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McCaul, King Release Report on National Network of Fusion Centers

Washington, D.C. – July 26, 2013 – Today, U.S. House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-Texas) and Homeland Security Subcommittee on Counterterrorism and Intelligence Chairman Peter King (R-NY) released a Majority Staff Report entitled “The National Network of Fusion Centers,” detailing the Committee’s findings and recommendations developed from a comprehensive study of fusions centers across the country.The National Network of Fusion Centers (Network) was developed in the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks to close the gaps in information sharing between Federal, State and local law enforcement and emergency responders. Currently, the Network includes 78 fusion centers across 49 states, three territories and the District of Columbia.Fusion centers serve as hubs of strategic analysis and information sharing where Federal, State, and local agencies are all represented in one location. State and local crime data is coordinated, gathered and reviewed to determine if there is any potential connection to terrorist activity. In addition, Federal terrorism-related information is shared with State and local law enforcement.

The Committee’s review concludes that the Network is not functioning as cohesively as it should be and fusion centers are facing numerous challenges that prevent the Network from realizing its full potential to help secure the homeland. Over the course of nineteen months, the Committee logged 147 meeting hours during visits to 32 fusion centers, in addition to briefings and discussions with Federal partners and the National Fusion Center Association.

The full report is available HERE.

Chairman McCaul: “Fusion centers were created after 9/11 to correct the failure of information sharing between federal agencies and state and local law enforcement. While much progress has been made, breakdowns in information sharing continue today and the terrorist attacks at Ford Hood and the Boston Marathon are painful examples. The Committee’s evaluation found that while the Network of fusion centers is a vital part of our Nation’s counterterrorism efforts, it is not currently functioning at its full potential.

“For example, while it is more important than ever for Federal fusion center partners to work together to increase information sharing with state and local law enforcement, the FBI is actually removing analysts and information sharing tools from them. This and other important issues are examined in the Report in an effort to identify ways to improve our counterterrorism efforts. The goal of this report is to aid fusion centers in filling in their capability gaps. I urge them, and their federal, state and local partners to implement the report’s recommendations to ensure the Network reaches its full potential to help secure the homeland.”

Subcommittee Chairman King: “Nearly 12 years after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the tragic events in Boston highlight that more work needs to be done to connect the dots. Ensuring critical information sharing between Federal, State and local law enforcement is vital for national counterterrorism and homeland security efforts. This comprehensive report offers 25 recommendations to improve information sharing and analysis, enhance the role of fusion centers, ensure that emergency response providers are fully incorporated into the process, and tear down remaining intelligence stovepipes. My Subcommittee will continue to work with Federal, State, and local entities to ensure that these issues are addressed.”

The report makes 25 recommendations of actions to be taken by fusion centers, States, DHS, FBI and DOD in the following areas:

Comprehensive Strategies & Measures of Success: The Network needs a comprehensive State and locally-driven National Strategy for Fusion Centers, in addition to a Federal Strategy for Fusion Centers to steer Federal coordination and support for the Network. Performance metrics should be developed and used as part of these strategies to guide State grant expenditures and Federal resource allocation.

Funding: Once a National Strategy is formed, DHS should engage in thorough discussion with stakeholders to determine whether the Federal government should more directly fund fusion centers and review other grant and funding models to determine if a different model would be more effective.

Fusion Center Analysis: To enhance the coordination, identification and analysis of information, fusion centers should consider creating National Mission Analysis Units, increasing Suspicious Activity Reporting trend analysis, and enhancing Critical Infrastructure and Key Resources programs. In addition, in a State with multiple fusion centers one center should be responsible for the integration of analysis from across all fusion centers within the State.

Outreach: Fusion centers should work to increase partnerships with entities outside of the law enforcement community, such as the fire, emergency medical services, and public health sectors. In addition, fusion centers and federal partners should work together to strengthen Terrorism Liaison Officers programs.

Access to Information & Systems: There is a disparity in security clearances granted to State and locals from DHS and the FBI. Federal partners should take steps to equalize security clearances to foster increased information sharing.

Federal partners play a vital role in ensuring the unified operation of the Network and the report makes particular recommendations to DHS’s Office of Intelligence and Analysis (I&A) and the FBI. Specifically, the report recommends that the FBI make a more concerted effort to ensure its field office are held accountable for robust cooperation and information sharing with fusion centers and State and local law enforcement. This effort should include more stringent oversight of information sharing occurring between its field offices and the fusion centers.

In addition, the report recommendations that I&A work with Congressional oversight committees to address challenges to the analytic production approval process and the Intelligence Officer and Reports Officer programs. Furthermore, I&A should conduct reviews of the structuring of the Office of Analysis and the management of field officers to ensure analysts and field officers are is being effectively deployed.

BDO & IBM Join Distinguished List of GTSC Mentors

Washington, D.C. – July 18, 2013 – The Government Technology & Services Coalition (GTSC), the premier organization for small and mid-sized companies in the federal homeland and national security market, announced today the addition of BDO and IBM to its list of mentor companies.

“We are excited by the caliber of thought leadership and community engagement exhibited by these leaders in the homeland and national security community,” said Kristina Tanasichuk, CEO of GTSC. “Their commitment to innovation, partnership and working to help our government partners achieve their mission while adjusting to increasing budgetary pressures further builds our community of industry devoted to protecting the homeland.”

Courtney Bromley, IBM Vice President for Homeland Security and Law Enforcement also commented, “IBM is committed to assuring the best services and outcomes for our clients and believes that partnerships with innovative organizations and firms is critical to ensuring collaboration, best practices and innovation, and delivering results for our customers.”

“BDO is very happy to join GTSC because of their commitment to their government partners. BDO has a strong reputation of excellence in the commercial market, and we look forward to sharing those best practices with government clients and mentoring GTSC members. BDO’s Center of Excellence for Government Contracting is a unique resource providing guidance and thought leadership on technical, regulatory and business matters important to government contractors nationwide,” said Chuck Wolverton, Director in BDO’s Public Sector practice.

Mentor companies provide advice and counsel to small and mid-sized companies, find new and innovative teaming partners, address challenges in the prime-subcontractor relationship in a neutral environment, and improve mentor-protégé communication and success. Current mentors include: the Battelle Memorial Institute, Engility, Harris, L-3 Security & Detection Systems, L-3 STRATIS, SAIC and TASC. These firms are committed to working together to assure that our federal government receives the best products, services and solutions possible to combat threats and secure our nation.

“GTSC has proven to be a critical link for the continued growth and development of American business capabilities in national and homeland security mission arenas,” added Mike Kelly, Vice President at TASC. “We are honored to support robust partnerships that enhance the contractor community’s ability to help our customers keep our country safe and secure.”

For more information on GTSC’s mentors, please click here.

GTSC Strategic Advisor Brian Finch on Cyber Security

GTSC Strategic Advisor and Dickstein Shapiro partner Brian Finch argues there needs to be a better education campaign on cybersecurity measures. Click on photo to hear the interview.

GTSC Honors Exemplary Members

In addition to honoring CBP’s Charles Armstrong at this year’s anniversary, the Coalition also took the opportunity to recognize numerous outstanding members and advisors who have contributed to the vision and mission of the organization, including:

Julie Barth, L-3 STRATIS; Dr. Steven Bucci, The Heritage Foundation; Mary-Claire Burick, MC Strategy; Robert Burton, Venable LLP; Bill Carroll, Strike Force Consulting Services; Brad Cole, Agilex; Dr. Sherilyne Dougherty, DAI; Rob Edmonds, Uniplus Consulting; Brian Finch, Dickstein Shapiro LLP; Nicole Geller, GCS, Inc.; K. Eileen Giglio, WAGsolutions, Inc.; Chris Gorman, The Efiia Group; Mila Halpine, Cognivault, LLC; Scott Halpine, Cognivault, LLC; Earl Holland, Growth Strategy Consultants; Stephen Howard, TecPort Solutions, Inc.; Tom Hughes, Datamaxx Group; Laura Jones, SAIC; Robert V. Jones, PReSafe Technologies, Inc.; Mike Kelly, TASC; Sara Kindsfrater-Yerkes, TeamCatapult; Victoria Laing, Linda LeFevbre, NCI, Inc.; RADM Don Loren, Old Dominion Strategies; Lisa Martin, LeapFrog Solutions, Inc.; Michelle Mrdeza, MXM Consultng LLC; Brian Nault, BlueWater Federal Solutions, Inc.; Anne Petera, Harris; Kathy Pherson, Pherson Associates, LLC; Wayne Pizer, L-3 Communications; Larry Pokroy, VisionOnline; John Rothenberger, SE Solutions, Inc.; Ravi Singh, Deosi, LLC; Carmine Taglialatela, TecPort Solutions, Inc.; Chani Wiggins, Winn Strategies; and Chuck Winwood.

Sec. Napolitano Announces Pending Departure from DHS

Washington, DC – July 12, 2013 – Secretary Janet Napolitano today released news that she would be accepting the position of president of the University of California if approved by the Board of Regents.

The full text of her note to DHS is below.

*****
July 12, 2013

Dear Colleagues,

I write to you today to let you know that I am being recommended to the University of California Board of Regents to be the next president of the University of California. If this recommendation is approved by the full Board, I will accept the privilege of leading one of the finest university systems in the country.

The past four-plus years serving as the Secretary of DHS have been the highlight of my professional career. Every day I am inspired by your tireless service on the front lines and your commitment to protecting our communities from harm in order to ensure the safety of all Americans. Together, and because of you, we have made great strides in becoming “One DHS” by leveraging all of our talents and capabilities to fulfill the roles originally intended by those who established our Department. We have worked together to minimize threats of all kinds to the American public. The Department has improved the safety of travelers; implemented smart steps that make our immigration system more fair and focused while deploying record resources to protect our nation’s borders; worked with states to build resiliency and make our nation’s emergency and disaster response capabilities more robust; and partnered with the private sector to improve our cyber security.

You are the faces, the voices and the backbone of America’s safety and security and I am so proud to have had the honor and privilege of serving as your Secretary. Please accept my sincerest gratitude for your dedication and your commitment to public service.

I would also like to thank President Obama for entrusting me with the responsibility of securing our nation. I continue to be motivated by his vision for the future and passion for service.

I will continue to serve as Secretary of Homeland Security through early September. Appropriate transition planning is underway.

I wish all of you the very best as you continue to ensure the safety and resiliency of our nation and thank you, once again, for your service.

Yours very truly,
Janet Napolitano

GTSC Honors 2013 MVP Charles Armstrong, CIO, CBP

Washington, D.C. – July 12, 2013 – The Government Technology & Services Coalition (GTSC) celebrated its second anniversary yesterday, honoring Mr. Charles R. Armstrong, the Assistant Commissioner and Chief Information Officer at U.S. Customs and Border Protection with the 2013 Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award.

Mr. Guy Torres, Director of Information Technology Contracting at U.S. Customs and Border Protection, with GTSC’s 2013 MVP Awardee, Mr. Charles R. Armstrong, Assistant Commissioner and Chief Information Officer at U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

“Our MVP award recognizes those officials who make a tangible difference to modernize and improve government operations so the mission of homeland and national security does not suffer under our budget constraints,” said Kristina Tanasichuk, CEO of GTSC. “Mr. Armstrong has focused on expanding targeting, analysis and enforcement capabilities; data and information sharing; and enhancing operational capacity and processing, in addition to the revenue producing capabilities of CBP. We are extremely proud to present this award to such a worthy recipient.”

The GTSC awards program seeks to recognize public and private sector individuals who work to achieve the homeland and national security missions of the nation. The MVP Award is presented to an exceptional official who modernizes and improves the operations and performance of an agency, component, program or division to increase capacity, speed delivery, use innovation and improve performance. For more information about GTSC’s awards, click here.

Click to read the Annual Report.

GTSC also released its 2012-2013 Annual Report outlining the organization’s significant accomplishments in its short two years. “I believe much of the success of GTSC comes from its members’ entrepreneurial desire to challenge the status quo – it is an extremely grassroots effort initiated by small companies in the market concerned with assisting their clients to achieve their mission objectives – on time, on budget and on target,” said Chris Gorman, Chair of the GTSC Steering Committee. “We have brought the community of homeland and national security together to tackle these challenges and leverage all of our collective resources. As the annual report says, it’s all about the mission.”

The coalition also recognized numerous outstanding members and advisors who have contributed to the vision and mission of the organization, including:

July 23: Insight Session with Renee Richardson, U.S. Navy

Please join the Government Technology & Services Coalition for an Insight Session with Renee R. Richardson, EMBA, Deputy Director for INTEL, Information Operations and Cyber OASD Reserve Affairs (Readiness, Training & Mobilization) at the U.S. Navy on Tuesday, July 23.

About Commander Richardson

Commander Renee R. Richardson is an Information Domination Corps Officer, from the Intelligence Community, assigned to the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense (OASD), Reserve Affairs (RA). Within OSD-RA CDR Richardson serves in Readiness as a Deputy Director for Intelligence, Information Operations and Cyber at the Pentagon in Washington, DC.

Commander Richardson was born and raised in Micronesia. She joined the U.S. Army from Hawaii in 1979. She served as a Russian linguist, Electronic Signals Warfare Analyst for the 533^rd CEWI BN, 3^rd Armor DIV in Frankfurt Germany for three years following Russian language training at the Defense Language Institute of Monterey CA. After her initial Army tour, she enrolled at the University of New Hampshire, remaining in the Army Reserves as a Sergeant (E-5) assigned to 505^th ASA out of FT Devens MA.

Commander Richardson converted to the Navy Reserve as a Second Class Cryptologist (E-5) in 1986. In 1989, she promoted to Petty Officer First Class (CTI1). As a First Class Petty Officer, CDR Richardson was chosen to serve as an interpreter for the CNO (OP095) Soviet Ship Visit program, beginning with the 1990 San Diego/Vladivostok event. Additionally as a CTI1 she provided support to CTF-168 out of the Navy Liaison Office Boston. She was mobilized for Desert Storm January of 1991, and served as an analyst for the National Security Agency (NSA) at Pearl Harbor.

CDR Richardson graduated from the University of New Hampshire in 1989 with a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science. She received a Reserve Intelligence commission as an Ensign, May 1991. Following reserve agent training at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, CDR Richardson served at the Newport RI office of the Naval Investigative Service. Through the ensuing three years, she continued regular support the Soviet/Russian Ship visits (Mayport ‘91/Severomorsk ‘92/Boston ’93). A high-point during this period was the 15 day visit of Soviet Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral and Mrs. Vladimir Chernavin, to the United States (October 1991). CDR Richardson was selected to serve as the personal interpreter for Mrs. Chernavin and for the wives of the U.S. Navy host Admirals.

In 1994, CDR Richardson began a period of active duty assigned to Commander, Naval Personnel Command as a member of a Tiger Team formed to assist in the production of Statements of Service for the Navy’s Temporary Early Retirement Authority Boards. The team processed 5,000 Statements of Service during that six month period.

In October of 1994, responsive to the developing Balkan Crisis, CDR Richardson accepted assignment to the Combined Air Operations Center in Vicenza, Italy, serving as a Watch Officer in the National Intelligence Center in support of United Nations peacekeeping forces and OPERATIONS: DENY FLIGHT and PROVIDE PROMISE. In July of 1995, CDR Richardson began a two-year NATO assignment as the Assistant C2 with Striking Forces Southern Europe (STRIKEFORSOUTH) in Naples, Italy, directly supporting the IFOR and SFOR Balkan missions, as well as other NATO missions including Partnership for Peace. While assigned to STRIKEFORSOUTH CDR Richardson converted to a Full Time Support Officer (FTS) for the Intelligence Community (1637) and took over as Assistant Reserve Intelligence Program Officer (ARIPO) at Naval Air Station, Washington (Andrews Air force Base) in August 1997.

In 2000, CDR Richardson was promoted to LCDR and selected as the Reserve Liaison Officer for Defense HUMINT Services (DH) at the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA). At DIA, CDR Richardson managed a joint intelligence unit supporting DHS HUMINT missions and Attaché Offices around the world. Following the events of 9/11 CDR Richardson processed and mobilized 175 reservists for DIA operations worldwide.

In 2003 CDR Richardson accepted the position as Head of the Navy Division for Director of Intelligence (J2), US Forces Korea (USFK), located at Yongsan, Seoul, Republic of Korea. CDR Richardson’s personal liaising efforts with ROK counterparts resulted in expanded inclusion of US J2 personnel in formerly ROK exclusive meetings and increased sharing of combined intelligence across all sectors. CDR Richardson represented J2 Naval interests at the 2004 Missile talks in Huntsville AL, working closely with ROK colleagues to present independent ROK counter analysis of key U.S. assumptions about North Korean treats—increasing the status and respect of ROK imagery analyst to the benefit of U.S. /ROK relations.

In Aug 2005, CDR Richardson returned to the U.S. as the Operational Support Officer (OSO) for Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) HQ, Washington DC. As OSO, CDR Richardson was directly responsible for the creation of fusion units that combined the law enforcement expertise of Master-at-Arms with Intelligence to meet the mission challenge of International Counterterrorism. Her innovation resulted in an increase of 130 personnel assigned to NICS for counterterrorism support. She promoted to Commander at NCIS in April of 2007.

With the disestablishment of the 1637 FTS community, FY 2008, and change to the 1630 designator, CDR Richardson received an early release from NCIS for assignment to the Defense Prisoner of War and Missing Office (DPMO), to align her with community changes. In January 2010, CDR Richardson moved from the Southeast Asia Division to serve as a Branch Chief for the Resource Outreach Branch in the WWII Division.

CDR Richardson holds a Masters Degree in Business Administration (EMBA) from the Naval Postgraduate School (2008); her personal awards include the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Joint Commendation Medal, Joint Achievement Medal, the Navy Commendation Medal, Navy Achievement Medal, Army Achievement Medal, and various other unit and service medals. She is conversant in Russian as well as German, and is currently in on-going language training in Vietnamese and Dutch.

She is married to Stanley A. Richardson CAPT USN (Ret), who is currently a U.S. Government Advisor to the Ministry of Defense Afghanistan in Kabul serving. They have four children. The eldest son Artemas, a is presently a Navy LT, Surface Warfare Officer assigned to the USS SAN DIEGO (LPD 22), he is married to Delia Toothman and they have a 6 month old daughter. The other children are Anna, a (’10) graduate of Smith College; Sam, a junior at Skidmore College; and Thomas, a freshman at Northern Virginia Community College. The family lives in DC.

July 16: Mentor-Protege Programs: The Who, What, Why’s & How’s

The Government Technology & Services Coalition invites you to join us for a detailed look at mentor-protege programs. Government officials from several Mentor Protege programs will discuss their success and challenges; several large mentor firms will discuss their experiences, what they look for in a protege and why they are engaged in the program; a number of proteges will also discuss their experiences and offer advice to those interested in forming mentor protege relationships. Companies interested or looking for a mentor protege — whether a large or small firm — are welcome to contact us for matchmaking at the event.

Confirmed Government Speakers:

Kevin Boshears, Director, Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Mr. Boshears was named Director of the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU) in May, 2003. He is responsible for the overall implementation of the Department’s small business procurement program. Prior to this, Mr. Boshears was named Director of the Treasury Department’s OSDBU in February, 1999 where he had served as the Acting Director since August, 1998. He previously served in the same office as a Procurement Analyst since June, 1995 and was responsible for providing guidance to the Small Business Specialists located in Treasury’s twelve bureaus. He also worked on Treasury’s small business website and represented Treasury at various governmental, congressional, and trade association outreach activities. Mr. Boshears brings a wealth of knowledge and experience in the procurement field, having served as a Contracting Officer for the Justice Department prior to his small business duties at the Treasury Department. Mr. Boshears is a well known instructor in the federal small business procurement arena. On numerous occasions, he has conducted training courses, made presentations, and handled briefings on contracting with small, small disadvantaged, 8(a), women-owned small, HUBZone small, and service disabled veteran-owned small business concerns. Mr. Boshears currently serves as the Vice-Chair of the Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization Directors’ Interagency Council, originally elected to the position for FY 2001 and re-elected for both FY 2002 and FY 2003. On May 9 -10, 2002, Mr. Boshears was presented with the Frances Perkins Vanguard Award for Exemplary Utilization of Women-Owned Small Businesses by a Federal Procurement Official and the Gold Star Award for Excellence by the U. S. Small Business Administration. He holds a BBA degree from the College of William and Mary, and earned his MBA from Liberty University.

Peggy Butler-Mason, Deputy Director, Subcontracting and Mentor Protege Program Manager, U.S. Army, Office of Small Business Programs, Office of the Secretary of the Army

As Army OSBP Deputy Director and Subcontracting and Mentor Protégé Program Manager in the U.S. Army, Office of Small Business Programs, Ms. Butler-Mason is responsible for assisting the Director in the establishment of policies and procedures and performing oversight to ensure implementation of statutory requirements. She also implements processes to increase industry awareness of the department’s small business subcontracting and Mentor Protégé program initiatives. She influences new policy updates to existing Subcontracting and Mentor Protégé acquisition regulations and solicits innovative Mentor Protégé technology transfer agreements from industry to support the real time needs of the war fighter. She actively participates on the Electronic Subcontracting Reporting System (eSRS) working group panel and manages the Army Summary Subcontracting Report acknowledgement process. In addition, she manages twenty-one (21) active Mentor Protégé contracts, ensures broad participation of small businesses in new DoD acquisitions valued over $500 million and validates the annual soundness of subcontracting targets. Ms Butler-Mason also participates on Army Strategic Sourcing panel reviews.

Prior to accepting her current position, Ms. Butler-Mason was a senior Procurement Analyst at Headquarters, U.S. Army Contracting Agency (ACA) and Contracting Officer at the Information Technology E-Commerce and Commercial Contracting Center.

Ms. Butler-Mason is an acquisition professional with over 30 years of experience in contracting. Ms. Butler-Mason is Level III certified in acquisitions and is a member of the Army Acquisition Corps. She has received numerous civilian awards for exceptional performance through out her acquisition career.

Sharon Davis, Mentor-Protege Program Manager/WOSB Advocate, Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Ms. Davis is a Small Business Advocate in the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Small & Disadvantaged Business Utilization. In this capacity, Ms. Davis coordinates the DHS Annual Small Business Awards Ceremony, serves as the Woman-Owned Small Business Advocate, and Mentor-Protégé Program Manager providing guidance to large and small businesses interested in developing a Mentor-Protégé relationship with the Department of Homeland Security. The purpose of the Mentor-Protégé Program is to foster the establishment of long-term business relationships between DHS large prime contractors and small business subcontractors which strengthens subcontracting opportunities and accomplishments at DHS.

She also counsels small businesses interested in doing business with DHS, participates in conferences and outreach activities sponsored by government agencies, congressional members, and trade associations. Ms. Davis came to work for DHS in late 2009 from the Department of Treasury where she held a dual position as a Small Business Specialist and Contracting Officer. Prior to working at Treasury, Ms. Davis worked for Federal Emergency Management Agency as a Contract Specialist. Ms. Davis has over thirteen years of federal government procurement experience and twenty-four years of federal government service. She is a strong believer in promoting opportunities for small businesses.

Tabisa Tepfer, Program Manager, Office of Small Business Programs, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Confirmed GTSC Mentor Company Speakers:

Wayne Pizer, Vice President, Small Business Programs,

L-3 Communications, L-3 STRATIS

Wayne Pizer is the Vice President for Small Business Programs at L-3 National Security Solutions (NSS), a Group of L-3 Communications. As Vice President for Small Business Programs, he is responsible for developing and executing the small business strategy for NSS. His responsibilities include: identifying go-to-market small business partners, promoting small businesses and ensuring Small Business Compliancy throughout the NSS organization. The mission of his office is to grow NSS revenue through partnerships with small businesses. Mr. Pizer has been with L-3 for over 4 years. Prior to joining L-3, Mr. Pizer had multiple positions during a 9 year career at IBM. Mr. Pizer holds a Bachelors of Science in Business Administration from American University in 1991 and his Master in Business Administration from American University in 1996. He is also certified Project Management Professional and has an SAP certification in Production Planning.

Tony Sacco, Vice President, SAIC

GTSC Releases Survey on Cuts to Mission-Critical Areas

Washington, D.C. – June 27, 2013 – The Government Technology & Services Coalition (GTSC), the leading organization for small and mid-sized companies in homeland and national security, today released its survey on the impacts of government spending cuts on the homeland and national security missions. GTSC surveyed 224 respondents about actual and planned impacts to the contracting community engaged in mission-critical activities and found:

Nearly seventy-five percent of respondents are preparing for sequestration
Companies are preparing by reducing their marketing budgets (29.8%), laying off staff (26.7%), reducing public relations budgets (22.7%), cutting services (19.6%), leaving the Federal market (18.7%) and bringing services in-house (15.6%)
“Other” preparations include reducing salary and benefits, raising prices, decreasing recruiting and moving into commercial markets
Almost thirty percent of respondents – for the most part emerging and small companies – think they may not or definitely will not survive sequestration
Fifty-four percent of respondents believe sequestration will materially impact the ability of their federal clients to conduct their stated missions
Respondents believe the long-term effects include: weakening of national security and preparedness, uncertainty about the federal market, loss of skills and experience in vital missions, and increased efficiency
Respondents believe the short-term effects include: uncertainty, distraction from the mission, loss of jobs and decreased morale

“This survey shows that the risk of sequestration and budget cuts is two-fold: you have a number of companies that may not survive and you have numerous mission critical agencies that are at risk as well,” said Kristina Tanasichuk, CEO of GTSC. “Now more than ever we need the government and industry working together to assure mission success to find convergence points where we can make strategic cuts and still protect the nation.”

GTSC plans to survey members of the community annually to track and understand the changes to our homeland and national security mission and impacts to the contractor community. The survey was conducted in the late spring. The full report can be found here: Impacts of Reduction in Government Spending on Homeland & National Security.

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GTSC is a nonprofit, non-partisan association of companies that create, develop and implement solutions for the federal homeland and national security sector. Our mission is two-fold: first, to provide exceptional advocacy, capacity building, partnership opportunities and marketing in the Federal security space for small and mid-sized companies. Second, to support and assist our government partners achieve their critical missions with the highest integrity; best and most innovative technologies; and results-based, quality products and services to prevent, protect against, mitigate, respond to and recover from any terrorist attack or natural disaster.