Resources on Potential Threats



Information and Resources on the Threats We Face at Home

Following September 11, 2001, we understood that there were thousands of trained terrorists who had made it their goal to plot attacks on the people of the United States.  Our knowledge of this fact requires us to act differently and prepare for multiple contingencies.

I understood that the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) in Atlanta, Georgia, would play a key role in America’s new war against those planning attacks against this nation.  The CDC houses some of the most highly-accomplished health researchers and scientists in the world – as well as some of the most dangerous, highly-classified biochemical substances and communicable diseases in the world.  Because the CDC’s facilities and infrastructure are decrepit and overcrowded, it posed a threat not only to our scientists and administrators who work in the buildings but also to the entire United States of America.  It was imperative that we act to expedite the completion of CDC modernization and bring the CDC into the 21st century.

I introduced legislation in the House to authorize a significant increase in appropriations for critical CDC construction and renovation projects.  The Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee agreed to include this request for a significant increase in funding for the CDC in the bipartisan bioterrorism bill, “The Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Response Act of 2001.”  President Bush signed the final version of this legislation into law, authorizing $2.9 billion to respond to bioterrorism attacks and other public health emergencies—including my request for $600 million for facilities construction and renovation at the CDC in Atlanta.