Washington, DC  -  Three and a half years after 9/11 the federal system for distributing federal homeland security funding to states is confusing and ineffective and if left unreformed could undermine the federal government’s efforts to protect areas of greatest risk, Congressman Mike Rogers said today.

“We have made enormous strides in better protecting our nation,” said Rogers, a subcommittee chairman on the House Committee on Homeland Security. “But we’ve got a long way to go before states like Alabama actually receive the security funding needed to protect our citizens and economy.”

Rogers made the comments today as the House prepares to debate H.R. 1544, the Faster and Smarter Funding for First Responders Act of 2005. The bill would strengthen the federal grant funding system that has been criticized for causing administrative backlogs, and which lacks clear preparedness standards for states on how to spend the money.

“It is critical we employ a systematic approach to make our nation safe as quickly as possible,” he said, citing a 2004 Committee report that said nearly 85 percent of the terrorism preparedness grants distributed to states had not yet been utilized.

Rogers explained the bill would also implement the 9/11 Commission’s recommendation to allocate federal funds based on risk rather than political formulas. These thirteen new criteria include agriculture, the defense industrial base, and the food and water supply, all which are critical to Alabama. “We cannot spend scarce tax dollars to fund questionable projects that have little or nothing to do with securing our homeland,” he said.

While the bill changes the minimum amount of homeland security funds guaranteed to all states, Rogers said changing the formulas should not be seen as a cut. “Our goal must be to clearly define what truly needs protecting based on actual risk to our citizens and essential infrastructure.”

Rogers added the bill does not change critical programs like Assistance to Firefighters (FIRE) grants, COPS grants, Bulletproof Vests funding, or secure schools initiatives for local police. These programs are funded separately by Congress each year, he said.