[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 5]
[House]
[Page 6369]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     URBAN AREA SECURITY INITIATIVE

  (Mr. HIGGINS asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mr. HIGGINS. Madam Speaker, the success of Boston law enforcement in 
responding to the marathon bombing is due to the skill and coordination 
of their law enforcement community.
  Boston's law enforcement agencies also have the benefit of membership 
in the Urban Area Security Initiative, or UASI, program. The security 
program was created to develop capabilities to prevent and respond to 
attacks just like this one in our most vulnerable cities.
  Unfortunately, funding shortfalls in recent years have cut the number 
of cities included in this program from 64 to 32. The Buffalo-Niagara 
region which I represent was among the eliminated regions.
  Madam Speaker, the eliminated cities are still vulnerable, and, in 
fact, it was recently revealed that a Canadian terror plot may have 
targeted the border in Niagara Falls.
  The Federal Government made an investment in these communities, and a 
sudden exclusion from this security program threatens to render that 
investment wasted. The increased security and response capabilities 
that have been developed must be preserved, and we have an obligation 
to restore eligibility to these excluded communities.

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