"Maine has a 611-mile-long northern border, and its enormous coastline is covered with small harbors, three deepwater cargo ports, and two large international ports," said Collins, whose committee has jurisdiction over the Department of Homeland Security. "By providing more training and equipment to our first responders, and more resources to secure our ports and to protect our borders, this legislation strives to secure the maximum benefit out of the federal dollars that it allocates."
Added Collins, "Even more important, I am working to ensure that states like Maine will receive their fair share of homeland security resources." Collins expressed support for the following appropriations, each of which is included in the bill: -- $6.8 billion for the United States Coast Guard operations, including $702 million for the Integrated Deepwater Systems program. -- Funding for the Transportation Security Administration, including $1.8 billion for passenger screening and $150 million for port security grants. -- Funding for nearly 600 additional border agents and the development of innovative new security technologies. -- More than $60 million in funding for the Container Security Initiative to target high-risk cargo containers. -- $2.6 billion for the Office of Domestic Preparedness, which administers state homeland security and FIRE grants.
"The funds in this bill will give our state and local officials and first responders the tools they need to build a more effective homeland security structure," said Collins.
Collins noted, however, that getting those funds effectively to where they are needed is still a challenge. To address this issue, Collins introduced the Homeland Security Grant Enhancement Act (S. 1245), which would provide a steady stream of homeland security grant funds to states, simplify the grant process, and promote flexibility in the use of those funds. The bill was unanimously approved by the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee on June 17.