Conference of Mayors/DuPont's CUSP Homeland Security Survey Results Presented
By Ellen H. King
July 1, 2002
On Friday, June 14, during the Homeland Security Forum, Conference President Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino, CUSP Chair Orlando Mayor Glenda E. Hood and DuPont's Director of Security through Science Initiative, William O. McCabe, presented the findings of the USCM, DuPont and CUSP "Homeland Security: Mayors on the Frontline" Survey. The survey answered a call from mayors, who at the Emergency Preparedness breakout session at the 70th Annual U.S. Conference of Mayors Winter Meeting in January, inquired about the state of the mayors' satisfaction with all aspects of emergency preparedness.
The survey focused on which threats most concern mayors and the level of a city's emergency preparedness to deal with those threats.
The presented findings, reflected submissions made by mayors from across the country that responded to the survey. The key findings of the survey found:
Concerns for terrorist attacks have not abated among mayors, but instead have narrowed their focus to threat detection in a desire to prevent disastrous events before they happen. The highest sense of vulnerability is related to chemical and biological threats.
Emergency preparedness planning is perceived as satisfactory within a core. Mayors reported that there is a great need to improve communications with neighboring communities, hospitals and health care providers.
Mayors strongly feel that additional funding and resources are needed for almost every aspect of preparedness for terrorist activity. Eighty-seven percent of mayors felt that funds given directly to the state and re-dispersed to cities will hamper their city's emergency preparedness funding.
Results reflected that there is an interest in supplying more resources for threat detection and overtime, an interest in identifying alternate methods of acquiring needed training, products and services.
Some cities do feel they have a "best practice" even in areas generally identified as unsatisfactory such as threat detection, regional emergency response planning, and plans that involve the medical community.
The overall finding and theme of the survey was that as always, mayors have assumed leadership roles, both through their cities and throughout their metropolitan regions, and stand ready on the domestic front lines to assist in every way possible to make their cities safe and secure.
To learn more about the CUSP partnership, please contact CUSP's Managing Director Ellen H. King at USCM headquarters by phone at 202-861-6798 or by e-mail at eking@usmayors.org.
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