Washington, D.C. – House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) today issued the following statement on the Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General report finding that the U.S. Secret Service has taken action to address the recommendations of the Protective Mission Panel made in December 2014 following the White House fence-jumping incident:
“I am encouraged that leadership at the United States Secret Service has taken a number of steps to implement the recommendations made by the Protective Mission Panel. The Secret Service has a critical duty to ensure the safety of the President, White House personnel and the historic grounds, and there can be no room for error. In particular, the Secret Service faced many demands during the presidential election cycle and I commend them for their excellent work.
“The Secret Service must continue to implement reforms so that it restores itself as a dynamic agency in thwarting threats made against the President of the United States. I look forward to continue working with the Secret Service to make necessary improvements at the agency and also call on the Senate to pass the Secret Service Improvements Act so that the agency has the resources it needs to meet its mission.”
Additional Background: In July 2015, the House of Representatives approved the Secret Service Improvements Act of 2015 (H.R. 1656). This bipartisan bill – authored by House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), Ranking Member John Conyers (D-Mich.), Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, and Investigations Subcommittee Chairman Jim Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.), and Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, and Investigations Subcommittee Ranking Member Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas) – reforms the United States Secret Service, provides much needed resources to enhance agents’ training, strengthens security at the White House, and improves transparency and accountability at the agency.