Strategic Plan for Safeguarding the Commonwealth of Massachusetts against Terrorist and Related Threats
As part of its extensive and ongoing effort to address homeland security issues, IFPA contracted with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to develop a strategic plan for dealing with terrorist-related threats. The January 2003 Strategic Plan for Safeguarding the Commonwealth of Massachusetts against Terrorist and Related Threats outlines threats that confront the Commonwealth and describes the nature of Massachusetts' vulnerabilities; describes the concrete steps taken by Massachusetts since the events of September 11, 2001, to enhance security and to protect the Commonwealth from terrorism; addresses measures that still need to be taken or continued; and sets forth a series of specific recommendations to guide and improve Commonwealth security in the years ahead.
As the first state-wide blueprint to address the threat of terrorism to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the Strategic Plan builds upon the National Strategy for Homeland Security issued by the Office of Homeland Security in July 2002. It takes as its point of departure the recommendation that state governments, as well as local authorities and concerned citizens, should “go through a similar process of priority-setting and long-term planning.” It provides a strategic framework upon which the Commonwealth can structure its activities and create priorities as it organizes to combat terrorism. The document is based on extensive interviews and discussions with officials in each of the major agencies and offices having responsibility for Commonwealth security. It is not a static document, however; rather, it is the beginning of what will be a prolonged effort to defend the Commonwealth from terrorism and its destructive consequences and to do so within a dynamic and rapidly changing setting at home and abroad.
In keeping with the National Strategy for Homeland Security, the Strategic Plan is based on three key strategic objectives:
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