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Thursday, April 26, 2012

House Appropriations Committee Says That it Expects the U.S. Department of Justice to Allocate the Necessary Resources to Combat Drug-Related Violence in Puerto Rico

Committee also directs NOAA to evaluate the need for and utility of establishing a Caribbean Tsunami Warning Center on the Island

Washington, DC- The powerful House Appropriations Commitee today approved the Fiscal Year 2013 Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies (CJS) Appropriations Act and this legislation and its accompanying report include the most forceful expression from Congress to date regarding the need for the U.S. Department of Justice to allocate the necessary resources to combat drug-related violence in Puerto Rico and to report back to Congress on the specific actions it is taking in this respect.

The bill also includes important language stating that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), a bureau within the U.S. Department of Commerce, should work with the National Academy of Sciences to review the need for and utility of establishing a third tsunami warning center in the Caribbean that would be co-located at one of NOAA’s existing facilities.

Both of these provisions were included because of the efforts of Resident Commissioner Pedro Pierluisi, who personally testified before the CJS Subcommittee on March 22nd.

“These efforts have borne fruit. The language contained in this bill provides a powerful and specific directive that will help us achieve our overriding goal, which is to obtain the federal support that is necessary to combat drug-related violence. The Committee has sent a strong message that the federal government must do more,” said Pierluisi.

The specific language is as follows: “The Committee is aware that efforts by Federal law enforcement to reduce drug trafficking and associated violence in the Southwest border region have affected trafficking routes and crime rates in the Caribbean. The Committee expects the Attorney General to address these trends by allocating necessary resources to areas substantially affected by drug-related violence, and reporting such actions to the Committee.”

In addition, the Appropriations Committee included language in its report that requires NOAA, working with the National Academy of Sciences, to assess the need for and the utility of establishing a third national tsunami warning center for the benefit of the Caribbean region, which could be co-located with the Puerto Rico Seismic Network at the University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez Campus. In March, Pierluisi met with Dr. Jack Hayes, Director of the National Weather Service, to discuss this specific proposal and to urge more federal funding for tsunami preparedness in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

“In this effort, I must recognize the remarkable support I have received from Congressman José Serrano of New York and from Congresswoman Donna Christensen of the U.S. Virgin Islands,” said Pierluisi.

The Resident Commissioner has argued that a Caribbean Tsunami Warning Center in Puerto Rico would result in improved tsunami detection, warning and education activities in the Caribbean region. He has noted that, despite the risk that that tsunamis pose to persons and property in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, the only two tsunami warning centers in the United States are both located in the Pacific region. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC) is located in Ewa Beach, Hawaii, and is responsible for warning Hawaii, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, American Samoa, and over 90 foreign countries. The West Coast and Alaska Tsunami Warning (ATWC) is located in Palmer, Alaska and is responsible for warning Alaska, coastal states of the U.S. mainland and Canada, as well as Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Apart from urging the establishment of a Caribbean Tsunami Warning Center, the Resident Commisisoner has been leading the charge for all of Puerto Rico’s 44 coastal municipalities to be certified as “Tsunami Ready”—a recognition by NOAA that indicates the municipality has been assessed for its vulnerability to a tsunami, evacuation routes have been mapped, and the public has been made aware of what to do in the event of a tsunami emergency. To date, only about half of the Island’s 44 coastal municipalities have been certified as “Tsunami Ready.”