U.S. Department of Homeland Security
| Department of Homeland Security | |
 | |
| Secretary: | Jeh Johnson |
| Deputy Secretary: | Alejandro Mayorkas |
| Annual budget: | $59.0 billion (2013) |
| Total employed: | 240,000 |
| Year created: | 2002 |
| Official website: | http://www.dhs.gov/ |
 |
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is a United States executive department formed in 2002 in order to "ensure a homeland that is safe, secure, and resilient against terrorism and other hazards," according to its official website.[1] Tom Ridge was the first director of homeland security. He was appointed by President George W. Bush in 2001, and he was the first to become Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security after its official formation in 2002.[2] The current secretary is Jeh Johnson, who was confirmed to the post on December 16, 2013. The previous secretary, Janet Napolitano, resigned on September 6, 2013.[3]
The Department of Homeland Security currently employs over 240,000 people.[4] Among the agencies overseen by the Department are the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol, U.S. Immigration and Citizenship Enforcement (ICE), U.S. Coast Guard, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), U.S. Secret Service and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA).[5]
History
The Office of Homeland Security was formed by President George W. Bush 11 days after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attack.[2] The office worked with the White House to coordinate a national strategy to protect against and respond to future terrorist acts. On November 19, 2002, the Homeland Security Act of 2002 passed through Congress and was signed into law by President Bush on November 25, 2002.[6][7] The law resulted in 22 agencies being re-assigned into the department, the largest such change since the consolidation of the armed forces into the Department of Defense under President Truman.[8]
In 2005, under Secretary Michael Chertoff, the department underwent changes to improve efficiency. Agencies such as FEMA and ICE were given more independence within the organization, though there were some in Congress who believed they should be independent of the organization.[8]
Structure
Mission
According to its official website, the department has five missions:
| “ |
|
” |
| —Department of Homeland Security[1] | ||
Leadership
The secretary of the department oversees efforts to carry out its mission. The current secretary is Jeh Johnson.
| Recent Secretaries of Homeland Security | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Secretary of Homeland Security | Years in office | Nominated by | Confirmation vote | |||||
| Tom Ridge | 2002-2005 | George W. Bush | 94-0 | |||||
| Michael Chertoff | 2005-2009 | George W. Bush | 98-0 | |||||
| Janet Napolitano | 2009-2013 | Barack Obama | N/A | |||||
| Jeh Johnson | 2013-Present | Barack Obama | 78-16 | |||||
Note: Votes marked "N/A" represent voice votes or unrecorded votes. Missing votes will be filled as they are researched.
Organizational chart
Issues
Cybersecurity
The inspector general released a report on December 2, 2013, claiming the department did not properly maintain cybersecurity measures. Regular scans for threats were not conducted and systems were not patched. Per an executive order issued in February 2013, the department was charged with working alongside private sector organizations to improve digital defenses.[10]
Analysis
Budget
Obama administration
| <pLines
Title="U.S. Department of Homeland Security Annual Budget" colors=B45F06 labels= true xlabels= true legend= true grid= true gridcolor= 000000 bgcolor=ffffff graphbgcolor= efefef graphbgtype=normal box= true boxcolor= 000000 plots= closed size= 460x300> ,Budget in billions 2009, 52.7 2010, 56.0 2011, 54.8 2012, 59.7 2013, 50.1 2014, 48.5 </pLines> |
| U.S. Department of Homeland Security[11] Annual Budget | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Budget (in billions) | % Difference from previous year |
| 2014 | $48.5 | −3.19% |
| 2013 | $50.1 | −16.08% |
| 2012 | $59.7 | 8.94% |
| 2011 | $54.8 | −2.14% |
| 2010 | $56.0 | 6.26% |
| 2009 | $52.7 | N/A |
- Note: 2014 only represents the Department's budget request, not an enacted budget.
Employment
The Best Places to work in the Federal Government is a website that tracks workforce trends in federal agencies. According to their analysis, from 2005-2011, the Department of Homeland Security has added an average of 3,159 jobs per year.[12]
Sequester
According to Secretary Napolitano, sequestration resulted in a loss of 5% of the department's budget, which is about $2.95 billion.[13]
Recent news
This section displays the most recent stories in a google news search for the term Department + Homeland + Security
- All stories may not be relevant to this page due to the nature of the search engine.
See also
External links
- Official Department of Homeland Security website
- Department of Homeland Security blog
- Department of Homeland Security on Facebook
- Department of Homeland Security on Twitter
- Department of Homeland Security Youtube channel
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Department of Homeland Security, "Our Mission," accessed August 27, 2013
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 U.S. Department of Homeland Security, "Creation of the Department of Homeland Security," accessed August 27, 2013
- ↑ FCW, "DHS faces growing leadership gap," August 14, 2013
- ↑ Department of Homeland Security, "About DHS," accessed August 27, 2013
- ↑ Department of Homeland Security, "Organizational Chart," accessed August 27, 2013
- ↑ GovTrack, "H.R. 5005 (107th): Homeland Security Act of 2002 (On Passage of the Bill)," November 19, 2002
- ↑ The White House, "President Bush Signs Homeland Security Act," November 25, 2002
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Washington Post, "Homeland Security Department," accessed August 27, 2013
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Politico, "IG finds holes in DHS’s cybersecurity," December 3, 2013
- ↑ U.S. Department of Homeland Security, "DHS Budget," accessed January 31, 2014
- ↑ The Best Places to work in the Federal Government, "Agency Report: Department of Homeland Security," accessed August 27, 2013
- ↑ The Spectrum Group, "The Budget Cuts And How They Affect The Department Of Homeland Security," April 29, 2013
