Homeland security agencies that took over the immigration
enforcement from the Immigration and Naturalization
Service in 2003 have inherited many of INS’s management
challenges, the Government Accountability Office has said.
GAO reported in 2001 that INS “faced challenges
assembling the basic systems and processes any organization
needs to carry out a mission,” such as “clearly
delineated roles, policies and procedures that balance
competing priorities, effective internal and external
communications and coordination, and automation systems
that provide accurate and timely information,” according
to GAO-05-664T.
At a hearing before the House subcommittee on immigration
held to consider structural changes to the two agencies,
GAO’s director of homeland security and justice issues,
Richard M. Stana, asked lawmakers to first consider whether
the Bureaus of Customs and Border Protection, and
Immigration and Customs Enforcement have management
frameworks that include “a clear mission, a strategic
planning process, good organizational alignment, performance
measures, and leadership and accountability mechanisms.”
CBP is responsible for inspections and border patrol,
and ICE is responsible for investigations, intelligence,
detention, and removal.
Other factors Stana raised that could shape the debate
for management changes at the two fledgling bureaus are
whether they “have developed systems and processes to
support the management frameworks they have in place” –
as well as the need to look at CBP and ICE in the
context of an evolving DHS.
“The transformation and integration activities at DHS
can take 5-7 years to accomplish, and some management
challenges might be resolved in this process,”
Stana noted.
