Commission Urges Spending DSH Grants According to Risk

The leaders of the 9/11 commission argue today in a New York Times article that Congress should include in its reauthorization of the Patriot Act a provision to spend first-responder grants according to a risk-based formula. So far, write Thomas H. Kean and Lee H. Hamilton, there’s disarray in $8 billion worth of first-responder spending. “Taxpayers have no guarantee that these billions have increased our overall level of national preparedness. The response to Hurricane Katrina suggests that we have not come far,” the pair writes. “We are a nation under threat, and these funds are a critical element in our defense. Our elected representatives need to demonstrate leadership and act to increase the safety of the American people.”

By Michael Goldberg