Joint Force Headquarters National Capital Region (JFHQ-NCR) is directly responsible for the homeland security and defense of the Washington D.C. area as well as surrounding counties in Virginia and Maryland. Primarily made up of joint military units within the National Capital Region, the JFHQ-NCR assists federal and local civilian agencies and disaster response teams in the event that the capital area's security is or possibly could be breached by acts of terrorism. Officially activated on September 22, 2004, JFHQ-NCR is part of United States Northern Command.
History
After the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and The Pentagon on September 11, 2001, military and civilian leaders recognized a need for strong cooperation and communication between agencies and national and local units in times of emergency or to prevent such attacks in the first place, something that had been severely lacking prior to that time. USNORTHCOM was subsequently established, taking command of several JTFs throughout the U.S. that are charged with homeland security. The Joint Force Headquarters for the National Capital Region was created for the sole purpose of preventing and responding to future terrorist attacks within the Washington, D.C. area and its surrounding cities and counties.
JFHQ-NCR officially came into being in September 2004. However, the unit had been operating in part for at least a year prior to its official creation. Major General James T. Jackson, the Military District of Washington (MDW) Commander at the time of the September 11th attacks, was the first to take hold of the concept of the new Headquarters and began to piece various aspects of it together, particularly seeing and responding to the need for a mobile command center and a more effective central command and control headquarters. When MG Galen B. Jackman replaced Jackson in 2003, Jackman solidified the role of JFHQ, commanding the response to various regional emergencies and National Special Security Events (NSSE), proving the potential of JFHQ-NCR. When the organization finally stood up in the fall of 2004—after having had a year of practice—it was fully operational and able to provide an effective answer to the NCR's growing security concerns.
JFHQ-NCR in action
When called upon to assist in a regional crisis or an NSSE (national events requiring security measures outlined and directed by the U.S. Secret Service), the JFHQ mobilizes and becomes Joint Task Force-National Capital Region (JTF-NCR). The JTF-NCR is then directed to respond as quickly as possible and with as many component partners as applicable to address the issue at hand. Although the JFHQ is the single point of contact for entities within the JTF-NCR, the JTF is ultimately guided by the lead agency (the agency that asked JFHQ for assistance to begin with) and the directives of USNORTHCOM.
The JFHQ-NCR has had several claims of success in the few years it has been operating. The first crisis that required the help of the JFHQ's JTF occurred on February 2, 2004, when ricin was discovered in the Capitol Hill office mail room of Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist. The Marine Corps' Chemical Biological Incident Response Force (CBIRF) assisted in the situation and helped officials safely decontaminate the area.
Other JTFs have been activated in the NCR for the dedication of the World War II Memorial on the National Mall and its accompanying World War II reunion, former president Ronald Reagan's state funeral, President George W. Bush's 2005 Presidential Inauguration, President Bush's State of the Union Addresses, and the state funeral of former president Gerald Ford.
Joint Operations Center
The Joint Operations Center (JOC), dedicated a month and a half prior to the official activation of the JFHQ, is the command and control center at the heart of the JFHQ. The JOC is housed in a newly renovated building at Ft. McNair, designed with the latest in technological advances for its time. The JOC boasts 50+ work stations, complete with secure and non-secure capability by way of phones, computer network access, and video teleconferencing for the entire center. The JOC is also "red phone" capable, Geospatial Information System ready, and fully integrated into the secure NORTHCOM communications system. In addition to the ability to communicate with various civilian and military units within the NCR, satellites provide the JOC with secure communication links to the Mobile Command Center and its smaller mobile cousin, "Dagger."