	Prior Actions Have Improved Port Security, but Issues Remain

Port security overall has improved because of the development of  organizations and programs such as AMSCs, Area Maritime Security Plans  (AMSPs), maritime security exercises, and the International Port Security  Program, but challenges to successful implementation of these efforts  remain. Area Maritime Security Committees Share Information and Coast Guard Plans to Expand Interagency Operational Centers

Two main types of forums have developed for agencies to coordinate and  share information about port security: area committees and Coast Guard  sector command centers. The SAFE Port Act included several new requirements related to security  exercises, such as establishing a Port Security Exercise Program to test  and evaluate the capabilities of governments and port stakeholders to  prevent, prepare for, mitigate against, respond to, and recover from acts of  terrorism, natural disasters, and other emergencies at facilities that MTSA  regulates. The Coast Guard Is Evaluating the Security of Foreign Ports, but Faces Resource Challenges

The security of domestic ports also depends upon security at foreign ports  where cargoes bound for the United States originate. The report, expected to be issued in  early 2008, will cover issues related to the program, such as the extent to  which the program is using a risk-based approach in carrying out its work,  what challenges the program faces as it moves forward, and the extent to  which the observations collected during the country visits are used by  other programs such as the Coast Guard’s port state control inspections  and high interest vessel boarding programs. Port Facility Security Efforts Continue, but Additional Evaluation is Needed

To improve the security at individual facilities at ports, many long-standing  programs are underway. The Coast Guard is required to conduct  assessments of security plans and facility compliance inspections, but  faces challenges in staffing and training to meet the SAFE Port Act’s  additional requirements such as the sufficiency of trained personnel and  guidance to conduct facility inspections. We currently have ongoing work  that reviews the Coast Guard’s oversight strategy under MTSA and SAFE  Port Act requirements. In this memo, DHS indicated  that (1) programs requiring the collection and use of fingerprints to vet  individuals will use the Automated Biometric Identification System  (IDENT); (2) these programs are to reuse existing or currently planned  and funded infrastructure for the intake of identity information to the  greatest extent possible; (3) its CIO is to establish a procurement plan to  ensure that the department can handle a large volume of automated  vetting from programs currently in the planning phase; and (4) to support  the sharing of databases and potential consolidation of duplicative  applications, the Enterprise Data Management Office is currently  developing an inventory of biographic data assets that DHS maintains to  support identity management and screening processes. DOE Continues to Expand Its Megaports Program

The Megaports Initiative, initiated by DOE’s National Nuclear Security  Administration in 2003, represents another component in the efforts to  prevent terrorists from smuggling WMD in cargo containers from overseas  locations. According to CBP, containers  from these ports will be scanned for radiation and other risk factors  before they are allowed to depart for the United States. These reciprocal agreements also allow foreign  governments the opportunity to place customs officials at U.S. seaports  and request inspection of cargo containers departing from the United  States and bound for their home country. Many  ports may lack the space necessary to install additional equipment  needed to comply with the requirement to scan 100 percent of U.S.  bound containers. Homeland Security: Management and Programmatic Challenges Facing  the Department of Homeland Security. Maritime Security: Observations on Selected Aspects of the SAFE Port  Act. Customs Revenue: Customs and Border Protection Needs to Improve  Workforce Planning and Accountability. Transportation Security: DHS Should Address Key Challenges before  Implementing the Transportation Worker Identification Credential  Program.
Why GAO Did This Study

Because the safety and economic security of the United States depend in substantial part on the security of its 361 seaports, the United States has a vital national interest in maritime security. The Security and Accountability for Every Port Act (SAFE Port Act), modified existing legislation and created and codified new programs related to maritime security. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and its U.S. Coast Guard, Transportation Security Agency, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection have key maritime security responsibilities. This testimony synthesizes the results of GAO's completed work and preliminary observations from GAO's ongoing work related to the SAFE Port Act pertaining to (1) overall port security, (2) security at individual facilities, and (3) cargo container security. To perform this work GAO visited domestic and overseas ports; reviewed agency program documents, port security plans, and post-exercise reports; and interviewed officials from the federal, state, local, private, and international sectors.

What GAO Found

Federal agencies have improved overall port security efforts by establishing committees to share information with local port stakeholders, taking steps to establish interagency operations centers to monitor port activities, conducting operations such as harbor patrols and vessel escorts, writing port-level plans to prevent and respond to terrorist attacks, testing such plans through exercises, and assessing the security at foreign ports. However, these agencies face resource constraints and other challenges trying to meet the SAFE Port Act's requirements to expand these activities. For example, the Coast Guard faces budget constraints in trying to expand its current command centers and include other agencies at the centers. Similarly, private facilities and federal agencies have taken action to improve security at about 3,000 individual facilities by writing facility-specific security plans, inspecting facilities to ensure they are complying with their plans, and developing special identification cards for workers to prevent terrorists from getting access to secure areas. Federal agencies face challenges trying to meet the act's requirements to expand the scope or speed the implementation of such activities. For example, the Transportation Security Agency missed the act's July 2007 deadline to implement the identification card program at 10 selected ports because of delays in testing equipment and procedures. Federal programs related to the security of cargo containers have also improved as agencies are enhancing systems to identify high-risk cargo, expanding partnerships with other countries to screen containers before they depart for the United States, and working with international organizations to develop a global framework for container security. Federal agencies face challenges implementing container security aspects of the SAFE Port Act and other legislation. For example, Customs and Border Protection must test and implement a new program to screen 100 percent of all incoming containers overseas--a departure from its existing risk-based programs.