	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. Some examples of security activities  include conducting waterborne security patrols, boarding high-interest  vessels, escorting vessels into ports, and enforcing fixed security zones. 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 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. The report, expected later this year, will cover,  among other things, the extent to which the Coast Guard has met its  inspection requirements and found facilities to be in compliance with its  security plans, the sufficiency of trained inspectors and guidance to  conduct facility inspections, and aspects of the Coast Guard’s overall  management of its MTSA facility oversight program, particularly  documenting compliance activities. 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. DNDO Faces Challenges Testing Radiation Detection Equipment

DHS also has container security programs to develop and test equipment  to scan containers for radiation. 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. Furthermore, many U.S. and  international customs officials we have spoken to, including officials  from the World Customs Organization, have stated that the 100 percent  scanning requirement is contrary to the SAFE Framework developed  and implemented by the international customs community, including  CBP. However, the SAFE Port Act specifies that scanning  equipment outputs from SFI will be available for review by U.S.  government officials either at the foreign seaport or in the United  States. Maritime Security: The SAFE Port Act and Efforts to Secure Our  Nation’s Seaports. Homeland Security: Preliminary Information on Federal Actions to  Address Challenges Faced by State and Local Information Fusion  Centers. 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 Administration, 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 determine compliance with their plans, and developing special identification cards for workers to help 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 Administration missed the act's 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 scan 100 percent of all incoming containers overseas--a departure from its existing risk-based programs.