Simons Center News

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is looking for qualified individuals who are interested in serving on FEMA’s National Advisory Council (NAC). The NAC advises the FEMA administrator on all aspects of emergency management, ensuring effective and ongoing coordination of federal preparedness, protection, response, recovery, and mitigation for natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and other man-made disasters. […]

The Terrorist Explosive Device Analytical Center (TEDAC) was welcomed to its new home at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama on February 16. The multi-agency organization is made up of 30 partner agencies, including the FBI and the Departments of Defense and Homeland Security. TEDAC is responsible for analyzing and exploiting intelligence gleaned from improvised explosive devises (IEDs), which is then […]

Earlier this month Senators Ben Cardin (D-MD) and Thom Tillis (R-NC) introduced the Genocide and Atrocities Prevention Act of 2016, S. 2551. The act aims to help prevent acts of genocide and mass atrocities, which threaten national and international security,  by enhancing U.S. civilian capacities to prevent and mitigate such crises. S. 2551 sets out […]

On February 24 the House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Government Reform will host a hearing on the coordination of a multi-agency response to the Zika virus. The hearing will examine the coordinated federal response to the spread of the Zika virus both within the U.S. and internationally. It will also address confusion and misinformation […]

As part of National Slavery and Human Trafficking Awareness Month, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced in late January that the Federal Law Enforcement Training Centers (FLETC) will begin to provide human trafficking awareness training as part of basic training courses. The FLETC courses are used to train federal law enforcement officers and agents […]

On February 9, the White House announced the creation of the Federal Privacy Council. The Council was established through an Executive Order and sets policies for agencies for collecting, maintaining, and using personal information they gather in the course of their work. The order calls for an interagency body that builds on current efforts to […]

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) publicly released a report earlier this month detailing U.S. agencies’ efforts in countering firearms trafficking in Belize, Guatemala, and Mexico. The report was published within days of GAO’s recent follow-up report on firearms trafficking between the U.S. and Mexico. The report examines illicit trafficking across Mexico’s border with Guatemala and […]

Today the President signed an Executive Order establishing a Commission on Enhancing National Cybersecurity. In his remarks, President Obama said the new commission was created “in order to enhance cybersecurity awareness and protections at all levels of government, business, and society.” The Commission is formed within the Department of Commerce, and will include no more […]

Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson met with law enforcement officials and National Football League (NFL) security on February 3, to discuss the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) role in security operations during Super Bowl 50. According to Johnson, “Dozens of federal agencies and components, including multiple components of the Department of Homeland Security, are contributing […]

On January 27, the Department of Defense (DoD) announced that they have been asked to support the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) in their efforts related to the Zika virus. Pentagon press secretary Peter Cook said that the DoD experts have been asked to help gather other experts and stakeholders to aid in […]