PUBLICATIONS BY Matt A. Mayer
Research
Books
2008 Research
October 08, 2008
Don't Let E-Verify Perish in the Next Congress
By Jena Baker McNeill and Matt A. Mayer
(WebMemo #2097)
On September 27, Congress voted to fund E-Verify through March 2009. This is certainly a positive step for the program, but it has put the ball in the court of the next Congress to reauthorize and fund E-Verify into the future. It is also an opportunity to expand and improve on the program in conjunction with the new Administration.
August 06, 2008
Congress Should Reassess the Allocation of Homeland Security Grants
By Matt A. Mayer
(WebMemo #2011)
On Friday, July 25, 2008, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the allocations for the Fiscal Year (FY) 2008 Urban Areas Security Initiative (UASI) grant program. The program aims to distribute funds to the highest risk urban areas in America, and has always been allocated based on risk or the combination of risk and the quality of investment justifications. However, in light of the announcement, it appears the allocation of UASI grants is now based more on political considerations than real measures of risk.
July 18, 2008
Testimony Before the Texas Senate Committee on Transportation and Homeland Security and Committee on International Relations and Trade
By Matt A. Mayer
(Testimony #9999)
Testimony Before the Texas Senate Committee on Transportation and Homeland Security and Committee on International Relations and Trade
June 26, 2008
Hurricane Insurance: Forcing All to Subsidize the Few
By Matt A. Mayer
(WebMemo #1972)
Congress's involvement in insurance in the hurricane-prone South distorts the markets and forces us all to subsidize the risk of those who choose to live there.
June 04, 2008
The Local Role in Disaster Response: Lessons from Katrina and the California Wildfires
By Matt A. Mayer, Richard Weitz, Ph.D., and Diem Nguyen
(Backgrounder #2141)
The federalization of disaster responses continues to accelerate. further stretching FEMA's already strained resources and encouraging state and local governments to divert their disaster-response resources to more immediate needs like transportation, education, or health care. It is time to get back to our federalist tradition and empower state and local governments to take the lead in managing disasters.
2007 Research
October 24, 2007
National Disaster Planning Slowed by Inadequate Interagency Process
By Matt A. Mayer and James Jay Carafano, Ph.D.
(Backgrounder #2079)
Six years after 9/11, the federal government still lacks a comprehensive regime for planning and preparing for large-scale disasters. Fixing the problem will require renewed vigor from the Administration in setting clear policy guidelines, particularly in implementing a National Exercise Program, emphasizing the priority of interagency disaster preparedness for the National Planning Scenarios, and improving professional development.
August 03, 2007
After the 9/11 Act: Homeland Security Grants Still Moving in the Wrong Direction
By Matt A. Mayer and James Jay Carafano, Ph.D
(Backgrounder #2059)
The Department of Homeland Security is still struggling to keep homeland security grants from becoming just another federal entitlement, and Congress has passed a bill that will make the DHS’s job more difficult. Congress needs to eliminate minimum grant allocations, boost matching requirements, consolidate grant categories, and require the DHS to conduct a full assessment of national capabilities.
May 10, 2007
Spending Smarter: Prioritizing Homeland Security Grants by Using National Standards and Risk Criteria
By James Jay Carafano, Ph.D. and Matt A. Mayer
(Backgrounder #2033)
It is past time to build a national disaster preparedness and response system grounded on the Department of Homeland Security's Target Capabilities List and to allocate funds based strictly on whether funding requests would build the right capabilities in the right places at the right level. This would minimize or eliminate underinvestment in some areas and overinvestment in others.
May 08, 2007
FEMA and Federalism: Washington Is Moving in the Wrong Direction
By James Jay Carafano, Ph.D., and Matt A. Mayer
(Backgrounder #2032)
The United States needs a disaster response system that is built on the principle of federalism. FEMA should focus its efforts on preparing to respond to catastrophic disasters like Hurricane Katrina, and Congress should establish a higher threshold for triggering federal disaster declarations and encourage states and local communities to implement responsible public safety and emergency response programs.
February 28, 2007
Better, Faster, Cheaper Border Security Requires Better Immigration Services
By James Jay Carafano, Ph.D., and Matt A. Mayer
(Backgrounder #2011)
Congress needs to establish a better model to pay for immigration services, to fund the transformation of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services capabilities, and to enable the USCIS to work more effectively as part of an interagency team. The longer Congress waits, the longer it will take to deliver the border and immigration security that America needs and deserves.
January 9, 2009
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