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Federal Support for Involvement in State and Local Fusion Centers, Majority and Minority Staff Report, Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, United States Senate
This Majority and Minority Staff Report was issued by Senators Carl Levin and Tom Coburn of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. From the Executive Summary: "Sharing terrorism-related information between state, local and federal officials is crucial to protecting the United States from another terrorist attack. Achieving this objective was the motivation for Congress and the White House to invest hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars over the last nine years in support of dozens of state and local fusion centers across the United States. The Subcommittee investigation found that DHS-assigned detailees to the fusion centers forwarded 'intelligence' of uneven quality -- oftentimes shoddy, rarely timely, sometimes endangering citizens' civil liberties and Privacy Act protections, occasionally taken from already-published public sources, and more often than not unrelated to terrorism. Congress directed the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to lead this initiative. A bipartisan investigation by the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations has found, however, that DHS' work with those state and local fusion centers has not produced useful intelligence to support federal counterterrorism efforts. The Subcommittee investigation also found that DHS officials' public claims about fusion centers were not always accurate. For instance, DHS officials asserted that some fusion centers existed when they did not. At times, DHS officials overstated fusion centers' 'success stories.' At other times, DHS officials failed to disclose or acknowledge non-public evaluations highlighting a host of problems at fusion centers and in DHS' own operations. Since 2003, over 70 state and local fusion centers, supported in part with federal funds, have been created or expanded in part to strengthen U.S. intelligence capabilities, particularly to detect, disrupt, and respond to domestic terrorist activities. DHS' support for and involvement with these state and local fusion centers has, from the beginning, centered on their professed ability to strengthen federal counterterrorism efforts."
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
2012-10-03
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Section-By-Section Revised Cybersecurity Act of 2012, S. 3414 (Introduced on July 19, 2012)
This bill includes sections on public-private partnerships to protect critical infrastructure, voluntary cybersecurity practices and programs for critical infrastructure, and assessment and international cooperation. In addition, the bill discusses Federal information security management; national security systems and information technology management; research and development; education, outreach, and workforce; and information sharing.
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
2012-07-19
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U.S. Vulnerabilities to Money Laundering, Drugs, and Terrorist Financing: HSBC Case History, Majority and Minority Staff Report, Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, United States Senate
"This Report examines the anti-money laundering (AML) and terrorist financing vulnerabilities created when a global bank uses its U.S. affiliate to provide U.S. dollars, U.S. dollar services, and access to the U.S. financial system to high risk affiliates, high risk correspondent banks, and high risk clients. This Report also offers recommendations to strengthen correspondent AML controls to combat money laundering, drug trafficking, and terrorist financing."
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
2012-07-17
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Far From Home: Deficiencies in Federal Disaster Housing Assistance After Hurricanes Katrina and Rita and Recommendation for Improvement
In February 2008, this Subcommittee began a bipartisan investigation into the Federal disaster housing response, which was authorized by the U.S. Senate Committee on Rules and Administration. The Subcommittee investigated the Federal Government's coordinated disaster housing response after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, as led by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). This Subcommittee Report focuses exclusively on housing, specifically the Federal response to housing needs in major disaster declarations.
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
2012-04-13?
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Zachary Chesser: A Case Study in Online Islamist Radicalization and its Meaning for the Threat of Homegrown Terrorism
"Aside from the intelligence and law enforcement officials who work daily to keep the United States homeland safe from terrorism, the vast majority of Americans have likely never heard of Zachery Chesser, a young American now serving a 25-year sentence on several terrorism-related charges. Yet, Chesser is significant because he is part of a trend which, if not addressed, threatens the security of our homeland. That is why his story is being described in this report. First, some background: In recent years, the United States has experienced an increase in the number of terrorist plots and attacks within the homeland, including by U.S. citizens.1 Between September 11, 2001 and February 2012, there were more than 53 cases of homegrown Islamist extremists planning and/or carrying out acts of terrorism against the United States.2 In the past 12 months alone, there have been 11 homegrown cases […]."
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
2012-02
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Border Corruption: Assessing Customs and Border Protection and the Department of Homeland Security Inspector General's Office Collaboration in the Fight to Prevent Corruption
The following document is testimony on assessing customs and border protection and the Department of Homeland Security Inspector General's Office cCollaboration in the fight to prevent corruption before the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, ad hoc subcommittee on disaster recovery and intergovernmental affairs.
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs; Lessons Learned Information Sharing (LLIS)
2011-06-09
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New Information About Counternarcotics Contracts in Latin America
"At the request of Senator Claire McCaskill, this analysis examines State Department and Defense Department spending on contracts to supply counternarcotics assistance to governments in Latin America. The analysis reviews counternarcotics contract spending over a five year period focusing primarily on eight countries: Mexico, Colombia, Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador, Haiti, Guatemala, and the Dominican Republic. The analysis finds that from 2005 to 2009, the federal government's annual spending on counternarcotics contracts in Latin America rose by 32%, from $482 million in 2005 to $635.8 million in 2009. In total, the government spent more than $3.1 billion on counternarcotics contracts during this period. Key findings in the analysis include: • From 2005 to 2009, the majority of counternarcotics contracts in Latin America went to only five contractors: DynCorp, Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, ITT, and ARINC, who collectively received contracts worth over $1.8 billion. • The State Department and the Defense Department spent nearly $2 billion on counternarcotics contracts in Colombia alone from 2005 to 2009. 1) More than half (52%) of counternarcotics contract dollars during this time period were spent to acquire goods and services related to aircraft, which are used for drug location and eradication [...] 2) Neither the State Department nor the Defense Department has adequate systems in place to track counternarcotics contract data. [...] 3) While spending on counternarcotics contracts increased by 32% over the five year period under review, contract management and oversight has been insufficient, and has not kept pace with the government's increased reliance on contractors. 4) The federal government does not have any uniform systems in place to track or evaluate whether counternarcotics contracts are achieving their goals."
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
2011-06-07
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Wall Street and the Financial Crisis: Anatomy of a Financial Collapse
This majority and minority staff report from the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs' Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations analyzes the key causes of the 2008 economic collapse. From the report: "This Report is the product of a two-year, bipartisan investigation by the U.S. Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations into the origins of the 2008 financial crisis. The goals of this investigation were to construct a public record of the facts in order to deepen the understanding of what happened; identify some of the root causes of the crisis; and provide a factual foundation for the ongoing effort to fortify the country against the recurrence of a similar crisis in the future. Using internal documents, communications, and interviews, the Report attempts to provide the clearest picture yet of what took place inside the walls of some of the financial institutions and regulatory agencies that contributed to the crisis. The investigation found that the crisis was not a natural disaster, but the result of high risk, complex financial products; undisclosed conflicts of interest; and the failure of regulators, the credit rating agencies, and the market itself to rein in the excesses of Wall Street. While this Report does not attempt to examine every key moment, or analyze every important cause of the crisis, it provides new, detailed, and compelling evidence of what happened. In so doing, we hope the Report leads to solutions that prevent it from happening again."
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
2011-04-13
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Ticking Time Bomb: Counterterrorism Lessons from the U.S. Government's Failure to Prevent the Fort Hood Attack: A Special Report by Joseph I. Lieberman, Chairman Susan M. Collins, Ranking Member
"The U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs launched an investigation of the events preceding the attack with two purposes: (1) to assess the information that the U.S. Government possessed prior to the attack and the actions that it took or failed to take in response to that information; and (2) to identify steps necessary to protect the United States against future acts of terrorism by homegrown violent Islamist extremists. This investigation flows from the Committee's four-year, bipartisan review of the threat of violent Islamist extremism to our homeland which has included numerous briefings, hearings, consultations, and the publication of a staff report in 2008 concerning the internet and terrorism."The committee's conclusion on the case is: "Although neither DoD nor the FBI had specific information concerning the time, place, or nature of the attack, they collectively had sufficient information to have detected Hasan's radicalization to violent Islamist extremism but failed both to understand and to act on it. Our investigation found specific and systemic failures in the government's handling of the Hasan case and raises additional concerns about what may be broader systemic issues."
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
2011-02
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Homeland Security Department's Budget Submisson for Fiscal Year 2010: Hearing before the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, One Hundred Eleventh Congress, Second Session, February 24, 2010
This is a compilation of statements from a hearing held on February 24, 2010 before the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs entitled "Homeland Security Department's Budget Submission for Fiscal Year 2010." The following individuals gave statements: Senator Joseph I. Lieberman; Senator Susan M. Collins; and the Honorable Janet A. Napolitano, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. During the hearing, discussion focused on the recent terrorist attempts, the proposals for improving the domestic security of the United States, and budget proposals for the fiscal year 2010.
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
2010-02-24
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Homeland Security Department's Budget Submission for Fiscal Year 2010: Hearing Before the U.S. Senate, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, One Hundred Eleventh Congress, First Session, May 12, 2009
From Janet Napolitano's opening statement: "The Department of Homeland Security's Budget will strengthen current efforts that are vital to the nation's security, bolster DHS' ability to respond to emerging and evolving threats, and allow DHS to embrace new responsibilities in order to secure the nation. This Budget puts forward critical investments in the protection of the American people." Statements, letters, and materials submitted for the record include those of the following: Joseph Lieberman, Susan Collins, Michael F. Bennet, John McCain, Mary L. Landrieu, Thomas S. Carper, Claire McCaskill, Daniel K. Akaka, and Janet A. Mapolitano.
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
2009-05-12
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Cyber Security: Developing a National Strategy: Statement of Stewart A. Baker, Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
In this testimony, Stewart A. Baker, a partner at Steptoe & Johnson LLP, responds to recommendations for a comprehensive national approach to cyber security made by the Center for Strategic and International Studies Commission on Cybersecurity in December 2008.
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
2009-04-28
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Violent Islamist Extremism, the Internet, and the Homegrown Terrorist Threat
"This is the first in a series of reports by the Majority and Minority staff of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs (Committee) on the threat of homegrown terrorism inspired by violent Islamist extremism. The Committee initiated an investigation into this threat during the 109th Congress under the leadership of Chairman Susan Collins (R-ME). The first hearing on the homegrown threat considered the potential for radicalization in U.S. prisons, including an examination of the activities of Kevin Lamar James, an American citizen. While in prison, James adopted a variant of violent Islamist ideology, founded an organization known as the Assembly for Authentic Islam (or JIS, the Arabic initials for the group), and began converting fellow prisoners to his cause. Upon release, James recruited members of JIS to commit at least 11 armed robberies, the proceeds from which were to be used to finance attacks against military installations and other targets in southern California. James and another member of the group eventually pled guilty to conspiring to wage war against the United States. The James case is only one example of how the violent Islamist terrorist threat has evolved and expanded since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Al-Qaeda planned the 9/11 attacks and recruited the hijackers abroad before sending them to the United States to make final preparations for the operation. The 9/11 hijackers were indoctrinated into the violent Islamist mindset long before they set foot in the United States. As the James case and others illustrate, however, radicalization is no longer confined to training camps in Afghanistan or other locations far from our shores; it is also occurring right here in the United States."
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
Collins, Susan, 1952-; Lieberman, Joseph I.
2008-05-08
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Letter to Michael Chertoff from Joseph I. Lieberman on the Topic of the Comprehensive National Cybersecurity Initiative, May 1, 2008
In this letter Joseph I. Lieberman discusess the Comprehensive National Cybersecurity Initiative (CNCI) including its history, requests for new resources, the use of contractor personnel, information sharing, issues with classified information, lack of private industry involved, and a list of questions for Michael Chertoff to answer regarding the CNCI.
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
Lieberman, Joseph I.
2008-05-01
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Managing the Information Flow at the Maryland Coordination and Analysis Center
This testimony before the United States Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs outlines challenges of fusing information flows to determine what is useful at the Maryland Coordination and Analysis Center, Maryland's state fusion center.
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
2008-04-17?
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Letter to Michael Chertoff Regarding Funding for Fusion Centers
This letter expresses "strong concern with provisions in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2008 Homeland Security Grant Program Guidance that restrict the use of grant funds for certain operational activities. These restrictions are inconsistent with provisions of the Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007 (9/11 Act), which the President signed into law on August 3, 2007 (P.L. 110-53). We ask that the FY 2008 Homeland Security Grant Program Guidance be changed to reflect Congressional intent."
United States. Congress. House. Committee on Homeland Security; United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
Collins, Susan, 1952-; Lieberman, Joseph I.; Thompson, Bennie, 1948- . . .
2008-04-11
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Lieberman, Collins Review FEMA Status Update
"Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Joe Lieberman, ID-Conn., and Ranking Member Susan Collins, R-Me., Thursday noted progress made by the Federal Emergency Management Administration in transforming itself into a disaster agency that can respond effectively to a catastrophe but noted that it has a long way to go before it reaches that goal. […] In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and the failure at all levels of government to respond adequately, Lieberman and Collins spent seven months investigating what went wrong. The legislative result of their investigation was the Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act which passed Congress and was signed into law in 2006. Since then, the Committee has been conducting close oversight of FEMA's progress in implementing those reforms."
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
Lieberman, Joseph I.
2008-04-03
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Confronting the Terrorist Threat to the Homeland: Six Years After 9/11: Witness Testimony: The Honorable John Scott Redd, Director, National Counterterrorism Center, Office of the Director of National Intelligence
This is a witness testimony of The Honorable John Scott Redd, Director, National Counterterrorism Center, Office of the Director of National Intelligence to the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs hearings on "Confronting the Terrorist Threat to the Homeland: Six Years After 9/11."
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
2007-09-10
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H. Rept. 110-259: Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007, Conference Report to Accompany H.R. 1, July 25, 2007
This document is the conference report in regards to the implementation recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007.
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
2007-07-25
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"Full Implementation of the 9/11 Commission's Recommendations," Statement of Lee H. Hamilton, Slade Gorton, Timothy J. Roemer, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, U.S. Senate, January 9, 2007
This testimony covers steps for Congress to fully implement 9/11 Commission recommendations.
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
2007-01-09
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Section 652 of the Post Katrina Emergency Reform Act (Pkemra), H.R. 5441: An Act Making Appropriations for the Department of Homeland Security for the Fiscal Year Ending September 30, 2007, and for Other Purposes
Section 652 of PKEMRA outlines specific reporting requirements related to preparedness, including the mandate that states receiving federal preparedness assistance must submit an annual report to FEMA [Federal Emergency Management Agency] describing the state's level of preparedness.
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
2006-10-04?
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Opening Statement of Congressman Tom Davis, Held Before the House Subcommittee on the Federal Workforce and Agency Organization, July 18, 2006
The Congressman's statement argues that the decentralization of federal agency functions inherent in a healthy telework strategy can greatly increase the survivability of those agencies in the event of a terrorist attack or other disruptive crisis.
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
2006-07-18
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Hurricane Katrina: A Nation Still Unprepared, Report of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
"The United States Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs has prepared this bipartisan report to acknowledge what was done well, to identify what was done poorly or not at all, and to recommend changes in our national system for emergency response that will put local, state, federal, and private responders in a better position to provide prompt and effective relief when disaster strikes again. The Committee conducted a long and thorough investigation of these issues, and is grateful for the work of its staff of investigators, writers, researchers, and other professionals that made this report possible."
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
2006-05
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Hurricane Katrina: A Nation Still Unprepared: Additional Views of Senators Lieberman, Levin, Akaka, Carper and Lautenberg on White House Katrina Failures, Administration Lack of Cooperation with the Investigation, and Failure to Establish Unified Command
"The Committee's efforts to understand the role the White House played in events leading up to and following the catastrophe were severely hindered by the White House's failure to comply with Committee requests for information, documents, and interviews. As a result, we learned much too little about what the White House and the Executive Office of the President were doing during the critical days before and after Katrina struck. Based on the information the Committee was able to obtain, we have reached the following conclusions. (1) As the head of the federal government, the President has a unique responsibility to ensure government preparedness and response at critical times. For Hurricane Katrina, the President failed to provide critical leadership when it was most needed, and that contributed to a grossly ineffective federal response to Hurricane Katrina. (2) The White House was aware long before Katrina struck that FEMA did not have the capability to handle a catastrophe, but failed to adequately address the critical shortcomings in preparedness. (3) The White House had been aware of the 'New Orleans Scenario,' a catastrophic hurricane hitting New Orleans. Despite this awareness, the White House failed to ensure that the federal government was prepared to respond to this catastrophic scenario. (4) Despite the clear warnings before landfall that Katrina would be catastrophic, the President and the White House staff were not sufficiently engaged and failed to initiate a sufficiently strong and proactive response. (5) Although the President and the White House were following events after landfall, they seemed surprisingly detached until two days later, Wednesday, August 31, 2005. (6) After the hurricane, the White House continued to demonstrate a lack of understanding of the magnitude of the catastrophe. (7) The White House's failure to cooperate with this Committee's investigation wrongly deprived the Committee and the American people of the ability to assess a key aspect of the federal government's response to Hurricane Katrina." The main report can be found at: /homesec/docs/legis/nps11-050506-01
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
2006-05
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United States Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, An Assessment of U.S. Efforts to Secure the Global Supply Chain, Prepared by the Majority & Minority Staffs of the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations
"This report provides an unvarnished assessment of the state of global supply chain security. The Subcommittee staff's findings are troubling. In short, America's supply chain security remains vulnerable to the proverbial Trojan Horse - America's enemies could compromise the global supply chain to smuggle a Weapon of Mass Destruction (WMD), or even terrorists, into this country. These frightening scenarios are not the work of Hollywood writers. Last year, on two separate occasions, dozens of Chinese immigrants were smuggled through the Port of Hong Kong into Los Angeles using maritime shipping containers. These incidents, coupled with similar episodes abroad, demonstrate the vulnerability of the global supply chain. The 9/11 Commission confirmed these vulnerabilities, stating: 'opportunities to do harm are as great, or greater, in maritime or surface transportation.' Over the course of its three-year investigation, Subcommittee staff has identified numerous weaknesses in America's programs that secure the global supply chain."
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
2006-03-30
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Testimony of Senator Barbara Mikulski before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee
Testimony of Senator Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) discussing the reform of FEMA following its response to Hurricane Katrina.
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
2006-03-08
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Prepared Statement of Joseph A. Donchess, Executive Director, Louisiana Nursing Home Association
Joseph A. Donchess testifies on the efforts of the Louisiana Nursing Home Association (LNHA) to assist the state's nursing homes in their emergency evacuations in the days following Katrina as well as LNHA's efforts to help family members locate loved one who had been evacuated to other facilities through the region.
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
2006-01-31
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Hurricane Katrina: Mississippi's Recovery: Mississippi Field Hearing: Senator Joe Lieberman
This testimony of Senator Joe Lieberman from the Mississippi Field Hearing of the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs discusses the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and the need for funding and cooperation in rebuilding the Gulf Coast Region.
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
2006-01-17
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"Hurricane Katrina: Why Did the Levees Fail?," Testimony of Paul F. Mlakar, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, U.S. Senate, November 2, 2005
This testimony of Paul F. Mlakar, the Senior Research Scientist at the U.S. Army Research and Development Center, covers the engineering vulnerabilities that led to the failing of the New Orleans levees during the 2005 Hurricane Katrina incident.
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
2005-11-02
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Testimony of Robert Massengill before the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
Testimony of the Mayor of Brookhaven, Mississippi describing the impact of Hurricane Katrina on his community. The testimony also identifies his town's goals to better prepare for future large-scale disasters and evacuations.
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
2005-09-28?
