Politics

New Anti-Terror $$ Battle Shaping Up

By CBSNews.com staff CBSNews.com staff

December 5, 2001 / 11:12 AM EST / CBS

President Bush plans to propose significant increases in spending on domestic security in his next budget, to fund everything from local police to baggage screening, but has yet to settle on specific amounts, administration officials said on Saturday.

Congress has approved some $20 billion this year for homeland security, most of it after the Sept. 11 attacks on New York and Washington.

The Washington Post Saturday quoted unidentified administration officials and congressional budget experts as saying Mr. Bush wanted to boost domestic security spending by at least $15 billion, including a more than doubling of funds for local police and firefighters

The budget may include money for vaccines and items such as communications equipment for hospitals and public health agencies to better coordinate their response to a terrorist attack, congressional aides say.

But in Congress, “there will be a strong desire to spend more than that,” predicted Rich Meade, Republican staff director of the House Budget Committee.

Congress Thursday approved $20 billion in spending earmarked for domestic security in the 2002 budget. About half of that was requested prior to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge told the Post the White House has settled on “substantial increases in spending” for domestic security.

Ridge “is developing a national strategy for homeland security,” a White House spokesman said Saturday. “As part of that, Governor Ridge is assessing our needs for combatting terrorism, and responding to any attacks that may come.”

Mr. Bush is to release his 2003 budget proposal after his State of the Union address to Congress next month.

The House committee's staff surveyed government agencies for their anti-terrorism budget requests and came up with at least $15 billion in proposals, said Meade.

There is broad agreement that hospitals and public health agencies need help getting communications equipment and other technology so that they can quickly identify an attack victim and respond appropriately, said Bill Hoagland, the GOP staff director of the Senate Budget Committee.

“Everything we've looked at indicates the resources in our public health system have not been kept up to speed,” Hoagland said.

Another big-ticket item: baggage screening equipment for airports. The government would need $6 billion to buy all the machines that are necessary, Hoagland said.

Mr. Bush's budget request is expected to set off a struggle in Congress to increase the spending and to define what can be classified as a security need.

“That's going to be the toughest challenge, identifying the true needs related to homeland security and funding those first,” said Meade.

Congressional Democrats wanted $15 billion more in anti-terrorism spending this year, but the White House refused to go along. The administration said the money wasn't needed until net year and promised to put it in the 2003 budget.

“We've known for a long time that that was about the amount of additional resources that were needed for homeland defense,” said Senate Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad, D-N.D.