(2) Funded andoverseen by DHS, the program has three main elements each coordinated by different agencies,sampling, analysis, and response. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) maintains thesampling component, the sensors that collect airborne particles. The Centers for Disease Controland Prevention (CDC) coordinates analysis, the laboratory testing of the samples, though testing isactually carried out in state and local public health laboratories. Local jurisdictions are responsiblefor the public health response to positive findings. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) isdesignated as the lead agency for the law enforcement response if a bioterrorism event is detected.The installation of the sensor network is ongoing, with over 30 cities chosen as locations for thesesensors. A fundamental question to be asked of the BioWatch Program is whether it is an appropriatefederal response to the threat of bioterrorism. These issues mayraise questions about the role that the Department of Homeland Security plays with respect to thepublic health infrastructure, aspects of federal and state communication and coordination, and therole of the federal and state governments in protecting the populace against biological attack. The function of the BioWatch Program is to detect the release of pathogens into the air,providing warning to the government and public health community of a potential bioterror event. Airborne particles passing through the system arecaptured on a filter. This section presents some of these concerns, including overallstrategy, sensor siting, detector performance, and public health response. Strategic Issues

Countering the threat of terrorist use of weapons of mass destruction against civilians hastaken on new priority since the anthrax mailings of 2001. In theory, the BioWatch program might have this effect, withpotential bioterrorists knowing that cities have early warning capability due to the BioWatchprogram being deterred from using biological weapons. (65) 
Research and development efforts on other detection systems continue. Unlike previous investments in public health preparedness, the BioWatch Program maynot have dual-use application, being predominantly applicable only as an anti-bioterrorism program. Another area of potential interest to Congress may be the method DHS used to prioritizedevelopment and deployment of national monitoring systems. The Act allows this institute, following a determination by the Secretary of Homeland Security, totake on the duties of "evaluation of the effectiveness of measures deployed to enhance the securityof institutions, facilities, and infrastructure that may be terrorist targets," "assistance for Federalagencies and departments in establishing testbeds to evaluate the effectiveness of technologies underdevelopment and to assess the appropriateness of such technologies for deployment," and "designof metrics and use of those metrics to evaluate the effectiveness of homeland security programsthroughout the Federal Government, including all national laboratories." (88) Whether this focus shouldcontinue, the funding levels for the BioWatch Program, and how high a priority this specificdetection system should be for DHS are areas where Congress may exercise its oversight role. (92) 

		Clarifying Roles and Responsibilities

The BioWatch Program is a federal program, while first responders and some immediatedecision makers are state and local officials.
The anthrax mailings of 2001 increased public and governmental awareness of the threat ofterrorism using biological weapons. The federal response to this threat includes increases incountermeasure research funding, greater investment in public health infrastructure, and greaterpreparation of first responders who might be the first to encounter such weapons in an event. Thenew Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has made preparation against biological weaponattack a priority and deployed the BioWatch Program to provide early warning of a mass pathogenrelease.
The BioWatch Program uses a series of pathogen detectors co-located with EnvironmentalProtection Agency air quality monitors. These detectors collect airborne particles onto filters, whichare subsequently transported to laboratories for analysis. It is expected that this system will provideearly warning of a pathogen release, alerting authorities before victims begin to show symptoms andproviding the opportunity to deliver treatments earlier, decreasing illness and death.
The BioWatch Program, funded and overseen by DHS, has three main elements eachcoordinated by different agencies, sampling, analysis, and response. The Environmental ProtectionAgency (EPA) maintains the sampling component, the sensors that collect airborne particles. TheCenters for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) coordinates analysis, the laboratory testing of thesamples, though testing is actually carried out in state and local public health laboratories. Localjurisdictions are responsible for the public health response to positive findings. The Federal Bureauof Investigation (FBI) is designated as the lead agency for the law enforcement response if abioterrorism event is detected. The BioWatch Program has raised concerns in some quarters, withquestions about its general effectiveness, the siting of pathogen detectors, the reliability of its results,its cost and workforce requirements, and the ability of public health officials to respond to BioWatchresults. Efforts to develop integrated response plans, lower the system cost, and developcomplementary and next-generation systems continue.
Some aspects of the BioWatch Program may be of particular interest to policymakers. Forexample, Congress may be interested in whether these types of detection systems can substitute foror supplement other mechanisms in protecting the general populace; whether this detection systemwas implemented optimally; how the success of this system is to be evaluated; whether theimplementation, operational, and expansion costs for the BioWatch Program make it a cost-effectivefederal investment; and how to optimize and streamline performance in the future. Since theBioWatch Program is a federal program implemented using state infrastructure, Congress may wishto examine how this new program coordinates with already existing public health andcounterterrorism programs, as well as consider the roles and responsibilities of the federalgovernment and coordination with state governments in an actual bioterrorism event.