By Ed Somers
December 9, 2002

In a White House ceremony on November 25, President George W. Bush signed into law the "Homeland Security Act of 2002," establishing a new Department of Homeland Security. It includes the "Homeland Security Information Sharing Act" which directs the new department and federal intelligence agencies such as the FBI and CIA to share information about possible terrorist attacks with governors, mayors, law enforcement and first responders - both priorities of the Conference of Mayors.

At the signing, President Bush also announced his nomination of Tom Ridge, the current White House Director of Homeland Security, to serve as the first Secretary of Homeland Security. Representing the Conference of Mayors at the ceremony was Conference Vice President Hempstead (NY) Mayor James A. Garner.

As previously reported in U.S.MAYOR, the 484-page law does not contain an authorization for any new first responder assistance, and Congress did not appropriate the $3.5 billion called for by President Bush, having instead passed a continuing resolution until next January.

In a CNN interview on November 24, Conference President Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino said, "I think the Homeland Security Department was long overdue. The mayors called for it right after 9/11. You know, it's not a partisan issue, it's not a Democrat, Republican issue. It's an issue of how we coordinate the services. But there's one missing ingredient... the funding ingredient, and that's the $3.5 billion that was promised to the cities... I understand Senator Clinton is going to file the bill to give us direct block grants to cities for homeland security, but that's the missing part. They went home, they didn-t even deal with the issue of finances for cities. Cities have spent about $2.6 billion since last September, and we-re asked to be on the front lines every day, but nobody's willing to help us meet those costs." Also participating in that interview were Orlando Mayor Glenda Hood The new Department of Homeland Security would be comprised of 22 agencies now scattered throughout the federal government. The department will be organized around four major areas:

The new Department of Homeland Security would be comprised of 22 agencies now scattered throughout the federal government. The department will be organized around four major areas:

• A division of information analysis and infrastructure protection would coordinate with the CIA, FBI and other intelligence agencies to assess threats;
• A division of science and technology would promote measures to defend against nuclear, chemical or biological attacks;
• A division of emergency preparedness and response — built around the current Federal Emergency Management Agency — would prepare for and respond to disasters; and
• A division, for border and transportation security, would encompass what is now the Customs Service, the Transportation Security Administration and the Border Patrol.

In addition to those federal agencies mentioned above, the new department will include the Secret Service, Coast Guard and a new Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services. The Immigration and Naturalization Service would be abolished and nearly all of its employees would be moved to the new department from the Justice Department.

The bill would also move most of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms from the Treasury Department to the Justice Department and rename it the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Included in the bill is the establishment of an Office for State and Local Coordination charged with functions including advocating for the resources needed by state and local governments to implement the national strategy for combating terrorism, providing information to state and local governments, and developing a process for receiving input from state and local governments.

Also contained in the bill is a requirement for the new department to conduct a cost analysis of what state and local governments are spending on homeland security.

Secretary-Designate Ridge has been invited to participate in the upcoming 71st Winter Meeting of the Conference of Mayors (January 22-24) to discuss implementation of the new Department of Homeland Security, and other Cabinet and Sub-Cabinet officials are expected to participate in plenary, standing committee and task force discussions related to the details of the new law.