Another active Atlantic hurricane season expected in 2013
This year's Atlantic hurricane season will be active or extremely active and will see three to six major hurricanes, according to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predictions issued May 23. The season begins June 1 and lasts 6 months. NOAA said there is a 70 percent chance of 13 to 20 named storms, of which 7 to 11 could become hurricanes.
U.S., Canada swap data on hundreds of thousands of border-crossings
The U.S. and Canadian governments have successfully reciprocated hundreds of thousands of entry records for the other country to use as exit records, says a new report (.pdf) that the two released earlier this month. The data helps each country pinpoint those who have overstayed their visas and can help show whether individuals have met residency requirements.
Spotlight: Moore, Okla. tornado draws federal response
The May 20 tornado that struck Moore, Okla., killed 24 people and reportedly caused between $1.5 billion and $2 billion in damage.
House Appropriations approves DHS funding bill
The Homeland Security Department would receive $38.9 billion in discretionary funding in fiscal 2014 under a bill approved by the House Appropriations Committee May 22. The bill (.pdf) passed by a voice vote.
Report highlights bleak pattern of billion-dollar natural disasters
The effects of climate change are irreversible, and so increased resilience to natural disasters is imperative, a report from the nonpartisan American Security Project says. The report gathers recent trends of natural disasters that amount to a bleak picture it attributes to climate change.
Comprehensive livestock biosurveillance faces resistance, funding challenges
An Agriculture Department effort to gain a comprehensive view of livestock and poultry health in a bid for better biosurveillance faces challenges including industry resistance, state confidentiality laws and lack of funding, says the Government Accountability Office.
Papp: Coast Guard plans no Arctic shoreside infrastructure
The Coast Guard has no plans to build shoreside infrastructure in Arctic Alaska, at least not for the next decade, said its commandant, Adm. Robert Papp, while unveiling a the service's first strategy for the Artic on May 21. The service will again send a National Security Cutter to the Arctic this year, Papp said--specifically, the USCGC Waesche.
Senate Judiciary approves immigration reform bill with 141 amendments
Three Republicans joined all 10 Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee to send the Border Security, Economic Opportunity and Immigration Modernization Act to the full Senate on May 21. After the committee approved the bill, Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said he would bring the legislation to the Senate floor in June.
Known/suspected terrorists in witness protection flew on commercial planes
The federal witness protection program has taken in individuals considered known or suspected terrorists, but program officials didn't share the new identities of those individuals with national security stakeholders, a new report from the Justice Department office of inspector general says.
Kansas close to issuing NBAF bonds
The Kansas legislature is reportedly close to approving $202 million in additional bonds to fund construction of the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility in Manhattan, Kan.
'Going dark' remedy could boomerang to undermine national security
A federal attempt to ensure that Internet communications and services can be wiretapped could undermine national security by making the U.S. government's own communications less secure and by causing hardened communication tools to proliferate among a receptive audience that includes bad guys, says a May 17 paper from privacy advocates and cybersecurity researchers.
DoD: AUMF covers groups not in existence on 9/11
Even if an organization did not exist on Sept. 11, 2001, "if they become an associated force with al Qaeda, then they have joined with the organization that was responsible for those 9/11 attacks, and we believe they are fully covered by the AUMF," DoD Acting General Counsel Robert Taylor told the Senate Armed Services Committee.
Mueller says FBI cuts threaten response to attacks like Boston
Training builds relationships between law enforcement agencies, and that's part of what made the response to the Boston Marathon bombings so effective--but it's also among the first things those agencies cut when budgets tighten, FBI Director Robert Mueller said May 16.
Feds gear up for wildfire season
Significant fire potential will be above normal in much of the West this summer according to National Interagency Fire Center predictions. NIFC's outlook (.pdf) for May through August, issued May 1, says significant fire potential will be above normal for south central Oregon and parts of California in May, with more areas joining them as the summer progresses.
DHS discretionary funding totals $38.9 billion in House Appropriations subcommittee proposal
A House Appropriations subcommittee bill released May 15 would provide the Homeland Security Department with $38.9 billion in discretionary funding for fiscal 2014, a $617.6 million decrease from the fiscal 2013 enacted level. But, based on preliminary scoring from the Congressional Budget Office, that would be a $981 million increase above post-sequestration levels, the committee says in an overview of the bill (.pdf).
House Appropriations proposes $1.22 billion Coast Guard acquisition budget
The House Appropriations homeland security subcommittee fiscal 2014 spending bill, to be marked up by the subcommittee May 16, proposes $1.22 billion for the Coast Guard acquisition budget, an increase from the $951 million in the White House proposal--but also still far less than the approximately $1.46 billion annually the service has been appropriated in recent years.
Q&A: The Coast Guard's Paul Thomas on TWIC
Release in short succession by the Coast Guard of a much anticipated notice of proposed rulemaking for the placement of Transportation Worker Identification Credential readers in maritime facilities and a report (.pdf) by the Government Accountability Office that heavily questions a TWIC reader pilot conducted by the Transportation Security Administration has brought new life to questions about the efficacy of the TWIC program and its implementation.
Senate committee proceeds on immigration reform, concludes border security amendments
The Senate Judiciary Committee continued its consideration of the Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act May 14, adopting 15 amendments as it worked through the border security section of the bill and into the section on nonimmigrant visas.
TSA mismanages stores of equipment at logistics center, finds OIG
The Transportation Security Administration is not effectively managing more than $185.7 million worth of equipment at the TSA Logistics Center, says (.pdf) a Homeland Security Department inspector general report dated April 26.
