"I am pleased to submit the Nationwide Plan Review Phase 2 report to Congress, as directed by the DHS FY 2006 Appropriations Act and the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU). This report meets Congressional requirements to review and assess the status of catastrophic and evacuation planning in all States and 75 of the Nation's largest urban areas. It also addresses the President's directive to review emergency operations plans (EOPs) for the Nation's major cities. The Nationwide Plan Review consisted of two phases. The first phase involved self assessment, in which each State and urban area certified the status of its EOP and identified when the plan was last updated and exercised. The findings from the self assessment phase were provided to Congress on February 10, 2006. The second phase involved peer review, in which teams made up of former State and local homeland security and emergency management officials visited 131 States and urban areas. Over the course of 62 business days, these reviewers validated the self assessments, determined requirements for Federal planning assistance, and drew initial conclusions for strengthening plans and planning processes at the Federal, State, and local levels of government for catastrophic events. (DHS, NPR Phase 2 Report (DHS Secretary Chert off Introduction), 2006, p. v).