Homeland Security: Risks Facing Key Border and Transportation Security Program Need to Be Addressed
Published: 2004-03-18T00:00:00

Fast Facts:

Highlights:
section_title: Why GAO Did This Study
paragraphs: US-VISIT (United States Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology) is a governmentwide program to enhance national security, facilitate legitimate trade and travel, contribute to the integrity of the U.S. immigration system, and adhere to U.S. privacy laws and policies by (1) collecting, maintaining, and sharing information on certain foreign nationals who enter and exit the United States; (2) identifying foreign nationals who (1) have overstayed or violated the terms of their visit; (2) can receive, extend, or adjust their immigration status; or (3) should be apprehended or detained by law enforcement officials; (3) detecting fraudulent travel documents, verifying traveler identity, and determining traveler admissibility through the use of biometrics; and (4) facilitating information sharing and coordination within the border management community. GAO was asked to testify on its completed work on the nature, status, and management of the USVISIT program.
section_title: What GAO Found
paragraphs: The US-VISIT program is inherently risky, both because of the type of program it is and because of the way it is being managed. First, US-VISIT is inherently risky because it is to perform a critical, multifaceted mission, its scope is large and complex, it must meet a demanding implementation schedule, and its potential cost is enormous. That is, one critical aspect of the program's mission is to prevent the entry of persons who pose a threat to the United States; failing in this mission could have serious consequences. To carry out this mission, the program aims to control the pre-entry, entry, status, and exit of millions of travelers--a large and complex process. In addition, through legislative mandate, it has challenging milestones (such as the system being implemented at all U.S. ports of entry by December 31, 2005). Finally, DHS estimated that the program would cost $7.2 billion through fiscal year 2014, but this estimate did not include all costs and underestimated some others. All these factors add risk. Second, several factors related to the program's management increase the risk of not delivering mission valued commensurate with costs or not delivering defined program capabilities on time and within budget. For example, the program is to rely initially on integrating existing systems with reported problems that could limit US-VISIT performance. In addition, the requirements for interim facilities at high-volume land ports of entry are not only demanding, they are based on assumptions that, if altered, could significantly affect facility plans. Further, DHS did not define the benefits versus costs of near-term program increments (that is, the interim versions of the program that are being pursued while the final version is being defined). Addressing these issues is the responsibility of the program office, which however was not adequately staffed, had not clearly defined roles and responsibilities for its staff, and had not established key processes for managing the acquisition and deployment of US-VISIT. Despite the program management challenges confronting US-VISIT, the first increment was deployed at the beginning of this year. However, the program still faces a number of risks, including the ones described above. To address these, GAO has made a series of recommendations regarding the planned scope of US-VISIT and its management. Addressing the identified risks increases the likelihood that the deployment of US-VISIT will be successful--the predictable outcome of sound management of a welljustified and designed program.

section_title: Letter
paragraphs: We appreciate the opportunity to participate in the Subcommittee’s  hearing on US-VISIT (the United States Visitor and Immigrant Status  Indicator Technology), a large, complex program that is intended to  achieve a daunting set of goals: it is to enhance homeland security and the  integrity of the U.S. immigration system, and at the same time it is to  facilitate legitimate border crossing and protect privacy. To achieve these  goals, US-VISIT relies on information technology, as well as people,  processes, and facilities.
The genesis of US-VISIT was in 1996, when the Congress passed legislation  that directed the former Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) to  develop a system to monitor the entry and exit of foreign nationals visiting  this country. As a result of this and later related legislative direction,  efforts were begun in 2002 to develop the system now known as US-VISIT.  Subsequently, INS was merged into the Department of Homeland Security  (DHS), which is now responsible for developing and implementing the US- VISIT program.
In the last three appropriations acts governing the development and  implementation of US-VISIT, the Congress prohibited the INS, and later  DHS, from obligating funds until the agency submitted to the Senate and  House Committees on Appropriations expenditure plans that met several  conditions, including being reviewed by GAO. We have accordingly issued  two reports on US-VISIT and will shortly be issuing a third to the  appropriations committees. All three reports were based on work  performed in accordance with generally accepted government auditing  standards. My testimony today is based on our two published reports and  on more current public information on the program since the reports were  issued.
subsections: section_title: Background
paragraphs: The US-VISIT program is a governmentwide endeavor intended to enhance  national security, facilitate legitimate trade and travel, contribute to the  integrity of the U.S. immigration system, and adhere to U.S. privacy laws  and policies by    collecting, maintaining, and sharing information on certain foreign  nationals who enter and exit the United States; identifying foreign nationals who (1) have overstayed or violated the terms  of their visit; (2) can receive, extend, or adjust their immigration status; or  (3) should be apprehended or detained by law enforcement officials;   detecting fraudulent travel documents, verifying traveler identity, and  determining traveler admissibility through the use of biometrics; and  facilitating information sharing and coordination within the border  management community.
The program involves interdependencies among people, processes,  technology, and facilities, as shown in figure 1.
Within DHS, organizational responsibility for the US-VISIT program lies  with the Border and Transportation Security Directorate. In July 2003,  DHS established a US-VISIT program office with responsibility for  managing the acquisition, deployment, operation, and sustainment of the  US-VISIT system and supporting people (e.g., inspectors), processes (e.g.,  entry exit policies and procedures), and facilities (e.g., inspection booths).
DHS plans to deliver US-VISIT capability incrementally. Currently, it has  defined four increments, with Increments 1 through 3 being interim or  temporary solutions, and Increment 4 being the yet-to-be-defined end  vision for US-VISIT. Increments 1 through 3 include the interfacing and  enhancement of existing system capabilities and the deployment of these  capabilities to air, sea, and land ports of entry (POE).  1.  The first increment includes the electronic collection and matching of  biographic and biometric information at all major air and some sea  POEs for selected foreign travelers with non-immigrant visas.  Increment 1 entry capability was deployed to 115 airports and 14  seaports on January 5, 2004. Increment 1 exit capability was deployed  as a pilot to two POEs on January 5, 2004—one airport and one  seaport.  2.  The second increment is divided into two parts—2A and 2B. Increment  2A is to include the capability to process machine-readable visas and  other travel and entry documents that use biometric identifiers at all  POEs. This increment is to be implemented by October 26, 2004.  Increment 2B is to expand the Increment 1 solution for entry to  secondary inspection at the 50 highest volume land POEs by  December 31, 2004. According to the US-VISIT Request for Proposal  (RFP), 2B is also to include radio frequency (RF) capability at the 50  busiest land POEs for both entry and exit processes.  3.  Increment 3 is to expand the 2B capability to the remaining 115 land  POEs. It is to be implemented by December 31, 2005.  4.  Increment 4 is the yet-to-be-defined end vision of US-VISIT, which will  likely consist of a series of capability releases.
DHS plans to award a single, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity  contract to a prime contractor for integrating existing and new business  processes and technologies. DHS plans to award the contract by May 2004.  According to the RFP, the prime contractor’s scope of work is to include,  but is not limited to, Increments 2B, 3, and 4.
section_title: US-VISIT Is Inherently Risky
paragraphs: By definition, US-VISIT is a risky undertaking because it is to perform a  critical mission, its scope is large and complex, it must meet a demanding  implementation schedule, and its potential cost is enormous.
subsections: section_title: Program Supports Multifaceted, Critical Mission
paragraphs: In announcing the US-VISIT system, the DHS Under Secretary for Border  and Transportation Security stated that the system’s goal is to “give  America a 21st Century ‘smart border’—one that speeds through legitimate  trade and travel, but stops terrorists in their tracks.” Achieving these goals  is daunting: the United States shares over 7,500 miles of land border with  Canada and Mexico, and it has approximately 95,000 miles of shoreline  and navigable waterways to protect. In fiscal year 2002, there were about  279 million inspections of foreign nationals at U.S. POEs. In these  circumstances, preventing the entry of persons who pose a threat to the  United States cannot be guaranteed, and the missed entry of just one can  have severe consequences. Relatedly, US-VISIT is to achieve the important  law enforcement goal of identifying those among these millions of visitors  each year who overstay or otherwise violate the terms of their visas.
Complicating achievement of these security and law enforcement goals  are other key US-VISIT goals: facilitating the movement of legitimate trade  and travel through the POEs and providing for enforcement of U.S. privacy  laws and regulations.
section_title: Scope Is Large and Complex
paragraphs: US-VISIT is to provide for the interfacing of a number of existing systems.  It is also to support and refine a large and complex governmentwide  process involving multiple departments and agencies. This process  involves the pre-entry, entry, status, and exit of hundreds of millions of  foreign national travelers to and from the United States at over 300 air,  sea, and land POEs.
The interfaced systems included in Increment 1 are    Arrival Departure Information System (ADIS), a database that stores  traveler arrival and departure data received from air and sea carrier  manifests and that provides query and reporting functions;   Advance Passenger Information System (APIS), a system that captures  arrival and departure manifest information provided by air and sea  carriers; Interagency Border Inspection System (IBIS), a system that maintains  lookout data, interfaces with other agencies’ databases, and is currently  used by inspectors at POEs to verify traveler information and modify data;   Automated Biometric Identification System (IDENT), a system that  collects and stores biometric data about foreign visitors;   Student Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS), a system that  contains information on foreign students;   Computer Linked Application Information Management System (CLAIMS  3), a system that contains information on foreign nationals who request  benefits, such as change of status or extension of stay; and   Consular Consolidated Database (CCD), a system that includes  information on whether a visa applicant has previously applied for a visa  or currently has a valid U.S. visa.
Figure 2 shows these systems and their relationships.
In addition to integrating numerous systems, US-VISIT also involves  complex processes governing the stages of a traveler’s visit to the United  States: pre-entry, entry, status management, and exit. These processes for  Increment 1 are as follows:  Pre-entry process. Pre-entry processing begins with initial petitions for  visas. When the Department of State issues the travel documentation,  biographic (and in some cases biometric) data are collected and made  available to border management agencies. The biometric data are  transmitted from State to DHS, where the prints are run against the US- VISIT IDENT biometric database to verify identity and to check the  biometric watchlist. The results of the biometric check are transmitted  back to State.
Commercial air and sea carriers are required by law to transmit crew and  passenger manifests to appropriate immigration officers before arriving in  the United States. These manifests are transmitted through APIS. The  APIS lists are run against the biographic lookout system and identify those  arrivals who have biometric data available. In addition, POEs review the  APIS list in order to identify foreign nationals who need to be scrutinized  more closely.
Entry process. When a foreign national arrives at a POE’s primary  inspection booth, biographic information, such as name and date of birth,  is displayed on the bottom half of a computer workstation screen, along  with a photograph obtained from State’s CCD. The inspector at the booth  scans the foreign national’s fingerprints (left and right index fingers) and  takes a digital photograph. This information is forwarded to the IDENT  database, where it is checked against stored fingerprints in the IDENT  lookout database. If the foreign national’s fingerprints are already in  IDENT, the system performs a match (a comparison of the fingerprint  taken during the primary inspection to the one on file) to confirm that the  person submitting the fingerprints is the person on file. During this  process, the inspector also questions the foreign national about the  purpose of his or her travel and length of stay.
Status management process. The status management process manages  the foreign national’s temporary presence in the United States, including  the adjudication of benefits applications and investigations into possible  violations of immigration regulations. ADIS matches entry and exit  manifest data to ensure that each record showing a foreign national  entering the United States is matched with a record showing the foreign  national exiting the United States. ADIS receives status information from  CLAIMS 3 and SEVIS on foreign nationals.
Exit process. The exit process includes the carriers’ submission of  electronic manifest data to IBIS/APIS. This biographic information is  passed to ADIS, where it is matched against entry information. At the two  POEs where the exit pilot is being conducted, foreign nationals use a self- serve kiosk where they are prompted to scan their travel documentation  and provide their fingerprints (right and left index fingers). This departure  record is then stored in ADIS (along with the person’s arrival record) and  used to verify if a foreign national has complied with the admission terms  of his or her visa.
section_title: Milestones Are Challenging
paragraphs: Key US-VISIT milestones are legislatively mandated. For example, the  Immigration and Naturalization Service Data Management Improvement  Act of 2000 requires that US-VISIT be implemented at all air and sea  POEs by December 31, 2003; at the 50 highest volume land POEs by  December 31, 2004; and at all remaining POEs by December 31, 2005.
Because of limited progress during the 7 years following the legislation  that originated the entry exit system requirement, DHS acknowledged that  it could not complete permanent solutions in these time frames, and thus  it planned to implement interim (temporary) solutions. For example,  Increments 1 through 3 include the interfacing of existing systems and the  design and construction of interim facilities at land POEs. Further, DHS  officials have stated that it will be difficult to develop and implement even  the interim solutions at some of the highest volume land POEs (such as  San Ysidro, California; Otay Mesa, California; and Laredo, Texas) by  December 31, 2004, because even minor changes in the inspection time  can greatly affect the average wait time at these high-volume POEs.  Moreover, achievement of interim solutions is based on assumptions that,  if changed, could significantly affect facility and staffing plans.
section_title: Potential Cost Is Significant
paragraphs: Despite DHS’s estimate in February 2003, that the total overall cost of the  US-VISIT program would be about $7.2 billion through fiscal year 2014, the  potential governmentwide cost of US-VISIT over just a 10-year period  could be about twice as much. Although the DHS estimate included a wide  range of costs, it omitted some costs and may have understated others.  The estimate included    system investment costs, such as information technology hardware and  communications infrastructure, software enhancements, and interfaces; the cost of facilities and additional inspectors;   system and facilities operation and maintenance costs;  the cost of planning, designing, and constructing permanent facilities,  which according to DHS was about $2.9 billion (this estimate was based  on the assumptions that (1) no additional traffic lanes would be required  to support the entry processes and (2) exit facilities would mirror entry  facilities—i.e., that a land POE with 10 entry traffic lanes would require 10  exit traffic lanes);   costs to design and construct building space to house additional computer  equipment and inspectors; and    costs for highway reconfiguration at land POEs.
However, the estimate did not include the costs to design and construct  interim facilities at land POEs. DHS officials estimated that the cost of  constructing the interim facilities at the 50 highest volume POEs was  about $218 million. Moreover, the estimate is based on assumptions that, if  changed, could significantly affect, for example, land POE facility and  staffing needs.
Finally, although the estimate did include the cost of implementing  biometrics, these costs are understated, because they did not include, for  example, State Department costs. Specifically, in November 2002, we  reported that a rough order of magnitude estimate of the cost to  implement visas with biometrics would be between $1.3 billion and $2.9  billion initially and between $0.7 and $1.5 billion annually thereafter. This  estimate is based on certain assumptions, including that all current visa- issuing embassies and consulates will be equipped to collect biometrics  from visa applicants. Assuming that biometrics are implemented by  December 2004, this means that the recurring cost of having biometric  visas through DHS’s fiscal year 2014 life cycle period would be between $7  and $15 billion. In contrast, DHS’s estimate for the entire program through  fiscal year 2014 was about $7.2 billion.
section_title: Management of US- VISIT System Acquisition
paragraphs: Compounding the risk factors inherent in the scale and significance of the  US-VISIT program are a number of others that can be attributed to its state  of management and its acquisition approach. As described in our  September 2003 report on US-VISIT, these include relying on existing  systems to provide the foundation for the first three program increments  (and thus having to accept the performance limitations of these existing  systems), not having mature program management capabilities, not having  fully defined near-term facilities solutions, and not knowing the mission  value that is to be derived from US-VISIT increments. Our recently  completed audit work for the appropriations committees addressed each  of these factors, which our next report will discuss, including why each is  still an area of risk.
subsections: section_title: Problems with Existing Systems
paragraphs: The system performance of the interim releases of US-VISIT (Increments  1, 2, and 3) will depend largely on the performance of the existing systems  that are to be interfaced to create the overall system. Thus, US-VISIT  system availability and associated downtime, for example, will be  constrained by the availability of the interfaced systems. In this regard,  some of the existing systems have had availability and reliability problems  that could limit US-VISIT performance. Two examples are SEVIS and  CLAIMS 3.
Problems have been identified with the availability and reliability of  SEVIS, the system designed to manage and monitor foreign students in the  United States. For example, in April 2003, the Justice Inspector General  reported that many users had difficulty logging on to the system, and that  as the volume of users grew, the system became increasingly sluggish.  According to other reports, university representatives complained that it  was taking hours to log on to the system and to enter a single record, or  worse, that the system accepted the record and later deleted it. We are  required to report to the House and Senate Appropriations Committees by  April 1, 2004, on SEVIS performance, among other things.
We also reported in May 2001 that CLAIMS 3 was unreliable. This system  contains information on foreign nationals who request benefits and is used  to process benefit applications other than naturalization. Specifically, we  reported that INS officials stated that the system was frequently  unavailable and did not always update and store important case data when  field offices transferred data from the local system to the mainframe  computer.
section_title: Program Management Capability
paragraphs: Our experience with major modernization programs, like US-VISIT, shows  that they should be managed formally, which includes establishing a  program office that (1) is adequately staffed (both in numbers and skill  levels), (2) has clearly defined its staff’s roles and responsibilities, and (3)  is supported by rigorous and disciplined acquisition management  processes.
DHS established a US-VISIT program office in June 2003 and determined  that this office’s staffing needs were, in all, 115 government and 117  contractor personnel to perform key acquisition management functions.  These functions fall into categories described by the Software Engineering  Institute’s Software Acquisition Capability Maturity Model (SA-CMM®),  which defines a suite of key acquisition process areas that are necessary  for rigorous and disciplined management of a system acquisition program.  These process areas include acquisition planning, requirements  development and management, project management, solicitation, contract  tracking and oversight, evaluation, and transition to support.
Our latest report stated that the US-VISIT program’s staffing levels were  far below its stated needs. Moreover, specific roles and responsibilities  had not been defined beyond general statements. Further, the program  had not yet defined plans and associated time frames for achieving needed  staffing levels and defining roles, responsibilities, and relationships.  According to the Program Director, positions were being filled with  detailees from various DHS component organizations.
Additionally, although the approved program office structure provided for  positions to perform the SA-CMM key process areas (including  acquisition planning, requirements development and management, project  management, and contract tracking and oversight), none of the process  areas were defined and implemented. Until they are, the program office  must rely on the knowledge and skills of its existing staff to execute these  important acquisition functions.
According to the Program Director, needed program staffing and key  process areas were not in place because the program was just getting off  the ground, and it would take considerable time to establish a fully  functioning and mature program management capability. Until the  program office is adequately staffed, positional roles and responsibilities  are clearly defined and understood, and rigorous and disciplined  acquisition process controls are defined, understood, and followed, DHS’s  efforts to acquire, deploy, operate, and maintain system capabilities will be  at risk of not producing promised performance levels, functionality, and  associated benefits on time and within budget.
section_title: Near-Term Facilities Solutions
paragraphs: Work by the Data Management Improvement Act Task Force has shown  that existing facilities do not adequately support the current entry exit  process at land POEs. In particular, more than 100 land POEs have less  than 50 percent of the required capacity to support current inspection  processes and traffic levels. As a result, as part of US-VISIT (Increment  2), DHS plans to construct interim facilities at about 40 of the 50 highest  volume land POEs by December 31, 2004, and construct interim facilities  at the remaining portion of these 50 POEs by February 2005.
According to DHS officials, the department plans to design and construct  interim facilities to (1) support the US-VISIT inspection process,  technology, and staff requirements and (2) meet current traffic wait time  requirements at each land POE. To plan for the design and construction of  interim facilities that meet these requirements, DHS modeled various  inspection process and facilities scenarios to define what inspection  process to follow and what interim facilities to construct. The modeling  was based on two key assumptions: (1) the current staffing level and  (2) the current number of inspection booths staffed for each POE.
According to preliminary DHS modeling exercises, small incremental  increases in average inspection times at some high-volume land POEs  could significantly increase average wait times. Moreover, any changes to  decisions about which foreign travelers are subject to US-VISIT could  significantly affect these assumptions and thus near-term facility  requirements.
section_title: Mission Value of Increments
paragraphs: OMB Circular Number A-11, part 7, requires that investments in major  systems be implemented incrementally, with each increment delivering  tangible and measurable benefits. Incremental investment involves  justifying investment in each increment on the basis of benefits, costs, and  risks. Although DHS is pursuing US-VISIT incrementally, it has not defined  incremental costs and benefits to justify its proposed investments in each  increment.
In the case of Increment 1, DHS’ 2003 expenditure plan stated that this  increment would provide “immediate benefits,” but it did not describe  them. Instead, it described capabilities to be provided, such as the ability  to determine whether a foreign national should be admitted and to  perform checks against watch lists. It did not describe in meaningful terms  the benefits that are to result from implementation of these capabilities  (e.g., X percent reduction in inspection times or Y percent reduction in  false positive matches against watch lists).
Also, DHS did not identify the estimated cost of Increment 1. The Program  Director told us that the $375 million requested in the 2003 plan included  not only all the funding required for Increment 1, but also funding for later  increments. However, the plan did not separate the funds by increment,  and program officials did not provide this information.
While DHS developed a benefits and cost analysis for the former entry exit  program in February 2003, this analysis had limitations, such as an  absence of meaningful benefit descriptions. Program officials  acknowledged that this analysis is out of date and is not reflective of  current US-VISIT plans. According to these officials, an updated analysis  will be issued in the very near future.
Without a reliable understanding of whether near-term increments will  produce mission value justifying its costs and whether known risks can be  effectively mitigated, DHS is investing in and implementing near-term  solutions that have not been adequately justified.
To the credit of the hard-working and dedicated staff working on the  program, an initial US-VISIT operating capability was deployed to major  air and selected sea POEs at the beginning of this year. However, the US- VISIT program still faces the risk factors described in this testimony, each  of which will be discussed in our soon to be released report. To address  these risk factors, our published reports presented several  recommendations regarding the US-VISIT program, including    ensure that future expenditure plans fully disclose US-VISIT system  capabilities, schedule, cost, and benefits to be delivered;   determine whether proposed US-VISIT increments will produce mission  value commensurate with costs and risks;   define performance standards for each increment that are measurable and  reflect the limitations imposed by relying on existing systems;   develop a risk management plan and regularly report all high risks;    develop and implement a plan for satisfying key acquisition management  controls and implement these in accordance with Software Engineering  Institute guidance;   ensure that human capital and financial resources are provided to  establish a fully functional and effective US-VISIT program office;   define program office positions, roles, and responsibilities; and    develop and implement a human capital strategy for the program office  that provides for staffing positions with individuals who have the  appropriate knowledge, skills, and abilities.
Unless DHS addresses the risk factors described in this testimony,  successful deployment of US-VISIT increments is doubtful, because  achieving success will depend too much on heroic efforts by the people  involved, rather than being the predictable outcome of sound investment  and acquisition management capabilities.
Mr. Chairman, this concludes our statement. We would be happy to  answer any questions that you or members of the committee may have at  this time.
section_title: Contacts and Acknowledgement
paragraphs: If you should have any questions about this testimony, please contact  Randolph C. Hite at (202) 512-3870 or hiter@gao.gov. Other major  contributors to this testimony included Barbara Collier, Deborah Davis,  Tamra Goldstein, David Hinchman, and Jessica Waselkow.
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