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Great Seal of the United States National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States



Fifth public hearing of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States

The Commission's fifth public hearing on "Emergency Preparedness" was held on November 19, 2003 at Drew University in Madison, New Jersey.

The Commission heard from New Jersey Governor James E. McGreevey; four panels of business officials and federal, state, and local government representatives; and individuals working to enhance emergency preparedness in the private sector.

In announcing the hearing Commission Chair, Thomas H. Kean stated: "One of the lessons learned from 9-11 is that private sector preparedness remains critical to our national security. We know from our work to date that tenants of the World Trade Center varied widely in their levels of preparation for a catastrophic event. Many lacked evacuation plans that had been practiced, alternative communication systems, the ability to identify who was working that day, and fully executable business continuity plans."

"The Commission is charged with recommending ways to improve emergency preparedness in the aftermath of September 11th," Kean stated. "While we never want to confront another 9-11, our nation must always be prepared," he continued.

"With nearly 85 percent of the critical infrastructure of our country owned and operated by the private sector," Commission Vice Chair Lee H. Hamilton said, "it is clear that any measures the public sector takes on its own will not be enough to guarantee the safety of all Americans."

"The public and private sectors need to join forces to ensure that their efforts are successful," Hamilton added.

Archived Video and Transcripts

Hearing Agenda

November 19, 2003

"Private/Public Sector Partnerships for Emergency Preparedness"

10:00 AM

Hearing Commences

Opening Statement by Chairman Kean

Welcome and Highlights of New Jersey's Public/Private Sector Partnerships

Governor James E. McGreevey

10:15 AM

Risks and Consequences of Terrorism for the Private Sector

John Degnan, Vice Chairman, The Chubb Corporation

11:00 AM

PANEL: Skyscraper Safety Issues from 9-11 Family Members

Monica Gabrielle, Co-Chair, Skyscraper Safety Campaign

Sally Regenhard, Founder and Co-Chair, Skyscraper Safety Campaign

11:45 AM

PANEL: Public/Private Initiatives Since 9-11

Michael F. Byrne, Director, Office of National Capital Region Coordination, Department of Homeland Security

Dennis J. Reimer, Director, National Memorial Institute for Prevention of Terrorism (MIPT)

Richard A. Andrews, Senior Director, National Center for Crisis and Continuity Coordination

1:00 PM

Break

1:45 PM

Multimedia Presentations of Initiatives across the United States

Kings County, WA (Public/Private Sector Disaster Preparedness Plan)

International Association Assembly Managers (Preparedness Training in the U.S.)

2:00 PM

Private Sector Experience on 9-11

William Y. Yun, President, Fiduciary Trust Company International

2:30 PM

PANEL: Standards for Emergency Management and Business Continuity

Glenn Corbett, Professor of Fire Safety, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, Member, NIST Investigation, and Bergen County Fire Captain

Randall Yim, Director, National Preparedness Team, General Accounting Office

3:30 PM

PANEL: Future Strategies for Private Sector Preparedness

William G. Raisch, Director, Emergency Corps Program, Sponsored by The Greater New York Safety Council

Peter R. Orszag, Joseph A. Pechman Senior Fellow in Economic Studies,The Brookings Institution

James Haviaris, Vice President for Operations and Management, Rockefeller Group Development Corporation

Thomas Susman, Partner, Ropes & Gray and Chief Author of Business Roundtable Report on Terrorism: Real Threats. Real Costs. Joint Solutions.

5:00 PM

Hearing concludes. Press availability to follow.



Current News


The Commission has released its final report. [more]

The Chair and Vice Chair have released a statement regarding the Commission's closing. [more]

The Commission closed August 21, 2004. [more]

Commission Members


Thomas H. Kean
Chair


Lee H. Hamilton
Vice Chair


Richard Ben-Veniste
Fred F. Fielding
Jamie S. Gorelick
Slade Gorton
Bob Kerrey
John F. Lehman
Timothy J. Roemer
James R. Thompson

Commission Staff


Philip D. Zelikow
Executive Director


Chris Kojm
Deputy Executive Director


Daniel Marcus
General Counsel