Senate passes amendment allowing State Department to beef up embassy security

The Senate passed an amendment Friday that would allow the Department of State to transfer $1 billion of already appropriated funds to increase security at U.S. embassies and other overseas posts.

The amendment was attached to the Hurricane Sandy emergency-spending measure, and a vote on final passage of that bill is expected later Friday. The House would also have to pass the same version of a recovery package in order for the president to sign the amendment into law.

Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.) introduced Amendment 3403 on behalf of Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) Thursday evening. The amendment was passed en bloc on Friday morning.

Leahy’s amendment comes after four Americans were killed at the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya, on Sept. 11. U.S. Ambassador to Libya, Chris Stevens, was among those killed. 

After the attack, the State Department conducted an accountability review and found that security at other overseas posts was lacking as well.

The amendment would allow the State Department to transfer up to approximately $1 billion in Overseas Contingency Operations funds appropriated in fiscal 2012 for operations in Iraq, to other areas where security concerns are greater.

“We all want to do what we can to prevent another tragedy like what occurred in Benghazi,” Mikulski said on the floor Thursday. “The State Department has done a review, and these funds will be used to expedite construction of Marine security guard posts at overseas posts, and to build secure embassies in Beirut, Lebanon and Harare, Zimbabwe.”

Mikulski said that because the funds were already appropriated, the amendment would not add any cost to the $60.4 billion emergency-spending package being debated by the Senate.

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