The Department of Homeland Security’s Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) program would receive yet another one-year extension under the FY14 DHS spending bill approved by the House of Representatives last week.
Congress enacted CFATS in 2006 as a temporary chemical facility security program that was scheduled to expire in 2009. But lawmakers have been unable to agree on a permanent replacement and have repeatedly continued the current program through a series of temporary extensions. This latest extension in the FY14 DHS spending bill would authorize CFATS through October 4, 2014.
The extension does not impact the status of drinking water and wastewater facilities, which have been and will remain exempt from CFATS requirements.