Security & Safety Briefs - April 14 - 20

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The Latest Headlines:

• President Bush Wants Review of New Border Rules
• Airport Screening Needs Improvement, DHS Says
• Schwarzenegger Urges Tighter Border Enforcement

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President Bush Wants Review of New Border Rules

President Bush said Thursday he had ordered a review of U.S. government plans to require passports at Canadian and Mexican border crossings.

“If people have to have a passport, it's going to disrupt honest flow of traffic. I think there's some flexibility in the law,” he said, according to a transcript of the session posted on the White House Web site.

The rules were released jointly by the State and Homeland Security departments in early April.

At the time, DHS said it anticipated that cards used by frequent travelers — including the FAST, or Free and Secure Trade, cards used by many truckers — would be acceptable for land-border crossings. (Click here for previous coverage.)

Meanwhile the Bridge & Tunnel Operators Association, which represents workers at major U.S.-Canadian border crossings, said it opposed the rules. Transport Topics

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Airport Screening Needs Improvement, DHS Says

The Department of Homeland Security’s inspector general found that that airport screeners employed by private companies do a better job detecting dangerous objects than TSA’s screeners and that screeners' performance had not improved since 9/11, Bloomberg reported.

The DHS report released Tuesday said that airport security is not improving and may need new technology, Bloomberg said. The head of a House committee said he will push to replace government screeners with private workers, Bloomberg reported.

Hundreds of tests at 15 airports between Nov. 29 and Feb. 4 found no improvement from examinations done in 2003, the report said. Details were classified airports tested were not disclosed.

TSA also allowed excessive spending on some projects, the IG said. Agency director David Stone had said April 8 that he is resigning, effective in June. Transport Topics

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Schwarzenegger Urges Tighter Border Enforcement

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) wants better security at U.S. borders, the Los Angeles Times reported Wednesday.

The governor, speaking at a newspaper convention, described said border security as “lax” and urged more enforcement measures, the paper reported.

Although he said in his talk that borders should be closed, an aide told reporters after his talk that he meant they should be better patrolled and monitored, the Times said. Transport Topics

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