House Passes HR 4007 on Voice Vote

Earlier this afternoon (5:09 pm EDT) the House HR 4007, the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards Program Authorization and Accountability Act of 2014, by voice vote. There was about 30 minutes of debate on the bill. While it is hard to determine how much actual opposition there was to this bill, a voice vote, without a call for a recorded vote afterwards, is a pretty good sign that there was widespread bipartisan support for the bill. As I mentioned this weekend, this bodes well for the prompt consideration and passage of this bill in the Senate.

Update Added 17:30 CDT:

The American Chemistry council congratulated the House on passing this bill today; noting that:

“This bill will provide the operational stability that DHS has sorely needed to make CFATS successful, and help the agency recruit and retain top talent to effectively implement the program. The measure will also encourage industry to continue to make long-term capital commitments to enhance security and is consistent with the recommendations issued by an interagency Working Group as part of Executive Order 13650, ‘Improving Chemical Facility Safety and Security.”

SOCMA Tweeted®: Thank you @RepMeehan and @HouseHomeland for all of your hard work on H.R. 4007! #CFATS