sank you as i said i was at the border station on monday, and i heard from people on the ground, on the border crossings are down, the crisis has not passed, the criminal organizations continue to make a business out of trafficking people and drugs, the Central American countries, called a northern triangle, a fuel coming across our borders, not only in mexico, i know that you are recently in honduras, can you tell us, give an update on what those countries are doing to address the human trafficking, the smuggling and the root causes of this problem of migration. I was in honduras, last week for our 12th security ministerial, it was my third one in this chair, but probably my six one overall, being part of, that we have number agreements with the northern triangle countries, all three of them, on Border Security, information sharing, and on asylum capacity. So we are doing a number of initiatives with them to build their capacity which is a regional solution, a regional problem, and they understand that. And they are putting resources to those agreements as well. So we continue to see progress, we continue see cooperation, it is certainly a lot stronger than it has been in the past. Its not only the northern triangle they continue to step up mexico and other places in say enhancement operations, on making sure that they address the illegal flow of migrants in their country as well, so again part of the effort here and the department in addition to some of the programs that we talked about, we are also looking at the source in these areas, what do they need from a security instability, and part of that equation is about the prosperity in this country knowing that everyone recognizes, those countries are more prosperous, and economic situation, improves their, and individuals in those countries will stay there, and that illegal flow, will line the pockets of the cartels and pcos, and it will reduce and eliminate altogether, through other elements the u. S. Government, the d fc, department of commerce and others, we are looking at Economic Prosperity in those regions, to again buildup those economies, in the like. There are a number of things we are doing with northern triangle, in addition to all the programs, that we are doing at the border as well. We have helped them, or we are trying to help them in the past, in the leadership in those countries, and not do what we want them to do, with our efforts, the difference i saw whats happening with mexico, in helping us, with whats going across our border, was really very evident, and making a huge difference. Do you agree with that . I do agree, is almost 19 day. We look back two years ago on the cooperation that we have with these governments, up and down. From the northern triangle mexico, and just recently included two art ministerial costa rica and panama. We are expanding those who are participating knowing that it is much larger than just the northern triangle. Department continues to see a number of populations, crossing the southwest border that causes concern, for brazilians ecuadorians and others, theres only so many ways they get there. So we need to involve all the countries, along the route, and others to address this problem. We will continue to look at that, but i would agree that we have seen quite a bit of improvement from all the countries involved. And there is a number one this is at its highest several years ago, we were counting immigrants come across our border, from 51 countries, how many countries are we tracking now . It is much higher than that. I wouldnt say its someone from every country, but its much higher than 50. Thank you. Mr. Cuellar. Thank you mister chair thank you for the work to you, do the men and women and we appreciate it as you know i spent a lot of time i lived near the border, i spent a lot of time with your men and women, whether its air marine ice, i appreciate the work they do. You mentioned the senior statement the coronavirus, you mentioned february 2nd, cbp has refused refused to enter travelers at the ports of entry, 97 preclearance, it goes on, including 319 chinese nationals that were tempted to enter illegally, about 194 of them were in my area, in the rio grande valley, i appreciate what you are doing, but my question is is there anything extra we need to do to protect our men and women, in doing their work. I know they explain the protocols already, but is there anything else that the committee can help you to make sure that we protect the men and women at the front lines . That is certainly one of my primary concerns when dealing with a coronavirus, not only what were doing to protect the American People, but specifically what we are doing to protect dhs employees, Border Patrol officers, as far as well as tsa officers at our airports, right now they have all the equipment they need, and that is p. E. D. S, but we are providing them with a lot of training, medical information from the cdc on what we know about the virus to date, and some best practices on what we know that other coronaviruses, that are similar we will continue to do it again as the medical strategy from cdc air ages as changes, we might have to change what were doing with our officers but as of today, we feel very comfortable with the comfort with the with what we have put in place with a variety of perspectives, including the protective wear, gloves masks, things like that so we will continue to do more, if the virus and our strategy demands that we do more, i will say that the department continues to spend funding that we did perhaps allocate, for this virus and we will do that right now we have the money that we need, we may be moving money around within this fiscal year and then well have to see depending on how long this proceeds, where we go. How many dollars do you want take from the wall to go over that, im just kidding. Mister secretary and i agree we are down there in laredo this weekend, and your men and women are doing a great job. Sometimes we might disagree, with the administration on policy, but policy is one thing, men and women we support your men and women i want to make sure you understand that and that comes from my committee. Second of all let me talk to you about the border wall, because it is coming down to my area, the rio grande valley, my understanding is in the last three years, theres been only one mile of new fencing, and Everything Else has been replacement, or secondary but now you are going into a lot of in texas, where its private property owners, and one of the things that i or the committee or we added in the appropriations, was to make sure that we mitigate community and environmental impact, by getting the consultation, and sometimes i think that its symbolic, and i say this with all due respect, because none of the people ive talked to, have given me a pleasant conversation, it is basically we have to do this because Congress Told us, but i havent seen, except for one area that i think that you are all working with, in the bulkhead in laredo, that i havent seen a players a pleasant experience with a landowners, as the gao, wasnt laredo in the valley the last couple of days to, make sure that we dont abuse the Eminent Domain when it comes to private Property Rights i just want to make sure that there is a sincere intention to really make adjustments to designs or to the placement of the fence if it goes that far. Thats the only thing i ask you. The language has been there but i dont want a check our, check our, jeff mark. You certainly have my commitment. Ive talked to the ambassador and youll see this commitment as well. And weve seen that as well in downtown laredo we are working with the city on a grassroot alternative designs that meets their need as well as are so, we will continue to do that. Obviously the argue v, that is where the predominant private land is in the department as well as our corps of engineers doing the work on the ground, trying to survey the land, trying to assess title, trying to do a number of things as we do a number of things to obstruct the border wall system so we make that commitment and have had a discussion and i think i times there will be some we disagree with and we will have to continue that process but we want to be transparent. And have that discussion. I mr. Palazzo. Thank, you madam chair and mr. Wolf for being here today. Were all aware of the hard drugs that are coming across our border, not just a point of entry but between points of entry. We spent a lot of time on the subcommittee and congress as a whole talking about the southern border, and what solutions we can bring to bear to stem the stagers tide. One of the things that is often overlooked is our maritime border. Intercepting drugs that our land borders is like a goal line stand at the one yard line. It is great, but where we need to stop the drugs smuggling is where the big, and at their one yard line. I continue to brag what the coast guards National Security counter, and with good reason. The coats guard has seized millions of dollars of drugs on patrols we truly used for National Security. Today, this committee has funded 11 of these Multi Mission ships. This asset, along with the men and women of our coast guard, are taking these jobs off the ocean in bulk. This is not a couple of kilos of cocaine hidden in a tracker carried on someones back. Were talking about millions of dollars of hard drugs that are dusted for our communities. The coast guard seizes more drugs than all other federal agencies combined. In the past four, years the coast guard has seized 2 Million Pounds of cocaine, with an estimated street value of 26 billion dollars. We need more focus on the maritime borders and access to our oceans so mr. Wolf, i would appreciate if you can talk about your vision and how you plan to utilize appropriated funds to focus operations on drug smuggling in south and central america. Thank you. The coast guard certainly plays a vital role there so when we look at key west and what they do patrolling from an intelligence perspective on the drug flow, the drug traffic coming from south america, caribbean in the eastern pacific, im happy to report that it is the coast guard assets making those introductions almost exclusively between the coast guard ships, helicopters as well as cbp helicopters and assets as well, well an interagency interdepartmental process, intelligence comes into that but folks on the ground or in this case in the sea making this addictions our coast guard men and women and im incredibly proud of what they do. Of course i would say the u. S. Government does not have the resources to contradict all of the narcotics coming from south america so i thought what was interesting one time is if you put the outline of the u. S. On the eastern pacific in the caribbean, that is what coast guard patrols, with a handful of ships, and we will continue to do that but its a very challenging task, and i will also say that is just one part of it. I will also, say when we interject, the drugs are critically important but its also the investigators that are talking to these individuals, leading information, trying to bring them on as sources and the like to again get at the issue of the store so we will continue to put resources into the introduction but i would also say the investigation part of that process again that we do across the country is vitally important and of course dhs plays a role there with ice, Homeland Security investigators, but also with dea and other elements of the u. S. Government. I agree 100 with your remarks and it just once again reinforces why the National Security of color is so important. I know several of us are disappointed that we had funding, this committee appropriated funds for a 12 National Security alert only to see the president s budget remove those funds but they also, in addition, they froze the Fast Response colors so, removing these drugs before they make it into mexico is vitally important. Once it makes it into mexico, it is pretty much in america, and i think we can afford to fund these coast guard assets more because these drugs are destroying our communities. They are destabilizing the countries in south and central america, probably leading to the mass migration that we are seeing at our southern border and is being driven by transnational criminal organizations. I will continue to work with the government and cited during a little bit of the budget buildup of this one, the comments priorities continue to be the polar security cutter and in the budget request is funding to support a second one as well as the offshore patrol cutter. Those are two Capital Investments that the coast guard is focused on, and obviously we still very much believe in the National Security commission that they have so its a budget like any other budget where there is tradeoff that have to be made so we want to make sure they have capability in the polar region as well as the new offshore patrol cover capability as well, but will continue to work with congress on what the right priorities are going forward. I agree, and the polar security color and the offer which will cutter are important. I think we just need to look at the demands they are putting on the coast guard. And we are protecting our Homeland Security, maybe we need to find them more. Madam chair . Thank, you madam chairwoman and Ranking Member for todays hearing. Thank you to all our Committee Staff for all the preparation and of course thank you to acting secretary wolf for being here today. I want to ask about an incident that happened in my hometown in new york city where i. C. E. Recently shot an unarmed man who was not even a subject of a warrant and then two weeks ago news outlets reported the administration is deploying Border Patrol tactical unit, essentially a swat team, two great sanctuary cities. You can understand that actions like this cause a lot of alarm for our constituents, both undocumented and documented, from children to seniors, who fear that these units will further terrorize there in our communities. But technical and operational steps involved with enforcement at the southern border are really different from the steps that those officers would need to take in a heavilypopulated urban area especially like new york city. Has there been an update in policies and trainings for these teams . So, to ensure that they are not engaged in unnecessary and excessive force, especially in urban areas. The big individuals again that cbp is landing ice in this case for about 90 days, that only comes from board tack but also from the non Border Patrol parts of cbp, so it is about half and half, it is about 50 50 and all of those individuals that are deploying in a number of cities across the country have specialized training that will support i. C. E. , euro officers were going into these communities. It is very similar to what other fellow agencies provide i. C. E. On a daily basis as, well whether federal Law Enforcement agencies provided support as well. Again, i think there is probably be misconceptions. These are not individual that will show up in riot gear, riding the street in a tank, which i have seen pictures of as well. That is not the case. You probably will not be able to distinguish them any different than i, cra wages or any other federal Law Enforcement agents. They will be in plain clothes, of course they will have the appropriate vest on, they will need to do their job, but they will be trained there to protect ice, as needed. Have there been previous deployments of teams like more tech in recent years . There has been deployment of cbd pea forces to assist ice i will get you more information on this i dont have that number with me on what weve done in the plastic we also read from a New York Times article, that deployment will be from about february to may of this year just wondering why and how this timeframe was chosen one of our concerns is because it is around the same time frame as this consensus as being carried out all through the country there is a lot of fear in our communities in our districts and the timeframe just makes it a lot more challenging for the Census Bureau to do their job and people have misconceptions hopefully that they are not coordinating with Law Enforcement im wondering if you would sorry im so rushed i know you i dont have a lot of time but would you consider halting these raids. So the Census Bureau would not be seen as coordinating with Law Enforcement. I can tell you and all the discussions that i have had, and ive had with commissioner morgan that safer the timeframe for the coincidence of the Consensus Bureau has never factored that into that committee decisionmaking for us at least during any of the discussions ive had. I will take that back to the team to see what we can do to address any concerns about the census, and see what can be done in these specific locations again, there is only about six to seven cities i believe, that these teams that dhs are or sorry ice on cbp and also. Thank you i want to get it one more quick question the trusted traveler program, a couple of years ago you said that dhs is suspending the program, which includes global entry for new york residents, i want to ask was there any attempt by dhs to communicate and you work with new york state officials, on carving out these exceptions to the ban. As the law is currently written, it does not allow any carbon, so we continue to be in touch, not only with the governor but other state officials, to reach a solution. Im hoping that we can wear their Prior Communications before this expansion was announced . We communicated with new york state prior to, and including a letter, and we did not hear from them im sorry the new york dmv has said there is no criminal history information, that is held specifically in their database, so what criminal history data is only available through dmv . The information that we need for the trusted traveler program, but a wide range of the department, just goes beyond criminal information. There is other data, that at the dmv database that is critical, specifically on trusted traveler, to vet a trusted traveler applicant. If you have a dui, that is not a felony convictions, but you have an arrest that factors into the decisionmaking process. At cbp on whether that trusted traveler, warrants the benefit of a global entry, or under the program. There is information in the database, that not only we need for the trusted traveler, but cbp and ice needs for Law Enforcement, so they if theyre pulling over car, expected human trafficker, they need to have access to that data, based has a picture of the individual, whose car that is right now they cannot do that. So it is severely impeding the Law Enforcement edition and impeding the protection of the citizens. Thank you madam chairman, act and secretary wolf thank you for being here with us today, i appreciate your presentation, also want to just take a moment, to use this is an opportunity to thank the men and women, that work in at dhs, and for the dedication to the mission for protecting our country. We appreciate that very much. And look forward to continuing to be a partner with you. I want to talk a little bit about the role, of the National Laboratories, and how they can be and in trickle part of h s size work, i heard i appreciate your responses, i dont have to tell you that we are facing an involving number of threats both natural, and men made a lot of Different Things that are coming at you, so im sure sometimes you feel like a little dutch boy with your fingers but a lot of things are happening, especially in areas like bio defenses, cybersecurity that you mentioned, one way that we have been able to stay ahead of the game, is through research and development, and that is certainly something that the National Laboratories including the National Laboratory in my district, Pacific Northwest lab, they have been active and strong partners about defensive cybersecurity for a long time. Ive been there many many times, as my office has as well, and i just want to take a moment to extend you an invitation to come and see the laboratory and the work that they are doing and how we can integrate more into the responsibilities of the department of Homeland Security. Thank you and i would just say that we can continue through our director are wmd office in utilizing the number of sources outside the department to include national lab, specifically when we talk about corona, we have a facility which is outside of frederick maryland, looking at that the virus, what they are doing that in conjunction with a number of other federal partners, as well as outside entities. From a departmental perspective we have a lot of threats as you indicated, a lot of a lot of needs in our resources only go so far, so how we utilize other elements of the u. S. Government, private industry, and the like is critical to making sure that we do our job and secure the homeland. I know that we have agreements, and we have relationships with a number of labs, and have having dive into that. Well thats a perfect segue into my more difficult question. The budget request includes significant cuts to our andy, both science and technology and the directorate. And countering weapons of mass destruction office, as we talked about there are continuing threats and challenges that we face daily. Lapsed in my opinion see very well suited for this mission, and you talked about the integration of private sector technologies. And that is all great, i agree with that, but we also have world class facilities, within our national lab at work so could you address this issue and speak to the rationale for these cuts . Pelosi wmd office is relatively new office we are going to our second fiscal, year theres a number of resources provided, in fei 20, but they continue to utilize, so again we think that the budget requests for see the empty helps sustain their work and continues that in snt, i believe we fund in the budget request five of ten of the dhs centers of excellence, and again focused on some of the National Priorities that we have on detection, in a number of initiatives and omissions for the department, i will say its a tough budget, there are tradeoffs, that we have to do we have to make sure that we resource the men and women the operators on the front lines, to do their Mission Every day to make sure that there is enough resources for them to continue to our snt director and plan for an invest in, and work with them on some of the longer solutions, and technology solutions, so i dont disagree its a tough budget we need to make trade offs, we need to see value in obviously our science and Technology Directorate, and our sea wmd office its in the middle of the coronavirus response, and we believe our budget request while difficult, does make the need of investments in 21. I appreciate that, and certainly we are asking people to accomplish an almost impossible task. And i appreciate that. But as i said we do have a lot of assets is our disposal and i just like to encourage you to utilize them as fully as possible thank you very much for everything you do and appreciate you being here today thank you madam chair i yield back. Mr. Idler, thank you chairwoman and members of the committee, and thank you for being here, mister secretary in january i visited mexico, where Asylum Seekers had been forced to camp out as a result, of the dhs remain in mexico policy, implemented by your agency, this requires migrants to stay in mexico as they wait for Court Hearings with immigration judges. While i visited i personally saw children and families, who lack access to medical care, some are drinking out of water sources that had been exposed to e. Coli, truly truly awful conditions, they lived along the border, share the story which included kidnapping, extortion by cartels, are you aware of the extreme violence along the border in regions where people are living because of the mpp policy . Yes i am aware of a number of the statistics the violence the department of state, and have all the information. Because commissioner morgan, was on the record stating, he was unaware of kidnapping staking taking places along the border, do you acknowledge that the mpp policy has explode refugees and Asylum Seekers, to serious risk of kidnapping and other Violent Crimes . Im aware of, the information about kidnappings and others, i dont have any specific information, regarding the mpp program, and the violence that you described, it is my statement with more general, im aware of the general violence. Sure sure but lets get back on the anecdotal human rights first identified 816 incidences of torture rape and murder among Asylum Seekers, so back to mexico under the current policy, one woman from honduras detail that she was objected by Mexican Police and right, another man from cuba was sent back to mexico after sending after spending 40 days in detention, only to be assaulted and robbed at a local store. Asylum seeker from guatemala was sexually assaulted in front of her four year old son. These are just a few of the cases documented by human rights first, so this is the on anecdotal. This is not the only organization that is documented these instances, doctors without borders. Im sure youre familiar with that organization, earlier this month issued a report that included the following, findings, eight out of ten patients treated in nuevo laredo, by doctors were victims of violence, eight and ten, 43 of all patients treated, experienced violence in seven days before consultation, with doctors without borders, in 2019 43 , of patients treated were returned to mexico through the mpp program, they had been kidnapped. And in october of 2019, a percentage of kidnappings among those returned, had increased by 75 . Considering the state can we go beyond, saying that this is anecdotal. This is happening, this is real organized crime is playing a role along the southern border, and this is a direct consequence a direct correlation to mpp. Would you not agree with that . I would agree that, the journey and we talked about it for a number of years, is very dangerous for these Asylum Seekers. Or for any other economic migrants, for a variety of reasons that they choose and come to the u. S. Is a dangerous journey, you play a smuggler cartel or to ceo to make this journey, theyre in it for the ball in dollar. And so yes but not all of them are paying smugglers, we can move beyond that. But you dont acknowledge that, the proposals, the policy what i would say is we continue to encourage those individuals, that are seeking protections, whether its in el salvador on duress guatemala, seek those protections as close to home as possible. So you dont have to make this dangerous journey, as you are describing congressman, through parts of mexico, theyre coming to the border. When we talk about specifically mpp, i will certainly address, that we are working with our department of state colleagues, and other elements of the u. S. Government, to provide resources to date we have provided about 20 Million Dollars, through the department of state, to the government of mexico, for mpp shelters, that includes security, for access to transportation, if they choose not to say in the mpp program. We do provide some assistance to have the return home and the like so, the u. S. Government is going above and beyond on trying to help the government of mexico, provide shelters along the mvp. I think theres plenty more that we can, do the administration has requested 126 Million Dollars for mpp, how much of this as you mentioned, as some of the humanitarian work that is being down. How much of the hundred and 26 million will be directed towards ecb ontarian concerns at the border. Which generally us address the wellbeing of them. It comes from state department, we work with the state Department Colleagues who have different sets of funding buckets they provide and mainly to unhcr and ill mri them i think everyone on the dice aware of the different agencies responsible for this funding so out of the 126 million, which is within your agency, none of that, it would be through state for other agencies that would provide the funding related to wellbeing. Right, and again they have the mechanisms to apply that funding. Our findings with certain restrictions, making sure we apply that to our operations, working with state department, continue to work with state department to find Additional Services at this sites, again the unhcr, through a number of ngos, we will go in there and continue to build that capacity and talk to the government of mexico about that. I appreciate that. Thank you madam chair, i yield back. Mr. Rutherford. Thank, you madam chair. Mister secretary, i thank you for being here this morning and i first want to say thank you to all the men and women of dhs for all that you do and physically i want to thank you for the 287 g program you continue to push. I can tell you as a lifelong Law Enforcement officer that enhanced the safety and security of my community. We remove thousands of virulent criminals as a result of that program and these were bad, bad people and when i see the numbers that are talked about here today, 40,000 arrests, 4300 gang members, 450 just from ms 13, that is amazing and so, as appreciative of us i am of that, im also appalled at the sanctuary city concept that endangers citizens back home by not working with i. C. E. To remove these kind of criminals from our streets so, i just want to start with that. One thing that does concern me, jack sport in Jacksonville Florida is a very large container port and in fact we move over telling million goods last year and one of the questions i have is, can you tell us what percentage of our cargo is actually being inspected through the inspection process . At maritime ports . Country wide. Oh, country, white i have shown that data from the southwest border. I can get you back country wide on and i are, detection is relatively low in the southwest border. We have funding that congress provide an f why 19 and 20 that we are deploying to over 400 are actually higher and i i systems that will go mainly at the southwest border, interdict those drugs and other illegal contraband but i have much more clarity on those numbers. I get back to you on nationwide every port but and i i, how much it screams. Well id like to see, that because i think the numbers is pretty low is, what im hearing, and really if you think about it, these points in particular where we have these containers coming in, it is almost like the trojan horse going into the city of troy. We are inviting these things in and we have no idea what is inside a lot of them and so i would like to follow up with you on that if you dont mind and last year we appropriated almost 60 Million Dollars, as you mention. What is in this years budget for that . Do you know right off the bat . The fyi 20 budget is for maintenance and support of that so we had 60 million f enough i20 as you indicated, much money that congress provided in f1 19 so that is a total of over 660, large, medium and small scale nii, that is a lot of money, a lot of equipment will be rolled out over a period of time. We have to have the majority if not all of that fully deployed by 2022. And the people are this year . This, year it is a little over 100, 140 million of that equipment. Okay, thank you. You over the last three years, President Trumps administration, how many miles of border wall have actually built . We hear these numbers back and forth. I dont care if it is replacement renew, but how many miles . We have about 126 miles completed and that is of new border wall system, and i always say that that is new wall because it provides our agents new capabilities that they have not had before. Okay and how much have we actually invested in the technologies to help with that . Because after, you still need to detect these folks once they may come across. Correct. I talk about the border wall system, so within that system is not only the physical infrastructure the wall itself, but it is, cameras, routes why, eating fiber optic tables, it is the whole package that cbp and the army corps puts in along that southwest border so again, we have 146 miles completed, 213 miles of construction, another 414 in reconstruction phase, so we are getting at it as quickly as possible. Okay, and you have talked today about, im sorry. My overtime . That threw me off. If i could ask one last question, the president it pvr on this year has austin for two billion for a border wall. We know it is an impact along with the technology because we see those numbers go down that you addressed earlier. Is that adequate for you . It is, with the fei 21 monies that we had in 17, 18, 19 and 20, we will have over 570 miles and what that, funds we will get you to look at what we need along with Congress Going forward. We have a Border Security Improvement Plan that cbp is working on, congress has the last one. I think some saw this as kind of a pullback from all commitment. I think you have to look at the totality of funding weve gotten over the past few school years. Its not just looking at the present budget request for one year. Youve got to look at the totality. Thank you. I yield back. Mr. Price. Thank, you madam chairman. Secretary, let me ask you another question that has a Multi Department aspect but nonetheless one that i hope you can answer because Homeland Securitys role is a key one. It has to do with refugees. Investable 20, the Trump Administration said a refugee ceiling of only 18,000 individuals. Thats the wrong lowest refugee admissions ceiling that any administration in the programs 40 year history and comes on the heels of two previous historically low ceiling, some sort of 5000 and 34,000 entities and fiscal 18 or 19 as well as the 2017 i entire refugee program. Not only is an 18,000 refugee ceiling shockingly low, but currently, almost halfway through the fiscal year the United States has admitted only about 5000 refugees. Thats less than 30 of an already low ceiling. That puts our nation on track to admit a total of only about 10,000 refugees in fiscal 20, which would be a complete dereliction of our duty, so the worlds most vulnerable as deadly wars and political and religious persecution are increasing around the world. Producing seven the 5 million forcibly displaced people and 25. 9 million refugees worldwide currently. You have all heard the reports of bureaucratic slow walking. A minister of barriers, like a medical school staffing, reductions in circuit, rides close review of Serious International offices, socalled security measures, enhanced security measures, together all of this seems intentionally designed to prevent our nation from accepting any more than a trickle of refugees. I hear about this because i have wonderful organizations that participate in Refugee Resettlement and want to fulfill their promise. They want to bring refugees in north carolina, but they get weeks for a single refugee which is totally unprecedented. So, how can you explain the fact that we are almost halfway through the fiscal year and have admitted less than half a third of the refugees we have placed to take in . Is my projection of 10,000 unrealistic as to what this will look like at the end of the year . And this is taking place during one of the worst refugee crises in World History and what about these various bans administered of obstacles and requirements, did a really reflects some increasing danger . As you know, refugees have committed no terrorist act, none, zero, in recent years. What makes you conclude that the security measures have been inadequate, or you, know whats going on . How is the changed . And if it has changed, why does our country seem unable to determine the danger without just stopping the flow entirely . Why dont we have an appropriate Voting System to deal with this and to yet do our duty, fulfill our obligations as a member of the International Community to deal with this International Crisis . Well, congressman, i would say that we are one of the only countries that distinguishes between refugees and Asylum Seekers so you have to look at the protections we provide and the totality of not only the refugees that the department is betting, but also the Asylum Seekers that we process each and every year, so looking at that, in the totality, we do allow historic numbers and provide protections to historic numbers, regarding the 5000. Historic numbers like what . You are telling me that really invalidates the importance or the significance of these historically low numbers ive cited . If that is the case, please correct the numbers. Again, im happy to get you the numbers where we look at both the refugees and Asylum Seekers, asylum cases that we adjudicate each year and again i go back to my statement earlier. We are only, one of the only two countries, there may be one or two others, that distinguish between those two populations. Youre suggesting that our treatment of. Those protections are very similar. A lot of the hearings this morning had to do with the treatment of Asylum Seekers. It is astounding he would be claiming that, that our treatment of Asylum Seekers somehow compensates for our shutting doors to refugees. I really would like to see those numbers and i just dont understand the argument that somehow we are doing so much to open the door to Asylum Seekers that these disgraceful refugee numbers are meaningless or need to be corrected. Im happy to again get with the department of state on the 5000 versus the 10,000 projection. We obviously play a role in vetting refugees but that is a department of state program that im happy to touch base and provide some more information on where they see those numbers going and i have no information that says we have not reached the 18,000. On what increased danger is this based . Am i wrong about the failure of the administration or anybody else, to associate refugees with act of terrorism . So, what is the reasoning here for slowing this flow to a trickle . Is it a matter of security or is it Something Else . It is, i will say the number of the security measures that we put in place in 17 and 18 were, there were vulnerabilities in a system that continue to be in the system. I will not go into it in this setting but there continues to be vulnerabilities that we see in that program that we want to address and want to make sure that it continues but we need to make sure that the individuals coming here are fully vetted and that we understand who they are so we will continue to get at it, continue to increase not only the processing, and the security vetting that we do but making sure we have resources dedicated to that. Thank you, madam chairman. This wasserman shultz. Thank, you madam chair. Welcome, mr. Wolf. By way of reference, you may not be aware that my role on appropriations is that i chair the military construction and Veterans Affairs appropriations subcommittee so its primarily my job to make sure that our Service Members and our veterans have everything they need but during their active duty service and once they leave active service. And im not sure you understand the burden on our appropriators in terms of the quality of life of our Service Members and also making sure that we protect the billions of dollars in equipment that we spend our funds on every year to keep us safe, because otherwise why would we give your Department Three one six billion dollars in multi Construction Funding that was approved and enact by the president into law in fights money last year for the president racist border wall . Why would you steal a whopping 3. 8 billion dollars in defense funds again this year . That money was for f35 fighter jets, rotor aircraft and National Guard and reserve equipment just to name a few and what that tells me is that the Trump Administration fears a poor persecuted family coming across the border more than they fear russia, china or any other foreign adversary so after the administrations outright theft of funding from our troops was before, how could you possibly justify requesting another two billion dollars of congressionally appropriated funding for fiscal year of 2021, and why would you bother requesting more funding through the regular order the appropriations process when we both know that you are just going to break into the pentagon and steal it again what you already have started to do during this fiscal year . What i would, say and i think the administration has been very clear on this, is that Border Security is National Security so the president that is not a question. How is it more important than the money that was already. I talked to secretary esper on multiple occasions and he is supportive of using this funding for the border wall system, we continue to have partners at d. O. D. Not only active duty but National Guard providing a number of capabilities on the southern border. Which goes back to my initial comment, which is, voter securities National Security and i think the president recognizes business. I think the overwhelming majority of the American People and members of congress and military leadership, despite what you say about secretary esper, understands that protecting our troops, making sure that they are ready, protecting our overall National Security and not just trying to unsuccessfully block poor people who are fleeing persecution from other countries is a much more dire and significant National Security issue then putting up a wall that will not keep dangerous people out anyway . And despite this, and i think this is important to know for a, record despite this being the president s political issues, nearly all of the barriers President Trump has built a replaced appearance. When he leaves office in january, trump will be nowhere close to building a wall that covers the southern border. Im not saying youve already failed and i know you may not care, he may not care, but i want people to know where this money is being stolen from to pay for this absurd border wall, keeping our troops children in a crowded schools in fort bragg for campbell, affecting a replacement for a multi, rotten fest Childcare Center at another base. The wall has already taken money from the wildfire flight simulators in california and new drone Pilot Training facilities that has sinkholes and that. I personally have traveled many members of this subcommittee around the world and looked at rusty hangers that literally have to have their doors bound together with wire in order to make sure that they dont damage the billions of dollars that they are designed to protect. This untimely example of the sacrifice projects for the money you stole for this google of a border wall. Mr. Wolf, i know that the president does not care about the military enough to actually protect them but dont you agree that canceling unnecessary necessary and over the projects for our men and women is detrimental to the quality of life and readiness and dont you worry about a terrible precedent that this set . Again, ive had numerous conversations with the secretary of defense. Im asking what you think, that what secretary thinks. I would say that the violence that we, see and i talk to the Law Enforcement Community Across the southwest border, i think some of those comments trivialize the violence that they see that they have to deal with. Youre putting a border wall to block that is more important than any of the money. I would say we have different priorities will continue to balance those. The president has made a decision and we continue to operate and continue to build the border wall system. Okay, reclaiming my time, what is evident is that mr. Trumps professed love of the military has been absent. It was all this game and this is what happens when you elect someone who can allow that and someone who is as inept as he is to run the government of the most powerful nation on earth is supposed to be protecting our men and women in uniform who are working every day to protect us. I yield my time. I would say theres no bigger supporter. I yield my time, thank you. John, may i respond . No, i yield back. Thank you. You will have an opportunity to respond when we go in the second round. Lets complete the first round. Mister secretary, despite guidance that multiple populations are not amenable to placement in the they are still sending pregnant women, persons with disability including children and lgbt migrants back to mexico. Unfamiliar place where a vast majority of the migrants to wait months for the Immigration Court proceedings. Just a few weeks ago, cbp placed a family into the program that under any reasonable definition should have been considered vulnerable based on the medical condition of one of the family members, a seven Year Old Girl who had a seizure disorder and severely developmentally delayed. She needs daily medication but still has seizures every ten days and has a Life Expectancy ive only a few more years. Nevertheless, you refused to reverse the decision to place the family into mpp and so they will be in mexico for months in squalid conditions awaiting their immigration hearings. Your reasoning for not helping this child was reportedly that you did not want to contradict cbp personnel. This is not an operational issue. It is a policy decision and you are the political appointee who makes policy decisions. Undercurrent cpp guidance, a family like this really amenable to placement into mpp. A family with a child who has lifethreatening medical conditions and if not, who is considered medically vulnerable enough under cbp guidance to not be amenable to placement in the program . We certainly do allow our officers guided by policies to make that decision and so part of that characterization is accurate. What i want to also say is that we look at populations that need emergent care, lifethreatening care, and we provide that, we perot cbp pearls, i. C. E. Pearls individuals in the country every single day. We have to make that decision on chronic illnesses, chronic disease versus lifethreatening in emergent response they absolutely need. Our cbp officers, the support director at these and bp facilities make those decisions every day and guided by policy. Again, we talked about this, i know i have talked about this and my staff has talked about this, i am happy to clarify a few belief clarification is needed but again, we want to make sure we provide that latitude to our cbp, to a report directors to make that call on what is emergent lifethreatening rather than what is a chronic illness that can be provided for in other locations as well. This is a chronic illness that the child has where she has seizures every ten days. She needs this medication. Unfortunately, in choosing to send this chronically ill, severely disabled child to mexico, the department made no effort to ensure that she will get the treatment and the care that she needs. You really think that it is okay for the department to wash its hands of the welfare of these returned migrants . We talk about, this country, that country, they are going to help. We send them there but we just wash our hands and you heard from the conditions which they are living and what is happening to them. I would not agree that we wash our hands of any matter. Anytime they are eyeing ticketed earlier that come back into the u. S. For those proceedings, they get medically screened every time they come back into the u. S. Each and every time they get assessed again by medical, mostly contra professionals, and cbp officers about their condition. If it is changed, worsened, every time they come back in so i would disagree that we wash our hands on the matter. We are allowing cbp officers they are there for weeks or months. We do nothing to address the conditions under which they are living, which have already been described. Again, we are working with our department and covered over 20 Million Dollars for those facilities to help to go in there, two constructive facilities, to improve those facilities, provide security for those facilities. Again, there is a number of things the department is doing, not only ourselves but again with some of our agency colleagues to address mpp, to continue to improve the mpp program. Something is clearly not working given what is actually happening. Do you have any metrics or other data to show that the cbd personnel understand and are following the guidance related to vulnerable populations . Data that shows that they understand . Im not sure i understand the question. How many folks daylight in . That they understand how to evaluate whether or not someone should or can be sent to mvp. Do you have that . Do they understand . Do they have the guidance . I am happy to look back at the guidance in the training they are provided. I am happy to provide that to the committee. I dont have that with me here today. I would appreciate that, thank you, it appears that they do not. Mr. Freshman. Thank you can madam chair, mister secretary again i want to thank you for being here today and for your well reasoned responses to our questions. You have an arduous task carrying out the administration request largely which i agree with so i want to thank you and the men and women who are dedicated to doing that. As you know, Congress Passed the real id act more than 14 years ago. The deadline for compliance is about to come up in october. From my understanding, a majority of Americans Still dont have a compliant id. Many dont even know they need one. My first question, what is the department doing to get out the message to the American People to make sure folks get a real id . I have a series of questions but we will start with that one. Thank you. We are doing a Robust Communications plan both in the headquarters and tsa. We have individuals engaged in that. Reaching out to a number of stakeholders particularly focused on the Transportation Industry in aviation industry. As you indicated, individuals who are wanting to fly commercially in october 2020 need to have a reliedy so they need to see that star on the drivers license to do that. Unfortunately, right now, we are about 35 of ideas that we see out there in circulation are real ideas so that is a relatively low number as we look towards october 2020. We believe the states have had 14 years, as you indicated, to roll this out. We believe that is enough time. This is a security issue. We encourage them to continue to issue cards in all 50 states and territories that are compliant. Not everyone is issuing cards. We still have some states that have not issued rely diehards. The prospect to be able to issue all of their constituents in that particular state a real ided by october 2020 is probably fairly small. The department is trying to do a number of initiatives. One action that i took i think about a week and a half to two weeks ago is told individuals coming to the dmv to submit their documents electronically to dmv before they arrive. The mp could take a look at that and say yes these are the documents you need or these are not the documents you need and we can cut out some of the back and forth that we hear. We would like to do more, we are taking a look at more things that we can do and we may be back at congress at some point asking for some legislative relief to that 2006 law which is very prescriptive. There were no smartphones at the time so the idea of being able to transfer information electronically at the time was not contemplated. We will continue to look at that. We will continue to assess the compliance rates. We are asking for information from all states on a monthly basis to determine as we move closer and closer to that october 2020 date, what will be the state of compliance. Thank you. As a followup then, mister secretary, this recognition that there may need some type of a request for additional time for compliance by the states on your part or on the part of the department. Does the department intend to develop any alternative screening procedures for Airline Passengers arriving at the airport without a real id beginning october 1st . He talked about that issue quite often with tsa. Tsa, as you know, they dont struggle, they do a very good job adjudicating the passengers that they have in mind today. They are not set up, they are not resource to the kate ideas of thousands of thousands, perhaps millions, of passengers come october 2020. Yes, they are continuing to look at operational solutions, i will say none of those solutions are good. We are focused on, at the department, is making sure we get enough of the real id out there two individuals hands to continue to push that. What we are doing today at tsa checkpoints is their sign a job, but he was up, each tsa officer when they get presented an idea that is not real id, they remind that passenger, you dont have a real id, you should go in and get it. Theyre also try to push messaging that come october 2020, you need a real idea but there are other alternative forms. There is a passport, military id, there are other alternative forms that you can show up at the airport and utilize as well. We are trying to blanket our constituents. Thank you, sir. My time is waiting so ill be very quick. Customs and Border Protection has pursued a Successful Public Private Partnership with airlines and airports to make a congressional mandate for biometric accident entry. The deployments provide opportunities to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of your operations. These achievements have been important tests beds wore these technologies that can be utilize another applications within cbp and throughout dhs. Very quickly, so, how do you foresee the development of facial Recognition Technology expanding in fiscal year 2021 and beyond entry foresee borders . So, as cbp continues to work on the exit part of the Entry Exit Program using a variety of biometrics, tsa i would say is also very interested in learning what cbp is doing from their pilot phases. Also looking at some of the Biometric Technology and how they comply that on the checkpoint as well. To utilizing at some of the experience, some of the backbone of that and so my job at the department is seeing what senators of excellence we may have a cbp that are doing biometrics and facial recognition, particularly on the exit side and how we can skill that across the department at tsa and some of the other travel programs that we use. Anytime we talk about biometrics official recognition we have to talk about privacy and so that is something the department keeps very focused on making sure as we roll out these programs we are keeping u. S. Citizens privacy protected, Civil Liberties protected and that is something that we hear about the department as well, for those programs. Thank, you mister secretary. Mr. Couillard . Thank, you madam chair, and again madam secretary, i appreciate the work that you and your men and women do. We support it. Sometimes we disagree about policy but that is nothing about our support to the men and women. Let me go back to the wall issue in that area. One of the things i would ask you, when you look at a map of washington, d. C. And look at the border, it is so easy to say, a few miles, here a few miles there, but once you drill in and see what is there, some of them have lived there for generations and you see some historic areas, for, example one of the areas which you are looking at is the rancho river which is a historic, site incentive nascar texas in 1972 was listed on the National Registry of Historic Places and im looking at 2 Cultural Resources on that and just ask you to make sure that we really follow the rules and spirit on that. Ive added, language weve added language to say no funds will be used on Historical Cemetery chapel, there are six different exceptions that weve been able to add there. So what i would ask you all just to look not to look at this just from washington, it is so easy for members of congress or administrators you just see it as a border. It is a lot more. There are real people they, are real historic areas and i would ask you to just please take a look at, and look at the community, college i mean i have been emailing with my president , there is an old historic fort there with the army used to have this forward, and right away a request to have access, this historic forward, so i would ask folks just be a little bit more sensitive to look at that, number one, and then if you could ask a second question, ask you to answer that when i finish but the other thing is, the two things magical watered from the United States was the usmca which we had done, we had passed that but the other thing was to help him stop is the illegal arms from going into mexico and another has been different attempts and i had the event down there what we were talking to mexican officials and they said thats our number one issues, and i dont know if you come up with an idea because i dont know if there has been different thoughts that weve looked at, and we put in some sort of technology, that we put in personnel, i know because most of us are going north of course, and a really appreciate your thoughts on this. Finally, the last question is the studio laredo, i would like to be the person to make this decision for, you are not here but the city of laredo offered them for one dollar, 18 months, a facility that is right there, we met with them on thursday, by monday morning, they basically disregarded everything we said, when we asked them how much money theyre going to spend, it actually literally would be a 70 billion dollar contract, 35 Million Dollars in laredo, when they put this in an area that has flooded in the past, i called the commissioner, she had no idea, and so i can understand you all were moving fast, it was before you were there, one dollar, 18 months, a facility that would have been a better place for you all, a better place for people who are coming in through the mpp program, they decide to spend 35 Million Dollars to put tense their now, they said we dont know how many people are going to commit. You know the numbers 50. Percent of them are never gonna show up and i can tell you why. Some of them thought they were just going to walk in and say hey, i go in, or into the United States and except for cubans, venezuelans, people from other places, africa, who have traveled a long way, the rest are saying, i thought i was just going to go in. That is one of the successes of the mpp but i just cannot understand why the city of laredo was able to say we will get this done as fast as you want it for one dollar and, they and i really would like to meet your person to say why were you willing to spend 35 Million Dollars in laredo when it couldve been done for one dollar . Id like to meet that person. Nobody seems to tell me, nobody wants to take the responsibility but 35 Million Dollars is wasted taxpayers dollars and again, im not blaming you, mister secretary. I look forward to working with you, but its just a little frustrating. I appreciate your, reasoning and that is the first time i have heard that about the laredo facility, or that contract so i will take a look and certainly inquiry and see if there were valid reasons or not or into that. When the southbound weapons, yes, that is a topic of discussion that we have often with the government of mexico. I have talked to a. G. Barr about it as well. There is obviously a lot the department can do from a cbp perspective as well as an i. C. E. Agency perspective on the investigation front but we also need atf, dea, we need other elements and that is what were pulling together both with dhs and with the department of justice and commissioner morgan has thought this through and is outlining it will to increase southbound inspections but also just investigations as well. The inspections are good but easily defeated, as im sure you know. You set up a checkpoint and were gets, they just go around so youre trying to get it at the source, trying to get it if they are buying weapons in bulk, and you know, other places in the country, in oklahoma, in kansas and elsewhere, trying to work with the atf to determine those types of purchases to see and then tracking those, trying to get at the source that way so theres a number of things that were doing both on the detection side but also trying on that investigative side. Thank, you we will talk about the wall at a later time. Thank, you mister secretary. Mr. Palazzo. Thank, you madam chair. Real quick, something that id like to bring up in these hearings, whether it is d. O. D. Or Homeland Security is conversation about the jones act. Are you familiar with the jones act . I am familiar with it. Ive been one of the most outspoken advocates in my ten years of serving in congress because i believe it to be truly important to our National Security, but id like briefly to hear your own words why you think the jones act is important, and to protect the jones act and not to weaken it with waivers . So, obviously jones actors to make sure that we protect u. S. Businesses, u. S. Interests there that provide those capabilities along the coast to offshore facilities and so we have jones act there to protect that. I am supporter of, that a strong supporter of, that obviously cbp has a role when we talk about waivers to that. I think historically cbp has offered very few waivers if at all, and a couple of those are in extraordinary circumstances, i know it was during some hurricanes back in 17, i believe it was harvey, that we issued one regarding a pipeline that went down to make sure we continue to move, we find fuel and elsewhere and so what you will find as far as my approach is, im a believer in the jones act. Cbp has to adjudicate each request for a potential waiver coming in. I know cbp can make some definitions changes back in october of 19, i believe, working with industry, and i think that was a twoyear process so happy to continue to have those discussions to see if theres other tweaks need to be made. I know you engaged number of constituents before they roll that out. Well, thank. You and i appreciate your comments. I know your predecessors were pretty much on the same note that the jones act is vitally important to protecting americas maritime industry and its an extremely important to our National Security confidence, admirable admiral generals weve all agreed with your assessment. Real, quick we hear a Border Security is National Security. That is so true. I have the pleasure serving under five different president s in uniform as a member of the reserve or the National Guard and i have to tell you that this president in his three short years, made a commitment to rebuild our military, strengthen our nation and put america first, and he has fulfilled and is fulfilling those commitments and i think the majority of the American People see that and i think its kind of a shame, you know, if some of the people on the other side of the aisle put National Security and the American People in partisan politics than they would not have to be in the terms of my colleague from florida, using terms like stealing or robbing youll be. Hes putting the American People first. His choosing our National Security and hes doing what he thinks is right and i agree with him but i do believe that if the others would fund the Border Security, the barriers, the technology, the boots on the ground, as well as our needs for our department of defense, then we really would not be having this conversation. I do know you are somewhat rudely cut often if you would like to make any comments to colleagues, to her remarks, or do mine. President trump you will find a bigger supporter and both the military and the men and women at the department of Homeland Security so that is first and foremost. We certainly thank the president for everything he does for the department. I will say, again, Border Security is National Security. Whether it is building a border wall system, understanding and knowing and vetting who is coming into this country, the goods that are coming in this country is job number one for the department. Again, we are talking about a border wall system or we are talking about potential travel restrictions that have to reduce the threat or vulnerability of not understanding whos coming in. We talked about the refugee program. Making sure we have the right security protocol in place. That is job number one for the department and for the administration. Again, the department is doing all they can to increase the security, understanding whos coming into this country. There are vulnerabilities out there that we are addressing through a variety of programs but as i said earlier, it is not a tagline, Border Security is National Security. Before this administration, that was made abundantly clear but again, under President Trump he has made that abundantly clear time and again. I agree, Border Security is National Security. It is a nobrainer and id like to also say the morale in our nations military is the highest that i ever seen it under this president because he is focusing on the men and women in uniform, their families as well as fulfilling the cabinets commitments to our veterans and making sure they have the health care they deserve and have earned. I also like to say, you have a huge mission, securing and protecting our homelands so thank you for your work and thank you to the tens and thousands of dedicated employees under your watch. Thank you. Thank you. Mr. Price. Thank you madam chairman. Just picking up on this last discussion, you would agree with me mister secretary that the considered judgment of the congress and writing the military appropriation bill is also about National Security . I would. And that there is a burden of proof that the president or anyone else who would come in and divert that funding, the prerogatives of the congress notwithstanding for a preferred project down on the border, presuming to judge that that vision of National Security trumps the best judgment of congress with respect to the military construction appropriations bill. You are okay with that . I would certainly agree that its not only the president s decision, obviously is informed with what you do here in congress. Funding that you pass in the president s budget as well as authorizing bills, so yes it is a shared responsibility. Shared responsibility that we need to figure out how to assert sooner rather than later. Let me ask you a quick question to which i hope you can give me a reassuring answer and then i want to turn to a more complicated matter, that is the renewed travel bad. First the question of earthquake recovery assistance in puerto rico. As you all know, there was a devastating series of earthquakes in december and caused further damage to one island that is previously damaged two other disasters. President declared a disaster based on the earthquakes on january 16th. He did limit puerto ricos eligibility for assistance to removal and protective measures. In briefings, since then, fema has acknowledged the damage from the earthquakes more than meet the criteria to meet puerto rico eligible assistance to repair or replace damage facilities. I am asking you, why hasnt the disaster declaration been extended to include the repair or replace damaged facilities and what can we anticipate that it will be . I think you need to follow up on administrator gainer on that front. You will follow up . I will follow up. Obviously those requests, those declarations come through fema from this case from the governor of puerto rico. I will look into that. I dont have specific information on why certain categories of that funding. I understand what the president approves, i think you are talking about additional categories. I am talking about what would normally be included in such a declaration. Of course fema looks at any declaration, any requests for funding under the stanford act. Obviously that is not a check. They go through a series that governor requested this over a month ago, january 11th as i understand. The point is, why wouldnt this be routinely done . We are talking about fema assistance that applies to a disaster of this sort. Your own theme officials readily acknowledged about the damage meets the criteria so why not amend that declaration . I am happy to work with the fema administrator to get more information on that. Again, fema assesses each request that comes in from the governor in this case looking at and doing the analysis and determining whether meets the threshold and if it does, making a recommendation to the president. We will continue to do that. That is a process that has been long in place. Again, i am half pete to follow up with fema where they are in the process. Normally this is not a point of delay, there are other ports of delay but we appreciate a Quick Response on that. Hopefully a favorable amending the declaration. My time is moving right along here so i do want to at least posed a question about the expanded travel ban and maybe be able to complete in the next round. As you know, dhs has announced a new travel restriction on an interesting list of countries. I cannot make much of the coherent and it includes the only parliamentary democracy. It includes large and strategic countries in africa, nigeria, tanzania and so on and meanwhile the original restrictions are maintained on iran, libya, syria, somalia, yemen, north korea and venezuela. That is a huge number of countries. The muslim ban as revised as you might say has expanded. We all know the hardships these bands pose. People have an opportunity to reunite with their families, they deny education and professional development, they deny lifesaving metal care and so on. There should be heavy, heavy burden of proof imposing and maintaining the sort of ban. I have three into related questions and maybe we will have to wait until the next round. One, why are these countries singled out . What is the thread connecting that is seemingly incoherent list . To, even if there are legitimate concerns and theyre very male maybe, why a travel ban . What happened to normal diplomatic interactions and other avenues of dealing with this . The draconian remedy of a travel than is the best remedy. I will have some other questions as a followup we can wait because i know my time is expired. Mr. Rather furred. I am waiting on the clock. Think you madam chair. Mister secretary, i want to go back just one moment to the ports and containers units coming in and being screened. I want to make sure that we get that information on what percentage is actually being screened at this time. There are some new an emerging technologies out there that i think has the capability to really get us to where i think congress set the goal at 100 percent a few years ago. We are nowhere near that, as my understanding. I look forward to working with you. Again, one of the reasons i took that back is i want to make sure we get your right information. Obviously we do a number of screenings to overseas or various ports. We also do targeting information to identify those highrisk are goes. Again, we talk about targeting sometimes we talk about screening cargo so i am happy to work with you and your staff to understand the specific data sets that you are looking for and happy to get back to you on that. Thank you. On another issue, the state of florida right now is looking at some legislation to possibly require and verify across the state. One of the concerns that i have heard is that the either fight system has some draw backs. The time to get responses and that sort of thing. Can you talk a little bit about any improvements or enhancements that may become for the verified system . That is a system you are comments are spot on from that. We have another communities to talk about the difficult nature of the program. Not only using it but getting results back. We have a number of initiatives underway at uscis which runs that program. I will say that we look at the volunteering nation nature and versus the mandatory use of that and how we do that and the imposition that will place on companies. We balanced that with making sure that workers are protected as well. It is a balance that we continue to look at and continue to review on a number of our differ programs. We provide a lot of Technical Assistance and a lot of different pieces of legislative actions that. Happy to provide you a forward briefing. We have an office at uscis that is all they do, they either if i. I would love to hear about that particularly as we are moving forward. Thank you for that. This plans into that. Can you talk about this and obviously we have the 2020 elections coming up and i see one billion dedicated here for sisa and addressing not only the election issues but also the cybersecurity for a communications and a lot of other situations as well. Can you talk about is that going to be sufficient for that innovations that we need to move forward with . The president s 21 budget request fully supports the missions of sisa whether the priorities they have include federal sought fiber security that is protecting the federal networks, of course federal Election Security as we are in the 2020 cycle. Supply chain security, 5g security and the likes. There is a number of priorities that system has. We talk about that is front center as we continue throughout this year. Sisa its going above and beyond we saw improvements made. Over 16 as we went into the 2018 elections. One of the most safe and secure elections we had. We continue to progress in 2020. We are doing that in a variety of ways. They are providing local services to secretary of state to control the election systems and individual states providing those same services to political parties, to campaigns, to every campaign. Some choose to take them up, some choose not. We are trying to educate voters, voters have a play and a responsibility here when we talk about our elections. Trying to make sure they can identify perhaps disinformation or information that is not from a trusted source. We are continuing to try and educate them on there and there are some other opportune operational things that we are doing such as hunt testing and alike. Trying to cover the wide variety of services that state a local need but i will say that the primary role and responsibility is to push those resources and those tools to the local state and election officials. They are doing that better today than they have ever before in 16, very few relationships between the department of Homeland Security secretary of states. Off 50 states, were talking to all 50 states, over 2100 jurisdictions and we feel very good where we are at at this point. I know that supervisors a very appreciative of your cooperation and assistance that they have gotten. I close with this, i want to thank you for paying great attention to the Emergency Communications program for Public Safety and that whole repackaging. As a Law Enforcement officer, first responder, like our fire and rescue and others, we obviously our lives rely on that communication and i think you are all doing a great job in addressing that issue. I thank you for that. I yield back. We will have a third round. Before i ask my question, i just want to go back to the whole issue of that seven year old little girl and as a mother, i just cant accept that we would send a seven year old child who was extremely ill, has uncontrollable seizures, back into mexico in the deplorable conditions that have been described there so what im hoping, but i can get a commitment from you to work with me and to work with my office to see about the possibility of having the qualified medical personnel outside of the Operation Agency review such medical records and also to work with us to define what it is medically vulnerable, perhaps working with your policy office and the departments chief medical office on the definition. Again, i certainly understand the issue as a father of two young boys. This is personal to me as well and i would say for our cbp officers that have to make the decisions every day, they are not easy decisions so i understand the concerns and im happy to work with yourself and Committee Staff to redress. If you could address. That to address any daylight between the policy guidance out there and the decisions that they make every day so im happy to continue to have a dialog about. That thank you. Mister secretary, we continue to receive damaging report about unacceptable, substantial conditions at ice and cbp detention facilities. For example, at isis simpler detention center, the detention conditions for so months for several for several months or so bad they transport all i. C. E. Detainees with chronic medical conditions. This is not a new problem. There are well documented efficiencies over many years that range from nutrition to medical care to due process issues and even basic humane treatment. We have seen some of these deficiencies during our visit to facilities across the country but the problems persist and as the size of the population increases they appear to be getting worse. I we discussed, improving the quality of the care for migrants in dhs custody is an area in which we can and should be able to make progress together. In our fyi 2020 bill, we provided resources to ices office of professional responsibility to hire additional detention facility inspectors with the goal of increasing inspections from once every three years to twice every year. We also significantly increased funding for the Inspector General and for the office of Civil Liberties, with directions use those resources for Immigration Enforcement and detention oversight. To help ensure that this oversight actually result in changes to the quality of the care that is provided at the people in dhs custody, weve also established in funded a new ombudsman for immigration detention. The question, is what is the status of establishing this new Ombudsman Office and because it is critical that the ombudsman and the new office be widely perceived as fair and objective and for the ombudsman to meet the professional criteria established in the fyi 2020 bill. What guarantee can you give us that you will do Everything Possible to ensure that the first ombudsman will in fact meet these criteria . You have my commitment that they will, so we are in the process of standing that up. As you know we have a working group thats going to come back in 90 days from one that bill was passed which i believe is the middle of march, march 14th to come back with a plan for the office. Not only is Strategic Plan but more of an operational plan. How is going to be staffed . What are its focus . One of the priorities . I look forward to that and we will certainly come and talk to the committee about that and yourself about that plan but the idea after that 90 days is to make sure that that offices up and running within six months. Im glad to see what we can do once we get that plan to try to shorten that timeframe and i think that we can and of course during, that after that 90 days we will start to look, that we are already starting to look at trying to identify who might run this office in the long term, so we want to make sure we get professional folks in there that have a background not only in detention but detention standards that come from this community to be the most successful on the job. So, the ombudsman will be reporting directly to you so that you have an unfiltered window on detention conditions and just based on your comments i take it that you are committed to ensuring that this new ombudsman will be used to improve the conditions and dhs detention facilities. Is that correct . Thats correct. As the committee and the congress directed. Thank you. I have no for the question. I just want to thank the secretary for his testimony today. Thank, you i yield back. Mr. Price . Thank, you madam chairman. Let me return to the question i was articulating when my time ran out, because it is an important question and i will just repeat it very briefly. Im asking about the extended travel ban which now has reached large proportions i facting by our calculation, about 300 Million People and i was asking you about the newly targeted countries, what are the unique . Are they being singled out as examples . Or are the unique problems here. What is the nature of this seemingly incoherent list . Secondly, if there are legitimate security concerns, and i am aware that there may well be, if there are legitimate security concerns with these countries in the way they handle security, is a travel ban the way to disagree with them . To express disagreement and above all to secure an improvement . Is a travel ban, should we see it as a punitive measure that somehow punish them or is a travel ban somehow designed to fix the problem . It looks like a blond instrument. Im assuming that the reason for each of these countries being included does not the same to the question is, theres one size fits all in terms of a remedy . I would just singling them out and doing that in a punitive way or is this actually remedy . And then thirdly, assuming its a remedy, just giving the benefit of the doubt to the policy, it seems strange on the face of it, how are you addressing a National Security concern if the travel ban doesnt even applied to non immigrant visas . Individuals who receive immigrant visas are already highly scrutinized and they presumably are very, very if this is about security, there are very stringent vetting procedures in place but you are not applying this to non immigrant visas so as a practical matter, how is this is supposed to work . So those are three questions i hope you can help us understand. I will start by saying that understanding who comes into the country is first and foremost. I will answer in a long way to say that start in 17 and of course in 18 with the original travel restrictions as you mentioned, congressman, of those countries, the Supreme Court upheld that, upheld the process that we went through during that and over the next several years we have only increased an enhanced that process so every six months we adjudicate whether certain countries are meeting certain based on security environment such as, do they have an electronic passport . Do they share lost and stolen passports with interpol . Today to share known suspected terrorist information with the u. S. . Today share examples of their passport to the u. S. Or cbp and customs officers, so they can know a fraudulent is or is . Not what we did back in march of 19 is to denounce all 200, countries we get in the, survey them all the questions, it started to work with them, as the state department did, and all those locations to say, here is information that we need from, you we went through six, seven, eight months of, that these countries know where they stood, knew that they were deficient, knew that they could not, answer could not address, worked with, them tried to put a number of them on Improvement Plans, that is my, turn it is not the official term, trying to put them on another member of plans, we saw a number of countries during that process, we are not going to meet these middle baseless security requirements, step up and put measures in place so that they did what you see with these six countries and of all 200 countries, very few, a very small said are not able to meet minimal basic security requirements that didnt get put on travel restrictions. To reduce that vulnerability going forward. And answer your class question, i believe if you look at the original seven, obviously we not only lifted immigrant visa restrictions and on immigrant visa restrictions, but six countries that are more targeted today, obviously the u. S. Has a relationship and many of them want to work with the u. S. Government and certainly want to address vulnerabilities for a variety of Different Reasons and they are all very different. They were simply unable to meet the minimum requirements and again, president s executive order and the like tells us to look at that vulnerability and then make recommendations to address those vulnerabilities so in the target, restrictions travel restrictions that we have on this country are very targeted. What weve already seen is that number of these countries even though weve been in discussions with him for six or seven or eight months, its only when we put a travel restriction that we can then say okay, let us now really talk about how we get off of this. We saw that back in 17 and 18, originally on the, listed a number of improvements the day after the travel restrictions came out and we provided them an off ramp on the president took them off the travel restriction and so we would say that it is a very transparent process to these countries on how both to meet minimum requirements but then how to increase their measures to provide that off ramp to be removed from the travel restrictions. So they are not more where these came from, necessarily. These are unique cases and in all of central asia is the only country that there is a problem with . I would say we had deficiencies across the board. We had to draw a line using a variety of assessments to say, there are minimum baseline requirements that everyone should meet, even countries that meet that baseline requirement that may not perhaps be on travelers restrictions we are, still working with them, we need them to do more. We are continue to have that dialog with them. These are, against six countries that for a variety of Different Reasons, were not able to meet the minimum basic Security Standards that we require. Madam chairman, i know my time is once again expired. Let me just express the strong hope that we will work with these countries constructively. It is important not just to call them out, not to impose and punitive measures but to work whatever the problems are, to work them out and work with them cooperatively. Because on this list, our countries that we have had good relationships with, important relationships with and those relationships are very, very important and i would say transcend differences we have. I will say that as part of the process, dhs does this assessment and we provide recommendations to the other agencies, we have departments and agencies and d. O. D. And others that provide input to the final recommendations presented to the president. A lot of other considerations and National Security considerations and others are factored into those recommendations to the president. Mister secretary, before adjourning i was going to ask if you had any closing comments or clarifications, i believe mr. Palazzo give you that opportunity but if there is anything like to see before we adjourn . No, i appreciate the opportunity to do that. I would like to say, again, i like to talk about the men and women of dhs. Every opportunity in many instances, they are unfairly criticized and i think we all can agree that, i keep saying, not only Border Security but Homeland Security is National Security. My message would be to the men and women of the Homeland Security to do their job every day. Considering the noise and the environment that we are in. Their job is very difficult it, is very dangerous. Whether it is on the border or interior or coast guard ships or everyone anywhere they serve. Very dangerous job. I need them focused on their Mission Every day and not worrying about the noise that the here in the background. Again, i thank the men and women to what they do every day. The committee and the resources you provide the department to do our mission and i look for to the continued dialog. Thank you. If there are no more questions, we are adjourned
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