Bush Signs $33 Billion Budget

Nov 1, 2004 12:00 PM

President Bush has signed a bill giving the Department of Homeland Security about $33 billion for the budget year that began Oct. 1, The Associated Press reports.

The tab is nearly $900 million more than Bush requested of Congress. It includes $1.1 billion in grants to states based on population — $400 million more than he requested. But its $875 million for cities considered attractive targets for terrorists was nearly $600 million below Bush's request.

In addition, the bill provides $3.6 billion for police and other emergency responders — about $500 million less than last year's total.

The backlash to the lowered budget was almost immediate among first responders.

“The 9/11 Commission called for a rededication to preparedness, not a reduction like President Bush just signed,” Harold Schaitberger, general president of the International Association of Fire Fighters, AFL-CIO/CLC says. “Bush is forgetting how critical emergency response and preparedness are by notoriously under-funding those priorities.”

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