[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 73 (Friday, May 21, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E957]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         INTRODUCTION OF HOMELAND SECURITY APPROPRIATIONS BILL

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                            HON. MAX SANDLIN

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 20, 2004

  Mr. SANDLIN. Mr. Speaker, if we knew that there was going to be a 
terrorist attack sometime in the next 5 years but did not know what 
kind of attack it would be, who would carry it out, or where in the 
United States it would occur, what actions would we take to prepare and 
how would we allocate our human and financial resources to do so?
  The tragic events of September 11, 2001 brought home to the American 
people the magnitude of the danger posed by terrorism on U.S. soil. 
Now, almost 3 years later, we as Americans must assume that terrorists 
will strike again, possibly using chemical, biological, radiological or 
even nuclear materials. The unthinkable has become thinkable
  After the horrific September 11th terrorist attacks, the country 
pulled together and we began to take steps to make our homeland more 
secure. We enacted legislation to overhaul our airport security; we 
provided new border security measures; we created the Department of 
Homeland Security.
  And yet, despite the steps that have been made, many believe that our 
Nation is in even more danger today than it was 3 years ago. In fact, 
Administration officials recently announced that they expect another 
terrorist attack here in the United States before November. They have 
resigned themselves to the inevitability of more terrorist attacks and 
are warning us--the American public--to be prepared.
  Despite our awareness of the very real threat of terrorism here at 
home and despite renewed efforts to prepare since September 11, we 
remain, as a country, dangerously ill-prepared to handle another 
catastrophic attack on American soil.
  That is simply unacceptable.
  Much more needs to be done to make Americans safer and more secure 
than they are today. Securing our homeland must be the number-one 
priority of our Government. Indeed, our Nation's very charter--the 
Constitution--in its preamble states clearly that among the first 
priorities of Government is to provide for the common defense. 
Improving the safety of the American people at home must be undertaken 
as aggressively as pursuing terrorists in far-off lands.
  Therefore, Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to introduce an appropriations 
measure that will provide the resources needed to secure our hometowns 
and ensure our police, fire fighters and paramedics--the Nation's first 
responders--are fully prepared for anything they may face.
  Unfortunately, our efforts have too often been--as we say in Texas--a 
day late and a dollar short. In this case, however, the $3 billion 
shortfall contemplated by the budget passed yesterday is dangerous and 
unconscionable.
  Accordingly, Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to introduce an appropriations 
measure that would meet these critical needs and would--
  Improve Our Hometown Response Capabilities by providing. $3.874 
billion for the Office for Domestic Preparedness; $180 million for 
Emergency Management Performance Grants; $800 million for Fire Grants; 
$60 million for Metropolitan Medical Response System grants; $515 
million for Hospital Preparedness Grants (in HHS); $940 million in 
Bioterrorism Aid to Health Departments (in HHS); and $250 million in 
Rail and Transit Security Grants.
  Secure Our Borders and Meet Airport Security Mandates by providing: 
$700 million for Federal Air Marshals; $650 million for explosive 
detection systems purchase and installation; $100 million for air cargo 
screening; $250 million for port security grants; $161 million for the 
Container Security Initiative; $400 million on border and port 
inspection and surveillance technology, including radiation portal 
monitors in U.S. ports; $50 million for radiation portal monitors at 
overseas ports (in DOE); $100 million more for border patrol and 
inspector staffing; $96 million for the northern border airwing 
expansion; and $50 million more for bus, trucking and port pilot 
grants.
  Mr. Speaker, we have nothing less than a moral obligation to ensure 
that our nation is fully prepared and vigorously defended. We have 
troops deployed around the world fighting the war on terror, but we 
cannot forget our frontline defenders here at home.
  I urge my colleagues in this, the People's House, to act now to 
provide our police; officers, our firefighters, our paramedics and all 
other emergency personnel the equipment and support they need to 
protect our hometowns. I hope the House will take up this carefully 
drafted piece of legislation soon and provide our Nation the security 
we need.

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