Washington, D.C. - Rep. David Price, the Chairman of the House Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee, today released the following statement on President Obama's FY11 Budget Proposal for Homeland Security.

"President Obama's budget request clearly demonstrates his resolve to fill gaps in our aviation security, proposing innovative solutions such as more canine inspection teams and a beefed-up presence at high-risk airports abroad to increase coordination with foreign authorities. I am also pleased that the President wants to build on some of our Committee's key priorities: continuing to deploy better technology to screen passengers and baggage at our airports, expanding Secure Communities to cover the vast majority of the incarcerated criminal alien population, and creating additional Border Enforcement Security Task Forces to confront transnational criminal threats.

"The President is laudably seeking to strike a balance between achieving fiscal sustainability and addressing critical security challenges. We will not agree on every proposed cut or increase, but we will work with the Administration to achieve that balance through the appropriations process.

"As we begin hearings to more closely examine the budget, no program or account will be off limits to scrutiny. When discussing homeland security, some have a tendency to fixate on one threat while downplaying others. Our obligation, by contrast, is to take a balanced, realistic approach; to weigh risks carefully, and make prudent investments in effective security. While the President has exempted the homeland security budget from the spending freeze for domestic programs, we must recognize that Americans are tightening their own budgets at home and at their businesses. Likewise, we must root out waste and inefficiency – wherever it exists – and focus on the country's priorities throughout the Federal budget. I look forward to working with my colleagues, in a bipartisan fashion, to achieve our homeland security goals in a fiscally responsible way."

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