10-1246-S7 MISC 02-11-13.Pdf
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( Date. l)c- II-~~ Submitted in rc I Committee Council File No I0--\'L.ib->f~ )8' JL ~l) Item No.: ___,IL-~------ Deputy M· ~Mfj\ June 20, 2011 The Honorable A:ntonio R. Villaraigosa Mayor, City of Los Angeles 200 N. Spring Street Los Angeles, California 90012 Dear Mayor Villaraigosa: The members of the Blue Ribbon Panel on Airport Security at Los Angeles International Airport (Blue Ribbon Panel) are pleased to submit this report following our review of public safety at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). Law enforcement and homeland security experts, including those on the Blue Ribbon Panel, agree that LAX continues to be a high level terrorist target in the Los Angeles region. That realization was the impetus for this comprehensive review of counte1ierrorism capabilities, law enforcement operations, ±ire operations, emergency management, and infmmation technology at LAX. The review by the Blue Ribbon Panel identified several key issues that should be addressed to enhance public safety at LAX. The Blue Ribbon Panel sought to provide those departments responsible for various aspects of security with a blueprint for improved safety and security at LAX by making detailed recommendations. The Blue Ribbon Panel is confident that the City of Los Angeles is capable of realizing the necessary changes at LAX in a timely and efficient mamwr. lt has been an honor for each of us to serve as members of the Blue Ribbon Panel. We have spent approximately 2,000 hours evaluating security issues at LAX and preparing a report that reflects the consensus of the panel members. Our efforts included weekly meetings, hundreds of interviews, and review of numerous documents. ( I MAYOR'S BLUE RIBBON PANEL CHAIRS Hon. Lourdes G. Baird, Chair Hon. Judith C. Chirlin, Vice Chair PANEL MEMBERS Douglas Barry James G. Featherstone James Lonergan Erroll Southers Robert C. Bonner Steven L. Gomez Ethel McGuire Theodore Stein Jr. Ronald J. Boyd Michael R. Hillmann Randy Parsons Milind Tambe · Eileen M. Decker Bruce Hoffman Alan I. Rothenberg Fernando Torres-Gil Michael P. Downing Ronald L. !den Greig Smith James A. Wall Richard E. Drooyan John Brian Linstrom James Fielding Smith Ben Gurion Airport Officials RESEARCH ASSISTANTS Natalya Garber Nancy Leu Julie Quinn Elba Garcia Anna Phillips Katherine Williams Special Thanks To the following individuals and departments for their support and assistance Neeraj Bhatnagar Regina Grant Steven Olivas Judi Clarke Paul Hernandez Lucy Silva Julie DiTucci Cecilia Law Jacqueline Yaft Diana Ezrine Elsa Manley Amy Zegart Jeffrey P. Fegan Gloria Moura The Federal Transportation Security Administration The Los Angeles Emergency Management Department The Los Angeles Police Department The Los Angeles World Airports The Los Angeles World Airports Police Department The Port of Los Angeles ( ( TABLE OF CONTENTS Page INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................... 1 METHODOLOGY OF OUR REVIEW ............................................................ 3 CHAPTER 1- COUNTERTERRORISM/HOMELAND SECURITY ......................... 9 Introduction .................................................................................... 9 Findings ......................................................................................... 11 Recommendations ............................................................................. 3 7 CHAPTER 2- LAW ENFORCEMENT OPERATJONS ....................................... .43 Introduction .................................................................................... 43 Findings ......................................................................................... 44 Recommendations ............................................................................. 65 CHAPTER 3- EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT ................................................ 71 Introduction ......................................................................................... 71 Findings ........................................................................................ 73 Recommendations ............................................................................. 94 CHPATER 4- FIRE PROTECTION AND PREVENTION SERVICES ..................... 102 Introduction ....................................................................................... 102 Findings ........................................................................................ I 04 Recommendations ............................................................................. 119 Report ofthe Mayor's Blue Ribbon Panel on Airport Security TABLE OF CONTENTS [Continued] Page CHAPTER 5 -INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY ............................................... 122 Introduction ....................................................................................... 122 Findings ........................................................................................ 123 Recommendations ............................................................................. 132 APPENDIX A- Blue Ribbon Panel/Committees .................................................... 133 APPENDIX B- Biographies of Blue Ribbon Panel Members .................................. 134 APPENDIX C- Glossary ofTerms ...................................................................... 145 Report qfthe A1ayor 's Blue Rjbbon Panel on Airport Security ii ( INTRODUCTION Los Angeles World Airports (LA WA) is the City of Los Angeles department that owns and operates three airports: Los Angeles International (LAX), LA/Ontario International (ONT) and Van Nuys (VNY). Each airport plays an integral role in helping to meet the regional demand for passenger, cargo and general aviation service in Southern California. The focus of this report is on LAX. LAX is the world's busiest origin and destination (O&D) airport. O&D passengers are those beginning or ending their trips in Los Angeles rather than using the airport for connecting flights. LAX is the sixth busiest airport in the world in the number of passengers and ranks thirteenth in the world in air cargo tonnage handled. In 20 I 0, LAX served 59 million passengers and handled 1,852,791 tons of freight and 74,034 tons of mail. LAX handled 70% of the passengers, 75% of the air cargo, and 95% of the international passengers and cargo traffic in the five-county Southern California region. 1 The airport spans 3,425 acres within the City of Los Angeles. Originally known as Mines Field, LAX has been used as a general aviation field since 1928. During World War II, it was used for military flights. Commercial airline service started in December 1946. The present terminal complex was constructed in 1961. In the early 1980s, LAX added domestic and international terminals and a second level roadway. It is estimated that LAX has an annual economic impact of$60 billion to the Southern California region. Approximately 59,000 jobs are located at or near LAX and an estimated 408,000 jobs are attributable to LAX, spread throughout the region. 1 Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Riverside, Ventura and Santa Barbara counties. Report ofthe Mayor's Blue Ribbon Panel on Airport Security 1 The LA WA Police Department (LA WAPD) is a Division of LA WA, and is the fourth largest law enforcement agency in Los Angeles County. LAWAPD is structured under the Executive Director of LAWA and the Chief of Airport Police. Police Division management is provided by three Assistant Chiefs who oversee the Office of Support Services, the Office of Operations, and the Office of Homeland Security and Intelligence2 1 The background on LAW A and LAW APD was provided by Los Angeles World Airports (http://www.lawa.org). Report of the Mayor's Blue R;bbon Panel on Ah·port Security 2 ( ( METHODOLOGY OF OUR REVIEW On November 18,2010, Mayor Antonio R. Villaraigosa announced the formation of the Blue Ribbon Panel on Airport Security. Mayor Villaraigosa tasked the Panel with conducting a comprehensive security review of LAX and providing recommendations to the Mayor and LAX for staying on the cutting edge of best practices in airport security. The Panel was asked to focus on counterterrorism/homeland security, law enforcement operations, fire operations, emergency management, and information technology. In December 20 I 0, after obtaining necessary security clearances for the Panel members, officials at LA WA provided the Panel with an orientation and overview of the airport. The orientation included presentations by LAWA executive management, LAWAPD, the LAWA information technology group, the LAWA emergency management and operations staff, and the Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD). Following the orientation, members of the Panel were given a tour of LAX, which included public and secure areas. The Panel was divided into five committees that comprised the areas the Mayor had requested be the focus of the review: homeland security/counterterrorism, law enforcement, fire operations, emergency management, and information technology. Chairs and Vice Chairs were selected for each committee, and some Panel members served on more than one committee in an effort to. ensure communication between committees. The listing of the Chairs of the committees and the members of each committee is provided in Appendix A to this report. Each committee chair structured the committee work in the manner most appropriate for that committee. Each committee established its procedures and timelines, requested interviews, and requested documents. Report ofthe Mayor's Blue Ribbon Panel on