An audit conducted by the Government Accountability Office uncovered the risk of duplication of effort in research and development work being supported or carried out by the Department of Homeland Security. GAO explained in an audit report released Wednesday that the risk of R&D overlap — that is, projects having the same research goals — stems from deficiencies in existing policies.
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Possible R&D Duplication of Effort
DHS has five components that receive R&D appropriations and perform research work using that money. At the same time, the agency sponsors federally funded research and development centers, or FFRDCs, to meet R&D needs. Although the DHS Science and Technology Directorate, which oversees the agency’s R&D activities, has a review process to check for overlap, the five DHS components that receive R&D appropriations are not mandated to share their component-funded R&D activities. Consequently, these activities might not always be included in S&T’s review process, the audit report noted.
GAO’s Recommendations
To correct the issue, GAO offered multiple recommendations, including having the DHS under secretary for science and technology amend policies so that S&T is required to check for unnecessary overlap between proposed FFRDC projects and those carried out by DHS components with R&D appropriations. It was also recommended that such additional reviews be documented.
GAO additionally recommended that the S&T under secretary update and disseminate the agency’s list of R&D activities.
Hear from various speakers to learn more about the various security concerns facing the U.S. and what’s being done to address them at the Potomac Officers Club’s annual Homeland Security Summit, which will take place this year on Nov. 13.
