Department of Homeland Security (DHS)

A background, overview and analysis.

 

Definition: Homeland Security

n   “Homeland security is a concerted national effort to prevent terrorist attacks within the United States, reduce America’s vulnerability to terrorism, and minimize the damage and recover from attacks that do occur.”

n    (Source: The National Strategy for Homeland Security p.2 Available: http://www.whitehouse.gov/homeland/book/sect2.pdf)

 

Background

The Problem

The Players

Vulnerabilities

n   The 9-11 attack underscored a number of structural factors in American law enforcement, intelligence and infra structure protection that made us vulnerable.

n   The 9-11 attack underscored a number of policies, approaches, and attitudes that contributed to vulnerability

Vulnerabilities

n   The 9-11 attack also led to questions about law enforcement vision….

Post Attack Assessments

n   General sense: ill prepared

n   Intelligence capabilities limited.

n   Enforcement fragmented/direction-less

n   Databases – limited, inaccessible

n   Communication poor

n   Response fragmented

n   Efforts lack focus/coordination

n   Reactive not proactive

 

Post Attack Assessments

n   A number of values were brought into question:

n   Open immigration

n   Open borders

n   Extensive due process for non-citizens

n   Profiling

n   Preventive/investigatory detention

n   Internal security mechanisms?

The Initiating Problem

n    Efforts to protect the homeland at the time of the attacks of 2001 were largely:

n    uncoordinated

n    Given to frequent infighting/rivalries which hampered effectiveness

n    Featured significant gaps in efforts

n    Generally had poor communication between agencies

n    Without a common theme or organizing mission.

 

Homeland Responsibilities: The Players, 2001

n   Vested in a number of federal agencies (over 2 dozen.)

n   These agencies were located in different chains of commands (Cabinet Departments such as Justice, Treasury, Commerce).

n   Their overall missions frequently compromised security concerns (INS).

Homeland Security Responsibilities: 2001

n    Agencies responsible for security were often small and fragmented within larger bureaucracies.  Pressing concerns could easily be overlooked or ignored.

n    No overall game plan for protecting the country.

n    Intelligence databases were particularly fragmented.  Federal law enforcement agencies did not even access each others information systems.

Sense: Poorly Prepared for Terrorism

n    In addition to the structural items, legal procedures did not appear sufficient to address terrorism.

n    More proactive oriented enforcement needed, legal basis for such enforcement lacking

n    Genesis of Patriot Act.

n    Dynamic tension between security and freedom becomes clear.

Background Issues:
Federal Policing

n   Federal Presence -- Large media presence: Limited presence in reality

n   Federal police:  fragmented across a wide array of agencies.

n   Federal agencies often small and as a result limited presence. 

n   Tremendous Rivalry

n   Growing role conflict with local police.

Federal Law Enforcement

n   Role confusion

n   Absolute necessity to involve local police: hesitant to trust local police.

 

 

Issue: Majority of Law Enforcement Local

n    State and local governments operated 18,769 law enforcement agencies with at least one full or part time officer.

n    Overall   921,978 Sworn: 663,536         Civilian   258,443

n    13,578 general purpose local agencies

n    3,088 Sheriff’s Departments

n    49 State Police

n    1,316 Special Jurisdiction police

n    738 County Constables in Texas

 

Very Few Federal Law Enforcement Officers

n    Approximate  88,000 full-time authorized to make arrests and carry firearms (June 2000) 

n    Police Response(patrol)  17,000         19%

n    Investigations (criminal) 36,000         41%                            non criminal  12,000       13%

n    Security protection         2,169          3%

n    Court protection             2,652          4%

n    Corrections                  16,000           18%

n    Other                             339

 

Current Picture

n   Overlapping jurisdictions fostering conflict and competition.

n   Extremely decentralized, on purpose to protect individual liberties.

n   Emerging overlay of centralization to deal with modern realities.

n   Growing federal presence

n   Still considerable chaos…

 

Federal Law Enforcement

n   Approximately 69 agencies. a combined annual budget for fiscal 2000 of approximately $18 billion.

n   Four of the five largest employers of Federal officers were within the Department of Justice.

 

 

Federal Police

n   INS                                  17,654

n   Bureau of Prisons               13,557

n   F.B.I.                               11,523

n   US Customs Service            10,522

Federal Police

n    Nearly 50,000, or 56.2%, worked for the Department  of Justice. 

n    About 20,000, or 22.8%, worked for the the Department of the Treasury. 

n    The Department of the Interior (4.1%).

n    Overall, executive branch agencies employed 88%. Independent agencies (6.5%), the  judiciary(4.2%), and the legislature (1.6%) employed the rest.

 

 

Enforcement Agencies integrated into DHS

n   On March 1, 2003 the following enforcement agencies became part of the Department of Homeland Security:

n   Immigration and Naturalization Service

n   Federal Protective Services

n   U.S. Secret Service

n   U.S. Custom Service

 

INS

n    Part of the Department of Justice.

n    Established by Article 1, section 8 of the U.S. Constitution.

n    In 1864 Office of the Commissioner of Immigration of the Bureau of Immigration was created.

n    In 1903 this Office was placed under the control of Department of Commerce and Labor.

 

Immigration and Naturalization Service

n   1940 placed in Justice

n   Purpose: to control entrance of aliens into the United States and monitor those Aliens within the United States

n   Major INS Unit is the Border Patrol

n   About 3,920 agents patrolling about 8,000 miles of border

 

Immigration and Naturalization Service

n    1940 placed in Justice, Purpose: to control entrance of aliens and monitor those Aliens within the United States

n    The Inspections Branch of INS employed 4,062 immigration inspectors with arrest and firearm authority at ports of entry.  These officers were classified under non criminal investigation and inspection

Immigration and Naturalization Service

n   The INS operates three Interior Enforcement Units -- the Investigations, Intelligence, and Deportation and Detention Divisions.  These Divisions employed 2,255 criminal investigators and immigration agents for investigating crimes and 2,518 officers performing corrections-related duties related to detention and deportation.

 

 

Immigration and Naturalization Service

n    Half of INS officers worked for the U.S. Border Patrol.  These 8,819 officers were 53% of the police response and patrol.

n    The Border Patrol, the mobile uniformed branch of the INS, is responsible for the detection and prevention of smuggling and illegal entry of aliens, with primary responsibility between the ports of entry.  Border Patrol officers work in the vicinity of, the 8,000 miles of U.S. boundaries

 

U.S. Secret Service

n    Established July 5, 1865, primary mission to address counterfeiting.(1863 first national currency “greenbacks”

n    Following assassination of McKinley 1909 Congress ordered the Secret Service to protect the president.

n    In 1965 after the assassination of Kennedy renamed the US Secret Service.

 

U.S. Secret Service

n    Employs about 2,186 agents.

n    Has a uniformed division created in 1922 to provide security for the White House, the Treasury Buildings, presidential offices, vice presidents residence and foreign diplomatic missions.

n    Authorize to investigate credit card fraud, fraud involving electronic bank transfers and automatic teller machines.

 

U.S. Secret Service

n   The second largest Treasury Department employer of federal officers.

n   had a fiscal 2000 budget of $762 million

 

U.S. Custom’s Service

n    1789 Tariff Act, collected by Customs service (for 125 years customs totally supported the federal government)

n    Handles in addition to collecting fees, the enforcement of over 400 provisions of law as to what can enter and leave the country.

n    Largest of the Treasury Enforcement Units

 

U.S. Custom Service

n   employed 10,522 officers.  This included 7,729 inspectors and 2,779 criminal investigators.

n   interdicts and seize contraband entering the United States, process persons (1.3 million daily), vehicles, and items at more than 300 U.S. ports of entry, and administer certain navigational laws.

 

Federal Protective Services

Federal Protective Services

n    was established by Presidential Order in 1971 as a law enforcement organization within the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA)

n    The US Federal Protective Service is charged with providing the vast federal communities controlled by GSA nationally with the necessary levels of protection to safeguard their tenant federal agencies.

n    Protects over 8,000 federal facilities

Federal Protective Services

n    GSA protects facilities for many federal criminal justice agencies, including:

n    the U.S. Customs Service;

n    the Internal Revenue Service;

n    U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service;

n    Federal Bureau of Investigation,

n    the Drug Enforcement Agency,

n    the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms;

n     and the U.S. District Courts as well as many other federal agencies.

U.S. Protective Services

n   The U.S. Federal Protective Service has three components:

n   U.S. Federal Protective Service Police

n   U.S. Federal Protective Service Physical Security

n   U.S. Federal Protective Service Support Services

  

USFPS

  –provides all police and enforcement related services for GSA. The USFPS Police consists of a force of uniformed Police Officers, appointed under Title 40, United States Code, Section 318, as Special United States Police Officers "having all of the powers of the sheriff and constable (except civil) to enforce all laws passed for the protection of people and property". The USFPS Police manning level was established as not less than 1,000 officers by the US Congress (PL100-440 s/10) in 1988.

Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC)

n    Training Center for 60 federal (1970) enforcement agencies  (except FBI and DEA are at Quantico.)

n    Two campuses, Glencoe and Tucson.

n    In addition to federal officers, Indian Tribal Police, Some Private Security (Nuclear Plants) and some foreign police.

n    Affectionately known as Disneyland for police.

 

Coast Guard

n    Approximately 36,000 active duty personnel

n    8,000 reservists

n    34,000 auxiliaries

n    232 cutters

n    211 aircraft

n    1,400 boats

n    95,000 miles of coastline

 

Mission Department of Homeland Security

n   The president’s proposal identified four basic homeland security missions:

n     Border security

n     Emergency preparedness and response

n     Information analysis and critical infrastructure

n     Chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear countermeasures

 

Department of Homeland Security

n    The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is the largest federal reorganization since 1947, when the U.S. Armed Forces were integrated into the Department of Defense. The last new cabinet department was the Department of Veteran affairs established in 1989.

n    September 11th, 2001, The President recommended that 22 previously disparate agencies be coordinated into one department to protect against homeland threats.

Department of Homeland Security (DHS)

n    DHS was approved as a the 15th cabinet department by Congress in November 25, 2002.

n    The new department officially began operation on January 24, 2003.  It is intended to consolidate U.S. executive branch organizations related to "homeland security" into a single agency by 2004. The new Department is headed by former Pennsylvania  Governor Tom Ridge.

Department of Homeland Security

n    It is designed to consolidate U.S. defenses against terrorist attack and coordinate counterterrorism intelligence.

n    It incorporates parts of eight other cabinet departments. The November 2002 legislation gives the department has one year to consolidate the 22 agencies it is adopting.

n    It supersedes, but does not replace the Office of Homeland Security, which retains an advisory role.

 

Mission of DHS

•   One department whose primary mission is to protect the American homeland;

•   To secure our borders, transportation sector, ports, and critical infrastructure;

•   To synthesize and analyze homeland security intelligence from multiple sources;

Mission of DHS

•   To coordinate communications with state and local governments, private industry, and the American people about threats and preparedness;

•   To coordinate our efforts to protect the American people against bio-terrorism and other weapons of mass destruction;

•   To train and equip for first responders;

•   To manage federal emergency response activities; and more security officers in the field working to stop terrorists.

DHS

n   DHS has Five Major Divisions, or "Directorates":

n   Border and Transportation Security (BTS)

n   Emergency Preparedness and Response (EPR)

n   Science and Technology (S&T)

n   Information Analysis and Infrastructure Protection (IAIP)

n   Management

 

Border and Transportation Security

n    BTS is headed by an Under Secretary (Asa Hutchinson) responsible for the security of  borders and transportation systems. It is the largest Directorate, it houses:

n    Transportation Security Administration,

n    U.S. Customs Service (Treasury),

n    the border security function of INS (Justice),

n    Federal Protective Service (GSA)

n    Animal & Plant Health Inspection Service (Agri),

n    FLETC (Treasury).

n    Office for Domestic Preparedness (Justice)

BTS

n    Responsible for protecting America's borders, territorial waters, and transportation systems by centralizing information-sharing and databases that track and monitor.

n    Controlling all ports of entry, BTS tracks commerce through initiatives such as the Container Security Initiative (CSI), which inspects sea containers before they leave their country of origin.

n    BTS will tighten the visa system and improve security in transportation through training.

Emergency Preparedness and Response (EPR):

n    This Directorate is headed by an Under Secretary (Mike Brown).  It’s mission is to ensure preparedness and recovery from, terrorist attacks and disasters. It houses

n    The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)

•   Strategic National Stockpile and the National Disaster Medical System (HHS)

•   Nuclear Incident Response Team (Energy)

•   Domestic Emergency Support Teams (Justice)

•   National Domestic Preparedness Office (FBI)

EPR

n    This directorate will create one emergency response plan to be used at all levels of government and will ensure that first-responders receive proper training and equipment.

n    It will manage assistance to first-responders for disaster preparedness training and coordinate disaster response procedures. FEMA will take the lead in controlling and coordinating grant programs for firefighters, police, and emergency personnel.

Science and Technology
(S & T)

n    Headed by an Under Secretary (Dr. Charles McQueary).  This Directorate coordinates  efforts in research and development, related to terrorist threats involving weapons of mass destruction.  It will utilize all scientific and technological advantages to secure the homeland. It is comprised of:

•   CBRN Countermeasures Programs (Energy)

•   Environ Measurements Laboratory (Energy)

•   National BW Defense Analysis Center (Defense)

•   Plum Island Animal Disease Center (Agriculture)

Information Analysis and Infrastructure Protection

n    The IAIP is responsible to identify and assess  intelligence information concerning threats to the homeland, issue timely warnings, and take appropriate preventive and protective action.

n    The Information Analysis and Infrastructure Protection directorate will analyze intelligence and information from other agencies (including the CIA, FBI, DIA and NSA) involving threats to homeland security and evaluate vulnerabilities in the nation's infrastructure.

IAIP

n    Comprised of:

•   Critical Infrastructure Assurance Office (Commerce)

•   Federal Computer Incident Response Center (GSA)

•   National Communications System (Defense)

•   National Infrastructure Protection Center (FBI)

•   Energy Security and Assurance Program (Energy)

 

IAIP

n   Intelligence and Threat Analysis. would fuse and analyze intelligence and other information pertaining to threats to the homeland from multiple sources – including the CIA, NSA, FBI, INS, DEA, DOE, Customs, DOT and data gleaned from other organizations. 

IAIP

n    Would merge under one roof the identification  and assessment of current and future threats

n    map those threats against our current vulnerabilities,

n    issue timely warnings,

n    and immediately take or effect appropriate preventive and protective action.

n    Partnering with DHS’s intelligence and threat analysis division will be the new FBI Office of Intelligence. The FBI and CIA reforms hopefully will lead to increased information flow to DHS.

IAIP

n   This directorate will also be charged with evaluating weaknesses in critical infrastructure, including food and water systems, agriculture, health systems, and emergency services, banking and finance, and other systems.

 

Management

n    Headed by an Under Secretary (Janet Hale)  Management will be responsible for budget, management and personnel issues in DHS.  

 

Secret Service – Coast Guard

n    The Secret Service and the Coast Guard will remain intact and report directly to the Secretary.

n    The USCG will also work closely with the Under Secretary of Border and Transportation Security.  USCG will maintain its independent identity as a military service.

n    Upon declaration of war or when the President so directs, the Coast Guard would operate as an element of the Department of Defense, consistent with existing law.

 

n    INS adjudications and benefits programs will report directly to the Deputy Secretary (ICE) as the Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services.

 

U.S. Secret Service

•   The Secret Service will report directly to the Secretary of Homeland Security.

•   The primary mission of the Secret Service will continue to be the protection of the President and other government leaders, as well as security for designated national events.

•   The Secret Service will also continue to be the primary agency responsible for protecting U.S. currency from counterfeiters and safeguarding Americans from credit card fraud.

Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services

•  While BTS is responsible for enforcement of our nation's immigration laws, the Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services supervises immigration services and providing citizenship services. The Director of Citizenship and Immigration Services reports directly to the Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security.

 

Office of State and Local Government Coordination

•  Homeland security requires close coordination between local, state and federal governments. This office coordinates homeland security efforts with state and local first responders, emergency services and governments.

 

Office of Private Sector Liaison

•   The Office of Private Sector Liaison provides direct communications to the business community.  The office works with individual businesses and through trade associations and other non-governmental organizations to foster dialogue with the Private Sector on the full range of issues and challenges faced by America's business sector in the post 9-11 world.  It will work particularly closely with security personnel from private industry.

 

Office of Inspector General

•  The Office of Inspector General serves as an independent and objective inspection, audit, and investigative body to promote effectiveness, efficiency, and economy in the Department of Homeland Security's programs and operations, and to prevent and detect fraud, abuse, mismanagement, and waste in such programs and operations.

 

“The iceman cometh.”

Bureau of Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE)

n    Effective June 9th The Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement established a headquarters structure for operational components and a field structure that provides an integrated chain of command.

n    It is staffed by a workforce of nearly 14,000, ICE is the investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).  ICE is comprised of components from the former Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS), the U.S. Customs Service, and the Federal Protective Service (FPS).  

ICE

n   Combined are the investigative, detention & removal, and intelligence functions of the former INS with the investigative, intelligence, and air & marine functions of the former Customs Service. All the functions of the former FPS are also part of ICE.

Bureau of Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE)

n    The new structure calls for five distinct operational divisions of ICE:

n    Investigations,

n    Detention & Removal,

n    Intelligence,

n    Air & Marine Interdiction,

n    Federal Protective Service.  

n    All these components will report directly to the Assistant Secretary of ICE.

Research and Development (R&D) (Grants)

n    The DHS will become one of the major funding sources of R&D. The DHS R&D portfolio would total $1.0 billion in the  Administration’s FY 2004 request, a 50 percent jump.

n    - In FY 2003, DHS R&D would be mostly transfers of existing programs from DOD, DOE, DOT, and USDA, but in FY 2004 a new Homeland Security Advanced Research Projects Agency (HSARPA) would begin to fund extramural R&D.

R&D

n   - The bioterrorism R&D portfolio would stay in the National Institutes of Health (NIH), but DHS will

n   have a priority-setting role.

 

Funding for Locals

n   Major realignment of funding

n   Traditional police funding sources will either decline or disappear

n   Funding is being transferred to DHS

n   Grants will be for preparedness.

Issues

n    How does a modern and mobile society coordinate 18,000 plus independent agencies?

n    Are the legal and enforcement boundaries changing? See:

The Changing Boundaries Between Federal and Local Law Enforcement
by Daniel C. Richman

    In Criminal Justice 2000, Volume 2: Boundary Changes in Criminal Justice Organizations. 2000, NCJ 18240 

 

 

Issues

n   Law enforcement versus security

n   Information Sharing

n   Turf

Budget FY2004

n    Border/Transportation Security

n    $18 billion

n    Infrastructure/technology improvements (smart borders)

n    $273 million

n    Border entry/exit tracking

n    $100 million

n    Training programs

n    $146 million

Budget FY2004

n   Transportation Security Act (TSA)

n   $4.8 billion

n   First response
 • firefighter equipment
 • state and local law enforcement terrorism prevention

n   $3.5 billion
 • $500 million
 • $500 million

 

Budget FY2004

n    Coast Guard
Maritime terrorist response
 • Maritime "911" system
 • Search and rescue personnel
 • "Deepwater" program

n    $6.8 billion
$65 million
 • $134 million
 • $20 million
 • $500 million


Budget FY2004

n    National Emergency Response

n    Strategic National Stockpile maintenance and improvement

n    $400 million

n    Biodefense vaccines/medications

n   $890 million

n    Disaster relief

n    $1.9 billion

n    Pre-disaster hazard mitigation program

n    $300 million

Budget FY2004

n    Flood Insurance Rate Map replacement

n    $200 million

n    Science and Technology

n    $350 million

n    Information Analysis and Infrastructure Protection

n    $829 million

n    Critical infrastructure assessment

n    $500 million

FY2004

n    Immigration Services

n    $500 million

n    Reduce application backlog, speed up procession

n    Non-Homeland Security Functions

n    $12.2 billion

n    Coast Guard Search and Rescue, Secret Service, currency- and financial-integrity protection

 

Budget FY2004

n    IT initiatives

n    $117 million

n    HLS Information Technology and Evaluation program

n    $21 million

n    Narrowband operations conversion

n    $68 million

n    Counterterrorism

n    $40 million

Issues

n    Controversy about adoption centered on whether the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Central Intelligence Agency should be incorporated in part or in whole.

n    The bill itself was also controversial for the presence of unrelated riders, as well as eliminating some standard civil service and labor protections from employees of the department. Administration wanted the right to fire an employee immediately, for incompetence or insubordination.

Issues

n    How do you do homeland security without the FBI?

n    the sheer magnitude of the proposed bureaucratic restructuring may trigger turf wars and distract senior U.S. officials from other aspects of the war on terrorism.

n    Some policy experts warn that important agency missions unrelated to homeland security—such as the main focus of the Coast Guard, search and rescue at sea—could suffer.

 

Issues

n    Finally, simply putting agencies under one roof doesn’t mean they’ll work better. Intelligence experts disagree over whether the new department’s proposed intelligence division will do any better at coordinating intelligence efforts than the FBI and CIA did before the September 11 attacks. Much will depend, experts say, on whether the new secretary is given a real mandate for change.

 

Issues

n    The department does not include the FBI and CIA, its new intelligence division will review reports of threats culled from intelligence community.  It will assess credibility, issue warnings, and order preventive measures.

n    The FBI will retain its status as the front-line agency handling terror threats at home, and the CIA will continue to monitor terrorism abroad. The Department of Homeland Security’s intelligence division will rely largely upon reports, rather than raw data, from the FBI and CIA.