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Homeland Security 5 Year Anniversary 2003 - 2008, One Team, One Mission Securing the Homeland

Helping Our Nation's First Responders

Release Date: 06/05/03 00:00:00

U.S. Department of Homeland Security
Office of the Press Secretary
June 5, 2003
For Immediate Release

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has made available more than $4.4 billion in funding for grants since March 1, 2003 for first responders and state and local governments to enhance response and preparedness capabilities.  

GRANTS FOR STATES, CITIES, URBAN AREAS and FIRST RESPONDERS

  • March 7, 2003 - $566 million was made available to the states and cities from the FY '03 budget to assist first responders in the form of funding for equipment, training, planning and exercises. (52 out of 56 grants have been awarded and the remaining will be awarded this month. States have 45 days from the date of their award to provide the money to local jurisdictions. That time period has not ended.)
  • March 10, 2003 - $750 million was made available for firefighter assistance grants from the FY '03 budget to help rural, urban and suburban fire departments better train, prepare and equip themselves. (FEMA will begin awarding these grants to fire departments across the country in the coming weeks.)  
  • April 8, 2003 - $100 million was made available from the FY '03 budget to the New York City area, Los Angeles area, San Francisco area, Chicago area, Seattle area, Houston area and the National Capital Region as part of the urban area security initiative to help enhance the local government's ability to secure large population areas and critical infrastructure.  (ODP is in the process of receiving and approving the applications from these areas. The application period began on April 30 and ends on June 16. So far, only the San Francisco and Chicago areas have submitted their applications.)
  • April 16, 2003 - $165 million was awarded from the FY '03 budget to help state and local governments plan and prepare for all hazards planning, training, exercising and facilities.  (All of these funds have been allocated by FEMA and the majority of the funds have already been awarded.)  
  • April 30, 2003 - $1.5 billion was made available to the states and localities from the FY '03 supplemental budget to help state and local law enforcement personnel pay for equipment, planning, training and exercises and to offset costs associated with enhanced security measures deployed during heightened threat periods. (As of May 31, 2003 the Department of Homeland Security began to award these funds and anticipates the release of all the funds within the next few weeks. All states and territories have applied and twelve have been awarded so far.)
  • May 14, 2003 - $700 million was allocated from the FY '03 supplemental budget as part of the urban area security initiative for 30 cities and their contiguous counties and mutual aid partners to enhance the security of urban areas with high density populations and critical infrastructure, ports and mass transit systems. (Applications for these funds will be available in the next 10 days.)

This page was last reviewed/modified on 06/05/03 00:00:00.