Before the House passed the Preclearance Authorization Act of 2015 earlier this week, U.S. Rep. Candice Miller (R-MI) voiced her support of the legislation, which authorizes the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to increase its preclearance operations with Congressional oversight.
“Few issues have kept [U.S. Customs and Border Protection] leadership busier over the last year than preclearance,” Miller, vice chair of the House Homeland Security Committee and chairwoman of the Subcommittee on Border and Maritime Security, said. “Failure to properly consult with stakeholders on preclearance expansion to Abu Dhabi caused a great deal of consternation on Capitol Hill and in the Homeland Security Committee last Congress.”
Miller explained that the lack of appropriate Congressional coordination and failure to notify troubled many lawmakers, as well as other stakeholders – particularly those within the airline industry.
“It is my sincere hope that the department will keep Congress fully abreast of future plans, especially in light of the recent announcement of the intention to expand preclearance to 10 additional locations,” she continued. “And this bill sets the groundwork for greater oversight and coordination of future preclearance operations.”
Miller reiterated that she supports the concept of preclearance, but believes the process needs to be cleaned up.
“Preclearance has been an effective security screening and trade facilitation tool since the early 1950s, and since 9/11 the security value of these operations has only been heightened,” she said. “However, the mistakes of the Abu Dhabi agreement cannot be repeated. Expansion of pre clearance must be done in such a way that it supports both our security and facilitation objectives, and does not disadvantage our domestic airlines. This bill was carefully drafted after several oversight hearings and numerous consultations with the department, the airline industry, and members from both parties.”
The key provisions of the Preclearance Authorization Act include: allowing the Homeland Security secretary to establish preclearance operations in a foreign country to prevent terrorists, instruments of terrorism, security threats, and other inadmissible persons from entering the U.S.; requires the secretary to notify Congress days before entering into an agreement with a foreign government to establish a preclearance operation; directs the secretary to certify the homeland security benefits of the preclearance operation and that at least one U.S. passenger carrier operates at that location; requires that the aviation security screening standard at a preclearance location be comparable to that required by the Transportation Security Administration; and requires any foreign county where a preclearance operation agreement is to be established or renewed to routinely submit information to Interpol’s Stolen and Lost Travel Document database, and make that information available to the U.S. government.
“I have, and will continue to be, a champion for pushing the border out because our national security demands it,” Miller said. “Preclearance operations are an important part of the ‘Outer Ring of Border Security,’ and I look forward to an ever-increasing share of international flights, which have the benefit of the additional layer of security.”