    Homeland Security: Opportunities Exist to Enhance Collaboration
    at 24/7 Operations Centers Staffed by Multiple DHS Agencies
    (20-OCT-06, GAO-07-89).

    Because terrorists do not operate on a 9-5 schedule, the
    Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and its operational
    components have established information gathering and analysis
    centers that conduct activities 24 hours a day, 7 days a week,
    365 days a year. Staff at these operations centers work to help
    detect, deter, and prevent terrorist acts. DHS has determined
    that out of 25 operations centers, four require higher levels of
    collaboration that can only be provided by personnel from
    multiple DHS agencies, and other federal, and sometimes state and
    local, agencies. For these four multi-agency operations centers,
    this report (1) describes their missions, products, functions,
    and customers and (2) assesses the extent to which DHS efforts to
    promote collaboration among the multiple agencies responsible for
    the centers reflect key practices for enhancing and sustaining
    collaborative efforts. To do so, GAO visited operations centers,
    reviewed data and reports from the centers, and interviewed
    center and other DHS officials.
    -------------------------Indexing Terms-------------------------
    REPORTNUM:   GAO-07-89
        ACCNO:   A62444
      TITLE:     Homeland Security: Opportunities Exist to Enhance
    Collaboration at 24/7 Operations Centers Staffed by Multiple DHS
    Agencies
         DATE:   10/20/2006
      SUBJECT:   Accountability
    	     Agency missions
    	     Counterterrorism
    	     Federal agencies
    	     Homeland security
    	     Information management
    	     Interagency relations
    	     Monitoring
    	     Program evaluation
    	     Reporting requirements
    	     Strategic planning
    	     Terrorism
    	     Terrorists
    	     Intelligence gathering operations
    	     Policies and procedures

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    GAO-07-89

         * Results in Brief
         * Background
              * Twenty-two Agencies Merged to Form DHS in the Aftermath of 9
              * Three DHS Components Sponsor Multi-Agency Operations Centers
              * Transformation Challenges and Practices That Can Help Enhanc
         * While the Four Multi-Agency Operations Centers' Missions and
              * The Different Missions of the Four Multi-Agency Operations C
                   * Air and Marine Operations Center
                   * National Targeting Center
                   * Transportation Security Operations Center
                   * National Operations Center-Interagency Watch
              * The Four Multi-Agency Operations Centers Share Common Functi
         * Opportunities Exist to Enhance Collaboration at DHS's Four M
              * The Four Multi-Agency Operations Centers Lack Documented Goa
              * The Four Multi-Agency Operations Centers Are at Varying Stag
              * Three of the Four Multi-Agency Operations Centers Have Not E
              * DHS Did Not Provide All Multi-Agency Operations Centers with
              * Three of Four Multi-Agency Operations Centers Have Not Devel
              * The Four Multi-Agency Operations Centers Are at Various Stag
              * DHS's Operations Directorate Has an Opportunity to Help Ensu
         * Conclusions
         * Recommendations for Executive Action
         * Agency Comments and Our Evaluation
         * GAO Contact
         * Acknowledgments
         * GAO's Mission
         * Obtaining Copies of GAO Reports and Testimony
              * Order by Mail or Phone
         * To Report Fraud, Waste, and Abuse in Federal Programs
         * Congressional Relations
         * Public Affairs

    United States Government Accountability Office

    Report to Congressional Requesters

    GAO

    October 2006

    HOMELAND SECURITY

    Opportunities Exist to Enhance Collaboration at 24/7 Operations Centers
    Staffed by Multiple DHS Agencies

    GAO-07-89

    Contents

    Letter 1

    Results in Brief 6
    Background 9
    While the Four Multi-Agency Operations Centers' Missions and Products
    Differ, Functions and Customers Are Similar 13
    Opportunities Exist to Enhance Collaboration at DHS's Four Multi-Agency
    Operations Centers 25
    Conclusions 34
    Recommendations for Executive Action 35
    Agency Comments and Our Evaluation 35
    Appendix I Missions of 24/7/365 DHS Centers Staffed by One DHS Component
    38
    Appendix II Objectives, Scope, and Methodology 41
    Appendix III Comments from the Department of Homeland Security 44
    Appendix IV GAO Contact and Staff Acknowledgments 49

    Tables

    Table 1: 24/7/365 DHS National Operations Centers Staffed by Multiple DHS
    Agencies 3
    Table 2: Description of the Functions Performed by the Four DHS
    Multi-Agency Operations Centers 23

    Figures

    Figure 1: Organizations within the Department of Homeland Security That
    Conduct 24/7/365 Activities 10
    Figure 2: Air and Marine Operations Center Sources of Information and Data
    15
    Figure 3: National Targeting Center Sources of Information and Data at and
    between the Nation's Ports of Entry 17
    Figure 4: Modes of Transportation Monitored by the Transportation Security
    Operations Center 19
    Figure 5: National Operations Center-Interagency Watch Information and
    Data Sources 22

    Abbreviations

    AMOC Air and Marine Operations Center

    CBP Customs and Border Protection

    DHS Department of Homeland Security

    FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency

    HSIN Homeland Security Information Network

    ICE Immigration and Customs Enforcement

    NOC National Operations Center

    NOC-Watch National Operations Center-Interagency Watch

    NTC National Targeting Center

    TSA Transportation Security Agency

    TSOC Transportation Security Operations Center

    USCG United States Coast Guard

    USSS United States Secret Service

    This is a work of the U.S. government and is not subject to copyright
    protection in the United States. It may be reproduced and distributed in
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    separately.

    United States Government Accountability Office

    Washington, DC 20548

    October 20, 2006

    The Honorable Susan M. Collins Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security
    and Governmental Affairs United States Senate

    The Honorable Norm Coleman Chairman, Permanent Subcommittee on
    Investigations Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
    United States Senate

    The Homeland Security Act of 20021 established the Department of Homeland
    Security (DHS) with the primary mission of preventing terrorist attacks
    against the United States. To accomplish this mission, DHS must be aware
    of the potential risks and vulnerabilities faced by the nation, including
    terrorist threats to our transportation infrastructure (such as rail,
    aviation, and shipping); terrorists entering our country through land,
    air, and sea ports; and terrorists operating within our borders. Because
    terrorists do not operate on a 9-to-5 schedule, DHS and some of its
    operational components (six DHS agencies and DHS's Operations
    Directorate2) have established information gathering and/or analysis
    centers that conduct activities 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a
    year. Staff at these operations centers conduct monitoring and
    surveillance activities to help detect, deter, and prevent terrorist acts
    by providing real-time situational awareness to a variety of federal,
    state, and local governments and private-sector entities. According to
    DHS, this constant situational awareness is needed to facilitate an
    immediate response during times of crisis or other national incidents.

    The six DHS agencies and the DHS Operations Directorate that run national
    operations centers "24/7/365" gather and/or analyze information through
    monitoring and surveillance activities to help detect, deter, and prevent
    terrorist acts across the entire United States.3 In addition, DHS conducts
    other 24/7/365 activities, such as telecommunications services, security
    alarm monitoring, and region-specific operations at a variety of other
    centers. We identified a total of 20 national and 5 regional DHS centers
    that conduct 24/7/365 activities.4 Twenty-one of the 25 centers employ
    staff from one DHS agency on a regular full-time basis and perform
    agency-specific functions. Appendix I provides details on the missions and
    functions of these centers.

    1 Pub. L. No. 107-296, 116 Stat. 2135.

    2 Established in 2005, the Operations Directorate is a separate
    organization within DHS that is responsible for one 24/7/365 center and
    exists to improve operational efficiency and coordination across the
    department, among other things.

    DHS has determined that the remaining 4 centers have broader security
    missions and require higher levels of collaboration that can only be
    provided by personnel from multiple DHS agencies, and other federal, and
    sometimes state and local, agencies. In January 2003, we designated
    implementation and transformation of the new Department of Homeland
    Security as high risk based on three factors: the enormity of the effort,
    the challenges faced by the components, and the potential impact of
    failure to effectively carry out the homeland security mission.5 Given the
    critical homeland security role played by these operations centers and the
    opportunity to facilitate the department's transformation efforts by
    maximizing collaboration at the program level, this report focuses on
    these four national operations centers that are "multi-agency," that is,
    staffed by personnel from more than one agency within DHS, along with
    other federal, and sometimes state and local, agencies. The 4 centers are
    described in table 1.

    3 The six primary component agencies that conduct 24/7/365 operations are
    the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Transportation Security
    Administration, Customs and Border Protection, Immigration and Customs
    Enforcement, the U.S. Coast Guard, and the U.S. Secret Service; the U.S.
    Citizenship and Immigration Services does not have an operations center
    that conducts activities 24/7/365 days a year.

    4 As defined for this report, the national centers conduct information
    gathering and/or analysis activities that cover the entire nation as
    opposed to a specific region or activities limited to alarm system
    monitoring or communications relays. For example, the U.S. Coast Guard has
    46 command center locations at the area, district, and sector levels to
    serve as regional points of coordination for operational command and
    control, communications, and intelligence and analysis. Meanwhile, the
    Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Federal Protective Service
    Mega-Center System consists of four individual regional center locations
    that provide alarm monitoring to federally owned or leased buildings. We
    did not count these DHS regional centers with multiple locations more than
    once since they performed the same mission. As another example, the
    Federal Emergency Management Agency's Mobile Emergency Response Support
    Operations Centers are located in five regions that we counted as one
    center, for the purposes of our review.

    5 GAO, High Risk Series: An Update, GAO-03-119 (Washington, D.C.: January
    2003).

    Table 1: 24/7/365 DHS National Operations Centers Staffed by Multiple DHS
    Agencies

    Sponsoring                         Other
    organization:                      participating   Other participating
    center         Mission             DHS agencies    agencies outside DHS
    Customs and    To detect, sort,    U.S. Coast      Federal Aviation
    Border         track, and          Guard           Administration
    Protection     facilitate the
    (CBP):         interdiction of                     Department of Defense
                      criminal entities                   National Guard
    Air Marine and throughout the                      Bureau-Air National
    Operations     Western Hemisphere,                 Guard
    Center (AMOC)a by utilizing
                      integrated air and                  Government of Mexico
    National       marine forces, the
    Targeting      latest technology,
    Center (NTC)   and tactical
                      intelligence.
                      To coordinate and   Immigration and Federal Bureau of
                      support all agency  Customs         Investigation
                      field-level         Enforcement
                      anti-terrorism                      Department of State
                      activities by       Federal Air
                      providing tactical  Marshals        Food and Drug
                      targeting and                       Administration
                      analytical          Transportation
                      research, and to be Security        U.S. Department of
                      a single point of   Administration  Agriculture
                      reference for all
                      agency              U.S. Coast
                      anti-terrorism      Guard
                      efforts.
    Transportation To provide          U.S. Secret     Federal Bureau of
    Security       situational         Servicec        Investigation
    Administration awareness and
    (TSA):         information sharing Customs and     Federal Aviation
                      in day-to-day       Border          Administration
    Transportation coordination and    Protectionc
    Security       incident management                 U.S. Capitol Police
    Operations     for all
    Center (TSOC)b transportation                      U.S. Air Force
                      security-related
                      operations and                      D.C. Metro Police
                      issues worldwide by
                      monitoring,
                      responding to, and
                      investigating
                      security incidents
                      involving all
                      transportation
                      sectors.
    DHS Operations To act as the       U.S. Secret     Central Intelligence
    Directorate:   primary             Service         Agency
                      national-level hub
    National       for domestic        Immigration and Defense Intelligence
    Operations     situational         Customs         Agency
    Center         awareness, common   Enforcement
    Interagency    operating picture,                  National Security
    Watch          combining and       Federal         Agency
    (NOC-Watch)d   sharing of          Protective
                      information,        Service         National
                      communications, and                 Geospatial-Intelligence
                      operations          Federal Air     Agency
                      coordination        Marshals
                      pertaining to the                   Federal Bureau of
                      prevention of       Transportation  Investigation
                      terrorist attacks   Security
                      and domestic        Administration  Department of Interior
                      incident management
                      by facilitating     Customs and     Drug Enforcement
                      information sharing Border          Administration
                      with other federal, Protection
                      state, local,                       Alcohol, Tobacco,
                      tribal, and         U.S. Coast      Firearms and Explosives
                      nongovernmental     Guard
                      emergency                           Virginia State Police
                      operations centers; Federal
                      and by fusing law   Emergency       Fairfax County Police
                      enforcement,        Management
                      national            Agency          New York, Boston, and
                      intelligence,                       Los Angeles police
                      emergency response,                 departments
                      and private-sector
                      reporting.

    Source: GAO generated based on information from DHS.

    aOn August 22, 1988, the Customs Air Interdiction Program established the
    Command, Control, Communications, and Intelligence Center, West, at March
    Air Force Base in Riverside, California. In October 1994, the facility was
    renamed the Domestic Air Interdiction Coordination Center. In 1999, marine
    programs were merged with air interdiction programs, and the name of the
    Riverside facility was changed to the Air and Marine Interdiction
    Coordination Center. Effective March 1, 2003, the center was renamed the
    Air and Marine Operations Center.

    bThe TSOC comprises three watch functions-the National Capital Region
    Coordination Center is responsible for National Capital Region air
    security and defense functions; the National Infrastructure Coordination
    Center is responsible for continuously assessing the status of the
    nation's critical infrastructure and key resources; and the TSA Command
    Watch is responsible for coordinating the execution of the TSOC mission.

    cThe National Capital Region Command Center, one of three watch functions
    of the TSOC, constitutes the multi-agency element because it is staffed by
    other DHS component agencies-the U.S. Secret Service and CBP.

    dPrior to May 25, 2006, the National Operations Center-Interagency Watch
    was called the Homeland Security Operations Center. The Interagency Watch
    also incorporates staff from DHS's Offices of Information & Analysis;
    Infrastructure Protection, and Incident Management Division, as well as a
    variety of other DHS and non-DHS organizations.

    To assess the collaboration among DHS agencies working at each
    multi-agency 24/7/365 operations center, this report answers the following
    questions:

               1. What are the missions, functions, and products of the
               multi-agency 24/7/365 DHS operations centers and who are their
               customers?
               2. To what extent has DHS implemented key practices for enhancing
               and sustaining collaboration at these multi-agency centers?

    To answer our first objective, we analyzed information obtained from the
    responsible component agencies and the Operations Directorate on the
    mission and functions of all of the 24/7/365 activities in DHS. We visited
    all 4 multi-agency centers, as well as centers operated by other component
    agencies including the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the U.S. Coast
    Guard, and the U.S. Secret Service to observe their operations, interview
    officials responsible for managing the centers, and identify centers that
    employed staff from multiple DHS agencies.6 From the 4 national operations
    centers that employed staff from multiple DHS component agencies--the Air
    and Marine Operations Center (AMOC), the National Targeting Center (NTC),
    the Transportation Security Operations Center (TSOC), and the National
    Operations Center-Interagency Watch (NOC-Watch)-we obtained additional
    information on both the products the centers regularly developed and their
    primary customers. We also interviewed several staff assigned to centers
    from participating DHS component agencies-referred to as watchstanders7-to
    discuss their roles and responsibilities at the centers and the overall
    mission of the centers to which they had been assigned.

    6 During incidents or emergencies, other operations centers may employ
    staff from multiple agencies. For example, the Coast Guard's regional
    command centers that normally focus on a variety of U.S. Coast Guard's
    missions and are not normally interagency in structure have established
    protocols with other DHS agencies, such as Customs and Border Protection
    and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, to activate a unified or incident
    command structure when needed. These U.S. Coast Guard centers have extra
    space and equipment that allow for surge capabilities and full
    coordination with each partner agency to host ad hoc interagency
    operations.

    To answer our second objective, we met with the acting director and other
    responsible officials from the Operations Directorate to discuss its role
    and responsibilities. We reviewed transition, management integration, and
    planning and policy documents as well as strategic plans and annual
    performance reports and planning documents from DHS and its component
    agencies. We also reviewed and analyzed the results of studies undertaken
    by DHS to assess and improve coordination and collaboration at the
    multi-agency centers as well as reports from GAO, the Congressional
    Research Service, the DHS Office of Inspector General, and others that
    addressed the integration, coordination, and collaboration of
    departmentwide program functions. We then assessed DHS's efforts related
    to integration, coordination, and collaboration at the multi-agency
    centers to determine the extent to which they reflect DHS's application of
    the key practices we have found can help enhance and sustain collaboration
    among federal agencies and found to be at the center of successful mergers
    and transformations.8

    We conducted our work from October 2005 through September 2006 in
    accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards. Appendix
    II includes more detailed information on our scope and methodology.

    7 For the purpose of this report, we use the term "watchstander" to refer
    to an individual required to work full-time on a rotating 24-hour
    schedule, 7 days per week, to maintain situational awareness, conduct
    information assessment and threat monitoring to deter, detect, and prevent
    terrorist incidents. A watchstander may also act as a liaison between his
    agency and other agency representatives at the center, and may manage
    response to critical threats and incidents.

    8 GAO, Results-Oriented Government: Practices That Can Help Enhance and
    Sustain Collaboration among Federal Agencies, GAO-06-15 (Washington, D.C.:
    Oct. 21, 2005).

                                    Results in Brief

    The four multi-agency operations centers each have their own mission and
    generate different products while performing some similar functions and
    sharing a number of customers. The missions of the AMOC, NTC, and TSOC are
    tactical, including such activities as monitoring the nation's airspace,
    the movement of potential terrorists, and the passengers on commercial
    flights, respectively. NOC-Watch's mission is more strategic in that it
    collects information gathered by the other multi-agency operations
    centers9 and provides a national perspective on situational awareness for
    potential terrorist activity. The products of the four multi-agency
    operations centers reflect their different missions and range from reports
    on suspicious private air and marine craft from the AMOC, individuals
    entering the country at land, sea and airports from the NTC, and
    individuals traveling on commercial flights from the TSOC, to an overview
    of the national threat environment from the NOC-Watch. The multi-agency
    operations centers all share common functions such as maintaining
    situational awareness, information sharing and communications;
    coordinating internal operations and coordinating among federal, state,
    local, tribal, and private-sector entities; and managing incidents and
    making decisions. In addition, the AMOC and NOC-Watch exercise operational
    command and control and, along with the NTC, coordinate with foreign
    governments. The four multi-agency operations centers' primary customers
    include federal, state, and local governments; private-sector entities;
    and some foreign governments.

    DHS has leveraged its resources-one key collaborative practice-by having
    staff from multiple agencies work together at the four operations centers.
    However, opportunities exist to further implement this and the other
    relevant practices that our previous work has identified as important to
    enhancing and sustaining collaboration among federal agencies.
    Specifically, not all of the components responsible for managing the
    operation centers have

               o  established goals to define and articulate a common outcome and
               mutually reinforcing or joint strategies for collaboration
               (related to two of our key practices);
               o  assessed staffing needs to leverage resources;
               o  defined roles and responsibilities of watchstanders from
               agencies other than the managing one;
               o  applied standards, policies, and procedures for DHS's
               information sharing network to provide a means to operate across
               agency boundaries;
               o  prepared mechanisms to monitor, evaluate, and report on results
               of the operations centers to reinforce collaborative efforts; and
               o  reinforced agency accountability for collaboration efforts
               through agency plans and reports.

    9 In addition, the NOC-Watch gathers information from other DHS operations
    centers, as well as a variety of other federal, state, and local
    government and law enforcement organizations.

    For example, some DHS components have established a variety of internal
    and external working agreements, memorandums, and in the case of the Joint
    Field Offices, standard operating procedures. However, DHS's Operations
    Directorate, which is responsible for coordinating operations, has not
    provided guidance on how and when such agreements should be used to
    improve collaboration among the sponsoring and participating components at
    the operations centers we reviewed. Nor have any of these centers
    documented goals or joint strategies using these or other types of
    agreements. Without having a documented joint strategy for collaboration,
    there is a risk that center staff monitoring potential terrorist
    activities may not operate in the most collaborative manner. DHS has also
    not assessed staffing needs to leverage resources and help ensure that
    there are enough watchstanders, who occupy the primary positions at the
    multi-agency operations centers, to conduct surveillance activities. While
    three of the four multi-agency operations centers had developed
    descriptions for the watchstander position staffed by their own agency,
    only one center-the AMOC-had also developed a position description for
    staff assigned to the center from another DHS agency. The other centers
    relied on the components providing staff to define their watchstanders'
    roles and responsibilities. Lack of a consistent definition for the
    watchstander position may lead to people at the same center in the same
    role performing the same responsibilities differently or not at all.
    Because of the potentially critical, time-sensitive need for decisive
    action at 24/7/365 operations centers, it is important that the roles and
    responsibilities of watchstanders are described and understood by both the
    staff and the officials responsible for managing the operations centers.
    In another example, DHS had not provided the standards, policies, and
    procedures for the use of its Homeland Security Information Network, its
    primary information-sharing tool. Without the application of the
    standards, policies, and procedures, users were unsure of how to use the
    network and, therefore, did not maximize the operation centers' capacity
    for sharing security-related information. In terms of monitoring,
    evaluating, and reporting the results of joint efforts at the multi-agency
    operations centers, in January 2004, AMOC began collecting data to measure
    productivity, but had not yet evaluated efforts, and the rest of the
    multi-agency centers have not developed any methods for evaluating and
    reporting results. Finally, neither DHS nor the multi-agency operations
    centers have reinforced accountability for collaborative efforts through
    joint agency planning and reporting. Such public accounting through
    published strategic and annual performance plans and reports makes
    agencies answerable for collaboration results. The Operations Directorate,
    established in November 2005 to improve operational efficiency and
    coordination, provides DHS with an opportunity to more fully implement the
    key practices that are important to enhancing and sustaining collaboration
    at its multi-agency operations centers. Although the Operations
    Directorate does not possess administrative, budgetary, or operational
    control over the other component's operations centers, guidance from the
    Operations Directorate could help the other components responsible for the
    24/7/365 multi-agency operations centers make key advances in each
    collaborative practice.

    To provide a setting for enhanced collaboration among the staff at each
    operations center, we recommend that the Secretary of the Department of
    Homeland Security charge the Director of the Operations Directorate with
    developing and providing guidance and helping to ensure the three
    component agencies of the four multi-agency operations centers take the
    following six actions: define common goals and joint strategies; clarify
    the roles and responsibilities for watchstanders; apply standards,
    policies, and procedures for using DHS's information network; conduct
    staffing needs assessments; prepare mechanisms to monitor, evaluate, and
    report on the results of collaborative efforts; and address collaborative
    efforts at the four multi-agency operations centers in plans and reports.

    In reviewing a draft of this report, DHS agreed with the recommended
    actions to enhance collaboration at the DHS multi-agency operations
    centers. Among other things, DHS noted plans to conduct an independent
    study, initiated in September 2006, to leverage technical and analytical
    expertise to support expanding the capabilities of the Operations
    Directorate. In addition, DHS said it plans to move elements of the
    National Operations Center to the Transportation Security Operations
    Center in 2007 and, ultimately to colocate the DHS headquarters, and all
    the DHS component headquarters along with their respective staffs and
    operations centers, at one location. We agree that these leadership
    efforts provided by the Operations Directorate could further enhance
    collaboration among DHS's component agencies, along with the key practices
    suggested by our review of collaboration practices among agencies across
    the federal government. DHS's written comments are presented in appendix
    III.

                                       Background

    Twenty-two Agencies Merged to Form DHS in the Aftermath of 9/11

    DHS was created in response to the terrorist attacks on September 11,
    2001. Not since the creation of the Department of Defense in 1947 has the
    federal government undertaken an organizational merger of this magnitude.
    Enacted on November 25, 2002, the Homeland Security Act established DHS by
    merging 22 distinct agencies and organizations with multiple missions,
    values, and cultures.10 The 22 agencies whose powers were absorbed or in
    part assumed by DHS came from eight different departments (Agriculture,
    Commerce, Defense, Energy, Health and Human Services, Justice,
    Transportation, and the Treasury) and two independent offices (the Federal
    Emergency Management Agency and the General Services Administration). In
    addition, DHS merged responsibilities from former agencies to create some
    new agencies, such as Customs and Border Protection. On March 1, 2003, DHS
    officially began operations as a new department. DHS is among the largest
    federal government agencies, with approximately 180,000 employees and an
    estimated budget of $43.6 billion for fiscal year 2007.

    DHS's mission is to lead the unified national effort to secure America,
    prevent and deter terrorist attacks, protect against and respond to
    threats and hazards to the nation, ensure safe and secure borders, welcome
    lawful immigrants and visitors, and promote the free flow of commerce. Six
    of the seven primary operational agencies, and the Operations Directorate
    of the department, have identified the need to conduct activities in
    support of the homeland security mission 24 hours a day, 7 days a week,
    365 days a year. The department's July 2006 organizational chart, as
    illustrated in figure 1, highlights these six agencies and the Operations
    Directorate.

    10 DHS was initially created with 22 originating agencies and
    organizations. Shortly thereafter in June 2003, a 23rd organization, the
    Plum Island Animal Disease Center, was transferred into DHS from the U.S.
    Department of Agriculture.

    Figure 1: Organizations within the Department of Homeland Security That
    Conduct 24/7/365 Activities

    Three DHS Components Sponsor Multi-Agency Operations Centers

    The three components of DHS that have overall responsibility for the four
    multi-agency 24/7/365 operations centers were created in response to the
    events of September 11, 2001, and the subsequent establishment of DHS. By
    merging portions of the Immigration and Naturalization Service and the
    U.S. Department of Agriculture with elements of U.S. Customs, CBP was
    created as part of DHS in 2003 to protect the nation's borders in order to
    prevent terrorists and terrorist weapons from entering or exiting the
    United States while facilitating the flow of legitimate trade and travel.
    CBP sponsors two 24/7/365 multi-agency operations centers: the Air and
    Marine Operations Center and the National Targeting Center. TSA,
    established in 2001 (as part of the Department of Transportation), and
    incorporated into DHS in 2003, protects the nation's transportation
    systems to ensure freedom of movement for people and commerce and sponsors
    the Transportation Security Operations Center. DHS established the Office
    of Operations Coordination (referred to as the Operations Directorate)
    after a broad internal review in 2005. The Operations Directorate, which
    sponsors the National Operations Center (includes the previous Homeland
    Security Operations Center), is responsible for coordinating internal and
    external operational issues throughout the department, conducting incident
    management, and facilitating rapid staff planning and execution.11 The
    three sponsoring components provide overall direction and management for
    their respective centers.

    Transformation Challenges and Practices That Can Help Enhance and Sustain
    Collaboration among Federal Agencies

    We have previously reported that establishing the new DHS is an enormous
    undertaking and the new department needs to build a successful
    transformation that does the following: instills the organization with
    important management principles; rapidly implements a phased-in transition
    plan; leverages the new department and other agencies in executing the
    national homeland security strategy; and builds collaborative partnerships
    with federal, state, local, and private-sector organizations.12

    DHS faces significant management and organizational transformation
    challenges as it works to protect the nation from terrorism and
    simultaneously establish itself. For these reasons, in January 2005, we
    continued to designate the implementation and transformation of the
    department as high risk. DHS's Inspector General reported, in December
    2004, that integrating DHS's many separate components into a single,
    effective, efficient, and economical department remains one of its biggest
    challenges.13 We also reported in 2005 that agencies can enhance and
    sustain their collaborative efforts by engaging in eight key management
    practices:14

    11 According to DHS, the National Operations Center incorporates the
    24/7/365 Interagency Watch, the Office of Intelligence and Analysis, the
    Federal Emergency Management Agency's National Response Coordination
    Center, and an office called the Planning Element. The National Operations
    Center also shares responsibility for the National Infrastructure
    Coordination Center which is colocated and integrated as a watch function
    at the Transportation Security Operations Center.

    12 GAO, Results-Oriented Cultures, Implementation Steps to Assist Mergers
    and Organizational Transformations, GAO-03-669 (Washington, D.C.: July 2,
    2003).

               o  defining and articulating a common outcome;
               o  establishing mutually reinforcing or joint strategies;
               o  identifying and addressing needs by leveraging resources;
               o  agreeing on roles and responsibilities;
               o  establishing compatible policies, procedures, and other means
               to operate across agency boundaries;
               o  developing mechanisms to monitor, evaluate, and report on
               results of collaborative efforts;
               o  reinforcing agency accountability for collaborative efforts
               through agency plans and reports; and
               o  reinforcing individual accountability for collaborative efforts
               through performance management systems.

    Although there is no commonly accepted definition for collaboration, in
    our previous assessment of collaborative efforts among federal agencies we
    defined it as any joint activity by two or more organizations that is
    intended to produce more public value than could be produced when the
    organizations act alone. This report focuses on the actions DHS and its
    components have taken to make collaboration at multi-agency operations
    centers as effective as possible. Joint activities take place at
    operations centers where multiple components staff watchstander positions
    and provide liaison, expertise, and access to information that would not
    otherwise be on hand. For this report, we selected the first seven of the
    eight key practices listed above and assessed the first two key practices
    together, thereby reducing our focus to six areas. We did not address the
    eighth practice-reinforcing individual accountability for collaborative
    efforts through performance management systems-because an in-depth
    examination of component agencies' performance management systems was
    beyond the scope of this review.

    13 Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General, Office of
    Audits, Major Management Challenges Facing The Department Of Homeland
    Security, DHS/OIG-05-06 (Washington, D.C.: December 2004).

    14 GAO-06-15 , 4.

     While the Four Multi-Agency Operations Centers' Missions and Products Differ,
                          Functions and Customers Are Similar

    The four multi-agency operations centers each have their own mission and
    generate different products while performing similar functions and sharing
    a number of customers. The missions of the AMOC, NTC, and TSOC are
    tactical, including such activities as monitoring the nation's airspace,
    the movement of potential terrorists, and the passengers on commercial
    flights, respectively. NOC-Watch's mission is more strategic in that it
    collects information gathered by the other multi-agency operations
    centers15 and provides a national perspective on situational awareness.
    The products of the four multi-agency operations centers reflect their
    different missions and range from reports on suspect individuals traveling
    on commercial flights to reports on suspicious private air and marine
    craft. The multi-agency operations centers all share some common
    functions: maintaining situational awareness and information sharing and
    communications; coordinating internal operations and coordinating among
    federal, state, local, tribal, and private-sector entities; and managing
    incidents and making decisions. While all the multi-agency operations
    centers share common customers, such as foreign, federal, state, and local
    governments, the NOC-Watch has a larger number of customers, given its
    role as a hub for overall situational awareness.

    The Different Missions of the Four Multi-Agency Operations Centers Result in
    Different Products

    Of the four multi-agency operations centers, three-AMOC, NTC and TSOC-have
    tactical yet different missions and provide different products that
    reflect their respective missions. The NOC-Watch has a more strategic
    mission in providing an overall assessment of situational awareness.

      Air and Marine Operations Center

    The AMOC's primary mission is to detect, sort, track, and facilitate the
    interdiction of criminal entities throughout the Western Hemisphere, by
    utilizing integrated air and marine forces, the latest technology, and
    tactical intelligence. AMOC's maintains day-to-day, around-the-clock
    airspace situational awareness of the nation's borders through
    identification and detection of foreign and domestic threats. Created in
    1988 by the U.S. Customs Service and located in Southern California, the
    AMOC was established as the Air and Marine Operations Center on March 1,
    2003. In addition to CBP and U.S. Coast Guard personnel, the AMOC is
    staffed by the Federal Aviation Administration, and the Department of
    Defense National Guard Bureau-Air National Guard, as well as a
    representative of the government of Mexico.

    15 In addition, the NOC-Watch gathers information from other DHS
    operations centers, as well as a variety of other federal, state, and
    local government and law enforcement organizations.

    AMOC staff use surveillance systems and databases to detect, identify, and
    track potential threats, and to coordinate the apprehension of criminals
    using law enforcement air, marine, and ground interdiction forces. Staff
    utilize a surveillance system that includes an extensive network of over
    200 ground-based radar and satellite tracking systems throughout North
    America and the Caribbean. Staff also use numerous law enforcement and
    Federal Aviation Administration databases to ensure that U.S. entry policy
    and procedures are followed. Figure 2 shows the variety of information and
    data sources employed by the AMOC.

    Figure 2: Air and Marine Operations Center Sources of Information and Data

    Staff can conduct detailed research from a transnational and criminal
    threat perspective to identify suspect persons, aircraft, and marine
    vessels. AMOC staff use the resulting information to coordinate air and
    marine law enforcement activity with various agencies such as the U.S.
    Coast Guard and Immigration and Customs Enforcement; federal, state, and
    local law enforcement; the Department of Defense; U.S. and foreign air
    traffic control facilities; and foreign government coordination centers.16
    The AMOC Daily Intelligence Report focuses on the nation's borders
    involving suspicious private air and marine craft that are detected by
    radar, eyewitnesses, or surveillance aircraft.

      National Targeting Center

    The NTC's mission is to coordinate and support all agency field-level
    anti-terrorism activities by providing tactical targeting and analytical
    research, and to be a single point of reference for all agency
    anti-terrorism efforts. NTC monitors the movement of potential terrorists
    and prevents them and any weapons of terror from entering and exiting our
    country through land, air, and sea ports. Established on October 22, 2001,
    under the U.S. Customs Service, the NTC, located in Northern Virginia,
    began 24/7/365 operations November 10, 2001. In addition to CBP personnel,
    the NTC is staffed by the U.S. Coast Guard, Immigration and Customs
    Enforcement, Federal Air Marshal Service, and the Transportation Security
    Administration.

    NTC staff use sophisticated information-gathering techniques and
    analytical tools to look at data containing passenger and flight
    information. These data include lists of known terrorists, foreign
    visitors whose official authorization permitting entry into and travel
    within the United States has elapsed (visa overstays), passport
    information, and cargo listings to seek potential matches. Any
    inconsistency identified in the data can trigger additional analysis.
    Figure 3 shows the variety of sources of information and data sources
    employed by the NTC.

    16 Foreign government coordination centers that partner with the Air and
    Marine Operations Center include the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Joint
    Interagency Task Forces, Operation Bahamas Turks and Caicos, the U.S.
    Embassy Mexico's Intelligence Analysis Center, and the Canadian National
    Operations Center.

    Figure 3: National Targeting Center Sources of Information and Data at and
    between the Nation's Ports of Entry

    NTC works with a variety of federal stakeholders. For example, the NTC
    works with the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Terrorist Screening
    Center to identify persons on the National Terrorist Watch List. NTC staff
    also provide information from CBP's Advance Passenger Information System
    for TSA's performance of a risk assessment on crewmembers on international
    flights. Federal Air Marshals use information developed by the NTC to
    determine if they need to put resources on a specific flight. Using NTC
    capabilities to screen crew, vessel, and cargo, along with other
    information, the U.S. Coast Guard determines vessels and crewmembers that
    warrant further surveillance or assessment and can prioritize its
    inspection efforts. NTC also helps in implementing the pilot Immigration
    Advisory Program by reviewing advance information on travelers forwarded
    by program teams to identify travelers at foreign airports that may
    present a risk or warrant more intensive examination before they board
    aircraft bound for the United States. (Passengers whose travel documents
    are invalid, expired, or otherwise may have been altered, counterfeited or
    obtained through fraud are advised, as is the airline, before they leave
    their foreign location that they will likely be deemed inadmissible and
    denied entry upon arrival in the United States.) The NTC reports we
    reviewed primarily identified individuals at and between domestic ports of
    entry and certain critical foreign ports.

      Transportation Security Operations Center

    The TSOC's mission is to provide situational awareness and information
    sharing in day-to-day coordination and incident management for all
    transportation security related operations and issues worldwide by
    monitoring, responding to, and investigating security incidents involving
    all transportation sectors. TSOC maintains situational awareness of
    passengers on commercial flights and works to minimize and mitigate
    security vulnerabilities of the National Capital Region and critical
    infrastructure such as commercial airports, rail stations, and pipelines.
    The TSOC, located in Northern Virginia, began 24/7/365 operations in
    August 2003. The National Capital Region Command Center constitutes the
    multi-agency element of the TSOC because it is staffed by other DHS
    component agencies-specifically the U.S. Secret Service and Customs and
    Border Protection. In addition, representatives of organizations outside
    of DHS such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation, District of Columbia
    Metro Police, Federal Aviation Administration, U.S. Capitol Police, and
    the U.S. Air Force (Northeast Air Defense Sector) provide watchstanders
    for the TSOC.

    As part of its mission, TSOC staff coordinate with federal, state, and
    local homeland security entities to identify activities that might
    indicate a threat to national security and isolate indications of
    impending attack while assessing their potential impact. The TSOC also
    furnishes alerts and reports to field security organizations while
    combining intelligence with operational information across all modes of
    transportation. Last, it monitors incidents and crises, including national
    special events such as presidential inaugurations and the Super Bowl, for
    TSA headquarters and makes recommendations to DHS leadership. Figure 4
    shows the modes of transportation monitored by the TSOC.

    Figure 4: Modes of Transportation Monitored by the Transportation Security
    Operations Center

    The TSOC reports we reviewed provided information on incidents across all
    modes of transportation, including National Capital Region security
    incidents, critical infrastructure, and individuals of interest related to
    the No-Fly List.17

      National Operations Center-Interagency Watch

    The NOC-Watch is designed to perform a more strategic mission than the
    other three multi-agency operations centers. NOC-Watch acts as the primary
    national-level coordination point for awareness of events that may affect
    national security or safety. The center is responsible for combining and
    sharing of information, communications, and operations coordination
    pertaining to the prevention of terrorist attacks and domestic incident
    management by facilitating information sharing with other federal, state,
    local, tribal, and nongovernmental entities and by fusing law enforcement,
    national intelligence, emergency response, and private-sector reporting.
    Created as the Homeland Security Operations Center and located in
    Northwest Washington, D.C., the center was established on February 19,
    2003, and redesignated the National Operations Center on May 25, 2006. The
    NOC-Watch is the 24/7/365 element of the center. In addition to staff from
    the Operations Directorate, the NOC-Watch includes other DHS staff from 20
    components and offices such as representatives from the U.S. Secret
    Service, Federal Protective Service, Federal Air Marshal Service,
    Transportation Security Administration, Customs and Border Protection,
    U.S. Coast Guard, Federal Emergency Management Agency, U.S. Border Patrol,
    U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, National Biological
    Surveillance Group, U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team, Domestic
    Nuclear Detection Office, and other DHS directorates. The NOC-Watch also
    includes representatives from 35 other federal, state, and local agencies
    such as the Central Intelligence Agency; Defense Intelligence Agency;
    National Security Agency; National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency; Federal
    Bureau of Investigation; Department of Interior (U.S. Park Police); Drug
    Enforcement Administration; Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives;
    Virginia State Police; Fairfax County Police; and the New York, Boston,
    and Los Angeles police departments; and a number of other organizations.

    17 The No-Fly List is a list of individuals who are prohibited from
    boarding an aircraft. Originally created and maintained by TSA, the No-Fly
    List is the consolidated terrorist watch list maintained by the Federal
    Bureau of Investigation-administered Terrorist Screening Center. Both TSA
    and CBP use the No-Fly List for screening airline passengers. TSA is
    responsible for screening domestic airline passengers; CBP screens
    international passengers. CBP also uses this list to screen cruise line
    passengers.

    NOC-Watch staff use information gathered and communicated by the three
    tactical centers; other DHS operation centers; other federal, state, and
    local entities; and a wide variety of other information sources to provide
    overall national situational awareness related to homeland security. The
    NOC-Watch reports, via the DHS Director of Operations, to the Secretary of
    Homeland Security and coordinates directly with the White House and
    focuses on two goals: (1) the detection, prevention, and deterrence of
    terrorist attacks and (2) domestic incident management during crises and
    disasters or national special events. Figure 5 shows some of the sources
    of information and agencies with which that information is shared.

    Figure 5: National Operations Center-Interagency Watch Information and
    Data Sources

    Situation reports prepared by the Operations Directorate's NOC-Watch that
    we reviewed contained information reported from other DHS subcomponents
    and operations centers such as the TSOC, NTC, and AMOC, as well as
    external intelligence and law enforcement agencies, and the private
    sector. The NOC-Watch also prepares a Homeland Security Operations Morning
    Brief that provides information to federal, state, and local law
    enforcement agencies on the national picture at the sensitive but
    unclassified level.

    The Four Multi-Agency Operations Centers Share Common Functions and Customers

    All four centers conduct common functions to maintain situational
    awareness and communicate and coordinate with other federal, state, and
    local governments, as well as private-sector entities. The centers do so
    to support both the mission of the sponsoring component organization and
    the underlying homeland security mission of DHS. On the basis of our
    discussions with center officials and our assessment of documents they
    provided, we summarized these functions and found that all DHS
    multi-agency operations centers perform 9 of 11 functions identified in
    table 2. (According to TSOC officials, the TSOC does not coordinate with
    foreign governments, and NTC and TSOC officials said they do not exercise
    command and control functions.)

    Table 2: Description of the Functions Performed by the Four DHS
    Multi-Agency Operations Centers

    Functions                         Description
    Situation awareness/information
    sharing and communications
    Situation awareness/monitoring    The continual process of collecting,
    (all four centers)                analyzing, and disseminating
                                         intelligence, information, and knowledge
                                         to allow organizations and individuals
                                         to anticipate requirements and to react
                                         effectively and to establish a common
                                         operational picture-a broad view of the
                                         overall situation as reflected by
                                         situation reports, aerial photography,
                                         and other information or intelligence.
    Situation assessment/analysis     The evaluation and interpretation of
    (all four centers)                information gathered from a variety of
                                         sources (including weather information
                                         and forecasts, computerized models,
                                         Geographic Information Systems data
                                         mapping, remote sensing sources, ground
                                         surveys, etc.) that, when communicated
                                         to emergency managers and decision
                                         makers, can provide a basis for incident
                                         management decision making.
    Information dissemination and     The process of providing information
    real-time communications (all     such as current threat-level
    four centers)                     information, announcements, reports, and
                                         urgent alerts to federal, state, local,
                                         tribal, and private-sector officials
                                         about possible terrorism activitiesa on
                                         a continuous basis.
    Coordination
    Intradepartmental coordination    The sharing of information and
    (all four centers)                operations with other DHS component
                                         agencies to synchronize activities and
                                         accomplish a collective task.
    Other federal agency coordination The sharing of information, activities,
    and state, local, tribal          and operations with federal, state, and
    coordination (all four centers)   local governments who have a shared
                                         responsibility in preparing for
                                         terrorist attacks as well as other
                                         disasters to accomplish a collective
                                         task.
    Private-sector, nongovernment     The sharing of information, activities,
    coordination (all four centers)   and operations with organizations and
                                         entities that are not part of any
                                         governmental structure to accomplish a
                                         collective task (e.g., for-profit and
                                         not-for-profit organizations, formal and
                                         informal structures, commerce and
                                         industry, private emergency response
                                         organizations, and private voluntary
                                         organizations).
    Foreign government coordination   The sharing of information and
    (NOC-Watch, NTC, and AMOC)        operations with representatives of other
                                         foreign national governments to
                                         synchronize activities and accomplish a
                                         collective task.
    Incident management and
    decision-making
    Incident management (all four     The development of strategies and
    centers)                          tactics and the ordering, coordination,
                                         and release of resources in response to
                                         an event, such as a terrorist attack or
                                         natural disaster.
    Decision-making support (all four The development of ideas, alternatives,
    centers)                          or plans to aid decision makers in
                                         selection of a course of action, in
                                         responding to a new event or to make
                                         adjustments as an ongoing situation
                                         changes.

    Operational activities
    Operational coordination The integrating or linking together of different
                                organizational elements by synchronizing
    (all four centers)       activities to accomplish a collective task.
    Operational command and  The exercise of authority and direction by a
    control                  properly designated command organization over
                                assigned forces or assets in the accomplishment
    (NOC-Watch and AMOC)     of a specified mission.

    Source: GAO based on DHS information.

    aSection 892(f)(1) of the Homeland Security Information Sharing Act, Pub.
    L. No. 107-296, 116 Stat. 2252 (2002), defines homeland security
    information to include information possessed by a federal, state, or local
    agency that (A) relates to the threat of terrorist activity; (B) relates
    to the ability to prevent, interdict, or disrupt terrorist activity; (C)
    would improve the identification or investigation of a suspected terrorist
    or terrorist organization; or (D) would improve the response to a
    terrorist act.

    Multi-agency operations centers' customers include federal, state, and
    local governments and private-sector entities, along with foreign
    governments. The NOC-Watch has a larger number of overall customers; as
    the national-level multi-agency hub for situational awareness and a common
    operating picture, the NOC-Watch provides information to a wider range of
    government customers, including federal executive leadership, and
    intelligence and law enforcement agencies at the federal, state, and local
    level.

        Opportunities Exist to Enhance Collaboration at DHS's Four Multi-Agency
                                   Operations Centers

    DHS has leveraged its resources-one key collaborative practice-by having
    staff from multiple agencies work together at the four operations centers.
    However, opportunities exist to further implement this and the other
    relevant practices that our previous work has identified as important to
    enhancing and sustaining collaboration among federal agencies. For
    example, not all of the components responsible for managing the operation
    centers had

               o  established goals to define and articulate a common outcome and
               mutually reinforcing or joint strategies for collaboration
               (related to two of our key practices);
               o  assessed staffing needs to leverage resources;
               o  defined roles and responsibilities of watchstanders from
               agencies other than the managing one;
               o  applied standards, policies, and procedures for DHS's
               information sharing network to provide a means to operate across
               agency boundaries;
               o  prepared mechanisms to monitor, evaluate, and report on results
               of the operations centers to reinforce for collaborative efforts;
               and
               o  reinforced agency accountability for collaboration efforts
               through agency plans and reports.

    The Operations Directorate, established in November 2005 to improve
    operational efficiency and coordination, provides DHS with an opportunity
    to more consistently implement these practices that can enhance and
    sustain collaboration among federal agencies at multi-agency operations
    centers.

    The Four Multi-Agency Operations Centers Lack Documented Goals and Joint
    Strategies

    The three DHS components responsible for the four multi-agency centers
    have not developed and documented common goals or joint strategies for
    their operation that our work has shown could enhance collaboration among
    the agencies. Officials at the four multi-agency operations centers we
    visited said they did consider formally documenting working agreements but
    concluded it was not essential since all of the agencies involved were
    part of DHS. Officials from the NOC said that the lack of formal
    agreements is a reflection of the speed with which the center was
    established and the inherent flexibility offered to DHS agencies in order
    to get them to staff the operation center positions. Nonetheless, as the
    DHS Office of Inspector General has reported, memorandums of understanding
    are valuable tools for establishing protocols for managing a
    national-level program between two organizations.18 Within DHS, external
    and internal memorandums of agreement and other interagency joint
    operating plans are often used to document common organizational goals and
    how agencies will work together. For example:

               o  The National Interdiction Command and Control Plan19 among the
               Department of Defense, Office of National Drug Control Policy, and
               the AMOC highlights an agreement between a DHS component and other
               federal agencies.
               o  The Joint Field Office Activation and Operations Interagency
               Integrated Standard Operating Procedure20 describes how a
               temporary federal multi-agency coordination center should be
               established locally to facilitate field-level domestic incident
               management activities related to prevention, preparedness,
               response, and recovery and addresses the roles and
               responsibilities of multiple DHS components such as the Federal
               Emergency Management Agency and Immigration and Customs
               Enforcement and other federal agencies such as the Federal Bureau
               of Investigation.

               o  Guidelines Governing Interaction Between ICE's Office of
               Investigations and CBP's Office of Border Patrol21 documents a
               memorandum of understanding between the Office of Investigations
               at Immigration and Customs Enforcement and CBP's Border Patrol,
               entered into in November 2004, that governs the interaction
               between the two components and formalizes roles and
               responsibilities in order to further enhance information sharing.

    18 Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General, Office of
    Inspections and Special Reviews, An Assessment of the Proposal to Merge
    Customs and Border Protection with Immigration and Customs Enforcement,
    OIG-06-04 (Washington, D.C.: Nov. 2005).

    19 Office of National Drug Control Policy, National Interdiction Command
    and Control Plan, (Washington, D.C.: Sept. 20, 2005).

    Thus, although some DHS components have established a variety of internal
    and external working agreements, memorandums, and in the case of the Joint
    Field Offices, standard operating procedures, DHS's Operations
    Directorate, which is responsible for coordinating operations, has not
    provided guidance on how and when such agreements should be used to
    improve collaboration among the sponsoring and participating components at
    the operations centers we reviewed. Nor have any of these centers
    documented goals or joint strategies using these or other types of
    agreements.

    Our previous work has shown that memorandums of agreement or understanding
    and strategic plans can both be used to establish common goals and define
    joint strategies for how agencies will work together. According to our
    work, collaborative efforts are further enhanced when staff working across
    agency lines define and articulate a common federal outcome, or purpose,
    that is consistent with their respective agency goals and missions. Joint
    strategies or mutual agreements also contribute to another key area when
    they are used as a vehicle for identifying and defining more specific
    expectations of the roles and responsibilities of staff provided by
    collaborating agencies.

    20 Department of Homeland Security, Joint Field Office Activation and
    Operations Interagency Integrated Standard Operating Procedure, version
    8.3 Interim Approval (Washington, D.C.: April 2006) i-ii.

    21 As cited in DHS-OIG-06-04, 42.

    The Four Multi-Agency Operations Centers Are at Varying Stages of Assessing
    Staffing Needs

    The extent to which officials responsible for managing the four
    multi-agency operations centers had conducted needs assessments to
    determine the staffing requirements of each center varied. For example,
    CBP officials conducted an evaluation in June 2005 that addressed AMOC
    capabilities and continuing staffing needs related to AMOC personnel, but
    did not address the need for, or responsibilities of, U.S. Coast Guard
    staff at the center. AMOC officials did cite a requirement for additional
    staff from the U.S. Coast Guard, as well as a requirement for an
    Immigration and Customs Enforcement position in a subsequent strategic
    planning effort (although these requirements had not been filled).
    However, there was not a specific assessment supporting the need for these
    staff positions. NTC officials had not conducted a staffing needs
    assessment but said they plan to conduct an assessment based upon current
    targeting programs, the scheduled expansion of existing programs, and the
    onset of additional CBP targeting programs. They said they plan to include
    data on the volume of telephone calls handled by the center and the number
    of information requests completed by the NTC in support of CBP targeting
    and operations, and they expect to complete the assessment in October
    2006. TSOC and NOC-Watch officials said they had not documented a needs
    analysis for staff from agencies other than the sponsoring agency.
    Instead, they viewed the cross-agency staffing requirement as a historical
    edict based on a general assumption that other agency staff expertise was
    needed to fulfill the mission of their operations center.

    Our work has shown that collaborating agencies should identify the
    resources, including human resources, needed to initiate or sustain their
    collaborative effort and take steps to leverage those resources. Because
    each agency, or component, has different strengths and limitations,
    assessing these varying levels allows them collectively to obtain
    additional resources otherwise unavailable individually. Formal assessment
    of the need for all participating agencies' staff to perform specific
    functions allows for the leveraging of resources to more effectively meet
    the operational needs of each agency or component.

    Three of the Four Multi-Agency Operations Centers Have Not Established a
    Definition of Watchstander Roles and Responsibilities for All Agencies at Each
    Center

    While three of the four multi-agency operations centers had developed
    descriptions for the watchstander position staffed by their own agency,
    only one center-the AMOC-had developed a position description for staff
    assigned to the center from another DHS agency. At the AMOC, center
    officials require that Coast Guard staff meet a standardized set of
    requirements for radar watchstanders. The other centers relied on the
    components providing staff to define their watchstanders' roles and
    responsibilities. Lack of a consistent definition for the watchstander
    position may lead to people at the same center in the same role performing
    the same responsibilities differently or not at all.

    Our work has shown that defining roles and responsibilities both enhances
    and sustains collaboration among federal agencies. Because of the
    potentially critical, time-sensitive need for decisive action at 24/7/365
    operations centers, it is important that the roles and responsibilities of
    watchstanders are described and understood stood by both the staff and the
    officials responsible for managing the operations centers. Further, a
    definition of the watchstander role and responsibilities is important for
    supporting agency officials who must make staffing decisions about
    assigning qualified and knowledgeable personnel to the centers. Finally,
    internal controls standards22 require that management and employees
    establish a positive control environment as a foundation for strong
    organizational internal controls. According to the standard, one activity
    that agency officials may consider implementing as part of the control
    environment is to identify, define, and provide formal, up-to-date job
    descriptions or other means of identifying and defining job-specific
    tasks.

    22 GAO, Standards for Internal Control in the Federal Government,
    GAO/AIMD-00-21 .3.1 (Washington, D.C. November 1999).

    DHS Did Not Provide All Multi-Agency Operations Centers with Standards,
    Policies, and Procedures for Use of Its Information Sharing Network to Operate
    across Agency Boundaries

    To collaborate by sharing information through DHS's primary information
    sharing system, the Homeland Security Information Network (HSIN),23
    agencies participating in multi-agency operations centers need to be
    connected to the network and have the guidance that enables its use. In
    the course of our work, we learned that CBP's National Targeting Center
    could not collaborate with other users of HSIN because the system was not
    connected for NTC watchstanders.24 Other concerns about the use of HSIN to
    enhance coordination and collaboration have also been identified by the
    DHS Inspector General. According to the Inspector General, DHS did not
    provide adequate user guidance, including clear information sharing
    processes, training, and reference materials needed to effectively
    implement HSIN.25 The report noted that in the absence of clear DHS
    direction, users were unsure of how to use the system. Though DHS
    officials said other networks such as the Secret Internet Protocol Router
    Network and the Joint Worldwide Intelligence Communications System are
    primarily used for coordination of intelligence analysis, the connectivity
    problem with the primary DHS-wide information sharing system, HSIN,
    remained unresolved as of September 2006.

    Our work has shown that to facilitate collaboration, agencies need to
    address the compatibility of standards, policies, procedures, and data
    systems used in the collaborative effort. Furthermore, as agencies bring
    diverse cultures to the collaborative effort, it is important to address
    these differences to enable a cohesive working relationship and to create
    the mutual trust required to enhance and sustain the collaborative effort.
    Frequent communication among collaborating agencies is another means to
    facilitate working across agency boundaries and prevent misunderstanding.
    The lack of standards, policies, and procedures for use of HSIN at DHS
    operations centers could limit the frequency and effectiveness of
    communications among the centers.

    23 The HSIN is an unclassified, Web-based system that provides a secure,
    collaborative environment for real-time information sharing that includes
    reporting, graphics, and chat capabilities, as well as a document library
    that contains reports from multiple federal, state, local, and
    private-sector sources. HSIN supplies suspicious incident and pre-incident
    information, mapping and imagery tools, 24x7 situational awareness, and
    analysis of terrorist threats, tactics, and weapons.

    24 Other single agency operations centers such as the U.S. Coast Guard's
    Intelligence Coordination Center were also not fully connected. For
    example, U.S. Coast Guard officials told us that HSIN has never been
    widely used by analysts or watchstanders at their Intelligence
    Coordination Center due to technical and testing issues that made the
    system unavailable. We were also told that the Immigration and Customs
    Enforcement Operations Center had never been connected to HSIN due to
    technical problems.

    25 Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General, Office of
    Information Technology, HSIN Could Support Information Sharing More
    Effectively, DHS/OIG-06-38 (Washington, D.C.: June 2006).

    Three of Four Multi-Agency Operations Centers Have Not Developed Methods to
    Monitor, Evaluate, and Report Results of Joint Efforts

    With the exception of AMOC, the multi-agency centers have not developed
    methods to monitor, evaluate, and report the results of joint efforts. For
    example, the Office of Management and Budget's assessment of the NOC-Watch
    for 2005 determined that center officials had not established effective
    annual or long-term performance goals.26 Nor were performance measures or
    other mechanisms in place to monitor and evaluate the joint efforts of
    multiple DHS agencies at the TSOC and NTC. In response to a report by the
    DHS Office of Inspector General in March 2004 that found the AMOC did not
    have organizational performance measures and individual performance
    standards to assess AMOC's effectiveness and productivity,27 AMOC
    officials reported to the Inspector General that they began collecting
    data in January 2004 on a daily basis to measure productivity for the
    overall operations center as well as individual watchstanders, including
    U.S. Coast Guard representatives.

    Our work has shown that developing means to monitor, evaluate, and report
    areas of improvement allow agencies to enhance collaboration. Developing
    performance measures and mechanisms to monitor and evaluate the
    contributions can help management, key decision makers, and both
    stakeholders and customers obtain feedback through internal reports in
    order to improve operational effectiveness and policy. Developing goals
    and providing performance results can also help reinforce accountability
    through joint planning and reporting of collaborative efforts.

    26 As reported on ExpectMore.gov found at
    http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/expectmore/detail.10003615.2005.html .

    27 Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General, Office of
    Audits, AMOC Needs To Improve Written Guidelines For Providing Assistance
    To Other Agencies, DHS/OIG-04-20 (Washington, D.C.: March 2004).

    The Four Multi-Agency Operations Centers Are at Various Stages of Reinforcing
    Accountability for Collaborative Efforts through Joint Agency Planning and
    Reporting

    Neither DHS nor the component agencies responsible for managing the four
    multi-agency operations centers consistently discuss or include a
    description of the contribution of collaborative efforts of the
    multi-agency operations centers in their strategic or annual performance
    plans and reports. The most recent DHS strategic plan, issued in 2004,
    neither included a discussion of performance goals nor addressed the joint
    operations of the multi-agency centers. The plan reported only that DHS
    "will provide integrated logistical support to ensure a rapid and
    effective response and coordinate among Department of Homeland Security
    and other federal, state, and local operations centers consistent with
    national incident command protocols." CBP's 2005 annual report on the
    operations of the NTC does, however, include a section dedicated to the
    contributions of the external liaisons in describing the roles and
    responsibilities of other DHS agency personnel including the Federal Air
    Marshal Service, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and the U.S. Coast
    Guard, and the accomplishments they have made in the center's operations.
    In addition, the AMOC strategic plan for 2005 generally discussed the
    importance of collaboration with other component agencies and included a
    goal to strengthen component agency partnerships to maximize homeland
    security strategies. Reports of the components responsible for managing
    the other centers do not address the roles and contributions of other
    supporting agencies in accomplishing the centers' missions. DHS agencies
    responsible for providing staff to support watchstander positions for
    multi-agency operations centers managed by other agencies also do not
    address their participation in the operations of the operations center in
    strategic plans or performance reports. In general, managing and
    supporting agencies that do mention the operations centers do not include
    any discussion of the relationship between the participating agencies'
    missions or strategies and those of the centers.

    Our work has shown that federal agencies can use their strategic and
    annual performance plans as tools to drive collaboration with other
    agencies and partners and establish complementary goals and strategies for
    achieving results. These performance plans can also be used to ensure that
    goals are consistent and, if possible, mutually reinforcing.
    Accountability is also reinforced when strategic and annual performance
    plans help to align agency policy with collaborative goals. A public
    accounting through published strategic and annual performance plans and
    reports makes agencies answerable for collaboration.

    DHS's Operations Directorate Has an Opportunity to Help Ensure That Key
    Practices for Collaboration Are Implemented at the Multi-Agency Operations
    Centers

    DHS established a new Office of Operations Coordination in November 2005
    (referred to as the Operations Directorate) to increase its ability to
    prepare for, prevent, and respond to terrorist attacks and other
    emergencies and improve coordination and efficiency of operations. In
    responding to a draft of this report, DHS cited a number of efforts that
    the new directorate plans to take to fulfill this leadership role. Among
    other things, DHS said it plans to conduct an independent study, initiated
    in September 2006, to leverage technical and analytical expertise to
    support expanding the capabilities of the Operations Directorate. In
    addition, DHS said it plans to move elements of the National Operations
    Center to the Transportation Security Operations Center in 2007 and,
    ultimately to colocate the DHS headquarters and all the DHS component
    headquarters along with their respective staffs and operations centers at
    one location. DHS also cited the development of a new working group that
    is developing a national command and coordination capability. While we
    agree that these leadership efforts proposed by the Operations Directorate
    could further enhance collaboration among DHS's component agencies,
    because DHS officials did not provide any information or documentation of
    these efforts in response to our requests during the course of the review,
    we were unable to determine the extent to which these efforts are likely
    to enhance and sustain departmental collaboration. Nonetheless, further
    departmental focus on the key practices we have identified could enhance
    collaboration among the component agencies. For example, at the time of
    our review, the directorate had not taken steps to gather information on
    the resources available at each center. The director's office did not have
    ready access to information such as centers' budgets or other financial
    information needed for reporting across the components, the number of
    staff employed at the multi-agency centers, or the number and type of
    operations centers managed by the various components. After being directed
    to the components for budget and staffing information, we found that the
    managing components of the multi-agency operations centers also did not
    have ready access to up-to-date information on the number of staff the
    centers employed. Such information could be useful to the directorate's
    efforts to develop a national command and coordination capability and
    further enhance collaboration among the components with multi-agency
    operations centers. Directorate officials said that the Operations
    Directorate had not assumed its full range of responsibilities due to not
    being fully staffed until March 2006 and because of the revisions to the
    National Response Plan formalized in May 2006.28 In responding to a draft
    of this report, DHS said that the Operations Directorate does not have the
    authority to direct or exercise control over other components' operations
    centers with respect to administration and support, including
    organization, staffing, control of resources and equipment, personnel
    management, logistics, and training. Nonetheless, while the Operations
    Directorate lacks authority to direct the actions of the other components'
    operations centers and obtaining compatible data may be difficult since
    the reporting systems of several centers were in place prior to the
    creation of DHS, without compatible staffing and financial data Operations
    Directorate leadership officials are hampered in their ability to
    understand and compare the relative personnel and operating costs of the
    24/7/365 operations centers and use such information to promote the
    expected unity of effort within the department.

    28 Department of Homeland Security, Notice of Change to the National
    Response Plan Version 5.0, (Washington, D.C.: May 25, 2006).

    Enhanced leadership from the Operations Directorate to support consistent
    reporting of operations centers' budgets and staffing could also support
    collaborative actions in two of the previously mentioned key areas:
    assessing staffing needs to leverage resources, and applying standards,
    policies, and procedures to operate across agency boundaries. In the
    absence of leadership to support these and other collaborative efforts,
    DHS officials have not yet taken full advantage of an opportunity to meet
    the directorate's responsibilities.29

                                      Conclusions

    The establishment of the Operations Directorate with the express intent of
    enhancing collaboration and coordination among the department's
    operational components provides an opportunity to implement practices that
    could enhance collaboration among DHS agencies working together at each
    multi-agency 24/7/365 operations center. Having staff from multiple
    agencies work together is a way of leveraging resources, one key practice
    for enhancing collaboration. However, those resources may not be used to
    their full potential if other steps to enhance collaboration are not
    taken, and the Operations Directorate could provide guidance to help
    ensure that the sponsors of the operations centers take the appropriate
    steps. There are multi-agency operations centers that lack common goals
    and joint strategies; clearly defined roles and responsibilities;
    compatible standards, policies, and procedures for information networking;
    consistent staffing assessments; prepared mechanisms to monitor, evaluate,
    and report on the results of collaborative efforts; and reinforced agency
    accountability through agency plans and reports. Our previous work has
    shown that these are all critical components in enhancing collaboration
    among federal agencies. Given that the collaboration in multi-agency
    operations centers focuses on gathering and disseminating information on
    real-time situational awareness related to disasters and possible
    terrorist activity, it is important that the staff at the centers achieve
    the most effective collaboration possible.

    29 Our work on mergers and transformations suggests that leadership within
    the department must set the direction, pace, and tone and provide a clear,
    consistent rationale that brings everyone together behind a single mission
    and establish integrated strategic goals to guide the transformation.
    Highlights Of A GAO Forum-Mergers and Transformation: Lessons Learned for
    a Department of Homeland Security and Other Federal Agencies, GAO-03-293SP
    (Washington, D.C.: Nov. 14, 2002).

                          Recommendations for Executive Action

    To provide a setting for more effective collaboration among the staff at
    each multi-agency 24/7/365 operations center, we recommend that the
    Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security charge the Director of
    the Operations Directorate with developing and providing guidance and
    helping to ensure the agencies that sponsor the centers take the following
    six actions:

               o  define common goals and joint strategies;
               o  clarify the roles and responsibilities for watchstanders;
               o  implement compatible standards, policies, and procedures for
               using DHS's information network to provide a means of operating
               across agency boundaries;
               o  conduct staffing needs assessments;
               o  implement mechanisms to monitor, evaluate, and report on the
               results of collaborative efforts; and
               o  address collaborative efforts at the four multi-agency
               operations centers in plans and reports on the level of each
               operation center's managing agency.

                           Agency Comments and Our Evaluation

    On October 16, 2006, DHS provided written comments on a draft of this
    report (see app. III.) DHS agreed with the six recommended actions to
    enhance collaboration at the DHS multi-agency operations centers and said
    it planned to take action to implement the practices. In the draft report,
    we said that the Operations Directorate had not yet taken actions to
    fulfill its leadership role and that a lack of leadership by the
    Operations Directorate to support consistent reporting of operations
    centers' budgets and staffing limits collaborative actions. DHS did not
    agree that leadership provided by the Operation Directorate to support
    collaboration is lacking and provided a number of examples of leadership
    efforts. Among other things, DHS noted plans to conduct an independent
    study, initiated in September 2006, to leverage technical and analytical
    expertise to support expanding the capabilities of the Operations
    Directorate. In addition, DHS said it plans to move elements of the
    National Operations Center to the Transportation Security Operations
    Center in 2007 and, ultimately to colocate the DHS headquarters and all
    the DHS component headquarters along with their respective staffs and
    operations centers at one location. We identified the planned actions in
    the report and agree that these leadership efforts by the Operations
    Directorate have the potential to further enhance collaboration among
    DHS's component agencies, along with the key practices suggested by our
    efforts to review collaboration among agencies across the federal
    government. However, because Operations Directorate officials did not
    provide any information or documentation of these efforts in response to
    our requests during the course of the review, we were unable to determine
    the extent to which these efforts are likely to enhance and sustain
    departmental collaboration.

    In addition, DHS officials cited what they considered to be misconceptions
    expressed in the draft report. They said that the Operations Directorate
    does not have the administrative, budgetary, programmatic, or command and
    control authority to direct or exercise control over other component's
    operations centers. They also said that our draft incorrectly reported
    that the National Operations Center replaced the Homeland Security
    Operations Center. Although it was not our intent to imply that the
    Operations Directorate has administrative, budgetary, programmatic, or
    command and control authority to direct or exercise control over other
    component's operations centers, we added a clarifying reference to address
    DHS's concern. Finally, although we reported that the new National
    Operations Center includes (rather than replaced) the previous Homeland
    Security Operations Center, we also added a footnote to further clarify
    that the scope of responsibilities of the new National Operations Center
    is greater than that of the Homeland Security Operations Center.

    We are sending copies of this report to the Senate Committee on Homeland
    Security and Governmental Affairs, the Permanent Subcommittee on
    Investigations, the Secretary of Homeland Security; the Assistant
    Secretary of the Transportation Security Administration, the Commissioner
    of Customs and Border Protection, and interested congressional committees.
    We will also make copies available to others on request. In addition, the
    report will be available on GAO's Web site at http://www.gao.gov .

    If you or your staff have any questions about this report, or wish to
    discuss the matter further, please contact me at (202) 512-8777 or
    Jonespl@gao.gov. Contact points for our Offices of Congressional Relations
    and Public Affairs may be found on the last page of this report. Key
    contributors to this report are listed in appendix IV.

    Paul L. Jones
    Director, Homeland Security and Justice Issues

    Appendix I: Missions of 24/7/365 DHS Centers Staffed by One DHS Component

    DHS agency       #   Center         Mission
    Department of    1.  U.S.-Computer  To monitor cyber
    Homeland             Emergency      security, respond
    Security             Readiness Team to incidents, and
    Headquarters                        direct
    (DHS)                               communications.
                        2.  National Communications Center   To assist in the
                                                             initiation,
                                                             coordination,
                                                             restoration, and
                                                             reconstitution of
                                                             national security
                                                             and emergency
                                                             preparedness
                                                             telecommunications
                                                             services or
                                                             facilities under all
                                                             conditions, crises,
                                                             or emergencies.
    Transportation   3.  TSA Office of  To provide
    Security             Intelligence   warning and
    Administration                      intelligence
    (TSA)                               analysis to
                                           inform field
                                           operators,
                                           industry, and TSA
                                           leadership.
                        4.  Federal Air Marshal Service,     To provide support
                            Mission Operations Control       to for scheduling,
                            Center                           law enforcement
                                                             situations, crisis
                                                             management, and
                                                             safety and security-
                                                             related matters.
    Customs and      5.  Situation Room To provide
    Border                              information on
    Protection (CBP)                    significant
                                           incidents from
                                           field and sector
                                           offices,
                                           providing
                                           situational
                                           awareness to the
                                           Commissioner and
                                           senior CBP
                                           management.
                        6.  Caribbean Air Marine Operations  To utilize
                            Center (Regional Operations)     integrated air and
                                                             marine forces,
                                                             technology, and
                                                             tactical
                                                             intelligence to
                                                             detect, sort, track,
                                                             and facilitate the
                                                             interdiction of
                                                             criminal entities
                                                             throughout the
                                                             Caribbean area.
                        7.  National Airspace Security       To utilize
                            Operations Center (Regional      integrated air
                            Operations)                      forces, technology,
                                                             and tactical
                                                             intelligence to
                                                             maintain air domain
                                                             awareness, and
                                                             detect, sort, track,
                                                             and facilitate the
                                                             interception of
                                                             intruder aircraft
                                                             throughout the
                                                             National Capital
                                                             Region.
                        8.  National Law Enforcement         To monitor radio
                            Communications Center            communications among
                                                             CBP personnel for
                                                             officer safety
                                                             purposes, and to
                                                             coordinate tactical
                                                             communications and
                                                             analytical
                                                             investigative
                                                             support to various
                                                             DHS and other law
                                                             enforcement agencies
                                                             to support homeland
                                                             security.
    Immigration and  9.  ICE Operations To provide senior
    Customs              Center         management with
    Enforcement                         daily reports and
    (ICE)                               coordination on
                                           all significant
                                           incidents,
                                           events, and
                                           matters that have
                                           an impact on the
                                           mission of ICE
                                           and DHS.
                        10. ICE Intelligence Watch           To provide timely,
                                                             effective classified
                                                             intelligence support
                                                             to ICE headquarters
                                                             and field personnel
                                                             by serving as a
                                                             clearinghouse for
                                                             the screening,
                                                             evaluation,
                                                             processing,
                                                             exploitation,
                                                             dissemination, and
                                                             coordination of
                                                             intelligence
                                                             information.
                        11. Law Enforcement Support Center   To provide timely
                                                             immigration status
                                                             and identification
                                                             information to
                                                             federal, state, and
                                                             local law
                                                             enforcement agencies
                                                             on aliens suspected,
                                                             arrested, or
                                                             convicted of
                                                             criminal activity.
                        12. Federal Protective Service       To provide alarm
                            Mega-Center System (4 regional   monitoring and
                            centers)a                        dispatch services to
                                                             all federally owned
                                                             and leased
                                                             buildings.

    DHS Agency     #   Center         Mission
    Federal        13. National       To maintain
    Emergency          Response       national
    Management         Coordination   situational
    Agency (FEMA)      Center         awareness and to
                                         monitor emerging
                                         incidents or
                                         potential
                                         incidents with
                                         possible
                                         operational
                                         consequences
                                         (becomes
                                         multi-agency under
                                         incident surge
                                         conditions).
                      14. FEMA Operations Centerb           To facilitate, in
                                                            coordination with the
                                                            NOC, the distribution
                                                            of warnings, alerts,
                                                            and bulletins to the
                                                            entire emergency
                                                            management community
                                                            using a variety of
                                                            communications
                                                            systems.
                      15. Mobile Emergency Response Support To serve as the
                          Operations Centers (5 regional    emergency operations
                          centers)                          center for FEMA
                                                            regions and
                                                            associated state
                                                            operations centers
                                                            providing
                                                            time-sensitive
                                                            information flow
                                                            affecting federal
                                                            involvement and
                                                            provide a deployed
                                                            operations center
                                                            platform using
                                                            assigned mobile
                                                            assets during all
                                                            catastrophic events.
    United States  16. Joint          To provide
    Secret Service     Operations     command, control,
    (USSS)             Center         communication, and
                                         monitoring for
                                         ensuring the
                                         security of the
                                         White House
                                         complex and
                                         surrounding
                                         grounds.
                      17. Intelligence Division Duty Desk   To coordinate
                                                            communications for
                                                            the receipt,
                                                            coordination, and
                                                            dissemination of
                                                            protective
                                                            intelligence
                                                            information and
                                                            activities that
                                                            require immediate
                                                            action in support of
                                                            protection
                                                            assignments. Also
                                                            provides "as needed"
                                                            information and
                                                            coordination support
                                                            for the service.
    United States  18. U.S. Coast     To gather,
    Coast Guard        Guard Command  coordinate, and
    (USCG)             Center         disseminate
                                         information as the
                                         direct
                                         representative of
                                         the Coast Guard
                                         Commandant and the
                                         National Response
                                         Center. Serves as
                                         the primary
                                         communications
                                         link of priority
                                         operational and
                                         administrative
                                         matters between
                                         USCG field units,
                                         District and Area
                                         Commanders, senior
                                         Coast Guard
                                         officials, DHS
                                         officials, the
                                         White House, other
                                         federal agencies,
                                         state and local
                                         officials, and
                                         foreign
                                         governments.
                      19. Intelligence Coordination Center  To function as the
                          (includes three 24/7/365 watch    national-level
                          locations with one, the Intel     coordinator for
                          Plot, colocated at U.S. Coast     collection, analysis,
                          Guard Command Center)             production, and
                                                            dissemination of
                                                            Coast Guard
                                                            intelligence.
                                                            Provides all-source,
                                                            tailored, and
                                                            integrated
                                                            intelligence and
                                                            intelligence services
                                                            to DHS, Coast Guard,
                                                            Commandant/staff,
                                                            intelligence
                                                            community, combatant
                                                            commanders, and other
                                                            services and
                                                            agencies.

                                                            The Intel Plot
                                                            provides predictive
                                                            and comprehensive
                                                            intelligence support
                                                            to priority
                                                            requirements of the
                                                            Commandant and senior
                                                            staff at Coast Guard
                                                            headquarters.
                      20. National Response Centerc         To serve as the
                                                            single federal point
                                                            of contact for all
                                                            pollution incident
                                                            reporting. Also
                                                            serves as a
                                                            communications center
                                                            in receiving,
                                                            evaluating, and
                                                            relaying information
                                                            to predesignated
                                                            federal responders,
                                                            and advises FEMA of
                                                            potential major
                                                            disaster situations.

    DHS Agency #   Center               Mission
                  21. Regional Command     To serve as points of coordination at
                      Centers (46)d        various organizational levels for
                                           operational command, control,
                      Area Command Centers communications, intelligence, and
                      (2)                  analysis.

                      District Command
                      Centers (9)

                      Sector Command
                      Centers (35)

    Source: GAO generated based on information from DHS.

    aAccording to a Federal Protective Service official, the service has
    expanded its mission parameters in recent years beyond physical
    protection, and has initiated programs to better identify vulnerabilities,
    threats, and response requirements for attacks by international or
    domestic terrorist individuals or groups. The official said that with the
    advent of the National Infrastructure Protection Plan, the service is
    applying a specialized intelligence capability to support its expanded
    role as national coordinator for enhancing the protection of all federal,
    state, and local government facilities that are determined to be
    nationally critical.

    bAccording to FEMA officials, the FEMA Operations Center serves as the
    alternate NOC. Should the NOC be rendered incapable of functioning for any
    reason, they said the FEMA Operations Center will assume critical NOC
    functions until the NOC is returned to normal operating status.

    cAccording to U.S. Coast Guard officials, the National Response Center is
    a joint effort cochaired by the U.S. Coast Guard and the Environmental
    Protection Agency that is housed at U.S. Coast Guard headquarters.

    dAccording to a U.S. oast Guard official, the Area and District Command
    Centers are also designated as International Rescue Coordination Centers,
    and all Sector Command Centers are also designated Rescue Sub-Centers in
    accordance with international convention.

    Appendix II: Objectives, Scope, and Methodology

    Our overall objective was to assess the collaboration among the four
    multi-agency DHS operations centers. The key questions addressed were as
    follows:

    1. What are the missions, functions, and products of the multi-agency
    24/7/365 DHS operations centers and who are their customers?

               2. To what extent has DHS implemented key practices for enhancing
               and sustaining collaboration at these multi-agency centers?

    To answer our first objective, we obtained and reviewed information on the
    missions and functions of all 24/7/365 operations centers in DHS. We
    visited centers managed by the Operations Directorate, U.S. Customs and
    Border Protection, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the
    Transportation Security Administration, the U.S. Coast Guard, and the
    Secret Service to observe their operations, interview officials
    responsible for managing the centers, and identify centers that employed
    staff from multiple DHS agencies. We identified four centers that employed
    staff from multiple DHS component agencies: the Air and Marine Operations
    Center, the National Targeting Center, the Transportation Security
    Operations Center, and the National Operations Center-Interagency Watch.
    We gathered and analyzed information regarding the products the
    multi-agency centers developed on a regular basis and the primary
    customers served by the centers.

    To answer our second objective, we met with responsible officials of the
    NOC-Watch and the acting Director of the Operations Directorate to discuss
    the roles and responsibilities of the new organization established as a
    result of the department's Second Stage Review. We discussed the
    transition, current operations, and policy and procedures put in place by
    the Operations Directorate since the reorganization. We also met with
    officials from TSA, USCG, CBP, ICE, and the Operations Directorate to
    discuss how staff are assigned by these agencies to the four multi-agency
    operations centers. We spoke with watchstanders assigned to several of the
    centers from other DHS component agencies to discuss their roles and
    responsibilities at the centers, and the overall mission of the centers to
    which they had been assigned. We reviewed planning and policy documents
    including DHS's strategic plans and performance and accountability reports
    as well as our prior reports1 and reports from DHS's Inspector General
    that addressed DHS management issues. For the four national operations
    centers we identified as multi-agency DHS centers, we also reviewed
    strategic plans, standard operating procedures, and annual reports and
    performance and accountability reports. We assessed DHS's efforts and
    actions taken by the Operations Directorate to encourage coordination
    among the multi-agency centers and to promote collaboration among the
    staff representing DHS agencies at the centers to determine the extent
    that they reflected consideration of key practices that our previous work
    has shown can enhance and sustain a collaborative relationship among
    federal agencies. Eight practices we identified to enhance and sustain
    collaboration are identified below:

               o  defining and articulating a common outcome;
               o  establishing mutually reinforcing or joint strategies;
               o  identifying and addressing needs by leveraging resources;
               o  agreeing on roles and responsibilities;
               o  establishing compatible policies, procedures, and other means
               to operate across agency boundaries;
               o  developing mechanisms to monitor, evaluate, and report on
               results;
               o  reinforcing agency accountability for collaboration efforts
               through agency plans and reports; and,
               o  reinforcing individual accountability for collaborative efforts
               through performance management systems.

    For the purposes of this review, we selected the first seven of the eight
    practices. We combined our discussion of the implementation of the first
    two practices-defining and articulating a common outcome and establishing
    mutually reinforcing or joint strategies. We did not address the eighth
    practice-reinforcing individual accountability for collaborative efforts
    through performance management systems-because an in-depth examination of
    component agencies' performance management systems was beyond the scope of
    this review. We selected examples that, in our best judgment, clearly
    illustrated and strongly supported the need for improvement in specific
    areas where the key practices could be implemented.

    1 GAO, A Comprehensive and Sustained Approach Needed to Achieve Management
    Integration, GAO-05-139 (Washington, D.C.: March 2005); Practices That Can
    Help Enhance and Sustain Collaboration among Federal Agencies, GAO-06-15
    (Washington, D.C.: Oct. 21, 2005).

    We conducted our work from October 2005 through September 2006 in
    accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards.

    Appendix III: Comments from the Department of Homeland Security

    Appendix IV: GAO Contact and Staff Acknowledgments

    GAO Contact

    Paul L. Jones (202) 512-8777

    Acknowledgments

    In addition to the contact named above, Christopher Keisling, Kathleen
    Ebert, Dorian Dunbar, Scott Behen, Keith Wandtke, Amanda Miller, Christine
    Davis, and Willie Commons III made key contributions to this report.
    Additional assistance was provided by Katherine Davis.

    (440451)

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    Highlights of GAO-07-89, a report to congressional requesters

    October 2006

    HOMELAND SECURITY

    Opportunities Exist to Enhance Collaboration at 24/7 Operations Centers
    Staffed by Multiple DHS Agencies

    Because terrorists do not operate on a 9-5 schedule, the Department of
    Homeland Security (DHS) and its operational components have established
    information gathering and analysis centers that conduct activities 24
    hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. Staff at these operations
    centers work to help detect, deter, and prevent terrorist acts. DHS has
    determined that out of 25 operations centers, four require higher levels
    of collaboration that can only be provided by personnel from multiple DHS
    agencies, and other federal, and sometimes state and local, agencies. For
    these four multi-agency operations centers, this report (1) describes
    their missions, products, functions, and customers and (2) assesses the
    extent to which DHS efforts to promote collaboration among the multiple
    agencies responsible for the centers reflect key practices for enhancing
    and sustaining collaborative efforts. To do so, GAO visited operations
    centers, reviewed data and reports from the centers, and interviewed
    center and other DHS officials.

    What GAO Recommends

    GAO recommends that the Director of the DHS Operations Directorate provide
    guidance to multi-agency operations centers to implement key practices to
    enhance and sustain collaboration. DHS agreed with our recommendations and
    identified a number of actions that the Operations Directorate plans to
    take to enhance collaboration.

    Each of the four multi-agency 24/7/365 operations centers has a different
    mission and therefore produces different products, yet all contribute to
    the larger mission of DHS and have similar functions and customers.
    Customs and Border Protection runs two of the four multi-agency operations
    centers-the National Targeting Center and the Air and Marine Operations
    Center. The former monitors the international movement of potential
    terrorists and produces reports on suspect individuals; the latter
    maintains situational awareness of the nation's airspace, general
    aviation, and sea-lanes and produces reports on suspicious private air and
    marine craft. The Transportation Security Administration's operations
    center monitors passengers on commercial flights; works to mitigate the
    vulnerabilities of commercial airports, rail stations, and pipelines, the
    National Capital Region, and critical infrastructure across the nation;
    and produces reports on these topics. DHS's Operations Directorate runs
    the National Operations Center Interagency Watch and works to enhance
    efficiency and collaboration among DHS components. This operations center
    has a more strategic mission in that it uses information gathered by the
    other operations centers to provide overall national situational
    awareness, and it prepares security briefs for federal, state, and local
    law enforcement agencies.

    Opportunities exist to enhance collaboration among 24/7/365 multi-agency
    operations centers. While DHS has leveraged resources by having staff from
    multiple agencies work together, the centers lack joint strategies for
    collaboration and staffing needs  assessments, and they have not
    established a definition of watchstander roles for all agencies at each
    center. The centers also lack standards and procedures for using DHS's
    primary information sharing network; mechanisms to monitor, evaluate, and
    report on results; and reinforced accountability through agency plans and
    reports.

    GAO's previous work has shown that such practices are effective in
    enhancing and sustaining collaboration among federal agencies. The
    establishment of DHS's Operations Directorate in 2005 provides a means to
    promote implementation of more collaborative practices at the centers.

    Staff Working to Maintain Situational Awareness at Operations Centers
    *** End of document. ***