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Napolitano: Budget maintains security

WASHINGTON, Feb. 13 (UPI) -- The U.S. Department of Homeland Security budget for the 2013 fiscal year seeks $39.5 billion, a 0.5 percent decrease from the current budget, officials said.

The department's budget also includes an additional $5.5 billion for the Disaster Relief Fund provided separately through the the Budget Control Act of 2011, Secretary Janet Napolitano said Monday in a release.

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The budget request redistributes more than $850 million in base resources from administrative and mission support areas, including contracts, personnel, information technology, travel, personnel moves, overtime and purchasing, among other things.

Through the department's Efficiency Review and other cost-saving initiatives, Homeland Security identified more than $3 billion in savings, reallocating that money to critical initiatives across the department, officials said.

Napolitano said the funding blueprint supports the department's FY 2013 goals of preventing terrorism and enhancing security; securing and managing the nation's borders; enforcing and administering immigration laws; safeguarding and securing cyberspace; disaster assistance; and providing support to national and economic security.

The blueprint supports 21,186 Customs and Border Protection officers and 21,370 Border Patrol agents to facilitate legitimate travel and the shipment of goods across borders while strengthening border security, the department said.

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Cybersecurity efforts would receive $769 million to improve security of federal civilian information technology networks while enhancing work relations with state and local governments. The request also includes a $650 million allocation to fund research and development advances in cybersecurity, explosives detection, and chemical-biological response systems.

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