USCG Establishes Security Zone at Kailua Bay for Presidential Visit
Coast Guard law enforcement officers will enforce a temporary security zone in the waters of Kailua Bay, Oahu. To ensure the safety of the President Obama, the temporary security zone will be in effect from 6 a.m. Friday to 10 p.m. Jan. 5, 2014, unless canceled earlier by the Captain of the Port Honolulu, Capt. Shannon Gilreath. The Coast Guard is coordinating with the Honolulu Police Department, Marine Corps Base Hawaii and other federal, state, and county law enforcement agencies on patrols of the area under the direction of the U.S. Secret Service.
AAPA Spring 2013 Conference Speakers
Three luminaries will augment the speaker panel at the American Association of Port Authorities’ (AAPA) upcoming conference. U.S. Rep. Bill Shuster, the new chairman of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure; Lt. Gen. Thomas Bostick, commanding general of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; and W. Ralph Basham, a principle with Command Consulting Group in Washington, D.C., and former commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection and director of the U.S. Secret Service; will help round-out an already illustrious selection of speakers at the Washington DC conference, March 18-19, 2013. As part of AAPA’s Spring Conference program at The Renaissance Washington, DC Downtown Hotel, U.S. Other program speakers for this year’s event include U.S. Sen.
DHS Budget Request Up 6.8%
President Bush’s fiscal year 2009 budget request for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) represents $50.5 billion in funding, which is an increase of 6.8 percent over the 2008 fiscal year level – excluding funds provided in emergency supplemental funding. The request targets five areas, detailed in the following release of information from the DHS. The Department of Homeland Security’s main priority is to prevent terrorist attacks against the nation and to protect our nation from dangerous people. DHS will continue to prevent the entry of terrorists while facilitating the legitimate flow of people by strengthening border security efforts and continuing to gain effective control of America’s borders.
Oversight Hearing on DHS Law Enforcement Efforts
On February 3, 2004, the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security of the House Committee on the Judiciary conducted an Oversight Hearing on Law Enforcement Efforts within the Department of Homeland Security. Chairman Howard Coble (R-NC) stated that the purpose of the hearing was to examine how the transfer of law enforcement agencies to the new Department has affected the non-terrorism missions of those agencies. Mr. W. Ralph Basham, Director, U.S. Secret Service, testified about how the agency’s traditional missions have merged with the new anti-terrorism mission. Admiral Thomas H. Collins, Commandant, U.S. Coast Guard, testified that the Coast Guard has always been a multi-mission organization and is adept at balancing competing priorities and creating synergies.
NY Senator Calls for Enhanced Security
Senator Schumer is calling for the installation of screening for persons disembarking from passenger ships in New York City. He wants the US-VISIT program to be instituted for such ships, including use of “fingerscanners”. US Senator Charles E. Schumer revealed that while Federal officials are pushing to close Madison Square Garden and the James A. Farley Post Office during the summer's Republican National Convention, they refuse to install their highly-touted new "fingerscanners" at Manhattan's Passenger Ship Terminal to check foreign visitors against terrorist watch lists, even though the Terminal is jut blocks away from the Convention.
Admiral Loy Appointed as Deputy Under Secretary for Transportation Security
U.S. Secretary of Transportation Norman Y. Mineta today announced the appointment of retired Coast Guard Commandant James M. Loy to the newly created post of Deputy Under Secretary for Transportation Security and Chief Operating Officer of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). In his new position, Admiral Loy will report directly to Under Secretary for Transportation Security John Magaw, the head of the TSA. The secretary's announcement was included in remarks he gave at today's change of command ceremony, when Admiral Loy was succeeded by Admiral Thomas Collins as Coast Guard commandant. "Jim Loy is a world-class executive and an experienced transportation professional. TSA's already strong team will benefit from this phenomenal addition.
Government Reform Committee Votes to Keep Department of Homeland Security Intact
The Committee on Government Reform, chaired by Representative Dan Burton (R-IN), today voted to include the Coast Guard, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) and the U.S. Secret Service as part of H.R. 5005, the Homeland Security Act of 2002. “The decision to retain all four of these entities is critical to the core mission and overall success of this new Department,” said Burton. The determination to keep these critical components intact comes on the heels of votes in other Committees today to remove all or portions of the Coast Guard, FEMA, INS, and the Secret Service from the President’s original proposal.
New Members of the Homeland Security Advisory Council Announced
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Michael Chertoff announced today the appointment of Elliott Broidy, Tom Foley and John Magaw to serve on his Homeland Security Advisory Council. The Homeland Security Advisory Council (HSAC), as established by the Homeland Security Act of 2002, is the Secretary’s primary council and is comprised of experts from state and local governments, first responder communities, academia and the private sector. Members of the Council provide advice and recommendations to Secretary Chertoff on homeland security issues. “Each of these individuals brings a vast amount of experience and expertise from public service and the private sector to the Homeland Security Advisory Council,” said Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff.
Agencies are Ready for National Elevated Alert Level
Secretary Ridge and Attorney General Ashcroft announced that the national alert level is being raised from Yellow (Elevated Risk) to Orange (High Risk). As a result, many agencies that will be a part of the new Department of Homeland Security on March 1, are taking additional steps to increase their protective measures. Following are examples of additional steps being taken by some of these agencies. These are provided as representative examples, and should not be construed as the complete Federal response to the increased threat level. · Transportation Security Administration (TSA) screeners will increase the number of random examinations conducted at airport security checkpoints. · Federal Air Marshals will be assigned to a greater number of flights.
Full Committee Approves FY04 Homeland Security
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