Federal Daily - March 14, 2008
Lawmaker Seeks Audit of Intelligence Security Clearance Process
Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-Calif., and Rep. Silvestre Reyes, D-Texas, on March 12 asked for a government audit
of the nation’s intelligence community security clearance process to see whether it can be speeded
up. Eshoo, who chairs the House Subcommittee on Intelligence Community Management, and Reyes, chairman
of the House Intelligence Committee, asked the Government Accountability Office to examine the clearance
process and a recent reform effort by Director of National Intelligence Mike McConnell. Witnesses,
including Comptroller General David Walker, told Eshoo’s panel in February that improvements
could be made to the clearance process. Eshoo took aim at the slow pace of obtaining a clearance, which
often runs to six months. “Prospective employees aren’t always willing or able to wait
six months for a clearance. They find new jobs and this country is left holding the bag,” she
said. “We need to do better.” To see more, go to: http://eshoo.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=407&Itemid=206.
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Marshals Service Requests $12.7 Million to Add 73 Slots for ’09
In an effort to secure the nation’s Southwest border, the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) is asking
for an additional 73 positions for Fiscal Year 2009, including 52 new deputy U.S. marshals, said John
Clark, USMS director. Clark testified on March 12 before a House Appropriations subcommittee, seeking
a $12.7 million set aside for the Southwest border offices, which are experiencing a massive influx
of activity. As federal, state and local law enforcement agencies ramp up their efforts to close the
border to illegal activity, USMS said it is struggling to keep up with increased demands—which
include the processing, housing and transportation of a growing number of federal detainees. Between
2000 and 2007, the average daily prisoner population in the Southwest border districts increased by
72 percent, Clark said, noting that altogether the border has an average of more than 18,600 prisoners
in custody on any given day. “Undoubtedly one of the most acute challenges facing the USMS is
continuing to provide essential security and detention services in support of Southwest border immigration
initiatives,” Clark said. To see more, go to: www.usmarshals.gov/news/testimony/usms-final-house-testimony-031208.pdf.
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VA Launches Pilot Videoconferencing Trial
Rural Montana veterans who don’t live near a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) facility will
be offered a videoconferencing link to help in the delivery of their benefits, VA announced on March
12. The pilot program is located in the Valley Veterans Service Center (VVSC), a volunteer-staffed
grassroots organization in Hamilton, Mont., that helps assist vets in the region. Vets will be able
to schedule time during regular business hours on Fridays to videoconference from VVSC with Ft. Harrison
VA regional office staff to address items regarding their benefits and claims, VA said in a statement.
VA said approximately 16,000 Montana vets and their families receive disability compensation, pension
and other related VA benefits totaling more than $154 million annually. “Access for these rural
veterans is critical to helping them receive the benefits they have earned,” said VA Secretary
James Peake. To see more, go to: http://www1.va.gov/opa/pressrel/pressrelease.cfm?id=1467.
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