This morning, Rep. Bill Pascrell, Jr. (D-NJ-09) led all 14 members of the New Jersey congressional delegation in writing to Acting Secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Chad Wolf demanding answers on the recently-released DHS budget potentially slashing funding to the Garden State for the Homeland Security Program (SHSP) and Urban Area Security Initiative (UASI) preparedness grant programs.

“We write concerning the recent notices of funding opportunity and allocations for the Fiscal Year 2020 (FY20) State Homeland Security Program (SHSP) and Urban Area Security Initiative (UASI) preparedness grant programs. As the most urbanized state in America, New Jersey and our cities rely on the federal support provided by these programs to strengthen their emergency preparedness and protect the daily threats our communities face. Consequently, we have serious questions on the recent changes to the funding allocations for grant recipients, including the use of national priorities,” the members write.

The recent terrorist attacks in Jersey City tragically demonstrate that the potential danger to New Jersey and regional communities has not abated. But according to the recent DHS announcement on FY20 notices of funding opportunity and allocations, New Jersey is only eligible to receive between $6,153,600 and $7,692,000 in SHSP funds and between $15,240,000 and $19,050,000 in UASI funds. These figures represent the lowest amount of support New Jersey would receive in SHSP and UASI funds in at least seven fiscal years. This is a significant drop from the state’s recent high mark of SHSP allocation of $7,993,000 and UASI allocation of $22,750,000 in FY18, respectively, a potential 23 percent and 33 percent cut.

“As you know, funding determinations to keep our communities safe should not be made with politics in mind. As representatives from the most urbanized state in the country, we thank you very much for your time and attention to this important matter. We look forward to your prompt response,” the members’ letter concludes.

The letter is signed by Rep. Pascrell, Sens. Robert Menendez (D-NJ) and Cory Booker (D-NJ), and Reps. Christopher Smith (R-NJ-04), Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ-06), Albio Sires (D-NJ-08), Donald Payne, Jr. (D-NJ-10), Donald Norcross (D-NJ-01), Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ-12), Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ-05), Andy Kim (D-NJ-03), Tom Malinowski (D-NJ-07), Mikie Sherrill (D-NJ-11), and Jeff Van Drew (R-NJ-02).

In the House, Rep. Pascrell has been a leader demanding strong funding for the Urban Area Security Initiative since the program was created while Pascrell was an original member of the House Committee on Homeland Security. In April 2019 he joined with 69 of his Democratic and Republican colleagues calling for UASI to be funded at $887 million.

Rep. Pascrell has also been the leading advocate in Congress for increased federal efforts to combat domestic extremism. In December, Reps. Pascrell and Peter King (R-NY-02) led a letter calling for the Non-profit Security Grant Program to be funded at $90 million, citing “the rise of hate groups in our nation, the record of threats facing members of our community, and the FBI’s continued concern about domestic violent extremism.” One week after their letter, the requested funding was passed by the House. In January, Reps. Pascrell and Gottheimer held an interfaith event with religious leaders, law enforcement, and cultural groups to highlight the need to combat hate in our communities. In November 2019, Pascrell, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, and former Department of Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson held a roundtable town hall discussion in Garfield with members of law enforcement, elected officials, and religious leaders in an effort to hold a dialogue with the public about the rise in domestic extremism. In September, Reps. Pascrell and Gottheimer met with state officials and local law enforcement for a briefing on the threat of homegrown violent extremists in New Jersey.

A copy of the members’ letter is available here, the text of which is provided below.

February 27, 2016

The Honorable Chad Wolf

Acting Secretary

U.S. Department of Homeland Security

245 Murray Lane, SW

Washington, DC 20528

Dear Acting Secretary Wolf:

We write concerning the recent notices of funding opportunity and allocations for the Fiscal Year 2020 (FY20) State Homeland Security Program (SHSP) and Urban Area Security Initiative (UASI) preparedness grant programs. As the most urbanized state in America, New Jersey and our cities rely on the federal support provided by these programs to strengthen their emergency preparedness and protect the daily threats our communities face. Consequently, we have serious questions on the recent changes to the funding allocations for grant recipients, including the use of national priorities.

The threat of terrorism continues to grow every day. The burden of responding to and managing an emergency falls almost entirely on local first responders and their regional partners within hours or days of an event. These federal programs provide critically needed resources to equipping first responders with the tools and training to prevent, protect, respond to, and recover from terrorist attacks and other disasters. In addition, SHSP and UASI funds encourage regional coordination among public safety officials that has drastically improved local, state, and federal cooperation.

The recent terrorist attacks in Jersey City tragically demonstrate that the potential danger to our communities has not abated. However, it appears the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) does not fully recognize that danger. According to the recent DHS announcement on FY20 notices of funding opportunity and allocations, New Jersey is only eligible to receive between $6,153,600 and $7,692,000 in SHSP funds and between $15,240,000 and $19,050,000 in UASI funds. These figures represent the lowest amount of support our state would receive in SHSP and UASI funds in at least seven fiscal years. This is a significant drop from our recent high mark of SHSP allocation of $7,993,000 and UASI allocation of $22,750,000 in FY18, respectably a potential 23 percent and 33 percent cut.

We request a full and complete explanation of the rationale for lowering New Jersey’s funding eligibility through these programs. Specifically, we ask you to answer the following questions:

• Is this the first time DHS has issued a range of funding allocations for SHSP and UASI? If not, please detail those prior instances.
• Please explain why DHS chose cybersecurity, soft targets and crowded places, intelligence and information sharing, and emerging threats as four critical national priority areas for attention in the FY20 grant cycle.
• Please delineate the methodology DHS used to determine New Jersey’s funding eligibility under these priority areas.
• Has DHS ever restricted funding eligibility in the past? If so, please explain.
• Please detail which individuals at DHS decided to implement these new restrictions. Please list any other outside agencies or parties that DHS consulted in making these funding changes.

As you know, funding determinations to keep our communities safe should not be made with politics in mind. As representatives from the most urbanized state in the country, we thank you very much for your time and attention to this important matter. We look forward to your prompt response.

Sincerely,