About the Committee

The Committee on Homeland Security was established in 2002 to provide Congressional oversight for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and better protect the American people against a possible terrorist attack. Chairman Michael McCaul joined the Committee in 2005 as Chairman of the Investigations Subcommittee, when the House of Representatives granted the Committee on Homeland Security permanent status. 

Committee Republicans passed several landmark pieces of bipartisan homeland security legislation, including the SAFE Port Act, Chemical Plant Security legislation, and FEMA reform.  A 2006 investigation by McCaul uncovered more than $1 billion in waste, fraud and abuse in FEMA’s response to hurricanes Katrina and Rita. 

The Committee was chartered to hold hearings and craft legislation for issues specific to homeland security. The Committee meets in historic Room 311 in the Cannon House Office Building, which houses the notable Peace painting (Walter Lofthouse Dean, 1893).

The Committee on Homeland Security has six Subcommittees; each specializing in a subset of the Full Committee’s jurisdiction:

Subcommittee on Border and Maritime Security

Subcommittee on Counterterrorism and Intelligence

Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Infrastructure Protection and Security Technologies

Subcommittee on Emergency Preparedness, Response and Communications

Subcommittee on Oversight and Management Efficiency

Subcommittee on Transportation Security