New information sharing office faces uncertain future
The office, created after the 9/11 attacks, is charged with ensuring that terrorism and homeland security information is shared between the federal government, state and local governments and private companies.
A federal office created to ensure information sharing and prevent terrorist attacks is in jeopardy of losing its funding as early as fiscal 2010, even though its work is far from being done, officials said during a Senate hearing Wednesday.
The office is responsible for managing the Information Sharing Environment that Congress created through a 2004 law in response to government failures leading up to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
The office opened just over two years ago, charged with ensuring that terrorism and homeland security information is shared between the federal government, state and local governments and private companies.
"Unfortunately, there are some who would like to see the Information Sharing Environment program office defunded and disbanded by as early as 2010 and apparently then return to the old ways of doing business," Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs committee Chairman Joseph Lieberman, I-Conn., said during a hearing to assess how much progress has been made on improving information sharing.
"I want to make clear my firm opposition to any such move," said Lieberman, who was a primary architect of the 2004 law that created the office. Funding for the office would need to be secured by Oct. 1, 2009, the start of the 2010 fiscal year.
Robert McNamara, who heads the office, said Congress and the next administration will have to determine whether to keep funding flowing. "I think that's something the new administration is going to have to look at when they come in," he said. McNamara said he was not consulted by the Bush administration with regard to whether funding for the office should be continued. The office has enough funding to get through fiscal 2009, said McNamara, who plans to leave his post when the new administration takes over.
He and Lieberman acknowledged that Congress intended the office to be temporary. They said it has made progress in improving information sharing practices, but much work remains. "I haven't heard anybody say that we have done what needs to be done in that area," McNamara said. Indeed, GAO released a report Wednesday concluding that the government lacks a way to measure results achieved through the information sharing environment.
"Defining the scope of a program, desired results, milestones, and projects are essential in providing a road map to effectively implement a program," GAO said. "Without such a road map, the program manager and stakeholders risk not being able to effectively manage implementation of the ISE." Additionally, GAO continues to put information sharing on its list of government activities that face the highest risk of failing, Lieberman said.