Emergency Preparedness and Response. We have the capability to assist local responders and lead federal agencies in their response to a bioterrorism incident. Although biohazard investigative expertise exists in most local and state health departments and in the Federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, these resources may become overwhelmed in emergency circumstances. When directed by the President or Secretary of Defense, we will provide bioterrorism experts to a lead federal agency to help prevent or contain a situation. Likewise, we are ready to provide field medical units, as well as logistics, transportation and security capabilities to assist federal, state and local agencies, as required. USNORTHCOM'S CHALLENGES Our Intelligence. Homeland defense relies on the sharing of actionable intelligence among the appropriate federal, state, and local agencies. Combined Intelligence and Fusion Center collates and analyzes data from the United States Intelligence Community and nearly 50 different government agencies. One of our greatest challenges lies in sifting through the volumes of intelligence and operational data from these sources. Our goal is to help connect the dots to create a clear threat picture, playing our appropriate military role as part of the interagency team. Another shared challenge is to overcome cultural and procedural differences among the DOD and other Departments for information that is collected, categorized, classified, analyzed and disseminated. Homeland Command, Control and Communications. We need to be able to command and control forces and to coordinate planning and operations with agencies at the federal, state and local levels. Interoperable communication architectures and trusted information exchange environments provide the framework for coordinated operations. We have ongoing efforts with our homeland defense and civil support partners to upgrade existing architectures and to better integrate our information collection and exchange capabilities. Ballistic Missile Defense. We are working with the Missile Defense Agency, United States Strategic Command and other combatant commands to develop the Concept of Operations that will ensure the United States has an effective missile defense capability by the fall of 2004. Posse Comitatus. We will remain vigilant in ensuring that USNORTHCOM is used in accordance with the laws of our great Nation-respecting the rights and liberties of every American. We understand the Posse Comitatus Act and related laws and the clear limits placed on military support to civil law We believe the Act, as amended, provides the authority we need enforcement. to do our job, and no modification is needed at this time. USNORTHCOM'S RELATIONSHIPS We Our Command is built upon a total force and total national team concept that includes members from all five Services, the National Guard, the Reserves, DoD Civilians and numerous federal, state, and local agencies. believe we are redefining "jointness" by forming new partnerships within the DoD and with numerous civilian agencies, as well as strengthening existing ones. Developing these strong relationships is key to our success. Department of Homeland Security. The Secretary of Defense will coordinate with the Secretary of Homeland Security on policy and resource issues. In accordance with decisions by the Secretary of Defense, we will work with various sectors of the Department of Homeland Security on operational planning, training and execution. As We have Assistant Secretary of Defense for Homeland Defense (ASD (HD)). frequent interaction with Paul McHale on a broad range of issues. ASD (HD), his principal duty is the overall supervision of the homeland defense activities of the DOD. Other Combatant Commands. We have established a conceptual framework with Admiral Jim Ellis, Commander, United States Strategic Command; Admiral Ed Giambastiani, Commander, United States Joint Forces Command; and General Charlie Holland, Commander, United States Special Operations Command to secure the homeland. We are also working closely with the regional combatant commanders to eliminate threats to our homeland from afar. Our focus is to address gaps in coverage and any overlapping responsibilities to ensure that we provide an integrated defense for our citizens at home and abroad. National Guard. We have a close relationship with the National Guard Bureau, which is enhanced even more by having Major General Steve Blum, an Army National Guardsman, as our Chief of Staff. We believe that no force is better suited to help deter, prevent, and defeat many of the threats we face than today's National Guard. Through the National Guard Bureau, USNORTHCOM coordinates with state headquarters for planning purposes and maintains situational awareness of National Guard actions and commitments. To support our missions of homeland defense and military assistance to civil authorities, we are looking at the feasibility of evolving the current mobilization process into something closer to the current air defense model used by the Air National Guard in support of NORAD's mission. Specifically, Air National Guard fighter units of 1st Air Force have been successfully employing instantaneous Title 10 USC orders for several years. These orders allow an individual to volunteer, with consent of the Governor, to be federalized for specific missions prior to execution. achieve a higher level of readiness if we apply the air defense mobilization model to the existing National Guard response forces, when needed in a federal capacity. We believe we can Coast Guard. Maritime Defense missions involve traditional military activities such as combat air patrols and naval operations within our area of responsibility. In these cases, we would take the lead and the Coast Guard would likely be called upon for support. It is important to note that the Coast Guard does not report to USNORTHCOM, although we do have several Coast Guardsmen on our staff, including Rear Admiral Jim Van Sice, who serves as our Deputy Director of Operations. The Coast Guard is in the Department of Homeland Security, and any requests for Coast Guard assistance to DoD would come from the Secretary of Defense to the Secretary of Homeland Security. By contrast, the Coast Guard would be the lead federal agency for maritime homeland security. When directed, we would support Coast Guard homeland security missions through our naval component commander. This support might include maritime air surveillance, the use of naval surface combatants with Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachments onboard, or the use of specialized DOD capabilities. Interagency. We are leveraging the unique capabilities and expertise of federal, state and local agencies to protect our homeland. Our Joint Interagency Coordination Group is working to help synchronize interagency plans, exercises and operations. In addition, we have a growing number of liaison officers in our headquarters staff at Peterson AFB, to include the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Central Intelligence Agency, Federal Emergency Management Agency, and the National Imagery and Mapping Administration. POTENTIAL FUTURE CAPABILITIES AND MISSIONS FOR NORAD AND USNORTHCOM We continue to address critical command and control challenges highlighted by the terrorist attacks on our homeland. We are committed to improving our situational awareness by developing a common operating picture for the air, land and maritime domains. We are Combatant Commanders' Integrated Command and Control System. pursuing ways to leverage the Combatant Commanders' Integrated Command and Control System to modernize our aging 60's era air and missile warning systems and infrastructure. This will allow us to migrate to our nextgeneration Battle Control System and provide the foundation for a fully integrated NORAD-USNORTHCOM command and control capability. Battle Control System. The upgraded Battle Control System will provide connectivity with a wide array of radars and sensors across North America, thereby giving our homeland a more integrated air defense capability. As future increments are fielded, we will be able to process air defense data faster, as well as improve our battlespace awareness. High Altitude Airship (HAA) Advanced Concept Technology Demonstration. The Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Missile Defense Agency, the United States Army and NORAD are spearheading the effort to demonstrate the technical feasibility of an unmanned, untethered, long-duration HAA. The prototype airship will stay airborne for one month and carry a 4,000-pound payload. We expect the objective HAA to have the capability to stay airborne for up to a year and carry a payload greater than 4,000 pounds. A robust HAA capability would give warfighters persistent wide-area surveillance of the battlespace against a full spectrum of air, land and sea threats. Demonstration. Homeland Security Command and Control Advanced Concept Technology USNORTHCOM is sponsoring this Advanced Concept Technology Demonstration to provide the DOD Homeland Security community with operationally relevant command and control capabilities. This initiative will help us rapidly insert mission-enhancing technologies and promote information sharing, collaboration and decision-making in a trusted information exchange environment. CONCLUSION We are grateful for everything the members of this committee have done to ensure our ability to defend our homeland. The National Defense Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2003 reflects your commitment to our mission, as well as to our servicemen and women, and we appreciate your continued support. With your help, our Nation will be safer tomorrow than it is today. I am honored to appear before you, and look forward to your questions. |