Washington, D.C. - United States Representatives Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Tom Davis (R-VA) and other Members of the Washington-area Congressional delegation today sent the following letter to Department of Homeland Security Secretary, Michael Chertoff urging him not to diminish the role of the National Capitol Region Coordinator for homeland security during his reorganization of the agency.
“It is a mistake to treat the national capital region like every other region of the country,” said Van Hollen. “As the epicenter of national government, our area is at a higher risk for attack and the ramifications of a catastrophe would be far-reaching. The person in charge of coordinating the security of our area should be equipped with the status, resources, and authority to protect and defend it.”
The letter was also signed by Representatives Eleanor Holmes-Norton (D-DC), Albert Wynn (D-MD), Frank Wolf (R-VA), Steny Hoyer (D-MD) and Jim Moran (D-VA).
September 26, 2005
The Honorable Michael Chertoff
Secretary
Department of Homeland Security
Washington, D.C. 20528
Dear Secretary Chertoff:
We are writing to express our opposition to your proposal to move the National Capital Region Coordinator out of the Office of the Secretary of Homeland Security as part of your proposed Department-wide reorganization.
The inadequate response to Hurricane Katrina raises new questions about whether our nation is prepared to respond to large scale natural disasters or terrorist attacks. We know from September 11, 2001 that our nation’s capital is a prime target for terrorist attacks. That is why the Congress insisted on establishing a National Capital Region Coordinator in the Office of the Secretary as part of the legislation that established the Department of Homeland Security. We believe that, given the unique status of our Nation’s Capital, the National Capital Region Coordinator should report directly to the Secretary. It would be a mistake to bury this position further down in the DHS bureaucracy as your reorganization proposes. Failure to adequately respond to a catastrophic event in our Nation’s Capital, the center of all federal government operations, would have devastating consequences not only for people in this region, but for the entire nation.
We understand that you will continue to review your planned reorganization until October 1, 2005. We ask that, as a part of that review, you reconsider your proposal to downgrade the position of the National Capital Region Coordinator.
We look forward to your response.