Lieberman: Increase Federal Grants

Sen. Joe Lieberman is proposing increases in federal grants to state and local first responders, Federal Computer Week reports:

The chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee proposed March 12 to add $3.4 billion in fiscal 2008 above the White House’s budget to bolster first responder programs in the Homeland Security Department.

Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut, an Independent who caucuses with the Democratic party, said he wants to add $479 million for the Urban Area Security Initiative, which provides counterterrorism funding to major cities, which would bring that program's total to $1.2 billion.

Other increases proposed by Lieberman are:

• Another $913 million for the State Homeland Security Grant Program.
• Adding $913 million to the Emergency Management Preparedness Grants program.
• Spending $777 million more for firefighters and $400 million more for interoperable communications.

It's just a proposal, of course, and the devil is in the details. But here's one thing: it appears to start addresssing the concerns in the First Response Coalition's recent report that said federal funding for interoperable communications is falling short. (Also see these two posts.)