Homeland Security has 1,000 jobs to fill in Arizona; job fair Saturday (click here)
January 30, 2009, 10:37 p.m.
SHERYL KORNMANTucson Citizen
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has more than 1,000 jobs open in Arizona.
A job fair here Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at U.S. Customs and Border Protection headquarters will allow applicants to fill out paperwork and talk with Homeland Security workers about the openings....
Partnership is proving successful in Santa Cruz Co. (click here)
By Denise HolleyPublished Friday, January 30, 2009 9:52 AM MST
Securing the U.S.- Mexico border is a huge job, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) can’t do it alone. That’s why the Department of Homeland Security forged a partnership with local law enforcement called Operation Stonegarden (OPSG) in 2004....
US Customs And Border Protection Job Fair (click here)
Saturday, January 31
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) will kick-off National Career Day around the United States to announce CBP’s goal for hiring approximately 11,000 new personnel for frontline, mission support, and operations support positions in 2009.
The multi-city recruitment event themed “A New Year, New Career,” will launch January 31 to raise public awareness on CBP’s mission and broad career options, along with providing potential applicants information on how to apply for a CBP position....
...Secretary Napolitano has already issued nine action directives: Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) state and local integration; national planning, cybersecurity; northern border strategy; critical infrastructure protection; risk analysis; state and local intelligence sharing; transportation security; and state, local and tribal integration. She will continue to issue additional action directives in the coming days focused on the missions critical to the department: Protection, Preparedness, Response, Recovery and Immigration....
Canada-U.S. border back in the spotlight (click here)
By BOGDAN KIPLING
Thu. Jan 29 - 7:10 AM
THE OBAMA administration has put Canadian border security among its most pressing issues to be dealt with immediately.
That’s the word Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano sent out in an "action directive" on her third full day in office.
"As we have designed programs to afford greater protection against unlawful entry, members of Congress and homeland security experts have called for increased attention to the Canadian border," says a statement released by her office last Friday. She requested an "oral report" no later than Feb. 10, to be followed by a final report a week later.
Secretary Napolitano’s hurry raises an obvious question: What’s wrong?...
U.S.-Mexico Border Fence Nearly Complete (click here)
2009-01-27 04:42pm
More than 600 miles of a new U.S.-Mexico border fence have been completely, making the stretch nearly complete, the U.S. government reported Tuesday.Customs and Border Protection spokesman Lloyd Easterling said 601 miles of the fence have been completed, with 69 left to go in order to meet a goal set by the Bush administration.In December, then President-elect Obama said he wanted to evaluate border security before committing to finishing the fence begun under his predecessor.Easterling has said the White House has not yet told the Department of Homeland Security to halt construction of the fence.(c) 2009 Newsroom.
Rail lines, bus systems show security shortfalls (click here)
By Thomas Frank, USA TODAY
WASHINGTON — The first federal evaluation of mass-transit security shows that more than 75% of the nation's major rail and bus systems aren't meeting Homeland Security guidelines.
By contrast, 96% of airlines are complying with security requirements, according to a new report by the department. The report doesn't identify which rail and bus systems fell short.
The assessment comes as new Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano says she plans to focus more on mass transit, possibly through "redeployment" of resources from other areas.
"We've done an awful lot in the aviation world," Napolitano said Monday. "We could pay more attention" to surface transportation security.
The department's little-noticed evaluation, published on its website Jan. 15 just before Napolitano took office, found that 37 of the nation's 48 largest transit systems aren't complying with voluntary guidelines set in 2007. There is no sanction for non-compliance, said Paul Lennon, head of mass transit for the Transportation Security Administration (TSA).
Obama nominates cybercrimes expert to DHS (click here)
WASHINGTON, Jan. 29 (UPI) -- President Barack Obama Thursday announced plans to nominate a cybercrimes expert as the U.S. Homeland Security Department's next general counsel.
Obama announced plans to nominate Ivan Fong, a former deputy associate attorney general at the Justice Department, as the next general counsel for the Homeland Security Department.
The announcement coincides with Homeland Security Department Secretary Janet Napolitano's announcement of several key legal positions on her staff.
Fong, who currently works for Cardinal Health Inc. as chief legal officer and secretary, is the primary author of what Homeland Security Department officials say is a "groundbreaking" report on cybercrime policy titled "The Electronic Frontier: The Challenge of Unlawful Conduct Involving the Use of the Internet."
"Ivan's extensive private sector and senior government experience will provide invaluable counsel in managing the complex issues and important tasks we take on daily, and I look forward to the enthusiasm and expertise this accomplished team brings to the important missions of this department," Napolitano said in a statement.
