Subject: [NEXTEL-1] Funding woes hinder security assessments

From: [email-masked]
Date: Wed, 17 Sep 2003 14:17:53 -0400

Funding woes hinder security assessments
BY Dibya Sarkar
Sept. 4, 2003

The nation isn't doing a good job of assessing its vulnerabilities to terrorist
attacks, and "rickety" funding formulas and fragmented grants assistance are
exacerbating the situation, congressional and homeland security experts told a
Senate Judiciary subcommittee yesterday.

Such persistent problems nearly two years after the terrorist attacks doesn't bode
well for first responders, who still must deal with inadequate training, a lack of
interoperable communications, protective gear and other equipment, and poor
information sharing, the bipartisan panel said.

A Council of Foreign Relations report, called "Emergency Responders: Drastically
Underfunded, Dangerously Unprepared," said the country may have to spend more than
$100 billion to meet first-responder needs over the next five years. Despite the
assessment, former New Hampshire Sen. Warren Rudman, who co-authored the report,
said that the figure is just a guess.

"Nobody knows what the number is," he said.
Witness after witness stressed that no one knows how much money is needed for
homeland security because nobody - federal, state, and local officials - has
identified minimum standards for protection. They also called for reform of the
grant application process.

Rep. Christopher Cox (R-Calif.) testified that since the Sept. 11 terrorist
attacks Congress has appropriated more than $14 billion for first responders
alone, an increase of more than 1,000 percent. But he warned no matter how much
you spend, if you spend money in the wrong places, security gaps would still
exist.
"That means all funds should be dispersed on the basis of hard-nosed threat
assessments," said Cox, who is chairman of the House Select Committee on Homeland
Security.

But the homeland security funding formulas for states and municipalities are
"rickety," he said.  And the grant application process is outdated and convoluted,
resulting in delays and a funding distortion that "does nothing but exacerbate the
risks we face."
He suggested that states, as well as multi-state and interstate regions, could
determine their vulnerabilities on an ongoing basis simultaneously with the
federal government, which would complete and constantly update a national
vulnerability assessment. These states and regions can then apply to the homeland
security department for funding for specific needs.

"The department would match state and local vulnerability assessments against all
(that) the federal government knows about our terrorist enemies and our national
vulnerabilities. Federal first responder grant assistance would flow to where the
risk is greatest," he said.
Rudman said there is adequate intelligence available to do a threat assessment and
prioritize which cities or regions need the most protection.

Richard Clarke, a long-time security expert and former head of the President's
Critical Infrastructure Protection Board, said government officials should also
use standard metropolitan statistical areas - the total population in and around a
major city - to determine needs and funding.

There's a correlation between critical infrastructure and population density, said
Clarke, who co-authored the Council on Foreign Relations report. He said the
federal government should encourage greater cooperation among local governments
within metro regions by providing financial incentives - or even threatening to
withhold money.

http://www.fcw.com/geb/articles/2003/0915/web-input-09-15-03.asp

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