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Release Date: 06/17/04 00:00:00
For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
Contact: 202-282-8010
June 17, 2004
Today, the members of the Task Force on State and Local Homeland Security Funding through the Homeland Security Advisory Council, delivered their report with findings and recommendations for expediting the flow of homeland security funds to ensure that our nation’s emergency managers, first responders and law enforcement officials get the federal funds they need, as soon as possible to protect their communities.
In March, Secretary Tom Ridge announced the creation of this Funding Task Force, comprised of state, local, municipal and tribal leaders, after recognizing that the current system was not efficiently distributing the unprecedented amount of homeland security funds totaling over $8 billion that has been awarded over the past two years. The task force focused on three core areas: examining the funding process to understand why there have been delays; examining and cataloging best practices; and providing specific recommendations to eliminate choke points that impede the timely distribution of funds.
“The work done by this task force is truly a unique effort and demonstrates the commitment by all levels of government to work through a very complex situation,” said Secretary Ridge. “These findings and recommendations reflect a tremendous amount of work done by Governor Mitt Romney, Mayor Don Plusquellic, and the 18 other members of the Funding Task Force. President Bush and I share their commitment to delivering Homeland Security funds quickly into the hands of those that need it to keep our hometowns safe and secure, and will work with all partners to further improve the funding system.”
The Funding Task Force is a bipartisan group of officials selected by their national associations of state and local representatives and by the Homeland Security Advisory Council. The creation of this Task Force, utilizing the first-hand experience of leaders at all levels of government, is evidence of the shared commitment to continually improving this necessary and highly important process. During the last two months, the Funding Task Force met regularly and solicited input from numerous sources to create this final report.
The report underscores that no one issue or level of government has been responsible for the delays, but rather it appears that there are several independent issues that have compounded one another to slow the funding flow. This includes everything from procurement rules to backlogs of equipment orders from private sector homeland security vendors. The report also outlines a number of innovative best practices that select jurisdictions have put in place to support the procurement and delivery of emergency response equipment.
Summary of Findings:
Summary of Recommendations:
“This report represents a consensus reached by governors, mayors, municipal officials, and first responders,” said Governor Mitt Romney. “We believe these recommendations, if rapidly implemented, will get these critical funds moving through the pipeline so we can do a better job protecting our communities. We will be asking Congress to implement these recommendations quickly in the legislation now pending.”
“Our primary goal is to keep our country safe. To do that, we had to reach consensus on improving the funding mechanisms for those who take the lion's share of responsibility for homeland security---our first responders. I believe these recommendations help achieve that. I urge members of Congress to pass legislation implementing these thoughtful recommendations as soon as possible,” said Mayor Donald Plusquellic.
The Funding Task Force has operated under the aegis of the Homeland Security Advisory Council (HSAC), a group of leaders from state and local governments, the emergency response community, academia and the private sector, who meet to deliver recommendations and expert advice to Secretary Ridge on homeland security issues.
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Task Force on State and Local Homeland Security Funding Report (PDF, 30 pages - 266 KB)
This page was last reviewed/modified on 06/17/04 00:00:00.