Political Quotes

“Mr. President, the Department of Homeland Security, DHS, is tasked with keeping Americans safe in the homeland. To carry out this mission, DHS spends over $7 billion on acquisition programs annually. DHS and its agencies are held to a high standard for keeping our Nation safe. We also must hold it to a high standard of fiscal responsibility. DHS must be good stewards of taxpayer resources. DHS's acquisition process has long faced problems resulting in waste, delays, and under delivery of performance objectives. Since the inception of DHS, the Government Accountability Office, GAO, has highlighted challenges and offered recommendations to improve the acquisition process. There has been progress; however, there continues to be room for improvement. According to a GAO report release today, DHS's acquisition process remains a high-risk issue, susceptible to cost overruns and schedules delays. These issues reduce buying power and force security employees to wait for new capabilities. This is not fair to those on the frontlines tasked with keeping us safe, and it is not fair to the American taxpayers. That is why I am introducing the DHS Multiyear Acquisition Strategy Act of 2017. This legislation will require DHS to develop a multiyear acquisition plan to guide the overall direction of the Department's acquisitions, across all agencies, and include it annually in the Department's budget request to Congress.…”