The four principal directorates of the Department of Homeland Security

Corrections

Principal Directorates of Department of Homeland Security

Border and Transportation Security

The largest component of the Department of Homeland Security is the Directorate of Border and Transportation Security (BTS). This division is responsible for maintaining the security of the nation's borders and transportation systems. BTS employees about 58% of DHS's total employees, has nearly half of its operating budget, and includes what was formerly TSA, Customs, the border security functions of INS, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, and FLETC. Just like the other directorates of DHS, it is managed by an undersecretary of homeland security (United States Department of Homeland Security, 2012).

This department brought together several agencies from such departments as the Treasury Department, the Department of Justice, the Department of Transportation, and the Department of Agriculture. The mission of this directorate is to secure the borders and transportation systems of the United States and to enforce immigration laws. This directorate is made up of four main agencies: the Transportation Security Administration, Customs and Border Protection, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (Border and Transportation Security, 2010).

Emergency Preparedness and Response

Second in size is the Directorate of Emergency Preparedness and Response (EPR), which includes FEMA and a number of smaller agencies. EPR is charged with making sure that the nation is prepared for and able to recover from both terrorist attacks and natural disasters (United States Department of Homeland Security, 2012).

The Emergency Preparedness and Response Directorate oversees domestic disaster preparedness training and coordinates government disaster response. It brings together:

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Strategic National Stockpile and the National Disaster Medical System, Nuclear Incident Response Team (Energy), Domestic Emergency Support Teams (Justice) and the National Domestic Preparedness Office (FBI) (Department of Homeland Security, 2012).

Information Analysis and Infrastructure Protection

Information Analysis and Infrastructure Protection (IAIP) is the directorate concerned with the nation's critical infrastructure, particularly the computer systems that serve as the brain center for a modern industrialized superpower. IAIP brings together a number of specialists capable of identifying and assessing current and future threats to the homeland (United States Department of Homeland Security, 2012).

The Information Analysis and Infrastructure Protection Directorate looks at intelligence and information from other agencies (including the CIA, FBI, DIA and NSA) involving threats to homeland security and evaluate vulnerabilities in the nation's infrastructure. It will brings together: Critical Infrastructure Assurance Office (Commerce)

Federal Computer Incident Response Center (GSA, National Communications System (Defense), National Infrastructure Protection Center (FBI) and the Energy Security and Assurance Program (Energy) (Department of Homeland Security, 2012).

Management

Finally, the smallest and least visible directorate is Management, which is concerned with DHS internal affairs, including budget and personnel issues (United States Department of Homeland Security, 2012). The Directorate for Management is responsible for:

budget, appropriations, expenditure of funds, accounting and finance;

procurement; human resources and personnel;

information technology systems;

facilities, property, equipment, and other material resources identification and tracking of performance measurements relating to the responsibilities of the Department (About the Directorate for Management, 2011).

Key to the success of the Department in bolstering national security is the success of its workforce. The Directorate for Management ensures that the Department's over 230,000 employees have well-defined responsibilities and managers and their employees have effective means of communicating with one another, with other governmental and nongovernmental bodies, and with the public they serve (About the Directorate for Management, 2011).

The National Terrorism Advisory System, or NTAS, replaces the color-coded Homeland Security Advisory System (HSAS) that used to be in place. The new system is set up to more successfully communicate information about terrorist threats by offering opportune, comprehensive information to the public, government agencies, first responders, airports and other transportation hubs, as well as the private sector. After evaluating the information that is available, the Secretary of Homeland Security decides, together with other Federal entities, whether an NTAS Alert should be issued or not (NTAS Public Guide, 2011).

NTAS Alerts will only be issued when reliable information is available. These alerts will comprise a clear declaration that there is an imminent threat or elevated threat. "Using available information, the alerts will offer a concise summary of the potential threat, information about actions being taken to make sure of public safety, and recommended steps that people, communities, businesses and governments can take to assist in preventing, mitigating or responding to the threat" (NTAS Public Guide, 2011).

"The NTAS Alerts will be based on the nature of the threat. In some cases, alerts will be sent directly to law enforcement or affected areas of the private sector, while in others, alerts will be broadcast more broadly to the American people through both official and media channels" (NTAS Public Guide, 2011). NTAS Alerts will contain a sunset provision that designates an exact date when the alert will end. There will not longer be a continuous NTAS Alert or comprehensive caution that there is an overarching threat. If threat information changes for an alert, the Secretary of Homeland Security may put out an updated NTAS Alert. All changes, including the declaration that cancels an NTAS Alert, will be dispersed the same way as the original alert (NTAS Public Guide, 2011).

Part 2

Emergency preparedness strengthens the nation's ability to prevent, protect, respond to and recover from a natural disaster, terrorist attack or other man-made disaster. FEMA, which is a component in DHS, is the federal agency that is responsible for leading the nation's preparedness activities. In the wake of the problems that marked the response to Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Congress passed the Post Katrina Act in October 2006. The act strengthened FEMA's role within DHS and defined FEMA's primary mission to reduce the loss of life and property and protect the Nation from all hazards, including natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and other man-made disasters by leading and supporting the nation in a risk-based, comprehensive emergency management system of preparedness, protection, response, recovery and mitigation. The act required FEMA to establish a national preparedness system for ensuring that the nation has the ability to deal with all hazards, including those incidents with catastrophic consequences. Among other things, the act directs FEMA to provide funding, training, exercises, technical assistance, planning and other assistance to build tribal, local, state, regional and national capabilities necessary to respond to any type of disaster. It also requires FEMA to develop and coordinate the implementation of a risk-based all-hazards strategy for preparedness that builds those common capabilities necessary to any type of disaster, while also building the unique capabilities necessary to respond to specific types of incidents that pose the greatest risk to the United States (National Preparedness, 2009).

FEMA's National Preparedness Directorate has primary reasonability for carrying out the key elements of the national preparedness system, in coordination with other federal, state, local, trial, nonprofit and private sector organizations. The directorate includes the National Integration Center and the Office of Preparedness Policy, Planning and Analysis. The National Preparedness Directorate and FEMA's Disaster Operations Directorate share responsibility for ensuring plans that describe roles and responsibilities are developed (National Preparedness, 2009).

Because of the requirements that Congress has put on the FEMA agency it has become very important to securing the nation. This agency must put together a plan that will help prevent and react to any disaster that might take place. It has been seen in past disasters in this country that as a whole we were not prepared for something really big to happen. Hoping the new direction of FEMA will ensure better things in the future.