By Calvin Biesecker
The recently released Quadrennial Homeland Security Review (QHSR) that outlines and defines the missions, goals and objectives of the homeland security enterprise is part of a multi-step process that will shape the budgets and Homeland Security organization in the coming years, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials said on Friday.
The next step in that process is an ongoing “Bottom Up Review” being undertaken within DHS that seeks to ensure that program activities and resources are aligned with the missions, goals and objectives set forth in the QHSR, David Heyman, the assistant secretary for policy, told reporters during a teleconference to discuss the QHSR. Heyman said the Bottom Up Review will be completed in early spring.
“All of this will culminate in the development of the FY ’12 budget submission and the build for the [next] four years out,” Heyman said.
The QHSR lays out five homeland security missions, providing detailed objectives for each (Defense Daily, Feb. 4). The missions are preventing terrorism and enhancing security, securing and managing the country’s borders, enforcing and administering the nation’s immigration laws, safeguarding and securing cyberspace, and ensuring resilience to disasters.
“The focus of what it takes to secure this nation, to ensure safety and security [of the] homeland, will largely fall along these five mission areas and you will see that the emphasis will be along the strategic goals and objectives and you will be able to map; that’s what we set out as a goal and objective over the next four years,” Heyman said. “Are we investing in that area?”
The missions in the QHSR aren’t new and DHS has been pursuing most of them since its creation seven years ago. However, the QHSR marks the first time resilience has been included in a strategic document and is “a core foundation that in the face of disruptions or adversities that we are first and foremost a resilient nation and we should build our societies and communities as such,” Heyman said.
Heyman said it is too early to talk specifics regarding how the QHSR will shape the FY ’12 DHS budget request.
The work that went into developing the QHSR did inform last week’s FY ’11 DHS budget request. Heyman said there is alignment between the strategic framework and the budget. Indeed, the introduction to the FY ’11 DHS budget request points to the five homeland security missions, which the department says will be strengthened by the budget.
Moving forward, the alignment of resources with missions will be stronger though as the process for the next budget gets underway in the coming months, Heyman said.