Senate appropriators question air security plans
Democrats and Republicans on the Senate Appropriations Committee continued grilling Cabinet members Thursday during another round of hearings on the administration's $27.1 billion fiscal 2002 supplemental spending request.
Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Robert Byrd, D-W.Va., said the hearings so far have shown that "our nation's homeland defense is falling victim to bureaucratic turf battles. Instead of a seamless procedure that is met without resistance by federal agencies, homeland defense priorities are mired in conflicting department missions."
Senate Transportation Appropriations Subcommittee Chairwoman Patty Murray, D-Wash., said one of these squabbles-between the Transportation Department and the Office of Management and Budget-has resulted in the administration cutting in half the number of large explosive detection systems to be deployed as part of efforts to inspect all checked baggage at airports. Instead, the administration plans to use a greater number of smaller machines for inspection.
The problem, Murray said, is that while bags can simply be fed into the larger machines, the smaller detector requires passengers to open their bags at the terminal-a procedure likely to infuriate passengers, especially because the administration has no plan to ensure privacy.
"Passengers will not fly if they expect to be treated like a criminal," Murray said. "We are going to give passengers yet one more reason to choose to drive to their destinations or simply not travel at all."
Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta defended the decision to rely more heavily on the smaller machines, saying the large machines have a 35 percent failure rate. He also said Transportation intends to develop a way to check baggage in secure and more private locations.
Transportation Appropriations Subcommittee ranking member Richard Shelby, R-Ala., also questioned the agency's ability to get the machines to the airport by the end of the year, considering the delays in finalizing the deployment plan. "The only way detection machines will be there is if Santa Claus delivers them," Shelby said.
Byrd also pressed Mineta on whether he felt DOT needed more than the $4.4 billion requested in the supplemental for homeland security efforts. Mineta said if the committee was inclined to provide more than the request, it should direct the money toward port security, aviation screening equipment and law enforcement and perimeter security at airports. However, Mineta would not give a specific dollar figure, saying he would defer to OMB on that issue.
Byrd again requested that the administration allow Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge, who met privately with senators Thursday for a briefing on border security, to appear before his committee.
"Instead of allowing Director Ridge to testify, the administration would rather trivialize homeland security with these made-for-television stunts," Byrd said. If the administration continues to deny his requests, Byrd said his committee "will do our best without him. We can not be distracted from our efforts by these sophomoric political antics."