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Citizen Corps E-News
Operation TIPS = Update=20 (August 13, 2002)

Thank you for requesting information about Operation TIPS = (Terrorism=20 Information and Prevention System) on the Citizen Corps website. = As you=20 are probably aware, TIPS is a hotline reporting system. Unlike = other=20 Citizen Corps programs, which invite the participation of the = general=20 public, only those who work in the trucking, maritime, shipping, = and mass=20 transit industries will be eligible to participate in this = information=20 referral service. General information about the program will = continue to=20 be available to the public; however, the TIPS hotline number will = only be=20 provided to participating industries.

Below is the most recent description of the proposed initiative = that we=20 have released to correct some public misperceptions about the = program.

OPERATION TIPS OVERVIEW

This reporting system is being developed by the Department of = Justice=20 in coordination with several other federal agencies, including the = Office=20 of Homeland Security, the Department of Labor, the Federal Bureau = of=20 Investigation, and FEMA, as a part of Citizen Corps. The program = was=20 announced in concept in January 2002 for the stated purpose of = creating a=20 national information sharing system for specific industry groups = to report=20 suspicious, publicly observable activity that could be related to=20 terrorism. The program is scheduled to be operational in the fall = of 2002=20 as one of the new Citizen Corps programs.

The initiative=92s design is based on existing programs, such = as Highway=20 Watch and Coast Watch, that allow truckers and ship captains to = report=20 dangerous conditions along their routes. In response to = significant demand=20 among industry groups, Operation TIPS provide specific industry = groups a=20 single phone number for reporting potentially terrorist-related = activities=20 occurring in public areas. Industry groups have looked to the = Justice=20 Department to offer a reliable and cost effective system that = their=20 workers could use to report information to state, local, and = federal law=20 enforcement agencies about unusual activities they might observe = in the=20 normal course of their daily routines. Similarly, law enforcement = agencies=20 have sought a system for receiving terrorist tips that would avoid = overburdening the 911system.

The Operation TIPS hotline would also offer some unique = improvements=20 upon current systems by:

Providing a centralized telephone hotline and web-based = reporting=20 system that automatically and immediately routes tips to = appropriate=20 federal, state, and local law enforcement nationwide;
Providing specific industry groups with a means of reporting = non-emergency, potentially terrorist-related activity; = and
Enabling law enforcement officials to =93connect the dots=94 = and take=20 appropriate action on potentially terrorist-related activities = that may=20 be occurring simultaneously.

Industries interested in participating would be given printed = materials=20 on how to contact the reporting center, and would in turn provide=20 information and any training to their workers directly. Many = industries=20 already provide this type of information as part of their security = and job=20 training.

Operation TIPS would offer its hotline service to workers = involved in=20 the transportation, trucking, shipping, maritime, and mass transit = industries. Industry associations and groups in these areas would = be=20 invited to receive information about the hotline so their workers = could=20 participate in the program if they so choose. Other industry = associations=20 involved in the above-mentioned industries could also seek = participation=20 by contacting the Department of Justice.

At the outset of the program, the Department of Justice planned = to=20 engage the postal and utility industries to participate because = their=20 workers maintain regular public routes in the communities they = serve,=20 putting them in a unique position to recognize potentially = dangerous=20 activity along transportation routes and in public places. In = addition,=20 the inclusion of postal workers and utility workers made sense = because=20 they have been identified as targets for terrorism. Postal workers = in New=20 Jersey and Washington, D.C. were victims of the anthrax terrorist = attacks=20 last year, and postal workers across the country were affected by = the=20 recent pipe bomb attacks. As attacks on utility plants and water = systems=20 could affect the public health and safety of millions of people, = these=20 facilities have long been considered prime targets of domestic and = international terrorism. The Department never intended that = workers=20 calling the hotline would report on anything other than publicly=20 observable activities. However, given the concerns raised during = the=20 program development phase about safeguarding against all = possibilities of=20 invasion of individual privacy, the Department of Justice has = decided that=20 the hotline number will not be shared with any workers, including = postal=20 and utility workers, whose work puts them in contact with homes = and=20 private property.

Thank you, again, for your interest. Additional information = will be=20 provided as the Justice Department continues to develop the=20 program.

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