Senate Committee Holds Hearing on Maritime Security (Part II - Final)

This is Part II, the final partof a two-part series of summaries on this hearing and focuses on the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS') joint statement by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the Coast Guard, and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) on the status of maritime security. (See ITT's Online Archives or 03/31/04 news, 04033115, for Part I.)

According to DHS, this joint statement updates the Committee on DHS' efforts to enhance maritime security, the impact of those efforts on maritime commerce, and the additional measures that may be needed to further enhance maritime transportation security.

Coast Guard Lead Agency on Maritime Strategy for Homeland Security

DHS states that the Coast Guard has been charged with taking the lead on the development and implementation of a comprehensive Maritime Strategy for Homeland Security.

As the lead agency, DHS states that the Coast Guard is responsible for developing the National Maritime Transportation Security Plan (NMTSP).

(The NMTSP will harmonize with the DHS' National Transportation System Security Plan, which is being coordinated by TSA working with the Department of Transportation (DOT) and other federal agencies.)

Coast Guard, CBP and TSA Efforts on Maritime Awareness and Security

According to DHS, this joint statement provides an update on DHS' recent accomplishments, focusing primarily on the joint and individual efforts of the Coast Guard, CBP, and TSA in pursuit of DHS' maritime strategy for homeland security.

(The update below highlights two of the five elements of DHS strategic goals for its maritime strategy - (1) enhancing maritime domain awareness (MDA) and (2) building and administering an effective maritime security regime.

See DHS' joint statement for update on the remaining three elements of DHS' maritime strategy: (3) increasing military and civil presence at ports, etc. (4) improving responses to security incidents, and (5) restoring services after an act of terrorism, etc.).)

Coast Guard. According to the DHS statement, the Coast Guard:

is leading the interagency and joint Service effort to develop a comprehensive national MDA plan and system architecture;

established an International Port Security Program (IPSP) that is currently working in concert with CBP, TSA, and other Federal agencies to identify foreign ports identified by the Secretary of Homeland Security as posing a potential security risk to international maritime transportation;

is researching technologies and systems that are able to track vessels entering, departing, or transiting U.S. waters and track vessels bound for the U.S. from overseas locations;

is establishing a network for receiving and distributing Automatic Identification System (AIS) reports from ships using existing Vessel Traffic Services in nine U.S. ports, waterways, and coastal areas (which will ultimately extend to nationwide coverage);

established COASTWATCH and, through this process, notice of arrival reports from the National Vessel Movement Center are analyzed using law enforcement and intelligence information and vessels of interest are identified so that Coast Guard and other agencies can appropriately respond to board those vessels before they reach port, if necessary;

is using a risk management system to identify High Interest Vessels for follow-up security boardings and when necessary, due to risk, vessel escorts and positive control boardings to ensure the safety of vessels during their transit into U.S. ports;

is establishing, in partnership with the Chief of Naval Operations (CNO), interagency prototype joint harbor operations centers in select Navy homeports, improving both port security and force protection capabilities;

will continue aggressive implementation of a Merchant Mariner Documentation (MMD) Task Force plan, which ensures positive identity of merchant mariners sailing on U.S. flag vessels and performs appropriate security/background screening;

has established additional Maritime Intelligence Fusion Centers on the east and west coasts for both military intelligence and law enforcement sensitive information and Field Intelligence Support Teams (FISTs) in key ports;

established Area Maritime Security Committees (AMSC), which assist in the development of Area Maritime Security Plans nationwide, as required by the Maritime Transportation Security Act (MTSA);

has completed Port Security Assessments (PSAs) at 16 of the 55 most significant military and economic U.S. ports and will complete the assessments of all 55 strategic ports by the end of calendar year 2004;

published final MTSA implementation rules in October 2003 and security plans from approximately 9,500 vessels and 3,500 facilities were due December 31, 2003. To date, approximately 97% of those plans have been received;

is actively involved with the Maritime Administration (MARAD) in the development of maritime security competency standards and security training curricula under Section 109 of the MTSA; and

has met with nearly 60 countries representing the vast majority of all shippers to the U.S., reinforcing a commitment to the International Ship and Port Facility Security (ISPS) code. For vessels subject to MTSA, the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) amendments and the ISPS Code, the Coast Guard is implementing strong Port State Control measures to aggressively ensure foreign vessels have approved plans and have implemented adequate security standards;

U.S. Customs and Border Protection. DHS' statement states that CBP:

has a National Targeting Center (NTC) that supports the enforcement and regulatory missions of various agencies through a network of liaisons, which includes TSA, the Coast Guard, Department of Energy, and members of the intelligence community;

is conducting national targeting and using automated targeting tools to screen advance information and other data to identify high-risk shipments and its Automated Targeting System (ATS) serves as the premier tool for performing transactional risk assessments and evaluating potential national security risks posed by sea, air, truck, and rail cargo;

is expanding the Container Security Initiative (CSI) to 14 additional foreign ports based on volume, location, and strategic concerns, which would bring the total number of operational CSI ports to 31. Once implemented, nearly 80% of all cargo containers headed for the U.S. will be prescreened before they depart from abroad;

promulgated final regulations in December 2003 to implement the Trade Act of 2002, requiring advance, electronic manifest information for all modes of transportation;

(regarding outbound cargo, DHS states that a rolling implementation (like CBP intends to utilize for implementing the inbound air advance manifest requirements) is not being considered);

created the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT), a program which calls on the trade community to systematically establish procedures to enhance their existing security practices and those of their business partners involved in their supply chains; and

has established a recent partnership with 5 C-TPAT importers to initiate the development of improved security standards and performance criteria for the future maritime container - or "Smart Box." The Smart Box being tested through C-TPAT consists of the application and activation of an electronic Container Security Device (CSD), as well as the application of a mechanical seal meeting the ISO 17712 high security bolt seal standards. To date, approximately 215 containers meeting the criteria have been imported into the U.S. from various trade lanes.

Transportation Security Administration. According to DHS, the TSA:

will soon begin the prototype phase in developing the Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC), aimed at mitigating the threat of attacks to the national transportation infrastructure.

Department of Homeland Security. DHS' statement states that it:

is working, along with the Department of Transportation and the Department of Justice, with business interests, the largest U.S. container load centers and the maritime industry to implement Operation Safe Commerce, an effort to develop and share best practices for the safe and expeditious movement of containerized cargo.

Border and Transportation Security. According to DHS, its Border and Transportation Security (BTS) Directorate:

has led an effort under which TSA, along with CBP and the Coast Guard, are developing a more comprehensive framework for securing the maritime cargo supply chain. DHS states that this initiative will also assist it in meeting the MTSA requirements for "Secure Systems of Transportation" (SST).

DHS statement available at http://commerce.senate.gov/pdf/collins032404.pdf.