Sponsors (3)
The bill strengthens targeting, accountability, and congressional oversight of STC resources to improve preparedness, but risks leaving less-prepared communities behind and creating administrative burdens or perverse incentives if metrics are poorly designed.
Local and state governments will get clearer, capability-based criteria for STC designation, so assistance can be more effectively targeted to better-prepared jurisdictions.
Taxpayers and local governments will benefit from stronger program accountability because the Secretary must use performance metrics and milestones to monitor STC spending and outcomes.
Congressional oversight committees will receive a mandated report within two years on participation, metrics, performance, and proposed changes, increasing transparency and enabling legislative review.
Residents and local institutions in lower-prepared jurisdictions (including vulnerable communities) could receive less STC support because capability-based criteria may deprioritize them.
The Secretary, state and local partners, and taxpayers may face increased administrative burdens from new metric-setting and monitoring requirements, which could slow program delivery or divert funds to reporting.
Hospitals, health systems, and local governments could see worse preparedness outcomes if poorly designed metrics incentivize meeting measurable targets rather than achieving real readiness.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Amends the Securing the Cities program to change designation criteria, require performance metrics and monitoring, and mandate a two-year report to congressional homeland security committees.
Amends the Securing the Cities (STC) program to change how jurisdictions are designated, require the Secretary to set performance metrics and milestones, monitor expenditures and program performance, and report to congressional homeland security committees within two years on participation and performance. The bill ties STC eligibility to jurisdictions designated for preparedness and response capability and to assessments of threat, vulnerability, and consequence, replacing prior "high-risk urban area" language.
Official title: To amend the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to make improvements to the Securing the Cities program, and for other purposes.
Introduced February 14, 2025 by Troy Carter · Last progress March 11, 2025