Access Control
& Security Systems

Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge is concerned about the "sustainability and credibility" of the color-coded national terror threat level.

In a press conference last week, Ridge said he would prefer a new system that tailors alerts to specific industries or geographic areas rather than the entire country.

Ridge has supporters who believe the system needs to be reworked. "There needs to be a system that is less blunt and broad than what we've got going here," said National League of Cities President John DeStefano.

The national terror threat level has been raised to code orange three times in the past four months -- fluctuation Ridge wants to avoid in the future. The secretary acknowledged, however, that the alert system is only as good as the intelligence reports that guide it.

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