Key Senate players plan to bring comprehensive government oversight
to chemical plants, a move that would regulate security at the sites
at the federal level.
The chair of
the Senate Homeland Security Committee, Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine),
said she would introduce legislation this fall to increase protection
at domestic chemical facilities. Currently, she said, only the federal
government regulates a fraction of these sites’ security measures.
“We have learned that the United States is home to thousands
of facilities that manufacture, use, or store chemicals for legitimate
purposes that could cause devastation if turned against us as weapons,”
Collins said. “We also have learned that voluntary measures
and a patchwork of state laws, while helpful, are not enough. Federal
regulation is clearly necessary.”
During hearings before the committee, key representatives of the
chemical industry expressed support for federal legislation to fully
regulate security at chemical facilities, including oversight and
enforcement by the Department of Homeland Security.
One early issue will be counting and classifying the nation’s
at-risk chemical plants.
The Environmental Protection Agency has listed some 15,000 chemical
facilities that produce, use or store large quantities of hazardous
chemicals. DHS, using a different methodology, has identified 3,400
facilities that could potentially affect more than 1,000 people
if attacked, and nearly 300 chemical facilities where a toxic release
could potentially affect 50,000 or more people.
Since administration officials testified in support of the regulations
and Democrats on and off the committee signaled support, the legislation
is likely to become law.