Ranking Member Cartwright Statement at the Fiscal Year 2024 Budget Request for the Federal Bureau of Investigation Hearing

Congressman Matt Cartwright (D-PA), Ranking Member of the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Subcommittee, delivered the following remarks at the Subcommittee's hearing on the Fiscal Year 2024 Request Request for the Federal Bureau of Investigation:

Thank you, Chairman Rogers, and I would like to join you in welcoming Director Wray to the Subcommittee again.

The FBI does an enormous amount of work to help protect the American people. To that end, the FBI employs 37,000 people in 56 field offices, 350 resident agencies, specialized facilities and analytical centers across the country, as well as over 60 legal attaché offices in 80 countries around the world. The FBI works to investigate and disrupt crime—everything from violent gang networks, cybercriminals, white collar crime, human trafficking, and domestic and international terrorism.  

Since Russia’s brutal and unprovoked aggression, its invasion of Ukraine last year, the FBI has also worked to successfully disrupt criminal, cyber, and hostile intelligence activities from Russia that endanger Ukraine, our partners, and American citizens. This has included investigating and supporting the indictments of individuals and corporate entities engaging in sanctions evasion, export control violations, and other crimes, as well as identifying hundreds of millions of dollars in yachts, airplanes, and luxury homes belonging to Russian oligarchs, leading to warrants for their seizure.

As chairman of this subcommittee in the last Congress, I’m proud of our work to provide additional resources for the FBI, including for its Ukraine-related work, and for various other efforts to protect the American people. The Biden Administration is requesting funding for further FBI enhancements in fiscal year 2024, including investments to combat violent crime and cybercrime, and to enhance the FBI’s counterintelligence and counterterrorism capabilities.

At the same time, I must continue to express my very strong opposition to the House majority’s plan, as included in legislation that barely passed the House last night and on partisan lines, to implement drastic cuts in discretionary spending for fiscal year 2024. These proposed cuts would translate to the equivalent of losing 11,000 positions, or a third of its workforce, greatly damaging the FBI’s ability to protect our American people and keep our communities safe. 

Director Wray, I look forward to discussing these issues and hearing more from you about the FBI’s fiscal year 2024 budget request.

I thank you for being here. And Mr. Chairman, I yield back.