Hoyer: Prince George's County is the Best Location for the FBI

WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Steny H. Hoyer (MD-5) delivered remarks today at a press conference with U.S. Senators Barbara A. Mikulski and Ben Cardin, Congresswoman Donna F. Edwards, Prince George's County Executive Rushern L. Baker, III, and Prince George's County Council Chair Mel Franklin today to applaud the inclusion of two proposed sites, Greenbelt and Landover, in Prince George's County, Maryland, on the General Services Administration's (GSA) short-list of eligible sites to serve as the future home of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).  Below are his remarks:

"I am pleased to be here. I am pleased to be here with our County Executive Rushern Baker, with the president of our County Council, Mel Franklin, who have done such extraordinary work with my partner [Rep.] Donna Edwards who represents Prince George's County. Both of these sites, of course, are in Prince George's County, where our two Senators said the FBI ought to be.

"The Maryland Congressional Delegation – Team Maryland – has worked tirelessly over the past several months to highlight the benefits of locating this new headquarters in Prince George's County.

"I would call your attention to the map over here. All of these facilities that are approximate to the two sites that have been selected in Prince George's County are extraordinary assets to [the] FBI mission and an FBI location.

"Today, our efforts have taken another step forward, as these two sites have been selected as two of the three sites. They have much to commend themselves to the FBI as it carries out its mission of keeping Americans safe from crime and terrorism.

"Not only are they conveniently located near I-95 and public transit routes, but they are also easily accessible to and from BWI, National, Dulles, Marc, and Amtrak. Not to mention Andrew's Air Force Base, which I will mention in just a second.

"Prince George's County and the surrounding area is home to top-notch institutions of higher learning. Senator Mikulski referred to them, but the University of Maryland, College Park, Bowie State, UMBC, UMUC, Prince George's Community College, and Anne Arundel Community College. An extraordinary asset for our FBI agents in terms of not only continuing education but in terms of criminal expertise, particularly at the University of Maryland, College Park, but also at these other institutions. And defense installations like the Joint Base Andrews. An FBI agent can get to any place in the world in minutes from Andrew's Air Force Base. Hours or however long it is away, but my point is, in minutes [an agent can get to] Andrew's Air Force Base [and] can get on a plane to get them where they need to be in a moment of crisis. Fort Meade, the NSA, and Cyber Command are all in close proximity to both of these sites.

"Prince George's County continues to have the fewest leased federal office facilities of any county in the greater Washington area. ‘Left out,' is what Senator [Mikulski] said. Ignored, overlooked. That should not happen. This jurisdiction is one of the most dynamic jurisdictions in America. Under the leadership of our County Executive Baker, it is a growing, vibrant, wonderful place to live, to work, and to establish an FBI consolidated headquarters.

"Our county has a talented workforce, 40 percent, as Senator Cardin indicated, I think Senator Mikulski mentioned it as well, [of the] workforce lives in Maryland. So, from a transportation standpoint this makes great sense for the community.

"I and my colleagues will continue to work with the delegation to reach out to stakeholders and provide the GSA and FBI with the information they need to make the correct decision. Is there any doubt what the correct decision is?

"We will make certain that the GSA and FBI see all of the advantages of Prince George's County.

"I am confident – I really am confident –  that their decision will reflect how competitive Prince George's County is, how much more it offers than the alternatives, and how good a deal Prince George's County is. Senator Cardin talked about value, and we have value to give."