Procurement s
INS’s initial expenditure plan and associated system acquisition
documentation and plans for the entry exit system partially meet the
legislative conditions imposed by the Congress. That is, INS has
implemented or has defined plans for implementing most of the legislatively
mandated requirements for the plan’s content, which include such areas as
capital planning and investment control, acquisition, and systems acquisition
management. However, key issues related to understanding and
implementing system requirements, such as developing a system security
lan and assessing system impact on the privacy of individuals, remain to be
addressed. Moreover, INS reported that it had obligated some entry exit
funding before it submitted the plan to the Appropriations Committees.
Since then, INS officials told GAO that they have de-obligated and
reclassified these obligations to other available funding sources.
GAO observed that INS has preliminary plans showing that it intends to
acquire and deploy a system that has functional and performance
capabilities that satisfy the general scope of capabilities required under
arious laws. These include the capability to (1) collect and match alien
arrival and departure data electronically; (2) be accessible to the border
management community (including consular officers, federal inspection
agents, and law enforcement and intelligence agencies responsible for
identifying and investigating foreign nationals); and (3) support machine-
readable, tamper-resistant documents with biometric identifiers at ports of
entry. Each of these capabilities is integral to supporting our nation’s border
security process (see figure).
However, GAO also observed that the initial plan does not provide sufficient
information about INS commitments for the system, such as what specific
system capabilities and benefits will be delivered, by when, and at what cost,
and how INS intends to manage the acquisition to provide reasonable
assurance that it will meet these commitments. Without sufficiently detailed
information on system plans and progress, the Congress will be impeded in
its efforts to oversee the system.
Simplified Diagram of the Border Security Process
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
Highlights of GAO-03-563, a report to the
Senate and House Subcommittees on
Homeland Security, Committees on
Appropriations
www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-03-563.
To view the full report, including the scope
and methodology, click on the link above.
For more information, contact Randolph C.
June 2003
Homeland Security Needs to Improve
Entry Exit System Expenditure Planning
Pursuant to legislative direction,
the Immigration and Naturalization
Service (INS), now part of the
Department of Homeland Security,
plans to acquire and deploy an
entry exit system to assist in
monitoring the flow of foreign
nationals in and out of the United
States. By separate legislative
direction, INS must submit to the
Senate and House Committees on
Appropriations a plan for this
system that meets certain
conditions, including being
reviewed by GAO, before funds can
be obligated. This report satisfies
GAO’s mandated review obligation
by (1) addressing whether the plan
submitted by INS, along with
related INS documentation and
plans, meets required conditions
and (2) providing observations
about the plan and INS’s
management of the system.
GAO recommends that the
Secretary of Homeland Security
(1) plan for and implement system
investment and acquisition
management controls and
(2) ensure that future expenditure
plans provide sufficient details to
permit an understanding of
(a) system capabilities, benefits,
cost, and delivery date and (b) how
the acquisition will be managed to
meet these commitments. The
department did not explicitly agree
or disagree with GAO’s conclusions
and recommendations, but
described actions it plans to take
that are consistent with these
recommendations.