Press Releases

U.S. Representative Scott Perry (PA-04) examined wasteful homeland security programs in his first hearing as Chairman of the House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Oversight and Management Efficiency. The hearing addressed recommendations from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Inspector General to improve homeland security.

“Given that our national debt is over $18 trillion and we face numerous threats, whether from radical jihadi terrorists intent on attacking us, to porous borders with a steady flow of illegal immigrants and drugs coming into our communities, DHS must secure the homeland efficiently and effectively,” said Perry. “Folks back home in Pennsylvania didn’t send me to Washington to watch their tax dollars wasted on ineffective programs.”

The chief homeland security watchdog, DHS Inspector General John Roth, testified that individual offices in DHS many times will fail to unify efforts, which leads to waste. “This situation is sometimes exacerbated by components’ disregard for DHS’ policies. Together, these problems hamper operations and lead to wasteful spending,” said Roth. Ms. Rebecca Gambler, Director with the GAO, also testified that DHS’s ineffective management practices put taxpayer dollars at high-risk to waste, fraud, and abuse. Despite making 2,200 GAO recommendations to DHS since 2003, GAO noted that DHS had failed to implement more than 30 percent of these recommendations.

Rep. Perry also questioned the DHS Inspector General on findings from a recent report that unmanned aerial systems used for border security lacked performance measures and are not being used efficiently.

The Subcommittee on Oversight and Management Efficiency oversees the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) day-to-day operations. The subcommittee works to identify potential opportunities to eliminate duplicative or unnecessary programs, find efficiencies that will contribute to DHS’s ability to meet its vital missions, and identify areas for cost savings. The subcommittee also conducts rigorous oversight to ensure departmental regulations enhance security without posing an unnecessary barrier to private sector job creation. Future hearings will be announced in the coming weeks.

Materials from today’s hearing can be found here: http://homeland.house.gov/hearing/assessing-dhs-s-performance-watchdog-recommendations-improve-homeland-security

Residents of the 4th District are welcome to contact Congressman Perry and his staff at any of the offices or via Perry.House.Gov, where they can sign up for e-mail updates and for his Facebook, Twitter and YouTube pages.