ALLENTOWN, Pa. (AP) -- Federal funding for homeland security in Pennsylvania topped $110 million this year, about 100 times the amount dedicated to similar efforts five years ago.
In 1999, Pennsylvania received $1.1 million for public safety equipment under an anti-terrorism law signed in 1996. Those funds jumped to $9.1 million in 2002; in 2003, the federal government spent nearly $70 million for homeland security in Pennsylvania.
This year, the total reached $110.3 million. The money has allowed counties to stock up on protective ``moon suits,'' radios, chemical detection equipment, portable decontamination showers, computers and bomb-defusing robots.
The increased funding is welcomed in Monroe County. Officials there are especially alert to the possibility of a terrorist attack because many of its residents work in New York City, where the Republican National Convention is being held next month.
People fleeing an attack on the city could be unknowingly contaminated by chemical or biological agents, Monroe County officials worry.
``They'll be getting back on buses and car pools not knowing if they are infected,'' said Harry Robidoux, head of the Northeast Anti-Terrorism Task Force. ``We become the second victim, in essence.''
In many cases, homeland security task forces have filled holes in county emergency management agencies. Lehigh County, for example, received firewall software for its 911 system through the Northeast task force.
The most expensive item purchased by the task force is a mobile command vehicle that cost more than $280,000. The vehicle, which is expected to be ready for delivery in the fall, will have radio dispatching facilities, satellite communications, remote-controlled cameras, a kitchen, a bathroom and conference facilities.
The benefit of the task force system is that it provides gear that would otherwise be unaffordable to individual counties, said Bob Flanagan, coordinator of Lackawanna County's Emergency Services Department.
Before the Sept. 11 attacks, emergency managers operated with Cold War-era plans and equipment that was sometimes even older.
``Now everybody is looking to see if their project is terrorism-related,'' said John D. Dougherty, director of Bucks County emergency services and head of one of the nine Pennsylvania task forces. ``Now I know what it feels like to win the lottery.''
Under purchasing regulations from Harrisburg, local homeland security agencies do not get direct cash grants, nor can they use the money however they see fit. Instead, the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency divides the funds among the task forces and state purchasing agents buy the items requested by task forces.
``When we are with the auditors, we tell them, 'Whatever you do, don't get rid of the guidelines, no matter how much pressure you get,''' Dougherty said.
Information from: The Morning Call
