1) Hearing Agenda

2) Governor Kean Introduction

• Background Reading
• Governor McGreevey Introduction

3) John Degnan
• Biographical Information
• Invitation to Testify
• Introduction and Suggested Questions
• Background Reading

4) Skyscraper Safety
• Biographical Information
• Invitation to Testify
• Testimony
• Introduction and Suggested Questions
• Background Reading

5) Panel on Public/Private Initiatives

• Biographical Information
• Invitation to Testify
1 Testimony
• Introduction and Suggested Questions
• Background Reading

6) Multimedia Presentations of
Initiatives Across the United States
• Background Reading

7) William Y. Yun
• Biographical Information
• Invitation to Testify
• Testimony
• Introduction and Suggested Questions
• Background Reading

8) Panel on Standards for Emergency

Management and Business Continuity
• Biographical Information
• Invitation to Testify
• Testimony
1 Introduction and Suggested Questions
' Background Reading

9) Panel on Future Strategies for

Private Sector Preparedness
1 Biographical Information
• Invitation to Testify
• Testimony
• Introduction and Suggested Questions
• Background Reading
 NATIONAL COMMISSION ON TERRORIST ATTACKS UPON THE UNITED STATES

Private/Public Sector Partnerships for Emergency Preparedness

Opening Statement by Chairman Kean

Much of the attention on national preparedness in the two years since 9-11 has centered,
understandably, on the government's essential role in securing our homeland. Almost
lost in this focus on government, however, has been the fact that 85 percent of our
nation's critical infrastructure is controlled not by government but by the private sector.
Clearly, any successful preparedness strategy must engage the private sector in
partnership with government at every level: local, state, and federal. Today's hearing
will demonstrate that, as Comcast Chairman Michael Armstrong put it recently,
providing homeland security is "our country's most critical joint venture."

Today's hearing underscores the importance of the private sector in preparing for, and
responding to, disasters and will provide the basis for the Commission's consideration of
recommendations to promote emergency preparedness in the future. The families of 9-11
victims care deeply about this issue. We share their belief that addressing the issue of
private sector preparedness is essential to our work as a Commission and our security as a
nation.

Our discussions to date have shown that tenants of the World Trade Center varied widely
in their levels of preparedness on 9-11. Many lacked company evacuation plans or had
not practiced those plans. Communications were disrupted immediately and, without
back-up systems available, many issues arose related to telling employees what to do
during the event as well as finding employees following the event. Many companies did
not have an accurate list or accounting of employees on 9-11. Business continuity was
also a problem. While we acknowledge that no one would have predicted this
horrendous catastrophe, there were elements of preparedness that would have assisted
nonetheless.

The lessons learned from 9-11 by those companies located at the World Trade Center
have led to notable changes in the way some companies are going about emergency
preparedness and safety of their employees. Vulnerabilities remain, however, in the
private sector's emergency preparedness. A recent survey sponsored by Guardsmark, a
security firm, reported that "45 percent of the (800) companies interviewed are NOT
conducting emergency drills." A Conference Board study on security spending since 9-
11 reports that spending on security has only increased on average only four percent over
pre-9-11 spending. The Wall Street Journal noted as recently as September 29, 2003 that
"[w]hile some companies have been revising and updating their workplace-security plans
since September 11, a large portion appear to be blithely unprepared for any sort of
attack. Many don't even have an effective evacuation procedure in place."

We must not only learn from 9-11, but learn permanently. The Commission is concerned
that as time passes, the lessons of 9-11 will fade and our resolve to be better prepared will
fall casualty to complacency and bottom-line expediency. This hearing today will
provide information that will help us in make recommendations to ensure that the lessons
learned are channeled into actionable steps and improvements in our overall
preparedness.