December 18, 2008

At the request of members of Congress, LEIU General Chairman Russ Porter testified on two occasions in 2008 at Congressional hearings which examined homeland security, criminal intelligence, and fusion centers.

The first hearing, titled “Focus on Fusion Centers: A Progress Report,” was held on April 17, 2008, before the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, Ad Hoc Subcommittee on State, Local, and Private Sector Preparedness and Integration, chaired by Senator Mark Pryor. The testimony delivered by General Chairman Porter’s during this appearance can be found by visiting http://hsgac.senate.gov/public/_files/PorterTestimony.pdf

The second appearance, titled “A Report Card on Homeland Security Information Sharing,” was held on September 24, 2008, before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Homeland Security, Subcommittee on Intelligence, Information Sharing and Terrorism Risk Assessment, chaired by Representative Jane Harman. General Chairman Porter’s testimony is available at http://homeland.house.gov/SiteDocuments/20080924102051-40953.pdf.

In preparation of his testimony on both occasions, General Chairman Porter sought input from LEIU member agencies to ensure that their views would be given consideration by policymakers in Washington.