New York City’s Anti-terror Funds cut by 40%

Taken from Thursday’s Press Briefing by Tony Snow
June 01, 2006

Question: Does the President still consider New York City to be the nation's number one terror target? And if so, how can the administration justify a 40-percent cut in New York City's --

Tony Snow: Well, a couple of things. Since the year 2001, when the Department of Homeland Security -- or, actually, 2002 is when the money started being distributed -- there has been $3.1 billion in aid throughout the country. New York City has received about 20 percent of that sum -- $650 million. Now, a lot of this money was for capital expenditures, which are one-time only. And so it is natural to assume that after you have made those capital expenditures, that some of that's going to fall off. Even now, New York City is by far the largest recipient of aid of any city in the United States of America -- since 2002, $650 million. The second highest recipient of aid in the country is Washington, D.C. at $232 million, just over a third of the amount of New York City.

There are cities all over the country that also -- homeland security involves all cities all across the nation. And it is the belief of the administration that once you have handled your basic core responsibilities in terms of doing that, you're going to be able to readjust your formulas.

Also, the Department of Homeland Security has put together a risk-based formula for apportioning aid; in other words, try to assess where the risks are still high. And there are some cities, I guarantee you, that will argue that they have been shorted over the years.

Let me give you an example: San Francisco, $103 million, as opposed to $650 million for New York; Los Angeles, $207 million, as opposed to $650 million for New York. So cities all over the country are saying that they have needs. Omaha, I know, was a particular sore spot, but what is this money going to Omaha for? For doing the kind of communications work that was necessary in New York right after 2001.

So the idea that somehow you're being unfair to New York by still giving it more money than any city in the United States of America, that $124 million, giving it in this year's particular allotment more than San Francisco has received since 2001, I think is to create a false issue and maybe even a false area of friction, because the point of Homeland Security, as I said before, is to provide security for the entire homeland. And certainly, no disrespect meant to New York with $124 million for this coming year.
(Above courtesy of the White House)
Read Briefing in full HERE