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Hoyer Testimony on Relocating FBI Headquarters at Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee Hearing

March 1, 2016

WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Steny H. Hoyer (MD-05) today testified at the Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management hearing on major federal building construction projects of the General Services Administration (GSA). Congressman Hoyer's testimony focused on the importance of the relocation of a new consolidated Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) headquarters. Below are his remarks as prepared for delivery:

"Thank you, Chairman Barletta and Ranking Member Carson.  I appreciate this opportunity to testify about an issue of great consequence both to our homeland security and to growth and development in Maryland's Fifth Congressional District.

"The Administration's FY2017 budget submission included a request for $1.4 billion toward a new consolidated FBI headquarters.  A new FBI headquarters will improve Bureau capabilities, reduce facilities costs, and ultimately reduce the amount of space that the FBI headquarters requires.

"As you are aware, the GSA is considering three locations to house the new FBI headquarters – two of which are in Maryland's Prince George's County.  Consolidating the FBI headquarters would offer the FBI an extraordinary set of advantages, as would selecting a site in Prince George's County.

"First, consolidating the FBI headquarters would enhance the Bureau's effectiveness at responding to emergencies by improving communication between divisions and departments currently housed separately.  Currently, roughly half of the FBI headquarters staff work out of leased space around the region in thirteen additional locations as a result of insufficient space at the J. Edgar Hoover Building.

"According to the Weapons of Mass Destruction Commission Report in 2005, the FBI had difficulty sharing information ‘even within its own organization' before 9/11, a challenge that was exacerbated by not having a consolidated headquarters.  Consolidating the headquarters will contribute to efforts already underway to improve FBI emergency response, crisis management, and terrorism prevention.

"Director Comey testified last week: ‘Akey challenge inhibiting our ability to address these threats is the lack of a headquarters facility that fully fosters collaboration, intelligence sharing, and is dynamic, enabling special agents, intelligence analysts, and other professional staff to combat evolving threats as they arise. The building occupied by the FBI since 1974 is obsolete, inefficient and faces a number of security vulnerabilities. Currently, the facility only houses half of the headquarters workforce, requiring personnel to be dispersed in multiple locations within the national capital region. This makes it extremely difficult to adapt to rapidly developing threats and collaborate across divisions and programs.'

"Second, Prince George's County offers the FBI's workforce a range of convenient and efficient transportation options for access to area airports, metro, Amtrak, and major highways.  Twenty-five percent of the region's federal workforce currently lives in Prince George's County, and Maryland is already home to many of the FBI's employees.

"Third, the sites being considered in Prince George's County offer close proximity to some of our nation's most important national security and cybersecurity agencies, as well as world-class research institutions.  Director Comey has identified cybersecurity as one of the FBI's priorities, and Maryland is home to the U.S. Cyber Command at Fort Meade, the National Security Agency, the Defense Information Systems Agency, the National Cyber Security Center of Excellence Headquarters at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), University of Maryland University College's cybersecurity program, and the Department of Defense's Cyber Crime Center (DC3).  Prince George's County is also home to private sector companies and contractors in the cybersecurity field.

"Fourth, according to a 2011 report by the FBI, consolidating the headquarters would save taxpayers at least $44 million in annual appropriations due to the elimination of inefficiencies from housing its divisions in multiple locations. 

"Consolidating the FBI headquarters is one of the most important homeland security initiatives in years, and selecting a site in Prince George's County will best achieve the goals of such consolidation.  I thank the Committee for this opportunity to share my views, and I hope members will fully support the GSA's efforts with regard to FBI consolidation."