Subject: [NEXTEL-1] Phantom federal security funds decried

From: [email-masked]
Date: Thu, 11 Sep 2003 15:33:26 -0400

Phantom federal security funds decried

By RHONDA COOK

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Atlanta estimates that it
needs almost $307 million in
federal funds to cover the
additional security and training
costs the city has faced since
the terrorist attacks two years
ago.

But so far, a little more than
$61.6 million is what the entire
state of Georgia has been
approved for-- but has not
necessarily received.

And that amount is not close to what the state thought would be the minimum in
additional federal dollars coming its way this year, said Bill Hitchens, director
of the Georgia Office of Homeland Security. "We thought $100 million would be new
[federal] money" for homeland security, said Hitchens, head of the tiny agency
through which federal funds pass to state and local agencies.

It wasn't. The rest of the $100 million was Washington funding previously
earmarked for existing federal programs in Georgia. So the increase in funding for
"homeland security" was in name only. State officials are disappointed --
especially considering that Georgia ranked 50th in federal homeland security
spending per capita and that Atlanta, the 10th-largest metro area in the nation,
received nothing from the grants for urban areas.

"We've certainly got enough targets" to get more money, said Mike Sherberger,
director of the Georgia Emergency Management Agency, which falls under the
umbrella of the state's Office of Homeland Security.

U.S. Sen. Zell Miller complained last month to Homeland Security Secretary Tom
Ridge that Georgia -- especially Atlanta -- was a prime terrorist target. The
Peach State is home to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
Hartsfield International Airport, the nation's fifth-largest port at Savannah, and
two nuclear facilities.

"Taking this into consideration, it is inconceivable that Georgia did not receive
any homeland security funding under the urban area security initiative," Miller
wrote. In the first round of federal grants announced in May, Georgia got $14
million. In the second group, announced in June, Georgia was down for about $32.5
million, most of which went to 71 fire and police departments and emergency
response services to buy protective suits, communications equipment, vans and gas
detection devices.

An additional $5 million was for law enforcement overtime, some for Atlanta and
Hartsfield. The port of Savannah and MARTA got a total of $5 million more. Some of
the funds to the state have been used to reconfigure software designed to transmit
information to experts and rescuers in the field.

But communications is one area in which the state is still lacking. A hodgepodge
of radio systems makes it virtually impossible for agencies to communicate with
each other at disaster scenes. "Our radios won't talk," said Mike Satterfield,
chief of Hall County Fire and Emergency Services. "We have to have equipment that
will talk to each other."

Cobb County Fire Chief Rebecca Denlinger, who is on the advisory board for the
state Office of Homeland Security, said equipment needs to be more interchangeable
between departments because large-scale events call for multidepartmental
responses.

"We're still wrestling with this," Denlinger said. Cobb will get $600,000 in
federal money to improve its ability to communicate and work with other agencies.
In a letter to U.S. Rep. Johnny Isakson, Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin asked for
funding for protective gear, a helicopter video system, imaging cameras, a
"weapons of mass destruction" robot, and overtime pay and security upgrades at the
airport.

Statewide, law enforcement agencies have had to shift personnel to cover posts
that were not considered critical before the 2001 attacks. But even though local
governments are straining and federal grants fall short of the wish lists,
officials acknowledge that they are getting more than they would have without any
attacks.

"If there can be a silver lining, that would be it," said Carroll County fire and
rescue chief Gary Thomas, whose eight-county region has been approved for $330,000
in federal dollars.

Because of that funding approval, Thomas' team also must respond to problems in
other areas. "We figure the biggest target closest to us is Atlanta," he said.
"We're always deemed to be the doomsday folks, because we're always preparing for
the worst," Thomas said. "But what other choice do we have? We have to be ready. I
think Sept. 11 proved to us that terrorism is here, and I think it will occur
again."

Staff writer Bill Torpy contributed to this article.

http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/0903/10gahomeland.html?urac=n&urvf=10633037358620.033014822306047464

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