New York State is issuing new guidelines for the development of domestic terrorism prevention plans, the governor’s office announced Tuesday (Aug. 9).
The move comes in response to the mass terror attack that took place this past May at a supermarket in Buffalo.
Speaking (virtually) at a two-day Threat Assessment and Management Summit hosted by the State Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services and its Office of Counter Terrorism, Governor Kathy Hochul vowed to “confront the scourge of domestic terror head-on,” and “prevent tragedies before they even occur.”
As part of that effort, $10 million is being allocated to counties for the creation and operation of threat assessment management teams comprised of law enforcement, mental health professionals, school officials, and other key stakeholders. The teams will be tasked with identifying, assessing, and mitigating the threat of targeted violence.
Executive Order 18 issued by the governor is aimed at fighting the surge in domestic terrorism and violent extremism that is “frequently inspired by, planned on and posted about on social media platforms and internet forums.”
In part, the executive order calls upon:
- DHSES to establish a new unit within its Office of Counter Terrorism dedicated to the prevention of domestic terrorism.
- Every county and the City of New York to develop and maintain a plan to address the threat of domestic terrorism, including racially or ethnically motivated violent extremists.
- New York State Police to establish a new unit within the New York State Intelligence Center (NYSIC) dedicated to tracking domestic violent extremism and increase social media monitoring for investigative leads that may come from the online promotion of violent extremism.
In the last decade, US domestic terror attacks and plots tripled nationwide. In 2021 alone, there were 73 terrorist attacks and plots uncovered across the country.
