[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 92 (Friday, July 14, 2006)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7550-S7551]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 HOMELAND SECURITY APPROPRIATIONS BILL

  Mr. DODD. Mr. President, I rise to discuss the fiscal year 2007 
Homeland Security appropriations bill. The Senate passed this measure 
yesterday unanimously and I voted in support of it.
  I would like to begin by thanking the principal authors and managers 
of this legislation: Senator Gregg and Senator Byrd. It is no easy task 
to write a bill that provides for our domestic security needs. I 
commend both of our colleagues and their staffs for the hard work they 
put into crafting this legislation.
  The bill that passed the Senate funds our country's homeland security 
activities at $32.8 billion for the upcoming fiscal year. These 
activities include port security, rail security, truck security, 
aviation security, emergency first responders, customs and border 
patrol, immigration, the Coast Guard, and counterterrorism research. 
Taken together, these initiatives form the foundation upon which our 
country depends for its internal security.
  In an age when terrorism continues to be a growing threat to our 
Nation, one would think that the Congress of the United States would be 
doing everything it could to shore up that foundation--to make it as 
impregnable as possible against those who wish us harm. Yet when we 
look at the legislation passed by the Senate, I do not believe it does 
enough to protect our people from terrorism. We are simply not 
investing the resources that are required to make this Nation as safe 
as possible. Instead of filling in the gaps that continue to exist 
within our homeland security foundation, we are letting those gaps and 
cracks grow in several critical respects.
  One does not have to look further than protecting our critical 
infrastructure and funding our emergency first responders. These two 
areas arguably form the backbone of our efforts to prevent and 
effectively respond to terrorist attacks at home. They encompass 
protecting our ports, our railroads, our transit systems and our 
commercial vehicles. They encompass quickly and effectively responding 
to real or perceived threats in all parts of our country.
  The bill that passed the Senate spends roughly $4 billion to protect 
our critical infrastructure, equip our first responders, an assist 
local governments in planning and coordinating their homeland security 
activities. While this may seem like a large number to many Americans, 
it has been cited by numerous national security and public health 
experts, along with first responders themselves, as being wholly 
inadequate to meet the homeland security demands of the 21st century. 
Furthermore, the number is actually less than what has been provided in 
the past. While on par with what was provided last year, it is 
approximately $500 million less than what was provided 2 years ago and 
approximately $700 million less than 3 years ago. Clearly, we 
are heading in the wrong direction--doing less to protect our country 
adequately when we ought to be doing more.

  As we have seen in Madrid 2 years ago, in London last year, in India 
earlier this week, and in Iraq almost every week, terrorists have 
become adept at exploiting weak points in critical infrastructure, 
particularly transportation systems. I question what it will take for 
us to realize that we need to

[[Page S7551]]

be investing more in our domestic critical infrastructure and in our 
first responders.
  Although we have taken steps to boost our homeland security since the 
attacks on September 11, our critical infrastructure remains largely 
exposed and our emergency first responders are spread too thin. Our 
port authorities have identified $8.4 billion for meeting Federal 
security requirements; transit agencies have identified $6 billion for 
making trains and buses safer for passengers; and firefighters have 
identified over $4 billion for performing their critical duties safely 
and efficiently.
  As the Senate considered this legislation, I was offered an amendment 
that increased resources to our Nation's firefighters by $25 million 
above the bill's allocation of $655 million. This amendment was 
cosponsored by colleagues, Senators DeWine, Mikulski, and Snowe, and 
was agreed to by unanimous consent.
  I also offered an amendment that would have increased critical 
infrastructure security and first responder funding by $16 billion to a 
total of $20 billion. My amendment would have codified a recommendation 
made 3 years ago by a task force chaired by our former colleague, 
Warren Rudman, along with a distinguished panel of national security, 
intelligence, military and public health officials.
  Regrettably, this measure--along with other measures I supported 
seeking to raise resources for critical infrastructure protection and 
first responders--were not adopted. Members who spoke in opposition to 
these amendments argued that we could not afford the extra cost. 
Ironically, many of the Members who opposed these amendments have 
supported permanent tax cuts for the most affluent of Americans--tax 
cuts that have been projected to cost $1 trillion over the next 15 
years. If we can afford to give such a generous tax break to the few 
thousand wealthiest Americans, then why can we not afford adequately to 
safeguard 281 million Americans from terrorist attacks at a mere 
fraction of that cost?
  We are living in extraordinary times. Never before in our history has 
there been a prolonged period of time when the threat of harm to 
Americans on their own soil has been so high. While it has been almost 
5 years since terrorists attacked the World Trade Center, the more 
recent attacks in Madrid, London, and Mumbai tell us that we must 
remain vigilant about our domestic security. They tell us that we must 
renew and redouble our efforts to prevent and respond to terrorism here 
at home.
  On balance, I voted for this legislation because the funding it 
appropriates does take important steps towards meeting our domestic 
security needs. However, I look forward to working with my colleagues 
in the coming years to find and provide the necessary resources that 
can make our Nation as safe and strong as it can possibly be.

                          ____________________