Let’s Spring Forward, Not Fall Back on Chemical Security
One of the country’s important anti-terrorism programs is in
jeopardy of expiring in a couple of months unless Congress takes action. The Chemical
Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) program is scheduled to sunset on
April 18, 2020.
Chemistry is the lifeblood
of our economy — directly touching 96 percent of all manufactured goods.
Securing and maintaining the economic viability of this critical part of our
infrastructure is vital to U.S. prosperity and our national security.
That’s why ACC members have invested more than $21 billion under
the Responsible
Care® Security Code to further enhance site security, transportation
security and cybersecurity at their facilities. It’s also why ACC and its
member companies support a host of federal programs that currently regulate all
aspects of chemical
security, including CFATS.
The CFATS program is one of the primary federal security
programs for chemical facilities and provides the Department of Homeland
Security (DHS) the authority to regulate security at thousands of facilities
across the country. The program requires companies to develop and submit comprehensive
security plans to DHS for approval that meet 18 performance standards, which
cover everything from perimeter security to cyber threats to vetting personnel.
The program also gives DHS the authority to send out
inspectors to make sure a facility has taken appropriate steps to address
potential security threats.
Thanks in large part to the leadership and commitment of DHS’s
Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary, David Wulf and his team, the CFATS program
has made great strides
in helping to enhance chemical security. To date, DHS has completed more than
4,000 Authorization Inspections and almost 6,000 Compliance Inspections.
We cannot squander the hard work and progress that industry
and DHS have made to raise the bar for chemical security under CFATS.
ACC has joined with other leading manufacturing groups to ask Congress to take action as soon as possible to preserve CFATS. The collection of groups recently sent a letter to committee leaders in the Senate, Chairman Johnson and Ranking Member Peters and a letter to committee leaders in the House, Chairmen Thompson and Pallone and Ranking Members Rogers and Walden.
We urge Congress to work together on passing a long-term solution for CFATS, which will help our country stay ahead of potential terrorist threats and help keep chemical facilities secure.
The post Let’s Spring Forward, Not Fall Back on Chemical Security appeared first on American Chemistry Matters.
