HOUSTON, March 31, 2005 (PRIMEZONE) -- During a meeting today at the Port of Houston Authority (PHA), U.S. Senator John Cornyn and U.S. Congressman Michael McCaul committed to support legislation aimed at increasing funding for port security. They were joined by PHA Chairman Jim Edmonds, U.S. Attorney Mike Shelby, U.S. Coast Guard Captain Richard M. Kaser, Harris County Judge Robert Eckels, and executives from PHA and the ports of Galveston, Freeport and Texas City.
A photo accompanying this release can be found at: http://media.primezone.com/poha/pages/business.html
Cornyn is preparing to introduce legislation that is expected to: (1) require the Department of Homeland Security to allocate grants based on risk; (2) require funding to meet "essential capabilities" by reducing vulnerability to attack and diminishing the consequences by effective response; (3) require states to quickly pass on federal funds to where they are needed; and (4) address the "small state minimum" issue.
"I applaud the efforts of Senator Cornyn to refine the funding process to make sure that resources are allocated to the ports where the risk is the greatest," stated PHA Chairman Edmonds. "It is the best way to get the job done and benefit the citizens who depend on our nation's key ports."
Protecting America's ports is critical to U.S. economic growth and vitality. Ports handle 95 percent of overseas cargo, enable the deployment of our military, and serve as departure points for millions of cruise passengers. The U.S. Coast Guard estimates that a one-month closure of a major port such as Houston would cost the national economy $60 billion. Additionally, Houston's port is home to one of the world's largest petrochemical complexes. The industry along the Houston Ship Channel is valued at more than $15 billion and is essential to the nation's energy needs.
"It's important that Homeland Security dollars be allocated on the basis of a risk assessment," Sen. Cornyn said. "Taxpayer dollars should be directed where they can do the most good -- to best protect locations -- such as the Port of Houston, that are under the most risk, and if attacked, would have the most detrimental effect on our economy and our nation."
U.S. Congressman McCaul said, "It is time that the port receive federal funding equal to the importance of Houston. I am currently working with my colleagues in the house to pass an initiative for risk-based funding that will help make the Port of Houston more secure."
Harris County Judge Robert Eckels stated, "Cooperation at the local, state and federal levels is essential to protect not only the port, but the area that surrounds it. I commend Senator Cornyn's efforts to provide the resources needed to protect this vital center of our economy."
The U.S. Coast Guard has estimated that ports will have to spend $5.4 billion over ten years to meet newly mandated security enhancements. That is on top of the more than $3 billion that ports already spend annually on infrastructure improvements and operations, maintenance and personnel expenses just to keep pace with burgeoning world trade.
Houston competes against other ports and also private terminals for security grants from the Department of Homeland Security. To date, the PHA has been awarded a total of $16.7 million dollars in federal port security grants.
Since 2002, more than a half a billion dollars in federal funds have been allocated in the first four rounds of the port security grant program. This accounted for approximately one-sixth of what seaports have identified as necessary. A fifth round of grants totaling $150 million dollars is pending.
The Port of Houston Authority owns and operates the public facilities located along the Port of Houston, the 25-mile long complex of diversified public and private facilities designed for handling general cargo, containers, grain and other dry bulk materials, project and heavy lift cargo, and other types of cargo. Each year, more than 6,600 vessels call at the port, which ranks first in the U.S. in foreign waterborne tonnage, second in overall total tonnage, and sixth largest in the world. The Port Authority plays a vital role in ensuring navigational safety along the Houston Ship Channel, which has been instrumental in Houston's development as a center of international trade. The Barbours Cut Container Terminal and Central Maintenance Facility are the first of any U.S. port facilities to develop and implement an innovative Environmental Management System that meets the rigorous standards of ISO 14001. Additionally, the port is an approved delivery point for Coffee "C" futures contracts traded on the New York Board of Trade's Coffee, Sugar & Cocoa Exchange. For more information, please visit www.portofhouston.com
The PHA has a website photo gallery featuring images of port commissioners, executives, facilities, business activities, community outreach events and activities, environmental projects, and logos. Users can download the gallery's high-resolution images at no charge after registering as a member. The port website's simple online member registration procedure requires users to submit their name, company, telephone number, and e-mail address, personal password, and description of the intended use of the downloaded images.
To access the photo gallery, please visit http://www.portofhouston.com/publicrelations/publicrelations.html and click the link for PHA Photo Gallery.
The Port of Houston Authority logo can be found at: http://media.primezone.com/prs/single/?pkgid=720
