Testimony
of Robert S. Mueller, III, Director, FBI
Before the Senate Appropriations
Committee, Subcommittee on the Departments of Commerce, Justice, and State, the
Judiciary, and Related Agencies
March
23, 2004
"Information Technology, Management, and Training"
Introduction
Good morning Mr. Chairman,
Senator Hollings, and members of the Subcommittee. Before I begin, I want to take
a moment to thank you for your leadership and strong support of the FBI. The funding
you have provided has been critical to our mission and our efforts to transform
the FBI. Over the past two and a half years, we have moved from an organization
that was primarily focused on traditional criminal investigations to one that
is actively investigating and disrupting terrorist operations. I welcome the opportunity
to come before you today to discuss this transformation and specifically address
three areas that have been key to it -- information technology, management, and
training.
Training Training
is essential for the FBI to achieve its strategic goals. It is the basis for the
success of each individual employee, from Special Agents to analysts, and for
the FBI as a whole. As threats based on terrorism and technology increase, the
FBI must prepare its employees to meet these threats by providing high-quality
training. The cornerstone of this training is the FBI Academy at Quantico, Virginia.
As you know, new agents complete a 17-week training program at the FBI Academy.
All analysts receive training at the College of Analytical Studies, also located
at Quantico. In addition, the FBI provides training to state, local, and international
law enforcement officials at the National Academy and hosts numerous training
conferences. Over
the past few years, the FBI has made significant progress in improving the training
we provide to agents, support personnel, and our law enforcement partners.
To prepare Special Agents
to meet our highest priority-terrorism prevention-our Counterterrorism modules
now include financial investigative techniques, source development strategies,
terrorist groups, and domestic terrorism. We have also developed a number of practical
problems that have greatly enhanced our counterintelligence and counterterrorism
training. For example, we have developed white-collar practical problems focusing
on terrorist fundraising that enables New Agent trainees to experience one of
the means of identifying and dismantling terrorist networks before they strike.
Of course, we also include practical problems where the trainees must respond
to a terrorist event such as the release of cyanide or anthrax. In the past, our
practical exercises focused exclusively on criminal applications, such as bank
robberies and kidnappings. While these remain an important part of our program,
we have refocused our training efforts to address our number one priority of protecting
the United States against terrorist attack. We
established the College of Analytical Studies (CAS) in October 2001 to provide
analysts with a formal training program in support of our counterterrorism mission.
The CAS includes a basic course of six weeks for FBI analysts, as well as Joint
Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) analysts, who may be Department of Justice (DOJ) employees,
state and local law enforcement officials, or analysts from other federal agencies.
The CAS trained 880 students in FY 2003 a four-fold increase over the 193 students
in FY 2002. The
FBI also provides training to its state, local, and international partners through
the National Academy, the National Executive Institute, and the Law Enforcement
Executive Development Seminar. In addition, we have partnered with the Department
of Justice to provide a comprehensive ATrain the Trainer program, at the FBI Academy,
to teams of agents from each FBI field office. After completing their training,
these teams will train state and local police officers in their territory on pre-incident
awareness, preparation, and prevention in the areas of antiterrorism and extremist
criminal activity. The goal is for each FBI field office to train 120 police officers
per quarter, resulting in the annual training of at least 26,800 first responders
in basic CT. As of March 9, 2004, one ATrain the Trainer course had been taught,
and a second was offered last week, resulting in certification of approximately
55 trainers.
Through the University Education Program (UEP), we are
providing funding for employees to pursue advanced degrees in critical skills
areas as identified by the FBI's list of priorities. This will allow FBI employees
to readily adapt to changes in mission and keep pace with rapid advances in technology.
In FY 2004, 147 employees were approved to work toward their degrees. Eighty-four
are pursuing master degrees or Ph.D.'s. We have also invested in executive management
and leadership training, developed by the Kellogg School of Management in Chicago.
Approximately 250 Senior Executive Service (SES) managers have already received
training at the Kellogg School. Although
the FBI Academy at Quantico supports a tremendous amount of the training the FBI
provides, it is over 30 years old and not in a condition conducive to 21st century
training. It has become clear that a substantial investment is needed in our infrastructure
now in order to prevent further deterioration. The FY 2005 President's budget
request includes $21.3 million in nonpersonnel funding in order to renovate the
FBI Academy and provide for operations and maintenance of the facility, so we
can ensure the future of law enforcement has the best possible training environment.
Information Technology We
have made substantial progress in the information technology (IT) area since I
arrived at the FBI in September 2001, eight days before the terrorist attacks
of September 11th. At that time, the FBI's technology systems were several generations
behind industry standards, existing legacy systems were approaching 30 years old.
IT equipment was inadequate. For example, our personnel were working on hand-me
down computers from other federal agencies. We had little to no Internet connections
in our field offices, and our networks could not do something as simple as transmit
a digital photo.
Much
of the progress the FBI has made on the investigative front rests upon a strong
foundation of information technology. Nearly 500 counterterrorism and counterintelligence
FBI Headquarters employees have been provided with access to Top Secret/Sensitive
Compartmented Information (TS/SCI) at their desks. We implemented the Wide Area
Network on schedule in March 2003. We improved data warehousing technology to
dramatically reduce stove piping and cut down on man-hours that used to be devoted
to manual searches. We have deployed nearly 30,000 new computers for FBI Headquarters
and field offices. Following
the September 11th terrorist attacks, we were required to make an in-depth assessment
of our information technology systems. This assessment determined that we needed
to address some key areas including the lack of databases that contained current
information, limited analytical tools, continual dependency on Automated Case
Support (ACS), and outdated equipment. I
have taken specific steps to address our deficiencies in information technology.
I made it a top priority that we establish required databases and develop analytical
tools. In a post-Robert Hanssen environment, it was critical that we implement
new security protocols. I also completely replaced the management team responsible
for Trilogy. I brought onboard a new Chief Information Officer (CIO), as well
as a project manager from the IT community to monitor the progress of the project. As
you know, during the past year we encountered some setbacks regarding the deployment
of Full Site Capability (FSC) and the Virtual Case File, and we are moving quickly
to address them. We are working to resolve each issue, and will continue deployment
throughout the country. I
believe that we are now on the right track, and we are closing in on the goal
of completion. We are being diligent in our efforts to complete this project within
the resources available, and I am committed to ensuring the successful completion
of this project. For
FY 2005, the FBI requests increases of $20 million in technology investments to
continue moving forward. A portion of these resources will allow the FBI to install
the TS/SCI Operational Network in up to 10 field offices and add users to the
Headquarters TS/SCI Local Area Network (LAN). Expanding the TS/SCI network will
provide every agent and analyst with classified e-mail and message delivery, as
well as an electronically searchable archive on their desktop. I will continue
to seek your help and support as the FBI moves forward into an increasingly high-tech
future.
FBI Culture The
culture of the FBI is now and always has been a culture of hard work, integrity,
and dedication to protecting the United States, no matter what challenges we face.
The FBI was created 96 years ago to fight the spread of traditional crime across
county and state lines. Today's FBI faces a world in which crimes as diverse as
terrorism, corporate fraud, identity theft, human trafficking, illegal weapons
trade, and money laundering traverse easily back and forth across international
boundaries. Today, we are dealing with organized crime groups that launder money
for drug groups, which sell weapons to terrorists, who commit white-collar crime
to fund their operations. In the wake of the September 11, 2001, attacks, it became
clear that the FBI must be more flexible, agile, and mobile in the face of these
new threats. As a result, the FBI has:
· Refocused its mission
and revised its priorities;
· Realigned its workforce to address these
priorities;
· Shifted its management and operational environment to
strengthen flexibility, agility, and accountability;
· Restructured
FBI Headquarters; and
· Undertaken dozens of projects aimed at reengineering
our internal business practices and processes.
We are building a workforce
for the future by: ·
Expanding the FBI's applicant base for critical skills and diversity;
·
Updating new agent training to reflect our revised priorities;
· Establishing
new career tracks for counterterrorism, counterintelligence, cyber, security,
and for analysts; and
· Improving management and leadership development.
We are modernizing FBI technology
by implementing Trilogy and developing cutting-edge technology. We have opened
and strengthened lines of communication between the FBI and our partners in the
federal, state, local, and international law enforcement and intelligence communities.
We amended our original core values to accountability for our actions and leadership
through example both at work and in our communities. In
short, we have overhauled the FBI, transforming it into a stronger, more flexible,
more proactive, and more modern organization, better equipped to confront the
myriad of threats we face in a post-September 11th world. We will continue to
evolve and make comprehensive changes in the overall structure, organization,
and business practices of the FBI to ensure that we remain the very best law enforcement
and intelligence agency in the world. Conclusion We
have made great progress, but our work is not yet finished. The FBI has a duty
to protect the United States, secure freedom, and preserve justice for all Americans.
The FBI has always answered and will always answer this call with fidelity, bravery,
and integrity. The men and women of the FBI work tirelessly each and every day
to fulfill the FBI's mandate to protect the United States. With the support of
this Subcommittee, we can give the men and women of the FBI the resources they
need to carry out their mission. Thank
you |
