Emergency Communications: National Communications System Provides Programs for Priority Calling, but Planning for New Initiatives and Performance Measurement Could be Strengthened
GAO-09-822
Published: Aug 28, 2009. Publicly Released: Sep 28, 2009.
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Highlights
Government functions and effective disaster response and management rely on the ability of national security and emergency preparedness (NS/EP) personnel to communicate. The Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) National Communications System (NCS), is responsible for ensuring continuity of NS/EP communications when network congestion or damage occurs. As requested, GAO assessed the (1) priority communication programs NCS provides, how it enlists subscribers, and to what extent NCS controls access to these programs; (2) challenges that can affect delivery of these programs; and (3) extent to which NCS plans for and evaluates its services. GAO reviewed NCS program documents, such as annual reports and access control procedures and data on program subscribers. GAO also interviewed officials from NCS and select state and local government entities. GAO compared NCS performance measures to federal best practices.
Recommendations
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Department of Homeland Security | To help ensure that NCS management has sufficient information needed to assess and improve NCS's programs and new initiatives and to effectively support budget decisions, the Secretary of DHS should direct the Manager of the NCS to develop program plans for the national security and emergency preparedness next generation network (NS/EP NGN) initiative that outline an acquisition approach based on available technologies, realistic cost estimates, and that include mitigation plans to address identified challenges and risks. | In August 2009, we reported that the events of September 11, 2001, and the 2005 hurricane season dramatically demonstrated how catastrophic man-made and natural disasters can disrupt communication capabilities and highlight the need for essential national security and emergency preparedness (NS/EP) officials to be able to communicate during and in the aftermath of such events. The Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) National Communications System (NCS) is responsible for ensuring continuity of NS/EP communications when network congestion or damage occurs. NCS recognized the need to keep pace with technological changes and look for ways to better meet NS/EP personnel's current and... future communications needs as evidenced by the development of the NGN (Next Generation Network) initiative. However, we found that while NCS was restructuring its priority calling programs to support the use of technological advances and evolutionary communications networks through the NGN initiative as mandated by presidential directive, NCS had not fully detailed how it planned to mitigate existing challenges and could not provide details about key program elements, such as the estimated costs and a timeline for the implementation of the initiative. To help ensure that NCS management has sufficient information needed to asses and improve NCS's programs and new initiatives and to effectively support budget decisions, we recommended that the Secretary of DHS direct the Manager of the NCS to develop program plans for the NS/EP NGN initiative that outline the acquisition approach based on available technologies, realistic cost estimates, and that include mitigation plans to address identified risks and challenges. In response to our recommendation, NCS developed a NGN Priority Services Program Management Plan in March 2011 to manage this initiative. The plan defined the activities, responsibilities, and timing of events that support the NGN initiative and outlined an acquisition approach based on available technologies and realistic cost estimates. In addition, NCS subsequently finalized a NGN risk mitigation plan, which we reviewed in 2012. The plan identified risks, challenges, and strategies to mitigate these risks and challenges. These plans developed by NCS are consistent with our recommendation and should help ensure NCS management has sufficient information needed to assess and improve the NGN initiative and leverage technological advances and communications networks to help meet its mission of ensuring continuity of NS/EP communications when network congestion or damage occurs. Based on these actions, the recommendation is closed as implemented.
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| Department of Homeland Security | To help ensure that NCS management has sufficient information needed to assess and improve NCS's programs and new initiatives and to effectively support budget decisions, the Secretary of DHS should direct the Manager of the NCS to follow best practices for strategic planning in finalizing the NCS strategic plan including identifying the resources needed to achieve its strategic goals and objectives and providing a description of the relationship between planned initiatives such as the NS/EP NGN and strategic goals. | In August 2009, we reported that the events of September 11, 2001, and the 2005 hurricane season dramatically demonstrated how catastrophic man-made and natural disasters can disrupt communication capabilities and highlight the need for essential national security and emergency preparedness (NS/EP) officials to be able to communicate during and in the aftermath of such events. The Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) National Communications System (NCS) is responsible for ensuring continuity of NS/EP communications when network congestion or damage occurs. Strategic plans are an essential element in results-oriented program management and provide agencies and stakeholders a common set...
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| Department of Homeland Security | To help ensure that NCS management has sufficient information needed to assess and improve NCS's programs and new initiatives and to effectively support budget decisions, the Secretary of DHS should direct the Manager of the NCS to strengthen NCS's performance measurement efforts by (1) developing measures to cover all core program activities, (2) exploring opportunities to develop more outcome-oriented measures, (3) ensuring performance measure baselines are reliable and based upon past performance, (4) and improving the clarity of its call completion measure. | In August 2009, we reported that the events of September 11, 2001, and the 2005 hurricane season dramatically demonstrated how catastrophic man-made and natural disasters can disrupt communication capabilities and highlight the need for essential national security and emergency preparedness (NS/EP) officials to be able to communicate during and in the aftermath of such events. The Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) National Communications System (NCS) is responsible for ensuring continuity of NS/EP communications when network congestion or damage occurs. We found that NCS's existing performance measures did not cover all of its core responsibilities, as suggested by best practices,...
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Appropriated fundsCommunication securityCommunication systemsCost analysisCost overrunsEmergency communication systemsEmergency managementEmergency preparednessFunds managementInternal controlsPerformance measuresTelecommunication policyWireless networksDisaster communications