NCJ Number
189541
Date Published
April 1998
Length
42 pages
Annotation
This document assesses the status and progress of the Nunn-Lugar-Domenici (NLD) domestic preparedness program.
Abstract
The NLD program is in the early stages of implementation, and most cities have not yet received training, assistance, or equipment. Threat and risk assessments are widely recognized as effective decision support tools for prioritizing security investments and several public and private sector organizations use them. If properly applied, threat and risk assessments can provide an analytically sound basis for building programmatic responses to various identified threats, including terrorism. Although threat and risk assessments are not required in the NLD program, they could help cities prioritize their investments in WMD preparedness. The first challenge identified to applying an accepted threat and risk assessment process to cities selected to participate in the NLD program is security issues related to providing valid threat data from the intelligence community to city officials. The second is the lack of specificity in the intelligence community’s threat information. And the third is the complexity and magnitude of a large city as a subject of a threat and risk assessment. These challenges could be overcome through Federal-city collaboration. While other Federal agencies, such as the Department of Defense, the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Environmental Protection Agency, would be important players on a Federal-city risk assessment team, the Federal Bureau of Investigation is in the best position to lead and facilitate risk assessments. 2 figures, 2 tables, 10 footnotes, and 6 appendices