Piecemeal Watch List

Everyone agreed the idea was a good one-a comprehensive list of up-to-date information from a variety of agencies that would prevent terrorists from entering the United States. But execution of this list has been far from smooth.

As envisioned by President Bush, the terrorist watch list would be developed by the Homeland Security Department during its first 100 days. The aim was to integrate lists from about a dozen agencies into a single, searchable inventory by December 2003.

Progress, however, was slow and laborious. In April 2003, Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge testified before the Senate that his department was "accelerating consolidation of watch lists."

Following that testimony and a spring 2003 General Accounting Office report that stated the government still was using 12 separate lists maintained by nine federal agencies, Sen. Joseph Lieberman, D-Conn., called on Bush to issue an executive order directing that all terrorist watch lists be consolidated by December 2003.

The order was given in September 2003, stipulating that the FBI's Terrorist Screening Center would now lead the project. Under the order, the center would act as a hub for terrorist screening data, and would incorporate a 24-7 call center, access to coordinated law enforcement, and a formal process for tracking encounters.

Although December 2003 came and went without a fully functional list, those close to the process say that progress, while slow, is being made. On March 25, Donna A. Bucella, director of the screening center, testified to several House subcommittees that the TSC had met its goal and begun operations by Dec. 1, 2003. She noted that since its opening, the center now answers calls and coordinates activities with other agencies, and has revoked dozens of visas.

But Lieberman and others decry the fact that the center is not fully functional. Although most lists are in one place, not all data is accessible or complete, notes a Lieberman staffer. In addition, crucial Defense Department data has not been incorporated, causing large gaps in information, the staffer says.

Bucella also noted in her March testimony that full rollout would occur in three phases. Phase 1, which makes names of terrorists and other identifying information available, has been completed, she said. Phase 2, which was completed on March 1, included the development of the Terrorist Screening Database, which contains identifying information of known or suspected terrorists. Bucella says that Phase 3, which concludes at the end of 2004, adds development of a more dynamic database and a single, integrated system for ensuring known or suspected terrorists' identities.

Although the process is taking longer than many would like, it's necessary to use good architecture principles to ensure that the terrorist watch list remains usable and maintainable, says Tim Keenan, president of High Performance Technologies Inc., a Reston, Va., company that developed the enterprise architecture for the Homeland Security Department.

"I think it shows great courage to stay the course considering the heat they are getting, and to actually figure out which systems currently do what, how they do it, and then step back and more intelligently decide the best way to automate the processes," Keenan says.

But Lieberman and others, including Rep. Jim Turner, D-Texas, ranking member of the House Select Committee on Homeland Security, believe the project's constant problems are a result of passing the buck. After 9/11, Bush gave the White House Office of Homeland Security responsibility for the project.

In July 2002, control was shifted to the FBI. Soon afterward, responsibility reverted to the White House, then to the new Homeland Security Department, and finally back to the FBI under the auspices of the new Terrorist Screening Center. It is that type of back and forth, they say, that has hindered progress.

And to make the watch lists truly effective, Lieberman's office also calls for including the Transportation Security Administration's no-fly list of potentially dangerous passengers developed with the help of airlines. That list is not part of the watch list, according to a Lieberman staffer.

Critics believe the project is far from fruition.

"We've come a long way, but we have a long way to go before we fulfill the promise to adequately secure the safety of the American people," Lieberman said in a March 2 statement. "The truth is, we have no more urgent priority."