HJ Res 1 Passed in House – DHS Continuing Resolution

As I noted in an earlier post HJ Res 1, a DHS continuing resolution, passed in the House on January 3^rd. A .PDF version of the bill is still not available, but Congress.gov does have a .TXT version available. The bill would amend the currently expired Continuing Resolution (Division C, HR 6157, 115^th Congress); extending the expiration date in §105 for DHS spending until February 8^th, 2019. It would also authorize back-payment payment of salaries for all furloughed employees.

What the CR does not contain is any extension of the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) program that is currently set to expire on January 17^th. While HR 251 does address the issue of extending the program, its enactment is not assured, especially enactment by January 17^th. Of course, at this point, it is not clear that the Senate will take up HJ Res 1 either.

This is probably a good place to start to discuss what happens to CFATS if HR 251 (or some other bill extending the CFATS program expiration) does not pass by January 17^th. Unfortunately, it depends on circumstances; if, January 17^th arrives and

• There is no CFATS extension and there is no DHS spending bill (either stand-alone or as part of a consolidated spending bill), the program will exist in a sort of purgatory until one or the other is signed by the President;

• There is no CFATS extension and a DHS spending bill is passed that contains funding for the program, the program would probably (there is some disagreement amongst lawyers about this) continue as long as the funding was available;

• There is no CFATS extension and a DHS spending bill is passed that does not contain funding for the program, the program would shut down;

• There is a CFATS extension and there is no DHS spending bill; the program continues under its current Federal Funding Fiasco status with most personnel furloughed; or

There is a CFATS extension and there is a DHS spending bill passed that contains funding for the program, the program resumes operation as before the FFF.

Clearly the best solution is the last one in the list.