Stop me if you’ve heard this one before – the April 18, 2020, expiration of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) program is rapidly approaching, and Congress currently does not have passable bipartisan, long-term reauthorization legislation in sight. Once again, similar to how the 15-month CFATS program extension played out in January 2019, Congress finds itself with its back against the wall trying to beat the clock and pass legislation ensuring the continuation of this important security program that maintains near-unanimous support on Capitol Hill.
The previous 15-month CFATS program extension was passed with the understanding that both chambers would make a multi-year reauthorization a priority in the current Congress. However, as of today, just a single reauthorization bill has been introduced in either chamber. This partisan bill, H.R. 3256, was introduced by U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Homeland Security Chairman Bennie Thompson (D-MS) last June and passed by the committee along party lines, quashing any true chance of passage if it were to ever arrive in the Republican-controlled U.S. Senate’s hands.
With only 15 legislative working days remaining and the prospect of a comprehensive, bipartisan bill increasingly improbable, in all likelihood Congress will once again need to coalesce around a clean extension of the program to prevent the CFATS program from dissolving. This would consequently punt the chance for a truly comprehensive and long-term reauthorization into the 117th Congress. The clock is ticking, and the time for Congress to act is NOW.
NACD has joined with other industry stakeholders calling on Congress to act as soon as possible to preserve CFATS. The collection of groups recently sent a letter to committee leaders in the Senate, Chairman Ron Johnson (R-WI) and Ranking Member Gary Peters (D-MI), and a letter to committee leaders in the House, Chairmen Bennie Thompson (D-MS) and Frank Pallone (D-NJ), and Ranking Members Mike Rogers (R-MI) and Greg Walden (R-OR).
In addition to our direct efforts on Capitol Hill, NACD recently issued an urgent CFATS action alert to NACD members. I encourage all NACD members to visit NACD’s ChemReAction grassroots website and, with only a few clicks, contact your U.S. Representative and U.S. Senators urging them to act promptly.
CFATS is a critical program with a public-private partnership aimed at keeping dangerous chemicals out of the hands of terrorists. Chemical security is a shared responsibility for the reason that all of the chemical infrastructure is owned by the private sector and nearly all of the threat intelligence and terrorist response capabilities are managed by the public sector.
Each group has a vital role and a shared goal when it comes to national security, which forms the basis of the strong partnership we see in place today. By working together, industry and DHS have put the CFATS program on a solid path that delivers real security benefits that are recognized by both Republicans and Democrats in Washington, D.C. We cannot allow Congress to throw away all the hard work and progress that industry and DHS have made to enhance the level of chemical security under CFATS.
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