Washington, D.C. - Today Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords voted in support of House Resolution 1 to implement the recommendations of the bipartisan 9/11 Commission.
Giffords, a co-sponsor of the legislation, said the steps taken by the House of Representatives this afternoon will help make America safer. “These recommendations emerged from a thoughtful and balanced process,” said Giffords, a member of the House Armed Services Committee. “The 9/11 Commission was led by distinguished Republicans and Democrats who carefully examined the worst act of terrorism on U.S. soil in recent years and developed practical ideas to protect us from future attacks and support first responders.”
Last year, the bipartisan 9/11 Commissioners gave Congress and the Administration poor grades regarding the implementation of their recommendations, including 5 F's, 12 D's and 2 incompletes. Giffords called these poor grades “a call to action.”
H.R. 1, passed today by the House of Representatives, puts a number of the Commission's homeland security recommendations in place including:
· Creating a stand-alone grant program to provide first responders with the type of equipment that allows them to communicate with one another during emergencies;
· Quickly accelerating the installation of explosive detection systems for checked baggage at the nation's airports;
· Improving explosive detection systems at passenger checkpoints at the nation's airports;
· Phasing in a requirement of 100% scanning of U.S.-bound shipping containers over the next five years;
· Strengthening the Cooperative Threat Reduction (”Nunn-Lugar”) program that focuses on securing loose nuclear materials in the former Soviet Union;
· Providing increased tools for the Proliferation Security Initiative, through which the U.S. and participating countries interdict WMD;
· Providing for the establishment of a Middle East Foundation, to promote economic opportunities, education reform, human rights and democratic processes in the countries of the Middle East; and
· Promoting quality educational opportunities for youth in Arab and other predominantly Muslim countries, including expanding U.S. scholarship and exchange programs.
Congresswoman Giffords made note of the fact that Tucson and Southern Arizona will benefit from the Risk-Based Allocation of Homeland Security Grants section of this legislation. This section of the bill will fulfill the 9/11 Commission's recommendation that homeland security funding be based on risk instead of being allocated on a population-based formula that gives each state a minimum level of funding, with the remainder allocated based on risk. It offers more funding for states that have a significant international land border within North America.
“I applaud this common sense measure,” Giffords said. “Tucson is not only close to an international border, but it is home to Raytheon's major industrial defense complex and Davis-Monthan Air Force Base. I am proud to have voted for legislation that recognizes these factors in determining how to distribute federal funds for homeland security efforts.”
Tucson was also recently added to the list of cities eligible to receive federal anti-terror funds under the Department of Homeland Security's Urban Area Security Initiative, which allocates grant money solely based on the risk of terror attacks.