The Securing the Cities Improvement Act passed the House on a bipartisan voice vote on March 10, advancing over to the U.S. Senate and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
H.R. 1374 would enable the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office of Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction (CWMD) to identify which cities to partner with for the program based on the jurisdiction’s capability and capacity to prepare for and respond to terrorist attacks and other high-consequence events involving nuclear or other radiological materials.
The bill is sponsored by Rep. Carter, Troy A. (D-LA) is cosponsored by Reps. Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS) and Clay Higgins (R-LA).
Under current law, in carrying out the Securing the Cities program, the CWMD may only partner with cities that are high-risk urban areas, which are designated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency under a different program. Instead, this bill requires the CWMD to designate the jurisdictions it may partner with for the program, and the designations must be based on the capability and capacity of the jurisdiction relating to preparedness and response, as well as the relative threat to, vulnerability of, and consequences for, such jurisdiction regarding terrorist attacks and other high-consequence events utilizing nuclear or radiological materials.
The law would also establish performance metrics and milestones for the Securing The Cities program and mandate DHS to report to Congress on program participation and any plans for changes to the program.
“H.R. 1374 will play a crucial role in ensuring that our cities maintain the ability to detect and respond to chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear threats,” said Committee on Homeland Security Ranking Member Bennie G. Thompson. “Without programs like Securing the Cities, efforts to combat these dangers could be hindered or discontinued, putting the safety and security of communities at risk. I thank Congressman Carter for introducing this bipartisan legislation and for leading on this issue.”
Background
The Department of Homeland Security launched the Securing the Cities Initiative in Fiscal Year 2007 as a pilot program to assist New York City, Jersey City, and Newark in detecting and preventing nuclear or radiological threats. The Securing the Cities program has expanded and currently provides 14 local governments with detection equipment, training, exercise support, operational and technical expertise, and programmatic assistance. However, the program is restricted to “high-risk urban areas” designated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) under the Urban Area Security Initiative (UASI) program. This connection between Securing the Cities and UASI can create uncertainty for local governments participating in the program, as the composition of jurisdictions in the UASI program can vary significantly each year.