Hearing of the House Appropriations Committee - FY 2016 Commerce, Justice, Science Appropriations Bill

Hearing

Good morning. Today I am pleased to present the fiscal year 2016 Commerce, Justice, Science
appropriations bill to the subcommittee for your consideration and approval.

I'd like to begin by thanking Ranking Member Chaka Fattah. I appreciate Mr. Fattah's approach
to the Committee's work and his desire to get back to regular order. His input has improved the
bill. I know that he believes there should be additional funds in the bill and I look forward to
working closely with him and all Members of the Subcommittee as the bill moves forward.

I'd also like to thank Chairman Rogers and Ranking Member Lowey for their help in putting this
bill together. This is my first year chairing the CJS Subcommittee, and I appreciate Chairman
Rogers's guidance and want to thank him for his generous allocation to this subcommittee.
I'd also like to thank the Subcommittee staff for their tireless work drafting this bill.

As you know, this Subcommittee has jurisdiction over a diverse group of agencies and activities
responsible for combating terrorism, espionage, gangs, and cybercrime; enforcing trade laws;
forecasting the weather; managing fisheries; exploring space; and advancing science.
The bill we are considering today provides $51.4 billion in discretionary funding which is $1.3
billion or 2.5 percent more than fiscal year 2015 and $661 million below the President's request.
The allocation is sufficient to fund priority programs while reducing funding for activities that
are not essential to the operations of the Federal government.

One of the main priorities of the bill is funding for law enforcement activities. The bill provides
the FBI with $8.5 billion, which is $111 million over fiscal year 2015 and $64 million above the
request. These critical resources are necessary to enhance the FBI's efforts against cybercrime,
terrorism, and espionage. The threats against our security are real and evolving. The FBI must
have sufficient resources to address them.

The bill includes funds for 55 new Immigration Judge teams to reduce immigration case
backlogs. Increased funding is also provided for other critical Federal law enforcement activities
such as US Attorneys, the Marshals Service, DEA, ATF and the Prison System.

For State and local law enforcement, we have increased funds for priority programs such as the
Byrne formula program, SCAAP, and Youth Mentoring. We created a new $50 million
community trust program that will fund body camera demonstration programs and justice
reinvestment initiatives.

Another priority in the bill is NASA. The bill provides $18.5 billion for NASA, which is a $519
million increase and equal to the request. The bill advances space exploration and ensures our
nation remains the world's leader in space exploration and technology, aeronautics research and
discovery in space and science. The bill provides for the continued development of the Orion
crew vehicle, and increases resources for the Space Launch System and Exploration Ground
Systems that will one day send astronauts beyond low-Earth orbit. The bill continues funding for
critical scientific missions and technology programs, including restoring proposed reductions to
Planetary programs. The Committee also directs NASA to follow the direction of the decadal
surveys in prioritizing activities during fiscal year 2016 and in the future.

The bill increases National Science Foundation funding $50 million above the historically high
fiscal year 2015 level. This includes fully funding the BRAIN Initiative which Ranking Member
Fattah has championed over the years.

Funding for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration prioritizes improving weather
forecasting, fisheries management, and the Joint Polar Satellite System and the Geostationary
Operational Environmental Satellite-R Series.

In order to live within our allocation, we had to reduce funding in some areas. We eliminate
programs that are no longer necessary or are not critical to the operations of the Federal
government. We also froze or reduced funding for more than a dozen bureaus, agencies and
programs that can operate with a little less.

The bill also includes numerous oversight provisions to protect hard earned taxpayer dollars. A
few of these oversight provisions include:

* Requiring each agency in the bill to submit a spending plan;

* Capping life-cycle costs for poorly performing programs;

* Withholding some Department of Justice funding until the Attorney General

demonstrates that the Inspector General's recommendations regarding sexual harassment
and inappropriate conduct are being implemented;

* Requiring agencies procuring sensitive IT systems to conduct supply chain risk
assessments in consultation with the FBI;

* Requiring quarterly reporting on Immigration Judge performance; and

* Requiring agencies to provide Inspectors General with timely information.

In addition, the bill continues existing Second Amendment protections and language prohibiting
the transfer or housing of GTMO prisoners in the United States.

I want to thank all of the Subcommittee Members for their input into the bill and their
participation in our hearings this year. We've tried to address your concerns and priorities in this
bill whether through funding levels or with report language.

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