Homeland Security

STATEMENT FOR THE RECORD

CATHERINE H. LIGHT

DIRECTOR

TERRORISM COORDINATION UNIT

OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR

FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY

BEFORE THE

NATIONAL SECURITY COMMITTEE

SUBCOMMITTEE ON MILITARY RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

UNITED STATES HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

NOVEMBER 4, 1997

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee:

I am pleased to appear before you today to discuss interagency planning and coordination regarding the Federal response to terrorism incidents involving weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and initiatives to enhance local, State and Federal preparedness for responding to terrorist events.

FEMA Director James Lee Witt asked me to testify on behalf of the Agency. I am Catherine Light, Director of the Terrorism Coordination Unit within the Office of the Director. Director Witt established this unit recently to strengthen FEMA's internal and interagency coordination on terrorism initiatives.

THE FEDERAL RESPONSE

We have made considerable progress regarding interagency planning and coordination for the Federal response to terrorist incidents involving weapons of mass destruction.

Presidential Decision Directive 39 (PDD-39) designated FEMA as the lead agency for consequence management, and directed FEMA to assess the adequacy of the Federal Response Plan (FRP) to respond to consequences of WMD terrorism. The Federal Response Plan, supported by 29 departments and agencies, is used by FEMA for responding to any incident or situation requiring Federal emergency or disaster assistance. The FRP implements the authorities of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to provide Federal assistance to save lives, protect property, ensure public health and safety, and recover from the impact of the incident or event. The Federal Response Plan describes the basic mechanisms and structures by which the Federal government mobilizes resources and conducts activities to augment state and local response efforts.

In accordance with PDD-39, FEMA, in coordination with the FRP departments and agencies, conducted a comprehensive review of the FRP, and identified a need to develop a Terrorism Incident Annex. The Terrorism Incident Annex, approved by senior officials of the six departments and agencies assigned key roles in the Annex, was published in February, 1997.

The Terrorism Incident Annex is the product of eighteen months of structured interagency planning and coordination that began after the release of Presidential Decision Directive 39 in June 1995. It describes the concept of operations for the Federal response to WMD terrorism. The Annex addresses several key issues:

O It recognizes the concurrent leading authority of the Federal Government and State and local governments in response to terrorism. The Federal Government has pre-eminent authority for measures relating to the causes of terrorism - terrorists and their weapons. At the same time, State and local governments clearly have pre-eminent authority for measures relating to the consequences of terrorism upon lives and property in their communities.

O It describes the activities associated with crisis management and consequence management - many of which may have to occur concurrently during the response to an event. The concurrent nature of the two major components adds to the complexity of the response to terrorist incidents.

O It clarifies crisis and consequence management responsibilities. The FBI retains its statutory authority to manage and coordinate the crisis management response throughout the incident. FEMA retains its statutory authority to manage and coordinate the consequence management response throughout the incident. The FBI and FEMA exchange liaisons in the field and in Washington, DC. We have practiced these procedures in several special events and exercises. The Annex explains that each command official retains his or her distinct area of statutory authority and responsibility. The command officials work together to ensure that command for the incident as a whole appears seamless.

SPECIAL EVENTS

Preparations for special events provide good opportunities to build national capability and test operational plans and procedures. To date, we have conducted focused planning and monitoring operations for several major events, including the 1996 Summer Olympic Games and the 1997 Denver Summit of the Eight. Special events provide excellent opportunities to bring together officials at local, State and Federal levels who would have to work together in a crisis. Planning and conducting special events provide practical experience and a good environment to examine operational concepts and exchange information. The dynamics of response to WMD terrorism are conveyed much more effectively through demonstrations at special events rather than through lectures alone. Planning for and participating in special events has and will continue to make our operations plans and capabilities more effective.

Based on lessons learned at special events, the FBI and FEMA have developed and tested procedures to rapidly exchange information and liaisons to prepare for a potential Federal response. We have developed a joint operations briefing that explains the crisis management/consequence management relationships and operational procedures. The FBI and FEMA, in coordination with the other members of the response community are defining specific actions to be taken at designated readiness levels to improve our overall response capability. Additionally, through an interagency forum, we are developing a set of tailored initial response packages and time-phased force deployment information that will provide for a more timely Federal response to terrorist incidents.

PREPAREDNESS PROGRAMS

As important as our efforts are to ensure a federal response capability, we cannot overlook the extreme importance of viable State and local response capabilities, particularly in consequence management. Local responders will be the first on the scene and will be required to provide the immediate response capability in the aftermath of a terrorist incident. For States and communities, there are no shortcuts to preparing for this tremendous responsibility. It requires planning, training and exercising on a regular basis to ensure maximum readiness to respond should an incident occur. It also requires an ongoing active partnership among local, State and Federal officials to establish a common understanding of how we will work together in an emergency situation. FEMA is committed to assisting State and local officials in enhancing their preparedness and response capabilities.

In the area of training, FEMA's Emergency Management Institute (EMI) and the National Fire Academy (NFA) have both produced new training courses on terrorism.

The NFA, working with the Department of Justice, has developed and fielded two courses on Emergency Response to Terrorism. These courses are the direct result of a Terrorism Training Needs Assessment conducted by the National Fire Academy with emergency response leaders in October of 1996. Attendees at the needs assessment conference represented a broad spectrum of the community, including federal departments and agencies, volunteer and paid state and local firefighters and emergency response organizations, U.S. military organizations and professional trade groups. Collectively, the group identified training needs and cross referenced those needs with various categories of the overall response population.

The two courses developed jointly by the Department of Justice/ Bureau of Justice Assistance, and FEMA/United States Fire Administration (USFA)/NFA are the direct result of the October 96 assessment conference. The Emergency Response to Terrorism Self-Study provides a general introduction to the basic concepts for first responder awareness at the scene of a potential incident. Copies of the self-study have been mailed to every fire/rescue and police department or agency in the nation. Additional copies are available through the USFA Publication Office, and the self-study guide can be accessed through the USFA Website (HYPERLINK http://www.usfa.fema.gov/) http://www.usfa.fema.gov/).

The 2-day classroom course entitled, "Emergency Response to Terrorism: Basic Concepts," explores a wide variety of issues and concerns faced by responders when operating at a terrorist incident site. It is designed at the operations level to meet the needs of fire services personnel, emergency medical services providers and hazardous materials responders.

The Emergency Management Institute created a special version of its highly regarded Integrated Emergency Management Course to deal directly with a terrorist attack scenario. This course brings together representatives of all the elements in a given community who would be involved in a major disaster, such as the mayor, the local emergency manager, and the fire and police chiefs. These representatives participate in a 4½-day team-building program that includes classroom instruction and a detailed tabletop exercise specifically designed for the particular community.

In the area of exercises, FEMA conducted a series of seminars in FY 97 involving local, State and Federal officials in the Washington Metropolitan area. In 1998, they are taking the seminars on the road to each of the 10 regional offices. The purpose of these seminars is to ensure that Federal, regional and State and local personnel are able to apply the latest policies and operational concepts regarding the Federal response to terrorism. The seminars are being conducted with the support of FEMA and FBI offices responsible for the development of the operations plans and procedures.

NUNN-LUGAR-DOMENICI: DOMESTIC PREPAREDNESS PROGRAM

As you know, DOD was assigned lead agency responsibility for the domestic preparedness program under the Defense Against Weapons of Mass Destruction Act of 1996 (Nunn-Lugar-Domenici). Representatives from the Department of Defense will be covering the various aspects of this important program to enhance our nation's WMD preparedness and response capability.

Under the Nunn-Lugar-Domenici legislation, FEMA is responsible for developing a Rapid Response Information System (RRIS). The RRIS will contain an inventory of physical assets and equipment that could be made available to aid state and local officials in responding to a terrorist incident. It will also include a database on chemical and biological agents and safety precautions. The RRIS is on schedule for activation in December 1997.

We have also been involved in supporting the Department of Defense in implementing the Domestic Preparedness Program under the Nunn-Lugar-Domenici legislation and in coordinating this program with other federal departments and agencies. As one of six key departments, FEMA has been an active participant in the federal visit teams. We participated in the 27 city visits conducted in FY 97 and supported the development of training and other aspects of this important effort to improve local emergency responder capabilities. We are currently developing the Senior Officials course for State and local elected officials and emergency managers.

In the last few years, we have made significant progress through interagency planning, coordination and training. We are committed to continuing to work together through our Federal, state and local partnerships, and with our elected leadership, to improve our overall preparedness and response capability. We appreciate your interest and your support.