On the recordMay 30, 2012
I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2764, the WMD Intelligence and Information Sharing Act of 2011. Mr. Speaker, this bill would strengthen information sharing at all levels of government with regard to chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear terrorist threats. In the decade since the attacks on September 11, 2001, concern about an attack on U.S. soil with weapons of mass destruction or dirty bombs have come in sharper focus, specifically concerns that terrorists and other rogue actors may want to access loose nuclear materials from the former Soviet Union or even weaponized biological agents that originated from stockpiles of now-toppled authoritarian regimes have grown. This bill also requires DHS to coordinate with other components in the intelligence community and other Federal, State, local, and tribal authorities to provide recommendations on information sharing. I would note for the record, Mr. Speaker, that the committee approved, on a bipartisan basis, the Pascrell WMD bill earlier this month. I look forward to seeing this measure, which was endorsed by a bipartisan commission, considered on the House floor in the very near future. I reserve the balance of my time.
