Preliminary Guidance: Nonprofit Security Grant Program FY 2020 JFNA Grant Guidance: THREAT CHRONOLOGY: February 13, 2020 Point of Contact: Rob Goldberg, Senior Director, Legislative Affairs, at: [email protected] The below Threat Chronology is intended to assist applicants in responding to the “Threat” question in Part III (A) of the Investment Justification: The applicant should discuss the identification and substantiation of prior threats or attacks against the organization or a closely related organization by a terrorist organization, network, or cell (this would also include Violent Homegrown Extremists). Note: Proofs should include any findings from a previously conducted risk assessment, police findings, and/or insurance claims specific to the location. Recommendations (in order of priority): I. In answering this question an applicant should describe any specific terror (or violent homegrown extremist) attacks or threats, hate crimes, and/or related incidents of vandalism, trespass, intimidation, or destruction of property that have targeted the location or organization. Note: An applicant may also include a specific event or circumstance that impacted an affiliate or member of their system or network. II. In the event the applicant does not have a specific threat to report, it should report on incidents that have occurred against a similar or like institution located in the in the applicant’s community and/or state. III. In the event the applicant does not have a specific incident in the community or state to report, the applicant should then reference threats against similar or like institutions within the United States or abroad. Note: With respect to referencing the public record, there are numerous threats against Jews and Jewish institutions, as captured in this document. Since there is limited working space in the IJ, the applicant should be very selective in choosing the example or examples to incorporate into the response. Applicants should search this document (particularly Part VI. on Recent Threat Incidents Reported) for events that are most recent, geographically proximate, and closely related to the type or circumstance of the institution or are of “National Significance” – being of such magnitude or breadth that they create a significant existential threat to the Jewish community at-large. THREAT CHRONOLOGY I. Spotlight House Judiciary Committee Oversight Hearing on the FBI FBI Director Christopher Wray Testimony: The most persistent threats to the nation and to U.S. interests abroad are homegrown violent extremists (HVEs), domestic violent extremists, and foreign terrorist organizations (FTOs). The international terrorism threat to the U.S. has expanded from sophisticated, externally directed FTO plots to include individual attacks carried out by HVEs who are inspired by designated terrorist organizations. Threats from ISIS, Al Qaeda, Iran and its proxy Hizballah are of top concern. Domestic violent extremists collectively pose a steady threat of violence to the United States as well. The FBI is most concerned about lone offender attacks, primarily shootings, as they have served as the dominant lethal mode for domestic violent extremist attacks. More deaths were caused by domestic violent extremists than international terrorists in recent years. The top threat we face from domestic violent extremists stems from those we now identify as racially/ethnically motivated violent extremists (RMVEs). RMVEs were the primary source of ideologically-motivated lethal incidents and violence in 2018 and 2019, and have been considered the most lethal of all domestic extremism movements since 2001. During questioning, Director Wray told the House Judiciary Committee that violent extremists motivated by race were now considered a “national threat priority” equivalent to foreign terrorist organizations such as ISIS. (Sources: Statement Before the House Judiciary Committee, Hearing on Oversight of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, February 5, 2020; Link: https://www.fbi.gov/news/testimony/fbi-oversight-020520?utm_campaign=email- Immediate&utm_medium=email&utm_source=congressional-testimony&utm_content=%5B785545%5D- %2Fnews%2Ftestimony%2Ffbi-oversight-020520; CBS News, February 5, 2020; Link: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/racially-motivated-violent-extremism-isis-national-threat-priority-fbi-director-christopher- wray/) House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Emergency Preparedness, Response, & Recovery Hearing on the Importance of DHS Preparedness Grants During this Subcommittee hearing on the federal emergency preparedness grant programs to the states, witness testimony focused on the importance of FEMA’s Nonprofit Security Grant Program and the need for Congress to increase program funding to counter escalating risks to the nonprofit sector, and faith- and community-based organizations in particular. “I can tell you without equivocation that the [Nonprofit Security Grant Program] has placed the nonprofit, faith-based community in a better position to be safe and secure,” said Michael Masters, CEO and national director of the Secure Community Network, the security arms of the Jewish Federation of North America and the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, testified. Masters noted that funding from the grant program for nonprofits has helped Jewish organizations undertake meaningful security assessments; beef up their security by installing various security measures, such as cameras, electronic door locks, panic buttons, etc.; and receive disaster training. During prepared remarks, Greg Kierce, director of the Jersey City Office of Emergency Management and Homeland Security, spoke about the Jersey City terror attack in which two people killed a police detective before barricading themselves in a kosher supermarket. There, they shot and killed three people, including 2 two Jews and a story employee, before they themselves were shot and killed by police. That attack and the [mass casualty machete] in Monsey, N.Y., a few weeks later “show how critical the need is here,” he said. John Miller, deputy commissioner of Intelligence and Counterterrorism at the New York City Police Department said Jewish communities need to be aware of and prepared for threats from these different groups be it Islamic extremists, white supremacists or others, which makes the need for specific security strategies crafted in cooperation with law enforcement and the implementation of those strategies even more important. Such efforts, however, can only happen if the funding is available. Miller noted that while $60 million in nonprofit security grants were offered last year by the Federal government, there were more than $170 million in requests. In reaction, the Subcommittee’s Ranking Republican, U.S. Rep. Peter King (R-NY), called for a bipartisan nationwide effort to expand funding for antiterrorism programs, and not just maintenance of current funding levels. “This is not an accounting issue, it’s a life or death issue and we have to face up to it,” King said. Similarly, the Subcommittee’s Chairman, U.S. Rep. Donald Payne. Jr. (D-NJ), remarked, “We are also reminded of homeland security needs by events like the Jersey City shooting at a Jewish grocery store last month that claimed the lives of four victims, including a police officer. The loss of one life is too many, and I can only imagine how this tragedy would have unfolded if Jersey City was not armed with the capabilities they were able to build with DHS preparedness grant funding,” said. (Sources: Jewish News Syndicate, 01/10/20; Link: https://www.jns.org/security-experts-urge-lawmakers-for-increased- security-funding-for-us-religious-institutions-nonprofits/; Homeland Preparedness News, 01/09/20; Link: https://homelandprepnews.com/countermeasures/42329-house-panel-seeks-restoration-of-homeland-security-grants/) II. Recent Risk Assessments of National Significance Federal Joint Intelligence Bulletin: Domestic Violent Extremists1 The Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Homeland Security and National Counterterrorism Center assess Domestic Violent Extremists (DVEs) and Racially/Ethnically Motivated Violent Extremists (RMVEs) will continue to pose a lethal threat to faith-based communities, particularly the Jewish community, in the Homeland and remain concerned about the difficulty of detecting lone offenders due to the individualized nature of the radicalization process. At least four incidents since October 2018 against Jewish communities underscore the increasingly lethal threat RMVEs and perpetrators of hate crimes pose to faith-based communities in the United States, particularly against soft targets such as religious and cultural facilities. In addition to violent attacks and plots, the FBI and law enforcement partners have investigated and arrested individuals who have vandalized or committed arson on property associated with Jewish institutions. In addition to the previous attacks, the FBI has arrested several individuals at various stages of plotting future attacks on Jewish communities. These events underscore the persistent threat of lethal violence and hate crimes against the Jewish community in the United States. 1 JIB: Continued Interest in Targeting Jewish Communities in the Homeland by Domestic Violent Extremists, 3 January 2020 (IA-41058-20) 3 Lethal Incidents: On 29 December 2019, a New York-based individual allegedly attacked the home of a Hasidic rabbi in Monsey, New York, during a Hanukkah celebration, wounding five with