Review - OCS Updates Monthly Statistics – 1-3-22

Yesterday, CISA’s Office of Chemical Security(OCS) updated the statistics on their Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) Monthly Statistics page. This provides a snapshot look at the activities of the chemical security inspectors (CSI) and the status of the covered facilities at the end of December 2021. At this time, OCS is not including CSI activities in support of the ChemLock program. There was a slight decrease, month-to-month, in CSI activity levels and a net loss in the number of covered facilities in December.

CSI Activities

The table below provides a look at the reported figures for CSI activities over the last four months.

Inspection Data	Sep-21	Oct-21	Nov-21	Dec-21
Authorization Inspections	22	8	10	11
Compliance Inspections	154	126	182	116
Compliance Assistance	73	65	44	62
Compliance Audit	0	0	0	0

Facility Status

The table below provides a look at the facility status information provided by OCS over the last four months.

Facility Status	Sep-21	Oct-21	Nov-21	Dec-21
Tiered	83	80	57	57
Authorized	110	112	125	115
Approved	3078	3082	3073	3074
Total	3271	3274	3255	3246

From a chemical security perspective, a decline in the number of covered facilities is actually a good thing. The CFATS program is built on the premise that the possession of certain DHS chemicals of interest above a threshold quantity make (with some other risk assessment concerns that are hidden in the OCS black box) place a facility at risk of a terrorist attack. Significant reduction or elimination of those risks at a facility (necessary for exit from the program) reduces the risk for the communities around those facilities and the country as a whole.

But that risk is not eliminated (except where facilities close) just reduced. With the advent of the ChemLock program, facilities leaving the CFATS program have a mechanism to continue to receive support from CISA in protecting their facilities.

For more details about what these numbers mean, see my article at CFSN Detailed Analysis - https://patrickcoyle.substack.com/p/ocs-updates-monthly-statistics-1 - subscription required.