    Homeland Security: U.S. Visitor and Immigrant Status Program's
    Long-standing Lack of Strategic Direction and Management Controls
    Needs to Be Addressed (31-AUG-07, GAO-07-1065).

    The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has established a
    program known as U.S. Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator
    Technology (US-VISIT) to collect, maintain, and share
    information, including biometric identifiers, on certain foreign
    nationals who travel to the United States. By congressional
    mandate, DHS is to develop and submit an expenditure plan for
    US-VISIT that satisfies certain conditions, including being
    reviewed by GAO. GAO reviewed the plan to (1) determine if the
    plan satisfied these conditions, (2) follow up on certain
    recommendations related to the program, and (3) provide any other
    observations. To address the mandate, GAO assessed plans and
    related documentation against federal guidelines and industry
    standards and interviewed the appropriate DHS officials.
    -------------------------Indexing Terms-------------------------
    REPORTNUM:   GAO-07-1065
        ACCNO:   A75489
      TITLE:     Homeland Security: U.S. Visitor and Immigrant Status
    Program's Long-standing Lack of Strategic Direction and
    Management Controls Needs to Be Addressed
         DATE:   08/31/2007
      SUBJECT:   Biometric identification
    	     Cost analysis
    	     Homeland security
    	     Identification cards
    	     Immigrants
    	     Program evaluation
    	     Program management
    	     Reporting requirements
    	     Strategic planning
    	     Accountability
    	     Program implementation
    	     DHS Visitor and Immigrant Status
    	     Indicator Technology Program

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    GAO-07-1065

         * [1]Report to Congressional Committees

              * [2]August 2007

         * [3]HOMELAND SECURITY

              * [4]U.S. Visitor and Immigrant Status Program's Long-standing Lack
                of Strategic Direction and Management Controls Needs to Be
                Addressed

         * [5]Contents

              * [6]Compliance with Legislative Conditions
              * [7]Status of Open Recommendations
              * [8]Observations on the Expenditure Plan and Management of US-
                VISIT
              * [9]Conclusions
              * [10]Recommendation for Executive Action
              * [11]Agency Comments and Our Evaluation

         * [12]Briefing Slides
         * [13]Comments from the Department of Homeland Security
         * [14]GAO Contact and Staff Acknowledgments

    [15]www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-07-1065 .

    To view the full product, including the scope
    and methodology, click on the link above.

    For more information, contact Randolph C. Hite at (202) 512-3439 or
    hiter@gao.gov.

    Highlights of [16]GAO-07-1065 , a report to congressional committees

    August 2007

    HOMELAND SECURITY

    U.S. Visitor and Immigrant Status Program's Long-standing Lack of
    Strategic Direction and Management Controls Needs to Be Addressed

    The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has established a program known
    as U.S. Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology (US-VISIT) to
    collect, maintain, and share information, including biometric identifiers,
    on certain foreign nationals who travel to the United States. By
    congressional mandate, DHS is to develop and submit an expenditure plan
    for US-VISIT that satisfies certain conditions, including being reviewed
    by GAO. GAO reviewed the plan to (1) determine if the plan satisfied these
    conditions, (2) follow up on certain recommendations related to the
    program, and (3) provide any other observations. To address the mandate,
    GAO assessed plans and related documentation against federal guidelines
    and industry standards and interviewed the appropriate DHS officials.

    [17]What GAO Recommends

    Because outstanding recommendations already address all of the management
    weaknesses discussed in this report, GAO is reiterating prior
    recommendations and recommending that the Secretary of DHS report to the
    department's authorization and appropriations committees on its reasons
    for not fully addressing the legislative conditions and prior GAO
    recommendations. DHS largely agreed with the report and provided
    additional information and views that GAO has incorporated and addressed
    in the report as appropriate.

    The US-VISIT expenditure plan, including related program documentation and
    program officials' statements, satisfies or partially satisfies some but
    not all of the legislative conditions required by the Department of
    Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 2007. For example, the department
    satisfied the condition that it provide certification that an independent
    verification and validation agent is currently under contract for the
    program and partially satisfied the condition that US-VISIT comply with
    DHS's enterprise architecture. However, the department did not satisfy the
    conditions that the plan include a comprehensive US-VISIT strategic plan
    and a complete schedule for biometric exit implementation.

    DHS partially implemented GAO's oldest open recommendations pertaining to
    US-VISIT. For example, while the department partially completed the
    recommendation that it develop and begin implementing a US-VISIT system
    security plan, the scope of the plan does not extend to all the systems
    that comprise US-VISIT. In addition, while the expenditure plan provides
    some information on US-VISIT's cost, schedule, and benefits associated
    with planned capabilities, the information provided is not sufficiently
    defined and detailed to address GAO's recommendation and provide a
    reasonable basis for measuring progress and holding the department
    accountable for results.

    GAO identified several additional observations. On the positive side, DHS
    data show that the US-VISIT prime contract is being executed according to
    cost and schedule expectations. However, DHS continues to propose
    disproportionately heavy investment in US-VISIT program management-related
    activities without adequate justification or full disclosure. Further, DHS
    continues to propose spending tens of millions of dollars on US-VISIT exit
    projects that are not well-defined, planned, or justified on the basis of
    costs, benefits, and risks.

    Overall, the US-VISIT fiscal year 2007 expenditure plan and other
    available program documentation do not provide a sufficient basis for
    effective program oversight and accountability. Both the legislative
    conditions and GAO's open recommendations are aimed at accomplishing both,
    and thus they need to be addressed quickly and completely. However,
    despite ample opportunity to do so, DHS has not done so and the reasons
    why are unclear. Until these recommendations are addressed, GAO does not
    believe that the program's disproportionate investment in
    management-related activities represents a prudent and warranted course of
    action or to expect that the newly launched exit endeavor will produce
    results different from past results--namely, no operational exit solution
    despite expenditure plans allocating about a quarter of a billion dollars
    to various exit activities.

    References

    Visible links
      15. http://www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-07-1065
      16. http://www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-07-1065
    *** End of document. ***