Homeland Security Will Create One Point Of Contact For Project FundingHomeland Security Will Create One Point Of Contact For Project Funding

The Department of Homeland Security will create a single point of contact--including a new portal--to help local and state governments obtain grants to fund anti-terrorism and emergency preparedness projects, Homeland Security secretary Tom Ridge said Tuesday.

Speaking at the American Enterprise Institute, Ridge also announced the launching of a secure telecommunications and videoconferencing network known as the Secure Initiative to let federal and state officials share top-secret information.

Ridge said the overall benefit is clear--a single point of contact and portal for government grants will streamline the application process. "No longer will our state and local partners have to go to different places within the department to apply for terrorism-related funding," Ridge said. "It ensures that nationwide, homeland security officials have one place where they can tap into the resources and information they need--from applying for funds to protect critical infrastructure to securing guidance and expertise for first responders. It's a clear win-win for state and locals and DHS."

Before the government formed the department, information about terrorism and emergency preparedness grant programs was scattered throughout many agencies. Even within Homeland Security, the information is divided among its various units. Ridge said he'll soon send a plan to Congress detailing the department's plan to centralize these programs within a single office and portal. In regards to the Secure (Strategic Communications Resources) Initiative, he said officials in all states, two territories, and Washington have gained access to secure communications technology to receive critical homeland security information from the federal government. "Sometimes this information is actionable; other times it's simply more important for us to pass the information along, so that statewide intelligence is as up to date as ours," Ridge said. "This hasn't always been effectively possible because of a lack of secure telephone and videoconferencing equipment at the state level and too few state officials with the appropriate security clearances."

Ridge also said that every state government and nearly all state homeland security advisors have access to classified information and the appropriate top-secret federal security clearances to receive it.

Information sharing promoted by the new department is helping create a safer homeland, Ridge said. "We are safer because security at our borders is more robust than ever before," he said. "By the end of the year, we will have launched US-Visit, which essentially creates a virtual border. We will use biometrics to confirm the identity and status of travelers, both to and from the United States."

Drawing heavily on developing technologies and scientific capabilities, US-Visit (U.S. Visitor and Immigrant Status Indication Technology) will use at least two biometric identifiers, such as photographs, fingerprints, and iris scans, to build an electronic check-in/check-out system for people coming to the country to work, study, or visit.

He also noted that federal law requires airlines to provide advanced passenger information on international flights, allowing the government to identify high-risk passengers trying to enter or leave the United States. "We recently suspended the Transit without Visa program, for example, when we received information that indicated terrorists might exploit that system to cause Americans harm," Ridge said. "The important point is that when we get intelligence, we act on it."

Through the help of information sharing and technology along with law enforcement, inspections, and vigilance, terror attacks are being foiled, Ridge said. "Together," he said, "we've saved many lives."