By Calvin Biesecker
Oversight of major acquisition programs at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has been improving, particularly in the past year with new management guidance, but still falls short of meeting best program management practices codified in federal law, a government auditor said yesterday.
Lacking these best practices and management controls, there will likely be inconsistencies in “investment selection and prioritization decisions” and in “investment oversight decisions,” Randolph Hite, director, Information Technology Architecture and Systems Issues at the Government Accountability Office (GAO), told a congressional panel.
Hite did report on a number of changes DHS has made to its oversight of the acquisition process that went into effect late last year (Defense Daily, Jan. 9). He pointed to the new Acquisition Review Board and specific programs it is reviewing such as U.S. VISIT and the Secure Border Initiative, as well as the use of a new system to track program costs, schedule, performance and action items that result from board meetings.
Hite also said that the DHS Chief Procurement Officer has identified the need for additional positions to support acquisition oversight and has included 10 full-time positions in the FY ’10 budget request.
Regarding the hiring of acquisition professional, Hite said that DHS in the past year has taken initiatives to expand related career fields such as program management and engineering. Previous initiatives had focused on contract specialists despite other acquisition workforce needs, he said.
Hite testified before the House Oversight and Government Reform Government Management, Organization and Procurement Subcommittee.