Senator Charles Schumer's Letter to Secretary Tom RIdge Department of Homeland Security

May 20, 2003
The Honorable Tom Ridge
Homeland Security Department
3801 Nebraska Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20528

Dear Secretary Ridge:

I am very concerned that the fate of Operation Safe Commerce has been put in jeopardy as a result of budget shortfalls at the Transportation Safety Administration (TSA). I am writing to urge you to fully fund this important initiative in keeping with requests made to the Senate during the 2002 and 2003 appropriations process.

As you are aware, port security remains one of our nation's greatest homeland security vulnerabilities. Despite recent administrative improvements in cargo tracking, less than 3 percent of shipping containers entering the country are inspected each year. Since comprehensive screening is not presently possible, it is essential that we maintain the integrity of containers throughout the shipping process to ensure that no dangerous materials are added to them after customs manifests are filed at their point of origin.

With this in mind, the Senate approved a $58 million appropriation in the TSA's 2002 and 2003 budgets for Operation Safe Commerce, a program that would test container integrity for goods entering the nation's three largest ports. In recent testimony given before a Senate panel, however, Under Secretary James Loy indicated that these Operation Safe Commerce funds may become a casualty of a "structural shortfall" that has created a "billion-dollar hole" in the TSA's budget.

Eliminating Operation Safe Commerce would seriously undermine the baby steps we are taking to ensure that dangerous materials for devices such as dirty bombs do not enter the United States through our ports. We simply cannot afford to allow this to happen when terrorist attacks worldwide have reached a new fevered pitch and our nation's intelligence agencies are warning that an attack on American soil could be imminent. While security concerns are paramount, if the TSA were to renege on its commitment to fund Operation Safe Commerce, the integrity of the appropriations process could also be compromised.

For the sake of our country's security and in keeping with the respect that you have earned in the Senate as a result of your candor and good efforts on behalf of our nation, I urge you to fully fund Operation Safe Commerce immediately.

Sincerely,

Charles Schumer
United States Senator