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The Office of Homeland Security

Latest Homeland Security Developments More Homeland Security News…

Office Homeland Security

The Office of Homeland Security Office of Homeland Security
The Office of Homeland Security is coordinating national strategy to strengthen protections against terrorist threats or attacks in the United States.

  Biography of Governor Tom Ridge
  Office Responsibilities
  Office of Homeland Security Executive Order
  New Counter-Terrorism and Cyberspace Security Positions
  What is the Office of Homeland Security?

By the Numbers
The United States has a 7500-mile land and air border shared with Canada and Mexico and an exclusive economic zone encompassing 3.4 million square miles.

Each year, more than 500 million people are admitted into the United States, of which 330 million are non-citizens.

On land, 11.2 million trucks and 2.2 million rail cars cross into the United States, while 7,500 foreign-flag ships make 51,000 calls in U.S. ports annually.

There are over 1 million firefighters in the United States, of which approximately 750,000 are volunteers.

Local police departments have an estimated 556,000 full-time employees including about 436,000 sworn law enforcement personnel.

Sheriffs' offices reported about 291,000 full-time employees, including about 186,000 sworn officers.

There are over 155,000 emergency medical technicians who are national registered.

 
Additional Information and Links

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Home-Actions on the Home Front Border Security: Smart Borders for the 21st Century
America's borders -- land, air or sea -- are the boundaries between the United States and the rest of the world. The massive flow of people and goods across our borders helps drive our economy, but can also serve as a conduit for terrorists, weapons of mass destruction, illegal migrants, contraband, and other unlawful commodities. The new threats and opportunities of the 21st century demand a new approach to border management. President Bush envisions a border that is grounded on two key principles:
  • First, America's air, land, and sea borders must provide a strong defense for the American people against all external threats, most importantly international terrorists but also drugs, foreign disease, and other dangerous items.

  • Second, America's border must be highly efficient, posing little or no obstacle to all legitimate trade and travel.

The President's 2003 Budget begins the process of achieving this vision of the border of the future.

More about border security

First Responders - America's Frontline Soldiers
Police officers, firefighters, and emergency medical teams are America's front-line soldiers in the event of a terrorist attack. With the right training and equipment, these first responders have the greatest potential to save lives and limit casualties. Even the best-prepared States and localities lack adequate resources to respond to the full range of terrorist threats this country faces. Many areas have little or no capability to respond to terrorist attacks using weapons of mass destruction.

President Bush proposes to spend $3.5 billion in fiscal year 2003 to dramatically enhance the homeland security response capabilities of America's first responders -- a greater than 10-fold increase in Federal resources.

More about Strengthening Homeland Security