Pryce Votes for Record Homeland Security Funding

WASHINGTON, DC – Congresswoman Deborah Pryce (R-Upper Arlington) voted today to pass the fiscal year (FY) 2005 Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Appropriations Conference Report, which contains record funding levels to protect the nation from terrorist attacks.  

“Our first responders work hard every day to keep our homeland safe, and they deserve the resources they need to do the job well,” Pryce said.  “I am again proud of our President and our Congress for continuing to provide and increase the needed resources that are working to secure our homeland and protect our communities from terrorism.  Since the tragic events of September 11^th, central Ohio has received almost $50 million for critical infrastructure protection; transportation security; identification devices; and first responder equipment, training, and planning activities.  This bill will significantly add to that total, providing even more equipment for our first responders to continue protecting our families from harm.”

The FY 2005 DHS Appropriations Conference Report funds homeland security efforts at $32 billion, which is $2.8 billion over the current funding level.  The agreement includes $4 billion for first responders, of which $1.2 billion is for the Urban Area Security Initiative – the program which awarded $8.6 million directly to the City of Columbus in FY 2004.  The bill also contains $9.7 billion for border protection, $650 million for Firefighter Assistance Grants, $4.3 billion for aviation security, and $1.1 billion for new research and technologies to defend the homeland.