Aviation Security-Related Findings and Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission

In response to the 9/11 Commission’s aviation security-related recommendations, two bills — H.R. 5121 and H.R. 10 — introduced in the House contain several provisions to enhance aviation security. Additionally, floor amendments to S. 2845, the National Intelligence Reform Act of 2004, contain numerous aviation security provisions, many of which address 9/11 Commission recommendations related to aviation safety. S. 2845 was passed (96-2) by the Senate on October 6, 2004. The House passed H.R. 10 on October 8 by a vote of 282-134. A conference has been requested to resolve numerous differences between H.R. 10 and S. 2845

112th Congress

This report discusses how best to construct and finance a system of deterrence, protection, and response that effectively reduces the possibility and consequences of another terrorist attack without unduly interfering with travel, commerce, and civil liberties

9/11 – ten years after: Security improvements in global container shipping during the recent decade

Containerised sea shipping plays a key role in the global trade and traf-fic, hence its relevance may not be underestimated in the global security. It shows specific vulnerabilities to harmful and illicit intentions to break the trade supply chain or simply attempting to use it as a tool to threaten security. A new era has arrived. Prior to 9/11 port operators and ship-ping companies handled the risks that threatened the supply chain securi-ty from an economic loss point of view while border control issues have traditionally focused on commercial illegality or smuggling of prohibited goods. The events of 9/11 however, highlighted the risk that supply chains might be abused by terrorists to cause enormous physical and economic damage. The event also pointed out many unhandled vulnera-bilities that could provide extraordinary opportunities for breaking the lines of defence. In response to that we have witnessed the proliferation of security-focused control regimes worldwide. Following a series of comprehensive analyses, numerous measures have been taken by na-tional and international actors on different levels and points of the global trade supply chain. From all these efforts the clear intention arose that we need to safeguard global supply chains by evaluating advanced cargo scanning and data integration capabilities at overseas ports and inviting them into an operable international security system

Selective Screening of Rail Passengers, MTI 06-07

The threat of another major terrorist attack in the United States remains high, with the greatest danger coming from local extremists inspired by events in the Middle East. Although the United States removed the Taliban government and destroyed al Qaeda’s training camps in Afghanistan, events in Europe and elsewhere have shown that the terrorist network leadership remains determined to carry out further attacks and is capable of doing so. Therefore, the United States must systematically conduct research on terrorist strikes against transportation targets to distill lessons learned and determine the best practices for deterrence, response, and recovery. Those best practices must be taught to transportation and security professionals to provide secure surface transportation for the nation. Studying recent incidents in Europe and Asia, along with other research, will help leaders in the United States learn valuable lessons—from preventing attacks, to response and recovery, to addressing the psychological impacts of attacks to business continuity. Timely distillations of the lessons learned and best practices developed in other countries, once distributed to law enforcement, first responders, and rail- and subway-operating transit agencies, could result in the saving of American lives. This monograph focuses on the terrorist risks confronting public transportation in the United States—especially urban mass transit—and explores how different forms of passenger screening, and in particular, selective screening, can best be implemented to reduce those risks

Aviation Security: Risk, Experience, and Customer Concerns Drive Changes to Airline Passenger Screening Procedures, but Evaluation and Documentation of Proposed Changes Could Be Improved

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Transportation Security Administration's (TSA) most visible layer of commercial aviation security is the screening of airline passengers at airport checkpoints, where travelers and their carry-on items are screened for explosives and other dangerous items by transportation security officers (TSO). Several revisions made to checkpoint screening procedures have been scrutinized and questioned by the traveling public and Congress in recent years. For this review, GAO evaluated (1) TSA's decisions to modify passenger screening procedures between April 2005 and December 2005 and in response to the alleged August 2006 liquid explosives terrorist plot, and (2) how TSA monitored TSO compliance with passenger screening procedures. To conduct this work, GAO reviewed TSA documents, interviewed TSA officials and aviation security experts, and visited 25 airports of varying sizes and locations.

Container Security: Current Efforts to Detect Nuclear Materials, New Initiatives, and Challenges

Testimony issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "After the attacks of September 11th, 2001, concerns intensified over the vulnerability of U.S. ports to acts of terrorism. One particular concern involves the possibility that terrorists would attempt to smuggle illegal fissile material or a tactical nuclear weapon into the country through a cargo container shipped from overseas. This testimony discusses the programs already in place to counter such attempts, new initiatives now under way to enhance the nation's security against such attempts, and the key challenges faced in implementing these various efforts.

Trade facilitation implementations in U.S. Customs and Border Protection

More than seven decades of trade experience, since the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) entered in to force, has showed that the global trade brought prosperity to the nations and reduced the poverty. As a result, the importance of smooth flow of crossborder trade is well understood by all trader countries. Hence the notion of trade facilitation stays as a hot toping of international trade negotiations. Improving the hard infrastructure of trade environment is the priority focus of developing countries whereas developed countries shifted their focal point to modernize the soft infrastructure of their trade environment. United States, who enjoys the second largest share of global trade, is one of those counties whose cross-border implementations are closely followed by the rest of the world. Trade facilitation implementations and applications of US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is used as a base for best practices in many countries. The perfect combination of facilitation and enforcement is key to establish and sustain a global competitiveness for US companies. After recognition of reasons behind the trade facilitation efforts around the globe and broad definition of the concept, this study explicates the background of trade facilitation and enforcement legislations as well as current trade facilitation implementations in U.S. Customs and Border Protection

Border Security: Inspections Practices, Policies, and Issues

Some argue that this reorganization of border inspections has been long needed and is resulting in a more streamlined and efficient set of procedures at the border with a clear, single, chain of command. Others warn that the different types of inspections are quite complex in their own right and that the reorganization is exacerbating the conflicting priorities at the border, ultimately resulting in many more people and goods being sent to secondary inspections. This report, discusses a range of legal, administrative, and policy issues that are emerging with the implementation of the unified border inspections

Border Security: Inspections Practices, Policies, and Issues

Some argue that this reorganization of border inspections has been long needed and is resulting in a more streamlined and efficient set of procedures at the border with a clear, single, chain of command. Others warn that the different types of inspections are quite complex in their own right and that the reorganization is exacerbating the conflicting priorities at the border, ultimately resulting in many more people and goods being sent to secondary inspections. This report, which will not be updated, discusses a range of legal, administrative, and policy issues that are emerging with the implementation of the unified border inspections