FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 29, 2006
CONTACT: Jamie Loftus
SENATOR HUTCHISON PORT SECURITY AMENDMENT TO INCREASE CARGO INSPECTORS APPROVED BY CONGRESS
WASHINGTON, DC -- The Senate today approved the Port Security Improvement Act of 2006 which includes an amendment introduced by Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX) to increase the number of Customs and Border Protection Officers (CBP). The amendment, which was approved by a vote of 97-0 when Sen. Hutchison introduced it in the Senate, adds an additional 275 CBP officers at U.S. ports, raising the total number of new officers called for in the bill to 1,000
“Port security is an integral part of our national defense and economic security. Increasing the number of Customs and Border Protection officers will significantly improve our ability to inspect the millions of containers that enter the U.S. annually,” Sen. Hutchison said. “An attack on the Port of Houston, or other port with petro-chemical facilities, could interrupt our energy supply, cripple our economy and threaten millions of lives.”
Sen. Hutchison, a member of the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, has been a leader on port security issues. Key provisions of the Intermodal Shipping Container Security Act she introduced in the 108th and 109th Congress have been incorporated into the Port Security Improvement Act currently before the Senate. Those key provisions include random inspections of containers and the establishment of minimum standards and procedures for securing containers in transit to the U.S.
In 2002, Sen. Hutchison introduced the Comprehensive Seaport and Container Security Act with Senators Feinstein, Kyl and Snowe which called for container seals and tracking numbers for goods being shipped to the United States. It also called for increased inspections of containers at foreign facilities and a plan to track containers and shipments imported into the United States.
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