Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 2006
DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2006
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Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, first, I congratulate my friend and colleague from Colorado for his excellent statement and his leadership on this issue and so many other issues. Since coming to the Senate 6 months ago, the Senator from Colorado has demonstrated his compassion, intelligence, and ability to speak to the issues that people in this country desperately care about and desperately need. I congratulate him, once again, on having amendments that are very important for the families of our country.
AMENDMENT NO. 1217
Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the pending amendments be set aside and call up my amendment No. 1217.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. The amendment is pending.
Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I ask further unanimous consent that Senators Levin, Corzine, Akaka, Dodd, and Lautenberg be added as cosponsors.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, one of the most important appropriations bills is before us now, and that is our Homeland Security bill. Certainly we are reminded again, because of what happened in London last week, that we on our soil are vulnerable and are looking to stop terrorists overseas.
Our goal, certainly the goal of our caucus, our goal as Democrats, has been to make sure Americans are prepared and protected both at home and abroad. That is what this bill is really all about. It is not a partisan issue. This is an American issue. All of us I know care about this issue, and we need to make sure this budget reflects the goals of making sure that our first responders are prepared, that all Americans are prepared, and that we are protected from terrorism in America.
My amendment addresses a very important piece of that. We have come together in a bipartisan way to make sure that soldiers in America and Afghanistan have the most sophisticated technology so that they can be prepared to protect themselves and fight successfully abroad. Unfortunately, the same is not true at home for our police officers, our firefighters, and our emergency responders. Too many of them rely on outdated technology and equipment that is not integrated with our State departments, our transportation departments and our homeland security departments.
Even if we are defeating terrorists in Iraq, we are not providing the resources and the equipment at home to make sure that we are fully prepared to fight, succeed and, most importantly, protect our families and communities at home.
Too many of our police officers, our firefighters, our emergency medical services personnel and transportation officials are not able to communicate with each other. They have the basics. That is what my amendment speaks to, the ability to make sure that every part of our emergency preparedness system has the ability to communicate with each other. Interoperability is the term often used.
Right now, they are not able to communicate with each other. How much more basic can we get than creating a way for everyone to be able to talk to each other, to literally be on the same wavelength as well as figuratively. Too many first responders, whom I have spoken to as I have moved around Michigan in the last 4 years, have said to me that their communications, alerts going up or down, often come from CNN. The communications are received from CNN before they actually receive them directly to their departments. This does not make any sense.
A June 2004 survey by the U.S. Conference of Mayors found that 80 percent of the cities that responded do not have communications equipment and the ability to communicate with the Department of Homeland Security or the Justice Department. My guess is that the people we represent in our States assume something very different, as they should. After September 11, 2001, everyone assumes that these things have been addressed, and yet they have not been addressed.
The survey also found that 94 percent of cities do not have interoperable capability between their rail facilities, their police, their fire, and their emergency responders. This is especially troubling, given what just happened and the tragic attacks on London's subway system last week.
Their survey also said almost half of the cities said that a lack of interoperable communications had made a response to an incident within the last year very difficult. Sixty percent of the cities said they do not have the communications capability within the State emergency operations center. I have spoken with police and fire chiefs across my State, and overwhelmingly they have expressed concern about this issue, as well as the fact that they actually have fewer police and firefighters in their departments now than they did before 9/11.
I believe we find ourselves in a very vulnerable situation for a number of reasons as it relates to homeland security, but a basic area that needs improvement, in terms of infrastructure, is our ability to have our communications systems connected so that our emergency responders can talk to each other and can respond quickly, both before something happens and during an emergency, and do it effectively.
This is a crisis now, not just a nagging inconvenience. Our lack of interoperable communications is a crisis in this country.
The September 11 attacks highlighted this crisis when New York police and fire personnel were on different radio systems and could not communicate. Over 50 different public safety organizations from Maryland, Virginia, and the District of Columbia reported to the Pentagon that they could not talk to each other.
On more than one occasion now, we have had circumstances where we have been on the Senate floor, and there has come an alert to evacuate this very Chamber. We have been asked to move out away from the Capital complex over to Union Station or to other places around the city. We assume that folks are able to talk to each other, are able to communicate what is going on. Yet, unfortunately, the communication systems that need to be in place are not in place for full interoperable communications.
Nearly 4 years after September 11, 2001, the No. 1 request for appropriations that I receive each year from communities is on communication systems. This year, Michigan communities made over 41 requests. They requested over $75 million for interoperable communications in this bill and in the CJS appropriations bill alone. My guess is, if I went to every community, they would gladly have a request for help to be able to be connected. We can do something about it, and that is what this amendment does.
Most estimates place the cost of equipping America's first responders with interoperable communications in excess of $15 billion. In November 2003, the Congressional Budget Office testified before Congress that there is insufficient funding in place to solve our Nation's communications problems, and it would cost over $15 billion to begin to fix the problem.
So my amendment begins that process by suggesting a 3-year funding stream. My amendment would provide the first year funding for that, $5 billion for interoperable communications grants for America's first responders to provide a strong Federal commitment to the safety of our citizens. I might add, while that is a substantial sum of dollars, that is approximately what we are investing in Iraq each month. So my amendment would ask that we commit 1 month for America; 1 month for America's preparedness to protect the people of America; 1 month to be able to say that we have provided the resources, we have begun to make sure that we are prepared, that we are protected, that our communications systems are connected, and that we are doing all we can do to keep our families safe.
I urge the support of the Stabenow amendment on communications.
I see my colleague standing, I assume to make a motion, but I want to speak to one other amendment, briefly.
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Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I rise to speak to an amendment that Senator Dodd will be offering on his and my behalf in the next hour, I am sure. This relates to the other piece of what needs to happen to make sure that we are thoroughly prepared and protected. Again, that is our goal, to be prepared and protected. That is what we are fighting for. That is what we are working toward. That is what we need to do together.
My amendment would invest in the interoperable communication so that everyone could speak to each other and be able to respond.
There is another amendment that Senator Dodd and I are introducing that speaks to the larger question of whether we are providing all that we need to, to invest at home in our first responders and what they need to be successful. We know that right now, based on a report that was done back in the spring of 2003, there was a blue ribbon panel of experts, led by former Republican Senator Warren Rudman, that found the United States is drastically underfunding local emergency responders and, in their words, remains dangerously unprepared to handle a catastrophic attack on American soil. They recommended at that time a major investment over a 5-year period to fully prepare us so that our families and communities are protected.
After that report was given to us, Senator Dodd and I came to the Senate floor 2 years ago and offered an amendment for the first year of that 5-year funding.
It was not passed. We came last year and offered it again. We stand today asking our colleagues, with an even greater sense of urgency, to finally pass this amendment so that we can begin that 5-year process of fully preparing our first responders and supporting them so that our families are protected. It is a major investment of $15 billion this year. But when we look at what we are spending abroad, we cannot be just concerned about fighting terrorism in somebody else's country. We know we have to be prepared to fight it here. Yet we see hundreds of billions being spent in Iraq, being spent overseas. I supported those dollars so our troops are successful, so they have what they need, but that is not enough. If the troops on the ground in America--our police officers, our firefighters, our emergency responders--do not have the same commitment from us, why would we say we are going to make sure our troops have what they need overseas and then dramatically underfund what they need at home? It makes absolutely no sense.
This is way beyond anything that is viewed as a partisan issue because it does not matter, Democrat or Republican, when we look at the vulnerabilities for our families and communities for us right now, this is something we should all be rallying around. I hope that we are not in a situation looking back at some point and saying we should have done this but, rather, aren't we glad that we did.
The Rudman report that was given to us in the spring of 2003 found that, on average, our fire departments have only half the number of radios they need, and I spoke to that in my other amendment, only enough breathing apparatus for one-third of their firefighters. So one out of three gets breathing equipment. Police departments across America do not have the protective gear to respond to a WMD attack. Our public health laboratories lack the basic equipment to respond to a chemical or biological attack and most report that they are overwhelmed with testing requests.
Finally, our first responders do not have the equipment they need to determine what kind of hazardous material they may be facing. The administration's support for first responders has been on a steady decline. It is less in this budget than it was in last year's budget. That makes no sense.
For example, last year's funding for Michigan State homeland security grants dropped from $47 million to $29.7 million. In this budget, the administration eliminates the law enforcement terrorism training program, cutting another $400 million from our first responders.
Last week's tragedy in London has again shown how important it is to be able to respond quickly and effectively, for them to be able to speak to each other, for us to be able to have enough personnel who can respond. Michigan has three of the busiest commercial crossings in the United States--approximately 3,200 miles of coastline, three nuclear powerplants, ports, and other numerous critical infrastructure that we must protect. Our homeland security needs are somewhere between $1.4 billion and $2.7 billion that we need to invest in every year, yet the allocation in this budget is less than $30 million--again, down from $47 million. That is not even close to what we need to be prepared and protected--not even close.
I have also spoken with police and fire chiefs across the State. Again, it is amazing to me. I do not believe the average person would believe what is happening until they talk to local law enforcement officials. When I talk to them, there are fewer police officers on the beat today than 9/11/2001. It is shocking. It is truly shocking, and I believe it is truly irresponsible.
Last month we spent about $5 billion in Iraq and Afghanistan. We need to put this in perspective. If we take 3 months of what we are spending there, we can fully fund what the Rudman report says is necessary for our first responders. I believe we cannot afford another day without acting on this and other critical areas of infrastructure need. This is about whether we are going to be committed to protect the people of America.
The two amendments about which I have spoken today address and would make sure that we begin to invest in being fully prepared in case of a terrorist attack here at home, and that our families are truly protected.
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