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Governmetal Affairs Committee |
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GAC Resources
In Other News The FAMA / FEMSA GAC would like to thank all the members who participated in the 2006 Home Day Program. Many of you had incredible results, and we encourage you to share those experiences with your fellow members. The GAC has posted a small website with information about some of the Home Day activities by FAMA and FEMSA member companies. Remember - Every Day is Home Day! Please click here to see the site.
Upcoming Events CFSI Annual Dinner. March 28-29, 2007. Washington, DC Hilton. Get your tickets early! Click here for more information.
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FAMA/FEMSA GAC Membership Survey Awards for Fiscal Year 2006 Assistance to Firefighters Grants (AFG) Announced Announcement from WTC Responders Fatality Investigation Program House passes 9/11 Commission Implementation Bill FCC Accepting Comments on Communications Interoperability Proposal Preparedness Directorate Seeks National Fire Academy Training Specialist Don't Forget to Sign Up for the 19th Annual National Fire & Emergency Services Dinner & Seminars Secretary Announces Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reorganization U.S. Secret Service and Education Dept. Partner on School Safety Tool Chertoff Urges Caution on Threat Reports How to Pick a Genuinely Secure Password
FAMA/FEMSA GAC Membership Survey As you know, the FAMA/FEMSA Governmental Affairs Committee (GAC) is working to
increase FAMA/FEMSA’s dialogue with federal government agencies in an effort to educate key
officials on the important role our industry plays in providing equipment and services to the
nation’s first responders. To help us enhance these efforts, we ask you to take a few moments to
complete the enclosed survey. This survey will help the GAC compile a comprehensive list of
FAMA/FEMSA members’ locations and the congressional senators and representatives for those
locations, an important step in establishing an educational network with the members of
Congress and the administration. http://www.zoomerang.com/survey.zgi?p=WEB2262CG544Q2 Please fill out one copy of the survey for each of your company’s locations (There is a space to
indicate each location’s function on the survey.) Surveys do not need to be completed for your
dealerships, if you have any. Awards for Fiscal Year 2006 Assistance to Firefighters Grants (AFG) Announced The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced today $4,909,588 in direct assistance grants to 60 fire departments and first responder organizations through the department's Fiscal Year (FY) 2006 Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) program. To view the latest round of AFG award annoucements, please visit: http://www.firegrantsupport.com/awards Source: DHS Announcement from WTC Responders Fatality Investigation Program The New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) in cooperation with the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) is studying deaths among any person who worked at the World Trade Center (WTC) disaster site between September 11, 2001 and June 30, 2002. The WTC Responders Fatality Investigation Program is collecting information on any fatality to a WTC responder or volunteer that has occurred since September 12, 2001. The information collected will be used to improve the understanding of the deaths occurring among WTC responders. This may be helpful in improving the medical treatment of individuals who are currently experiencing, or may in the future experience, adverse health effects associated with WTC exposures. We are seeking information about the deceased person including their name, date of birth, gender, race, etc., as well as the cause of their death, health before and after responding to the WTC disaster, and details of their exposures at the WTC disaster site and other work-related exposures. The information collected during the study will be used to improve the medical community's understanding of these deaths, which may be helpful for improving the medical treatment of people who are experiencing illnesses as a result of WTC exposure. No information about the person will be released. Information on deaths can be e-mailed to WTCFatality@health.state.ny.us or mailed to: WTC Responder Fatality Investigations Program If you would prefer to report this information by phone or are interested in further information about the program, please feel free to call toll-free at 1-866-807-2130 (for NYS callers only) or 518-402-7900 (for outside NYS). Source: DHS House passes 9/11 Commission Implementation Bill In one of the first acts of the 110th Congress, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 1, the Implementing the 9/11 Commission Recommendations Act of 2007. The bill would codify various recommendations from the 9/11 Commission Report, including establishing a formula for distributing DHS anti-terrorism grants and establishing a grant program for emergency response communications. Funds from DHS anti-terror grant programs like the State Homeland Security Grant Program (SHSGP) and the Urban Areas Security Initiative (UASI) are partially distributed based on assessed risk. Regardless of assessed risk, each state is guaranteed to receive a certain percentage of the overall level of funding. H.R. 1 would guarantee each state .25 percent of grant funds available in a given year, or .45 percent for states with an international border to protect. In the past, these percentages have been determined on a year-by-year basis. Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) program and SAFER Grant program funds were not included in the new funding formula. These programs have traditionally provided funds directly to first responders to address basic needs, whereas most DHS grants are awarded to states and focus on fighting terrorism. The NVFC opposes modifying AFG and/or SAFER to make them more like DHS anti-terror grants. H.R. 1 would also create the Improve Communications for Emergency Response (ICER) Grant Program to make grants to states and regions to improve interoperable communications. Grants would be used to assist with statewide or regional communications planning, developing new interoperable emergency communications systems, purchasing new equipment, conducting exercises including modeling and simulation for command and control functions, and technical assistance and training. H.R. 1 now goes to the Senate, which is expected to take action on it in coming weeks. While recognizing that there are many provisions in H.R. 1 that will have a significant impact on volunteer first responders, the NVFC has not yet taken a position on the bill. Source: NVFC FCC Accepting Comments on Communications Interoperability Proposal The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approved a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on a proposal to use 12 MHz of spectrum from the 700 MHz band to build a national broadband communications network for primary use by public safety. Commercial entities would also have access to the network but would be temporarily blocked when user traffic exceeds the system’s capacity, as it did in New York City during 9/11. The 12 MHz would come from the 24 MHz that were made available for public safety use last year. The proposal is similar to one that the FCC posted for comment in October, which would have created a public safety broadband network using 30 MHz in the 700 MHz band that are currently scheduled to be auctioned off to the public. NVFC Chairman Philip C. Stittleburg submitted comments to the FCC expressing support for the October proposal. Stittleburg noted that because funding to build the nationwide network would initially come in the form of a government guaranteed loan that would eventually be paid back as private users subscribe, first responder organizations would not have to pay up front to build the network. Once it was built, first responders would have a variety of communications options available to them at a relatively low cost. This is particularly important for volunteer organizations that generally lack the funds to purchase and install expensive communications equipment. Stittleburg also pointed out that because first responder organizations rely on a patchwork of varying communications systems, that often when a department upgrades their system to become interoperable with one neighbor, they suddenly are unable to communicate with another neighbor. By subscribing to the broadband network, public safety agencies would potentially be able to communicate with agencies on different MHz bands using different types of equipment. The NVFC is in the process of developing a comment on the current proposal, which is due by February 26, 2007. To submit your own comment to the FCC online, visit www.fcc.gov. Source: NVFC Preparedness Directorate Seeks National Fire Academy Training Specialist The Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Preparedness Directorate announced a job opening for a Training Specialist with the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA). Applications will be accepted through January 30, 2007. The Training Specialist will serve as a functional expert in the area of distance learning and will be responsible for conceiving, developing, and implementing a comprehensive distance learning program covering various aspects of fire prevention and control. These include management technology, fire safety education instructional methodology, management and emergency operations, executive development, fire code enforcement, arson mitigation, and hazardous materials, and related areas such as architecture, city management and administration, planning, and emergency medical services. The Preparedness Directorate (formerly part of the Information Analysis and Infrastructure Protection Directorate) is the newest Directorate established under DHS and includes the USFA, formerly part of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). This Directorate consolidates preparedness assets from across DHS, facilitates grants, oversees nationwide preparedness efforts supporting first responder training, citizen awareness, public health, infrastructure, and cyber security, and ensures proper steps are taken to protect high-risk targets. The Preparedness Directorate is also responsible for identifying and assessing the vulnerability of critical telecommunications infrastructure and assets and providing timely, actionable, and valuable threat information. Addressing these responsibilities requires the establishment of new partnerships and alliances with federal agencies, state and local governments, the private sector, and other key stakeholders. To learn more about the Training Specialist position, including qualifications and application instruction, go to http://jobsearch.usajobs.opm.gov and search for Job Number PH128497-DM. To find other job openings within DHS, the Preparedness Directorate, and USFA, visit http://jobsearch.usajobs.opm.gov. Source: NVFC Don't Forget to Sign Up for the 19th Annual National Fire & Emergency Services Dinner & Seminars It is not too early to begin making your plans to attend the 19th Annual National Fire and Emergency Services Dinner and Seminars, sponsored by the Congressional Fire Services Institute. Over 2,000 state and national homeland security leaders will assemble together in Washington to attend this program and learn how Congress and the Administration are working to address the capabilities of our nation’s first responders. Given the federal government’s increasing role in homeland security, CFSI has decided to expand the seminar scheduled to two-days to cover the board range of issues being address in our nation’s capital. All information about the this extraordinary event can be found by clicking any of the following tabs. Don't miss this important opportunity for you and your peers to learn more about the decisions being made in Washington, DC that impact your performance as first responders. Source: CFSI Secretary Announces Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reorganization In a message to FEMA, Preparedness, and US-VISIT employees last week, Secretary Chertoff shared the organizational changes planned for DHS as a result of the Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act, which Congress passed last year as part of the department’s FY 2007 appropriations bill. The changes will take effect March 31. In his message, the secretary said, “I want to emphasize that these realignments do not require downsizing of our workforce. While most employees will continue to serve in the same roles in the same organizations, others will become part of another existing organization or a new one. A great deal of effort is underway to make sure that the transition is completed smoothly and with minimal disruption to you and to our operations.” As part of a broad communication effort, Under Secretary for Preparedness George Foresman and FEMA Director David Paulison today held town hall meetings with employees affected by the changes. Source: DHS U.S. Secret Service and Education Dept. Partner on School Safety Tool The U.S. Secret Service and Department of Education last month announced the release of the latest tool for educators and communities to improve school safety. The interactive CD-ROM, titled A Safe School and Threat Assessment Experience: Scenarios Exploring the Findings of the Safe School Initiative, is designed to complement the final report on the Safe School Initiative (SSI). Patterned after the Secret Service’s previous operational studies and research into targeted violence and implemented through the service’s National Threat Assessment Center and the Education Department’s Safe and Drug Free Schools Program, the SSI examined 37 incidents involving 41 school attacks that had occurred between 1974 and 2000. The study found that school attacks are rarely impulsive. Rather, they are typically thought out and planned in advance. One of the key recommendations of the SSI was that schools form multidisciplinary threat assessment teams to assist with identifying, assessing, and managing students who may pose a threat of targeted violence. It is for such school-based threat assessment teams that the interactive CD was developed. “We are committed to sharing our expertise in threat assessment and violence prevention so that others, especially our nation’s schools, may benefit,” Secret Service Director Mark Sullivan said. “I am pleased that this training tool will offer schools and communities additional resources and information that may help them prevent future attacks.” More information is available at: http://www.secretservice.gov/press/GPA2206_NTAC_CDRom.pdf. Source: DHS Chertoff Urges Caution on Threat Reports Chertoff Urges Caution on Threat Reports Department of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff is warning the media to use extreme caution and context when reporting about threats or emergencies, lest the wrong information get out to the public. The Associated Press’ Beverley Lumpkin is reporting Chertoff made the remarks last week after inviting the media to participate in a series of dialogues and exercises the DHS has conducted on how best to communicate during a crisis. “We owe you information that’s accurate,” Chertoff told the group of newspaper editors. “And you need to resist the temptation to just get something fast.” Chertoff told the group it is the media’s core function to convey to individuals the information they need to save their lives and their families’ lives. The department gets “a lot of threat information, every single morning,” but says that information varies greatly in terms of specificity and credibility. “Even a threat of limited credibility still has to be run down and investigated, Chertoff said, but it shouldn't become public during that stage,” writes Lumpkin. “If threat information is made public too soon, he warned, there is a danger the public will become either desensitized in a ‘cry wolf syndrome,’ or over-sensitized, in a ‘constant state of hyper-anxiety.’” To read the full article, click here: Source: Disaster Resource How to Pick a Genuinely Secure Password Security expert Bruce Schneier is a security expert, having written influential books on computer security and cryptography. Does that mean he has tips on how to create passwords that are genuinely secure? In a recent Yahoo tech article, columnist Christopher Null says Schneier has great tips on how to create a secure password that’s also easy to remember. Schneier is such an expert, Null says, when “Bruce says here’s how to create a secure password (and how he creates his own passwords), I listen.” Before choosing a password, Schneier says it’s important to find out how hackers can crack passwords in the first place. It’s done primarily “through brute force ‘dictionary’ attacks, where software tries to guess a password by running through a series of common phrases or words in various combinations,” Null writes. The trick, Schneier and Null say, is to use a ‘root’ that is not common and to put your ‘appendage’ (or two of them) in an unusual place: Either in the middle of the root or at both the beginning and the end. Schneier’s example, Null says, “is to use a word that you can pronounce but which is spelled ‘wrong’: armwar or pitchsure or baysball are all examples. Then attach your appendage(s): arm9!9war or 1066pitchsure6601 or bay1776sball. It shouldn’t take much effort to commit any of these to memory,” Null adds. To read the full article, click here: Source: Disaster Resource |
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