Senate passes 9/11 bill with modified cargo scan provision
The U.S. Senate on Tuesday passed a wide-ranging bill to implement the two-year-old homeland security recommendations of the 9/11 Commission.
The Improving America’s Security Act of 2007 includes two bills championed by Sen. Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii, chairman of the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, relating to surface and rail transportation security, and an amendment by New Jersey Democrat Robert Menendez requiring the Department of Homeland Security to develop a plan and set yearly benchmarks for moving towards 100 percent scanning of ocean containers at foreign ports.
The amendment is not as strict as the House version of the bill, which calls for all containers to be inspected overseas by automated means within five years.
The Senate bill, which passed 60-38, authorizes new surface transportation and rail security assessments, grant programs, research and development initiatives, and security measures for surface transportation modes. It sets timelines and goals for programs already underway at the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and gives those programs the force of law.
The Aviation Security Improvement Act is also folded into the 9/11 bill. It covers cargo and baggage screening, increases the size of the national explosives detection and canine teams, among many areas. Again, the House bill is stronger in the area of inspecting cargo carried on passenger planes, requiring inspection of all cargo within three years.
The Senate bill also includes sections on contingency planning, private sector preparedness, critical infrastructure protection, homeland security grants, and interagency information sharing.
The Senate rejected an amendment by Sen. Joseph Biden, D-Del., requiring railroads to reroute rail cars carrying hazardous materials around major urban areas. A House committee, however, Tuesday adopted similar language proposed by Rep. Edward Markey, D-Mass., as part of a new rail security bill.
The House and Senate bills must still be reconciled by a joint committee. President Bush has threatened to veto the bill that includes the Senate provision that gives TSA airport screeners collective bargaining rights.
Senate passes 9/11 bill with modified cargo scan provision
