Protection, Transportation Security Administration, and a secret service answer questions from the House Homeland Security committee. The committee on Homeland Security will come to order. The committee is meeting today to receive testimony on a department of Homeland Security use of a facial recognition and other Biometric Technologies. Without objection the chair is authorized to declare the committee in recess at any point. I now recognize myself for an opening statement. Good morning. The committee on Homeland Security is meeting to examine department of Homeland Security use of facial recognition and other Biometric Technologies. The government use of biometrics is not entirely new. For example, finger prints have been used as an identification tool for many decades. Other biometrics includes dna, voice pattern and palm prints. In recent years facial recognition has become the new chosen forum of Biometric Technology as facial Recognition Technology has advanced it is used by the
I now recognize myself for an opening statement. The parent of homeless security is beating to examine the Homeland Securitys use of facial wreck mission and other Biometric Technologies. Government use of biometrics is not entirely new area fingerprints have been used as an identification tool for many decades. Dna andometrics include palm prints. In recent years facial recognition has become the new chosen form of Biometric Technology, as facial Recognition Technology has advanced it is used by the government its use by the government in the private sector has also increased. Dhs is collect ding and storing different kinds of biometric information and using this information for multiple purposes. Cpv and tsa are using biometrics confirm the identities of travelers. Opposed to Biometric Technology and recognized it can be valuable to Homeland Security. However, it proliferation a phrases across dhs questions about privacy, security, transparency and accuracy. People deserve an answer
Test. Test. Test. Its an absolute vulnerability that terrorists can exploit. Its a vulnerability we need to address. Dr. Romney, i guess from what im hearing from you is we dont want to get this wrong. I think ms. Watson coleman was talking about herself being possibly in this pool of candidates that could get somehow mischaracterized. Tell me where we are with the technology. How accurate is it . The very best algorithms weve tested the most recently have false negative rates that are extremely low. The accuracy can range for the best algorithms in a one to many match can range into the 99. 7 range. So 99. 7 accuracy. Yes. Thats pretty good. From a scientific standpoint its a high number for me. Its very high. Youre a scientist. Im not, but it sounds pretty high to me. Its always a balance in this committee and when we deal with security issues, we always have to balance these as americans and i think its important that we balance those factors. Its stopped a lot of bad actors from co
Overall number in the law, the budget control act, requesting basically a little bit over 1 trillion. 1. 1 trillion as the law allows for. Within that number, he really departed from the budget control act numbers, and he requested a lot more for defense programs. About 54 billion for security related programs. And covers that with an equal amount of cuts in nondefense spending, 54 billion. So thats a violation of the budget control act there. But more than that, its very politically unpopular. Yes members really like the , defense spending increase, but they dont like taking it out of nondefense programs agriculture cut more than 20 . Transportation, federal housing programs cut 15 . Labor, health, Education Programs cut similarly. State Department Programs cut tremendously. And congress is rejecting that. They dont really have their own plan nailed down. While they are inclined to give a lot more to defense, they are not as interested in those nondefense spending cuts. It matters of
Now on cspan a. Review of the 2018 federal budget from the money the president requested to what congress, who holds the purse strings, ultimately decides. Joining us from capital gal nancy, senior correspondental now correspondentent for bloomberg. Nancy, tell us what the president requested for 2018, and what were his Top Priorities . The president stuck with the overall number in the law, the budget control act, requesting basically a little bit over 1 trillion. 1. 1 trillion as the law allows for. Within that number he really departed from the budget control act numbers, and he requested a lot more for defense programs. About 54 billion for security related programs. And covers that with an equal amount of cuts in nondefense spending, 54 billion. So thats a violation of the budget control act there. But more than that, its very politically unpopular. Yes, numbers really members really like the defense spending increase, but they dont like taking it out of nondefense programs agricu