Congressional shift means Homeland subcommittee changes

A change in the guard in Congress has prompted an overhaul of the U.S. House of Representatives’ Homeland security subcommittees.

The House Homeland Security Committee has formed the following subcommittees in the 110th Congress:

* Subcommittee on Border, Maritime and Global Counterterrorism: Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D-CA), chair; Rep. Mark Souder (R-IN), ranking member

* Subcommittee on Emergency Communications, Preparedness, and Response: Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-TX), chair; Rep. Charlie Dent (R-PA), ranking member;

* Subcommittee on Transportation Security and Infrastructure Protection: Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-TX), chair; Rep. Dan Lungren (R-CA), ranking member;

* Subcommittee on Intelligence, Information Sharing and Terrorism Risk Assessment: Rep. Jane Harman (D-CA), chair; Rep. Dave Reichert (R-WA), ranking member;

* Subcommittee on Emerging Threats, Cybersecurity, and Science and Technology: Rep. James R. Langevin (D-RI), chair; Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX), ranking member;

* Subcommittee on Management, Investigations, and Oversight: Rep. Christopher P. Carney (D-PA), chair; Rep. Mike D. Rogers (R-AL), ranking member;

The new structure is a major reorganization. Most of the former subcommittees have been merged, and two (the subcommittee on Prevention of Nuclear and Biological Attacks and the subcommittee on Economic Security) were eliminated altogether. The Subcommittee on Intelligence, Information Sharing and Terrorism Risk Assessment was the only subcommittee unaffected by the reorganization, reports Carrie Madison of the ANSER Institute for Homeland Security.

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff has also appointed five new members to the Homeland Security Advisory Council (HSAC) and its senior advisory committees.

The Homeland Security Advisory Council is the Secretary’s primary council and is comprised of experts from state and local governments, first preventer and responder communities, academia and the private sector, and provides advice and recommendations to Chertoff on Homeland security issues.

New members of the Homeland Security Advisory Committee are:

* Judge Louis Freeh, former Director of the FBI (1993-2001) and currently President of The Freeh Group; and

* Robert L. Woodson, Sr., president of the Center for Neighborhood Enterprise, which he founded in 1981.

Chertoff has also appointed Joe Zarelli (R-WA) as a new member of HSAC’s State and Local Officials Senior Advisory Committee.

Jean Spence, executive vice president of global technology and quality for Kraft Foods Inc., has been named a new member of HSAC’s Private Sector Senior Advisory Committee; and Dan Corsentino, former Sheriff of Pueblo County, Colo., has been named a new member of HSAC’s Emergency Responders Senior Advisory Committee.