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Senate Committee Hears Revised Homeland Security Plan From Rendell Administration
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At a follow-up hearing this week, Senate Veterans Affairs and Emergency Preparedness Committee heard from Steven Crawford, Gov. Rendell's Chief of Staff, on revised plans for collecting and evaluating information on possible terrorist threats in the Commonwealth. The Committee hearing was the second in response to news accounts in late September documenting instances where opponents to Marcellus Shale natural gas drilling were included in state Office of Homeland Security alerts as possible terrorist threats.
Crawford said the Rendell Administration would be creating in-house capability to identify and evaluate intelligence on possible threats in the future along the model of the existing PA Criminal Intelligence Center and working in close cooperation with other state and federal law enforcement officials. "The subject before this committee is not an easy one," said Crawford as he addressed the Senate Veterans Affairs and Emergency Preparedness Committee. "In today's world it seems that all of us struggle with this question: How do we protect our people from those who would do us harm and, at the same time, protect the rights and freedoms that make us a special nation to begin with?"
In his remarks, Crawford said he has, at the Governor's direction, conducted a thorough analysis of the state's intelligence operations. Throughout that process, the guiding questions were: how can the Commonwealth create an in-house capability to obtain credible and useful intelligence on situations that pose a real threat; how can it establish an information sharing scheme that ensures intelligence reaches those who need to know in a timely and useful manner; and how can it build on existing structures and partnerships to facilitate real-time communications without being hindered by bureaucracy.
"We already have a working model for doing this, and that is the Pennsylvania Criminal Intelligence Center," said Crawford. "PACIC provides strategic analytical support. Its analysts routinely monitor available information related to various criminal organizations and threat groups. Ongoing assessments of their activities can be provided to law enforcement managers and investigators."
Crawford said from this point on, the Rendell administration is going to augment the resources already dedicated to PACIC to collect and examine non-law enforcement information, as well. The administration is also recommending that the commonwealth hire four new analysts and one supervisor dedicated exclusively to non-criminal intelligence gathering, concentrating on situational awareness and critical asset protection pursuant to state and federal mandates. PACIC currently has a staff of 28. The FBI, federal Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms, the state Department of Corrections, and the state Attorney General also maintain staff at PACIC.
Additionally, the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency and the Pennsylvania State Police will establish intelligence information-sharing protocols.
The plan unveiled today is in response to a comprehensive review of the state's intelligence work in the wake of Gov. Rendell's order to end a contractual agreement with the Institute for Terrorism Research and Response, which had been supplying the state Office of Homeland Security with information.
"It is now well-established and all agree that the ITRR bulletins went too far," said Crawford. "Neither I nor anyone else in the Governor's office was briefed on the breadth and depth of concern that State Police and other law enforcement entities had with respect to the bulletins. The ITRR contract, however misused, was entered into legally and with good intentions. Unfortunately, the content of the bulletins rendered them of marginal value, inflammatory and hurtful, if not harmful."
Crawford also added that Col. Jim Powers, the former director of the state Office of Homeland Security, should not be made a scapegoat for the concerns raised by the bulletins.
"Col. Powers spent 30 years defending our country in places and in ways that few have the courage to do. His resignation was but a final acknowledgement that the function of homeland security is too important to be compromised by distractions involving one individual and his error in judgment," said Crawford.
Copies of testimony and a video of the hearing are available online.
Sen. Lisa Baker (R-Luzerne) serves as Majority Chair of the Committee and Sen. Lawrence Farnese (D-Philadelphia) serves as Minority Chair.
NewsClips: PA To Do Terrorism Monitoring Internally |
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10/18/2010 |
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