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Homeland Security Funding Cuts Criticized

By Dave Lucas

http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wamc/local-wamc-969862.mp3

Albany, NY – Upstate New York's Capital Region is set to lose more than a million dollars in anti-terrorism funding because of federal budget cuts. More from WAMC's Dave Lucas...

The department of homeland security has notified several smaller cities around the country they won't be receiving any "urban areas security initiative" money in this year's budget.

The agency revealed Thursday that the program took a $170 million budget hit and remaining money will go to 31 high-threat urban areas, including New York City and Washington.

While Mayor Michael Bloomberg and downstate lawmakers praised the agency for maintaining $151.6 million allocated to the metro area, Senator Chuck Schumer and others criticized the upstate cuts and said they'd try to reverse them. Among the critics, longtime Albany-area political activist Joe Sullivan.

Albany isn't the only city losing money: Syracuse and Rochester are being cut - and Buffalo is losing 5 and a half Million dollars.

Congressman Paul Tonko says that's unacceptable.

Down the Hudson River, Westchester County Congresswoman Nita Lowey believes the funding cuts help better protect high-risk areas like New York City. Matt Dennis is Lowey's communications director.

Congressman Tonko promises to help get efforts underway to roll back the distribution of funding to previous levels.

The current cut has impacted 33 cities nationwide.