Washington, DC – U.S. Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and John Cornyn (R-Texas) today introduced legislation to ensure that homeland security grants are allocated according to where the threat of terrorist attack is greatest.

This legislation is cosponsored by Senators Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.), Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas), Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), Jon Corzine (D-N.J.), Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) and Bill Nelson (D-Fla.).

“Billions of dollars in homeland security funds to states and local communities are being distributed to areas that are not at the greatest risk of terrorist attack,” said Senator Feinstein, ranking member of the Terrorism, Technology and Homeland Security subcommittee. “We need to adopt risk-analysis to determine who should receive homeland security funding. If we are to improve our nation’s security, we absolutely have to direct funding and resources to where there is the most risk.”

“We must guard the places across our nation where terrorists may strike and where such attacks could do the most damage to our people, our government, and our national economy,” said Senator Cornyn, Chairman of the Emerging Threats and Capabilities subcommittee. “This legislation will more effectively protect our most vulnerable population centers, and the critical infrastructure and vital components of our economy. I’ll work with Senator Feinstein and our colleagues in passing this important legislation to better ensure the safety of our citizens.”

The current system of allocating homeland security funds to state and local governments leaves some targets exposed to threats while sending resources to places where there is little chance of terrorist attack. This legislation ensures that homeland security priorities are set according to analysis of risk and threat.

Specifically the bill would:

• Direct the Secretary of Homeland Security to allocate funding to homeland security grants based on risk analysis. This direction covers the four major first-responder grant programs administered by Department of Homeland Security in addition to some grants for seaport and airport security - called “covered grants” in the bill, including:
  
  1) The State Homeland Security Grant Program;
  2) The Urban Area Security Initiative;
  3) The Law Enforcement Terrorism Prevention Program; and
  4) The Citizens Corps Program.

• Reduce the “small state minimum” to .25% per state. Current practice requires each state to get .75% of much of the grant funding. That means 37.5% of the funds are marked for distribution before any risk analysis.

• Require grants be designed to meet “essential capabilities.” Essential capabilities are what we get for the money spent – the ability to address the risk by reducing vulnerability to attack and by diminishing the consequences of such an attack by effective response.

• Ensure that States quickly and effectively pass on Federal funds to where they are needed so that Federal funds are not held back.

“This will not be easy,” Senator Feinstein said. “There are lots of vested interests who will oppose such efforts. But our nation’s safety is at stake. It is time to put aside pork-barrel politics and a Cold War mentality and get to work. We can not afford to wait until it is too late.”

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