While many state and local governments around the country have created emergency or contingency plans to deal with terrorist (including bioterrorist) attacks since September 11, Detroit is moving a step ahead today by adopting a comprehensive local plan for domestic defense.

New Democrat Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick announced the plan at a press conference this morning. It closely follows recommendations recently made by the Progressive Policy Institute's John D. Cohen and Maryland State Delegate John A. Hurson on steps states and localities should immediately take to use technology and better communications and coordination, not only to prepare for potential terrorist attacks, but also to fight everyday crime.

According to a background paper on the Detroit plan, Mayor Kilpatrick insisted on two principles to guide local defense efforts in his city: "First, efforts to protect those who live, work, and visit the city from future acts of terrorism need not be done at the expense of effective day-to-day service. Second, the city will not compromise its commitment to uphold civil liberties, and to sustain and dramatically strengthen the city's proactive, positive partnership with the increasingly diverse community throughout the city, the region and the state."

Kilpatrick's action plan has ten elements:

1. Appointing a Homeland Security Coordinator with responsibility for overseeing the action plan, integrating it with the city's service delivery infrastructure, and meshing Detroit's efforts with federal, state, and regional authorities.
2. Developing a comprehensive emergency response strategy including an assessment of potential targets for attack, such as buildings, waterworks, power plants, and fuel storage facilities.
3. Leading a regional effort to secure southeastern Michigan's five international border crossings, while speeding the daily transit of goods and people (for example, the 1600 Canadian nurses working in Detroit's health care system).
4. Connecting the radio systems in use by police, fire, and EMS personnel, and expanding their wireless data transmittal systems.
5. Reducing the potential for overloaded 911 emergency call systems by expanding use of, and upgrading technology for, a 311 non-emergency police phone number and an emerging 211 system for health and human resources information. All service delivery requests will be tracked by computer for accountability.
6. Deploying an electronic public health surveillance system to quickly identify patients with symptoms associated with biological or chemical weapons, and to coordinate a response by health care providers.
7. Improving information sharing among federal, state, county, and municipal public safety and criminal justice officials to identify trends and target suspects in terrorist or other criminal activity.
8. Mobilizing neighborhood watch programs and other community-based public safety networks to prevent acts of terrorism.
9. Providing comprehensive, state-of-the-art training for health care providers, emergency "first responders," and other city personnel on response to terrorist acts, including a "citywide drill" exercise.
10. Developing a prioritized list of projects, events and programs that might merit federal and state assistance, beginning with security needs associated with an upcoming meeting of energy ministers from G-8 countries.

Returning to the two principles Kilpatrick announced as fundamental to Detroit's domestic defense action plan, the background paper notes: "Proactive, information-driven, law enforcement efforts -- supported by rapid, effective sharing and collection of information -- eliminate the need for ineffective, random, and reactive enforcement strategies. Furthermore, the best preparation for future acts of terror can be found in the same techniques and technologies that can be used to better protect our neighborhoods from drug traffickers, robbers, and burglars, and keep or communities healthier."

Detroit's local approach to domestic defense nicely reflects the New Democrat principles of using technology to improve security without compromising civil liberties; and of reinventing government agencies to break down bureaucratic barriers and focus on real-life results. With this comprehensive plan, Detroit is providing a good example for other major cities, and a good example of the direction that national domestic defense efforts -- still bogged down in initial planning and bureaucratic "turf fights" -- should soon turn.