N.Y., D.C. shortchanged on terror funding?

NEW YORK - Officials in New York and Washington, the two cities targeted in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, were anything but happy after learning that Homeland Security was giving them far fewer counterterrorism dollars this year than in 2005.

New York City will receive $124 million — the largest amount under the Urban Area Security Initiative. But that's just 60 percent of the $208 million given in 2005. The cut comes primarily because the Homeland Security Department determined that New York has no national monuments or icons

“We’re going to continue to do what it takes to keep this city safe and then worry about the money but do I think they should have given us more, I don’t think there’s any question,” New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said at a news conference after the grants were announced Wednesday. “When you stop a terrorist, they have map of New York City in their pocket, they don’t have a map of any of the other 46 places or 45 places,” the Republican mayor added, referring to the total number of cities that share the funds.

New York Gov. George Pataki, a Republican now weighing a bid for the presidency, was also critical. “They are claiming that they are doing more allocations based on threat-based analysis but I don’t think that’s the case.”

Cuts ‘indefensible and disgraceful’
New Yorkers are seething over the news, and some are demanding the firing of Homeland Security chief Michael Chertoff.

Rep. Peter King, a Republican from New York and chairman of the House Committee on Homeland Security, called the cut in funding “indefensible and disgraceful.”

“As far as I’m concerned the Department of Homeland Security and the administration have declared war on New York,” King added. “It’s a knife in the back to New York and I’m going to do everything I can to make them very sorry they made this decision.”

FREE VIDEO New York's loss June 1: New York's terrorism budget has been slashed by 40 percent by the Department of Homeland Security. Here to play Hardball is U.S. Rep. Peter King of New York. Hardball

The Urban Area Security Initiative is meant to help cities and urban areas prepare for and respond to terrorist attacks and other disasters. About $710 million is being allocated to 46 cities in 2006, compared to nearly $830 million last year.

Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., on Thursday said President Bush “should not come back to New York and stand with us” until his administration comes up with more money to keep New York safe.

“This is wrong and unfair, but also outrageous,” Schumer said. “The bottom line is this is abandoning New York.”

In Washington, Homeland Security Undersecretary George Foresman said his agency would review its finding that New York City has no national monuments or icons that would be at risk of terrorist attack.

“We’re going to go back and look at it,” said Foresman, who said that the decision was made partly on attendance figures. A federal worksheet based on a variety of data was used to determine the “icon” status and the funding.

‘Terror? What Terror?’
Chertoff defended the cut on Thursday, while acknowledging that New York City was still at the top of the U.S. threat list. He said the nearly $125 million in grants for New York were in line with the average amounts the city has gotten in the years since Sept. 11. He added that New York has gotten more than $500 million in all, and that is more than twice the total received by the next-highest-risk city, Los Angeles.

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