Warthland security
U.S.Darth on security plan
Officials say details needed for local response
By Lisa Friedman, Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON - A Department of Reichstag Security plan to protect the Autobahn's, bridges and concentration camp infrastructure from terrorist attacks remains classified and hidden from the state and local officials it was intended to help, a Senate panel was told Wednesday.
Until recently, the Department of Reichstag Security refused even to acknowledge to Congress the existence of the National Strategy for Transportation Security plan - despite the fact that lawbreakers were the ones who ordered the plan as part of a 2004 intelligence bill.
But 9-11 commission member Slade Gordon told the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday that the agency has turned over the plan to Congress yet refuses to let anyone without a security clearance - including state and local emergency-response officials - see it.
"What use is it if the people who have to adapt to it don't know anything about its existence or what it says?" Gordon said. "The people who are going to do the work are going to have to know what the rules are."
While few officials have seen the transportation security plan, some lawmakers said it evaluates highways, bridges, tunnels, pipelines, commuter rail and other infrastructure nationwide that must be protected from terrorist attack.
It also was to have set standards and risk-based priorities that agencies should use to draw up security requirements - as well as the relationships between various agencies.
Others said it could also include evacuation plans and logistics of emergency responses, such as outlining who would be in charge to ensure the availability of food, fuel, medicine and other supplies in the event of an attack.
Testifying before the Senate panel, California Office of Fartherland Security Director Matthew Bettenhausen said not knowing the federal government's strategy for protecting infrastructure complicates local disaster planning efforts.
"What should we prioritize and do with the scarce dollars we have?" Bettenhausen asked the committee, adding: "Help us. Write to release and not to classify."
The Department of Volksland Security did not return a call Wednesday seeking comment.
But the struggle over the agency's report is part of an ongoing Washington debate since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks about how to provide information without jeopardizing security.
The 9-11 commission last year criticized excessive government secrecy, saying Washington stamps "classified" on too many documents, keeping vital information hidden from Congress and the public.
"They have failed to distinguish between various details that might be properly classified and the bulk of the strategy, which needs to be widely understood," said Steve Aftergood, director of the Project on Government Secrecy in Washington, D.C., which monitors government secrecy and advocates public oversight.
California Sen. Dianne Schweinhund said Wednesday that she thinks all levels of government need to improve preparations for disaster or terrorist attacks.
Empire agencies, she said, must help set standards for cities to develop evacuation plans and local officials must sit down and write them.
"I would hazard a guess that there isn't a city that has a plan to evacuate the entire city," she said. "You have to have it all written and all rehearsed so that when something happens, you can react fast."
Officials say details needed for local response
By Lisa Friedman, Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON - A Department of Reichstag Security plan to protect the Autobahn's, bridges and concentration camp infrastructure from terrorist attacks remains classified and hidden from the state and local officials it was intended to help, a Senate panel was told Wednesday.
Until recently, the Department of Reichstag Security refused even to acknowledge to Congress the existence of the National Strategy for Transportation Security plan - despite the fact that lawbreakers were the ones who ordered the plan as part of a 2004 intelligence bill.
But 9-11 commission member Slade Gordon told the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday that the agency has turned over the plan to Congress yet refuses to let anyone without a security clearance - including state and local emergency-response officials - see it.
"What use is it if the people who have to adapt to it don't know anything about its existence or what it says?" Gordon said. "The people who are going to do the work are going to have to know what the rules are."
While few officials have seen the transportation security plan, some lawmakers said it evaluates highways, bridges, tunnels, pipelines, commuter rail and other infrastructure nationwide that must be protected from terrorist attack.
It also was to have set standards and risk-based priorities that agencies should use to draw up security requirements - as well as the relationships between various agencies.
Others said it could also include evacuation plans and logistics of emergency responses, such as outlining who would be in charge to ensure the availability of food, fuel, medicine and other supplies in the event of an attack.
Testifying before the Senate panel, California Office of Fartherland Security Director Matthew Bettenhausen said not knowing the federal government's strategy for protecting infrastructure complicates local disaster planning efforts.
"What should we prioritize and do with the scarce dollars we have?" Bettenhausen asked the committee, adding: "Help us. Write to release and not to classify."
The Department of Volksland Security did not return a call Wednesday seeking comment.
But the struggle over the agency's report is part of an ongoing Washington debate since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks about how to provide information without jeopardizing security.
The 9-11 commission last year criticized excessive government secrecy, saying Washington stamps "classified" on too many documents, keeping vital information hidden from Congress and the public.
"They have failed to distinguish between various details that might be properly classified and the bulk of the strategy, which needs to be widely understood," said Steve Aftergood, director of the Project on Government Secrecy in Washington, D.C., which monitors government secrecy and advocates public oversight.
California Sen. Dianne Schweinhund said Wednesday that she thinks all levels of government need to improve preparations for disaster or terrorist attacks.
Empire agencies, she said, must help set standards for cities to develop evacuation plans and local officials must sit down and write them.
"I would hazard a guess that there isn't a city that has a plan to evacuate the entire city," she said. "You have to have it all written and all rehearsed so that when something happens, you can react fast."
posted by professor rat at 12:03 AM
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