Gov. Tom Wolf Thursday announced he has named Col. Marcus Brown, his previous nominee for State Police Commissioner, as director of the Governor’s Office of Homeland Security for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
This position has been vacant since the previous administration and was established by executive order on February 22, 2012. Col. Brown will report directly to the governor on issues pertaining to the preparation for, prevention, response and recovery from acts of terrorism.
This appointment does not require Senate confirmation.
“The Commonwealth must take every step necessary to protect its citizens from terrorist threats, and I am confident that Col. Brown’s leadership and experience will be an asset to the commonwealth in this role,” said Gov. Wolf. “Under Col. Brown’s leadership, Maryland made huge advances in homeland security and the Maryland Fusion Center became a national model and received a perfect rating from the Department of Homeland Security, BWI Airport was designated by the Transportation Security Administration as a national model, and the Port of Baltimore received an outstanding security rating from the United States Coast Guard. Col. Brown has proven himself as a dynamic leader in all aspects of law enforcement and I look forward to working with him in his new role as director of the Office of Homeland Security.”
In February 2012, an executive order was signed establishing the Governor’s Office of Homeland Security, within the Office of the Governor, to prepare for, prevent and recover from acts of terrorism. As laid out by the executive order, the responsibilities of the Office of Homeland Security include:
-- Secure the Commonwealth from acts of terrorism;
-- Reduce the vulnerability of critical infrastructure and key resources to terrorist attacks;
-- Partner with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and other federal, state, and local agencies in matters related to homeland security;
-- Work with the Primary State Fusion Center to develop the process of information fusion for the gathering, processing, analyzing, and disseminating of information related to homeland security;
-- Cooperate with the PA Emergency Management Agency in matters relating to emergency management planning, preparedness, and response; and
-- Participate, in concert with the private sector and other federal, state, and local agencies, in a coordinated effort to prepare for, prevent, respond, and recover from acts of terrorism.
Col. Brown, 51, will start as director on August 17.
