Senators May Attach Strings to Federal Surplus Programs for Local Police
Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., is considering legislation to improvement management of the Pentagon's 1033 program. |
Invoking images of 20-ton armored vehicles confronting
unarmed protestors after last month’s police shooting of a black youth
in Missouri, senators on Tuesday quizzed agency officials on tightening
oversight of federal programs that transfer surplus equipment to local
law enforcement and provide anti-crime grants under post 9/11
calculations.
The result, said speakers at a hearing of the Senate Homeland
Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, could be legislation to
more closely monitor the types of weapons the government gives away
while improving training in police sensitivities to the intimidating
effect of heavy weaponry in local communities.
“Since 1997, federal agencies have supplied over $5 billion in
surplus Department of Defense supplies and equipment to law
enforcement,” noted Chairman Tom Carper, D-Del. , adding that the
Justice and Homeland Security departments both administer
multi-million-dollar grant programs that also can pay for military-style
gear such as armored vests and vehicles. “We have responsibility to
ensure accountability of funds and equipment provided by the federal
government to state and local police. It is our job to ensure that these
programs provide value to police, the communities they serve and the
taxpayer.”
Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., fresh from frequent visits to the
troubled town of Ferguson, said, “I saw first-hand how aggressive
tactics used in the name of crowd control, like a sniper pointing a
rifle at an unarmed protester, are not consistent with our First
Amendment rights. He did not deserve to be treated like an enemy
combatant.”
Acknowledging the simultaneous need to protect uniformed law
enforcement officials, McCaskill said the legislation she is considering
must improve management of the 1033 program, set up by Congress in the
early 1990s to allow local communities to take advantage of Defense
Department surplus furniture, microwaves and vehicles, as well as
pistols, rifles and armor.
Also commonly transferred to states and communities are the 14-ton-plus Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP)
armored vehicles, which, McCaskill said, in states such as Texas and
Florida are more common in city governments than in the National Guard.
“Any vehicle, even if painted black and used with discretion, can be
intimidating and may be asking for militarization,” she said. In
addition, as much as 36 percent of what the Pentagon gives away is
“brand new,” she thundered.
“What you gave away this year I guarantee
you bought this year—it drives me crazy.”
McCaskill also complained that DHS and Justice do not track the
anti-crime grant money closely enough, and provide insufficient training
in use of the federal equipment.
Witnesses from the agencies agreed that oversight could be improved
and said they were working closely with a White House unit exploring
what went wrong in Ferguson. Alan Estevez, principal deputy undersecretary of Defense for
acquisition, technology and logistics, defended the existence of a
surplus.
“As the force structure changes, as the budget changes under
the Budget Control Act, things we thought we’d need we no longer need,”
he said.
The Defense Department “does not have the expertise” to train or
determine how local police departments select and use the surplus
equipment, he testified. He told the lawmakers his job is to provide
“good stewardship for the taxpayer dollar” in forwarding the materials
to 8,000 local agencies in 49 states and territories. About 96 percent
of the goods are “non-controlled,” he said, meaning the localities can
use them as they see fit, but the remaining 4 percent are “controlled”
weapons, including night-vision goggles and Humvees, for which the
Defense Department retains title for accountability.
But Estevez agreed that the Pentagon’s consultation with Justice on the 1033 program’s risks “is currently lacking.”
Brian Kamoie, assistant administrator for grant programs at the
Federal Emergency Management Agency, said all spending is monitored by
inspectors general and state auditors, and that resources are allocated
according to crime and terrorism “risk profiles” created by intelligence
staffs, which prompted the Homeland Security secretary to designate 39
highest-risk communities this year. “We work closely with states and
tribes on oversight,” he said, citing the response to last year’s Boston
Marathon bombing as an example of effective “planning, equipment,
training and exercises” by DHS and other law enforcement components.
Karol Mason, assistant attorney in Justice’s Office of Justice
Programs, said her agency’s Justice Assistance Grants based on formulas
factoring in population and violent crime frequency “improve
effectiveness and efficiency of the justice system.” There are quarterly
and annual reports to assure against misuse, she said, and the
department conducts a police public contact survey to gauge police
interaction with citizens to provide data on excessive use of force. “We
continue to bring the latest knowledge and best tool to this problem,”
she said.
Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., the panel’s ranking member, asked why
localities need MRAPs and who decides if delivery is appropriate. He
also challenged the FEMA officials’ claim that federal funds were key to
capturing the surviving Boston bomber, “who was found when a guy
spotted him in his backyard boat and called 911,” Coburn said.
Kamoie disagreed, pointing to infrared vision equipment that played a role. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., said he was puzzled that 12,000 bayonets are
among the items available to states for free from DoD, and noted that
such equipment is explicitly “not supposed to be used for riot
suppression.” The FEMA official agreed, saying his agency, once it
learns the final facts on what federal weapons were present in Ferguson,
will take corrective action.
The reason the program has gone on, said Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., is
that “local police departments get things for free from federal
government, where the saying is, ‘use it or lose it.’ ”
BLOGGER'S NOTE : I cannot believe that I am agreeing with the likes of Senator Tom Coburn - from Oklahoma. Grandma Margaret was wrong, some days there is something new under the sun.