Congress passes Homeland Security Act, creating Department of Homeland Security

President Bush signs the Homeland Security Act of 2002 into law, establishing the Department of Homeland Security as the largest federal government reorganization since the Department of Defense was created in the 1940s. The law consolidates 22 federal agencies and 170,000 employees into a unified Cabinet-level department, absorbing FEMA, TSA, Coast Guard, Customs Service, Secret Service, and Immigration and Naturalization Service. DHS is mandated to coordinate U.S. government activities relating to homeland security, including border security, critical infrastructure protection, emergency preparedness, and intelligence operations.