Order. Id like to thank our witnesses for joining us here today and for your continued service to the American People. Todays hearing will examine our nations readiness to respond to weapons of mass destruction and Health Security threats. The goal of this hearing is to assess the countering weapons of Mass Destruction Office housed within dhs and its ability to combat these threats. We will also discuss the newly established office of Health Security, which will be tasked with streamlining the health and Safety Operations of Department Personnel and overseeing medical and Public Health matters all across the department of Homeland Security. Chemical, biological, nuclear and radiological materials, sometimes shortened to cbrn or seabourn, is an umbrella term to describe hazardous agents that can be weaponized and can cause everything from mass casualties and incapacitation to agricultural destruction. For example, in april of 2019, a technician was arrested after stealing three radioactive devices from his workplace in arizona. According to a court filing, the technician intended to release the radioactive materials at a shopping mall, the local police and the fbi arrested him before he could do so. Similarly, biological weapons such as anthrax and racing have been used by terrorists and attempted attacks against civilians including elected officials. As technology has advanced. The threats posed by these weapons only continued to grow and give malicious actors more opportunities to cause significant harm. The countering weapons of Mass Destruction Office was established to detect mitigate and deter the Significant NationalSecurity Threats. Initially, the office faced serious setbacks after its creation, including unsteady leadership, low morale and high staff turnover among other challenges. Despite these initial setbacks, we have recently seen promising signs of the offices improvements, including better morale and feedback from stakeholders indicated by a recent gao report. So, i remain optimistic that the forthcoming structural changes in the office and increased coordination between Law Enforcement and state, local, tribal and territorial partners will dramatically bolster the offices ability to tackle these challenges headon. Last month, Ranking Member portman and i introduced Bipartisan Legislation to significantly enhance the federal governments ability to detect, recognize and evaluate chemical, biological, radioactive and Nuclear Threats. The offices of countering weapons of mass destruction and Health Security act reauthorizes the cw, md. Office, which is set to expire next year and authorizes the new office of Health Security. Our Bipartisan Legislation more clearly defines the cwmds offices responsibilities eliminating ineffective or duplicative functions. Institute a number of accountability and oversight measures and appoints the chief medical officer to lead the office of Health Security, serving as a dual appointment as the assistant secretary for Health Security and reporting to the secretary of the department of Homeland Security. All of these changes will ensure that our nation can develop a comprehensive National Strategy to protect all of our communities from these dangerous materials and Public Health threats that can have absolutely catastrophic effects. In addition to strengthening our Homeland Security and our preparedness. These changes will also make these offices more accountable to congress and to the American People today. Today im pleased to welcome a panel of experts witnesses who can discuss whether dhs is equipped with the necessary tools and the resources to prevent possible attacks and to ensure that our nation is prepared to respond to and recover from them. I look forward to a comprehensive and insightful discussion. My Ranking Member, senator portman is at another Committee Hearing right now. He will be joining us shortly so i will immediately move to swearing in witnesses. It is the practice of the Homeland Security and Government Affairs committee to swear in witnesses. So, if each of you would please stand and raise your right hand. Do you swear that the testimony that you will give before this committee will be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth so help you god . You may be seated. Todays first witness is gary rasicot, acting assistant secretary for the countering weapons of Mass Destruction Office at the department of Homeland Security. Previously, mr. Rasicot served as chief of operations at the Safety Security administration as well as several senior roles at the Us Coast Guard including as director of marine transportation systems, director of the Global Maritime operational threat response and his deputy commandant for mission support. Deputy for personal readiness. Mr. Rasicot was also an active duty coast guard officer for more than 24 years. Welcome to our committee, sir. You may proceed with your opening remarks. Mr. Rasicot chairman peters, Ranking Member portman, distinguished members of the committee. Thank you for inviting me to speak to you today about the reauthorization of the department of Homeland Securitys countering a weapons Mass Destruction Office known as cwmd. Ive had the privilege of leading this office twice, most recently since january 2021 and previously from october 2019 through through july of 2020. The 2018 cwmd act authorized the merger of two legacy offices with Different Missions and cultures as a means to elevate and streamline the departments efforts to safeguard the homeland from chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear known as cbrn threats. While the implementation of this merger, like all mergers of this type, has seen its share of peaks and valleys with the assistance and guidance of this committee, the gao state and local stakeholders and most importantly the dedicated cwm d office. I believe that we have made Great Strides in maturing this Critical Organization over the past three years. Today, i am proud to ask you to reauthorize a fully functional unified office with a clear focus strategic intent and strong Forward Momentum that makes the nation safer and meets congresss original goal. I am confident that cwmd is the right office at the right time to face to face the threats emerging in this mission space. I would like to thank the committee and your staff for the exceptional collaborative bipartisan effort towards the introduction of s4465 and for the strong working relationship that we have. Readiness for cbrn threats require specialized expertise, skills and equipment. Within dhs, the wmd remains a dedicated focus to make sure we do not lose sight of core responsibility among the issues dhs faces every day. Our mission is to make sure that federal, state, local and territorial and frontline responders have the capabilities to protect against them. Indeed, our working relationships with state and local partners are among our most tickled. Through flagship programs including fire watching securing the cities, we provide detection equipment, training and exercise support to help front line operators detect see brn threats early and take quick action to save lives. Last fall, i issued the first ever see wmd state and local engagement strategy in recognition of the key role our state and local partners play in countering see brn threats. With covid restrictions we have recently reiterated reenergized our engagements with these partners. In june, our partners from ohio heard directly how we can best support their efforts. At cwmd, our workforce is truly our greatest asset. It remains focused on continuing to strengthen Employee Engagement. We have more work to do. I was pleased to see the improvement in Employee Engagement scores in the see wmds most recent survey results which now are above the dhs average. We look forward to continuing our working relationship with our colleagues in the office of security as they provide expert medical guidance to all of our got. Governments. We are grateful to the committee for the bill to reauthorize cwmd. Given the potentially devastating nature of see brn events, reauthorization is vital to ensure continuity while supporting frontline operators in local communities. It is key to the morale of the high skilled and in demand workforce. Chairman peters, wrecking member portman, tasting wished members, thank you again for your attention to this Important Mission and for the opportunity to talk about cwmds work. I look forward to answering your questions. Thank you, mr. Rasicot for your opening statement. Our next witness is mr. Gandhi, chief medical officer of the department of Homeland Security. Dr gandhi is responsible for dhss medical and Public Health response on all Health Security issues including Border Health migration, chemical, biological, nuclear and radiological acts of terrorism, natural and manmade disasters and threats to the nations food and agricultural system. Prior to his current role, dr. Gandhi was the associate chief medical officer and director of adult medicine at Peoples Community clinic. Dr. Gandhi has experienced in multiple sectors including food system infrastructure, micro finance, Early Childhood education and health informatics. Dr. Gandhi, welcome to the committee. You may proceed with your opening remarks. Chairman peters, Ranking Member portman, and distinguished members of the committee. Thank you for the opportunity to testify today. The very first week of this new office of Health Security. It is truly an honor. I have submitted written testimony for the record these past two years. The department of Homeland Security in our nation have faced several unprecedented challenges from terror attacks to an enduring global pandemic, a global migration surge to Cyber Attacks directed at Critical Infrastructure sectors including healthcare, multiple disease outbreaks worldwide and engagements with afghanistan and ukraine. The breath of the dhs portfolio has been truly stunning. And as much as each of these events have had a Homeland Security nexus, these events have also all been bound by the indelible linkage to our nations Health Security. Perhaps no mission over the past 18 months demonstrates this relationship more than operation allies welcome. Last august, as operation allies welcome was underway, our medical team gathered at Dulles Airport to begin coordinating the domestic Health Response for the mission. The gentleman right behind me, dr. Herbert wolf, my deputy whose storied career spans three decades of public service, commanded the early Public Health response at dulles. Multiple additional members from our team deployed to Philadelphia Airport and safe havens across the country and as welcome allies refuge, transition to operationalize welcome. Dhs was named lead federal agency and our team continued to lead and still leads the Public Health response. Over this 11 month mission, we have worked together with the Public Health and medical experts from hhs, including the centers for Disease Control and prevention, the u. S. Health service, aspirin and the departments of defense and state to coordinate a dynamic nimble federal Public Health response rooted in clinical best practices to safeguard the health and well being of the American People in the health and well being of our afghan guests. We held countless briefings with state and local Public Health, met with hospital leadership in all safe haven states and had daily medical briefings with the Clinical Experts across the federal government. This was truly an all of nation Public Health and medical effort and one that reflects the very best of what a coordinated federal Public Health response should look like. I stand in awe. And im humbled by the commitment of my colleagues who on a moments notice left their families and their loved ones for weeks on end as a part of this mission and so many others. During the last 18 months, ive had the privilege to lead these same individuals as we mobilize in partnership with the v. A. To vaccinate the dhs workforce to stand up our domestic Public Health measures in response to the to the Ukraine Russia conflict. To deploy to the southwest border to provide technical Public Health assistance to ensure we have optimized Mental Health and Wellness Resources for our workforce during these challenging times. And to assist our agent emts and paramedics on missions around the United States and so much more. The dogged dedication of our staff and our earnest response to these challenges reflects the hope and vision of this new office. A Central Office that serves as the principal medical, Public Health and Workforce Health and Safety Authority for dhs and one that is grounded in agility, technical excellence and deep relationships with our state and local partners. And a fierce commitment to protect the physical and Mental Health of our workforce, those in our care and custody and our nation. Chairman peters, Ranking Member ortman, and the members here today on behalf of the incredibly talented and dedicated individuals who work within the office of Health Security at the intersection of Health Security and Homeland Security. Thank you for your support and i look forward to our conversation. Thank you, dr. Gandhi. Todays final witness is tina sherman, director of Homeland Security and justice at the Government Accountability office. Ins joining the gao in 2002, dr. Sherman has led review of telecommunications and transportation issues in the physical Infrastructure Team and served in various roles at the department of defense. Previously, dr. Sherman contributed to agency wide efforts on Hurricane Katrina along with gaos annual duplication and cost savings report and biannual high risk update. Prior to gao, dr. Sherman worked at the new america foundation, a nonpartisan think tank that focuses on a range of Public Policy issues including National Security studies. Dr. Sherman, welcome to our committee. You may proceed with your opening remarks. Chairman peters, Ranking Member portman, distinguished members of the committee. I am pleased to be here today to discuss the reauthorization of the department of Homeland Securitys countering weapons of Mass Destruction Office alongside acting assistant secretar