A Senate Appropriations subcommittee will mark up legislation today that would extend a Department of Homeland Security program designed to secure the nation's chemical facilities from terrorist attacks and thefts.

The Senate Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee will mark up DHS's fiscal 2012 spending bill this afternoon. That legislation includes funding for a one-year extension of the agency's Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) program.

CFATS was launched in 2006 and requires chemical facilities to develop and implement security plans. It has relied on year-to-year funding through the appropriations process and will run out of money in October.

Industry and DHS have pushed for making the program more permanent through a longer extension. To that end, lawmakers in both the House and Senate have introduced legislation that would extend CFATS for several years.

In the House, H.R. 901 and H.R. 908 would both re-up CFATS for seven years. Both bills have passed out of their committees -- the Homeland Security and Energy and Commerce panels, respectively.

Similarly, S. 473 has also passed out of that chamber's Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee. That measure, introduced by committee ranking member Susan Collins (R-Maine), would reauthorize the program for three years.

In spite of all the bills moving through their committees, however, it remains unclear when they will come to the House and Senate floors for a vote. If that does not take place before the end of October, CFATS will again rely on a one-year extension through the appropriations bill being marked up today.

That prospect led industry leaders like Society of Chemical Manufacturers and Affiliates President Larry Sloan in July to call on Congress to act swiftly before the bill "falls victim to the legislative calendar" (E&E Daily, July 7).

The full Senate Appropriations Committee is planning to take up the DHS's appropriations bill tomorrow after the Homeland Security subpanel moves it today.

Schedule: The Senate Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee markup is today at 3 p.m. in Dirksen 138. The Senate Appropriations Committee markup is tomorrow at 3 p.m. in Dirksen 106.