House Panel Seeks Cuts To Chemical Plant Security Program

The Department of Homeland Security would receive slightly less money for its Chemical Facilities Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) program in fiscal 2014 under a spending plan approved by the House of Representatives Appropriations Committee. The budget blueprint would provide the DHS Infrastructure Security Compliance Division, which manages CFATS, with $77.1 million. That’s a decrease of $763,000 from what Congress approved for the office in fiscal 2013. The legislation would also withhold $20 million in funding until the department provides Congress with a progress report that includes the number of facilities covered by the program, inspectors on board, inspections pending, and inspections projected to be completed by Sept. 30, 2014. The Senate Appropriations Committee has not yet drafted its version of the fiscal 2014 DHS funding bill. Although CFATS was created in 2007, DHS has struggled to implement the program because of a series of management problems. The department was also recently criticized for failing to monitor the Texas fertilizer plant that exploded and killed 15 people in April.