Critical infrastructure plans making progress, GAO says.WHEN THE GOVERNMENT Accountability Office The Government Accountability Office (GAO) is the audit, evaluation, and investigative arm of the United States Congress, and thus an agency in the Legislative Branch of the United States Government. has something good to say about the Department of Homeland Security Noun 1. Department of Homeland Security - the federal department that administers all matters relating to homeland security Homeland Security executive department - a federal department in the executive branch of the government of the United States , it's news. A report on the department's efforts to coordinate 17 national infrastructure protection plans, which are designed to integrate the private sector and government's security efforts, gave the department generally good marks. DHS DHS Department of Homeland Security (USA) DHS Department of Human Services DHS Department of Health Services DHS Demographic and Health Surveys DHS Dirhams (Morocco national currency) got off on the wrong foot when it missed a congressionally mandated deadline to create the program's framework. However, sector specific plans were delivered on time by the end of 2006. The 17 critical infrastructure sectors each has a council with representatives from government and the private sector. They are charged with using risk management principles to prioritize protection activities, identify critical assets, assess the probability of terrorist attacks or other hazards and develop protective measures. They must submit an annual re port each September detailing potential security gaps along with action plans to address the shortfalls. After examining nine of the sectors, GAO found that they generally met congressional requirements. Eight of the nine, however, did not address incentives the sectors would use to encourage owners to conduct risk assessments. The more mature sectors are generally further along in their plans, the report noted. For example, the drinking water drinking water supply of water available to animals for drinking supplied via nipples, in troughs, dams, ponds and larger natural water sources; an insufficient supply leads to dehydration; it can be the source of infection, e.g. leptospirosis, salmonellosis, or of poisoning, e.g. and water treatment sector, which coordinates its efforts with the Environmental Protection Agency Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), independent agency of the U.S. government, with headquarters in Washington, D.C. It was established in 1970 to reduce and control air and water pollution, noise pollution, and radiation and to ensure the safe handling and , has a 30-year history of protecting its assets and working with the government. There was also concern among the private sectors that information submitted to DHS' information clearinghouse, the homeland security information network, would be misused. HSIN HSIN Homeland Security Information Network (Dept of Homeland Security) is the department's computer-based counterterrorism coun·ter·ter·ror adj. Intended to prevent or counteract terrorism: counterterror measures; counterterror weapons. n. Action or strategy intended to counteract or suppress terrorism. communications system designed to connect state, local and federal agencies. Private sector partners "continue to fear that the information, such as information on security vulnerabilities, could be inadequately protected, used for future legal or regulatory action, or inadvertently released," GAO said. |
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