Homeland Security

One of the chief responsibilities of the federal government is protecting its citizens against the danger of attack.

The tragic events of September 11, 2001 changed forever how the federal government fulfills that responsibility. Not only must our military servicemen and women have the training and tools they need to fight future wars, Jane Harman believes the federal government must also defend against terrorist attacks at home and provide aid and support to local governments and first responders.

Key to protecting the homeland is a national strategy that all levels of government and emergency response personnel implement in partnership, and a national threat and vulnerability assessment upon which decisions allocating scarce resources can be based. Regrettably, more than a year since the Homeland Security Department was created, it has yet to complete a threat and vulnerability assessment.

	Securing the American Homeland
	National Homeland Security Strategy

As Ranking Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee and member of the Homeland Security Committee, Harman is an advocate for improving the collection and analysis of intelligence; sharing relevant intelligence information with local first responders, and developing technologies for protecting the homeland – many of which are created in the South Bay.

	Intelligence Sharing
	Fighting Terrorism through Technology

Harman has convened numerous public forums to help citizens learn how to prepare and respond in the event of an attack, and has hosted meetings with local officials, law enforcement and emergency responders to gauge their preparedness and to ensure federal resources are available to fill any funding gaps. Of particular concern is the lack of interoperable communications between first responder agencies, and between local responders and federal agencies, including the FBI and Department of Homeland Security.

Los Angeles County includes 88 cities, 55 police departments, and 33 fire departments. Through no fault of their own, each uses different broadcast frequencies and equipment to communicate. As a result, even departments that are adjacent to each other cannot always to talk to one another. If first responders are to be prepared against 21st century threats, they must have the resources they need, starting with proper communications equipment and sufficient broadcast frequencies.

To ensure police and other first responders have sufficient broadcast frequencies, Harman introduced bipartisan legislation known as the Homeland Emergency Response Operations (HERO) Act, and has secured over $1 million in funding for local police departments to purchase modern radio equipment.

	The HERO Act: Protecting our First Responders
	Funding for Local First Responders

Since 9/11, Harman has worked closely with LA County and South Bay law enforcement to increase both preparedness and response to terrorist attacks. Specifically, she has:

• Introduced HR 3392, the HERO Act, which provides designated broadcast spectrum to improve public safety communications by 2006.
• Authored the House-passed HR 4598, which improves the sharing of homeland security information between federal intelligence agencies and state and local officials.
• Secured over $1 million for LA County to improve radio interoperability.
• Secured funding for LA County Sheriff “battle labs” to test and demonstrate law enforcement counter-terrorism strategies and technologies.
• Co-authored the Bioterrorism Enforcement Act, which supports research of biological toxins that could be used by terrorists and increases resources to the public health network.
• And she co-authored bipartisan legislation that would allow the Centers for Disease Control to complete critical facility renovations five years ahead of schedule. This $1.5 billion package ($300 million for each FY 2002 — 2006) would be used to update research laboratories and provide enhanced security measures.