WASHINGTON – U.S. Representative Candice Miller (MI-10), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Border and Maritime Security, will hold a hearing on Tuesday, September 13th, 2011, at 10:00am entitled, “Ten Years after 9/11: Can Terrorists Still Exploit our Visa System?”

Chairman Miller said: “Visa security is an integral part of our effort to secure our nation’s borders. As we know, at least four of the 9/11 hijackers had either violated the terms of their visas or were in an overstay status. This was a missed opportunity to prevent some of the terrorists from carrying out the attacks of September 11, 2001. Ten years later, I want to examine the progress we have made to secure the visa process so that terrorists cannot use legitimate means to enter the country. What is especially troubling is that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) does not have a good handle on the status of hundreds of thousands who overstay their visa. The 9/11 Commission Report recommended and Congress mandated an exit verification process to ensure that those who visit the country on a visa actually depart. This is an unfilled recommendation, one that the Bipartisan Policy Center Report Card points to as potentially dangerous, and the department should articulate a clear plan to implement a robust visa exit process.”

The hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, September 13th at 10:00am in 311 Cannon. Live Web cast will begin at the start of the hearing.
Witness:
• Thomas Winkowski, Assistant Commissioner, Office of Field Operations, Customs and Border Protection
• Ed Ramotowski, Deputy Assistant Secretary (acting), U.S State Department
• John Cohen, Deputy Counter-Terrorism Coordinator, Department of Homeland Security
• Peter Edge, Deputy Associate Director, Homeland Security Investigations
• Richard M. Stana, Government Accountability Office

When: 10:00am, September 13, 2011

Where: 311 Cannon House Office Building,
Washington, DC

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Contact for media inquiries:
Erin Sayago
erin.sayago@mail.house.gov