Congressman Meehan Wants More Money for First Responders
WASHINGTON– Congressman Martin T. Meehan wants more money for local police and fire departments. That’s why the Lowell Democrat has signed on to support a bill that would triple the money that President Bush set aside for first responders in his budget proposal for next year.
The bill, called the First Responders Expedited Assistance Act, asks Congress to increase spending on local police and fire departments to beef up homeland security. The departments were slated to receive $3.5 billion in fiscal year 2003, and Bush had proposed retaining it at the same level for fiscal year 2004.
Meehan said that $3.5 billion is not enough for local police and fire departments to be able to cope with the threat of terrorism in their own backyards. Under the new legislation, the grants would increase to $7.1 billion this year and $10.6 billion in 2004, and municipalities that received grants would get at least 60 percent of the money within 120 days.
Meehan said with war in Iraq on the horizon, it is critical to provide support and money to the state and local people who respond to emergencies.
“We would never send our military forces into Iraq without the necessary protection and training,” Meehan said. “Why would we not show our local police and fire personnel the same support?”
Because of state and local budget cuts, police departments don’t have enough money to cover their regular programs and increase homeland security measures too, Andover Police Chief Brian Pattullo said. He added that while his department’s budget is getting smaller, his officers need gas masks and protective suits designed to withstand biological or chemical agents.
“We have to assist the public, but if we can’t get to the situation safely, we’ll be of no use,” said Pattullo, who heads Andover’s 54-member force.
Pattullo, who is president of the North Eastern Massachusetts Law Enforcement Council, also said local police need a radio system that would allow different departments to communicate with one another. Currently, officers are able to talk from town to town over the radio, but Pattullo said the system wouldn’t hold up during an attack of the magnitude of Sept. 11.
“The ability for local law enforcement agencies to communicate effectively has been underfunded,” he said.
Lawrence Police Chief John Romero said his department relies heavily on state and federal grants and that money is “certainly needed” to prepare and train officers to combat terrorism.
“Everything changed after Sept. 11,” said Romero, a former New York City cop, adding that even smaller communities could be targets the next time. “Who’s to say a target could be a big city next time?”
The new first responder bill, introduced by Reps. Jane Harman, D-Calif., and Ike Skelton, D-Mo., awaits House action. On the Senate side, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., introduced a similar bill in January that, if passed, would fully fund all traditional first responder grants, such as money for community policing, while providing additional money specifically for homeland security. Clinton’s bill is under review by the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works.
Published in The Lawrence Eagle Tribune, in Massachusetts.
