By Josh Martin, Managing Editor
Published January 11th, 2008
Congress is asserting its role as the holder of the nation’s purse-strings, as it examines FY2008 DHS agency budgets. A case in point: The House Science and Technology Committee voted to give the DHS Science and Technology Directorate $850 million to invest in various technologies in the coming year, but congressmen on both sides of the aisle have been pressing DHS S&T for more accountability regarding how the money is spent. A bill sponsored by Rep. Ralph Hall (R-TX) the Science and Technology Committee‘s ranking member, would require the directorate to clearly define the cost and operational requirements of its key portfolio budgets. More significantly, the legislation would extend through 2012 the life of the Homeland Security Science and Technology Advisory Committee, an interdisciplinary body of 20 experts who advise S&T Directorate executives. The move could mandate DHS S&T shift funds to more long-term security goals.