| Alabama |
Tests run on anthrax threats and suspicious powders have cost the state Health Department about $110,000 so far, according to estimates released early this month. Gov. Don Siegelman has asked the heads of the Alabama National Guard and the state Emergency Management Agency to coordinate homeland security efforts. |
| Alaska |
Hunters stranded in bush camps may have been among the last to learn about the Sept. 11 attacks, as many waited until the 13th for news and air transport back to civilization. Anthrax hoaxes have taxed public health resources, and a hole shot in the 800-mile trans-Alaska oil pipeline by a local drunk with a gun and highlighted the vulnerability of that critical asset, administration spokesman Bob King said. Gov. Tony Knowles increased security along the pipeline and appointed a task force to study the impact of terrorism upon tourism, air cargo, energy, seafood and other key components of the state's economy. Knowles will seek $40 million from the state legislature and $60 million from the federal government to make new security measures permanent. |
| Arizona |
Border traffic, security at nuclear plants and water works and keeping up with the flood of anthrax calls have kept state officials, troopers and guard units "on highest alert," since Sept. 11, according to Gov. Jane Hull's spokeswoman, Francie Noyes. The state anti-terror task force, a holdover of the Y2K era, has become a centralized, 24-hour operation with a telephone hotline. Hull released $350,000 from her $1 million emergency fund for police overtime and bioterror response equipment, but the state is "nowhere near" a full assessment of anti-terror related costs. |
| Arkansas |
Metal detectors became fixtures at capitol entrances after governors nationwide received a teleconference briefing from federal homeland security director Tom Ridge. The state Department of Emergency Management (DEM) plans to hold at least one meeting in each of the state's 75 counties as part of its Community Activated Leadership Mobilization (CALM) program. Meanwhile, the state continues to deal with anthrax fears. Jim Harris, Gov. Mike Huckabee's liaison to the DEM, says that although powder scares have become "a major drain on the state budget," the state will wait to formally assess costs later. |
| California |
With the state's budget already facing a potential $10-$15 billion hole, Finance Director Tim Gage says increased security costs for the California Highway Patrol climbed as high as $1 million per day during periods of heightened alert, which have occurred several times since Sept. 11. And that was before Gov. Gray Davis' announcement earlier this month that major bridges in the state were thought to be specific targets of a possible attack. Gage says the CHP's anti-terror outlay may reach $50 to $75 million this fiscal year depending on the size and shape of potential future threats, which could hasten requests for additional funds from the legislature. |
| Colorado |
Gov. Bill Owens announced the creation of an anti-terror agency within the Department of Public Safety last week (11/7) with an initial budget request of $1.4 million. DPS Director Sue Mencer says key concerns include maintaining security at the capitol and other vulnerable buildings and ensuring an adequate hardware backup for the state's digital infrastructure. Eight state troopers have been called up for Guard duty, some from the capitol security detail, and tourists at the capitol are now directed to one entrance with a metal detector. Public health resources remain comparatively sheltered from anthrax scares, since state policy requires the FBI to establish a credible criminal or terrorist threat before testing any suspicious substance. |
| Connecticut |
By the time homeland security director Tom Ridge asked governors to put their states on alert for a credible terrorist threat Halloween week, Gov. John G. Rowland said Connecticut had already maxed its defenses, with security high along the coast and at nuclear plants and the state's 10 airports. Capitol security is tightening, but not swiftly enough for Rowland, who has also asked relevant agencies and local counterparts to assess their needs to improve the state's response capabilities in the event of a future attack. The state offered no cost estimate of these measures. | |
| Delaware |
After beefing up security patrols for a few days immediately after the Sept. 11 attacks, state police reworked their patrolling routines in order to avoid permanent staffing increases. Delaware has no commercial airport and Legislative Hall in Dover is normally one of the quietist buildings in the state until lawmakers return in January, so the state's costs have remained limited to lab overtime in responding to white powder calls. The governor's office says it will assess costs later. |
| Florida |
Terrorists-in-training called Florida home, obtained state-issued identification and learned to fly there in the months leading up to Sept. 11. The anthrax scare also began in Florida, where all mail addressed to state buildings is now rerouted to an off-site inspection facility before delivery. Gov. Jeb Bush now works under the protection of an armed guard and last week (11/7) he converted $6.3 million in raises for the state's top-paid employees into funding for Guard presence at seaports. But the $1.3 billion hole in the state's budget proved big enough to crowd most of anti-terrorism recommendations off the agenda when the legislature met for a ten day session at the end of October. Lawmakers did pass $13 million for police training, medical stockpiling and security assessments and gave airports permission to put aviation fuel tax revenues toward security improvements. |
| Georgia |
Georgia Emergency Management Agency spokeswoman Lisa Wright says lessons learned after the bomb scare during the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta served the state well by establishing good communication links among state emergency, law enforcement, safety and health officials. At the end of October, Gov. Roy Barnes announced the creation of a new state anti-terrorism intelligence center, where officials will gather, assess and share information of potential threats with federal, state and local authorities. Wright says the center will operate mostly through current appropriations and personnel, but Barnes may tap into discretionary funds before the legislature meets again next year. |
| Hawaii |
The state's tourism-driven economy, heavily reliant on air travel, suffered terribly after the Sept. 11 attacks, taking an estimated $1 billion hit. Unemployment figures show a 200 percent increase in benefits claims from last year for the last two weeks of September. That situation prompted legislation granting Gov. Ben Cayetano emergency economic powers to last through April 2002. Lawmakers also extended unemployment benefits and approved temporary health insurance for displaced workers and a $5 million appropriation for airport security during a special session. Hawaii officials expect to spend far more than that on ensuring public health and tightening security at airports, harbors and highways. |
| Idaho |
Pairs of state police and National Guard troops patrol the capitol grounds, where Gov. Dirk Kempthorne has closed adjacent streets indefinitely. Visitors now enter through a single door outfitted with a new $40,000 security system where they pick up an ID badge. Kempthorne implemented several other security precautions at state buildings, including the Supreme Court. Idaho police have stepped up truck inspections and a statewide videoconferencing network stands ready to assist interactive town hall meetings and bioterrorism seminars for physicians. Officials say they don't yet have a good across-the-board cost estimate. |
| Illinois |
Scratch for safety, some Illinois lawmakers say in pushing the idea of a special lottery card to raise anti-terror revenues. So far, officials say, they're ahead of the game, thanks to a terror task force launched in 2000 that "began work in earnest" last spring. The state's efforts to assess its preparedness haven't yet meant any new costs, but that hasn't stopped newly appointed security chief Matt Bettenhausen from making tall budget requests of Washington, including $65 million for a proposed public safety radio link among all state and local officials. Gov. George Ryan's anti-terror proposals could cost the state as much as $100 million. Entrances to the capitol have been secured with concrete barriers, visitors pass through a metal detector and employees wear photo identification. Secretary of State Jesse White froze hazardous material permit applications and renewals for commercial truck drivers until federal officials complete new anti-terror regulations. |
| Indiana |
Even though Gov. Frank O'Bannon didn't create Indiana's Counter-Terrorism Task Force until one month after the Sept. 11 attacks, the state's efforts to address terrorism reach back to 1997. Since that time, officials have been working on anti-terror plans. For the past two years, state police and health officials have had bioterrorism plans in working or final form. Task force director Clifford Ong, whose salary is drawn from federal drug interdiction funds, believes the state's readiness for an attack involving explosives or hazardous materials is especially strong. But Ong says much still needs to be done, with a statewide communications system a "highly expensive" top priority. Last week (11/1), the capitol and state police forces merged, expanding the number of officers available to secure the statehouse. |
| Iowa |
Capitol security recommendations presented by the U.S. Secret Service gathered dust for two years as the number of capitol police dwindled due to budget cuts. Now, public safety in the capitol and around the state is a funding priority and lawmakers agree with Gov. Tom Vilsack that no time should be wasted installing an entrance security system that could cost nearly $300,000. Vilsack also established a new office of homeland security. Meanwhile, the director of the state's primary public health lab says anthrax scares kept her facility at "maximum capacity." |
| Kansas |
State officials reviewed their emergency plan after the Sept. 11 attacks and found it already contained key elements of the Bush administration's homeland security proposals. "We don't have a handle on the cost. We've just done what is necessary," says Don Brown, spokesman for Gov. Bill Graves. Brown says agriculture, emergency, health and environmental officials have been working together "since long before Sept. 11" to prepare for the possibility of an agroterrorist attack. Meantime, lawmakers await a security update from Adjutant General Gregory Gardner, the official who oversees both the Kansas National Guard and the state's emergency management division. |
| Kentucky |
New security initiatives include tighter surveillance of trucks carrying hazardous materials, centralized collection of suspicious mail, the presence of state police officers at capitol entrances and a call to broaden school crisis plans to address terrorism. Kentucky health officials have performed over 200 anthrax tests on suspicious substances, all of which have turned up negative. Rusty Cheuvront, spokesman for Gov. Paul Patton, says the state has yet to assess the costs of these measures. (CORRECTED 11/16: An earlier version of this story mistakenly identified the capitol security guards as members of the National Guard.) |
| Louisiana |
Louisiana has upgraded security at prominent targets' chemical, nuclear and oil processing plants and military bases' with relatively little impact on state coffers. Thus far, the bill has come to $10 million. Gov. Mike Foster even solicited private donations for a fund to buy a new fire truck, "The Spirit of Louisiana," for New York City. But the generosity doesn't mean officials are breathing easy. The state's vital tourism industry has already sustained a big hit. "We're in okay shape this year. Were worried about next year," Foster spokeswoman Marsanne Golsby said. |
| Maine |
Responding to false anthrax alarms and ramping up security at airports and public buildings and along the border are priorities, but Gov. Angus King has begun to question the costs. Earlier this month, King speculated that costs to state taxpayers stemming from the Sept. 11 attacks could eventually rise as high as $150 million. King ordered department and agency heads to begin tallying new expenses. He also declined to augment security at a dormant nuclear power plant, arguing the risks were not enough to merit such action. |
| Maryland |
Halfway through October, shortly after announcing a $205 million hole in the state's budget, Gov. Parris Glendening announced that Maryland had incurred $6 million in "unanticipated costs" related to the Sept. 11 attacks and their aftermath. State figures indicate new security measures at airports and state buildings, intensified hazmat carrier inspections and the costs of responding to acts and threats of bioterrorism could run as high as $24 million by the end of the current fiscal year. |
| Massachusetts |
Still in the midst of forging a budget for the current fiscal year, lawmakers passed a $26 million supplemental anti-terrorism budget last month. The appropriation included money to train and pay 150 new state troopers for one year, overtime pay for current troopers, new cruisers and special equipment, and increased security at the state capitol. In addition to dramatic increases in security at Logan Airport, the takeoff point for the jets that leveled the twin towers of the World Trade Center, officials have also kept a close eye on reservoirs, the Plymouth nuclear plant and bridges to Cape Cod. |
| Michigan |
The Ambassador Bridge linking Detroit and Windsor, Ontario, is the busiest point of entry in the country, a fact not lost on those who sat in checkpoint lines as long as fifteen hours after the Sept. 11 attacks. The delays were especially painful for Detroit-area manufacturers and shippers. State and federal officials secured an agreement in late October to keep the lines moving with Michigan National Guard troops for at least one more month until Treasury and Immigration officials figure out a permanent solution. Now Gov. John Engler wants to stop the180-truck-per-day flow of trash from Toronto to the state's landfills. Meanwhile, anthrax investigations and security improvements at the capitol and other sites continue. The state has yet to estimate its total costs. |
| Minnesota |
Public Safety Commissioner Charlie Weaver, Minnesota's de facto homeland security czar, says his state is better prepared than many to respond to terrorist threats and activities, thanks in part to federal anti-terror grants totalling $3.9 million over the last three years. Dealing with the real thing has meant few new public safety costs for the state with local law enforcement contributing heavily to tighter security details, according to DPS spokesman Kevin Smith. False anthrax alarms have deluged health officials, but total costs have yet to be determined. |
| Mississippi |
Gov. Ronnie Musgrove invited police, fire, emergency and medical leaders from the state's 82 counties to attend a security summit in Jackson this week. Adjutant General James H. Lipscomb says the Mississippi National Guard will need more money if it is to maintain its key role in tightened security measures around the state into the new year. The Musgrove administration spent $34,000 installing metal detectors in the capitol and another major state office building. The state has had relatively few anthrax scares requiring tests but officials say the problem has still taxed public health resources. |
| Missouri |
Budget director Brian Long reckoned the cost of new security and public health measures at $763,000 and rising late last month. Gov. Bob Holden estimated that stationing Guard troops at a pair of nuclear facilities would cost an additional $45,000 over ten days. The results of much of this spending are visible at state government buildings. Visitors now find guards and metal detectors at entrances and employees don uniform ID badges. The state health department began seeking new staff to help with the anticipated rise in testing for anthrax and other suspected agents even before the announcement that investigators had confirmed the presence of anthrax spores at a postal facility in Kansas City. |
| Montana |
Montana considered itself well-prepared for terrorist threats, even before Sept. 11. Since 1999, the state has received $400,000 or more a year from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to improve coordination among health workers, buy lab equipment and increase awareness of the potential for bioterrorism. On Nov. 2, Gov. Judy Martz ordered increased security around the capitol by banning vehicles within 100 feet of the building. The state has assigned a Highway Patrol officer to serve as the governor's bodyguard and now requires visitors to identify themselves when entering the capitol. |
| Nebraska |
Roy Crewz was hired last May for a $39,000-a-year position in state government. Little did he know the profile of that position -- the state's bioterrorism surveillance coordinator -- would change greatly on Sept. 11. Crewz describes his new work climate as "hot and heavy." Nebraska increased security at the state's nuclear power plants last week (Nov. 2), after the Justice Dept. warned about possible attacks. The state has so far stopped short of deploying National Guard troops to the plants. |
| Nevada |
Despite being home to Hoover Dam and many military bases, Nevada is likely low on the terrorists' hit list, say local terrorism experts. Nevertheless, the state's emergency operation center has been on 24-7 activation since Sept. 11, the department of public health has responded to dozens of anthrax scares, and local governments have been working overtime to protect vital interests throughout the state, such as power plants, water facilities and government buildings. Nevada has a disaster relief fund -- $5 million -- and an emergency assistance account -- $500,000 -- but so far has tapped neither of these to buttress budgets strained by overtime. |
| New Hampshire |
Gov. Jeanne Shaheen sent a letter to Health and Human Services chief Tommy Thompson in late October asking the federal government to step up to the plate by providing funding for local health training and disease tracking. New Hampshire's present public health network is largely volunteer and health labs have been working around the clock to test the hundreds of suspicious substances reported by residents. The state has increased security at nuclear power plants, border crossings, propane storage facilities and hazardous waste areas. State and local budgets have been tapped to pay for increased security and public health costs. The governor has commissioned a report on the state's preparedness needs (due Nov. 27). |
| New Jersey |
Acting Gov. Donald DiFrancesco is seeking nearly $29 million in federal aid for anti-terrorism efforts and overtime worked since Sept. 11. Roughly $23 million of that will go to local governments for overtime security detail and $3 million will go to replace fire department equipment damaged in the attacks. The rest will be used to expand arson and bomb units and hire more epidemiologists to deal with bioterrorism. Even with terrorism number one on most people's minds, a pre-election poll found that nearly 75 percent of likely voters would rather the state's gubernatorial candidates talk about education and the economy than terrorism preparations. |
| New Mexico |
Gov. Gary Johnson missed a recent high security alert from the nation's new director of homeland security, Tom Ridge -- he just didn't get the word in time to participate in the conference call -- but that hasn't stopped him from tightening security across the state, especially around nuclear sites such as the Sandia and Los Alamos National laboratories. The state's public health department has set up a Web site with extensive information on anthrax. The department says it is well-prepared to deal with any bioterrorism concerns, having boosted its capacity in recent years with grant money from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. |
| New York |
For obvious reasons, New York's post-attack needs and response dwarf those of any other state. Gov. Georgia Pataki has requested $54 billion in aid from the federal government. At least $34 billion would go towards restoring Manhattan's infrastructure' the rest would be used to revive the city and state economies. New York newspapers report that Pataki's proposal has received a cool reception on Capitol Hill, although aid reaching into the billions should be forthcoming soon. |
| North Carolina |
Gov. Mike Easley signed legislation Thursday (11/8) appropriating $1.9 million to the Division of Emergency Management and authorizing the use of up to $30 million from the state's rainy day fund to improve emergency response and preparedness efforts. National Guard troops remain on alert and have been providing security at the state's 12 commercial airports. In addition, the State Highway Patrol has increased patrols at government buildings and nuclear power plants. |
| North Dakota |
Dough Friez, the state's new homeland security coordinator, knows North Dakota and disaster relief well -- since 1974, Friez has worked for the state's Emergency Management office, having served as its director since 1993. He has experience with response and recovery operations, emergency planning and hazardous materials, and will draw on that experience in his new position. The state epidemiologist reports that health officials have been kept busy with anthrax education and detection. |
| Ohio |
Ohio has spent over $400,000 on anthrax tests since Sept. 11, at a time when the state is facing a deficit of $600 million. Gov. Bob Taft and other Republican governors met with President Bush toward the end of October to request more federal funding for public health and other anti-terrorism measures. The State Building Security Review Committee is exploring visitor control methods such as central entrances and identification badges, upgrading of camera equipment and adding X-ray capabilities at entrances. Legislators have proposed bills that would strengthen penalties for those individuals who intentionally create a false alarm or induce public panic. |
| Oklahoma |
To protect the state's major commercial airport, Gov. Frank Keating deployed National Guard troops to the airport's perimeter instead of posting them inside and on airport roofs, as most governors did, said a spokesman for Keating. Local police and security covered internal monitoring and x-ray machines. The state expects to recoup its costs for airport security from the federal government. The state security task force has recommended that $3 million be spent to beef up security at all state office buildings. To cover some of these costs the governor could tap his emergency fund, which holds $1 million and is replenished every year. |
| Oregon |
Gov. John Kitzhaber has created a new Oregon State Police unit -- the Office of Public Safety and Security -- to coordinate the handling of intelligence information. The office will be staffed from existing police ranks. Oregon's congressional delegation received a "wish list" of projects from state officials, including funding for a National Guard team to aid police and medical personnel in a chemical weapons strike, additional security for power plants and utility lines, and more personnel for security at the state's smaller airports. |
| Pennsylvania |
Gov. Mark Schweiker created a security task force just days after taking over as governor for Tom Ridge, tapped by President Bush to be the country's first Director of Homeland Security. The task force, staffed by the attorney general and top state and local officials, will assess the state's readiness for conflict and prepare strategies for handling attacks by Nov. 20. |
| Rhode Island |
The state's Committee to Study State House Security, formed before the Sept. 11 attacks, recently recommended $242,100 be spent on security improvements at the State House, including the installation of a metal detector, motion detectors and an identification system. The recent warning that additional terrorist attacks were imminent was quickly passed through Rhode Island's security ranks, but local law enforcement officials said they did nothing extra to prepare because they were already on the highest level of alert. |
| South Carolina |
Gov. Jim Hodges traveled to the nation's capitol in early November to meet with Tom Ridge and seek federal money to help cover the state's security costs, which could total over $25 million. Hodges has asked state agencies, businesses and local officials to compile a list of vulnerabilities and extra security measures in place and send it to him by Nov. 19. State Bureau of Protective Services officers, charged with protecting the State House complex, the Governor's Mansion and other buildings, have been working up to 70 hours a week without overtime pay. |
| South Dakota |
To increase security in the Capitol building, Gov. Bill Janklow has requested that the highway patrol move its headquarters there. National Guard troops have been watching over the state's seven commercial airports. Testing of suspicious substances, once conducted only at the State Health Lab in Pierre, can now be done at one of the state's nine larger hospital labs. |
| Tennessee |
Gov. Don Sundquist has proposed $15 million in security spending, a reach for this financially strapped state. But even that figure may be just a starting point -- Matt Kisber, the House Finance Committee chairman, is drafting a security package that may cost up to $50 million. About $5.3 million will go towards the training of 50 new Tennessee Highway Patrol troopers. Since the attacks, the state Capitol complex has been surrounded by concrete barricades. In addition, more security personnel and metal detectors have been put in place. |
| Texas |
The state gauged its preparedness needs at $430 million last month in a report to the Federal Emergency Management Agency that one official called a first shot estimate. The Department of Health said recently it needs $12.1 million over two years to add staff, upgrade equipment and improve training, all to counter bioterrorism. That request was quickly approved by Gov. Rick Perry, although one lawmaker suggested that the $12.1 million figure should be multiplied by a factor of 10 or 12. |
| Utah |
With the Olympics coming to Utah in February, the state has been working on anti-terrorism safety and security measures for years. Nevertheless, the Sept. 11 attacks served to heighten the awareness of the state, national and even international officials charged with making sure thousands of elite athletes from around the world will be safe during the Games. It is expected that as many as 3,750 soldiers will join Olympic security forces, aiding them with everything from body searches to bomb disposals. The state's Division of Comprehensive Management has gained new prominence recently, with plans to grow to 70 employees and a $10 million budget of state and federal funds, as the agency oversees the securing of bridges, freeways, dams, government buildings and power plants. |
| Vermont |
The state needs $19 million over the next six months to ready itself to respond to acts of terrorism, according to Vermont's Terrorism Task Force. But even if that amount were spent, said Kate O'Connor, chairwoman of the task force, the state would need federal help if what happened in New York ever happened in Vermont. A proposed sale of the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant figures to be affected by the attacks of Sept. 11. Already, the Vermont Public Service Board, which oversees such sales, has said that security issues raised in the wake of the attacks would be included in the sale plan. |
| Virginia |
Virginia knows terrorism first-hand. The Sept. 11 attack on the Pentagon occurred on Virginia soil, drawing in state health and security officials to aid in the response. And a little more than one month later, Virginia Gov. Jim Gilmore, was rushed out of his congressional testimony after anthrax was discovered in the office of Sen. Tom Daschle. Given its proximity to the nation's capitol, Virginia officials and personnel would be on the front lines of any future attacks on the nation's capitol. To prepare for the worst, Virginia health specialists speak every day with officials in the District of Columbia and Maryland, poring over hospital emergency room logs looking for disease patterns. |
| Washington |
Washington's abundance of navigable water can be problematic at a time like this. All around the Puget Sound area, officials have stepped up monitoring of dams and filtration plants, worried about the possibility of terrorists poisoning the water supply. Also, security on the area's bridges has been increased since the FBI's warning about possible attacks. Seattle's hazardous materials team is on a record-setting pace as it responds to reports of suspicious substances. |
| West Virginia |
During a visit to Washington, DC, in late October, Gov. Bob Wise said West Virginia and other states may need financial aid and expert assistance from the federal government as they try to shore up domestic defenses. Wise said he hopes the governors can count on one of their own, former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge, to help them with their efforts. The West Virginia Farm Bureau says it is doing what it can to educate farmers to protect the state against agroterrorism. |
| Wisconsin |
The state's preparedness against bioterrorism has been given mixed marks. Milwaukee and Madison have the personnel and equipment in place needed to respond to attacks there, public health officials say. But the state's rural areas, including a quarter of Wisconsin's 72 counties, have no plans to deal with a terrorist attack, whether a bombing or a chemical assault. The state lab has tested over 400 substances thought to be anthrax over the past six weeks, said Lori Getter, spokesperson for Wisconsin Emergency Management. "Out workload has increased tremendously," said Getter. |
| Wyoming |
Security has been high at the state's 10 commercial airports, even as airport managers wonder how much the new measures will cost. State officials have been discussing whether to permanently close public access to some government buildings and move some agencies, such as the state police, to more secure locations. "We are not going to be able to go back to pre-Sept. 11 security," said Gov. Jim Geringer. "It has permanently changed."
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