Reader Comments 02-21-10 CG Inspectors

This weekend a reader, Matthew, left a comment on a blog posting from last fall about CFATS Inspectors. Matthew wrote:

“An solution to the problem... Coast Guard facility inspectors. Not active duty ones but folks getting out or already out. We already do this daily. There is no need for DHS to train some tsa screener how to inspect a facility. The skill set is already there hopefully they us it.”

While the Coast Guard has been inspecting MTSA covered facilities for quite some time now, those inspections are not the same type of inspection that the ISCD chemical security inspectors will be completing. For one thing, the MTSA inspections that the Coast Guard conducts are much more straightforward with fairly well defined rules. This allows the Coastie inspectors to rely heavily on checklists while conducting their inspections; something is there or it isn't. Since Congress forbade DHS from using that type of regulatory scheme in setting up the CFATS program, the duties of the chemical security inspectors (I’m sorry but I refuse to use the CSI acronym for these folks) are much more complex. This is the reason that there is a 14 week course for these inspectors verses the one day training Coast Guard inspectors get in their A School. I am sure however, that ISCD would be perfectly willing to hire ex-Coasties with MTSA experience (everything else being equal) into their chemical security inspectors program. That experience would certainly be valuable. I would be willing to bet that they would also get the veterans hiring preference points added to their applications. I understand that the most recent hiring announcement just recently closed, but there will be another announcement on USAJobs.gov later this year.