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 Home > News & Policies > February 2004

U.S. Department of Homeland Security
February 2, 2004

DHS Announces FY 2005 Budget

The Department of Homeland Security's budget exhibits the Administration's continuing commitment to secure the homeland by requesting total new resources for FY 2005 of $40.2 billion. This is an increase of 10 percent above the comparable FY 2004 resource level. The budget substantially increases funding for DHS from 2003 -- the year that the Department was created -- and continues the dramatic growth for agencies that are now a part of DHS. The President's budget as a whole clearly demonstrates the continuing priority placed on Homeland Security in requesting new government-wide discretionary resources for FY 2005 of $30 billion. This is an increase of 9.7 percent above the comparable FY 2004 resource level. The budget for the Department of Homeland Security builds upon the significant investments to date that improve our safeguards against terrorism, while also sustaining the many important departmental activities not directly related to our fight against terrorism. The DHS budget number includes sources of funding such as discretionary and mandatory appropriations, offsetting collections from user fees, and trust funds

The key themes of the budget are as follows:

Strengthening Border and Port Security

$411 million in new funding to maintain and enhance border security activities, including the expansion of pre-screening cargo containers in high-risk areas and the detection of individuals attempting to illegally enter the United States. Additional funding for the U.S. Coast Guard (8 percent increase) will upgrade port security efforts and implement the Maritime Transportation Security Act. Key enhancements in the FY 2005 budget include:

  • The Container Security Initiative (CSI), which focuses on pre-screening cargo before it reaches our shores. This budget includes an increase of $25 million over the current program funding of $101 million to continue both Phase I and II, as well as to begin the final phase of CSI.
  • The United States Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology program's (US -VISIT) first phase is deployed at 115 airports and 14 seaports. US VISIT expedites the arrival and departure of legitimate travelers, while making it more difficult for those intending to do us harm to enter our nation. The budget provides $340 million in 2005, an increase of $12 million over the FY 2004 funding to continue expansion of the US VISIT system.
  • Aerial Surveillance and Sensor Technology increases the effectiveness of the more than 12,000 Border Patrol agents deployed along the borders, and supports other missions such as drug interdiction. The CBP budget includes $64.2 million to enhance land-based detection and monitoring of movement between the ports. The ICE budget includes $28 million to increase the flight hours of P-3 aircraft and $12.5 million for long range radar operations.
  • Radiation Detection Monitors screen passengers and cargo coming into the United States. The budget includes $50 million for the next generation of screening devices for our nation's ports of entry.
  • CBP Targeting Systems aid in identifying high-risk cargo and passengers. The budget includes an increase of $20.6 million for staffing and technology acquisition to support the National Targeting Center, trend analysis, and the Automated Targeting Systems. * The Customs Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT), focuses on partnerships to improve security along the entire supply chain, from the factory floor, to foreign vendors, land borders and seaports. The FY 2005 budget includes an increase of $15.2 million for this effort.
  • The U.S. Coast Guard's budget increases 8 percent in discretionary spending over the comparable FY 2004 level. In addition to maintaining its ongoing mission, the budget provides over $100 million to support the implementation of the Maritime Transportation Security Act, which will increase the Coast Guard's ability to develop, review and approve vessel and port security plans, improve underwater detection capabilities, and increase the intelligence program. The budget also provides the Coast Guard's ongoing Integrated Deepwater System initiative, funding the program at $678 million, an increase of $10 million over the FY 2004 funding level.

Enhancing Biodefense:

An additional $2.5 billion for Project BioShield will be available in FY 2005 for the development and pre-purchase of necessary medical countermeasures against weapons of mass destruction, and improved bio-surveillance by expanding air monitoring for biological agents in high-threat cities and high-value targets such as stadiums and transit systems. Specifically, the FY 2005 request includes the following initiatives:

  • Project BioShield allows the Federal Government to pre-purchase critically needed vaccines and medications for biodefense as soon as experts agree that they are safe and effective enough to be added to the Strategic National Stockpile. The program seeks to encourage the development of necessary medical countermeasures against a chemical, biological, radiological, or nuclear attack. For 2005, $2.5 billion will be made available for BioShield, compared with $0.9 billion in 2004 reflecting a 186 percent increase.
  • Improving Biosurveillance, within DHS, will involve the Information Analysis and Infrastructure Protection (IAIP) and Science and Technology (S&T) directorates.
    • In S&T, $65 million to enhance current environmental monitoring activities, bringing the total FY 2005 investment in this area to $118 million. A key component of this initiative will be an expansion and deployment of the next generation of technologies related to the BioWatch Program, a bio-surveillance warning system.
    • In IAIP, $11 million is included to integrate, in real-time, biosurveillance data collected from sensors throughout the country and fuse this data with information from health and agricultural surveillance and other terrorist-threat information from the law enforcement and intelligence communities.
  • National Disaster Medical System (NDMS) is responsible for managing and coordinating the Federal medical response to major emergencies and federally declared disasters. For 2005, FEMA's budget includes $20 million for planning and exercises associated with medical surge capabilities. The budget transfers funding for the Strategic National Stockpile to the Department of Health and Human Services.

Information Analysis and Infrastructure Protection

$864.6 million for the Information Analysis and Infrastructure Protection Directorate (IAIP), a 3 percent increase, will ensure enhanced capabilities to receive intelligence and information from an expanded set of sources, to assess the vulnerabilities of the nation's assets and critical infrastructure, to assess consequences, and to add capabilities in remediation and protective actions. Key provisions in the FY 2005 budget include:

  • Threat Determination and Assessment, tools and unique analytical capability to enhance the Government's ability to integrate, synchronize and correlate sources of information relating to homeland security, emanating from both traditional (Intelligence and federal law enforcement communities) and non-traditional (State and local governments and private industry) sources, and integrate that knowledge with an understanding of exploitable infrastructure vulnerabilities. One specific area:
    • $79.8 million to expand the capabilities of the National Cyber Security Division (NCSD), which implements the public and private sector partnership protecting cyber security as it identifies, analyzes, and reduces threats and vulnerabilities; disseminates threat warning information; and coordinates cyber incident preparedness, response, and recovery efforts.

  • Improving Aviation Security

    $890 million is provided for aviation security, a nearly 20 percent increase, including funds to improve integration of explosive detection system (EDS) equipment into individual airports' baggage processing to increase security effectiveness and promote greater efficiency. In addition, the Federal Air Marshals will receive supplementary training and have opportunities to rotate into land-based agent assignments, further refining their law enforcement skills. Between FY 2003 and FY 2005, the FAMS budget will grow from $466 million, to $613 million, an increase of 32 percent. Because aviation continues to be an attractive terrorist target, we must continue to strengthen our aviation security system. The 2005 Budget provides:

    • $5.3 billion for TSA, an increase of $890 million over resources appropriated in FY 2004. These funds will be used to continue to improve the quality and efficiency of screening operations through additional screener training, stronger management controls of screener performance, and technology automation. The funding includes $400 million to continue deploying more efficient baggage screening solutions at our nation's busiest airports.
    • $85 million for air cargo security in TSA's budget, to continue the research and deployment of screening technology started in FY 2004.
    • $61 million in S&T's budget, to accelerate development of more effective technologies to counter the threat of portable anti-aircraft missiles.

    Support for state and local first responders

    The budget includes a total of $3.6 billion to support first-responder grants and allotting more of the funds to high-threat areas facing the greatest risk and vulnerability. Since March 1, 2003, DHS awarded or allotted over $8 billion to support state and local preparedness. Between FY 2001 and the FY 2005 budget request, over $14.5 billion in assistance will be made available for programs now under DHS.

    The 2005 Budget request provides $3.6 billion in the Office for Domestic Preparedness to continue these enhancements and achieve national preparedness goals - including a doubling of the Urban Area Security Initiative (UASI). DHS will also continue grants for law enforcement terrorism prevention efforts, and direct grants to improve fire departments' response to terrorism and other major incidents.

    Enhancing Immigration Security and Enforcement

    A requested appropriated funding increase of $186 million would fund improvements in immigration enforcement both domestically and overseas, including a doubling of current worksite enforcement efforts and a $108 million increase for the detention and removal of illegal aliens. Overall, the ICE budget increases by almost 10% over FY 2004. To enhance immigration security and enforcement, the budget includes:

    • Detention and Removal. An increase of $108 million in FY 2005 will expand ongoing fugitive apprehension efforts and the removal from the United States of jailed offenders, support additional detention and removal capacity.
    • Immigration Enforcement appropriated funding will be increased by $78 million for detecting and locating individuals in the United States who are in violation of immigration laws, or who are engaging in immigration-related fraud and will improve visa security by working cooperatively with U.S. consular offices to review visa applications.

    Reducing the Immigration Backlog

    The budget includes $160 million in total resources to continue progress toward a six-month processing for all immigration applications, while maintaining security and continuing the President's multi-year $500 million initiative to reduce the backlog of applications. Over the last year, CIS has continued the focus on quality improvements and expanded national security checks, such as performing background name checks on all applications before approval.

    Investing in Human Resources

    $133.5 million to implement a new DHS human resources system that is mission-centered, fair, and flexible by rewarding top performers and ensuring that DHS can manage and deploy its resources to best address homeland security threats. There will be a phased rollout of the new system scheduled to begin later this year. The 2005 Budget specifically seeks:

    • $112.5 million to develop and implement the new performance-based pay system, including training personnel, and
    • $21 million to create the information technology framework for the new system.

    Increasing DHS Preparedness and Response Capacity

    Increases totaling $37 million are included for operations of the Homeland Security Operations Center and to support FEMA incident management capabilities.

    Building Departmental Infrastructure

    The budget requests $121.1 million for costs associated with the ongoing establishment of a DHS headquarters facility ($65.1 million) and a new resource management system ($56 million).

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