Congressional Testimony

Good afternoon Chairman Coble, Congressman Scott, and other distinguished Members. I am grateful for the opportunity to appear before you today and am very pleased to be seated alongside my colleagues from DEA and ATF.

I believe that this is the first-time that an FBI representative has testified before your panel on authorization matters since the tragic events of September 11th. As each of you know, that day put into motion a series of historic changes within the FBI much like those faced after the attack on Pearl Harbor some 60 years ago. The FBI responded to its new national security responsibilities then and has been working hard these past 20 months to address the new challenges and threats that confront us now.

I want to ensure that everyone clearly understands that as President Bush recently emphasized during a speech at FBI Headquarters that "the FBI has no greater priority than preventing terrorist acts against America." And I would like to reiterate what Director Mueller said earlier this month to your Senate counterparts that the "FBI is committed to carrying out its mission in accordance with the protections provided by the Constitution. Every FBI agent is trained to recognize that the responsibility to protect the law is the basis for their authority to enforce it. Respect for Constitutional liberties is not optional, it is mandatory."

Recognizing that today's hearing is one of the first steps in the authorization process, I have included with my statement, FBI summary excerpts from the Department of Justice's 2004 Authorization and Budget Request.

Today, I would like to highlight some of the concrete steps the FBI has taken to improve cooperation and information sharing with the Intelligence Community, other government agencies and our very essential partners at the state and local level. These initiatives touch each of your districts and are an unprecedented commitment to ensuring that information sharing and operational coordination succeeds at all levels.

To enhance cooperation with federal, state and local agencies, we have almost doubled (from 35 pre-9/11 to 66) the number of Joint Terrorism Task Forces (JTTFs) operating today. The JTTFs partner FBI personnel with hundreds of investigators from various federal, state and local agencies in FBI field offices across the country. As part of this expansion, we are providing 500 JTTF agents and state and local law enforcement personnel with specialized counterterrorism training and by the end of the year, basic counterterrorism training to every JTTF member. We also are expanding basic counterterrorism training on a national level and estimate that almost 27,000 federal, state and local law enforcement officers will ultimately benefit from these FBI training initiatives. JTTFs are truly our first-line of defense. To improve the effectiveness of our expanding JTTF base, in July 2002, we established the National Joint Terrorism Task Force (NJTTF) at FBI Headquarters. Staffed by representatives from 30 different federal, state and local agencies, the NJTTF serves as a "point of fusion" for terrorism information by coordinating the flow of information across the country between the represented agencies and the JTTFs in the field.

On a weekly basis over 17,000 law enforcement agencies receive the "FBI Intelligence Bulletin" providing needed information on terrorism issues and threats particularly to patrol officers and other law enforcement personnel who have direct contact with the general public.

For the Intelligence Community, the FBI also prepares "Intelligence Information Reports" that provide FBI information and analysis on counter-intelligence and counter-terrorism matters. In the last 6 months alone, over 1,200 of these reports have been prepared and disseminated.

To further strengthen the FBI's ability to forge more cooperative relationships with our state and local counterparts, the Office of Law Enforcement Coordination was created. Headed by a former Chief of Police, this vital office also has liaison responsibilities with the White House Homeland Security Council.

I would also like to note that besides enhancing our cooperative efforts at home, the FBI has expanded its liaison efforts overseas and we know have 45 Legal Attaché offices. These offices are vital links in following up terrorist leads around the world.

As you well know, the FBI's investigative efforts depend on state-of-the-art technology and I want to report that tremendous progress is being made in this critical area. Over 21,000 new desktop computers and nearly 5,000 printers and scanners have been provided and high-speed local area networks have been deployed in over 600 FBI locations. I understand that we still have a long way to go but I want to thank the Subcommittee for the support it has provided on these critical technology issues.

In closing, I want to assure you that the men and women of the FBI are fully committed to today's challenges much like their colleagues 60 years ago. With the vital tools that you have provided, I am confident that we can carry out our mission to protect America.

Again, I offer my gratitude and appreciation for your giving me this opportunity to appear before the Subcommittee and I will be happy to respond to any questions.