BONNER: HOMELAND SECURITY HEAD NEEDS APPROPRIATE AUTHORITY

BONNER: HOMELAND SECURITY HEAD NEEDS APPROPRIATE AUTHORITY    As President Bush and Congress contemplate the proposed Department of Homeland Security, they need to allow the head of the agency appropriate authority to assign funds and personnel to address events as they unfold, U.S. Customs Service Commissioner Robert Bonner said Monday.
   Bonner said the new department's director needs the authority to consolidate and align the functions of the appropriate people at the places needing it most, and to have the ability to transfer funds where needed. “The new secretary should have the ability to reorganize, as needed,” he said.
   The new department will enforce a border security program that operates more efficiently than what is now in place, Bonner said Monday at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. He described the recent border security functions as a “fragmented effort” of various agencies, and suggested that DHS could consolidate the border security roles of Customs and the U.S. Coast Guard into one branch responsible for border and transportation security.