Congressional Hearings
LEGISLATIVE BRANCH APPROPRIATIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2010
Congressional Hearings
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Congress: Senate
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| AUTHORITYID | CHAMBER | TYPE | COMMITTEENAME |
|---|---|---|---|
| ssap00 | S | S | Committee on Appropriations |
[Senate Hearing 111-]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
LEGISLATIVE BRANCH APPROPRIATIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2010
----------
THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2009
U.S. Senate,
Subcommittee of the Committee on Appropriations,
Washington, DC.
The subcommittee met at 2:33 p.m., in room SD-138, Dirksen
Senate Office Building, Hon. Ben Nelson (chairman) presiding.
Present: Senators Nelson, Pryor, Tester, and Murkowski.
U.S. SENATE
Office of the Secretary
STATEMENT OF HON. NANCY ERICKSON, SECRETARY OF THE
SENATE
ACCOMPANIED BY:
SHEILA DWYER, ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF THE SENATE
CHRIS DOBY, FINANCIAL CLERK
OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR BEN NELSON
Senator Nelson. The subcommittee will come to order.
First of all, good afternoon, everyone, and welcome. We are
glad to have you here. We meet this afternoon to take testimony
on the fiscal year 2010 budget requests for the Secretary of
the Senate, the Senate Sergeant at Arms, and the U.S. Capitol
Police.
This is my first hearing as chairman of this subcommittee,
and I look forward to working closely with my ranking member,
Senator Murkowski, and the other members of the subcommittee,
Senator Pryor and Senator Tester, who we hope will be able to
join us before we are concluded.
And I must admit I was surprised having this be my first
opportunity as the chairman to see an overall request for the
legislative branch totaling $5 billion, or a 15 percent
increase over the current year. So needless to say, I look
forward to working with all of the legislative branch agencies
on ways that we can help try to reduce these numbers.
I understand that this subcommittee, for example, received
an 11 percent increase in fiscal year 2009, but I hope that we
don't expect double-digit increases this year.
I also want to welcome our three witnesses today. Nancy
Erickson, who is Secretary of the Senate. Nancy, we are glad to
have you here. Terry Gainer, Senate Sergeant at Arms. Terry,
thank you for being here. And Chief Phillip Morse of the
Capitol Police. Chief, we are very happy to have you here, and
Chief Nichols with you as well and Gloria Jarmon.
I want to first acknowledge the dedication and hard work of
all of your staff. The Senate isn't an easy place to work, and
we take a lot for granted here. But we do owe a debt of
gratitude to all of you for keeping the Senate running safely
and smoothly on a daily basis. And to the extent that it
doesn't, I assure you it is not your fault.
And Chief Gainer, I note with sadness the passing of one of
your valued staff, Steve Mosley, after a dedicated 32-year
career with your agency. The entire Senate community joins you
in mourning the loss of this outstanding individual and
dedicated public official. We were grateful for his dedication
and commitment to this institution. I know you may want to make
a statement about that just a little bit later.
But first, I want to welcome you, Nancy. We are pleased to
have you here this afternoon. We are anxious to hear your
testimony. Among many others on your staff, I want to
especially acknowledge Chris Doby of the Disbursing Office for
his fine work.
Your office is requesting a budget of $27.8 million, which
is an increase of roughly $1.7 million, or 7 percent above the
current year. I look forward to hearing about the specifics of
your request.
Chief Gainer, the Sergeant at Arms request for 2010 totals
$243.5 million, a 10 percent increase over fiscal year 2009. I
realize that your request is laden with technology upgrades for
the Senate community, which tend to be expensive, and I look
forward to discussing those with you just a little later.
And finally, Chief Morse, the fiscal year 2010 Capitol
Police budget request totals $410 million, or 34 percent over
the enacted fiscal year 2009 level, and I realize also that the
bulk of your increase is related to the radio project and the
Library of Congress police merger. But that is a fairly
significant and perhaps even massive increase. So I want to
discuss these and other issues with you today.
And Chief Morse, in closing, I would like to congratulate
you on the clean opinion your agency received on your 2008
financial statements. Your agency has obviously come a long
way, and we appreciate getting to this point. And we on this
subcommittee appreciate your personal efforts and the efforts
of your chief administrative officer, Gloria Jarmon.
Now I would like to turn to the ranking member of the
subcommittee, my good friend Senator Murkowski, for her opening
remarks.
STATEMENT OF SENATOR LISA MURKOWSKI
Senator Murkowski. Well, thank you, Mr. Chairman.
And I look forward to working with you on the issues that
face us as we deal with the legislative branch appropriations.
We have not had an opportunity to do much work together. So I
am sure that this is the beginning of a long and fine
relationship and look forward to that.
But I also appreciate hearing your comments this morning as
we work to address the needs of the legislative branch. I think
it is important that we exercise fiscal discipline and that we
lead by example. And I think that that is very key for us all.
I want to welcome our witnesses as well. The Secretary of
the Senate Nancy Erickson, Sergeant at Arms Terry Gainer, Chief
Phillip Morse, their deputies Sheila Dwyer, Drew Willison, Dan
Nichols, the Senate financial clerk Chris Doby, and the Capitol
Police chief administrative officer Gloria Jarmon.
We had had some meetings scheduled earlier in the week that
I had to cancel because I am still working on a little bit of a
knee issue, but we will have plenty of opportunity to spend
quality time together and I look forward to that.
I do appreciate the very good work that you and your staffs
do, the parliamentarians, the legislative professionals, many
working very, very late nights here in the Senate, the police
officers who protect the Capitol complex, the Sergeant at Arms
employees that ensure that our mail is safe, the folks who
develop the emergency plans, the doorkeepers, the phone
operators, the technology specialists, and there are just so
many that you can't even mention, all those who make this place
operate smoothly.
Your agencies contributed a great deal in the last year to
many, many important events, including the Presidential
Inauguration, the opening of the Capitol Visitor Center (CVC),
and yet you did all this while still maintaining the day-to-day
functions. And I think that speaks highly of you, and we
appreciate all of your efforts there.
Now the chairman has mentioned the legislative branch
request for fiscal year 2010, a total of over $5 billion, an
increase of nearly 15 percent over fiscal year 2009. And I,
too, am looking forward to hearing about and understanding more
the needs of the legislative branch agencies. But as I have
just stated, I do believe that we here in the legislative
branch should serve as a model for the rest of Government. I am
not convinced that a 15 percent increase does set a good
example.
So I would like to look at those ways that we can, through
prioritization and just working together, figure out how we set
that better standard. I will be honest with you. I am one who
questions the need for continued growth in the size of
legislative branch agencies. I would like to explore some of
these concerns today and through the process.
But again, Mr. Chairman, I look forward to the opportunity
to work with you to meet the needs of these very, very
important agencies. And while we do this, we will tighten our
belts where possible.
So thank you so much.
Senator Nelson. Well, it seems like we are going from
tight, tighter, to perhaps tightest.
I turn now to my friend Senator Pryor and ask if he might
have any opening remarks.
Senator Pryor. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I will just submit my statement for the record because I am
ready to go ahead and hear from the witnesses.
Thank you for your leadership, as well as the ranking
member. Thank you as always. You all do great work around here.
Thank you.
Senator Nelson. Appreciate it.
[The statement follows:]
Prepared Statement of Senator Mark Pryor
Thank you Chairman Nelson and Ranking Member Murkowski for holding
this hearing concerning the budget requests for the Secretary of the
Senate, the Senate Sergeant at Arms, and the United States Capitol
Police.
I look forward to having the opportunity to work with my colleagues
on this subcommittee to consider the budget requests put forward by
organizations within the Senate and the Legislative Branch of
Government.
As this subcommittee works toward producing the 2010 Legislative
Branch Appropriations bill, I want to work to keep the Legislative
Branch of government operating efficiently and as wise stewards of the
taxpayers' money.
I thank the Honorable Nancy Erickson, Secretary of the Senate; the
Honorable Terrance W. Gainer, Senate Sergeant at Arms; and Phillip D.
Morse, Sr., Chief of the United States Capitol Police, for testifying
today before the subcommittee.
I look forward to hearing your testimony and having the opportunity
to ask questions.
Senator Nelson. Now we will begin with the witnesses and,
if we could, keep the opening statements perhaps to about 5
minutes, and then that will give us more time for questions.
So, Ms. Erickson, we will start with you. And then we will hear
from Terry Gainer and then Chief Morse.
Nancy.
SUMMARY STATEMENT OF NANCY ERICKSON
Ms. Erickson. Chairman Nelson, Senator Murkowski, and
Senator Pryor, I appreciate this opportunity to provide
testimony. I ask that my statement, which includes our
department reports, be submitted for the record.
With me today is Sheila Dwyer, the assistant secretary, and
Chris Doby, the Senate financial clerk, who is no stranger to
your subcommittee staff.
Our budget request for fiscal year 2010 is $27,790,000, of
which $25,790,000 is salary costs and $2 million is operating
costs, which is the same level of operating funds we received
for the current fiscal year. Our department leaders have
demonstrated wise stewardship of our financial resources in a
way that has maximized the services we provide to the Senate.
Since 1789, when the Senate first convened in Federal Hall
in New York City, the Secretary of the Senate has been tasked
with legislative, administrative, and financial
responsibilities to support the Senate. For me, there is no
more notable moment for our office this year than the tribute
paid to Dave Tinsley, the chief legislative clerk and director
of our legislative floor staff, who retired from the Senate
after 32 years of public service.
The moving statements of Majority Leader Reid and
Republican Leader McConnell were followed by a standing ovation
by the full Senate. I believe the well-earned tribute to Dave
Tinsley was also recognition of the other public servants in my
office who work effectively behind the scenes to support this
institution, its members, and its staff. I am very proud of
their work.
I am confident that our legislative department with its
cadre of veterans and eager new hires will continue to serve
the Senate in an exemplary manner. During fiscal year 2010,
they will continue to focus on cross-training, evacuation
exercises, and continue discussions with the House clerk, the
Government Printing Office, and the White House on the
transmittal of legislation in an emergency to bring life to our
continuity of operation plans (COOP) and ensure chamber support
under any circumstance.
Our administrative departments provide a variety of
services to the Senate, ranging from the Senate library, which
is now led by a woman for the first time in its 138-year
history, to the Senate page school whose faculty provide an
excellent education to our Senate pages, beginning at 6:15 a.m.
each day.
As the subcommittee knows, for 17 years, our stationery
room has effectively managed the $1.5 million Metro subsidy
program for the Senate. Metro's recent transition to electronic
smart benefits has opened new opportunities to better serve the
Senate community, and the stationery room hopes to meet the
requests of our customers by investing in technology that will
provide an e-commerce option for Senate offices.
In fiscal year 2007, the Senate gift shop initiated a
program to require certification by vendors to address
potential instances of lead in children's products and jewelry.
Following passage of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement
Act of 2008, thanks to Senator Pryor, the gift shop has
increased its program to evaluate its products and ensure
compliance with the new heightened standards and bans of the
act.
Webster, the Senate's internal Web site, was launched in
1995, and I am pleased to report that our goal to redesign the
site to better serve Senate users has been accomplished with
the site's other stakeholders.
Collaborative planning began almost 2 years ago between our
staff and the Architect of the Capitol's staff to commemorate
the 100th anniversary of the Russell Senate Office Building,
which was completed in 1909. Their efforts produced a wonderful
publication, a Web site on Senate.gov, exhibits, informational
kiosks, commemorative merchandise in the Senate gift shop, as
well as the first-ever comprehensive survey of the Senate's
inventory of historic Russell furniture.
I know that transparency is important to this subcommittee,
and I would like to bring attention to the Office of Public
Records, which was given an enormous responsibility to
implement the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act, or
HLOGA, resulting in substantial changes to the Lobbying
Disclosure Act. The frequency of reporting doubled from semi-
annually to quarterly, and HLOGA required mandatory electronic
filing.
This past year, the office implemented the bill's final
filing requirement, known as section 203, which requires
lobbyists to semi-annually report their political contributions
to Members as well as contributions to any event that honors a
covered official. Now the public has more sophisticated access
to public lobbying records, as well as information on Member
and staff travel and lobbying restrictions for Members and
staff who have left the Senate.
Finally, I am pleased to report that our Senate disbursing
office, which works closely with your subcommittee in
formulating the budget for the United States Senate, is moving
forward in its efforts to institute a paperless voucher system.
An initial prototype was implemented last year, and it was met
with great success.
Next, a pilot project will feature new technology,
including imaging and electronic signatures. Not only will the
system green the Senate by reducing paper usage, it will also
enable the continuation of voucher processing operations from
an alternate location should an emergency occur.
PREPARED STATEMENTS
We appreciate your consideration of our budget request for
fiscal year 2010. I believe it appropriately focuses on several
of the Senate's priorities--continuity of operations, archival,
education, implementation of HLOGA, and the paperless voucher
pilot program. We are grateful for your support of our efforts
to support this institution.
Thank you.
Senator Nelson. Thank you.
[The statements follow:]
Prepared Statement of Nancy Erickson
Mister Chairman, Senator Murkowski, and Members of the
Subcommittee, thank you for your invitation to present testimony in
support of the budget request of the Office of the Secretary of the
Senate for fiscal year 2010.
It is a pleasure to have this opportunity to draw attention to the
accomplishments of the dedicated and outstanding employees of the
Office of the Secretary. The annual reports which follow provide
detailed information about the work of the 26 departments of the
office, their recent achievements, and their plans for the upcoming
fiscal year.
My statement includes: Presenting the fiscal year 2010 budget
request; implementing mandated systems, financial management
information system (FMIS) and legislative information system (LIS);
continuity of operations planning; and maintaining and improving
current and historic legislative, financial and administrative
services.
PRESENTING THE FISCAL YEAR 2010 BUDGET REQUEST
I am requesting a total fiscal year 2010 budget of $27,790,000. The
request includes $25,790,000 in salary costs and $2,000,000 for the
operating budget of the Office of the Secretary. The salary budget
represents an increase of $1,770,000 over the fiscal year 2009 budget
as a result of the costs associated with the annual cost of living
adjustment and targeted merit awards that are associated with our
Employee Feedback and Development Plans. The expense operating budget
remains the same as our request in fiscal year 2009.
The net effect of my total budget request for 2010 is an increase
of $1,770,000.
Our request is consistent with the amounts requested and received
in recent years through the Legislative Branch Appropriations process.
This request will enable us to continue to attract and retain talented
and dedicated individuals to serve the needs of the United States
Senate.
OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY APPORTIONMENT SCHEDULE
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Amount
available Budget
Items fiscal year estimates Difference
2009, Public fiscal year
Law 111-8 2010
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Departmental operating budget:
Executive office \1\........................................ $550,000 $550,000 ..............
Administrative services..................................... $1,390,000 $1,390,000
Legislative services........................................ $60,000 $60,000 ..............
-----------------------------------------------
Total operating budget.................................... $2,000,000 $2,000,000 ..............
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Includes the Executive, Information Systems, Page School, Security, and Web Technology offices.
IMPLEMENTING MANDATED SYSTEMS
Two systems critical to operations are mandated by law, and I would
like to spend a few moments on each to highlight recent progress, and
to thank the committee for your ongoing support of both.
Financial Management Information System (FMIS)
The Financial Management Information System, or FMIS, is used by
approximately 140 Senate offices. The Disbursing Office continues to
modernize processes and applications to meet the continued demand by
Senate offices for efficiency, accountability and ease of use. The
Disbursing Office remains committed to and continues working toward an
integrated, paperless voucher system, improving the Web FMIS system,
and making payroll and accounting system improvements.
During fiscal year 2008 and the first half of fiscal year 2009,
specific progress made on the FMIS project included:
--Web FMIS was upgraded twice, once in June 2008 and again in
September 2008. This system is used by office managers and
committee clerks to create vouchers and manage their office
funds, by the Disbursing Office to review vouchers and by the
Committee on Rules and Administration to sanction vouchers. The
two releases provided both technical and functional changes.
The primary change in the June release was the conversion of
all employee vendor numbers to use the 9-digit employee
identification number assigned by the payroll system instead of
an employee vendor number that included a partial Social
Security Number. With this release, Disbursing also began three
pilots: providing payroll reports online, prototype of an
online review of imaged vouchers and supporting documentation,
and use of electronic invoicing by which electronic credit card
data was made available for importing into vouchers. In
addition, a number of Web FMIS user-requested functionality was
implemented in this release. Disbursing added display of office
name to the master vendor file and the ability to search the
master expense category list by words in the expense category
description field. Finally, in preparation for the new fiscal
year, Disbursing implemented a budget function that enables
configuring the new budget based on a previous fiscal year.
--The computing infrastructure for FMIS is provided by the Sergeant
at Arms (SAA). Each year the SAA staff upgrades the
infrastructure hardware and software. During 2008, the SAA
implemented one major upgrade to the FMIS infrastructure:
upgrading the Z/OS mainframe operating software from version
1.7 to version 1.9. In addition, the SAA implemented quarterly
micro-code updates and the application of maintenance releases
on a more regular basis, both of which will keep the
infrastructure more current. During 2008, maintenance was
applied to Z/OS and DB2 in March and to DB2 in August. Because
the Z/OS upgrade was accomplished as a stand-alone activity, IT
tested all FMIS subsystems in a testing environment and
validated all FMIS subsystems in the production environment
after the implementation.
--Disaster recovery operation services for FMIS are provided at the
Alternate Computer Facility (ACF). During December 2008, at the
Disbursing Office's request, the SAA conducted an FMIS-only
disaster recovery test. This is the second year in which a
FMIS-only test was conducted. The longer time allotted for this
test enabled a more complete functional testing, allowed for
the running of more reports than in previous tests, and
permitted the testing of the critical payroll and FAMIS batch
processes. While the Disbursing IT staff organized the
functional test plan, the actual testers included Disbursing IT
staff, payroll staff, contractor support staff, and SAA Finance
staff. No major problems were encountered and because of the
longer testing window any issues encountered were thoroughly
investigated and resolved.
During the remainder of fiscal year 2009 the following FMIS
activities are anticipated:
--Implementing a Web FMIS release with a re-writing of the FMIS
checkwriter functionality and a new file upload format for the
mainframe.
--Testing credit card data file transfer and implementing
``electronic invoice'' functionality.
--Transferring all SAVI-system users to the new Web FMIS ``staffer
functionality'' for creating online expense summary reports
(ESRs) and viewing payment information.
--Completing analysis of the appropriate hardware/software
acquisition strategy for electronic signatures, imaging of
supporting documentation, and beginning acquisition.
--Implementing online distribution of monthly ledger reports through
Web FMIS.
--Attending payroll system demonstrations and completing software
acquisition strategy.
--Implementing two mainframe micro-code and several system
maintenance updates.
--Participating in the yearly disaster recovery exercise at the ACF.
During fiscal year 2010, the following FMIS activities are
anticipated:
--Conducting a pilot with chief clerks and office managers of the
technology for paperless payment. This assumes identification
of satisfactory hardware and software for electronic signatures
and imaging of supporting documentation, and resolution of
related policy and process issues.
--Continuing the implementation, performance tuning of tables and the
required updates to the Hyperion financial management
application to provide the Senate the ability to produce
auditable financial statements.
--Continue the implementation of online financial reports and Web
FMIS reporting enhancements.
A more detailed report on FMIS is included in the departmental
report of the Disbursing Office.
LEGISLATIVE OFFICES
The Legislative Department provides support essential to Senators
in carrying out their daily chamber activities as well as the
constitutional responsibilities of the Senate. The Legislative Clerk
sits at the Secretary's desk in the Senate Chamber and reads aloud
bills, amendments, the Senate Journal, Presidential messages, and other
such materials when so directed by the Presiding Officer of the Senate.
The Legislative Clerk calls the roll of members to establish the
presence of a quorum and to record and tally all yea and nay votes.
This office prepares the Senate Calendar of Business, published each
day that the Senate is in session, and prepares additional publications
relating to Senate class membership and committee and subcommittee
assignments. The Legislative Clerk maintains the official copy of all
measures pending before the Senate and must incorporate any amendments
that are agreed to into those measures. This office retains custody of
official messages received from the House of Representatives and
conference reports awaiting action by the Senate. This office is
responsible for verifying the accuracy of information entered into the
Legislative Information System (LIS) by the various offices of the
Secretary.
Additionally, the Legislative Clerk acts as a supervisor for the
Legislative Department, providing a single line of communication to the
Secretary and Assistant Secretary, and is responsible for overall
coordination, supervision, scheduling, and cross training. The
department consists of eight offices: the Bill Clerk, Captioning
Services, Daily Digest, Enrolling Clerk, Executive Clerk, Journal
Clerk, Legislative Clerk, and the Official Reporters of Debates.
Summary of Activity
The Senate completed its legislative business and adjourned sine
die on January 3, 2009. During 2008, the Senate was in session 184 days
and conducted 215 roll call votes. There were 452 measures reported
from committees and 589 total measures passed. In addition, there were
1,812 amendments processed.
Cross-Training and Continuity of Operations (COOP) Planning
Recognizing the importance of planning for the continuity of Senate
business, under both normal and possibly extenuating circumstances,
cross-training continues to be strongly emphasized among the
Secretary's legislative staff. Approximately half of the legislative
staff are currently involved or have recently been involved in cross-
training to ensure that they are able to perform the basic floor
responsibilities of the Legislative Clerk, as well as the various other
floor-related responsibilities of the Secretary.
Additionally, each office and staff person within the Legislative
Department participated in numerous COOP discussions and exercises
throughout the past year. These discussions and exercises have been
conducted by a joint effort of the Office of the Secretary and the
Office of the Sergeant at Arms.
Online Congressional Record Corrections Program
The Congressional Record currently appears in three formats: the
daily print version, the online version and the permanent bound
version. Both the daily and online versions of the Record reflect the
previous day's session.
In order to provide the Senate and the public with the most
accurate, up-to-date version of the Record, procedures have been put
into place to correct clerical/typographical errors in the online
version of the Record. This program is specifically designed to address
clerical errors that occur. The responsibility to correct the online
Record is shared between the Secretary's legislative staff, who submit
corrections of clerical errors as needed, and the GPO, which updates
the online Record on a regular basis. Corrections to the online Record
will appear on the page on which the error occurred, and will be listed
after the History of Bills and Resolutions section of the printed
version of the Congressional Record Index for print-only viewers of the
Record.
Succession Planning
Among the Secretary's Legislative Department supervisors, the
average length of Senate service is 18 years. This is a very good
situation for the Senate. Due to the unique nature of the Senate as a
legislative institution, it is critical to attract and keep talented
employees, especially the second tier of employees just behind the
current supervisors. The complex practices and voluminous precedents of
the Senate make institutional experience and knowledge extremely
valuable.
BILL CLERK
The Office of the Bill Clerk collects and records data on the
legislative activity of the Senate, which becomes the historical record
of official Senate business. The Bill Clerk's staff keeps this
information in its handwritten files and ledgers and also enters it
into the Senate's automated retrieval system so that it is available to
all Senate offices through the Legislative Information System (LIS).
With the exception of the Amendment Tracking System (ATS), such
information is made available to the House as well. The Bill Clerk
records actions of the Senate with regard to bills, resolutions,
reports, amendments, cosponsors, public law numbers, and recorded
votes. The Bill Clerk is responsible for preparing for print all
measures introduced, received, submitted, and reported in the Senate.
The Bill Clerk also assigns numbers to all Senate bills and
resolutions. All of the information received in this office comes
directly from the Senate floor in written form within moments of the
action involved, so the Bill Clerk's Office is generally regarded as
the most timely and most accurate source of legislative information.
Legislative Activity
The Bill Clerk's office processed into the database more than 1,000
additional legislative items and more than 150 additional roll call
votes than in the previous Congress, for an overall percentage increase
of almost 9 percent. In fact, only three legislative categories (Senate
Bills introduced, Senate Concurrent Resolutions submitted, and House
Bills received) saw a decline in activity between the 109th Congress
and the 110th Congress. For comparative purposes, below is a summary of
the second sessions of the 109th and 110th Congresses, and then a
summary of the entire 109th and 110th Congresses:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
109th 110th
Congress, 2nd Congress, 2nd Percent 109th Congress 110th Congress Percent
Session Session change change
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Senate Bills.............................................. 1,953 1,217 -37.686 4,122 3,741 -9.243
Senate Joint Resolutions.................................. 14 19 -35.714 41 46 +12.195
Senate Concurrent Resolutions............................. 48 43 -10.417 123 107 +13.008
Senate Resolutions........................................ 287 311 +8.362 634 729 +14.984
Amendments Submitted...................................... 2,544 1,812 -28.774 5,239 5,704 +8.876
House Bills............................................... 325 427 +31.385 611 940 +53.846
House Joint Resolutions................................... 8 4 -50 19 13 -31.579
House Concurrent Resolutions.............................. 77 93 +20.779 165 186 +12.727
Measures Reported......................................... 233 452 +93.991 519 880 +69.557
Written Reports........................................... 157 274 +74.522 369 528 +43.089
Total Legislation......................................... 5,646 4,652 -17.605 11,842 12,874 +8.715
Roll Call Votes........................................... 279 215 -22.939 645 657 +1.86
House Messages \1\........................................ 225 283 +25.778 ( \2\ ) 546 ( \2\ )
Cosponsor Requests \3\.................................... 7,000 7,306 +4.371 .............. .............. .............
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ This number reflects how many messages from the House are typed up by the Bill Clerks for inclusion in the Congressional Record. It excludes
additional activity on these bills.
\2\ The number of House Messages is not available prior to the 109th Congress, 2nd Session; therefore, this figure is not available.
\3\ This number reflects how many cosponsors were input and subsequently appear in the ``Additional Cosponsors'' section of Morning Business in the
Congressional Record. This number does not include the cosponsor requests for ``original'' cosponsors which are added on the same day of introduction
and do not appear in the ``Additional Cosponsors'' section of the Record.
Assistance from the Government Printing Office (GPO)
The Bill Clerk's staff maintains a good working relationship with
the Government Printing Office (GPO) and seeks to provide the best
service possible to meet the needs of the Senate. GPO continues to
respond in a timely manner to the Secretary's requests, through the
Bill Clerk's office, for the printing of bills and reports, including
the expedited printing of priority matters for the Senate chamber. To
date, at the request of the Secretary through the Bill Clerk, GPO
expedited the printing of 46 measures for floor consideration by the
Senate during the second session of the 110th Congress, and 129
measures during the entire Congress.
CAPTIONING SERVICES
The Office of Captioning Services provides realtime captioning of
Senate floor proceedings for the deaf and hard-of-hearing and
unofficial electronic transcripts of Senate floor proceedings for
Senate offices on Webster, the Senate intranet.
General Overview
Captioning Services strives to provide the highest quality closed
captions. For the 15th year in a row, the office has achieved an
overall accuracy average above 99 percent. Overall caption quality is
monitored through daily translation data reports, monitoring of
captions in realtime, and review of caption files on Webster.
The realtime searchable closed caption log, available to Senate
offices on Webster, continues to be an invaluable tool for the Senate
community. In particular, legislative staff continue to depend upon its
availability, reliability and content to aid in the performance of
their duties. The Senate Recording Studio is in the process of
upgrading the closed caption log software, which has not been updated
since it was developed more than a decade ago. The new system should be
in place during calendar year 2009.
Continuity of operations (COOP) planning and preparation continues
to be a top priority to ensure that the staff are prepared and
confident about the ability to relocate and successfully function from
a remote location in the event of an emergency. The staff participates
with the Senate Recording Studio in an off-site location exercise at
least once a year.
Capitol Visitor Center Update
Captioning Services relocated to new offices in the Capitol Visitor
Center during the month of August 2008.
DAILY DIGEST
The Office of the Senate Daily Digest is pleased to transmit its
annual report on Senate activities during the second session of the
110th Congress. First, a brief summary of a compilation of Senate
statistics:
Chamber Activity
The Senate was in session a total of 184 days, for a total of 988
hours and 31 minutes. There were 3 quorum calls and 215 record votes.
(See the following chart, ``20-Year Comparison of Senate Legislative
Activity.'')
20-YEAR COMPARISON OF SENATE LEGISLATIVE ACTIVITY
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998
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Senate Convened..................................... 1/3 1/23 1/3 1/3 1/5 1/25 1/4 1/3 1/3 1/27
Senate Adjourned.................................... 11/21 10/28 1/3/92 10/9 11/26 12/01 1/3/96 10/4 11/13 10/21
Days in Session..................................... 136 138 158 129 153 138 211 132 153 143
Hours in Session.................................... 1,00319" 1,25014" 1,20044" 1,09109" 1,26941" 1,24333" 1,83910" 1,03645" 1,09307" 1,09505"
Average Hours per Day............................... 7.4 9.1 7.6 8.5 8.3 9.0 8.7 7.8 7.1 7.7
Total Measures Passed............................... 605 716 626 651 473 465 346 476 386 506
Roll Call Votes..................................... 312 326 280 270 395 329 613 306 298 314
Quorum Calls........................................ 11 3 3 5 2 6 3 2 6 4
Public Laws......................................... 240 244 243 347 210 255 88 245 153 241
Treaties Ratified................................... 9 15 15 32 20 8 10 28 15 53
Nominations Confirmed............................... 45,585 42,493 45,369 30,619 38,676 37,446 40,535 33,176 25,576 20,302
Average Voting Attendance........................... 98.0 97.47 97.16 95.4 97.6 97.02 98.07 98.22 98.68 97.47
Sessions Convened Before 12 Noon.................... 95 116 126 112 128 120 184 113 115 109
Sessions Convened at 12 Noon........................ 14 4 9 ............ 6 9 2 15 12 31
Sessions Convened after 12 Noon..................... 27 17 23 10 15 17 12 7 7 2
Sessions Continued after 6 p.m...................... 88 100 102 91 100 100 158 88 96 93
Sessions Continued after 12 Midnight................ 9 13 6 4 9 7 3 1 ............ ............
Saturday Sessions................................... 1 3 2 2 2 3 5 1 1 1
Sunday Sessions..................................... ............ 2 ............ ............ ............ ............ 3 ............ 1 ............
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
20-YEAR COMPARISON OF SENATE LEGISLATIVE ACTIVITY--Continued
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Senate Convened..................................... 1/6 1/24 1/3 1/23 1/7 1/20 1/4 1/3 1/4 1/3
Senate Adjourned.................................... 11/19 12/15 12/20 11/20 12/9 12/8 12/22 12/9 12/31 1/2
Days in Session..................................... 162 141 173 149 167 133 159 138 189 184
Hours in Session.................................... 1,18357" 1,01751" 1,23615" 1,04223" 1,45405" 1,03131" 1,22226" 1,02748" 1,37554" 98831"
Average Hours per Day............................... 7.3 7.2 7.1 7.0 8.7 7.7 7.7 7.4 7.2 5.37
Total Measures Passed............................... 549 696 425 523 590 663 624 635 621 589
Roll Call Votes..................................... 374 298 380 253 459 216 366 279 442 215
Quorum Calls........................................ 7 6 3 2 3 1 3 1 6 3
Public Laws......................................... 170 410 136 241 198 300 169 248 142 318
Treaties Ratified................................... 13 39 3 17 11 15 6 14 8 30
Nominations Confirmed............................... 22,468 22,512 25,091 23,633 21,580 24,420 25,942 29,603 22,892 21,785
Average Voting Attendance........................... 98.02 96.99 98.29 96.36 96.07 95.54 97.41 97.13 94.99 94.36
Sessions Convened Before 12 Noon.................... 118 107 140 119 133 104 121 110 156 147
Sessions Convened at 12 Noon........................ 17 25 10 12 4 9 1 4 4 4
Sessions Convened after 12 Noon..................... 19 24 21 23 23 21 36 24 32 33
Sessions Continued after 6 p.m...................... 113 94 108 103 134 129 120 129 144 110
Sessions Continued after 12 Midnight................ ............ ............ 2 3 8 2 3 3 4 2
Saturday Sessions................................... 3 1 3 ............ 1 2 2 2 1 3
Sunday Sessions..................................... ............ 1 ............ ............ 1 1 2 ............ 1 1
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Prepared by the Senate Daily Digest--Office of the Secretary.
Committee Activity
Senate committees held a total of 823 meetings during the second
session, compared to 1,005 meetings during the first session of the
110th Congress.
All hearings and business meetings (including joint meetings and
conferences) are scheduled through the Office of the Senate Daily
Digest and are published in the Congressional Record, on the Digest's
Web site (http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/committees/
b_three_sections_with_teasers/committee_hearings.htm), and entered in
the web-based applications system (Legislative Information System).
Meeting outcomes are also published by the Daily Digest in the
Congressional Record each day and continuously updated on the Web site.
Computer Activities
The Digest completed the installation of its Word-based system,
which shortened the time it takes to create the Digest and send it to
the Government Printing Office (GPO). Computer Center staff, working
closely with Daily Digest staff, developed a Daily Digest Authoring
System which is a Microsoft Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) system
designed to provide the Daily Digest with structured methods for
creating, editing, and managing files.
The Digest continues the practice of sending a disc along with a
duplicate hard copy to GPO. GPO receives the Digest copy by electronic
transfer long before hand delivery is completed, which promotes the
timeliness of publishing the Congressional Record. The Digest staff
continues to feel comfortable with this procedure, both to allow the
Digest Editor to physically view what is being transmitted to GPO, and
to allow GPO staff to have a comparable final product to cross
reference.
The Digest staff continues to work closely with the Sergeant at
Arms computer staff to refine the LIS/document management system. The
Digest is pleased to report that all refinements made to the Senate
Committee Scheduling application have been successfully implemented.
Government Printing Office
The Daily Digest staff continues the practice of discussing with
the Government Printing Office problems encountered with the printing
of the Digest; with the onset of electronic transfer of the Digest
copy, occurrences of editing corrections or transcript errors are
infrequent. Discussions with GPO continue regarding page references
inserted by GPO.
ENROLLING CLERK
The Enrolling Clerk prepares, proofreads, corrects, and prints all
Senate-passed legislation prior to its transmittal to the White House,
the House of Representatives, the National Archives, the Secretary of
State, and the United States Court of Claims. The Enrolling Clerk
transmits in person all Senate messages to the House of
Representatives.
During the 110th Congress, the Enrolling Clerk's office prepared
the enrollment of 135 bills (transmitted to the President), 8 enrolled
joint resolutions (transmitted to the President), 14 concurrent
resolutions (transmitted to the National Archives) and 95 appointments
(transmitted to the House of Representatives). In addition,
approximately 462 bills from the House of Representatives (including 12
appropriations bills and the budget concurrent resolution) were either
amended or acted on in the Senate, thus requiring action on the part of
the staff of the Enrolling Clerk's office.
A total of 852 pieces of legislation were passed or agreed to
during the 110th Congress. Many other Senate bills, including over 350
resolutions and 229 engrossed Senate bills, were placed in the calendar
by the Senate and were processed in the Enrolling Clerk's office. The
office is also responsible for keeping the original official copies of
bills, resolutions and appointments from the Senate floor through the
end of each Congress. At the end of the second session of each
Congress, the Enrolling Clerk's staff carefully prepares all official
papers for storage at the National Archives.
During the 110th Congress, the Enrolling Clerk delivered 210
messages to the House Chamber and 58 messages to the House Clerk's
office. The Enrolling Clerk also prepared and transmitted 95
appointments to the House of Representatives, informing the House of
Senate actions on legislation passed or amended.
The Senate Enrolling Clerk is also responsible for electronically
transmitting the files of engrossed and enrolled legislation to GPO for
overnight printing. The office also followed up on all specific
requests and special orders for printing from the Senate floor.
EXECUTIVE CLERK
The Executive Clerk prepares an accurate record of actions taken by
the Senate during executive sessions (proceedings on nominations and
treaties), which is published as the Journal of the Executive
Proceedings of the Senate at the end of each session of Congress. The
Executive Clerk also prepares the Executive Calendar daily, as well as
all nomination and treaty resolutions for transmittal to the President.
Additionally, the office processes all executive communications,
presidential messages, and petitions and memorials.
Nominations
During the second session of the 110th Congress, there were 1,008
nomination messages sent to the Senate by the President, which
transmitted 22,090 nominations to positions requiring Senate
confirmation and 43 messages withdrawing nominations sent to the
Senate. Of the total nominations transmitted, there were 3,124 nominees
in the following ``civilian list'' categories: Foreign Service, Coast
Guard, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and Public
Health Service. An additional 508 nominees were for other civilian
positions. Military nominations received this session totaled 18,674
(5,931 Air Force; 6,425 Army; 4,752 Navy; and 1,566 Marine Corps). The
Senate confirmed 21,785 nominations this session. Pursuant to the
provisions of paragraph six of Senate Rule XXXI, 478 nominations were
returned to the President during the second session of the 110th
Congress.
Treaties
During the second session of the 110th Congress, there were 13
treaties transmitted by the President to the Senate for its advice and
consent to ratification. These were ordered printed as treaty documents
for the use of the Senate (Treaty Doc. 110-11 through 110-23).
The Senate gave its advice and consent to 30 treaties with various
conditions, declarations, understandings and provisos to the
resolutions of advice and consent to ratification.
Executive Reports and Roll Call Votes
There were 19 executive reports relating to treaties ordered
printed for the use of the Senate during the second session of the
110th Congress (Executive Report 110-10 through 110-28). The Senate
conducted seven rollcall votes in executive session, all on or in
relation to nominations and treaties.
Executive Communications
For the second session of the 110th Congress, 4,608 executive
communications, 202 petitions and memorials and 31 Presidential
messages were received and processed.
Paper Reduction
In an effort to save money and eliminate unnecessary paper, the
Executive Clerk reduced the printed copies of the Executive Calendar
each day from over 1,000 to 685. Additionally, the office reduced the
copies of nominations printed for the committees by 75 percent and some
committees have requested electronic copies of the appropriate
paperwork, rather than paper copies.
Legislative Information System (LIS) Update (Projects)
The Executive Clerk consulted with the Sergeant at Arms throughout
the year concerning ongoing improvements to the LIS pertaining to the
processing of nominations, treaties, executive communications,
presidential messages and petitions and memorials.
JOURNAL CLERK
The Journal Clerk takes notes of the daily legislative proceedings
of the Senate in the ``Minute Book'' and prepares a history of bills
and resolutions for the printed Journal of the Proceedings of the
Senate, or Senate Journal, as required by Article I, Section V of the
Constitution. The content of the Senate Journal is governed by Senate
Rule IV. The Senate Journal is published each calendar year. The 2008
Senate Journal is expected to be sent to the Government Printing Office
at the end of 2009.
The Journal staff take 90-minute turns at the rostrum in the Senate
chamber, noting the following by hand for inclusion in the Minute Book:
(i) all orders (entered into by the Senate through unanimous consent
agreements), (ii) legislative messages received from the President of
the United States, (iii) messages from the House of Representatives,
(iv) legislative actions as taken by the Senate (including motions made
by Senators, points of order raised, and rollcall votes taken), (v)
amendments submitted and proposed for consideration, (vi) bills and
joint resolutions introduced, and (vii) concurrent and Senate
resolutions as submitted. These notes of the proceedings are then
compiled in electronic form for eventual publication of the Senate
Journal at the end of each calendar year. Compilation is accomplished
through utilization of the LIS Senate Journal Authoring System.
In keeping with the Office of the Secretary's commitment to
continuity of operations programs, the Journal Clerk undertook an
effort to digitally scan the Minute Book pages, dating from 2004 to the
present, into a secure directory. Although the Minute Books for each
session of a Congress are sent to the National Archives one year after
the end of a Congress, having easily-retrievable files will ensure
timely reconstitution of the Minute Book data in the event of damage
to, or destruction of, the physical Minute Book.
OFFICIAL REPORTERS OF DEBATES
The Office of the Official Reporters of Debates is responsible for
the stenographic reporting, transcribing, and editing of the Senate
floor proceedings for publication in the Congressional Record. The
Chief Reporter acts as the editor-in-chief and the Coordinator
functions as the technical production manager of the Senate portion of
the Record. The office interacts with Senate personnel regarding
additional materials to be included in the Record.
On a continuing basis, all materials to be printed in the next
day's edition of the Record are transmitted electronically and on paper
to the Government Printing Office (GPO).
Each day, roughly 90 percent of transcript production for GPO is
done electronically, thus significantly reducing the time required by
GPO to retype materials for presentation in the Congressional Record by
the next day. In 2008, there were no delays in the overnight production
of the Congressional Record
The project to provide online Congressional Record corrections,
which was launched in 2007, ended its pilot phase and was brought
online in early 2008. When a significant error, caused by this or any
other office under the Secretary of the Senate, is identified in the
Congressional Record, GPO is notified of such mistake and a correction
in the online Record is made shortly thereafter. This error is
automatically corrected in the printing of the permanent Record.
PARLIAMENTARIAN
The parliamentarian's office continues to perform its essential
institutional responsibilities to act as a neutral arbiter among all
parties with an interest in the legislative process. These
responsibilities include advising the chair, Senators and their staffs,
committee staff, House members and their staffs, administration
officials, the media and members of the general public on all matters
requiring an interpretation of the Standing Rules of the Senate, the
precedents of the Senate, unanimous consent agreements, as well as
provisions of public law that affect the proceedings of the Senate.
The parliamentarians work in close cooperation with the Senate
leadership and their floor staffs in coordinating all of the business
on the Senate floor. The parliamentarian or one of his assistants is
always present on the Senate floor when the Senate is in session,
standing ready to assist the Presiding Officer in his or her official
duties, as well as to assist any other Senator on procedural matters.
The parliamentarians work closely with the Vice President of the United
States and the staff of the Vice President whenever he performs his
duties as President of the Senate.
The parliamentarians serve as the agents of the Senate in
coordinating the flow of legislation with the House of Representatives
and with the President, and ensure that enrolled bills are signed in a
timely manner by duly authorized officers of the Senate for
presentation to the President. The parliamentarians monitor all
proceedings on the floor of the Senate, advise the Presiding Officer on
the competing rights of the Senators on the floor, and advise all
Senators as to what is appropriate in debate. The parliamentarians keep
track of time on the floor of the Senate when time is limited or
controlled under the provisions of time agreements, statutes or
standing orders. The parliamentarians keep track of the amendments
offered to the legislation pending on the Senate floor, and monitor
them for points of order. In this respect, the parliamentarians
reviewed more than 800 amendments during 2008 in order to determine
whether they met various procedural requirements, such as germaneness.
The parliamentarians also reviewed thousands of pages of conference
reports to determine what provisions could appropriately be included
therein.
The office is responsible for the referral to the appropriate
committees of all legislation introduced in the Senate, all legislation
received from the House, and all communications received from the
executive branch, state and local governments, and private citizens. In
order to perform this responsibility, the parliamentarians do extensive
legal and legislative research. During 2008, the Parliamentarian and
his assistants referred 1,496 measures and 4,842 communications to the
appropriate Senate committees. The office worked extensively with
Senators and their staffs to advise them of the jurisdictional
consequences of particular drafts of legislation, and evaluated the
jurisdictional effect of proposed modifications in drafting. In 2008 as
in the past, the parliamentarians conducted several briefings on Senate
procedure to various groups of Senate staff, on a non-partisan basis.
During all of 2008, the parliamentarians were deeply involved in
interpreting the ethics reform proposals adopted in 2007, especially
the language dealing with earmark accountability and scope of
conference.
Since the election in 2008, all of the parliamentarians
participated in the orientation sessions for the newly elected and
appointed Senators and have assisted each of them in their initial
hours as Presiding Officers. The parliamentarians also participated in
an orientation session on the Senate floor for Senate staff.
In 2008 and early 2009, as is the case following each general
election, the parliamentarians received all of the certificates of
election of Senators elected or re-elected to the Senate, as well as
those Senators appointed to fill vacancies, and reviewed them for
sufficiency and accuracy, returning those that were defective and
reviewing their replacements. In addition, as is the case in all
Presidential election years, the parliamentarians reviewed all
certificates of ascertainment and certificates of votes submitted by
the states and counseled the Vice President on his responsibilities in
presiding over the joint session of Congress to count the electoral
ballots.
FINANCIAL OPERATIONS
DISBURSING OFFICE
The mission of the Senate Disbursing Office is to provide efficient
and effective central financial and human resource data management,
information and advice to the offices of the United States Senate and
to members and employees of the Senate. The Senate Disbursing Office
manages the collection of information from the distributed accounting
locations within the Senate to formulate and consolidate the agency
level budget, disburse the payroll, pay the Senate's bills, prepare
auditable financial statements, and provide appropriate counseling and
advice. The Senate Disbursing Office collects information from members
and employees that is necessary to maintain and administer the
retirement, health insurance, life insurance, and other central human
resource programs and provides responsive, personal attention to
members and employees on an unbiased and confidential basis. The Senate
Disbursing Office also manages the distribution of central financial
and human resource information to the individual member offices,
committees, administrative and leadership offices in the Senate while
maintaining the confidentiality of information for members and Senate
employees.
The organization is structured to enhance its ability to provide
quality work, maintain a high level of customer service, promote good
internal controls, efficiency and teamwork, and provide for the
appropriate levels of supervision and management. The long-term
financial needs of the Senate are best served by an organization
staffed with highly trained professionals who possess a high degree of
institutional knowledge, sound judgment, and interpersonal skills that
reflect the unique nature of the United States Senate.
Executive Office
The primary responsibilities, among others, of the Executive Office
are to:
--oversee the day to day operations of the Disbursing Office (DO);
--respond to any inquiries or questions that are presented;
--maintain fully and properly trained staff;
--ensure that the office is prepared to respond quickly and
efficiently to any disaster or unique situation that may arise;
--provide excellent customer service;
--assist the Secretary of the Senate in the implementation of new
legislation affecting any of her departments; and
--handle all information requests from the Committee on
Appropriations and Committee on Rules and Administration.
This year the Executive Office assisted in the coordination of the
closing of all suspense accounts as mandated by Treasury. Since
Automated Clearing House (ACH) and check advances were charged to this
account, it was necessary to perform an in-depth review and implement
required system changes in the way the Disbursing Office accounts for
travel advances in a short period of time.
As a result of the November elections, the Executive Office issued
more than 300 letters to staff explaining the requirements of displaced
staff as authorized by applicable Senate resolutions.
The Executive Office coordinated a meeting with several Treasury
Department representatives to discuss required reporting changes for
non-Treasury disbursing offices (NTDOs) under the Government-wide
Accounting and Reporting (GWA) modernization project. The agenda
included a discussion of Treasury's requirements, as well as the
challenges these new reporting requirements will present to the
Disbursing Office and any NTDO agency.
On a monthly basis, the Financial Clerk and the Assistant Financial
Clerk continue to attend Legislative Branch Financial Managers Council
(LBFMC) meetings to share issues that affect other Congressional
managers. In addition, the Financial Clerk and the Assistant Financial
Clerk, along with Disbursing Office staff and the Sergeant at Arms
(SAA) technical support staff, participated in meetings for the
procurement of a new payroll system. The meetings resulted in the
development of current system requirements and parameters, which will
be used to help determine requirements for the new system.
The Disbursing Office was also involved in transitioning the
Capitol Guide staff from the Senate payroll to the Architect of the
Capitol's (AOC), as well as transitioning the Special Services staff to
the newly created Office of Congressional Accessibility Services.
Disbursing staff continues to work with both groups to transfer fiscal
year 2009 funds and complete the transfer of all the personnel benefits
files.
Disbursing representatives also attended several meetings with
staff from the Majority Leader's office, the Committee on Rules and
Administration, the Select Committee on Ethics and other interested
parties to finalize the procedures and requirements needed to get the
Congressional Oversight Panel up and running. The Congressional
Oversight Panel was established by the Emergency Economic Stabilization
Act of 2008, Public Law 110-343.
Deputy for Benefits and Financial Services
The principal responsibility of this position is to provide
expertise and oversight on federal retirement, benefits, payroll, and
financial services processes. The deputy also coordinates the
interaction between the Front Office, Employee Benefits, and Payroll
Sections, and is responsible for the planning and project management of
new computer systems and programs. The deputy ensures that job
processes are efficient and up-to-date, modifies computer support
systems as necessary, implements regulatory and legislated changes, and
designs and produces up-to-date forms and information for use in all
three sections.
General Activities
After year-end processing of payroll for calendar year 2007, cost
of living adjustments (COLAs) for 2008 were processed in a timely
manner. The Disbursing Office issued W-2 forms promptly and made them
immediately available on the Document Imaging System (DIS). During the
year, other minor changes were made to the Human Resources Management
System (HRMS) as a result of changes in regulations and policy.
A major initiative during 2007 and 2008 was to eliminate the use of
employee Social Security Numbers (SSN) wherever possible, thereby
increasing the security of personal information for members and
employees of the Senate. This ``Social Security Number Migration''
project was successfully completed in June of 2008. The ``key field''
within the payroll system was changed from the SSN to a randomly
generated employee identification number (EID). This limits use of the
SSN only to those entities who have a legitimate need to receive it.
After extensive research and coordination, the deputy, the Payroll
Department and SAA technical support developed requirements and
established guidelines and strategies for the payroll system migration.
Because the payroll system provides data to so many internal and
external entities, great care and planning were devoted to the
coordination with users. This project required significant research,
programming changes and modifications, testing and feedback. Post
migration, anticipated minimal fine-tuning and trouble-shooting
occurred. Successful transmissions and extracts to other entities
occurred without interruption or incident.
In continuing efforts to comply with continuity of operations
(COOP) initiatives, reduce unnecessary use of paper and lessen physical
storage needs, the Disbursing Office undertook a project to provide
payroll reports to Senate offices electronically rather than on paper.
The deputy and Payroll Department worked with Disbursing's Information
Technology group and several SAA technical support groups to proceed
with development and implementation of this project. After the
completion of requirements and development, extensive testing and
feedback were required. The electronic Payroll Reports were rolled out
to a pilot group during the summer and full implementation throughout
the Senate was achieved in October 2008. Feedback on this new resource
has been very positive.
As part of continuing efforts to achieve full COOP compliance, the
office identified a need to accomplish complete document imaging for
all Senate employee personnel folders. Document Imaging System (DIS)
programming modifications and upgrades were determined and implemented
in preparation for this project. Necessary hardware was obtained and
imaging procedures were drafted and finalized. In August of 2008 a new,
temporary staffer was hired specifically for this task, which is
anticipated to be a 2-year project. The document imaging is proceeding
on schedule. Approximately 15 percent of the employee documents have
been imaged to the DIS. As an added benefit, this project provides the
opportunity to conduct an audit and reconciliation of hard-copy
personnel folders.
The Disbursing Office, in tandem with SAA Technical Support, began
initial research into the procurement of a new payroll system. In
addition to determining current system requirements and parameters,
Disbursing Office staff and SAA technical support drafted, edited and
ranked future system requirements. They also attended initial vendor
demonstrations and drafted and edited demonstration scripts for future
software vendor demonstrations. Because of the specific laws and
regulations governing the services and programs administered by the
payroll system, particular attention was paid to those areas where
systems will need to be tailored to the Senate. Vendor demonstrations
are anticipated in 2009, which should be followed by a software
selection. Following that, the next phase will be to determine the
requirements and criteria that will further tailor the product to meet
the needs of the system's users, as well as aid in the selection of an
implementation vendor. The Disbursing Office will work with
representatives of member and committee offices to define user
requirements.
This office assisted with technical guidance on the impact of
legislation drafted in support of the new Capitol Visitor Center on pay
and benefits. As a result of the legislation, the Capitol Guides were
transferred en masse from the Senate payroll to the payroll of the
Architect of the Capitol (AOC) in November. This required coordination
with the Guide Service and AOC personnel in order to prepare for the
data transfer and ensure a smooth transition for the affected
employees. The preparation and compilation of employee records, which
will be transmitted to the AOC, will continue into the new year.
Front Office--Administrative and Financial Services
The Front Office is the main service area for all general Senate
business and financial activity. The Front Office staff maintains the
Senate's internal accountability of funds used in daily operations. The
reconciliation of such funds is executed on a daily basis. The Front
Office staff also provides training to newly authorized payroll
contacts along with continuing guidance to all contacts in the
execution of business operations. It is the receiving point for most
incoming expense vouchers, payroll actions, and employee benefits
related forms, and is the initial verification point to ensure that
paperwork received in the Disbursing Office conforms to all applicable
Senate rules, regulations, and statutes. The Front Office is the first
line of service provided to Senators, officers, and employees. All new
Senate employees (permanent and temporary) who will work in the Capitol
Hill Senate offices are administered the required oath of office and
personnel affidavit. Staff is also provided verbal and written detailed
information regarding pay and benefits. Advances are issued to Senate
staff authorized for official Senate travel. Cash and check advances
are entered and reconciled in Web FMIS. After the processing of
certified expenses is complete, cash travel advances are repaid.
Numerous inquiries are handled daily, ranging from pay, benefits,
taxes, voucher processing, reporting, laws, and Senate regulations, and
must always be answered accurately and fully to provide the highest
degree of customer service. Cash and checks received from Senate
entities as part of their daily business are handled through the Front
Office and become part of the Senate's accountability of federally
appropriated funds and are then processed through the Senate's general
ledger system. The Front Office maintains the Official Office
Information Authorization Forms that authorize individuals to conduct
various types of business with the Disbursing Office.
General Activities
Processed approximately 900 cash advances, totaling approximately
$700,000 and initialized 1,200 check/direct deposit advances, totaling
approximately $900,000.
Received and processed more than 24,700 checks, totaling over
$1,900,000.
Administered oath and personnel affidavits to more than 2,800 new
Senate staff and advised them of their benefits.
Maintained brochures for 15 federal health insurance carriers and
distributed approximately 4,300 brochures to new and existing staff
during the annual Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) Open Season.
Provided 33 training sessions to new administrative managers.
The Front Office continues its daily reconciliation of operations
and strengthening of internal office controls. Security was further
enhanced this year by the use of pens that help identify counterfeit
currency presented to Disbursing during cash transactions. Training and
guidance to new administrative managers and business contacts continued
and was enhanced by the revamping of training materials provided to
newly authorized business contacts. Disbursing staff received many
positive comments regarding the use of the Document Imaging System,
which immediately reproduces W-2 and other forms for employees who
request duplicates. The staff continued to place a major emphasis on
assisting employees in maximizing their Thrift Savings Plan (TSP)
contributions and making them aware of the TSP catch-up program. The
Front Office continued to provide the Senate community with prompt,
courteous, and informative advice regarding Disbursing Office
operations.
Payroll Section
The Payroll Section maintains the human resources management system
(HRMS) and is responsible for processing, verifying, and warehousing
all payroll information submitted to the Disbursing Office by Senators,
committees and other appointing officials for their staffs, including
appointments of employees, salary changes, title changes, transfers and
terminations. It is also responsible for input of all enrollments and
elections submitted by members and employees that affect their pay
(e.g. retirement and benefits elections, tax withholding, TSP
participation, allotments from pay, address changes, direct deposit
elections, levies and garnishments) and for the issuance of accurate
salary payments to members and employees. The Payroll Section is
responsible for the administration of the Senate Student Loan Repayment
Program (SLP). It is also responsible for the audit and reconciliation
of the FSA and FEDVIP Bill Files received each pay period. The Payroll
Section jointly maintains the Automated Clearing House (ACH) FedLine
facilities with the Accounts Payable Section for the normal transmittal
of payroll deposits to the Federal Reserve. Payroll expenditure,
projection and allowance reports are distributed to all Senate offices.
The Payroll Section issues the proper withholding and agency
contribution reports to the Accounting Department and transmits the
proper TSP information to the National Finance Center. In addition, the
Payroll Section maintains earnings records, which are distributed to
the Social Security Administration, and employees' taxable earnings
records, which are used for W-2 statements. The Payroll Section is also
responsible for the payroll expenditure data portion of the Report of
the Secretary of the Senate. The Payroll Section calculates, reconciles
and bills the Senate Employees Child Care Center (SECCC) for their
staff employee contributions and forwards payment of those
contributions to the Accounting Section. The Payroll Section provides
guidance and counseling to staff and administrative managers on issues
of pay, salaries, allowances and projections.
General Activities
In January 2008, the Payroll Section conducted all year-end
processing and reconciliation of pay records and produced W-2 forms for
employees and state tax agencies, which are also maintained in the
Document Imaging System (DIS). In addition, an employee cost of living
adjustment (COLA) of 4.49 percent was administered. Statutory rates and
program caps were updated in the HRMS. The Payroll Section maintained
the normal schedule of processing TSP election forms.
Payroll allowance, expenditure and projection reports are provided
to all Senate offices on a monthly basis. In 2007, guidelines and
requirements for the provision of electronic payroll reports were
developed. The Payroll Section participated with the deputy,
Disbursing's IT section, and SAA technical support staff to implement,
test and trouble-shoot the electronic payroll reports project.
Following the participation of a pilot group, the payroll reports were
first distributed electronically in October 2008. Payroll now maintains
responsibility for the review and release of these reports on a semi-
monthly basis. All feedback to this new process has been positive.
The Payroll Section participated in the testing and implementation
of the Social Security Number Migration project that took place in
2008. It was instrumental in the follow-up testing and trouble-shooting
that occurred after the implementation. The Payroll Section
participated in the development of procedural changes required to
accommodate the change to the ``key field'' within the payroll system.
The Payroll staff participated in the initial research regarding
the procurement of a new payroll system. They provided job and task
summaries, records of reports and system output, and attended numerous
strategy sessions to determine both current system requirements and
parameters and future system requirements. They attended and reviewed
vendor demonstrations and participated in the drafting of demo scripts
for future software vendor demonstrations.
The Payroll Section administers the Student Loan Repayment Program,
which includes initiation, tracking and transmission of the payments,
determination of eligibility and coordination and reconciliation with
office administrators and program participants. The program is very
popular and participation remains high. The SLP Administrator continues
to improve processes for administration of the program and document
procedures.
In 2008, the Payroll Section staff continued to work diligently
with the SAA technical support staff and external entities in order to
eliminate the use of paper and tape-driven correspondence. In August,
the Payroll Section began electronically transmitting all Treasury
tapes to the Federal Reserve in Kansas City. With regards to its
correspondence and transmissions with the TSP and the Federal Reserve,
Disbursing now operates completely paper-free and tape-free.
As a result of the elections, the Disbursing Office staff looked
into the specifics of applicable Senate resolutions to determine their
impact, if any, on outgoing and potentially outgoing staff in order to
ensure that current procedures allowed for the proper administration of
the resolutions. The Payroll staff provided guidance to staff on those
resolutions. In addition, the Payroll Section administered the transfer
of all Capitol Guides to the AOC.
The Payroll Section continues to participate in disaster recovery
testing. This year, testing was conducted in December. The Alternate
Computing Facility (ACF) processing equipment operated the payroll
system from the Hart Building while SAA programmers ran trial payrolls
from remote sites. As part of the test, members of SAA Production
Services had to produce the payroll output from printers located at the
ACF. The payroll system test proved very successful.
Employee Benefits Section (EBS)
The primary responsibility of the Employee Benefits Section is the
administration of health insurance, life insurance, TSP, and all
retirement programs for members and employees of the Senate. This
includes counseling, processing paperwork, researching, disseminating
information and interpreting retirement and benefits laws and
regulations. EBS staff is also expected to have a working knowledge of
the Federal Flexible Spending Account (FSA) Program, the Federal Long
Term Care (LTC) Insurance Program and Federal Employees Dental and
Vision Insurance Program (FEDVIP). In addition, the sectional work
includes research and verification of all prior federal service and
prior Senate service for new and returning employees. EBS provides this
information for payroll input. Staff also verify the accuracy of the
information provided and reconcile, as necessary, when official
personnel folders and transcripts of service from other federal
agencies are received. Senate transcripts of service, including all
official retirement and benefits documentation, are provided to other
federal agencies when Senate members and staff are hired elsewhere in
the government. EBS is responsible for the administration and tracking
of employees who are placed in Leave Without Pay (LWOP) as a result of
leaving to perform military service or being appointed to an
international organization. EBS participates fully in the Centralized
Enrollment Clearinghouse System (CLER) Program, which is sponsored by
OPM and is used to reconcile all FEHB enrollments with carriers through
the National Finance Center on a quarterly basis. EBS is also
responsible for ordering inventory and maintaining forms and brochures
for TSP, retirement, and all other benefits. EBS processes employment
verifications for loans, bar exams, and entities such as the FBI,
Office of Personnel Management, and Department of Defense, among
others. Employees may complete unemployment claim forms and receive
counseling as to their eligibility. EBS reviews billings for
unemployment compensation paid to Senate employees by the Department of
Labor, as well as employee fees associated with FSAs, and submits
vouchers to the Accounting Section for payment EBS staff processes and
checks designations of beneficiary for life insurance, retirement, and
unpaid compensation.
General Activities
Many employees changed health plans during the annual Federal
Benefits Open Season. These changes were processed and reported to
carriers very quickly. The Disbursing Office continues to provide
Senate employees with access to the online ``Checkbook Guide to Health
Plans'' in order to research and compare FEHB plans. This tool will
remain available to staff throughout the year. The Disbursing Office
also hosted an Open Season Federal Benefits Fair, which was well-
attended. The Benefits Fair included representatives from most of the
local and national FEHB plans, as well as representatives from LTC,
FSA, FEDVIP, and The Consumers Checkbook Guide. OPM announced a
``belated enrollment opportunity,'' which extended through January 31,
2009.
Many retirement, death, and disability cases were also processed
throughout the year. There was a great deal of employee turnover in
2008, including the transition of the Capitol Guides to the payroll of
the AOC, which resulted in appointments to be researched and processed,
retirement records to be closed-out, termination packages of benefits
information to be compiled and mailed out, and health insurance
enrollments to be processed. Transcripts of service for employees going
to other federal agencies, and other tasks associated with employees
changing jobs, were at a high level this year. These required prior
employment research and verification, new FEHB, FEGLI, FSA, FEDVIP,
Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS), Federal Employees Retirement
System (FERS) and TSP enrollments, and the associated requests for
backup verification.
EBS conducted agency-wide seminars on CSRS and FERS and, as a
result of the many ongoing changes to the TSP Program, attended
interagency meetings. EBS participated in a number of meetings with
other Disbursing staff and the SAA technical staff to help assess the
needs and parameters for selecting a new payroll system.
Disbursing Office Financial Management
Headed by the deputy for Financial Management, the mission of
Disbursing Office Financial Management is to coordinate all central
financial policies, procedures, and activities; to process and pay
expense vouchers within reasonable timeframes; to work toward producing
an auditable consolidated financial statement for the Senate; and to
provide professional customer service, training and confidential
financial guidance to all Senate accounting locations. In addition, the
Financial Management group is responsible for the compilation of the
annual operating budget of the United States Senate for presentation to
the Committee on Appropriations, and for the formulation, presentation
and execution of the budget for the Senate. On a semiannual basis, this
group is also responsible for the compilation, validation and
completion of the Report of the Secretary of the Senate. Disbursing
Office Financial Management is segmented into three functional
departments: Accounting, Accounts Payable, and Budget. The Accounts
Payable Department is subdivided into three sections: Vendor/SAVI,
Disbursements and Audit. The deputy coordinates the activities of the
three functional departments, establishes central financial policies
and procedures, and carries out the directives of the Financial Clerk
and the Secretary of the Senate.
Accounting Department
During 2008, the Accounting Department approved 51,215 expense
reimbursement vouchers and 27,700 certification and vendor uploads, and
processed 1,350 deposits for items ranging from receipts received by
the Senate operations, such as the Senate's revolving funds, to
cancelled subscription refunds from member offices. General ledger
maintenance also prompted the entry of thousands of adjustment entries,
which include the entry of all appropriation and allowance funding
limitation transactions, all accounting cycle closing entries, and all
non-voucher reimbursement transactions such as payroll adjustments,
COLA budget uploads, stop payment requests, travel advances and
repayments, and limited payability reimbursements. The department
continues to scan all documentation for journal vouchers, deposits,
accounting memos, and letters of certification to facilitate both
storage concerns and COOP backup.
This year the Accounting Department assisted in the validation of
various system upgrades and modifications, including two Web FMIS
releases. Web release number 2008-2 introduced an imaging prototype for
the submission and approval of paperless vouchers. Development
continues so that imaging may be tested and become functional. Web
release 2008-3 concentrated on reporting and budget upgrades, as well
as implementation of the employee identification number conversion. For
expense purposes, employees are no longer identified by Social Security
number (SSN). They are now identified by a system generated number
which contains no part of their SSN.
During January 2008, the Accounting Department completed the 2007
year-end process to close and reset revenue, expense, and budgetary
general ledger accounts to zero. The Treasury passed a new requirement
that all suspense accounts be zeroed out and closed. This required
significant changes to accounting methodology, as suspense accounts
were used to clear checks from Front Office accountability, credits,
and stop payment requests, which resulted in replacement checks, check
and ACH advances, and payroll adjustments. This change required a
revamping of the travel advance accounting process, which was tested
and implemented in a very short period of time.
The Department of the Treasury's monthly financial reporting
requirements include a ``Statement of Accountability'' that details all
increases and decreases to the accountability of the Secretary of the
Senate, such as checks issued during the month and deposits received,
as well as a detailed listing of cash on hand. Also, the ``Statement of
Transactions According to Appropriations, Fund and Receipt Accounts,''
a summary of all monies disbursed by the Secretary of the Senate
through the Financial Clerk of the Senate, is reported to the
Department of the Treasury on a monthly basis. All activity by
appropriation account is reconciled with the Department of the Treasury
on a monthly and annual basis. The annual reconciliation of the
Treasury Combined Statement is also reported to the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) as part of the submission of the annual
operating budget of the Senate.
This year, the Accounting Department transmitted all federal tax
payments for federal, Social Security, and Medicare taxes withheld from
payroll expenditures, as well as the Senate's matching contribution for
Social Security and Medicare to the Federal Reserve Bank. The
department also performed quarterly reporting to the Internal Revenue
Services (IRS) and annual reporting and reconciliation to the IRS and
the Social Security Administration. Payments for employee withholdings
for state income taxes were reported and paid on a quarterly basis to
each state with applicable state income taxes withheld. System
modifications installed in the previous year to allow electronic (ACH)
payment of quarterly state taxes has resulted in a 50 percent
participation rate by taxing jurisdictions. Numerically, 21 of 42 tax
jurisdictions are receiving their quarterly state tax payments via ACH.
Monthly reconciliations regarding the employee withholdings and agency
matching contributions for the TSP were performed with the National
Finance Center.
There are also internal reporting requirements, such as the monthly
ledger statements for all member offices and all other offices with
payroll and non-payroll expenditures. These ledger statements detail
all of the financial activity for the appropriate accounting period
with regard to official expenditures in detail and summary form. It is
the responsibility of the Accounting Department to review and verify
the accuracy of the statements before Senate-wide distribution. The
Accounting Department is working closely with the IT group to set up
these reports for electronic distribution.
The Accounting Department, in conjunction with the deputy for
Financial Management and the Assistant Financial Clerk, continues to
work closely with the SAA Finance Department to complete a new draft of
the Senate-wide financial statements for past fiscal years, in
accordance with OMB Bulletin 01-09, ``Form and Content of Agency
Financial Statements'' and any updates required by OMB Circular A-136,
``Form and Content of the Performance and Accountability Reports''.
Work to finalize the implementation of the fixed asset system
continues. The financial management software has been upgraded and the
license renewed for 2009. Statements and other issues and priorities
are discussed in monthly accounting meetings.
Accounting also has a budget division whose primary responsibility
is compiling the annual operating budget of the United States Senate
for presentation to the Committee on Appropriations. The budget
division is responsible for the preparation, issuance and distribution
of the budget justification worksheets. Despite working under a
continuing resolution in fiscal year 2008, the budget justification
worksheets were mailed to the Senate accounting locations and were
processed in November. The budget baseline estimates for fiscal year
2009 were reported to OMB in mid-January. The budget analyst is also
responsible for the preparation of 1099's and the prompt submission of
forms to the IRS before the end of the January.
Accounts Payable: Vendor/Senate Automated Vendor Inquiry Section
The Vendor/Senate Automated Vendor Inquiry (SAVI) Section maintains
the accuracy and integrity of the Senate's central vendor (payee) file
for the prompt completion of new vendor file requests and service
requests related to the Disbursing Office's Web-based payment tracking
system, which is known as SAVI. This section also assists the
information technology (IT) department by performing periodic testing
and by monitoring the performance of the SAVI system, including the
conversion from SAVI to Staffer Functionality. Currently, more than
16,300 vendor records are stored in the vendor file, in addition to
approximately 10,000 employee records. Daily requests for new vendor
addresses or updates to existing vendor information are processed
within 24 hours of receipt. Besides updating mailing addresses, the
Vendor/SAVI section facilitates the use of ACH by switching the method
of payment requested by the vendor from check to direct deposit.
Whenever a new remittance address is added to the vendor file, a
standard letter is mailed to vendors requesting tax and banking
information, as well as contact and e-mail information. If a vendor
responds indicating they would like to receive ACH payments in the
future, the method of payment is changed.
SAVI is a Web-based payment tracking system, but it has been
replaced by a Web FMIS based system referred to as Staffer
Functionality. This conversion was necessary so that employees did not
need to sign on to multiple systems to create and track their payments.
All Web FMIS users have been moved into the Staffer Functionality and
new offices are automatically established with it. Senate employees can
electronically create, save, and file expense reimbursement forms,
track their progress, and get detailed information on payments. The
most common service requests are for system user identification and
passwords and for the reactivation of accounts. Employees may also
request an alternative expense payment method. Employees can choose to
have their payroll set up for direct deposit or paper check, but can
have their expenses reimbursed by a method that differs from their
salary payment method. Approximately 1,800 employees needed to have new
Staffer Functionality ID's and passwords assigned.
The Vendor/SAVI section works closely with the A/P Disbursements
group to resolve returned ACH payments. ACH payments are returned
periodically for a variety of reasons, including incorrect account
numbers, incorrect routing numbers, and, in rare instances, a
nonparticipating financial institution.
The Vendor/SAVI section electronically scans and stores all
supporting documentation of existing vendor records and new vendor file
requests. When this section receives replies asking for ACH
participation, Vendor/SAVI staff ask whether the vendors wish to be
notified by e-mail when payments are sent. Currently, over 2,000 of the
2,600 ACH participants also receive e-mail notification of payment.
During 2008, the Vendor/SAVI section processed over 2,300 vendor
file additions, completed more than 2,200 SAVI service requests, mailed
over 1,100 vendor information letters, and converted more than 500
vendors from check payment to direct deposit.
Accounts Payable: Disbursements Department
The Disbursements Department is the entry and exit point for
voucher payments. The department physically and electronically receives
all vouchers submitted for payment. It also pays all of these vouchers,
as well as the items submitted by upload and the various certifications
and adjustments that are submitted periodically. The department
received 156,900 vouchers and paid an additional 27,700 uploaded
expenses. All of these items were paid by the department via Treasury
check or ACH. Multiple payments to the same payee are often combined.
As a result, 22,355 checks were issued, while 60,785 ACH payments were
required. The decreased check volume and increased ACH volume is a
desired result as the department continues its efforts to substantially
reduce reliance on paper checks.
After vouchers are paid, they are sorted and filed by document
number. Vouchers are grouped in 6-month ``clusters'' to accommodate
their retrieval for the semi-annual Report of the Secretary of the
Senate. Files are maintained in-house for the current period and two
prior periods, as space is limited. Older documents are stored in the
Senate Support Facility (SSF). The inventoried items are sorted and
recorded in a database for easy document retrieval. Several document
retrieval missions were successfully conducted, and the department
continues to work closely with warehouse personnel.
A major function of the department is to prepare adjustment
documents. Adjustments are varied, and include re-issuance of items
held as accounts receivable collections, re-issuance of payments for
which non-receipt is claimed, and various supplemental adjustments
received from the Payroll Department. Such adjustments are usually
disbursed by check, but an increasing number are now handled
electronically through ACH. Paper payroll check registers were replaced
by an electronic version in 2006. The department maintains a
spreadsheet that tracks cases of non-receipt of salary checks,
including stop payment requests and re-issuance.
While experiencing an increase in ACH payments, Disbursing also
experienced an increase, though small, in the number of ACH returns.
Returns are usually the result of receiving incorrect account or
routing information and are easily corrected with payee contact. Some
returns result from account closings or non-participating financial
institutions and, while a bit more difficult, these items are resolved
either by receiving updated information or simply converting the
payment to a check. All rejected items are logged into an ACH reports
folder. They are classified as either Payroll or Accounts Payable, and
the actual daily reports are also scanned into the folder. Once logged
in, the payroll items are forwarded to the Payroll Department, and the
non-payroll items are forwarded to Vendor/SAVI to determine appropriate
corrective action. The department prepares accounting memos outlining
the actions to be taken, and makes adjustments as warranted.
The department also prepares the stop payments forms as required by
the Department of Treasury. Stop payments are requested by employees
who have not received salary or expense reimbursements, and vendors
claiming non-receipt of expense checks. During this year, the A/P
Disbursement supervisor and the Accounts Payable manager continued
using the Department of Treasury--Financial Management Service (FMS)
online stop pay and check retrieval process known as PACER. The PACER
system allows the department to electronically submit stop-payment
requests and provides online access to digital images of negotiated
checks for viewing and printing. Once a check is viewed, it is printed
and may be scanned. Scanned images are then forwarded to the
appropriate accounting locations via e-mail. During 2007, over 500
requests were received for check copies. PACER saves the Disbursing
Office a $7.50 processing fee for each request. PACER is now Web-based
and accessible from multiple workstations in Disbursing, enabling staff
to conduct research using the internet rather than the previously-used,
slower mainframe system.
Treasury created a new streamlined application called the Treasury
Check Information System (TCIS) to aid PACER. All Disbursement staff
and designated staff from the Payroll section are authorized to use
TCIS to retrieve copies of cancelled checks. Since implementation in
July of 2008, there have had more than 500 requests for copies of
checks.
Disbursements performed the initial scanning for the imaging
prototype. Two Senate offices participated in the project, and in
coordination with the Committee on Rules and Administration,
Disbursements was able to determine what was needed for the effort.
Also, Disbursements continues to play an active role in processing
upload certifications and vendor payments as well as providing frequent
assistance to the Front Office.
Accounts Payable: Audit Department
The Accounts Payable Audit Section is responsible for auditing
vouchers and answering questions regarding voucher preparation and the
permissibility of expenses and advances. This section provides advice
and recommendations on the discretionary use of funds to the various
accounting locations; identifies duplicate payments submitted by
offices; monitors payments related to contracts; trains new
administrative managers and chief clerks about Senate financial
practices and the Senate's Financial Management Information System; and
assists in the production of the Report of the Secretary of the Senate.
A major function of the section is monitoring the fund advances for
travel and petty cash. Late in 2006, phase 1 of a new advance module
for issuing and tracking advances was placed into service. The module
is now completely operational and all phases have been completed. The
system accommodates the issuance, tracking, and repayment of advances.
It also facilitates the entry and editing of election dates and
vouchers for Senators-elect. In addition to other functionality, an
advance type of petty cash was created and is being tested. Regular
petty cash audits are performed by the department; all petty cash
accounts were successfully audited in 2008.
The Accounts Payable Audit Section processed more than 156,900
expense vouchers in 2008, as well as 27,700 uploaded items. Audit
sanctioned more than 89,000 vouchers under authority delegated by the
Senate Committee on Rules and Administration. This translates to
roughly 16,800 vouchers processed per auditor, and 30,000 vouchers
posted per certifier. The voucher processing consisted of providing
interpretation of Senate rules, regulations and statutes and applying
the same to expense claims, monitoring of contracts, and direct
involvement with the Senate's central vendor file. On average, vouchers
greater than $100 that do not have any issues or questions are
received, audited, sanctioned electronically by the Senate Committee on
Rules and Administration using Web FMIS, and paid within 8 to 10
business days.
Uploaded items are of two varieties: certified expenses and vendor
payments. Certified expenses have been around since the 1980's, and
include items such as stationery, telecommunications, postage, and
equipment. Currently, the certifications include mass mail, franked
mail, excess copy charges, Photography Studio, and Recording Studio
charges. Expenses incurred by the various Senate offices are certified
to the Disbursing Office on a monthly basis. The expenses are detailed
on a spreadsheet which is also electronically uploaded. The physical
voucher is audited and appropriate revisions are made. Concentrated
effort is put forth to ensure certified items appear as paid in the
same month they are incurred.
Vendor uploads are used to pay vendors for the Stationery Room,
Senate Gift Shop and state office rentals, and refund security deposits
for the Senate Page School. The methodology is roughly the same as that
for certifications, but the payments rendered are for the individual
vendors. Although these items are generally processed and paid quickly,
the state office rents are generally paid a few days prior to the month
of the rental, which is consistent with the general policy of paying
rent in advance.
The Disbursing Office has sanctioning authority for vouchers of
$100 or less, subject to post-payment audit by the Committee on Rules
and Administration. These vouchers comprised approximately 57 percent
of all vouchers processed and are usually paid within 5 business days.
As in the previous year, Disbursing passed two post-payment audits
performed by the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration.
Additionally, advance documents and non-Contingent Fund vouchers
are now posted in Audit. Currently, there are three certifying accounts
payable specialists who handle the bulk of the sanctioning
responsibilities within the group.
The Accounts Payable Audit Group provided training sessions in the
use of new systems, the process for generation of expense claims, and
the permissibility of an expense; and participated in seminars
sponsored by the Secretary of the Senate, the SAA, and the Library of
Congress. The section trained 16 new administrative managers and chief
clerks and conducted four informational sessions for Senate staff
through seminars sponsored by the Congressional Research Service (CRS).
The Accounts Payable group also routinely assists the IT department and
other groups as necessary in the testing and implementation of new
hardware, software, and system applications. Web FMIS 2008-2 and 2008-3
were implemented, a prototype for imaging of expense vouchers was
tested and used for two Senate offices, and the employee number
conversion was successfully accomplished. Advances and previously
submitted vouchers needed to be closely monitored so that employees
were properly paid for expenses submitted prior to and after the
conversion.
In 2008, the cancellation process for advances was upgraded and
streamlined again, and collection times for outstanding advances have
decreased significantly.
Disbursing Office Information Technology
Financial Management Information System
The Disbursing Office Information Technology (DO IT) department
provides both functional and technical assistance for all Senate
financial management activities. Activities revolve around support of
the Senate's Financial Management Information System (FMIS) which is
used by staff in 140 Senate accounting locations (i.e., 100 Senate
personal offices, 20 committees, 20 leadership and support offices, the
Office of the Secretary of the Senate, the SAA, the Senate Committee on
Rules and Administration Audit section, and the Disbursing Office).
Responsibilities of the department include: supporting current
systems; testing infrastructure changes; managing and testing new
system development; planning; managing the FMIS project, including
contract management; administering the Disbursing Office's Local Area
Network (LAN); and coordinating the Disbursing Office's disaster
recovery activities.
The Disbursing Office is the ``business owner'' of FMIS and is
responsible for making the functional decisions about FMIS. The SAA
Technology Services staff is responsible for providing the technical
infrastructure, including hardware (e.g., mainframe and servers),
operating system software, database software, and telecommunications;
technical assistance for these components, including migration
management and database administration; and regular batch processing.
The office's contract support team, along with the SAA, is responsible
for operational support and is also under contract with the Secretary
for application development. The three organizations work
cooperatively.
Highlights of the year include:
--implemented two releases of FMIS;
--eliminated the use of Social Security Numbers in employee vendor
numbers by converting all employee vendor numbers to the number
assigned by the payroll system;
--conducted a prototype pilot of online review of imaged vouchers and
supporting documentation;
--made payroll reports available online through Web FMIS;
--transferred almost all SAVI-system users to Web FMIS ``Staffer
Functionality'' for creating online expense summary reports
(ESRs) and viewing payment information;
--conducted a pilot of Web FMIS ``Electronic Invoice'' functionality
by which office managers and chief clerks were able to import
credit card charges to create vouchers for payment;
--implemented revised travel advance accounting that eliminates the
use of suspense accounts;
--supported the Disbursing Office staff in remitting quarterly state
tax payments via direct deposit;
--prepared for re-writing the FMIS checkwriter functionality;
--tested infrastructure changes that included upgrades to the
mainframe operating system (Z/OS), the database (DB2), and Web
Sphere;
--coordinated and participated in a FMIS-only disaster recovery
exercise at the ACF;
--supported the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration's post
payment audit of a statistically valid sample of vouchers of
$100 or less;
--installed new Disbursing Office local area network servers;
--upgraded PC software (MS Office 2007 and Adobe) throughout the
Disbursing Office;
--installed new wide PC monitors throughout the Disbursing Office;
and
--conducted monthly classes and seminars on Web FMIS.
Supporting Current Systems
The DO IT department supports FMIS users in all 140 accounting
locations, Disbursing's Accounts Payable (A/P), Accounting,
Disbursements, Vendor/SAVI and Front Office sections, and the Senate
Committee on Rules and Administration Audit staff. The activities
associated with this responsibility include:
--User support--provide functional and technical support to all
Senate FMIS users; staff the FMIS ``help desk''; answer
hundreds of questions; and meet with chiefs of staff,
administrative managers, chief clerks, and directors of various
Senate offices as requested;
--Technical problem resolution--ensure that technical problems are
resolved;
--Monitor system performance--check system availability and
statistics to identify system problems and coordinate
performance tuning activities such as those for database access
optimization;
--Security--maintain user rights for all ADPICS, FAMIS, and Web FMIS
users;
--System administration--design, test and make entries to tables that
are at the core of the system;
--Support of accounting activities--perform functional testing and
production validation of the cyclic accounting system
activities. This includes rollover, the process by which tables
for the new fiscal year are created, and archive/purge, the
process by which data for the just lapsed fiscal year is
archived for reporting purposes and removed from the current
year tables;
--Support the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration post
payment voucher audit process--provide the data from which the
Rules Committee audit staff selects a statistically valid
sample of vouchers for $100 or less. In this way, the Committee
on Rules and Administration audit staff review vouchers
sanctioned under authority delegated to the Financial Clerk;
--Upload bulk financial transactions directly to FAMIS--upload
documents, such as certifications and vouchers from the Keeper
of Stationery, directly into FAMIS. These documents, submitted
via spreadsheets, are reviewed by the DO A/P and/or Accounting
sections prior to upload; and
--Training--provide functional training to all Senate FMIS users.
Continuing Projects
As part of its normal tasks to support current systems, Disbursing
created 95 new Web FMIS user accounts and an additional 55 new ADPICS/
FAMIS user accounts. Additionally, the office staff created new
organization, department and location codes for the Senator-elect
accounts and the new Senators in the 111th Congress. Through the
``rollover'' process, Disbursing created the tables necessary for two
new fiscal periods--fiscal year 2009 (for all FMIS users), and
Resolution 89D (for Committees), which began October 1, 2008. The two
queries for the Committee on Rules and Administrations's post-payment
audit of documents $100 and less identified 24,864 records for the
period October 1, 2007 to March 31, 2008 and 25,383 for the period
April 1, 2008 to September 30, 2008. The office uploaded over 325 files
of multiple documents such as certifications, vouchers from the Keeper
of Stationery, SAA budget entries, and journal entries. Finally, the
Disbursing Office IT staff offered Web FMIS classes once a month.
New Projects
IT completed a number of new tasks to support current systems this
year:
--organized quarterly user group meetings for the Disbursing Office's
A/P staff in order to hear concerns and feedback regarding
their Web FMIS system use;
--added materials to the online documentation available via Web FMIS,
including 20 administrative forms and 10 documents related to
creating vouchers;
--implemented procedures to create documents for infrequently-used
(i.e., Reception of Foreign Dignitaries and Senators-elect) in
Web FMIS instead of ADPICS, which simplified the processing of
these documents by the A/P and Accounting staff;
--managed the election moratoria dates for Senators running for
reelection. When the expenses are being submitted, this alerts
the voucher preparer that the expenses cannot be paid because
they were incurred during the 60 day period before an election
in which the Senator is a candidate is held;
--updated the voucher preparation documentation for Senators-elect;
and
--participated in the selection of a new credit card vendor for the
Senate and worked with that vendor to obtain a nightly data
file of posted charges in a format usable by the Web FMIS
``Electronic Invoicing'' function.
Testing Infrastructure Changes
The SAA provides the infrastructure on which FMIS operates,
including the mainframe, the database, security hardware and software,
and the telecommunications network. During 2008, the SAA implemented
one major upgrade to the FMIS infrastructure by upgrading the mainframe
operating software. In addition, the SAA implemented quarterly micro-
code updates and applied ``maintenance'' releases on a more regular
basis, both of which will keep the infrastructure current.
Managing and Testing New System Development
During 2008, the DO IT department supervised development, performed
extensive integration system testing, and implemented changes to FMIS
subsystems. Each implementation and production verification was
completed over a weekend in order to minimize system down time to
users. Since 2006, multiple sub-system upgrades have been consolidated
into two releases each year. This reduced the amount of regression
testing required. In order to accurately reflect the variety of changes
in each release, the releases are now numbered by fiscal year. During
2008, Disbursing implemented two major releases and two problem
correction releases. The two major releases were: FMIS r2008-2,
implemented in June 2008; and FMIS r2008-3, implemented in September
2008.
The items were selected for development and implementation in
response to Treasury mandates, and were based on user requests and
suggestions from the SAA technical staff and the IT department. The
planned schedule was substantially rearranged this year in order to
respond to the needs of the DO Accounting staff upon learning that the
Treasury Department was requiring the Senate to eliminate the use of
suspense accounts, which were used substantially in the Senate's travel
advance process. In order to have the new behind-the-scenes accounting
in place by October 1, 2008, the implementation of FMIS r2008-3 was
moved from November to September.
The DO IT Department staff meet regularly with users through
scheduled user group meetings. The department continued to meet with
the ADPICS/FAMIS users group (primarily SAA users) almost every month
and met monthly with the DO Accounting Section in order to address
their concerns in a user group format. In addition, the department
initiated a quarterly meeting with the DO A/P Section.
FMIS 2008-2
Web FMIS 2008-2 was implemented in June 2008. The primary change in
this release was the conversion of all employee vendor numbers to use
the 9-digit employee identification number (EID), which is assigned by
the payroll system, instead of an employee vendor number that included
a partial Social Security Number (SSN). The old SSN-based employee
vendor numbers were deactivated and the new employee vendor numbers
were made available. In addition, old SSN-based employee vendor numbers
used on already-created vouchers were masked so that the SSN portion
was not visible.
The most popular change in this release was enlarging the itinerary
field, which previously had been limited to 254 characters. The larger
itinerary field was made available in both Web FMIS ``Staffer
Functionality'' (the SAVI replacement) and in Web FMIS Document/Create,
so that a long itinerary could be created on an ESR and either imported
into a voucher or created directly on the voucher.
Three pilots began with this release: online payroll reports,
prototype of online review of imaged vouchers and supporting
documentation, and electronic invoicing (making electronic credit card
data available for importing into vouchers). Access to online payroll
reports was granted to specifically-authorized Web FMIS users. The
pilot allowed Disbursing to provide these reports twice a month instead
of once a month, and eliminated tasks associated with manual
distribution of paper reports. The first reports for fiscal year 2009
(i.e., reports for the end of October 2008) were distributed to
Senators' offices, committees, the Secretary's office, and the Sergeant
at Arms' office. The second pilot was a prototype of online review of
imaged vouchers and supporting documentation for vouchers from several
offices. The goal of this prototype was to provide DO A/P and
Accounting staff with hands-on experience in reviewing and marking-up
documents entirely online. As such, Disbursing did not request that the
offices do anything differently. Instead, Disbursing staff imaged the
voucher and supporting documentation, which was then filed so as to be
available for review if needed. This was intended to encourage online
review, and the documents were reviewed by DO A/P, Rules Audit, and
Disbursing Accounting online. The prototype ran from June until the
middle of October; and feedback from the Disbursing Office staff who
participate in the pilot will be useful as the project proceeds. The
third pilot enabled offices to see credit card charges from the credit
card vendor and select some or all to be imported into a voucher. This
reduces the possibility of paying a credit card charge more than once
and reduces the work required to create a voucher for these charges.
The pilot ran from the summer of 2008 to the winter of 2008 and has
stopped temporarily due to the change in the new Senate credit card
vendor in November 2008. Disbursing has been working with the new
credit card vendor to obtain the same kind of electronic data and make
it available to Web FMIS users. Once successful, there will be a short
pilot before the functionality is made available to all Senate offices.
FMIS 2008-3
This release was originally titled FMIS 2009-1 and was scheduled
for implementation in November 2008, but the date was moved up to the
beginning of September 2008, and therefore the release name was
changed. The timing and priorities for this release were shifted in
order to accommodate the changes necessary to eliminate use of a
suspense account in the travel advance accounting, as required by
Treasury by October 1, 2008 (fiscal year 2009). The Senate received
notification of this requirement at the end of March 2008. Other NTDOs
were notified in June 2007.
A number of Web FMIS user-requested features were also implemented
in this release. These included a new ``analysis by traveler'' report
that displays detailed information by vendor (or employee) for only
travel-related expenses. The display of office name to the master
vendor file was also added. This enabled users to pick the John Smith
who works for Senator Jones instead of accidentally picking the John
Smith who works for Senator Walker. Additionally, users now have the
ability to search the master expense category list by words in the
expense category description field. Finally, in preparation for the new
fiscal year, Disbursing also implemented a budget function that enables
configuring the new budget based on a previous fiscal year.
Planning
The Disbursing IT department performs two main planning activities:
--Schedule coordination--planning and coordinating a rolling 12-month
schedule; and
--Strategic planning--setting the priorities for further system
enhancements.
Schedule Coordination
In 2008, this department continued to hold two types of meetings
between Disbursing and the SAA to coordinate schedules and activities.
These were:
--project specific meetings--a useful set of project-specific working
meetings, each of which has a weekly set meeting time and meets
for the duration of the project (e.g., archive/purge meetings
and Web FMIS budget function meetings); and
--technical meetings--a weekly meeting to discuss the active
projects, including scheduling activities and resolving issues.
As part of planning activities for fiscal year 2009, Disbursing
decided to increase the planning timeframe from 12 months to 8-24
months in order to adequately include both FMIS functional releases and
the infrastructure changes (i.e., software upgrades, maintenance, and
micro-code updates).
Strategic Planning
The FMIS strategic plan has a longer time horizon than the rolling
12-month timeframe of the technical meeting schedule. It is designed to
set the direction and priorities for further enhancements. In 2002 a
strategic plan was written by the Disbursing IT and Accounting staff
for Disbursing Office Strategic Initiatives. This detailed description
of five strategic initiatives formed the base for the Secretary of the
Senate's request in 2002 for $5 million in multi-year funds for further
work on the FMIS project. The five strategic initiatives are:
--Paperless Vouchers--Imaging of Supporting Documentation and
Electronic Signatures.--Beginning with a feasibility study and
a pilot, this will implement new technology, including imaging
and electronic signatures, in order to reduce the Senate's
dependence on paper vouchers. This will enable the continuation
of voucher processing operations from an alternate location
should an emergency occur;
--Web FMIS.--Respond to requests from the Senate's accounting
locations for additional functionality in Web FMIS;
--Payroll system.--Respond to requests from the Senate's accounting
locations for online real time access to payroll data;
--Accounting Subsystem Integration.--Integrate Senate-specific
accounting systems, improve internal controls, and eliminate
errors caused by re-keying of data; and
--CFO Financial Statement Development.--Provide the Senate with the
capacity to produce auditable financial statements that will
obtain an unqualified opinion.
Managing the FMIS Project
The responsibility for managing the FMIS project was transferred to
the Disbursing IT department during the summer of 2003, and includes
developing the task orders with contractors, overseeing their work and
reviewing invoices. In 2008, one new task order was executed--Service
Year 2008 extended operational support, which covers activities from
September 2008 to August 2009.
In addition, work continued under four task orders executed in
prior years:
--Imaging and signature design and electronic invoicing enhancement
continuation;
--Web FMIS Reporting enhancements;
--Funds Advance Tracking System; and
--Service year 2008 extended operational support (covered activities
from September 2007 to August 2008).
Administering the Disbursing Office's Local Area Network
(LAN)
Disbursing continued to administer its own local area network
(LAN), which is separate from the network used by the rest of the
Secretary's Office. Upkeep of the LAN infrastructure, including
performing routine daily tasks and replacing equipment regularly, is
critical to providing services. During 2008, LAN administration
activities included: maintaining and upgrading the Disbursing Office's
LAN; installing specialized software; and maintaining projects for the
payroll and benefits section.
Maintaining and Upgrading the Disbursing Office LAN
Disbursing maintained the existing workstations with appropriate
upgrades including: installing new DO LAN servers; upgrading PC
software (MS Office 2007 and Adobe) throughout the Disbursing Office;
installing new wide PC monitors throughout the Disbursing Office; and
managing blackberry devices, including upgrading three devices and
installing four more.
Installing Specialized Software
Disbursing uses a variety of specialized software that is critical
to workflow processes. In 2008, Disbursing:
--installed Treasury Check Information System (TCIS) to replace
PACER. This system enables Disbursing staff to obtain an imaged
copy of negotiated checks; and
--upgraded the Fixed Asset System (FAS), used by the office to obtain
the depreciated value of the Senate's fixed asset records
maintained by the SAA.
Maintaining Projects for Payroll and Employee Benefits
Sections
Disbursing continued to support the Payroll/Benefits Imaging system
developed by SAA staff. This system electronically captures and indexes
payroll documents submitted at the front counter, and is critical for
the Payroll and Employee Benefits sections. During 2008, a new digital
sender was installed on the Disbursing network for use on this project.
Coordinating the Disbursing Office's Disaster Recovery
Activities
At the request of the Disbursing Office, the SAA conducted a FMIS-
only disaster recovery test in December. This is the second year in
which a FMIS-only test was conducted. The longer time allotted to this
test enabled more complete functional testing, (including following
single documents from data entry in ADPICS and Web FMIS through payment
in FAMIS), running more reports than during other tests, and testing
the critical payroll and FAMIS batch processes. While the Disbursing IT
staff organized the functional test plan, the actual testers included
Disbursing IT staff, payroll staff, contractor support staff and SAA
Finance staff. No major problems were encountered, and because of the
longer time allotted for this test, the problems that were encountered
were investigated.
ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICES
CHIEF COUNSEL FOR EMPLOYMENT
The Office of the Senate Chief Counsel for Employment (SCCE) is a
non-partisan office established in 1993 at the direction of the Joint
Leadership after enactment of the Government Employee Rights Act
(GERA), which allowed Senate employees to file claims of employment
discrimination against Senate offices. With the enactment of the
Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 (CAA), as amended, Senate
offices became subject to the requirements, responsibilities and
obligations of 12 employment laws. The CAA also established the Office
of Compliance (OC). Among other things, the OC accepts and processes
legislative employees' complaints that their employer has violated the
CAA.
The SCCE is charged with the legal defense of Senate offices in all
employment law cases at both the administrative and court levels. Also,
on a day-to-day basis, the SCCE provides legal advice to Senate offices
about their obligations under employment laws. Accordingly, each Senate
office is an individual client of the SCCE, and each office maintains
an attorney-client relationship with the SCCE.
The areas of responsibilities of the SCCE can be divided into the
following categories:
--Litigation (defending Senate offices in courts and at
administrative hearings);
--Mediations to resolve lawsuits;
--Court-ordered alternative dispute resolutions;
--Union drives, negotiations, and unfair labor practice charges;
--Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) compliance;
--Americans With Disability Act (ADA) compliance;
--Layoffs and office closings in compliance with the law;
--Management training regarding legal responsibilities; and
--Preventive legal advice.
Litigation; Mediations; Alternative Dispute Resolutions
The SCCE defends each of the employing offices of the Senate in
court actions, hearings, proceedings, investigations and negotiations
relating to labor and employment laws. The SCCE handles cases filed in
the District of Columbia and cases filed in any of the 50 states.
Compliance with the OSHA and the ADA
The CAA mandates that, at least once each Congress, the OC shall
inspect each Senate office to determine whether each office is in
compliance with the OSHA and the public accommodation portion of the
ADA. The CAA authorizes the OC to issue a public citation to any office
that is not in compliance.
The SCCE provides legal assistance and advice to every Senate
office to ensure that they are complying with the OSHA and the ADA. The
SCCE also represents each Senate office during the OC inspections,
advises them on the preparation of the OC's home state OSHA/ADA
inspection questionnaires, assists offices in the preparation of
emergency action plans, and advises and represents each Senate office
when a complaint of an OSHA or ADA violation has been filed against the
office with the OC or when a citation has been issued.
In 2008, the SCCE pre-inspected 224 Senate offices to ensure
compliance with the ADA and the OSHA. Inspections included 82 member
offices and 43 committee and leadership offices in the Hart, Dirksen
and Russell buildings; 67 SAA offices in the Capitol and Hart, Dirksen,
Russell and Postal Square buildings; and 36 Secretary of the Senate
offices in the Capitol and Hart, Dirksen and Russell buildings. Senate
offices had no significant OSHA or ADA problems and no citations.
Management Training Regarding Legal Responsibilities
The SCCE regularly conducts legal seminars for the managers of
Senate offices to assist them in complying with employment laws,
thereby reducing their liability.
In 2008, the SCCE gave 90 legal seminars to Senate offices. The
seminars included, among others:
--The Congressional Accountability Act of 1995: Management's Rights
and Obligations;
--Laws You Must Follow when Setting Up and Managing Your Office;
--Understanding Sexual Harassment in the Workplace;
--Dealing with Harassment Complaints and Avoiding a Hostile Work
Environment;
--A Manager's Guide to Complying with the Family and Medical Leave
Act;
--Amendments to the Family and Medical Leave Act Related to Military
Service;
--Avoiding Legal Landmines in Your Office 2008;
--Labor-Management Overview; and
--An Office's Legal Obligation to Ensure that All New Hires are
Qualified to Work in the Senate: Complying with I-9 and E-
Verify laws.
The SCCE also developed and conducted a series of 11 monthly
seminars covering all major employment laws that govern Senate offices.
The purpose of the seminars was to educate all Senate management staff
about their responsibility to ensure that their respective offices
comply with the CAA. The series was open to all chiefs of staff, staff
directors, administrative directors, chief clerks and office managers.
Individuals who completed the series received a certificate of
completion signed by the Secretary of the Senate. The following topics
were covered:
--An Overview of the Congressional Accountability Act;
--Are You Meeting Your Legal Requirements under the I-9 and E-Verify
Laws?;
--Overtime Pay: Who is Owed It, and How is It Calculated?;
--The Equal Pay Act;
--How to Interview, Check References, Give References and Check
Backgrounds;
--The Family and Medical Leave Act: When Do Employees Get It, and How
Much Do They Get?;
--Evaluating, Disciplining and Firing Employees without Violating the
Law;
--The Americans with Disabilities Act: What Managers Must Know about
Complying with the Law;
--Dealing with Harassment Complaints and Avoiding a Hostile Work
Environment; and
--Common Employment Law Mistakes Managers Make.
Legal Advice
The SCCE meets daily with Members, chiefs of staff, administrative
directors, office managers, staff directors, chief clerks and counsel
at their request to provide legal advice. For example, on a daily
basis, the SCCE advises Senate staff on matters such as interviewing,
hiring, counseling, disciplining and terminating employees in
compliance with the law; handling and investigating sexual harassment
complaints; accommodating the disabled; determining wage law
requirements; meeting the requirements of the Family and Medical Leave
Act; management's rights and obligations under union laws and the OSHA;
management's obligation to give leave to employees for military service
and to reinstate them at the conclusion of that service; and
management's obligation to verify with Department of Homeland Security
and Social Security Administration that each new hire is legally
eligible to work in the United States. In 2008, the SCCE had over 2,558
such meetings.
Also, the SCCE provides legal assistance to Senate offices to
ensure that their employee handbooks and office policies, supervisors'
manuals, intern policies, job descriptions, interviewing guidelines and
performance evaluation forms comply with the law. In 2008, the SCCE
prepared or significantly revised 204 employee handbooks, supervisors'
manuals, and intern manuals for member offices.
Union Drives, Negotiations and Unfair Labor Practice Charges
In 2008, the SCCE trained managers and supervisors regarding their
new legal and contractual obligations under union contracts that were
ratified in 2007.
SCCE Web Site
Working with the Office of Web Technology, the SCCE designed and
launched an SCCE Web site. The site informs Senate offices of their
legal obligations under the CAA, provides Senate offices access to
legal forms and documents, and alerts Senate offices of upcoming SCCE
seminars. To assist the offices of new members, the SCCE, working with
chiefs of staff and administrative directors, added a section to the
site that provides legal advice, legal forms and practical information
to new Senate offices to assist them in setting up their offices.
Environmental Concerns
In 2001, the SCCE became the first Senate office to convert to a
``paperless'' office, which greatly reduced paper usage by minimizing
the need for copying documents and storing hard copies. The SCCE
accomplished the conversion by installing a document management system
and scanning all documents the office receives. In 2008, the SCCE began
upgrading its systems to stay current with technological advances and
to allow its staff to utilize the document management system and to
access all office documents from COOP computers and BlackBerry devices.
CONSERVATION AND PRESERVATION
The Office of Conservation and Preservation develops and
coordinates programs directly related to the conservation and
preservation of Senate records and materials. Initiatives include the
deacidification of paper and prints, phased conservation for books and
documents, and completion of collection surveys, exhibits, and matting
and framing for Senate leadership.
For more than 25 years this office has bound a copy of Washington's
Farewell Address for the annual Washington's Farewell Address ceremony.
In 2008, a volume was bound for Senator Mark L. Pryor who was selected
to deliver the address before the Senate.
Senate Library
As mandated in the 1990 Senate Library Collection Condition Survey,
the staff continued to conduct an annual treatment of books identified
by the survey as needing conservation or repair. In 2008, the staff
completed conservation treatments for 41 volumes of a 7,000 volume
collection of House hearings. Specifically, treatment involved recasing
each volume as required, using alkaline end sheets, replacing acidic
tab sheets with alkaline paper, cleaning the cloth cases, and replacing
black spine title labels of each volume as necessary. The Office of
Conservation and Preservation will continue preservation of the
remaining 3,653 volumes.
The office assisted the Senate Library with books sent to the
Government Printing Office (GPO) for binding. The GPO has been
returning books to the Senate Library on schedule. Additionally, the
conservators assisted the Senate Library with two exhibits located in
the Senate Russell building basement corridor.
Preservation
The Office of Conservation and Preservation staff rebound 166
volumes of House and Senate hearings for the Senate Library. These
books were rebound with new end sheets and new covers using the old
spines when possible.
Objectives for 2009
The Office of Conservation and Preservation staff continues to
assist Senate offices with conservation and preservation of documents,
books, and various other items. For example, the office staff continues
to monitor the temperature and humidity in the Senate Library storage
areas, including the vault and Senate Support Facility, for
preservation and conservation purposes. Furthermore, staff will
continue to train Senate Library staff in conservation and repair
techniques.
CURATOR
The Office of Senate Curator, on behalf of the Senate Commission on
Art (Commission), develops and implements the museum and preservation
programs for the United States Senate. The Curator collects, preserves,
and interprets the Senate's fine and decorative arts, historic objects,
and specific architectural features; and the Curator exercises
supervisory responsibility for the historic chambers in the Capitol
under the jurisdiction of the Commission. Through exhibitions,
publications, and other programs, the Curator educates the public about
the Senate and its collections.
Collections: Commissions, Acquisitions, and Management
A painting of Senator Thomas A. Daschle was presented in the Old
Senate Chamber on April 22, 2008, as part of the Senate Leadership
Portrait Collection. Additionally, work continued on the painting of
Senator Trent Lott, and a portrait of Senator Bill Frist was
commissioned.
Sixty-seven objects were accessioned into the Senate collection,
including: an 1868 ticket to the Andrew Johnson Impeachment Trial;
seven stereographs depicting interior views of the Capitol; six
historic prints; nine Senate Chamber gallery passes; four tickets to
either joint sessions or joint meetings of Congress; several study
sketches related to the oil on canvas portrait of Senator Robert C.
Byrd; and seven historic furnishings built for the Russell Senate
Office Building.
Throughout the year, the office worked in close cooperation with
the Sergeant at Arms's (SAA) Cabinet Shop to replicate one of the most
historic pieces in the Senate collection: the 19th century Senate
Chamber desk once occupied by Daniel Webster. The reproduction,
requested for display in the Capitol Visitor Center (CVC) Exhibition
Hall, afforded the Curator's Office a unique opportunity to create an
exact replica using original 1819 construction and finishing
techniques. The project was launched in February when design software
was used to create drawings from exacting measurements taken of the
desk on the Senate Chamber floor. During the construction, Senate
Curatorial Advisory Board member Donald Williams gave presentations to
the Cabinet Shop on historic practices of hide glue and shellac finish.
Mr. Williams also provided invaluable expertise throughout the project
and later returned to apply the finish to the desk himself, using
traditional materials and techniques. Once it has properly cured, the
replica will be displayed in the CVC Exhibition Hall. A short
documentary film on the desk's construction will be developed by the
Curator's Office.
Forty-four new foreign gifts were reported in 2008 to the Select
Committee on Ethics and transferred to the Curator's Office. In
accordance with statute, the Office of Senate Curator received the
gifts for deposit on behalf of the Secretary of the Senate. They were
catalogued and are maintained by the office in accordance with the
Foreign Gifts and Decorations Act. Following established procedures,
the office effected appropriate disposition of 36 foreign gifts.
The office conducted an extensive physical inventory of original
Russell Senate Office Building furniture located in Senate spaces of
the Capitol, Russell, Dirksen, Hart, and five other office buildings.
The goal of the survey was to systematically document the number of
remaining furnishings purchased (approximately 3,082 were made) for the
Senate's first office building. The survey was conducted by a contract
conservator, and the 1,133 pieces found during the survey were placed
on the Historic Furnishings Inventory. Additionally, 38 Russell
furnishings were identified in private collections, museums, and
libraries.
During the summer, a professional photographer took pictures of
various historic furniture, several small objects, and a portrait to be
loaned to the CVC for exhibition.
Work continued on the two new curatorial spaces located in the CVC,
which were designed to provide customized preservation storage for the
Senate collection. Museum quality storage equipment was installed in
the two rooms, as well as an electronic monitoring system that tracks
and records temperature and relative humidity and checks for the
presence of water. The Curator's staff worked with the Architect of the
Capitol's (AOC) transition team to adjust the HVAC units in each room
in order to maintain a consistent preservation environment. The units
are functioning, and need to be fine-tuned.
In preparation for the collection move into the new CVC storage
spaces, staff identified the Senate's collection of 1,400 historic
prints as a first priority for archival re-housing. A storage system
was developed and archival materials identified for implementing the
new storage system. The historic prints will be moved once the CVC HVAC
units have been properly adjusted and the environments are stable.
The office expanded its comprehensive maintenance program for
collections and historic spaces to include a monthly inspection
component, and initiated the distribution of ``art cards'' to provide
staff with information on monitoring and reporting problems. Along with
the established daily and weekly inspections, the monthly inspections
and the ``art cards'' help to avert potential damage by monitoring
conditions of Senate art and historic spaces and educating Senate staff
on their care.
A detailed assessment of the Senate's historic timepieces was
conducted by a clock conservator. Based upon the results, a two-part
plan was developed to provide regular reports and related maintenance
for the clocks and to address any condition identified as high
priority. This work will proceed in 2009. Much valuable information was
gained through the assessment, and training was provided to in-house
staff to improve clock winding practices.
The discovery of mercury beads on one of the Senate's historic
overmantel mirrors prompted the Curator's Office to undertake extensive
research and develop treatment guidelines for mirrors with mercury
amalgam glass. With the objective of preserving in place any mercury
amalgam mirrors, the office outlined safe methods for identification,
tracking, handling, prevention, and containment. The guidelines were
reviewed by the AOC's Safety Office and conservators, and have been
used successfully.
Keeping with scheduled procedures, all Senate collection objects on
display were inventoried, noting any changes in location. In addition,
as directed by S. Res. 178 (108th Congress, 1st Session), the office
submitted inventories of the art and historic furnishings in the Senate
to the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration. The inventories,
which are submitted every 6 months, are compiled by the Curator's
Office with assistance from the SAA and AOC's Senate Superintendent.
Conservation and Restoration
Conservation cleaning treatment was completed on the monumental
sculpture, Mountains and Clouds, by Alexander Calder, located in the
atrium of the Hart Senate Office Building. A facility cleaning company,
under contract with the AOC, carried out the treatment, and a sculpture
conservator hired by the Curator's Office supervised the treatment.
Specialized equipment was used to access all surfaces of the nine story
sculpture for cleaning. The Curator's Office worked with a National
Gallery of Art designer to create new protective measures in the form
of metal strips installed on the ground around the perimeter of the
sculpture. These strips provide an unobtrusive boundary for visitors.
In collaboration with the Superintendent of the Senate Office
Buildings, an ongoing care and maintenance program for the piece is
under development.
Conservation treatment continued for the painting, Henry Clay in
the U.S. Senate, by Phineas Staunton. Due to the painting's size (11
feet by 7 feet, unframed) and many complicated condition problems,
painstaking treatment procedures were necessary for both the painting
and the frame. The results have been dramatic. As coordinated with the
Senate Committee on Rules and Administration, the painting will be
installed in the East Brumidi Stairwell in 2009. Lighting has been
designed specifically for the stairwell, which will enhance viewers'
appreciation of the painting.
An objects conservator was hired to evaluate the exhibition mounts
and display conditions for seven Senate objects scheduled for display
in the CVC Exhibition Hall. This step was taken to ensure the objects
were safely displayed while on long-term loan.
During the Russell furniture survey, the Curator's Office
identified a mahogany flat top desk, swivel arm chair, easy chair,
davenport, side chair, and arm chair for conservation. The conservator
is applying original refinishing and re-upholstery protocols for the
pieces as developed by the manufacturer. Including the three chairs
restored in 2003, the Senate will have preserved ten of the fourteen
pieces made in 1909 for a Senator's suite. The restored furnishings
will be preserved in the Senate collection and temporarily displayed in
the Russell basement rotunda for the building's centennial anniversary
from March 2009 through September 2009.
The office completed conservation treatment on five mirrors as part
of the ongoing program to address the most critical conditions in the
Senate mirror collection. Two were restored off-site, while the other
three were treated on-site. The on-site treatments addressed localized
damage, thus preventing further loss of original fabric. The frames
restored off-site required comprehensive conservation: poor quality
repairs and bronze powder paint were removed; losses were replaced; and
the frames were cleaned, consolidated, and gilded. Additionally, the
Curator's staff formally incorporated the mirrors into the maintenance
program, and eight frames were cleaned on-site by staff. The office
also worked with the AOC to investigate and address six cases of
installation hardware issues.
The Curator's staff participated in training sessions for the
Capitol Police regarding the care and protection of art in the Capitol,
and continued to educate the housekeeping personnel on maintenance
issues related to the fine and decorative art collections.
Historic Preservation
The Curator's staff worked with the AOC and the SAA to review,
comment, plan, and document Senate-side construction projects (many of
which are long-term initiatives) that involve or affect historic
resources. Construction and conservation efforts that required
considerable review and assistance included: exit sign installations;
Brumidi corridor mural conservation; egress modifications; scagliola
conservation; and press gallery upgrades. Through this work, the
Curator's staff was able to ensure that the highest preservation
standards were applied to all Capitol projects.
The staff worked with the Office of the Republican Whip to create
and install the state seal for the incoming leader. The placement of
the seal on the historic ceiling in S-210, filling framed spaces left
blank by the ceiling's original artist, dates to 1987 and continues to
be a responsibility of the Senate Curator.
The challenging Senate Reception Room restoration and
rehabilitation project, developed by the Senate Curator and the Curator
for the AOC, has successfully moved forward. A significant
accomplishment was the completion of a paint analysis report. While
some additional analysis and exposures will be necessary before
specifications can be developed, the major work is completed. In
addition to the paint analysis, the Curator's staff developed a project
goal and preservation philosophy to apply to the elements in the room,
and undertook a room and furniture use survey along with occupant
interviews.
Historic Chambers
The Curator's staff continued to maintain the Old Senate and Old
Supreme Court Chambers, and coordinated periodic use of both rooms for
special occasions. The office worked closely with the U.S. Capitol
Police to continue the procedures developed last year to record after-
hours access to the historic chambers by current members of Congress.
Fifty-six requests were received by current members of Congress for
admittance to the Old Supreme Court Chamber after-hours.
By order of the U.S. Capitol Police, the Old Senate Chamber was
closed to visitors after September 11, 2001. Eighty-six requests were
received from members of Congress requesting admittance to the chamber
during the day; 62 requests were received from members for after-hours
access. During seven Senate recesses the historic room was opened to
Capitol Guide and staff-led tours.
During the fall of 2008, the Curator's staff conducted a survey of
traffic flow in and around the Old Supreme Court Chamber. Data
generated by this survey will assist the Curator in determining whether
any changes to furniture or interpretive signs could help alleviate
congestion in the area.
As a final, yet critical, component to the documentation of the Old
Senate Chamber and Old Supreme Court Chamber, the Curator's staff
supplemented detailed room drawings produced in 2007 with large-format
photographs that meet the Secretary of the Interior and the Historic
American Building Survey's standards. These photographs were accepted
by the Historic American Building Survey for its collection and will be
available online and at the Library of Congress. Together with the
drawings, the photographs provide a baseline for planning and research
and help facilitate interpretation, especially when public access is
limited.
Electronic monitoring systems, similar to those in the curatorial
storage spaces in the CVC, were installed in the Old Senate and Old
Supreme Court Chambers. Because the rooms are open to the public for
tours, it is more difficult to maintain stable environments. The new
systems will document the temperature and humidity fluctuations in the
rooms, which will allow the staff to better monitor the condition of
historic objects in order to aid in their preservation.
Loans To and From the Collection
A total of 50 historic objects and paintings are currently on loan
to the Curator's office on behalf of Senate leadership and officers in
the Senate wing of the Capitol. The staff returned four loans,
coordinated three new loans, and renewed loan agreements for 31 other
objects. Over 30 loans are projected to be renewed next year, including
coordination of the loan of the painting, eagle podium, and Lincoln
table for use at the 2009 Presidential Inaugural Luncheon.
The official Senate chinaware was inventoried and used at 26
receptions for distinguished guests, both foreign and domestic.
Publications and Exhibitions
The Curator's staff continued to coordinate and participate in
projects and planning for the 100th anniversary of the Richard B.
Russell Senate Office Building, which opened its doors in March 1909.
Work proceeded on the design and construction of a series of exhibition
pylons to be placed in various locations in the Russell Building to
educate members, staff, and visitors about the architecture and history
of the building. Additionally, Curator's staff, Historical Office
staff, and the Senate Webmaster developed a Web site highlighting some
250 photographic images of the building and selections from the graphic
art collections of the Senate and the Library of Congress. Other
centennial projects include a furniture exhibit in the Russell rotunda
basement, and an accompanying brochure and poster.
Another Web site under construction will highlight the rediscovery,
history, and conservation of the monumental painting, Henry Clay in the
U.S. Senate, by Phineas Staunton. The site will include short video
segments on the conservation effort. A 15-minute documentary on the
painting will also be produced.
An exhibition on the history of presidential inaugurations, I Do
Solemnly Swear: A Half Century of Inaugural Images, was designed and
installed on the first floor of the Senate wing in celebration of the
2009 inaugural ceremonies. The exhibit features graphic art images from
the Senate's collection of 19th century news magazine illustrations.
In continuing support of the training for staff-led tours, the
office updated and expanded its presence on the congressional intranet
that began with the 2007 posting of the online Guide to Staff-Led
Tours. Working with the Senate Historical Office, AOC, and House
Curator, the staff updated and restructured this site to provide
concise up-to-date information for participants in the CVC's
Congressional Historical Interpretive Training Program (CHIP).
As part of an ongoing program to provide more information about the
Capitol and its spaces, the office completed the production and
distribution of a brochure for the Democratic Leader's suite. In
addition, all of the Commission on Art brochures were updated and added
to the Senate.gov Web site. The Curator's staff continued to be a
significant contributor to Unum, the Secretary of the Senate's
newsletter.
Collaborations, Educational Programs, and Events
The Curator's Office assisted the National Archives with two small
exhibits for display in the vault at the Center for Legislative
Archives. In February, objects related to Isaac Bassett, a 64-year
employee of the Senate, were on view. In December, objects from the
Senate's inaugural collection were installed. Also this year, the staff
installed 17 objects from the Senate collection in the new CVC
exhibition space.
The Curator and staff assisted with numerous CVC-related projects
throughout the year. At the request of the CVC oversight committees
(the Committee on House Administration and the Committee on Senate
Rules and Administration), the Curator worked closely with the House
Curator and AOC Curator to review products and publications for the CVC
gift shop. A total of 1,100 products were reviewed in a 3 month period.
Additionally, the Curator and Associate Curator assisted with CHIP by
attending planning meetings and developing a lecture to present to
congressional staff at the 1-day and 2-day programs. The Curator's
staff participated in ten programs in a 3 month period. The Curator
continued to assist the AOC Curator and staff of the Joint Committee on
the Library to finalize the plan for the National Statuary Hall statues
in the CVC.
The staff worked closely with the staff of the Senate Gift Shop to
develop a series of magnets, note cards, and other gifts commemorating
the Russell centennial.
Other joint congressional projects included the following: planning
and reviewing for the Rosa Parks statue; participating in the Slave
Labor Task Force Working Group, which was assigned to develop an
implementation plan for Congress's recommendations to honor slave labor
in the Capitol; and assisting the Joint Congressional Committee on
Inaugural Ceremonies with the 2009 inauguration. Joint projects with
outside organizations included work with the Smithsonian Institution's
Department of Entomology to research the insects depicted in the
Brumidi Corridors.
The Senate Curator and staff gave lectures on the Senate's art and
historical collections to various historical groups and art museums.
The staff also assisted the Secretary with the Senate staff lecture/
tour series.
Office Administration and Automation
The Curator's Office Records Task Force completed work on a master
records disposition matrix and began its implementation. The new matrix
allows for standardization and more consistent records collation. As
part of the matrix, the Task Force created a fully-searchable digital
record of each file in the office, as well as a protocol for project
close-out procedures to ensure that each concluded project will
generate a thorough and consistent set of records. The File Task Force
also developed detailed document life-cycle and disposition
recommendations for the most critical and fastest-growing record types.
The Curator's continuity of operations (COOP) plan was tested with
an extensive in-house tabletop exercise conducted in August. The office
was also asked to participate in the Secretary of the Senate's Living
Data Recovery Planning System pilot COOP program, and two staff members
participated in the initial trial run. Training on the full system was
completed in the first quarter of 2009.
All objects stored in the Senate Curator's non-museum space at the
Senate Support Facility were added to a new inventory system called
Asset Management. Implementation of the system allows the Curator's
staff to track all objects, confirm locations, and verify quantities.
All current loan agreements were digitized in portable document
format and stored on flash drives for easy retrieval in the event of an
emergency. A list of all working fireplaces was also completed. This
information is now added to loan agreements in order to provide full
disclosure on environmental conditions for lenders. The office's
collection database was reviewed to assess the stability and efficiency
of the system, and a plan was developed for updating and reorganizing
specific information.
Based on periodic requests to reproduce the Senate Chamber desks
for educational purposes, procedures were developed and implemented for
approving all future requests. Since 1979, ten institutions have been
granted permission to replicate Senate Chamber desks.
In conjunction with the staff of the Office of Web Technology, the
staff continued work on implementing a major redesign of the Senate art
Web site. Extensive redesign and programming has yielded a new site
that, when launched in 2009, will provide visitors with more intuitive
access to the Senate's art, historical collections, and online exhibits
and publications. A major accomplishment of this initiative is the
successful development of a new programming paradigm which facilitates
the automatic generation of a wide variety of subject-related
collection lists using information imported directly from the Curator's
automated collections management database. This method ensures that all
information displayed on the Web site is current and accurate,
eliminates the redundancy of information, and safeguards against
inaccuracies that might occur as a result of such redundancy. The first
list completed is a comprehensive roster of all individuals depicted in
every portrait and group portrait in the Senate collection, spanning
the mediums of paintings, sculpture, and graphic art. Additionally, the
graphic designs and textual elements of the new navigation interface
pages have been completed and will be published in 2009.
Objectives for 2009
Now that the Curator storage rooms in the CVC are available, staff
will work with representatives from the CVC, AOC, the Office of Senate
Security and the SAA to establish and test the environmental, security,
access, and fire suppression systems. Additional equipment and supplies
needed to prepare collection objects for storage will be assembled, and
plans for transferring objects to the new storage rooms will be
finalized. Once all facility systems are operating as intended to
provide secure preservation conditions for the collections, objects
will be moved to the spaces. Highlights of the new storage include
specialized racks for hanging paintings and custom cabinets for storing
paper-based collections, such as historic prints and ephemera.
Conservation and preservation concerns continue to be a top
priority. Following conservation priorities identified through a
historic clock assessment, the Curator will seek proposals for
treatment reports and related treatment of four clocks. In addition, an
ongoing program will be developed to provide routine reports and
related maintenance for the historic clock collection.
The office will move forward with critical mirror conservation
priorities, pursuing both on-site and off-site projects that will treat
at least two mirrors. In addition, the staff will continue to improve
monitoring and maintenance of the mirrors. This work will include the
placement of more identification signs on mantels, the installation of
mantel clock cord clips, on-site cleaning by staff, and the
establishment of a plinth program.
Following the completion of conservation treatment for the
monumental painting, Henry Clay in the U.S. Senate, the painting will
be installed in the East Brumidi stairwell. The office will work with a
fine art services company to carry out this complicated installation in
2009.
Professional photography is scheduled for numerous objects in the
Senate collection, including Henry Clay in the U.S. Senate, the
restored Russell furniture, historic prints, and upcoming Senate
leadership portraits.
Regarding historic preservation activities, the office will
continue to confer with the AOC regarding preservation issues related
to Senate restoration and remodeling projects, disseminate project
information to the Senate, develop preservation projects at the request
of the Senate, conduct condition inspections, and arrange necessary
maintenance. The bulk of the office's project management will involve
advancing the restoration and rehabilitation of the Senate Reception
Room. Specific efforts to be addressed in 2009 include updating the
advisory board on progress, studying the condition of the historic
benches in the room, and initiating treatment of the Greek key borders
on the walls.
The office will establish an ornamental fragment collection related
to the documentation of architectural features and historic spaces.
This new collecting initiative will acquire significant objects removed
from the Capitol, as well as samples documenting the appearance of
important rooms. These items will provide valuable information for the
future about the architectural and decorative history of the Capitol.
The office will publish its redesign of the Senate art Web site in
2009. The new site will organize art works by subject, rather than by
medium, as currently arranged. In addition to the reorganization, the
newly launched site will include images from the Senate's graphic art
collection.
A variety of new Web sites will be posted, including: information
on the 2009 inaugural luncheon painting; a myth site addressing and
dispelling frequently heard myths about Senate art and history; an
extensive site illustrating the history and conservation of the Henry
Clay painting by Phineas Staunton; and a site on the Senate Leadership
Portrait Collection, with specific information on the new portrait of
Senator Trent Lott. The office will begin development of a historic
spaces component to the Web site and highlight several special
collections. Of particular note are the nearly 100 mirrors in the
Senate's collection. Finally, the office will begin creating new
artifact pages as part of a program to make the Senate's collection
more publically accessible.
The Senate leadership portrait of Senator Trent Lott will be
unveiled in 2009.
The office will install a comprehensive series of exhibit signs in
the Hart Building Atrium to interpret Alexander Calder's Mountains and
Clouds.
The staff will update its database to better document and store
information on Senate objects. The office will also review collection
data for consistency in preparation for the 2010 inventory publication.
The Curator's staff has completed the numerous projects for the
March 2009 celebration of the Russell Senate Office Building
centennial. Work included: installation of informational panels at
various locations throughout the building; a publication and poster on
the furniture; an exhibition showcasing nine restored original
furnishings; an extensive Web site; various merchandise for sale at the
Senate Gift Shop; and lectures and tours. In addition, the staff will
continue investigating and documenting Russell furnishings located in
other collections. The Curator hopes that the centennial celebration
will bring a new awareness of these historic furnishings and result in
the return of some of these ``lost'' pieces to the Senate.
EDUCATION AND TRAINING
The Joint Office of Education and Training provides employee
training and development opportunities for all Senate staff in
Washington, DC and the states. There are three branches within the
office: Technical Training, Professional Training and Health Promotion.
Technical Training staff are responsible for providing technical
training support for approved software packages and equipment used in
either Washington, DC or the state offices. This branch provides
instructor-led classes, one-on-one coaching sessions, specialized
vendor-provided training, computer-based training, and informal
training and support services. Professional Training provides courses
for all Senate staff in areas such as management and leadership
development, human resources issues and staff benefits, legislative and
staff information, and new staff and intern information. Health
Promotion provides seminars, classes and screenings on health and
wellness issues. This branch also coordinates an annual health fair for
all Senate employees and plans blood drives every year.
Training Classes
The Joint Office of Education and Training offered 838 classes and
events in 2008, drawing 11,366 participants. The registration desk
staff handled over 25,000 e-mail and phone requests for training and
documentation.
The Technical Training area conducted 270 classes with a total
attendance of 1,074 students. An additional 707 staff received coaching
in 247 sessions on various software packages and other computer-related
issues. Professional Development held 381 classes with a total
attendance of 3,795 students. The staff managed or assisted the staffs
of the Employee Assistance Program, the Sergeant at Arms Office of
Police Operations, Security and Emergency Preparedness, Disbursing
Office, and the Senate Select Committee on Ethics with 157 training
classes for 3,395 students.
The Joint Office of Education and Training works with teams on
issues related to team performance, communication, and conflict
resolution. During 2008, Professional Development fulfilled over 150
requests for special training and team building for 1,500 staff.
In the Health Promotion area, 2,865 staff participated in 25 health
promotion activities throughout the year. These activities included
lung function and kidney screenings, eight blood drives, the Health and
Fitness Day, seminars on health-related topics, and the annual Senate
Health Fair.
On an annual basis, the Joint Office of Education and Training
provides a Senate Service Expo for Senate office staff. Thirty-five
presenters from the offices of the Secretary of the Senate, the
Sergeant at Arms, the Architect of the Capitol, the Capitol Police and
the Library of Congress participated in this year's program.
State Training
Since most of the classes that are offered are only practical for
staff based in Washington, DC, the Joint Office of Education and
Training continues to offer the ``State Training Fair,'' which began in
March 2000. In 2008, two sessions of this program were attended by 79
state staff. In addition, 38 state administrative managers and
directors attended the State Directors Forum, and 60 state staff
participated in a Constituent Services Forum.
Education and Training has also implemented the ``Virtual
Classroom,'' an internet-based training library with more than 3,000
courses. To date, 412 state office and D.C. staff have registered and
accessed a total of 1,300 different lessons and publications using this
training option. Additionally, the office offered 37 video
teleconferencing classes, which were attended by over 500 state staff.
The Joint Office of Education and Training also provides 25 Senate-
specific self-paced lessons which have been accessed by approximately
1,000 staff.
GIFT SHOP
Since its establishment in October 1992 (2 U.S.C. 121d), the Senate
Gift Shop has continued to provide service and products that maintain
the integrity of the Senate while increasing the public's awareness of
its history. The Gift Shop serves Senators, their spouses, staffs,
constituents, and the many visitors to the U.S. Capitol complex.
The products available include a wide range of fine gift items,
collectibles, and souvenirs created exclusively for the U.S. Senate.
The services available include special ordering of personalized
products and hard-to-find items, custom framing including red-lines and
shadow boxes, gold embossing on leather, etching on glass and crystal,
engraving on a variety of materials, and shipping nationally and
abroad.
Facilities
In addition to three physical locations, the Gift Shop has an
online presence within Webster, the Senate's Intranet. The Web site
currently offers an increasing selection of products that can be
purchased by phone, e-mail, or by printing and faxing the order form
provided on the site. In addition to offering over-the-counter, walk-in
sales and limited Intranet services, the Gift Shop administrative
office provides mail order service via phone or fax, and special order
and catalogue sales via e-mail, phone, fax, and in person.
The Gift Shop maintains two warehouse facilities. The bulk of the
Gift Shop's stock is held in the Senate Storage Facility (SSF), an
offsite storage facility. While the Sergeant at Arms (SAA) of the
Senate is in charge of the overall management of the SSF, the Director
of the Gift Shop has responsibility for the operation and oversight of
the interior spaces assigned for Gift Shop use. Storing inventory in
this centralized, climate-controlled facility provides protection for
the Gift Shop's valuable inventory in terms of physical security as
well as improved shelf life for perishable and non-perishable items
alike.
The second Gift Shop warehouse is maintained in the Hart Building.
This facility serves as the point of distribution to the Gift Shop
store and the Capitol Gift Shop counter, both of which have limited
storage space. The Hart warehouse accommodates the Gift Shop's
receiving, shipping, and engraving departments, and also supplies the
inventory sold through the administrative and special order office.
Sales Activities
Sales recorded for fiscal year 2008 were $1,444,511.15. Cost of
goods sold during this same period was $1,006,176.13, accounting for a
gross profit on sales of $438,335.02.
In addition to tracking gross profit from sales, the Senate Gift
Shop maintains a revolving fund and a record of inventory purchased for
resale. As of October 1, 2008, the balance in the revolving fund was
$2,549,720.48. The inventory purchased for resale was valued at
$2,880,597.31.
Additional Activity
The Gift Shop performed major upgrades to both its back office and
point of sale computer systems during the 2008 fiscal year.
Last year, Congress passed the Consumer Product Safety Improvement
Act of 2008 (CPSIA). Additionally, in interpreting the law, the
Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) promulgated guidelines
concerning the CPSIA's limits on lead and ban on phthalates in
children's products, and certifications as required by law. The Gift
Shop continues its vigilance of this important issue by maintaining its
certification program in order to evaluate and monitor all products
sold in its stores. This will continue to be a part of its regular
business practice, especially as the Gift Shop considers the addition
of new product lines.
Selected Accomplishments in fiscal year 2008
Official Congressional Holiday Ornaments
2008 marked the 15th year of the Congressional Holiday ornament.
Each ornament in the 2006-2009 series of unique collectables depicts an
image celebrating the day-to-day activities taking place on the Capitol
grounds. The four images of the series are based on original oil
paintings commissioned by the Gift Shop.
Sales of the 2008 holiday ornament exceeded 29,000 ornaments, of
which more than 6,400 were personalized with engravings designed,
proofed, and etched by Gift Shop staff. This highly successful effort
was made possible by the combined efforts of the administrative,
engraving, and store staffs. Additional sales of this ornament and
ornaments from previous years are expected to continue for years to
come.
Capitol Bookend
The Capitol Bronze Doors Bookend is a remarkably detailed
recreation of the doors that were designed by Thomas Crawford and
William H. Rinehart and cast as a single piece by James T. Ames in
Chicopee, Massachusetts. The doors were installed in 1868. Marble
recovered during the renovations to the east front of the Capitol was
added to the building materials, making the piece truly unique.
Capitol Wooden Box
These new boxes were designed and created using the wood of trees
felled from the Capitol complex during the construction of the Capitol
Visitor Center. A selection of three different images, reproduced on
porcelain stone tiles and inlayed into the lids of the boxes is
available. Varieties of wooden pens were also created from the rescued
trees and have been made available as a regular product in the store.
Both the wooden boxes and the wooden pens include an insert card,
printed on recycled paper and in a soy-based ink, describing the
history of the recovered wood.
Projects Recently Produced/New Initiatives for 2009
Senate Photography Studio
In partnership with the Senate Photography Studio, the Gift Shop
will offer prints of original photos taken by Senate photographers.
These images will be made available for sale in the Gift Shop and be
offered in several sizes and formats. Professional matting and framing
will be available.
Senate Staff China
In late 2008 the Gift Shop received its first shipment of fine
china designed for Senators and Senate staff. This product,
manufactured by Pickard China, a manufacturer of fine china in
Illinois, depicts a pattern based on a Brumidi ceiling fresco. The
china pattern, ``Brumidi Rinceau,'' is available by special order and
may be personalized with the staffer's name or respective office on the
reverse. Cups and saucers, dinner plates, salad plates and assorted
serving pieces are available.
Wilton Armetale
As a complement to the Senate staff china, the Gift Shop has also
designed and produced a collection of metal service pieces with Wilton
Armetale Company of Columbia, Pennsylvania. The border design depicted
on these pieces is ``Brumidi Rinceau'' and, as with the china,
replicates the borders of a series of vignettes decorating the ceiling
of the Capitol's North Brumidi Corridor.
Senate Scarves
The Gift Shop has recently received new scarf designs depicting
various elements of Constantino Brumidi art. The ceiling of the Lyndon
Baines Johnson Room and other Brumidi corridor frescos are the
inspiration for this product. The Echo Design Group of New York is
providing the product.
United States Senate Shawls
Through an agreement with LR Paris Company in Washington, DC, the
Gift Shop has produced shawls in red, charcoal, brown and tan. These
shawls, a silk and wool blend, depict an artistic design element found
in the encaustic Minton tiles located in the Capitol just outside the
third floor entrance to the Senate gallery.
Senate Ties
New Senate ties have also been designed by LR Paris and are
available for sale. This product contains design elements found within
the Capitol and is produced in two styles and three color variations.
Musical Jewel Box
The Gift Shop, working with the Splendid Music Box Company of New
York, has completed the development of a Senate music box. The box,
which depicts a highly detailed image of the Capitol West Laylight,
recently became available for sale in the store. The laylight was
designed by the Philadelphia architect Thomas U. Walter and is located
in the ceilings of both of the grand staircases.
Brumidi Stemware
Working with Evergreen Crystal Company of Montrose, Colorado, the
Gift Shop developed and began selling a new style of crystal stemware.
Each glass in this set of four wine glasses depicts a different bird
taken from the frescoes in the Brumidi corridor.
Russell Centennial
The celebration of the Russell Building centennial in March 2009
presented the Gift Shop with an opportunity to work with the Office of
the Senate Curator for the purpose of creating commemorative gift items
appropriate for the occasion. The Gift Shop developed bookmarks,
jewelry and note cards to complement the celebratory activities that
took place.
HISTORICAL OFFICE
Serving as the Senate's institutional memory, the Historical Office
staff collects and provides information on important events,
precedents, dates, statistics, and historical comparisons of current
and past Senate activities for use by members and staff, the media,
scholars, and the general public. The staff advises Senators, officers,
and committees on cost-effective disposition of their non-current
office files, and assists researchers in identifying Senate-related
source materials. The historians keep extensive biographical,
bibliographical, photographic, and archival information on the more
than 1,900 former and current Senators. Historical Office staff edits
historically significant transcripts and minutes of selected Senate
committees and party organizations for publication, and conducts oral
history interviews with key Senate staff. The photo historian maintains
a collection of approximately 40,000 still pictures that includes
photographs and illustrations of Senate committees and most former
Senators. The office develops and maintains all historical material on
the Senate Web site, Senate.gov.
Editorial Projects
Pro Tem: Presidents Pro Tempore of the United States Senate
since 1789
To honor the important role played by the Senate's president pro
tempore (PPT) since 1789, the Historical Office published a 120-page
history of the office and its occupants in early 2008. A biographical
profile of each of the 87 individuals who have served in the office
highlights their PPT service along with their non-Senate careers,
includes commentary by contemporaries, historians, and biographers, and
presents a photographic likeness of the individual. Divided into four
chronological sections, the book includes contextual essays that
explain the evolution of the office, its changing duties and
responsibilities, its place in the line of presidential succession, and
the unique role played by these leaders in Senate history.
United States Senate Chamber, 1859-2009
This 25-page richly illustrated booklet commemorates the 150th
anniversary of the Senate Chamber. It highlights the Chamber's
construction, physical features and furnishings, and some of the
landmark events that have taken place there since 1859. Nearly 50 color
and black and white photographs and illustrations chronicle the
Chamber's history, from the first session held there during the 35th
Congress to the official photograph of the 110th Congress. United
States Senate Chamber, 1859-2009 was made available to Senators on
January 6, 2009, to mark the anniversary.
Russell Senate Office Building, The First Century
In preparation for the centennial of the Russell Senate Office
Building's March 5, 1909, opening, the Historical Office produced a 32-
page illustrated booklet highlighting the facility's design,
construction, and subsequent evolution. The Historical Office assisted
the Senate Curator, Architect of the Capitol, and Senate Library in
planning exhibits and a companion Web site, Senate.gov/RSOB.
``States in the Senate''
In this collaborative project, which will be featured on
Senate.gov, staff historians continued to research and write timelines
and selected illustrative images for each of the 50 states,
highlighting persons and events of the state's history that relate to
the U.S. Senate. This online project has now entered the design stage.
When complete, it will present an interactive timeline for each state,
with links to relevant documentary and visual material. It is designed
to inform Senators, staff, and constituents about their state's
historical role in the Senate.
Administrative History of the Senate
Throughout 2008, the assistant historian continued to research and
write this historical account of the Senate's administrative evolution.
This study traces the development of the offices of the Secretary of
the Senate and Sergeant at Arms, considers 19th and 20th century reform
efforts that resulted in reorganization and professionalization of
Senate staff, and looks at how the Senate's administrative structure
has grown and diversified.
Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies
In 2008, Historical Office staff assisted the Joint Congressional
Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies (JCCIC) with developing the inaugural
theme, and wrote and edited content for printed materials, including
the platform program, luncheon program, and the commemorative edition
of Inaugural Addresses of the Presidents of the United States.
Historical Office staff researched precedents and compiled historical
data on previous inaugurations in response to queries by the JCCIC, the
media, and the general public.
Rules of the United States Senate, Since 1789
In 1980, Senate Parliamentarian Emeritus Floyd M. Riddick, at the
direction of the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration, prepared
a publication containing the eight codes of rules that the Senate
adopted between 1789 and 1979. In the 1990s, the Senate Historical
Office, in consultation with Dr. Riddick, developed a project to
incorporate an important feature not contained in the 1980 publication.
Beyond simply listing the eight codes of rules, Rules of the United
States Senate, Since 1789 is to show how--and why--the Senate's current
rules have evolved from earlier versions. This work, to be completed
during 2009, will contain eight narrative chapters outlining key
debates and reasons for significant changes. Appendices will include
the original text of all standing rules and, for the first time in one
publication, all changes adopted between each codification.
Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress, 1774-present
Since publication of the 2005 print edition of The Biographical
Directory of the United States Congress, the historians have added new
biographical sketches and bibliographical citations that incorporate
recent scholarship to the work's online database (http://
bioguide.congress.gov). The assistant historian and historical writer
work closely with the staff of the House Office of History and
Preservation to maintain accuracy and consistency in the joint Senate-
House database, and to promote this valuable resource among historians,
teachers, students and the public. To enhance the online site, the
Historical Office currently is selecting printed obituaries for 19th
century Senators for inclusion in their online profile. Office staff
collected and scanned images of more than 100 obituaries from
historical newspaper databases and the Office's biographical files and
will build on this collection in the coming year.
Oral History Program
The Historical Office conducts a series of oral history interviews
to provide personal recollections of various Senate careers. Interviews
were completed with Keith Kennedy, former staff director of the Senate
Appropriations Committee, and with Mario D'Angelo, a Senate barber.
Other interviews are ongoing with former Senators Charles McC. Mathias
(R-MD) and Paul Laxalt (R-NV), Tim Profeta, former legislative
assistant to Senator Joseph Lieberman (ID-CT) and Robert B. Dove,
former parliamentarian. In addition, the office continued to seek and
conduct interviews with current and former Senate spouses. It also
expanded on its collection of interviews highlighting the role of women
on Capitol Hill, completing interviews with Virginia Saunders, a
congressional documents expert who has been employed at the Government
Printing Office since 1945. The complete transcripts of 26 interviews
conducted since the 1970s have been posted on Senate.gov. Each month,
that site features a different oral history interview series, including
digital audio clips along with the interview transcripts. Unum, the
Secretary of the Senate's newsletter, has also begun a regular series
entitled ``Senate Voices,'' which includes excerpts from the oral
histories.
Member Services
Members' Records Management and Disposition Assistance
The Senate archivist assisted members' offices with planning for
the preservation of their permanently valuable records, emphasizing the
importance of managing electronic records and transferring valuable
records to a home state repository with a digital asset management
system. Meetings continued with offices closing at the end of the 110th
Congress. The archivist revised the Handbook for Closing a Senator's
Office and the pamphlet, Senators' Papers: Management and Preservation
Guidelines.
To enhance communication within the Senate regarding archival
preservation, the archivist led brown-bag lunch discussions and
contributed to a listserv that promotes archival training for staff,
efficient records management, and historical records preservation. A
video seminar was developed for Senate state offices. The Senate
archivist continued to work with staff from all repositories receiving
senatorial collections to ensure adequacy of documentation and the
transfer of appropriate records with adequate finding aids. Advice on
access restrictions also was provided. The archivist conducted a
seminar on records management for Senate offices and participated in
the Sergeant at Arms' Senate Services Fair.
Committee Records Management and Disposition Assistance
The Senate archivist provided each Senate committee with staff
briefings, record surveys, guidance on preservation of information in
electronic systems, and instructions for the transfer of permanently
valuable records to the National Archives' Center for Legislative
Archives. During the fall, the archivist met with representatives of
nearly all committees to ascertain the status of their electronic
archiving. The archivist distributed information on best practices for
managing electronic records and encouraged committee chief clerks,
systems administrators, and chief counsels to consider hiring
professional archivists to focus on electronic archiving. As a result,
several committees have hired, or are in the process of hiring,
archival staff.
The Senate archivist oversaw the transfer to the National Archives
of 729 accessions of Senate records and provided numerous training
sessions to Senate interns tasked with archiving committee records. The
archivist and assistant archivist responded to approximately 197
requests for loans of records back to committees, totaling nearly 1,000
boxes. The archivist worked with the Foreign Relations Committee to
transfer classified transcripts to the National Archives. The archivist
worked with the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration and the
Senate Recording Studio to transfer televised recordings of committee
hearings to the National Archives. The archival assistant continued to
provide processing aid to committees and administrative offices in need
of basic help with noncurrent files. A project continues to scan
committee National Archives' transfer sheets dating from 1982 through
2004 into the OnBase document management system, which is supported by
the Sergeant at Arms. To date, records of the Committees on
Agriculture; Appropriations; Armed Services; Banking, Housing and Urban
Affairs; Budget; Energy and Natural Resources; Environment and Public
Works; Finance; Foreign Relations; Health, Education, Labor and
Pensions; and Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs have been
processed. This information is provided to the National Archives on
electronic media, both as a security measure and to enhance future
access as the records become open for research.
Educational Outreach
``Senate Historical Minutes''
The Senate historian continued a series of ``Senate Historical
Minutes,'' begun in 1997 at the request of the Senate Democratic
Leader. In 2008, he prepared and delivered a ``Senate Historical
Minute'' at 18 weekly Democratic Conference meetings. These 450 word
``Minutes'' enlighten members about significant events and
personalities associated with the Senate's institutional development.
More than 300 of them are available as a regularly expanded feature on
Senate.gov (``Historical Minute Essays''). An illustrated compilation
was published in 2006 as 200 Notable Days: Senate Stories, 1787-2002.
Senate.gov
Much of the Historical Office's correspondence with the general
public takes place through Senate.gov, which has become an
indispensable source for information about this institution. Office
staff maintain and frequently update the Web site with timely reference
and historical information. In 2008, the office responded to more than
1,400 inquiries from the general public, the news media, students,
family genealogists, congressional staffers, and academics, through the
public e-mail address provided on the site. The diverse nature of their
questions reflects varying levels of interest in Senate operations,
institutional history, and former members. Research assistance provided
by Historical Office staff was enhanced by the comprehensive scanning
of the office's subject files into the OnBase document management
system, allowing staff to search the full text of these files
electronically. Staff provided seminars on the general history of the
Senate, Senate committees, women Senators, Senate floor leadership,
relations between the press and the Senate, and the U.S. Constitution.
The historians also participated in Senate staff seminars and members'
office retreats, and conducted dozens of briefings for specially
scheduled groups.
Photographic Collections
The photo historian continued to ensure history-focused
photographic coverage of the contemporary Senate by photographing every
committee once each Congress, collecting formal photo portraits of new
Senators, and capturing significant Senate events in cooperation with
the Senate Photography Studio. The photo historian also enhanced the
office's publications on Senate presidents pro tempore, the Russell
Building's centennial, and the Senate Chamber's sesquicentennial by
selecting images to illustrate the respective texts, working closely
with the historical editor and the Government Printing Office to design
and publish these three volumes. As a member of the Russell Building
centennial planning committee, the photo historian helped create the
official centennial logo and bookmarks, in addition to the centennial
booklet, and worked closely with the National Archives staff to arrange
for the scanning of a large collection of early 20th century historical
photographs donated to the office, thus adding hundreds of rare images
to the collection.
The photo historian assisted with several presidential inaugural
projects, including the selection of images for the commemorative
inaugural luncheon book. The photo historian also transferred more than
40,000 photographic negatives of Senators to their appropriate archival
repositories. These negatives had been languishing at a Senate storage
site for decades. With the assistance of the archival assistant, the
photo historian arranged for the transfer of 63 historic Capitol Police
record books to the National Archives.
The photo historian also maintained the office's continuity of
operations (COOP) plan, updated the backup copies of the office's vital
electronic records, and prepared the office's remote access test plan
which will enable staff members to fulfill their vital functions from
an off-site location.
Advisory Committee on the Records of Congress
This 11-member permanent committee, established in 1990 by Public
Law 101-509, meets semiannually to advise the Senate, the House of
Representatives, and the Archivist of the United States on the
management and preservation of the records of Congress. Its membership
representing the Senate includes the Secretary of the Senate, who
chaired the panel during the 110th Congress; the Senate historian; and
appointees of the secretary and the majority and minority leaders. The
Historical Office provides support services for the advisory
committee's regular meetings.
Capitol Visitor Center
Staff historians continued to provide information and guidance to
Capitol Visitor Center staff on matters related to the educational
component of the exhibition gallery. The historians participated in
multiple planning sessions for a new training program for staff-led
tours. Beginning in October, they have made regular presentations on
the history of the Senate in both 2-day and 1-day training seminars for
Senate staff and interns. They have also assisted in the training of
visitor assistants who guide visitors through the Capitol and
exhibition gallery.
HUMAN RESOURCES
The Office of Human Resources was established in June 1995 by the
Secretary as a result of the Congressional Accountability Act. The
office focuses on developing and implementing human resources policies,
procedures, and programs for the Office of the Secretary of the Senate
that fulfill the legal requirements of the workplace and complement the
organization's strategic goals and values.
These responsibilities include recruiting and staffing; providing
guidance and advice to managers and staff; training; performance
management; job analysis; compensation planning, design, and
administration; leave administration; records management; maintaining
the employee handbooks and manuals; internal grievance procedures;
employee relations and services; and organizational planning and
development.
The Human Resources staff administers the following programs for
the Secretary's employees: the Public Transportation Subsidy program,
Student Loan Repayment Program, parking allocations, and the summer
intern program that offers college and other post-graduate students the
opportunity to gain valuable skills and experience in a variety of
Senate support offices. Human Resources has completed migration of
eligible commuters to the Smart Benefits Program, which is operated by
the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority.
Recruitment and Retention of Staff
Human Resources staff have the ongoing task of advertising new
vacancies or positions, screening applicants, interviewing candidates,
and assisting with all phases of the hiring process. Human Resources
staff coordinate with the Sergeant at Arms (SAA) Human Resources
Department to post all SAA and Secretary vacancies on the Senate
intranet, Webster, so that the larger Senate community may access the
posting from their own offices. In an effort to reach a larger and more
diverse applicant pool, the department uses multiple posting forums to
reach potential applicants for employment. As a result, the Human
Resources Department processed more than 2,500 applications for
vacancies in the Secretary's Office, including review of applications,
coordinating scheduling of candidates for interview, sending out
notices to both successful and unsuccessful candidates, and finalizing
new hire paperwork.
Training
In conjunction with the Senate Chief Counsel for Employment, staff
continues to develop and deliver training for department heads and
staff. Training topics include sexual harassment, interviewing skills,
Family Medical Leave Act administration, and an overview of the
Congressional Accountability Act.
Interns and Fellows
Human Resources staff manages the Secretary's internship program
and the coordination of the Heinz Fellowship program. From posting
vacancies, conducting needs analyses, communicating, screening, placing
and following up with all interns, the office keeps a close connection
with these program participants in an effort to make the internship
most beneficial to them and the organization.
Combined Federal Campaign
The office has again taken an active role in the Combined Federal
Campaign (CFC) for the Senate community at-large. The office staff
serve as co-directors of the program. The staff participates in kick-
off meetings, identifies key workers in each office, and disseminates
and collects necessary information and paperwork.
INFORMATION SYSTEMS
The staff of the Department of Information Systems provides
technical hardware and software support for the Office of the Secretary
of the Senate. Information Systems staff also interface closely with
the application and network development groups within the Sergeant at
Arms (SAA), the Government Printing Office (GPO), and outside vendors
on technical issues and joint projects. The department provides
computer-related support for all location area network (LAN) servers
within the Office of the Secretary of the Senate. Information Systems
staff provide direct application support for all software installed
workstations, initiate and guide new technologies, and implement next
generation hardware and software solutions.
Mission Evaluation
The primary mission of the Information Systems Department is to
continue to provide the highest level of customer satisfaction and
computer support for the Office of Secretary of the Senate. Emphasis is
placed on creating and transferring legislative records to outside
departments and agencies, fulfilling Disbursing Office financial
responsibilities to the member offices, and complying with office
mandated and statutory obligations.
Fiscal Year 2008 Technology Summary
--Successfully migrated all departments to the Senate-wide Active
Directory/Messaging Architecture (ADMA) and upgraded Mail
Server architecture in fiscal year 2008.
--Completed fifteen major Legislative Information System (LIS)
software upgrades and installed LIS application software in the
legislative clerk offices, Senate Library, alternate computing
facility, and offsite staff laptop locations.
--Completed phase two of the Gift Shop and Stationery Room project,
which involved updating all server and workstations for each
department.
--Completed installation testing of Disbursing backup servers at the
Alternate Computer Facility (ACF).
--Upgraded all handheld mobile device hardware (Blackberry) for
essential staff. All staff now can use the devices as modems to
access the Senate network if required.
--Completed installation of a development SharePoint Server for the
Office of Senate Security allowing continuity of operations
(COOP) related documents to be readily available through a web-
based secure network connection.
--Participated and provided direct technical support for all COOP
exercises in 2008. The most notable exercises included the
National Level Exercise and Alternate Chamber Exercise in May
2008, and department pandemic testing exercises conducted in
third and fourth quarters of 2008.
--Deployed the Government Printing Office public key infrastructure
(PKI) software for successful transmission of the 2008 and 2009
White House budget. Information System staff ``virtualized''
the software installation for the deputy chief of staff
avoiding the purchase of an additional workstation, thus
allowing any workstation to accommodate the transfer of the
digital certificate document.
--Reduced space and power consumption by updating printer operations
in 19 departments with multi-functional scanner/copier/fax
devices. Using all-in-one devices to perform multiple tasks
reduces energy, hardware costs, and long term hardware support
costs.
--Installed virtualized server architecture for the LIS Information
Project Office.
--Augmented the Bill Clerk Amendment Tracking System (ATS) process to
continue to process submitted amendments in the event that
network scanning is not available. This ensures that submitted
and proposed amendments continue to reach the ATS Web server
site for Senate distribution.
--Purchased and installed server hardware and network configuration
in support of the Senate Library taxonomy project.
--Relocated the departmental operations for the offices of Senate
Security and Captioning Services from the Capitol building to
the Capitol Visitor Center expansion space.
--Redesigned and enhanced the operation of member accountability
application used during COOP exercises by implementing a
virtualized desktop process to run the application.
Standardized the application and provided to both Democratic
and Republican Cloakroom staff. Added this process to ensure
high availability by installing on an ``always-on'' secure
hardware platform at the ACF.
--Finalized the Living Disaster Recovery Planning System (LDRPS) in
fiscal year 2008. Initial user training began in February 2009.
--Upgraded workstation hardware and software operations in the
Executive Office of the Secretary and the Office of Senate
Security.
--Upgraded Microsoft Office Software applications, Adobe Acrobat
software, and web browser operations in fifteen Secretary
departments. Timeframe to complete legislative offices will
coincide with updated SAA LIS application support in the second
quarter of 2009.
--Initiated Parliamentarian indexing software project to migrate
operation to a new hardware platform. End results will allow a
virtualized environment to index precedent information without
a specific laptop or personal computer hardware vendor
requirement. Estimated completion is the second quarter of
2009.
In 2007, forty five e-mail security alerts were issued from the SAA
Security Operations Center alerting Secretary staff of a possible virus
or malicious code installed on their staff workstations. Information
Services staff ``clean'' each compromised workstation. This process can
take up to three hours to correct the possible problem. In 2008, this
number was reduced by 50 percent.
--Upgraded to Microsoft Office 2007 Groove collaboration software in
the offices of Information Systems, Senate Security, Senate
Library, Web Technology, Historian, and the Executive office.
This application continues to provide critical information to
dispersed staff members who might be offsite or relocated out
of the office. Streamlined application deployment by utilizing
an improved web management console to install the application
remotely.
--Update the People Trak database operation in the department of
Human Resources to allow staff to enter time and attendance
sheet records via the Secretary Intranet web portal. Project
implementation to be determined by HR Director.
Ongoing and Future Projects
--Extend Member Status application support to both cloakroom staff
during a COOP event
--In collaboration with the Office of Legislative Counsel, design a
``Virtual Desktop Infrastructure'' (VDI) allowing staff to
access desktop applications in a secure manner. VDI reduces the
cost in purchasing new computers, centralizes the software
management in the ACF data center, provides a reduction in
electricity costs, and provides fewer application compatibility
problems associated with multiple applications.
INTERPARLIAMENTARY SERVICES
The Office of Interparliamentary Services (IPS) has completed its
27th year of operation as a department of the Secretary of the Senate.
IPS is responsible for administrative, financial, and protocol
functions for all interparliamentary conferences in which the Senate
participates by statute, for interparliamentary conferences in which
the Senate participates on an ad hoc basis, and for special delegations
authorized by the Majority and Minority Leaders. The office also
provides appropriate assistance as requested by other Senate
delegations.
The statutory interparliamentary conferences are:
--NATO Parliamentary Assembly
--Mexico-United States Interparliamentary Group
--Canada-United States Interparliamentary Group
--British-American Interparliamentary Group
--United States-Russia Interparliamentary Group
--United States-China Interparliamentary Group
--United States-Japan Interparliamentary Group
In May, the 49th Annual Meeting of the Canada-U.S.
Interparliamentary Group was held in New Mexico. In June, the first
meeting of the United States-Japan Interparliamentary Group meeting was
held in Washington, DC. In July, the United States-Russia
Interparliamentary Group meeting was also held in Washington, DC. IPS
staff handled arrangements for these successful events.
As in previous years, all foreign travel authorized by the Majority
and Minority Leaders is arranged by the IPS staff. In addition to
delegation trips, the staff provided assistance to individual Senators
and staff traveling overseas. Senators and staff authorized by
committees for foreign travel continue to call upon this office for
assistance with passports, visas, travel arrangements, and reporting
requirements.
IPS receives and prepares for printing the quarterly financial
reports for foreign travel from all committees in the Senate. In
addition to preparing the quarterly reports for the Majority Leader and
the Minority Leader, IPS assists staff members of Senators and
committees in completing the required reports.
IPS maintains regular contact with the Department of State and
foreign embassy officials. The office staff frequently organizes visits
for official foreign visitors and assists them in setting up meetings
with leadership offices and tours. The staff continues to work closely
with other offices of the Secretary of the Senate and the Sergeant at
Arms in arranging programs for foreign visitors. In addition, IPS is
frequently consulted by individual Senate offices on a broad range of
protocol questions. Occasional questions come from state officials or
the general public regarding Congressional protocol.
On behalf of the Majority and Minority Leaders, the staff arranges
receptions in the Senate for heads of state, heads of government, heads
of parliaments, and parliamentary delegations. Required records of
expenditures on behalf of foreign visitors under authority of Public
Law 100-71 are maintained in IPS.
Planning is underway for the 48th Annual Meeting of the Mexico-U.S.
Interparliamentary Group which will be held in the United States in
2009. Preparations are also underway for the 2009 British-American
Parliamentary Group meeting and the spring and fall sessions of the
NATO Parliamentary Assembly. IPS will also undertake advance work,
including site inspection, for the Canada-U.S. Interparliamentary Group
conference to be held in the United States in 2010.
LEGISLATIVE INFORMATION SYSTEM (LIS) PROJECT
The Legislative Information System (LIS) is a mandated system
(Section 8 of the 1997 Legislative Branch Appropriations Act, 2 U.S.C.
123(e)) that provides desktop access to the content and status of
legislative information and supporting documents. The 1997 Legislative
Branch Appropriations Act (2 U.S.C. 181) also established a program for
providing the widest possible exchange of information among legislative
branch agencies. The long-range goal of the LIS Project is to provide a
``comprehensive Senate Legislative Information System'' to capture,
store, manage, and distribute Senate documents. Several components of
the LIS have been implemented, and the project is currently focused on
the transition to and implementation of a standard system for the
authoring and exchange of legislative documents, which will greatly
enhance the availability and re-use of legislative documents within the
Senate and with other legislative branch agencies. The LIS Project
Office manages the project.
Background: LISAP
In April 1997, a joint Senate and House report recommended the
establishment of a data standards program. In December 2000, the Senate
Committee on Rules and Administration and the Committee on House
Administration jointly accepted the Extensible Markup Language (XML) as
the primary data standard to be used for the exchange of legislative
documents and information. Following the implementation of the LIS in
January 2000, the LIS Project staff shifted their focus to the data
standards program and established the LIS Augmentation Project (LISAP).
The over-arching goal of the LISAP is to provide a Senate-wide
transition to and implementation of XML for the authoring and exchange
of legislative documents.
The current focus for the LISAP is the development and
implementation of an XML authoring system for legislative documents
produced by the Senate Legislative Counsel (SLC) and the Enrolling
Clerk. The XML authoring application is called LEXA, an acronym for the
Legislative Editing in XML Application. LEXA replaces the DOS-based
XyWrite software used by drafters to embed locator codes into
legislative documents for printing. The XML tags inserted by LEXA
provide more information about the document and can be used for
printing, searching, and displaying a document. LEXA features many
automated functions that provide a more efficient and consistent
document authoring process. The LIS Project staff has worked very
closely with the SLC and the Enrolling Clerk to create an application
that meets the needs of legislative drafting.
LISAP: 2008
Early in 2008, the Senate and House deployed a module developed by
the Government Printing Office (GPO) for creating, editing, and
printing tables in an XML document. This new table tool improves the
process and provides another module that is common to LEXA and the
House application.
Also in the first quarter of 2008, Senate, House, and GPO software
developers each upgraded their respective installations of the
Microsoft.Net framework. This upgrade allowed GPO to substantially
decrease the time it takes to compose large documents for printing. The
printing component is developed and maintained by GPO and is common to
both the Senate and House applications.
Throughout 2008 the SLC used LEXA to create 99 percent of measures
drafted. The SLC provided valuable feedback on new features and
required fixes to the software. The Senate Enrolling Clerks also used
LEXA for the bulk of their production of engrossed bills and amendments
and enrolled measures.
The production staff of the Appropriations Committee used LEXA to
convert XML documents to locator when needed, and provided their
requirements regarding using LEXA to draft appropriations committee
prints and bills in XML. The production staff will begin using LEXA in
2009 to prepare the bills for fiscal year 2010. The LIS Project Office
participated in meetings with the House, GPO, Appropriations, and the
Office of Management and Budget to work toward exchanging and round-
tripping, or transferring back and forth, XML data among the various
entities.
Support for LEXA users remains an important concern. The LIS
Project Office provides support for LEXA through the LEXA HelpLine and
LEXA Web site. The Web site (http://legbranch.senate.gov/lis/lexa) is
also used to distribute updates of the application to GPO and provide
access to release notes, the reference manual, and other user aids. The
2004 legislative branch appropriations act directed GPO to provide
support for LEXA much as they have for XyWrite. GPO continues to work
toward augmenting the support provided by the LIS Project Office.
GPO maintains and supports the printing and table tool software,
and they also develop and maintain the stylesheet that is used on LIS
(http://www.congress.gov) and Thomas (http://thomas.loc.gov) to display
the XML bills. The LIS Project Office worked with the House and GPO in
2008 to resolve any remaining XML tagging issues and HTML display
issues so that the XML versions of Senate measures will be made
available on LIS and Thomas starting with the 111th Congress. The HTML
version produced from the XML data more closely resembles the printed
document. This improved HTML format will eventually replace the HTML
version currently available on the Web.
LISAP: 2009
The LIS Project Office will continue to work with the SLC and the
Enrolling Clerk to refine and enhance LEXA so that all of the
legislative measures produced by those offices will be done in XML. The
office will also support the Appropriations Committee production staff
as they begin producing appropriations bills in XML. The LIS Project
staff will monitor the use of the tagging structures created for
appropriations language to determine if they provide a sufficiently
complete description so that appropriations bills can be created as XML
documents. XML tags and LEXA functions will be added as needed to
create the appropriations bills using LEXA. The LIS Project Office will
also continue to participate in the project to exchange and round-trip
budget and appropriations data in XML.
The LIS Project Office will continue to work with the House, GPO,
and the Library of Congress on projects and issues that impact the
legislative process and data standards for exchange. These groups are
currently participating in two projects with GPO--one to define
requirements for replacing the Microcomp composition software and
another to improve the content submission and exchange processes. Both
the Senate and House will need to test and implement Vista-compatible
versions of the XML applications.
The legislative process yields other types of documents, such as
the Senate and Executive Journals and the Legislative and Executive
Calendars. Much of the data and information included in these documents
is already captured in and distributed through the LIS/DMS database
used by the clerks in the office of the Secretary. The LIS/DMS captures
data that relates to legislation including bill and resolution numbers,
amendment numbers, sponsors, co-sponsors, and committees of referral.
This information is currently entered into the database, verified by
the clerks, keyed into the respective documents, and re-verified at GPO
before printing. An interface between this database and the electronic
documents could exchange data mutually. For example, the LIS/DMS
database could insert the bill number, additional co-sponsors, and
committee of referral into an introduced bill, while the bill draft
document could supply the official and short titles of the bill to the
database.
The Congressional Record, like the journals and calendars, includes
data that is contained in and reported by the LIS/DMS database.
Preliminary document type definitions have been designed for these
documents, and applications could be built to construct XML document
components by extracting and tagging the LIS/DMS data. These
applications would provide a faster, more consistent assembly of these
documents, and would enhance the ability to index and search their
contents. The LIS Project staff will coordinate with the Systems
Development Services Branch of the Sergeant at Arms to begin design and
development of XML applications and interfaces for the LIS/DMS and
legislative documents. As more and more legislative data and documents
are provided in XML formats that use common elements across all
document types, the Library of Congress will be able to expand the LIS
Retrieval System to provide more content-specific searches.
LIBRARY
The Senate Library provides legislative, legal, business, and
general information services to the United States Senate. The library's
collection encompasses legislative documents that date from the
Continental Congress in 1774; current and historic executive and
judicial branch materials; an extensive book collection on American
politics, history, and biography; a popular collection of audio books;
and a wide array of online resources. The library also authors content
for three Web sites--LIS.gov, Senate.gov, and Webster, the Senate's
intranet.
The year 2008 brought much change to the Senate Library, with the
retirement in February of the prior Senate Librarian, Greg Harness, and
the arrival of Mary Cornaby, the first woman to serve as Senate
Librarian, in April. Other changes included adoption of a new audio
books program to help meet the needs of visually challenged patrons,
increased statistical benchmarking, and increased focus on instruction
and outreach. The Library's expanded use of Web technology, online
resources, and electronic mail requests continues to meet the Senate's
increasing demand for information.
Notable Achievements
Rollout of the new version of the Webster intranet in October 2008
included extensive Library staff participation on taxonomy, indices,
and content development, improving Web information delivery,
functionality, and stability.
The Senate Library increased its service statistics this year,
serving every Senator's office and all Senate committees. The Library
showed a 69 percent increase in the number of requests handled,
including Web-based inquiries, from 2007.
Focus on new and more frequent Library instructional classes
resulted in a 23 percent increase in Library instructional offerings in
2008.
The new audio books program, which assists in serving patrons with
diverse needs, proved wildly successful at bringing Senators and staff
into the Library. All titles are checked out, and many have a waiting
list.
Partially as a result of the success of the audio books program,
2008 saw a 73 percent increase in online book requests.
An effective book stack rearrangement program will delay the need
for new book stack space in the Russell Building for 10 years.
An emphasis on careful negotiation or renegotiation of vendor
contracts and purchases has already saved over $352,000 in database
expenses over the next 4 years.
An effort to register new library users included a 37 percent
increase in staff accounts, a 560 percent increase in intern accounts,
and a 155 percent increase in Senate page accounts.
Senate Library Inquiries, Online Book Requests, and Patron Accounts
The rise in electronic requests for materials, the availability of
new and enhanced electronic database offerings, and the expanded
availability of resources on the Web, combined with efficient content
management, have all increased Library inquiries dramatically. Prior to
the availability of Web-based information, Library inquiries totaled
46,368. Inquiries for 2008 totaled approximately 2.5 million.
SENATE LIBRARY INQUIRIES
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Web Increase
--------------------------------------- From Prior
Year Traditional Total Year (in
Webster LIS Senate.gov percent)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2008.............................. 27,283 37,940 29,468 2,429,380 2,524,071 +69
2007.............................. 26,309 31,065 32,121 1,392,947 1,491,442 -8
2006.............................. 31,032 15,478 20,156 1,561,138 1,627,804 +90
2005.............................. 33,080 13,713 26,775 782,588 856,156 +35
2004.............................. 33,750 ( \1\ ) 20,749 581,487 635,986 +61
2003.............................. 46,234 ( \1\ ) 18,871 329,327 394,432 \2\ +751
2002.............................. 40,359 ( \1\ ) 6,009 ( \1\ ) 46,368 ( \3\ )
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ NA.
\2\ Web inquiry statistics, first available in 2003, increased the total from the previous year by 751 percent.
\3\ Baseline.
A 73 percent increase in online book requests for 2008 can be
attributed not only to the successful advertising campaign for audio
books, but also to the direct link between titles in the new books list
and the catalog record containing the link to the online request form.
Of the 1,432 library patrons currently registered to borrow
materials, the breakdown by entity is as follows:
In 2008, a drive to create library and computer accounts for
interns, working through office managers as the responsible party,
combined with high visibility of the new audio books program, resulted
in higher public recognition of the Library, expansion of its client
base, and direct contact with all committee and Senators' offices. The
result was a 560 percent increase in intern accounts, and a 37 percent
increase in staff accounts. Efforts to assist Senate Page School
teachers with tours, a reserve collection, and reference assistance
resulted in a 155 percent increase in page account registrations.
Senate Knowledge Base
Projects to publish authoritative, standardized Senate data sources
for multipurpose use continue to be a Library priority. Such projects
ensure the accurate and timely dissemination of Senate information. The
Senate knowledge base is an institutional repository for data to
support these projects: the newly-modernized Webster site, the Senate
Library site on Webster, and a senator biography database.
Webster Modernization
A greatly enhanced version of Webster (webster.senate.gov), the
Senate's intranet, was launched in September. The launch was a
culmination of a multi-year collaborative effort of Webster's four
stakeholders--the Secretary of the Senate, the Sergeant at Arms, the
Senate Chaplain, and the Committee on Rules and Administration. The
Senate Library and the Web Technology department represent the
Secretary on the Webster Advisory Group (WAG), which oversees site
management.
Since its debut in 1995, Webster has been the most-visited site for
Senate staff seeking information about internal operations, support
services, and employee benefits. The large-scale redesign initiative,
launched last fall by the WAG, was intended to help staff easily
navigate the ever-expanding volume of online information and to locate
the resources staff need to do their jobs.
Usage statistics for the five taxonomy-based indexes total 276,129
for 3 months, indicating that this new resource is well-used by staff.
WEBSTER TAXONOMY USAGE STATISTICS, OCT-DEC 2008
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Taxonomy Usage
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Services................................................... 81,376
Leadership................................................. 27,896
Legislative................................................ 55,655
News & Research............................................ 55,574
About the Senate........................................... 55,628
------------
Total Taxonomy Usage................................. 276,129
------------------------------------------------------------------------
The improved Webster-enterprise search functionality is popular
with staff; there have been 30,114 searches since the redesign
launched. Library staff help improve search results by analyzing
monthly statistics and matching popular search terms with pages. During
the new site's first 3 months, 315 ``keymatches'' were established. To
date, 845 document records and 1,120 term records in the Senate
knowledge base are supporting the Webster search and taxonomy projects
Floor Schedule
Repurposing of authoritative, standardized and timely Senate floor
schedule data expanded this year, helping to make Senate operations
more efficient. Floor schedule information is the key component of the
new Senate intranet and is being used to keep Capitol Visitor Center
information kiosks up-to-date. Plans to distribute floor schedule data
in a format that can be displayed on Senate BlackBerry devices are in
the exploration phase. Floor schedule data are published in XML by the
Library after each Senate meeting adjourns.
Senate Library Webster Site
Management of the Senate Library Webster site was transitioned to a
content management system (CMS) in December, significantly improving
efficiencies in publishing and editing timely information for Senate
staff. CMS-published data can also be repurposed for Senate.gov,
further economizing staff time and labor. The Senate Library site on
Webster is a research service and information portal for Senate staff.
The Library's site design team began redesign of the user interface of
the site in December and is expected to finish in 2009. The team
continues to identify technology tools that will make delivery services
and information to Senate staff more timely and efficient.
Senator Biography Database
The Senate knowledge base currently contains biographical data
records for the more than 1,900 people who have served as Senators.
Increased uploading of data records and a refinement/redesign of the
knowledge base for this purpose will continue in 2009.
Instruction and Professional Outreach
In order to target the needs of Senate staff, the Library now
offers two new classes in addition to a renamed class (Beyond Google).
Increasing the number of sessions taught allowed the librarians to
teach to smaller groups, increasing interaction and retention.
SENATE LIBRARY CLASSES
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subject Students Classes
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Insider's Guide to Webster........................ 10 5
LIS Savvy......................................... 190 32
Research Tips and Tricks.......................... 103 15
Beyond Google..................................... 20 4
Services of the Senate Library and Got Questions 459 20
Tours............................................
---------------------
Totals...................................... 782 76
------------------------------------------------------------------------
The number of classes taught and the number of sessions taught
rose; specifically, there was a 23 percent increase in 2008 in Library
educational offerings and a slight increase (2 percent) in Senate staff
trained in 2008.
SENATE LIBRARY CLASSES BY CALENDAR YEAR
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Increase Increase
Attendees From Prior Classes From Prior
Year Total Year (in Total Year (in
percent) percent)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2008........................................................ 782 2 79 23
2007........................................................ 770 49 64 7
2006........................................................ 518 25 60 114
2005........................................................ 416 ( \1\ ) 28 ( \1\ )
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Baseline.
In addition, the Library staff gave tours of the Senate Library to
Senate groups and to outside library professionals. These tours ranged
from an introduction to each semester's Senate Page School class to
hosting parliamentary librarians from Germany and the Netherlands. The
Library also participated in the Senate Services Fair and in giving
tours for National Library Week. The Library continued its
participation in the Federal Library Institute, which introduces
interested library school graduate students to federal libraries,
resources, and career opportunities.
Collection Development
Audio Books Program
The Library's Acquisitions Committee and the Technical Services
Department worked collaboratively to create and maintain a new service
to the Senate Community in the Library's adoption of an audio books
lending program. Designed to assist users with diverse needs, including
those who may be visually challenged, as well as to draw patrons into
the library, the program proved popular in its first year. Of the 55
titles acquired in 2008, most were checked out multiple times, with
audio book titles accounting for 50 percent of the holds on the wait
list, even though they account for less than one percent of the
collection.
New Digital Resources
The Library provides a number of digital resources to the Senate.
In an effort to reduce purchase and subscription costs, the Library
acquired, with considerable negotiation, the U.S. Congressional
Retrospective Hearings from Lexis-Nexis and the Gale Nineteenth Century
Newspapers database. The Library also negotiated a reduced price
subscription to the Oxford English Dictionary, for a total savings of
$352,000 over the next 4 years. These resources provide staff with
desktop access to two centuries of important legislative documents. In
addition, the Gale e-book Countries of the World and, after many
committee staff requests, the journal Health Affairs, are also
available to the Senate community.
Expansion of Special Collections
Summer interns reviewed and collated all versions of every House
and Senate bill and resolution from the 109th Congress. The project
resulted in the addition of 188 new bill volumes to the collection and
identification and mounting of missing full-text documents on GPO
Access for use in LIS and Thomas.
As a participant in the Government Printing Office's (GPO) Federal
Depository Library Program (FDLP), the Library receives selected
categories of legislative, executive, and judicial branch publications.
The Library received 11,231 government publications in 2008, the
majority of which were received through the FDLP. In response to the
trend of issuing government documents in electronic format, 3,184 links
were added to the library catalog, bringing the total to more than
25,976. The links provide Senate staff with desktop access to the full-
text of each document.
Library staff scanned and created archival print and digital copies
of Senate Rules for the years 1820, 1849, 1877, 1882, and 1890. These
were cataloged and bound for the Library's permanent collection with
links to the digital copies.
ACQUISITIONS
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Category Total
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Congressional Documents.................................... 8,234
Executive Branch Publications.............................. 2,997
Books...................................................... 901
Electronic Links........................................... 3,184
------------
Total Acquisitions................................... 15,316
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cataloging
The Library's cataloging staff draws on years of experience to
produce and maintain a catalog of more than 200,000 bibliographic
items. During 2008, 7,596 new titles were added to the catalog, a 14
percent increase in cataloging over the prior year. The catalog is
updated nightly to ensure that Senate staff will retrieve accurate and
current information on Library holdings. The addition of book jacket
images for the new titles enhanced visual appeal and utility.
A project to review nomination hearings from the 103rd-105th
Congress in order to enhance existing catalog records with the addition
of name subject headings for all nominees was completed.
Catalogers created 633 bibliographic records for Senate hearings
not yet printed from information in the Congressional Record Daily
Digest and the combined hearings schedule on Webster. These records
remain in the catalog until the printed hearing is received and
cataloged.
General topical retrieval for the audio book collection was
enhanced with the addition of genre headings, including biographical
fiction, legal stories, historical fiction, mystery fiction, political
fiction, and war stories. These headings were also retrospectively
applied to catalog records for titles in the print fiction collection.
Catalogers also completed a project to improve the information
organization, access, and retrieval of library material regarding the
offices under the Secretary of the Senate and the Sergeant at Arms.
Catalogers created and implemented specific classification schemes
based upon Library of Congress (LC) classification schedules, creating
specific classification numbers for each of the distinct offices. The
need for greater specificity in classification reflects the depth of
the library's collection, which was unanticipated by LC classification.
Library Automation
Support was provided to the Senate knowledge base project by
working with the Secretary of the Senate Information Systems office to
configure and install a server for the software underlying the
knowledge base. The Library's Head of Technical Services worked with
the system vendor and the Office of Web Technology to install and test
the database server, update database files, edit Web files, and test
the data transfer function to the content management system and
Webster.
The Library assumed management of a proxy server to manage computer
accounts for the library patron computer workstations from the
Secretary of the Senate Office of Information Systems. Local management
of the accounts allows the Library to maintain the information more
efficiently.
Preservation, Binding and Collection Maintenance
Technical Services staff and summer interns boxed a large portion
of the library's books collection for transfer to the Library's space
at the Senate Support Facility (SSF), as well as reshelving material in
climate-controlled storage. Once additional shifting is completed, this
effort will yield 10 years of growth storage space in the Russell
Building book stacks.
Discovery of a mold bloom in the Library's book stacks, a flood
from a malfunctioning HVAC pump, and two substantial leaks from
overhead plumbing all highlighted the vulnerability of the Library's
collections in the Russell Building. The Technical Services staff and
the AOC provided a quick response in working together to balance
existing environmental monitoring systems. The AOC also made
modifications to the HVAC system to regulate temperature and relative
humidity in the book stacks.
Technical Services staff continued to participate in book repair
training sessions led by the Director of the Office of Conservation and
Preservation. Trainees repaired 153 historic volumes, an increase of
425 percent from 2007, making significant progress in the preservation
of the Library's bound book collection.
An archival flat file map storage cabinet was purchased for
installation at the SSF. As a result, for the first time, the Library
can preserve and store properly flat maps from the United States
Congressional Serial Set.
Budget
In addition to the substantial savings in the purchasing of new
databases, budget savings from cancellation of subscriptions in 2008
totaled $4,225; and, after 11 years of budget monitoring, the amount of
total savings is $81,076.86. This continual review of purchases
eliminates materials that do not meet the Senate's current information
needs. This oversight is also critical in offsetting cost increases for
core materials and in acquiring new materials.
Special Projects
Unum, Newsletter of the Office of the Secretary of the
Senate
Unum, the Secretary's quarterly newsletter, has been produced by
Senate Library staff since October 1997. It serves as an historical
record of accomplishments, events, and personnel in the Office of the
Secretary of the Senate. The newsletter is distributed throughout the
Senate, and to former staff and Senators. Highlights from the 2008 Unum
issues include articles on the greening of Secretary's offices and
emergency preparedness; new online resources such as the Chicago Manual
of Style and the revamped Webster Web site; new publications produced
by Secretary offices, such as the President Pro Tem book by the
Historical Office; annotated bibliographies of books and audio books in
the Senate Library; leadership portrait unveilings; and reaccreditation
of the Page School.
Exhibitions
In November 2008, the Library created an imaginative display on
presidential campaigns, including books, campaign buttons from past
presidential campaigns, and a multimedia PowerPoint presentation of
photographs, drawings, and new articles from past campaigns.
National Library Week
The National Library Week events were well-attended, with 205
people attending the opening dessert reception, nearly doubling the
prior year's participation. The talk by James L. Swanson on his book,
Manhunt, drew 125 attendees, the largest group ever.
Cooperative Projects
Library staff completed a pilot project to enter House and Senate
report titles for the 110th Congress into the Library of Congress's LIS
system. This project, begun in July 2008 at the request of LIS staff,
contributed 361 report titles to the database. This project will be
continued for the 111th Congress.
Working in cooperation with the Senate Historical Office and the
Curator's office, Library staff digitized 221 Senate seating charts to
enhance historical information about the Senate chamber on Senate.gov,
the Senate's public Web site.
Library staff worked with LIS staff to test modifications to the
data management system (DMS) for the entry of multi-part hearing
numbers. The update was intended to standardize the treatment of part
numbers and to provide better automated URL link matching.
In 2008, Library staff made significant contributions to the
celebration planned for the Russell Building Centennial in 2009. Work
has been completed in logo design and bookmark design, and significant
progress has been made on the Library's four display cases.
Informational displays are planned to highlight the Caucus Room, the
Russell building's architectural features, a historical chronology of
events that have taken place in the building, and a look back at office
life in the oldest Senate Office Building. There was also a special
issue of Unum to celebrate the Russell Building's centennial.
On a weekly basis, hearing URL data from the Library catalog is
exported in order to provide LIS and Thomas with full-text links to
Senate hearings for the 110th Congress. The Senate Library contributed
428 new Senate hearing links to the LIS database during 2008.
The Library's head of Technical Services worked with Joint
Committee on Taxation staff on a small pilot project to supply
bibliographic records for a set of committee documents submitted for
scanning at the Federal Scanning Center at the Library of Congress. The
scanning center will extract the data needed to enhance retrieval of
the scanned documents on its public digital archive site.
Major Library Goals for 2009
Completing the Library's contribution to Webster other than
maintenance contributions; enlarging the data store and bringing the
Senators' biography portion of the Senate knowledge base to a wider
Senate audience; and upgrading the Senate Library Webster page.
Assuming co-direction of the Senate Information Services Program in
preparation for transition to full direction at the end of 2010.
Developing online courses and research and reference guides for
Senators' state office staff.
Offering a program of in-house training courses for library staff.
Outreach to all new senators and their staffs in 2009.
SENATE LIBRARY ACQUISITIONS FOR CALENDAR YEAR 2008
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Books Government Documents Congressional Publications
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reports/ Total
Ordered Received Paper Fiche Hearings Prints Bylaw Docs
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
January.............................................. 25 51 150 68 298 18 62 304 951
February............................................. 10 57 217 33 375 14 89 420 1,205
March................................................ 29 84 197 77 289 11 102 309 1,069
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1st Quarter.................................... 64 192 564 178 962 43 253 1,033 3,225
==================================================================================================
April................................................ 27 56 199 62 306 13 79 322 1,037
May.................................................. 16 56 158 74 267 15 68 391 1,029
June................................................. 36 99 141 58 280 12 56 370 1,016
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2nd Quarter.................................... 79 211 498 194 853 40 203 1,083 3,082
==================================================================================================
July................................................. 17 50 168 89 309 12 66 337 1,031
August............................................... 22 56 178 69 287 11 82 367 1,050
September............................................ 101 66 116 11 286 4 85 265 833
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3rd Quarter.................................... 140 172 462 169 882 27 233 969 2,914
==================================================================================================
October.............................................. 21 91 161 93 433 7 53 336 1,174
November............................................. 23 115 128 99 263 3 41 83 732
December............................................. 4 120 387 64 238 9 46 141 1,005
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4th Quarter.................................... 48 326 676 256 934 19 140 560 2,911
==================================================================================================
2008 Total........................................... 331 901 2,200 797 3,631 129 829 3,645 12,132
2007 Total........................................... 306 822 2,734 1,433 9,396 576 967 3,797 19,725
==================================================================================================
Percent Change....................................... +8.17 +9.61 -19.53 -44.38 -61.36 -77.60 -14.27 -4.00 -38.49
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SENATE LIBRARY CATALOGING STATISTICS FOR CALENDAR YEAR 2008
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bibliographic Records Cataloged
S. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hearing Report Books Government Documents Congressional Publications Total
Numbers Titles ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Records
Added to Added to Docs./ Cataloged
LIS LIS Paper Audio/E- Paper Fiche Electronic Hearings Prints Pubs./
Books Reports
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
January....................... 30 ......... 20 ......... 7 1 14 439 1 10 492
February...................... 79 ......... 30 3 16 ......... 24 489 ......... 7 569
March......................... 30 ......... 26 ......... 20 6 15 405 2 11 485
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1st Quarter............. 139 ......... 76 3 43 7 53 1,333 3 28 1,546
=========================================================================================================================
April......................... 3 ......... 97 2 29 ......... 17 666 4 2 817
May........................... 3 ......... 26 ......... 16 ......... 9 611 12 16 690
June.......................... 43 ......... 22 1 2 ......... 19 488 14 8 554
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2nd Quarter............. 49 ......... 145 3 47 ......... 45 1,765 30 26 2,061
=========================================================================================================================
July.......................... 9 57 20 1 8 ......... 24 677 7 8 745
August........................ 15 84 34 18 13 ......... 20 468 4 8 565
September..................... 22 79 31 11 16 2 7 604 4 44 719
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3rd Quarter............. 46 220 85 30 37 2 51 1,749 15 60 2,029
=========================================================================================================================
October....................... 12 119 48 26 4 3 24 497 2 40 644
November...................... 5 ......... 123 1 15 2 9 464 5 ......... 619
December...................... 20 22 114 1 9 ......... 32 524 1 16 697
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4th Quarter............. 37 141 285 28 28 5 65 1,485 8 56 1,960
=========================================================================================================================
2008 Total.................... 271 361 591 64 155 14 214 6,332 56 170 7,596
2007 Total.................... 687 ......... 451 ......... 84 57 267 5,580 74 136 6,649
=========================================================================================================================
Percent Change................ -60.55 ......... +31.04 ......... +84.52 -75.44 -19.85 +13.48 -24.32 +25.00 +14.24
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SENATE LIBRARY DOCUMENT DELIVERY FOR CALENDAR YEAR 2008
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Micrographics Photocopiers
Volumes Materials Facsimiles Center Pages Pages
Loaned Delivered Printed Printed
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
January........................................ 167 289 22 256 5,969
February....................................... 333 335 31 810 7,209
March.......................................... 378 371 32 246 7,665
----------------------------------------------------------------
1st Quarter.............................. 878 995 85 1,312 20,843
================================================================
April.......................................... 518 445 24 417 5,873
May............................................ 309 260 27 315 8,048
June........................................... 303 291 27 49 8,362
----------------------------------------------------------------
2nd Quarter.............................. 1,130 996 78 781 22,283
================================================================
July........................................... 308 294 30 301 22,415
August......................................... 322 208 .......... 58 5,900
September...................................... 466 175 9 117 9,517
----------------------------------------------------------------
3rd Quarter.............................. 1,096 677 39 476 37,832
================================================================
October........................................ 463 260 18 610 9,941
November....................................... 411 232 21 130 4,667
December....................................... 359 245 17 204 4,700
----------------------------------------------------------------
4th Quarter.............................. 1,233 737 56 944 19,308
================================================================
2008 Total..................................... 4,337 3,405 258 3,513 100,266
2007 Total..................................... 2,547 3,319 416 2,926 101,533
================================================================
Percent Change................................. +70.28 +2.59 -37.98 +20.06 -1.25
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PAGE SCHOOL
The United States Senate Page School provides students with an
academically and experientially sound program, within the limits of the
constraints imposed by their work for the Senate, during their stay in
the nation's capital. The Page School also strives to provide a smooth
transition from and to the students' home schools,
Summary of Accomplishments
Accreditation by the Middle States Commission on Secondary Schools
continues through April, 2013.
Two page classes successfully completed their semester curriculum.
Closing ceremonies were conducted on June 6, 2008, and January 23,
2009, the last day of school for each semester.
Orientation and course scheduling for the Spring 2008 and Fall 2008
pages were successfully completed. The semester schedules were
determined by the needs of incoming students.
Each semester, faculty administered an English Usage pre- and post-
test to students and reviewed the results to determine what usage
instruction or remediation was needed.
Faculty and staff provided extended educational experiences to
pages, including twenty-four field trips, seven guest speakers,
opportunities to play musical instruments and vocalize, and foreign
language study with the aid of tutors. As an extension of the page
experience, eight field trips to educational sites were provided for
summer pages. National tests were administered for qualification in
scholarship programs as well.
The community service project embraced by pages and staff in 2002
continues. Students, staff and faculty collected items for gift
packages, which were assembled and shipped to military personnel in
Afghanistan and Iraq. Pages included letters of support for the troops.
Historical Power Point Presentations from Colonization to Present
was purchased for use in U.S. History classes.
The evacuation and COOP plans have been reviewed and updated. Pages
and staff continue to practice evacuating to primary and secondary
sites.
Staff and pages participated in escape hood training, and staff
continues certification in CPR/AED procedures.
In May 2008, 16 Senate pages took Advanced Placement tests in 7
subjects. There were 27 pages in the Spring 2008 page class.
Summary of Plans
Goals include:
--Teachers will continue to offer individualized small group
instruction and tutoring on an as-needed basis.
--Foreign language tutors will provide assistance to students.
--The focus of field trips will be sites of historic, political, and
scientific importance which complement the curriculum.
--An English Usage pre- and post-test will be administered to
students each semester to assist faculty in determining needs
of students for usage instruction.
--Staff development options include attendance at seminars conducted
by Education and Training and subject matter and/or educational
issue conferences conducted by national organizations.
--The community service project will continue.
PRINTING AND DOCUMENT SERVICES
The Office of Printing and Document Services (OPDS) serves as
liaison to the Government Printing Office (GPO) for the Senate's
official printing, ensuring that all Senate printing is in compliance
with Title 44, Chapter 7 (Congressional Printing and Binding) of the
U.S. Code as it relates to Senate documents, hearings, committee prints
and other official publications. The office assists the Senate by
coordinating, scheduling, delivering and preparing Senate legislation,
hearings, documents, committee prints and miscellaneous publications
for printing, and provides printed copies of all legislation and public
laws to the Senate and the public. In addition, the office assigns
publication numbers to all hearings, committee prints, documents and
other publications; orders all blank paper, envelopes and letterhead
for the Senate; and prepares page counts of all Senate hearings in
order to compensate commercial reporting companies for the preparation
of hearings.
Printing Services
During fiscal year 2008, OPDS prepared 3,970 requisitions
authorizing GPO to print and bind the Senate's work, exclusive of
legislation and the Congressional Record. Because the requisitioning
done by OPDS is central to the Senate's printing, the office is
uniquely suited to perform invoice and bid-reviewing responsibilities
for Senate printing. As a result of this office's cost accounting
duties, OPDS is able to review and ensure accurate GPO invoicing, as
well as play an active role in helping to provide the best possible
bidding scenario for Senate publications.
In addition to processing requisitions, the Printing Services
Section coordinates proof handling, job scheduling and tracking for
stationery products, Senate hearings, Senate publications and other
miscellaneous printed products. The Printing Services Section also
monitors blank paper and stationery quotas for each Senate office and
committee. OPDS coordinates a number of publications for other Senate
offices, such as the Curator, Historian, Disbursing, Legislative Clerk,
and Senate Library, as well as the U.S. Botanic Garden, U.S. Capitol
Police, Architect of the Capitol, and the U.S. Capitol Visitor Center.
These tasks include providing guidance for design, paper selection,
print specifications, monitoring print quality and distribution. Last
year's major printing projects included:
--Semi-Annual Report of the Secretary of the Senate
--Tributes to Retiring Senators
--U.S. Senate Leadership Portrait Collection brochure
--U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee brochure
--U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee brochure
--U.S. Senate Republican Leader's and Democratic Leader's Suite
brochures
--Senate Chamber 150th Anniversary brochure
--Russell Building Centennial and building furniture brochures
--Senate Sergeant at Arms and Doorkeeper brochures
--Capitol Visitor Center tour tickets and informational brochures
--2009 Inaugural Ceremony materials
Hearing Billing Verification
Senate committees often use outside reporting companies to
transcribe their hearings, both in-house and in the field. OPDS
processes billing verifications for these transcription services,
ensuring that costs billed to the Senate are accurate. OPDS utilizes a
program developed in conjunction with the Sergeant at Arms Computer
Division that provides improved billing accuracy and greater
information gathering capacity, adhering to the guidelines established
by the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration for commercial
reporting companies to bill the Senate for transcription services.
During 2008, OPDS provided commercial reporting companies and
corresponding Senate committees a total of 855 billing verifications of
Senate hearings and business meetings. Over 63,000 transcribed pages
were processed at a total billing cost of $408,467.
The software program used to process the hearing verifications
required by the Senate Disbursing Office to pay vendors for
transcription services was completely updated in 2008. OPDS worked with
the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration to draft updated
regulations governing the production and reimbursement of transcripts
in order to provide greater flexibility to the particular needs of
different committees. In addition, input was solicited from vendors and
committee clerks to ensure consideration of current transcription
practices and costs. The new software program has been fully tested by
all current Senate transcription vendors and is now fully implemented.
The office continued to process all file transfers and billing
verifications among committees and report companies electronically,
which ensures efficiency and accuracy. Department staff continues to
train in today's expanding digital technology in order to improve
performance and services.
Secretary of the Senate Service Center
The Service Center is staffed by experienced GPO detailees who
provide Senate committees and the Secretary of the Senate's office with
complete publishing services for hearings, committee prints, and the
Congressional Record. These services include keyboarding, proofreading,
scanning, and composition. This allows committees to decrease or
eliminate additional overtime costs associated with the preparation of
hearings, thus improving the management of Congressional Printing and
Binding Appropriation funds. Additionally, the Service Center provides
work for GPO detailees assigned to legislative offices during Senate
recesses.
Document Services
The Document Services Section coordinates requests for printed
legislation and miscellaneous publications with other departments
within the Secretary's office, Senate committees, and GPO. This section
ensures that the most current version of all material is available, and
that sufficient quantities are available to meet projected demands. The
Congressional Record is one of the many printed documents provided by
the office on a daily basis. Additionally, the office processed and
distributed 7,450 distinct legislative items during the second session
of the 110th Congress, including Senate and House bills, resolutions,
committee and conference reports, executive documents, and public laws.
The demand for online access to legislative information continues
to be strong. Before Senate legislation can be posted online, it must
be received in the Senate through OPDS. An improved database allows the
office to report the receipt of all legislative bills and resolutions
received in the Senate. These bills and resolutions are then made
available on Web sites such as the Legislative Information System (LIS)
and Thomas, which are used by Congressional staff and the public.
Customer Service
The primary responsibility of OPDS is to provide services to the
Senate. During 2008, more than 15,000 requests for legislative material
were received at the walk-in counter, through the mail, by fax, and
electronically. Online ordering of legislative documents and the
Legislative Hot List Link, where Members and staff can confirm arrival
of printed copies of the most sought-after legislative documents,
continued to be popular. The site is updated several times daily as new
documents arrive to the Document Room from GPO. In addition, the office
handled thousands of phone calls pertaining to the Senate's official
printing, document requests and legislative questions. Recorded
messages, fax, and e-mail operate around the clock and are processed as
they are received, as are mail requests. The office stresses prompt and
courteous customer service while providing accurate answers to Senate
and public requests.
On-Demand Publication
The office supplements depleted legislation where needed by
producing additional copies in the DocuTech Service Center. The
DocuTech is staffed by experienced GPO detailees who provide Member
offices and Senate committees with on-demand printing and binding of
bills and reports. On-demand publication allows the department to cut
the quantities of documents printed directly from GPO, thereby reducing
waste. The DocuTech is networked with GPO, allowing print files to be
sent back and forth electronically. This allows OPDS to print necessary
legislation for the Senate floor and other offices in the event of a
GPO continuity of operations (COOP) situation.
Accomplishments and Future Goals
Over the past year, OPDS has continued to provide new services for
customers and improve existing ones. The office is committed to help
``green'' the Senate. The office has made improved quality 100 percent
recycled copier and letterhead paper available to all Senate offices,
and orders for those products have increased tenfold over the previous
year. The office works diligently to track document requirements by
monitoring print quantities and reducing waste and associated costs.
The office continues to use the electronic proofing procedures that
were implemented in 2006; over four hundred new and revised print jobs
were routed electronically for customer approval, improving turnaround
time and efficiency. Additionally, blank paper orders, now transmitted
electronically to GPO as they are processed, save time and move toward
the office's goal of paperless ordering.
The office's future goals include working with GPO to improve
efficiency and help answer the evolving needs of the Senate, as well as
developing online ordering of all stationery products for Senate
offices. The office will continue to focus on COOP and its emergency
preparedness. OPDS staff continue to seek new ways to use technology to
assist Members and staff by adding services and improving access to
information.
PUBLIC RECORDS
The Office of Public Records receives, processes, and maintains
records, reports, and other documents filed with the Secretary of the
Senate that involve the Federal Election Campaign Act, as amended; the
Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995, as amended; the Senate Code of
Official Conduct: Rule 34, Public Financial Disclosure; Rule 35, Senate
Gift Rule filings; Rule 40, Registration of Mass Mailing; Rule 41,
Political Fund Designees; and Rule 41(6), Supervisor's Reports on
Individuals Performing Senate Services; and Foreign Travel Reports.
The office provides for the inspection, review, and publication of
these documents. From October 2007 through September 2008, the Public
Records office staff assisted more than 2,300 individuals seeking
information from reports filed with the office. This figure does not
include assistance provided by telephone, nor help given to lobbyists
attempting to comply with the provisions of the Lobbying Disclosure Act
of 1995. A total of 125,160 photocopies were sold in the period. In
addition, the office works closely with the Federal Election
Commission, the Senate Select Committee on Ethics, and the Clerk of the
U.S. House of Representatives concerning the filing requirements of the
aforementioned Acts and Senate rules.
Fiscal Year 2008 Accomplishments
The office implemented major parts of S. 1, the Honest Leadership
and Open Government Act (HLOGA), which amended the Lobbying Disclosure
Act of 1995 and the Senate Code of Conduct. The work entailed updating
the written guidance for the lobbying community and posting two
versions of four new public databases.
Plans for Fiscal Year 2009
The Public Records office is working with the staff of the Clerk of
the House of Representatives on updating the Lobbying Disclosure Act
(as amended) guidance as needed, and is concentrating on compliance
issues that have arisen as a result of HLOGA.
Automation Activities
During fiscal year 2008, the Senate Office of Public Records worked
with the Sergeant at Arms to design a new lobbying database, new public
query programs for Senate.gov, and a new page design for Senate.gov.
Federal Election Campaign Act, as Amended
The Act requires Senate candidates to file quarterly and pre- and
post-election reports. Filings totaled 4,232 documents containing
253,527 pages.
Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995
The Act requires semi-annual financial and lobbying activity
reports. As of September 30, 2008, there were 5,073 registrants
representing 19,799 clients. The total number of individual lobbyists
disclosed on 2008 registrations and reports was 14,247. The total
number of lobbying registrations and reports processed was 89,738.
Public Financial Disclosure
The filing date for Public Financial Disclosure Reports was May 15,
2008. The reports were made available to the public and press by
Friday, June 13, 2008. Public Records staff provided copies to the
Select Committee on Ethics and the appropriate state officials. A total
of 3,885 reports and amendments were filed containing 23,321 pages.
There were 383 requests to review or receive copies of the documents.
Senate Rule 35 (Gift Rule)
The Senate Office of Public Records received 301 reports during
fiscal year 2008.
Registration of Mass Mailing
Senators are required to file mass mailings on a quarterly basis.
The number of pages was 625.
STATIONERY ROOM
The mission of the Keeper of Stationery is to:
--Sell stationery items for use by Senate offices and other
authorized legislative organizations;
--Select a variety of stationery items to meet the needs of the
Senate community on a day-to-day basis and maintain a
sufficient inventory of these items;
--Purchase supplies utilizing open market procurement, competitive
bid and/or GSA Federal Supply Schedules;
--Maintain product supply and order capability during Continuity of
Operation incidents;
--Maintain individual official stationery expense accounts for
Senators, Committees and Officers of the Senate;
--Render monthly expense statements;
--Ensure receipt of reimbursements for all purchases by the client
base through direct payments or through the certification
process;
--Make payments to all vendors of record for supplies and services in
a timely manner and certify receipt of all supplies and
services; and
--Provide delivery of all purchased supplies to the requesting
offices.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fiscal Year Fiscal Year
2008 2007
Statistics Statistics
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gross Sales............................. $4,547,290 $5,456,125
Sales Transactions...................... 41,704 45,608
Purchase Orders Issued.................. 6,224 7,356
Vouchers Processed...................... 6,832 8,078
Office Deliveries....................... 6,985 7,305
Number of Items Delivered............... 160,538 153,813
Number of Items Sold.................... 503,238 587,529
Cartons Received at SSF................. 19,637 31,678
Mass Transit Media Sold................. 70,766 91,569
$20.00.............................. 54,905 75,922
$10.00.............................. 8,781 6,955
$5.00............................... 7,080 8,692
Public Transportation Users............. 2,006 1,763
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fiscal Year 2008 Highlights and Projects
Computer Modernization Upgrades
The Stationery Room began fiscal year 2008 preparing for major
application upgrades to its Microsoft Business Dynamics Retail
Management System and Great Plains accounting application software.
These upgrades involved the installation and configuration of new
workstations and server hardware, along with upgrades to the Microsoft
Sequel database engine. Project and implementation planning were
paramount in making this process smooth and transparent. The upgrade
process began in mid-July and concluded on October 23, 2008 after
successful system acceptance and testing.
Recycling Initiatives
The Stationery Room continues to monitor the marketplace for office
products that are suitable, sustainable and environmentally friendly in
order to promote recycling programs. In conjunction with the Senate
Superintendent, the Stationery Room launched a battery recycling
program approximately 2 years ago. Since that time, approximately 70
gallons of battery product have been captured and recycled through the
Superintendent's recycling sources.
The Stationery Room also continues to promote the Senate
Superintendent's recycling program for safe disposition of printer, fax
and copier cartridges. This effort was initiated to eliminate the
disposal of these materials in landfills. Users are encouraged to drop
these materials off at the Superintendent's drop-off site in the
Dirksen Building.
Senate Support Facility (SSF)
The facility continues to be a major asset for Stationery Room
operations. During fiscal year 2008, the Senate Sergeant at Arms
Central Operations Division transported 19,637 cartons of product from
the U.S. Capitol Police screening facility to the SSF for processing
and distribution to the Senate campus. This process has virtually
eliminated most commercial vehicular traffic coming to the Senate
campus in support of Stationery Room operations. The Senate Sergeant at
Arms' (SAA) Central Operations Division is to be commended for the
support and ``team effort'' they provide to the Stationery Room
operation in meeting its responsibilities to the Senate community.
Public Transit Subsidy Program
As reported last fiscal year, the Washington Metropolitan Transit
Authority (WMATA) announced that they would be discontinuing the
Metrochek paper media at the end of 2008 and transitioning agencies to
the SmartBenefit SmarTrip Card. In order to facilitate this process,
the Stationery Room, in coordination with WMATA and the Senate
Committee on Rules and Administration, held four workshops to
demonstrate self-program management tools in order for participating
offices of the Public Transportation Subsidy Program to continue
offering the subsidy in an accountable electronic format.
WEB TECHNOLOGY
The Department of Web Technology is responsible for the Web sites
that fall under the purview of the Secretary of the Senate:
--the Senate Web site (Senate.gov)--available to the world;
--the Secretary's internal Web site (Webster.senate.gov/secretary)--
covering functions of the office, available to the Senate
Staff;
--the central portion of Senate intranet (Webster.senate.gov)--
available to the Senate Staff; and
--the Senate Legislative Branch Web site (Legbranch.senate.gov)--
available to the Senate, House of Representatives, Library of
Congress, Architect of the Capitol, Government Accountability
Office, Government Printing Office, Congressional Budget
Office, and U.S. Capitol Police.
The Senate Web Site--Senate.gov
The Senate Web site content is maintained by over 30 contributors
from seven departments of the Secretary's office and three departments
of the Sergeant at Arms (SAA). Content team leaders meet regularly to
share ideas and coordinate the posting of new content. All content is
controlled through the Secretary's Web Content Management System (CMS),
which is managed by the Department of Web Technology.
Major Additions to the Site in 2008
United States Senate Expulsion and Censure Cases (http://
www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/briefing/
Expulsion_Censure.htm);
Senators Who Changed Parties During Senate Service (Since 1890)
(http://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/briefing/
senators_changed_parties.htm);
History of the Senate Chamber (http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/
history/h_multi_sections_and_teasers/Senate_Chamber.htm);
Senators Representing Third or Minor Parties (http://
www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/briefing/
senators_thirdParties.htm);
Votes to Break Ties in the Senate (http://www.senate.gov/
pagelayout/reference/four_column_table/Tie_Votes.htm);
16 Historical Minute Essays added (http://www.senate.gov/
pagelayout/history/b_three_sections_with_teasers/essays.htm);
4 Oral History Interviews (http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/
history/g_three_sections_with_teasers/oralhistory.htm);
Breaking New Ground--African American Senators (http://
www.senate.gov/pagelayout/history/h_multi_sections_and_teasers/
Photo_Exhibit_African_American_Senators.htm);
Senator Dole's and Senator Daschle's leadership portrait
unveilings;
13 new Virtual Index Pages; (http://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/
reference/b_three_sections_with_teasers/virtual.htm);
10 Bibliographies available internally and externally; (http://
www.senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/a_three_sections_with_teasers/
biblio.htm);
XML data of popularly requested information (Senators' contact
information and committee assignments); and
Public Disclosure Online Tutorials (http://www.senate.gov/
legislative/Public_Disclosure/Training.htm).
Homepage Feature Articles Published
What is All this Talk About Sessions;
A U.S. Senate Tradition: Washington's Farewell Address;
Recording the Senate's Debates: The Congressional Record;
Historical Minutes: Stories about Senate History;
Classic Senate Speeches: Great Orators of the Senate's Past;
``We the People'' Celebrating the Constitution;
The Senate's President Pro Tempore; and
The Senate Chamber: 1859-2009.
Secretary's Web site--Webster.senate.gov/secretary
The department launched a new intranet Web site (http://
webster.senate.gov/secretary) covering the office of the Secretary.
This replaced the previous site, which had existed for over a decade.
The new site uses the CMS to maintain all content that exists on the
site and is now in XML. The new design implements a universal banner on
all Webster pages. For the first time, each of the Secretary's 26
departments has a presence on the site and supplied input to meet
specific office needs. In the next year, maintenance of the individual
pages will be transferred to the distinct departments, as desired,
leveraging the CMS.
Webster Central Web site--Webster.senate.gov
In conjunction with the SAA, Chaplain, and the Senate Committee on
Rules and Administration, the Secretary, through the Web Technology
Department, completed a 2-year effort to publish a new Senate Intranet,
Webster.senate.gov (Webster). As these organizations represent the
stakeholders that manage Webster, they enacted a formal management
strategy, the Webster Administrative Group (WAG), to develop a mission
statement, determine operating guidelines and enlist feedback from
Senate staff for the site.
Collectively, the WAG established components desired by Senate
staff and developed solutions to deliver the information in an
efficient and timely matter. Throughout its development, the WAG
continually involved Senate staff in the process through exhaustive
user testing and surveys. The newly added components are:
--Floor Schedule.--The data for this section is derived from several
other files already used to populate the public Web site,
Senate.gov, and the Capitol Visitor Center museum kiosks. The
data is updated both automatically from the Secretary's Content
Management System (CMS), through integration with the
Legislative Information System, and manually by Senate
librarians.
--Events.--A calendar display of activities of interest to staff that
occur around the Capitol Hill Complex, such as Committee
Hearings, training classes, and special Senate activities.
Senate staff can now easily add and edit information to display
on the calendar.
--Announcements.--Revamped this component from the old site so that
designated staff from the four stakeholders may easily create
their own announcements and manage its display.
--Did You Know.--A rotating section that allows all stakeholders to
advertise services that may be of special interest.
--Image of the Week.--Each week a piece of artwork or a photograph
from either the Curator's office or the Historical office is
highlighted. This content is managed through the CMS and reuses
graphics and data posted on Senate.gov.
--Tabs.--Assisted the Senate Library in the creation, delivery, and
maintenance of five advanced indices organizing Senate related
information: Services, Leadership, Legislative, News &
Research, and About the Senate. The tabs are populated through
XML feeds from the Montague Knowledge Base which catalogs
relevant pages by establishing relationships to terms through a
taxonomy and integrated through the CMS.
--Search.--Established, built, and maintained a virtual server to
implement the advanced features of the Google Search Appliance,
Onebox. The new search uses information supplied from the
Senate Library's knowledge base to assist users in quickly
finding their desired information through the established
taxonomy. The search is now implemented site-wide and is a vast
improvement over the previous search. The now-established
architecture may be expanded for additional advanced
functionality.
--Common Header.--Established and implemented a consistent header to
be used across all Webster.senate.gov pages, regardless of
stakeholder, to ensure that the focus is service-based instead
of department-based.
Senate Legislative Branch Web site (Legbranch.senate.gov)
A new Legbranch server was installed, replacing obsolete hardware.
The Department of Web Technology worked in conjunction with the SAA to
ensure all preexisting content was transported and functional on the
new system. Web Technology also built and maintained a simple internal
Web site for a Capitol Hill e-mail messaging working group. In the
upcoming year, the server will be used to share more information with
other Capitol Hill entities.
Accomplishments of the Office of Web Technology in 2008
Led online Congressional Research Service (CRS) publication
project, fulfilling a request of the Senate Committee on Rules and
Administration to enable offices to easily publish CRS reports online
and ensure that the reports posted are always the most current version.
Completed the project through collaboration with CRS, the Committee on
Rules and Administration, and Senate SAA. The CRS Publishing
application (http://webster.senate.gov/crsapplication) is now available
to all Senate offices and is being utilized.
Created virtualized development server for the Secretary's intranet
in conjunction with integration into the CMS. The processes for
controlling content for the Secretary's intranet now mimic that of
Senate.gov, facilitating the content authors with procedures in which
they are well versed and increasing their ability to train others.
Created, populated, and launched a new Secretary Intranet site in
conjunction with all 26 departments and the Webster Administrative
Group based on the new back-end architecture.
Vastly expanded the functionality of the Google Search Applicance
used for internal searching on Webster.senate.gov through taking
advantage of Google's Onebox technology. Worked with the SAA to set up
a virtual server to run a Onebox application used on the new Webster
search, which can be easily expanded to incorporate more complex search
requests. The search is now integrated with portions of the taxonomy
maintained in the Senate Library's knowledge base.
Worked with the Curator's Office and the Government Printing Office
in the design of three custom sites: the Henry Clay portrait unveiling,
Senate myths, and the Russell Senate Office Building Centennial.
Audited the Senate.gov Web pages regularly, updating and correcting
links; verifying content; and reviewing individual page designs
throughout Senate.gov.
Worked with the Curator's office to reorganize their content within
the Art and History bucket. Instituted new information architecture for
the artifact pages, making editing much more efficient. Designed new
layout concepts for the Curator's office areas of focus. Built subject-
based collection lists, initially organizing art objects by sitters,
which will be expanded for other subject areas, all drawn from the
Curator's maintained object database.
Constantly monitored data feeds from the LIS/DMS system, ensuring
content on Senate.gov was current and all processes were functioning
properly. This is of vital importance regarding information such as
committee hearing schedules, vote data, and member contact information.
Worked with new Senate Offices to establish and maintain temporary
web pages, including a picture, biographical, and contact information,
until they are able to establish permanent Web sites.
Conducted user testing with Senate Staff and interns to increase
understanding of current Web site desires and best practices. User
testing was conducted for the Curator's Senate Myths exhibit, the newly
launched Webster Central, and the Legislative reorganization of
Senate.gov.
Incorporated the use of handles established by the Library of
Congress for legislation, ensuring functional links to pieces of
legislation regardless of changes to other systems. Handles are now
used on the many different statistical tables maintained by the Senate
Library, and reflect information on currently active legislation,
cloture motions, nominations, and vetoes. Also, summary tables were
created for the various data sets to further ensure the accuracy and
usability of data reported.
Created a secure custom Web site for the Senate Chief Counsel for
Employment (SCCE) along with a separate and secure search. Also
reviewed current security practices and options with the SAA and
validated the current methodology for SCCE's Web site is most apt.
Established a new system for the Senate Placement Office to post
employment offerings online. Collaborated with the Sergeant of Arms in
the development of a web-based application that integrates with the CMS
and a newly created display of job postings via XML. Having the data in
XML will allow for the integration of all job postings from the
Secretary's Office and the SAA into one comprehensive list which may be
sorted.
Worked with the Office of Public Records, Secretary's Counsel, and
the SAA to maintain and enhance newly established reporting
requirements relating to public disclosure on Senate.gov. Also,
collaborated with staff from the House of Representatives and the
Senate Recording Studio to set up streaming tutorial videos in various
formats ensuring accessibility.
Incorporated various LIS/DMS streams to produce XML data requested
by the Capitol Visitor Center to populate kiosks displaying member
information. Worked with the Legislative Clerk and staff to ensure the
correctness of this data. Worked with LIS/DMS group to transition to
committee hearings being reported in XML and shared with the Capitol
Visitors Center. Additionally, floor Schedule information is now
maintained by the Senate Library in XML in order to facilitate needs of
the Capitol Visitor Center and Webster Central.
Established a back-up server for the CMS at the Alternate Computer
Facility (ACF) with the SAA, vastly improving continuity of operations
planning (COOP). The newly built server is an exact replica of the
production system and has been thoroughly tested to serve as a real
time replacement should the production server become inoperable.
Participated and helped organize Capitol Hill-wide webmaster
meetings, where best practices were shared among various entities.
Regularly gave presentations and facilitated conversations during
meetings.
Worked extensively with the Senate Library in the development and
implementation of taxonomies utilizing the Montague Knowledge Base
system. Currently, the knowledge base is used to populate the tabs on
the front page of Webster, allowing staff to easily find appropriate
services and resources, regardless of the provider. Aided in data
capturing and reporting of senator data through the knowledge base.
Senate.gov Usage Statistics
In 2008, over 275,000 visitors per day, on average, accessed the
Senate Web site. Twenty-one percent of them entered through the main
Senate homepage of the central site (http://www.senate.gov) while the
majority came to the site through a bookmarked page (possibly directly
from their Senator's site) or to a specific page from search results,
consistent with previous years.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2007-2008
Title of Web Page 2007 Visits/ 2008 Visits/ Percent
Month Month Increase
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Visits--Entire Site............................................. 8,196,662 8,521,779 4
Senate.gov...................................................... 1,704,675 1,704,697 ..............
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reviewing statistics on Web page usage helps the content providers
better understand what information the public is seeking and how best
to improve the presentation of that data. Visitors are consistently
drawn to the following content items, listed in order of popularity.
MOST VISITED PAGES IN 2008
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2007 Visits/ 2008 Visits/
Top Pages Month Month Percent Change
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Senators Contact Information List............................... 448,301 546,847 +21
Roll Call Votes................................................. 242,122 182,691 -25
Committees...................................................... 91,451 78,810 -14
Legislation & Records........................................... 63,544 64,010 +1
Votes Home...................................................... 62,578 58,277 -7
Active Legislation.............................................. 36,730 37,860 +3
Senate Leadership............................................... 18,104 19,981 +10
Committee Hearings Scheduled.................................... 18,232 16,668 -8
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By a huge margin, the most popular page on Senate.gov is the list
of Senators with links to their Web sites and comment forms. Visitors
also continue to be interested in legislative matters, with Roll Call
Vote Tallies, the Active Legislation table, Committee assignments and
schedules being particularly popular. The visits per month did decrease
across some of the most visited pages on the site. The decrease is most
likely attributed to the information on the pages being consumed by
other Web sites and then being redisplayed. Additionally, some of the
most sought information was offered in XML for the first time in 2008,
making the consumption and dissemination faster and easier. Thus,
although the actual visits to Senate.gov decreased on some pages, it is
likely that more people actually utilized the information being
provided.
______
Prepared Statement of Christopher J. Doby, Financial Clerk of the
Senate
Mr. Chairman, I appreciate the opportunity to present to your
Committee, the Budget of the United States Senate for fiscal year 2010.
Mr. Chairman, the fiscal year 2010 budget estimates for the Senate
have been included in the Budget of the United States Government for
fiscal year 2010. This Budget has been developed in accordance with
requests and proposals submitted by the various offices and functions
of the Senate. The total budget estimates for the Senate are
$1,015,431,000 which reflect an increase of $114,975,000 or 12.77
percent over the amount appropriated for fiscal year 2009 and does not
reflect any adjustments to these estimates which may be presented to
your Committee during these hearings. The total appropriations for the
Senate for fiscal year 2009 are $900,456,000. An individual analysis of
the budget estimates for all functions and offices has been included in
the Senate Budget Book, previously provided to your Committee.
The budget estimates for fiscal year 2010 are divided into three
major categories as follows:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Amount
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Senate Items............................................ $194,995,000
Senate Contingent Expense Items......................... 814,245,000
Senate Joint Items...................................... 6,191,000
---------------
TOTAL............................................. 1,015,431,000
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Specifically, Mr. Chairman, the fiscal year 2010 budget estimates
reflect increases over the fiscal year 2009 enacted levels as a result
of: (1) the anticipated 4.0 percent cost-of-living adjustment including
locality pay for fiscal year 2010, and the annualization costs of the
fiscal year 2009 4.78 percent cost-of-living adjustment; (2) the
cumulative under funding of previous fiscal years in the Senators'
Official Personnel and Office Expense Account due mainly to increases
in population categories of various states and increases in the
Administrative and Clerical Assistance Allowance authorized by the
Legislative Branch Appropriations Acts 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004,
2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009; (3) personnel adjustments, other than
the cost-of-living; (4) increases in agency contributions applicable to
the cost-of-living adjustments and other personnel increase requests;
and (5) other miscellaneous and administrative expense increases.
Mr. Chairman, I submit for the consideration of your Committee, the
Budget of the United States Senate for fiscal year 2010.
Sergeant at Arms and Doorkeeper
STATEMENT OF HON. TERRY GAINER, SERGEANT AT ARMS
ACCOMPANIED BY DREW WILLISON, DEPUTY SERGEANT AT ARMS
Senator Nelson. Terry.
Mr. Gainer. Thank you, chairman and ranking member and
members of the subcommittee. I appreciate the opportunity to
testify today.
I have a brief statement about the progress that our office
has made in our plans to enhance our contribution to the Senate
in the coming year. I ask that my written statement be made
part of the record.
Senator Nelson. It shall be.
Mr. Gainer. On behalf of our nearly 900 employees, I would
like to take just a few moments to describe the breadth of
services we provide to the Senate community. My deputy, Drew
Willison, often describes our roles as that of city managers. I
think he is correct.
We provide most of the nonlegislative and nonpayroll, back-
of-the-house services that are required to keep the Senate
running smoothly every day. From BlackBerries and cell phones
to parking and haircuts and ID badges and the pages, the
Sergeant at Arms organization cuts a pretty broad path.
My written testimony covers many of the specifics in great
detail. I would like to provide some context very quickly here.
Kim Winn, our chief information officer, runs our largest
organization. All our phones, BlackBerries, computer servers,
firewalls, and other activities related to the Senate network
infrastructure are handled through Kim's shop.
Esther Gordon runs central operations. Our Capitol
facilities unit is charged with cleaning and maintaining the
Senate wing of the Capitol, and I think it is spotless. She
also oversees the printing, graphics, and direct mail shop that
handles everything from your constituent newsletter to the
posters you use during debates on the floor.
Our customer service staff that your office managers rely
on every day work within Esther's organization, as do the folks
who handle your State office leases. Esther also oversees one
of the finest cabinet shops in the country. Your Senate chair
was handmade by these craftsmen, and the maintenance of all the
desks and furniture on the floor are under their watchful eyes
and hands. All the Senate surface parking lots are also run by
Esther's team, as is the Senate hair care facility.
Rick Edwards runs our Capitol operations organization. His
shop includes the doorkeepers office, the Senate post office,
the recording studio, the media galleries, and the Senate
appointments desk. The doorkeepers not only assist with keeping
order on the floor, they also assist the thousands of visitors
to the galleries each year.
The recording studio produces our floor feed, provides live
coverage of nearly all the Senate committee and subcommittee
hearings, and assists all 100 Members in sending your messages
home.
The appointments desks in the Capitol, Russell, and the CVC
ensure that official visitors to the Capitol get where they
need to be quickly and efficiently. The post office delivers
millions of pieces of mail the Senate receives each year,
screened and safe.
The police operations, security, and emergency preparedness
organization is under the command of Mike Heidingsfield. Mike's
team is charged with working with the United States Capitol
Police and others to ensure our evacuation plans work, that we
are able to shelter in place, if necessary, and able to
communicate with Members and their staff here or anywhere else,
regardless of conditions.
Mike Heidingsfield's team has led a huge effort in recent
years to make sure that the 450 State offices, your offices,
for all the Members and your staff are as safe as possible.
That team is responsible for the COOP operations--continuity of
operations, continuity of Government, and enduring
constitutional Government, the relationship between the other
two branches.
Peggy Greenberg runs our joint office of education and
training, along with the Secretary of the Senate. Her team
provides hundreds of in-person and remote classes per year. She
facilitates retreats and oversees a number of health
promotions. And she mentioned with some pride, Senator Tester,
this past summer when she visited you in Montana, getting up on
your tractor in order to accomplish her work.
Elizabeth Roach is the director of the page program. And
while the Secretary of the Senate is responsible for the page
school, Elizabeth and her staff handle logistics of housing,
meals, and taking care of them. And yes, keeping them out of
the kind of trouble only 16 year olds can dream up.
Christy Prietsch facilitates our Employee Assistance
Program and does a fantastic job of meeting the needs of our
large and varied community.
Pat Murphy directs our human resource shop and ensures that
the vast majority of our positions are competed, that annual
written performance appraisals for all are completed on time,
and that position descriptions are updated frequently to
reflect changes to work required and work performed. He is also
charged with ensuring that our merit-based salary system is
fully implemented.
And finally and most important, Chris Dey, our chief
financial officer (CFO). He and his team are responsible for
our budget and contracting systems. I have worked with many
CFOs during my career, and Chris is, without a doubt, the best
I have encountered at keeping our books straight, managing
contracts, insisting on competitive awards, and offering solid
policy advice.
So there you have it, a rather quick Senate Sergeant at
Arms 101. As we like to say, if all of us are having a good day
and everything is going just right, you barely notice we are
here. To the extent that happens, it is a tribute to the hard-
working men and women who serve this institution every day.
They exceed the expected.
Mr. Chairman, as you know, many Capitol Hill offices
experience pretty high turnover. It is natural and has always
been the case. A lot of young staff coming and going from
graduate school, campaigns, and the administration. We are very
different. Our average tenure for nonpatronage employees is
well over 10 years. Retirements of 20, 30, and 40 years are not
unusual.
We work very hard to create a workplace where someone can
come to find challenging work, promotional opportunities, and
the ability to build a career. The sheer scope of what we do
helps us to ensure that we are always--there are always
opportunities available.
Our budget for fiscal year 2010, we respectfully request a
total budget of $243 million, representing an increase of just
over $23 million, or 10.5 percent over fiscal year 2009. This
request will allow more than mere maintenance, but leads to
improvement in the level of service we provide to you and your
staff and your community.
The general operations and maintenance expense budget for
the existing and new services is $91.7 million, which is an
increase of $8.2 million, or 9.9 percent over 2009. Major
factors contributing to the expense budget increase are
equipment and software maintenance costs for enterprise
storage, professional services, software purchase, and
technical support for information technology (IT) security and
smartcard badges for the ID office.
One of our information technology priorities in fiscal year
2010 is upgrading the Secretary's payroll system. We are
requesting contract support at the cost of $2 million and
upgrading our data network to keep up with the ever-increasing
demands for network-based services at a cost of $4.7 million.
We are also requesting $5 million for the Senate recording
studio, to upgrade committee rooms, an activity we have
undertaken for years with end-of-year funds. But this year, we
are requesting it in our budget.
Our budget submission requested five new FTEs. We need the
particular job sets. However, after discussions with your staff
and meeting with you, Mr. Chairman, on Tuesday, I withdraw the
request for five FTEs and will work with your staff to further
trim our headcount through the elimination of some vacancies
and reclassification of vacant positions.
As you know, the Sergeant at Arms serves on the Capitol
Police Board, this year as chairman. As the chief law
enforcement officer of the Senate, I work closely with Chief
Morse and his valiant team. They do a great job. I am proud to
have served with them.
But in that agency, there is nearly a singular point of
failure--radio communications. The funds necessary to leap to
the 21st century are included in the supplemental, and I
request your support of that need and recognize that there will
be substantial discussions about it.
With the exception of our police operations, security, and
emergency preparedness created after 9/11, generally the scope
of our office has not changed significantly since 2001. But the
depth of the responsibilities has expanded materially, and our
information technology budget has continued to increase as we
try to keep up with the ever-changing ability of bigger,
better, and faster technology.
Today, unlike a few years ago, all printing equipment is
digital, networked, and computer controlled, improving resource
use. We went from computer servers in closets to virtual
servers. As more processes can be automated and managed
electronically, we have added those applications to our
inventory, improving customer service, management of processes,
and enabling new services to be offered in a cost-effective
manner.
Our efforts are closely tied to our strategic plan in which
we have captured performance measures that help us assess our
work--performance measures that can identify in the areas of
customer satisfaction, timeliness of service, employee
satisfaction, employee personal development, and competitive
contracts. Plans are underway for assessing performance for
these measures in the calendar year 2010.
I have an outstanding senior management team led by Drew
Willison, who serves as my deputy. The Office of the Sergeant
at Arms works closely with other organizations in the support
of the Senate. The Secretary of the Senate, Nancy; the
Architect of the Capitol; the Office of the Attending
Physician; and the United States Capitol Police are partners.
We coordinate our efforts with the House of Representatives and
the agency's executive branch where possible.
Finally, let me say this. The employees of the Office of
the Sergeant at Arms are among the most committed and creative
in Government. They are quiet, effective, and dedicated to you
and your staffs. They spend their working life careers with us.
And I would just like to point out one special individual,
Mr. Chairman, that you mentioned, and that is Steve Mosley.
Early this morning, we were notified that Steve, a 32-year
employee of the Senate Sergeant at Arms office, died of an
apparent heart attack.
He spent 32 years with us. He was a wonderful husband and a
father. I talked to his wife, Michelle, this morning, and she
was still in shock, and the hurt was very raw. She appreciated
the comments and well wishing from our office. But Steve was a
friend to everybody and known throughout the Capitol. He will
be deeply missed.
We joked that he was a diehard Redskins fan. I don't think
any of our meals that we have and different holiday seasons
will ever be the same without him. And he is truly
representative of the type of employees that I have the
opportunity to lead. And I just wanted to affirm what you said.
He was a wonderful man and will be a terrible loss to the
Senate community.
PREPARED STATEMENT
Thank you. And I will be happy to answer questions when
appropriate.
Senator Nelson. Thank you.
[The statement follows:]
Prepared Statement of the Honorable Terrance W. Gainer
INTRODUCTION
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee, thank you for
inviting me to testify before you today. I am pleased to report on the
progress the Office of the Sergeant at Arms (SAA) has made over the
past year and our plans to enhance our contributions to the Senate in
the coming year.
For fiscal year 2010, the Sergeant at Arms respectfully requests a
total budget of $243,505,000--an increase of $23,104,000 (or 10.5
percent) over the fiscal year 2009 budget. This request will allow us
to maintain and improve the level of service we provide to the Senate
community. It will also fund the development and maintenance of
business and network security applications, among other support
services. Appendix A, accompanying this testimony, elaborates on the
specific components of our fiscal year 2010 budget request.
In developing this budget and our operating plans, we are guided by
three priorities: (1) ensuring the United States Senate is as secure
and prepared for an emergency as possible; (2) providing the Senate
with outstanding service and support, including the enhanced use of
technology; and (3) delivering exceptional customer service to the
Senate.
This year I am pleased to highlight some of this office's
activities, to include the furtherance of our efforts towards our
United States Senate Sergeant at Arms Strategic Plan, in which we have
captured performance measures that help us assess our work. During the
past fiscal year we clearly lived up to our motto: ``Exceptional Public
Service . . . Exceeding the Expected.'' Most recently, performance
Measures have been identified in the areas of Customer Satisfaction,
Timeliness of Services, Employee Satisfaction, Employee Professional
Development, and Competitive Contracts. Plans are underway for
assessing performance for these measures in calendar 2010.
Our accomplishments in the areas of security and preparedness,
information technology, and operations are impressive. Recent months
have brought great successes with the opening of the Capitol Visitor
Center (CVC), affecting a safe January Presidential Inauguration, as
well as ensuring a secure Presidential address to a Joint Congress. Our
office has been involved with the CVC since its inception, and scores
of hours were spent preparing for the operations and security of the
Center.
Our men and women working in IT Support Services, Technology
Development, and Process Management & Innovation continued to improve
our cyber security efforts by not only reducing the amount of spam and
phishing e-mail messages, but by enhancing the reliability of core IT
systems. They automated more of the Senate's business processes, made
www.Senate.Gov more functional, helped implement the Honest Leadership
and Open Government Act of 2007, and improved wireless access on
Capitol Hill. The greening efforts of the CIO team stepped up this year
with substantial power savings due to the implementation of the Virtual
Machine Infrastructure and the elimination of the costly creation of
CD-ROMs through ISO server software delivery.
Continuing to progress, yet taking longer than we had expected, the
telecommunications modernization project experienced some setbacks as
the vendor had several personnel changes, replaced some of the
originally-proposed system components, and had to rewrite design
documents. We are very close to the end of the final engineering and
design phase of the project and we currently are reviewing the proposed
design to ensure it meets the Senate's needs. Once we accept the final
design, we will begin a testing phase that will extend through this
summer. Assuming that testing goes well, the production system will be
installed later this year in preparation for pilot tests in offices to
start early next year. The work that has been completed thus far has
been under a fixed-price contract, so the cost to the Senate has not
increased even though the effort has clearly taken longer than
expected. We will work with the vendor to identify every opportunity to
compress the remaining work to roll out the enhanced system as soon as
possible.
We had over 250,000 visitors to the Senate galleries; handled over
100,000 official appointments; increased the ability to simultaneously
broadcast Senate hearings from three to twelve hearings; and tested and
delivered 10 million pieces of mail while reducing mail processing
time, costs, and personnel. These efforts were accomplished through
improved processes, teamwork, and the desire to improve.
Our Employee Assistance Program (EAP) offered a variety of services
to staff, Pages, interns, and family members. EAP expanded outreach
programs through updated materials, the Web and Page training, and
provider resource development. It expanded the Peer Support Team
training functions, and is exploring additional work/life benefits for
Senate employees, including child care and nanny locator, advocacy
support for children with special needs, backup child care placement,
and elder care support and referral services.
Our Education and Training personnel introduced several online,
self-paced training programs, provided hundreds of customized classes
and consultations for Senate staff, and led the Senate's participation
and certification in the mandatory Code of Conduct training. They lead
retreats in state offices, delivered in-office Systems Administrator
training, add certification courses, such as Web Development, and are
deeply involved in new Senator orientation programs.
We have several new initiatives during this next fiscal year. In
emergency preparedness efforts, the Senate and House will participate
in a joint Contingency Legislative Processes exercise that will test
our ability to transfer various legislative documents between the
House, Senate and the White House during an emergency. We also plan to
conduct a Continuity of Government tabletop exercise that will include
participants from the Sergeant at Arms, Secretary of the Senate, Clerk
of the House, House Sergeant at Arms, and House Chief Administrative
Officer organizations. Additionally, we plan to exercise our Briefing
Centers, Emergency Operations Centers, and Leadership Coordination
Centers within the Washington, DC area. These exercises will not only
test the sites, but also the personnel responsible for setup and
operation.
Assisting with all of the efforts of the Office of the Sergeant at
Arms is an outstanding senior management team including Drew Willison,
who serves as my Deputy; Administrative Assistant Rick Edwards;
Republican Liaison Mason Wiggins; General Counsel Joseph Haughey;
Senior Assistant Sergeant at Arms for Police Operations, Security and
Emergency Preparedness Michael Heidingsfield; Assistant Sergeant at
Arms and Chief Information Officer Kimball Winn; Chief Financial
Officer Christopher Dey and Assistant Sergeant at Arms for Operations
Esther Gordon. The many accomplishments set forth in this testimony
would not have been possible without this team's leadership and
commitment.
The Office of the Sergeant at Arms also works with other
organizations that support the Senate. I would like to take this
opportunity to mention how important their contributions have been in
helping us achieve our objectives. In particular, we work regularly
with the Secretary of the Senate, the Architect of the Capitol, the
Office of the Attending Physician, and the United States Capitol
Police. When appropriate, we coordinate our efforts with the United
States House of Representatives and the agencies of the Executive
Branch. I am impressed by the people with whom we work, and pleased
with the quality of the relationships we have built together.
I am very proud of all the men and women of the Sergeant at Arms
team who help keep the Senate running. While serving as Sergeant at
Arms, I have seen their great work and devotion to duty. The employees
of the Office of the Sergeant at Arms are among the most committed and
creative in government. We are continuously building on the success
this organization has experienced in recent years.
None of our efforts would be accomplished, though, without the
guidance of this Committee and the Committee on Rules and
Administration. Thank you for the support you consistently demonstrate
as we work to serve the Senate.
SECURITY AND PREPAREDNESS
(Protecting the Senate and Planning for the Unknown)
In our security and preparedness programs, we work collaboratively
with organizations across Capitol Hill to secure the Senate. We also
rely upon Senate Leadership, this Committee, and the Committee on Rules
and Administration for guidance and support.
The SAA Office of Police Operations, Security, and Emergency
Preparedness (POSEP) represents the integrated plans and programs for:
--Successful execution of law enforcement support and coordination.
--Access credentialing of the Senate community, appropriate staff
from other government agencies, and members of the press.
--Security of the Senate as both an institutional body and a campus.
--Protection of Members and staff in the District of Columbia and
respective state offices.
--Counterterrorism measures taken to physically guard against attack.
--Continuous Senate operations during minor or major disruptions.
--Necessary testing, training, and exercising in preparation for any
catastrophic event.
Formerly composed of the standalone Office of Security and
Emergency Preparedness and the Office of Police Operations and Liaison,
these offices have been re-titled and restructured as Contingency and
Emergency Preparedness Operations (CEPO) and Law Enforcement and
Security Operations (LESO) in an effort to merge all SAA homeland
security efforts under a single operational umbrella. This
restructuring was undertaken in the fall of 2008 and continues to
mature, creating enhanced efficiency, unity, and collaborative lines of
authority.
Contingency and Emergency Preparedness Operations
Emergency Notifications and Communications
A robust number of effective notification and communications
programs have been designed to ensure devices and systems are ready to
support the Senate during emergencies. The Dialogic Communicator NXT
system now functions as the primary alert and notification system
(Senate Alerts) to provide a single interface for delivering emergency
e-mail, PIN, and voice messages to the Senate population. Message
templates and customized distribution lists allow quick dissemination
of important information and a staff training package includes step-by-
step activation procedures, visual aids, and login instructions. We
provided support to the USCP Command Center during the Democratic and
Republican National Conventions by configuring the Dialogic system with
convention-specific alert and notification information.
Monthly Senate Alerts tests for staff and biannual tests for
Senators are conducted in coordination with the USCP, Secretary of the
Senate, party secretaries, and other stakeholders. These tests are
designed to ensure our emergency messaging system is reaching all
intended recipients and are transmitted through e-mail, PIN, voice,
annunciator, and public address systems. Other means we have developed
for distributing emergency messaging services to the Senate community
include the Chyron Emergency Alert System. This is a text and/or voice
messaging service broadcast over the Senate cable television network.
We recently upgraded the system's capacity to include new cable
channels 37 through 60. Requirements for installing modulation
equipment were finalized in December and modulators which will separate
House and Senate channels and allow exclusive Senate emergency
notification broadcasts were ordered in February; equipment delivery is
expected to be completed in early April, and the system is forecast to
be operable at the end of April.
Accountability
The ability to account for Senators and staff remains a priority in
all emergency plans and evacuation drills. Several years ago, we
undertook an initiative to improve procedures for offices to report
accountability information to the USCP and the SAA quickly and
accurately using proximity card-enabled laptops and a BlackBerry-based
application that allows office emergency coordinators to account for
staff remotely. In 2008, we focused on training coordinators to use
these programs flawlessly. The backbone of this capability is the
Accountability and Emergency Roster System (ALERTS), which allows each
office to manage staff rosters and designate individuals receiving e-
mail and phone alerts. We train Senate staff and USCP personnel to use
ALERTS during individual and classroom sessions.
Training
Three distinct themes serve as the foundation of our emergency
planning training program and provide essential knowledge to the Senate
community regarding office emergency coordinator responsibilities,
emergency preparedness basics, and escape hood use. Additional training
courses focus on the specialized features of emergency preparedness on
Capitol Hill. We collaborate with Senate offices to deliver
personalized training specifically designed to meet staff needs by
covering such topics as emergency equipment use, emergency action
planning, emergency coordinator responsibilities, and preparedness
basics. During the past year we conducted 249 sessions with 4,359
attendees.
Emergency Plans, Operations, and Facilities
We continue to implement emergency plans that emphasize life safety
and continuity of operations to address Senate needs after a disaster.
We assisted all new Member offices in developing emergency action
procedures, taking into account that many of them were initially
assigned to temporary office spaces. As a result, each of the new
offices has functional emergency action plans, established primary and
secondary evacuation routes, mobility impaired evacuation procedures,
and a complete collection of emergency contact records.
Senate SAA and House planners joined forces with the USCP's
Emergency Management Division and the Architect of the Capitol to
establish procedures in response to respiratory threats requiring the
use of internal relocation sites. Select facilities throughout the
Capitol complex have been structurally improved and modified to allow
for short-term (2-3 hour) sheltering. We will continue to focus on
police procedures, signage, and subsequent staff training to fully
implement this capability.
We participated in the Emergency Management Task Force with the
USCP, House SAA, House Office of Emergency Preparedness Planning and
Operations, and Architect of the Capitol to prepare the Capitol Visitor
Center for opening. The group's primary focus was to develop emergency
preparedness plans, procedures, and joint training for the CVC by
preparing USCP officers and Capitol Guides, creating safety outreach
material, training staff and visitors, and developing general facility
emergency plans. Our role was to review egress capacities in
stairwells, identify potential chokepoints, and create visitor
emergency preparedness facts to be published on the CVC website and
included in brochures and guided tours. Layouts of the new facility
have been added to the Senate Emergency Action Plan and Member Office
Visitor Guide. To date, eight emergency phones for two-way
communication with the USCP Command Center have been installed and a
mobility impairment evacuation guide has been developed in conjunction
with House counterparts. We assisted Senate offices with moving into
the facility's expansion space by conducting 13 individual emergency
evacuation walkthroughs with more than 230 staff members. These offices
were also supplied with emergency equipment and received assistance
updating emergency action plans.
Exercises
Our comprehensive exercise program is structured to ensure Senate
plans are practiced and validated regularly. Every year, the SAA and
Secretary of the Senate conduct exercises in coordination with the
USCP, Architect of the Capitol, party secretaries, and other key
stakeholders. This year's exercise plan outlines a series of diverse
events to maintain and strengthen our existing capabilities, while
addressing emerging needs. A key area of emphasis over the last several
years has been the integration of several joint exercises with the
House of Representatives and other Legislative Branch entities.
We continue to conduct ``no-notice'' exercises to test select
functions at various locations. During fiscal year 2009, we conducted
exercises in partnership with the USCP, Office of the Attending
Physician, Secretary of the Senate, Architect of the Capitol, Committee
on Rules and Administration, and the House of Representatives. The
general exercise format included functional capabilities demonstrations
and tabletop scenarios. These exercises are designed to test the
Senate's ability to function during an event that requires relocating
the federal government. After-action reports are generated to document
lessons learned and improve future plans.
The Senate Chamber Protective Actions Exercise is a notable event
we led in concert with the USCP, Secretary of the Senate, party
secretaries, and other key stakeholders. This was the largest and most
complex chamber protective action exercise to date. The exercise used
two protective actions (evacuation due to an air threat and shelter-in-
place) to examine life-safety procedures and validate the new Chamber
Emergency Actions Guide. The guide coordinates staff action on the
Senate floor and areas surrounding the chambers. As a result of the
exercise, several areas of our plan requiring improvement are being
addressed. Three joint exercises are being planned with the House of
Representatives and other Legislative Branch organizations: Contingency
Legislative Processes, Continuity of Government, and Shelter in Place.
Office Support
Providing responsive customer support through training, equipment,
exercises, planning, and outreach to Senate offices and support
organizations continues to improve overall individual readiness.
Readiness equates to developing appropriate continuity plans and
emergency procedures, making necessary equipment available, and
training individuals on execution and use. Readiness involves ensuring
the Senate community is alert and able to react to any emergency event,
whether it be a minor service outage or a serious fire incident.
Each office receives an array of emergency equipment that is
distributed, inventoried, and maintained by emergency preparedness
staff on an annual basis and includes escape hoods, Victim Rescue
Units, Wireless Emergency Annunciators, and Emergency Supply Kits. Our
inventory ensures equipment accountability and functionality resulting
in the replacement of all expired batteries, food, and water in
Emergency Supply Kits during fiscal year 2009.
Another initiative has been to increase staff awareness and
personal preparedness outside the workplace. We developed a Personal
Preparedness Plan Tutorial allowing users to create, update, and store
a personal preparedness plan. The tutorial provides step-by-step
planning instructions and allows each user to create a customized plan.
A variety of security and emergency preparedness brochures and
publications have been developed and disseminated to continuously
educate the Senate community. Recent additions and updates include:
--Capitol Visitor Center Staff-Led Tours Z Card.--In order to reach
each staff member conducting tours, a foldout card was
developed to address safety procedures when dealing with
visitors. The Z Card lists prohibited items, evacuation routes,
shelter-in-place locations, alternatives for mobility-impaired
individuals, and safety measures to consider before embarking
on a tour. The Z Card also contains maps of all three facility
floors with stairwells, evacuation elevators, and exits
depicted.
--U.S. Senate Emergency Annunciator System.--We recently switched
from a wideband frequency to a narrowband frequency due to a
National Telecommunications and Information Administration
directive requiring transmissions to be on a narrowband system
by 2008. While the USCP maintains a wireless annunciator system
used to disseminate emergency information and situational
updates, we are responsible for maintaining and replacing units
throughout Senate office buildings including the Capitol and
Capitol Visitor Center. We surveyed the entire complex to
replace these units and updated the accompanying pamphlet.
--Equipment.--Over 18,800 SCape CBRN30 Escape Hoods are currently
deployed throughout the Senate. This number includes both adult
and baby escape hoods located in Senate offices and public
caches. We continue to conduct over 80 courses to train
hundreds of staff members to use this equipment appropriately.
More than 1,590 Wireless Emergency Annunciators are deployed
throughout the Senate complex. These devices allow the USCP to
provide verbal instructions to staff during significant events
and provide periodic updates. Our office provides daily
troubleshooting support for these devices.
There are 1,229 Victim Rescue Units positioned alongside escape
hood bags throughout Senate offices, in public caches, and
included in each Emergency Supply Kit.
We have additionally developed a program to review existing
continuity of operations plans that are more than 2 years old. This
initiative has resulted in more than 80 percent of D.C. Member offices
being equipped with modern plans that will allow operations to continue
in the event of a relocation. A program has also been initiated to
provide assistance in developing and executing tabletop exercises for
D.C. Senate offices to test their published plans. This program allows
offices to discuss individual roles and responsibilities that must be
performed in order to continue legislative and constituent operations
offsite. The Living Disaster Recovery Planning System is a new
automated program that is being tested and piloted, which will allow
offices to quickly develop Continuity of Operations (COOP) plans that
capture all aspects of essential functions and personnel
electronically.
Law Enforcement and Security Operations
Smart Card Programs
The implementation of Homeland Security Presidential Directive
(HSPD) 12--Policy for a Common Identification Standard for Federal
Employees and Contractors will significantly impact Senators and their
staff whose offices are located in federal buildings across the
country. While Legislative Branch adoption of HSPD-12 is optional,
compliance will allow Members and staff unhindered access to work
freely within these facilities. We are currently collaborating with our
Executive Branch counterparts to implement compatible access cards
during the 111th Congress.
Sophisticated Smart Card credentials can provide multiple functions
beyond current ``flash pass'' identification badges. The primary
movement towards Smart Cards is a result of Executive Branch programs
like HSPD-12, but potential uses within the Senate community include
secure network logins, digital signatures for financial documents, and
encrypted personal identification information. Although a substantial
cost is associated with system architecture, we will continue to
explore the advantages of Smart Card deployment.
The First Responder Authentication Credential system launched under
the auspices of the Department of Homeland Security outlines issuing
cards to individuals who require access to controlled areas during
emergencies. We envision limited Senate staff receiving these badges
during the 111th Congress and are engaged with our Legislative Branch
partners and other program administrators within the National Capital
Region to determine the Senate's involvement in this program.
State Office Security and Preparedness Programs
The goal of this program is to provide a level of security and
preparedness in state offices similar to Senators' Washington, DC
offices. We provide equipment, training, and consulting for secure
reception areas, access control, and duress and burglar alarms. With
over 400 state offices varying from single to multiple staff offices,
located everywhere from commercial storefronts to federal courthouses,
this is no easy task. However, these programs remain critical and have
been well received by state staff, even with their voluntary
implementation status.
We initiated the State Office Preparedness Program in January 2008
to provide an all-hazards risk assessment to each state office, a basic
set of emergency supplies, online and video teleconferencing training
tools, and a template to build customized office emergency plans.
Offices have the opportunity to verify compliance with Congressional
Accountability Act requirements when they utilize this program, and all
Senate offices have received basic equipment and general program
briefings.
Through the State Office Security Enhancement Program established
in 2002, we have conducted over 700 onsite physical security surveys of
state offices throughout the country. The results of these surveys are
shared with Senate offices along with recommendations for improvement.
State offices open, close, and relocate throughout the year, and
sometimes offices that have already received remediation choose to
relocate and require our services more than once. There are currently
433 state offices, of which 294 are located in commercial space and 139
are located in federal buildings. We have provided security remediation
in 73 percent of commercial offices and 57 percent of those located in
federal buildings. These state programs have received accolades from
Senate offices and we continue striving to provide a higher level of
customer service.
Senate Campus Access Accommodations
Our team collaborated with the USCP in fiscal year 2009 to
coordinate and approve 211 requests for vehicles requiring special
access to the Senate campus. This total does not include military and
government arrivals, which we also coordinate. Requests for access
continue to grow with the opening of the new Capitol Visitor Center.
Our office works closely with House counterparts to coordinate access
on both sides of Capitol Hill for groups with special needs who wish to
visit their Members or attend functions hosted by them. This service
involves working directly with Member offices and their constituents to
help resolve accessibility issues and create memorable, meaningful, and
safe trips to the Hill without compromising security. We recently
approved a new webpage designed to better facilitate accessibility
requests from Senate offices.
Campus Security Vulnerabilities
Our office continues to address security vulnerabilities throughout
the Senate complex. We anticipate continued analysis of various campus
security and vulnerability studies conducted by the USCP, U.S. Secret
Service, and the Defense Threat Reduction Agency to develop and enhance
security measures. Our office employs area-specific security experts
dedicated to identifying vulnerabilities and implementing solutions.
The Senate's physical presence extends well beyond Capitol Hill, making
it critical to engage in continued research, deliberate planning, and
exploration of emerging security technologies. We expect our security
role to continue to grow in fiscal year 2010.
Mail Handling
Last year, the Senate processed, tested, and delivered nearly
15,000,000 safe items to Senate offices, including over 9,400,000
pieces of U.S. Postal Service mail; over 5,200,000 pieces of internal
mail that were routed within the Senate or to or from other government
agencies; almost 111,000 packages; and over 130,000 courier items. The
total volume of mail for the past 2 years has been significant and
represents an 8.2 percent increase in the mail that we delivered as
compared to the previous 2 years.
We continue to seek improvements in mail processing and have worked
with this Committee to identify avenues to reduce our costs. Last year,
we began processing packages that previously had been processed by a
contractor. This move reduced our expenses by over $200,000 annually,
and improved our security as zero suspicious packages were delivered to
Senate offices.
This year, we further reduced our costs by leveraging technology
and improving our processes. We were able to reduce the Senate Post
Office FTEs by four, without compromising safety or customer service.
Recently, we employed a technology solution to replace the manual
``clip and jog'' process that has been employed for the past 7 years.
We worked with our science advisors to create a solution that is less
damaging to letter mail, without compromising safety to Senate offices.
We also worked with this Committee and the Committee on Rules and
Administration to build and operate one of the best facilities within
the government to process time-sensitive documents that are delivered
to the Senate. In August 2006, we opened the Courier Acceptance Site to
ensure all same day documents are x-rayed, opened, tested, and safe for
delivery to Senate offices. The number of time-sensitive documents
addressed to Senate offices is significant. Last year, we processed
almost 131,000 courier items to ensure safe and timely delivery to
Senate offices.
Last year, our Senate Post Office and our Office of Security and
Emergency Preparedness worked collaboratively with our science advisors
to develop and introduce the first device designed to provide Senate
staff who work in state offices a level of protection when handling
mail. To date, 52 Senate state offices across the country have the
Postal Sentry mail processing device in place. We have offered this
device to all Senate state offices and we remain ready to assist and
install the Postal Sentry in any office that requests one.
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
(Enhancing Service, Security and Stewardship)
We continue to embrace and enhance the role of technology to
improve upon physical and information security and life safety, to
prepare for emergencies and to support the entire Senate's information
technology needs. As in our other areas, we also emphasize
stewardship--the careful use of all our resources, including the
funding we are provided, our personnel, and the external resources that
we consume--in all aspects of our information technology operation.
As we do each year, we have updated and are performing under our 2-
year Information Technology Strategic Plan. The current revision, under
which we will be operating in fiscal year 2010, continues to emphasize
our five strategic information technology goals and their supporting
objectives that drive our information technology programmatic and
budgetary decisions:
--Secure: A secure Senate information infrastructure.
--Customer Service Focused: A customer service culture, top-to-
bottom.
--Effective: Information technology solutions driven by business
requirements.
--Accessible, Flexible & Reliable: Access to mission-critical
information anywhere, anytime, under any circumstances.
--Modern: A state-of-the-art information infrastructure built on
modern, proven technologies.
Our strategic goal of a customer service culture top-to-bottom
starts with our own staff. Our Chief Information Officer (CIO)
organization, in particular, is dedicated to ensuring that we foster
mutual respect and teamwork where every customer and employee is a
valued member of the Senate team. Major accomplishments in the
information technology area during the past year include:
--Making it easier for our customers to obtain cellular telephones
and BlackBerry devices by continuing to upgrade and improve our
online ordering system to meet the changing needs of our
customers. With the introduction of touch screen devices, we
implemented a loaner program to enable customers to ``try
before you buy'' ensuring that they are comfortable and able to
adapt to the usage differences required by the new devices.
Offices are then allowed to switch back to a more traditional
device with no financial penalty should the touch screen device
not meet their needs.
--Improving the ability of Senators, staff, and visitors to
communicate by increasing the capacity of our infrastructure
that supports cellular telephone, BlackBerry devices, and
wireless data networks into the Capitol and the Senate
expansion space in the Capitol Visitor Center. As part of our
Inauguration efforts, we temporarily increased system capacity
on the West Front of the Capitol to improve the probability
that guests could successfully use their wireless devices.
--Improving the experience of office staff as they accommodate the
required physical inventory of Senate assets by expanding the
use of barcode scanning technologies and developing electronic
reports that are immediately available to the office as the
inventories are completed. In keeping with our effort to
implement solutions based on supporting the Senate, work is
also underway to include features in TranSAAct that will allow
offices to maintain the user names and locations associated
with their equipment.
--Continuing to progress toward the implementation of our new
telephone system while ensuring that the existing phone system
meets the existing needs of our customer base. As the final
design moves toward approval, plans are in place to operate
both systems concurrently to ensure no loss of service.
--Making it easier for office administrative personnel to manage
their offices by deploying additional functionality within
TranSAAct, our Web-based system for managing office functions.
Some of the added features include access to Verizon Wireless
bills and accounts, which eliminates the need for paper
statements and allows office administrative staff to makes
account changes that formerly required SAA staff to handle;
access to indoor and outdoor parking allocations and permits;
and the ability to grant floor privileges and authorization to
make charges from the Recording and Photographic studios.
--Improving the functionality and reliability of Senate Conference
Services and Senate Fax Services.
--Ensuring that we maintain a responsive infrastructure for secure
communications by successfully completing the audit of secure
communications equipment that was mandated by the National
Security Agency.
enhancing service to the senate
(Customer Service, Satisfaction, and Communications)
Our strategic plan stresses customer service as a top priority, and
we actively solicit feedback from all levels and for all types of
services. For instance, we solicit customer feedback for every Help
Desk ticket opened. In major contracts that affect our customers, we
include strict service levels that are tied to the contractors'
compensation--if they do well, they get paid more; if they do poorly,
they get paid less. For instance, during the past year, the percentage
of on-time arrivals for the IT installation team never dropped below
99.1 percent. The percentage of Help Desk calls that were resolved
during the initial call averaged 47 percent, and 96 percent of customer
surveys rated the IT Help Desk and installation services as either very
satisfactory or excellent.
We continue to stress effective communications with our customers
through a well-developed outreach program that includes information
technology newsletters, periodic project status reviews, encouraging
customer participation in information technology working groups, weekly
technology and business process review meetings with customers, and
joint monthly project and policy meetings with the Committee on Rules
and Administration, the Senate Systems Administrators Association, and
the Administrative Managers' Steering Group.
Keeping Senators and Staff Informed
The Senate Information Services program continues to deliver
premium, vital online information services to Senators and staff. These
services range from the Senate's own near-real-time news tool,
NewsWatch, to mission-critical external research services providing
far-reaching current and archived news and general information,
historical newspapers dating back as far as the 18th century, federal
and state statutes and case law, regulatory and judicial updates,
Congressional news and current policy issues analysis, information
technology policy developments, and daily updated directories of
personnel in government, business, media, and professional
associations. Senators and staff accessed more than 3.5 million real-
time news stories and almost 2 million pages of Congressional news and
current policy analyses throughout 2008. During the same period, staff
conducted more than 15,000 hours of legal research, read more than
39,000 historical newspaper and journal articles, researched contact
and biographical information for 53,000 professionals in wide-ranging
disciplines, and reviewed newspaper content contained in almost 22,000
images from more than 400 local daily newspapers from the United States
and around the world.
Robust, Reliable and Modern Communications
The Senate data network supports the vast majority of our
information technology. As with other information technology services,
the data network is a constantly evolving entity that must be scalable
and robust enough to more than meet the increasing needs for
information technology services and solutions. Most critically, it must
remain available to ensure these services are reachable.
We have undertaken extensive efforts this past year to ensure that
the core of the data network environment is in position to meet the
rapidly increasing needs for more centralized data services. Our
efforts included enhancing the overall availability of critical
services such as e-mail and access to the Internet and World Wide Web
by increasing network capacity within the core and data center
environments, using a robust optical network between our primary and
alternate computing facilities. We also improved our ability to react
quickly to restore services following failures by decreasing the number
of exposure points outside the Senate's internal data network.
Consolidating the number of ``border'' points to a geographically
dispersed set of firewalls has allowed us to eliminate several
processes that previously required manual interaction that delayed
service restoral. We increased the level of availability of critical
services by dispersing them between two distinct sites. In addition to
enhancing our overall security posture, we have also more than doubled
our capacity for Internet services this past year by being able to use
what was once idle bandwidth at the Alternate Computing Facility. This
increase then provided the opportunity for adding services such as
high-quality video streaming of Senate committee hearings without
degrading the level of service our customers have come to expect.
To ensure we maintain a secure information infrastructure, the data
network and information security teams increased their level of
collaboration to ensure a more proactive and rapid approach to
identifying and resolving network-based vulnerabilities, as well as to
remain vigilant on the issues of protecting both the perimeter and
internal components of the data network. The collaboration has resulted
in more rapid notification and reaction to evolving threats, as well as
a more comprehensive assessment of security vulnerabilities affecting
major networking components. We also remain vigilant in our approach to
maintaining network-based access controls and, during the next year,
will be assessing technologies to further enhance our security posture
for managing remote access clients.
The Senate led a collaborative effort with the other Legislative
Branch agencies during the latter part of 2008 to enhance the
capabilities and resiliency of the common backbone between the
agencies--Capnet. This included the creation of a new common network at
the Alternate Computing Facility using optical connections from each
agency to the facility and dynamic failover mechanisms to ensure
availability and provide a more secure environment for inter-agency
communications. All Legislative Branch agencies participated in a
successful full-scale failover exercise in October 2008. This coming
year, efforts will continue among the agencies to facilitate an
increase in communication services over Capnet and to take advantage of
its high-speed conduit to enhance continuity of operations capabilities
such as alternate office space.
The network team completed the installation of wired and wireless
data network services to the Capitol Visitor Center this past year, in
preparation for the recent opening of this facility. An added benefit
of the work in the Capitol Visitor Center was to add resiliency to the
networks supported within the Capitol by dispersing the two main
distribution points supporting these networks and using diverse fiber-
optic paths to increase redundancy.
This coming year, the focus will be on further preparing the campus
network for the anticipated support of the Senate's new IP-based phone
system as part of the Telecommunications Modernization Program.
Already-planned enhancements to the resiliency of the access layer
switches and will give them the ability to power the IP-based telephone
sets much like traditional telephone sets are powered by the telephone
switch today. We will also refresh other network hardware, which will
be the first major refresh of this equipment since we acquired it in
fiscal year 2004.
At the end of calendar year 2008, we introduced a virtual server
environment to support the new class of Senators initially, with the
anticipation of expanding participation to all interested offices. The
centralized server environment provides great benefits, and it will
increase the bandwidth requirements on the data center network. To
accommodate those increases, we have begun upgrades to increase
capacity there and will continue this year with the overall backbone
network. Combined with the planned upgrade efforts to the access layer,
we will be in position to enhance the capacity to these locations as
necessary. This is not solely due to the virtualization effort, but is
needed to ensure support for a growing number of network-based services
that extend outside the individual offices' networks.
The wide-area network supporting state offices, commonly referred
to as the WAN, has also been a focus this past year in terms of
upgrading network hardware to meet expanding business requirements and
position the Senate for future capabilities. We upgraded the hardware
in almost 75 offices this past year and, overall, have completed router
and switch upgrades in more than 200 sites. In addition to the
immediate benefit of providing higher-speed access to staff in the
state offices, the new hardware positions us for future technologies
such as a secure wireless solution for state offices. This past year we
also installed higher speed service at the Alternate Computing Facility
to support the aggregation of WAN circuits, which provided a threefold
increase in available bandwidth. This positioned us to pursue
relocating replication servers from state offices to the alternate
computing facility, including 18 sites this past year and 40 offices
overall, thus preserving bandwidth to these sites for more critical
services.
We have continued to emphasize visibility and proactive management
of network services as key to the success of ensuring the availability
of network resources. We have increased our focus on change and
configuration control processes this past year. That focus will
continue to increase as more services become dependent on the data
network, including the advancement of IP-based telephony. The Network
Operations Center, which manages the network change process, received
more than 1,000 network-related change requests in 2008 and serviced
more than 950 requests for LAN connections, the majority of which are
associated with changes in the data center environment. These requests
range from minor modifications to major build-outs of new services and
does not include the various moves, adds, and changes within the office
environments that occur on a daily basis. The continuing evolution of
our data network further instills the need to continue properly
documenting and reviewing changes to the networking environment,
especially when supporting less-tolerant applications such as voice and
video.
The entire Senate enjoys the benefits of a modern, robust,
reliable, and scalable messaging infrastructure that includes built-in
options for continuity of operations, design choices, and a platform
for leveraging modern technologies to improve collaboration, mobility,
and communications. During this past year, we upgraded the messaging
system to the latest software version that provides additional features
and benefits for electronic mail users and reduces by half the number
of messaging servers required. We also provided single sign-on
capabilities and changes that allow us to deploy many solutions
centrally where they are available to all offices, thus reducing
development, deployment, and support costs. This year we leveraged this
ability to deploy Microsoft's Office Communications Server to allow
instant messaging and collaboration within the Senate and messaging to
external clients without the risks associated with other instant
messaging clients. More than 2,500 users in at least 30 offices
currently use the service.
We continue to make progress toward modernizing the Senate's entire
telecommunications infrastructure to provide improved reliability and
redundancy in support of daily operations and continuity of operations
and government, as well as to take advantage of technological advances
to provide a more flexible and robust communications infrastructure.
While conducting the final engineering and design phase of the
Telecommunications Modernization Project, we determined that some of
the proposed components should be replaced to better serve the Senate
and meet our functional requirements. Concurrently with this effort, we
asked a third party to conduct an independent verification and
validation of the proposed solution. After replacement products were
identified, the independent vendor endorsed the overall architecture
with some caveats and suggested additional considerations and best
practices before deploying the solution. These best practices include
process and operational changes, security recommendations, and the
suggestion to migrate our systems deliberately to ensure adequate time
for lessons learned and feedback regarding the impact of this
transformative technology. We are working to incorporate those
suggestions into the project. In late January, we received a design for
the system and have continued to work with our vendor to further
clarify and refine several design elements. We expect to be performing
proof-of-concept testing into late spring or early summer. The outcome
of that testing will result in a decision on implementing the solution.
To help ensure systems are kept updated, we deployed a server to
better make available software updates that come on disk. This solution
eliminates the need for mass duplication of system update disks by
providing the necessary files for offices to create disks on their own
or download the files directly without creating a disk. This solution
makes updates available faster and at a time of the offices' choosing.
In the past year we have significantly enhanced our
videoconferencing infrastructure by upgrading the systems which handle
video traffic routing. This upgrade has increased redundancy and will
enable us to further enhance the stability of the network through load
balancing traffic between infrastructure at the primary and alternate
computing facilities. This move also prepares our infrastructure to
support future converged technologies, which will use a new standard
for communications. Additionally, we have enhanced the scalability of
our infrastructure to handle up to 5,000 individual video call
registrations, a tenfold improvement.
Web-based and Customer-Focused Business Applications
Working with the other major stakeholders (the Secretary of the
Senate, the Committee on Rules and Administration, and the Senate
Chaplain), we launched a restructured version of Webster, the Senate's
intranet. The new Webster provides a more functional front page, a new
banner, and an improved look and feel. Included in the site is a new
method of categorizing information to improve search results and
content layout, making information easier to find and significantly
improving the user experience.
This year, we completed the third phase and began the next phase of
TranSAAct, which is our platform for moving business online. Based on
the business requirements of offices and the Committee on Rules and
Administration, we continue to develop TranSAAct to eliminate paper-
based manual processes and move them to the Web. Through TranSAAct,
administrative managers and chief clerks can manage and track invoices
for SAA services through a modern Web interface, and have single sign-
on access to 14 Web-based applications, including the ALERTS emergency
notification database, package tracking, and the Capitol Facilities
ordering system. The latest additions to TranSAAct provide the ability
to request services online and use electronic signatures for approvals,
eliminating paper requests and significantly streamlining the
previously manual processes. In addition to the processes for granting
floor privileges and authorizations to request services from the
Recording Studio, we added the processes for granting authorizations to
request services from the Photo Studio, real-time consolidated view of
outdoor and garage parking space allocations and permit issuance,
access to Verizon Wireless billing, and a comprehensive set of over 20
links to the services that administrative managers use the most.
Because it is built on an extensible modern database framework,
TranSAAct allows indefinite expansion as new requirements are
fulfilled. We look forward, over the coming months and years, to moving
additional business process to the Web, reducing the time, paper, and
errors associated with the current manual processes.
We developed and deployed several Web-based tools in support of the
56th Presidential Inauguration, including applications to manage the
credential approval process and help the Joint Congressional Committee
on Inaugural Ceremonies manage seating during the ceremony and the
luncheon afterward. Our efforts streamlined the credentialing and press
ticketing process by allowing the Joint Congressional Committee on
Inaugural Ceremonies, the Capitol Police and the Media Galleries to
approve requests for credentials for all applicants. The credentialing
application managed the entire approval process, including name and
personal information submission, data export for background
investigations, notifying appropriate parties of approval status,
allowing selection of broadcast position or access area, photo
acquisition and data export to the Government Printing Office for badge
printing. Overall, 10,137 credentials were processed and distributed
utilizing our application in advance of the Inaugural ceremony.
The seating management application provided Joint Committee staff
the ability to enter and manage data on guests of the 56th Presidential
Inauguration via a secure internal website, and to generate custom
reports and event timelines from that data. The Joint Committee staff
extensively used the application and this effort contributed to the
success of the Inaugural ceremonies with 1,578 seats assigned. More
than 1,250 guests were processed, including 148 packages or groups of
guests, and 186 rooms were scheduled for the event.
We also developed and deployed a new and improved version of the
Rules Committee room reservation system. The application allows offices
to view the 25 rooms under the jurisdiction of the Rules Committee and
request a reservation. The application has an approval process and room
availability schedule that allows the Rules Committee staff to view and
approve requests.
Finally, we deployed the infrastructure to support streaming the
video of committee hearings and other events in higher quality using
Flash Media, and developed Web-based tools that allow the Senate
Recording Studio to post archived committee hearings and send
committees the links to their archived hearings.
Showcasing and Promoting Modern Information Technology in the Senate
This past year, we continued to highlight new technologies in the
Information Technology Demonstration Center through a series of well-
attended demo days. After products are tested and validated in our
technology assessment laboratory, they are then available for offices
to try in the Demo Center. The demo days feature live demonstrations of
new and emerging technologies. Just to name a few of the new products
and technologies that we recently brought to the Senate, in the past
year we introduced the Office Application Manager, a secure Web-based,
user-friendly application that provides Senate offices the ability to
create and manage online forms such as service academy nominations,
flags, internships, and fellowships; a service that provides
information to system administrators about the computers in their
offices and the status of applicable security updates; an e-mail
archiving solution that provides an alternative to larger mailboxes
through a software application that archives and indexes aged e-mail
messages and attachments; and Research in Motion's latest 3G network-
hosted BlackBerry devices, the Bold and Storm.
In order to perform technology assessments, feasibility analysis,
and proof of concept studies to ensure we are considering technologies
that will directly support the Senate's mission, we continue to improve
the capabilities in our technology assessment laboratory. Technologies
and solutions are vetted and tested here prior to being announced for
pilot, prototype, or mass deployment to the Senate. To ensure we focus
on the most relevant technologies and solutions, the CIO-sponsored
Technology Advisory Group, consisting of CIO staff and our customers,
performs high-level requirements analysis and prioritizes new
technologies and solutions for consideration for deployment in the
Senate. Some of the new technologies evaluated and/or recommended for
support through our lab testing during the current fiscal year include:
--Enterprise class server virtualization to reduce the number of
physical servers we require;
--Tier 2 enterprise class storage, which greatly reduces the cost of
highly available, highly reliable centralized data storage;
--Enterprise instant messaging, a critical business communication
tool that provides all the customary instant messaging
capabilities, without sacrificing enterprise class reliability
and security;
--More than 34 new Hewlett-Packard, Fujitsu, and Apple portable or
desktop computer offerings;
--16 new Hewlett-Packard workgroup printers;
--10 new document imaging scanners;
--Nearly 600 Microsoft critical software security patches; and
--24 office productivity suite applications.
We will continue or intensify these efforts in fiscal year 2010 to
ensure that the Senate is always well equipped to perform its
functions. To keep our customers informed of our efforts, we publish
the results of our studies on the emerging technology page of the CIO's
area on Webster.
We continue to seek ways to improve our offerings to the Senate
community for their correspondence systems. Working together with our
users, we developed new, updated requirements for the Constituent
Services Systems to help keep them responsive to changing office needs.
By using new technologies to freshen the application mix, we are
ensuring that these applications reflect the evolving Senate enterprise
needs.
Enhancing Security with Accessible, Flexible and Reliable Systems
We continue to seek ways to improve the security of our technology
infrastructure in order to protect data, respect privacy, enable
continuous Senate operations, and support our emergency and continuity
plans.
This past year our CIO organization fully implemented a BlackBerry
scanning program designed to detect security intrusions on wireless
devices used during international travel. Increasing our education
efforts allowed us to find some potential security compromises on
BlackBerrys that were taken to foreign countries. A strong partnership
with the National Security Agency helped to mitigate the risk to the
Senate once the discrepancies were found. For staff looking for
additional protective measures, we introduced tamper-evident storage
bags into which they could place laptops or smaller wireless devices
when leaving those devices in a non-secured location such as a hotel
room. These relatively simple procedures have helped mitigate potential
damage that might have occurred otherwise.
We successfully completed the first audit in 5 years of our secure
communications equipment by the National Security Agency with high
marks from the audit team. The audit team found no discrepancies and
complimented us on our knowledge and control of secure communications
equipment in the Senate. We also continued our efforts to stay ahead of
end-of-life deadlines on certain secure equipment that will arrive
within the next year. We have begun upgrading firmware and replacing
secure key cards to ensure that, should an emergency arise, our
community will suffer no denial of service and will be able to
communicate securely with outside entities.
Alternate Sites and Information Replication
We are continuing to test our technology in scenarios in which our
primary infrastructure and primary work locations have become
inaccessible. This includes the simulated loss of our primary data and
network facilities, as well as simulated loss of staff work spaces. All
mission-essential Senate enterprise information systems continue to be
replicated at our Alternate Computing Facility (ACF), using our
upgraded optical network and storage area network technology. In
December, working with staff from the Office of the Secretary of the
Senate, we conducted a third failover exercise involving the Senate's
financial systems. Our CIO organization, including staff from all
departments and vendors, continued to conduct pandemic exercises. These
exercises demonstrate the CIO's ability to support mission-essential
systems with a minimum number of on-site personnel, and the ability to
support substantial numbers of people working from home. As a means to
further our commitment to ensuring customer service regardless of the
situation, the Network Operations Center (NOC) remains vigilant in the
organization's support of network resources by continuing to answer
service calls once a week from the ACF and by conducting periodic
``pandemic'' testing where support staff operate through remote access.
The NOC also rotates remote access and WAN services between the
alternate and primary sites on a monthly basis as a means to
continually test and ensure network availability and continue our
mission to provide access to mission-critical information at all times.
These exercises continue to be extremely successful and give us
valuable insight into how we would provide our support in an emergency.
This past year, our CIO organization also continued helping offices
protect their data by enabling them to replicate data to state offices
or the ACF through the remote data replication program. To date, 57
Senate offices and 23 committees are taking advantage of this program,
with 81 percent installed at the ACF and 19 percent installed in
Senators' state offices. Remote data replication provides the Senate an
unprecedented ability to access institutional data in the event of an
emergency. Another system that is integral to emergency planning,
particularly in the event of a mass telecommuting scenario such as a
pandemic, is our video teleconferencing system. We continue to maintain
a state-of-the-art level of services and offerings in our video
teleconferencing infrastructure. We have improved infrastructure
redundancy and functionality by incorporating seamless failover
capabilities and support for high-definition video. Through this
highly-successful project we have installed nearly 650 units in offices
across the nation with usage rates in excess of 35,000 minutes per day
when the Senate is in session.
Two (enterprise and hybrid) of the three architectural options we
offer for electronic messaging provide complete replication of the
office's electronic mail at our Alternate Computing Facility. Eighty-
six percent of offices are now taking advantage of the continuity of
operations capability inherent in the enterprise and hybrid options.
Also, the recently deployed e-mail archiving system provides complete
replication of electronic mail that has been archived to ``near-line''
storage media for long term storage.
Our previous virtual file server offering is reaching its end-of-
life and is being replaced with newer virtual technology, which is
addressed later in this testimony.
Securing our Information Infrastructure
As a result of the information security activities we described in
last year's testimony, we now have much better insight into the dynamic
nature of global cyber threats. This knowledge, combined with the
flexible technologies we use in our information security operations
centers, allows us to monitor and quickly respond to changes in IT
operational risk present in the Senate environment. Our active
prevention and detection capabilities continue to evolve. We are
deploying technologies and processes that will help detect and prevent
most malware infections and attempts to exploit vulnerabilities as they
are attempted. Our capability to detect and prevent attacks in real
time is crucial in light of the ``zero-day'' (previously undetected)
attacks that frequently target our computing environment. These
processes and technologies shield Senate information technology assets,
reducing operational impact on offices and accompanying downtime and
lowering remediation costs. We continuously adjust our controls in
response to new threats and make security recommendations to offices
and committees, thereby increasing the resiliency of the Senate's IT
infrastructure to ensure continuity of government, even under duress.
Similar to security in the physical world, protecting information
and technology resources requires constant vigilance and the capability
to detect and deter attacks. We operate in an ongoing attack
environment, as the threats to our information infrastructure are
increasing in both frequency and sophistication. We continue to see not
only ``general'' threats that affect all Internet-connected
organizations, but also sophisticated, targeted attacks originating
from numerous foreign and domestic sources. These attacks continuously
target vulnerabilities in our systems using many different infection
vectors and malicious programs, including viruses, worms, Trojan
horses, spyware, spybots, adware, adbots, trackware, keyloggers, and
rootkits. Countering this evolving threat environment requires
situational awareness and robust processes, as well as continual
research, testing and deployment of emerging security technologies.
Recently, infections have been highly virulent in nature and difficult
to detect because they exploit newly-identified or previously-unknown
vulnerabilities. We have determined that these attacks are probably
launched by determined and sophisticated adversaries, so we have very
little advance notice of new types of attacks. Responding to these
attacks requires significant investment in flexible security control
structures and processes that can be rapidly revised and adjusted to
respond to these sophisticated new threats. As part of this effort, we
are cultivating external relationships to improve our overall awareness
of Internet-based threats. As the global threat environment shifts and
intensifies, we continually modify our processes and technologies to
better protect the Senate's information and IT infrastructure. Over the
next year, we will meet the challenge of managing a dynamic security
environment by: (1) expanding our current security controls to enhance
our incident handling capabilities; (2) expanding the technical
capabilities of our information security operation centers; (3)
collaborating with other federal agencies to enhance our situational
awareness and incident response capabilities; (4) evaluating, testing,
and deploying new security technologies and processes; and (5)
enhancing communication with system administrators to help them improve
the security posture of their own information infrastructures.
In 2008, we provided an increased level of computer security
support to offices. We were increasingly called upon to help office
system administrators properly configure desktop and server security
controls and assist them in responding to security threats of which we
had notified them. Through our outreach program, we conducted training
for staff in nearly a dozen offices, regularly assisted with
orientation sessions for our own new staff, and produced a number of
new reference guides to assist staff in securing information and
technology resources. We also continued to work with system
administrators to promote staff awareness of threats to Senate
information, and to help them understand what they can do to assist in
reducing the risk from such threats. As part of the information sharing
process, we produced numerous blog entries, articles, and user notices
targeted at both system administrators and the general Senate user
population. As the Senate continued to employ cutting edge
technologies, we adjusted our processes and controls to ensure optimal
product performance and service delivery. We augmented both our
security services and security infrastructure. For example, over the
past year we upgraded our security technology monitoring infrastructure
to provide greater flexibility, improved utilization of our computing
resources, and enhanced our continuity and disaster recovery
capabilities. This infrastructure is very scalable, allowing us to
expand capabilities while controlling costs.
This year we have continued development of our redundant
information security operations centers. The mission of these centers
is to identify and understand threats, assess vulnerabilities, identify
failure points and bottlenecks, determine potential impacts, and remedy
problems before they adversely affect Senate operations. We augmented
these capabilities by collaborating with other federal agencies to
ensure that we have the most up-to-date information and techniques for
combating cyber threats. The combination of our information security
operations centers, defense-in-depth capability, enterprise anti-
malware programs, and centralized security update management service
has proven effective.
As outlined earlier, we must continue to remain vigilant because
the threat environment, as measured by detected security incident
attempts, remains very high. For example, every day our security
operations center detects approximately 28.6 million potential security
threats targeting the Senate, less than 5 percent of which are
characterized as high-risk based upon the possible severity or impact
of the threat. Our SAA information security staff handles about 40
security issues each month. We have also improved our capability to
monitor the Senate's information technology environment over the past
year. For example, our ability to detect, analyze, and categorize
security ``events,'' defined as instances of network traffic that have
the potential to cause a security breach, have dramatically increased
from 7 to 9 million per month in 2008, to almost 860 million per month
so far in 2009. During 2008, we upgraded existing equipment which
provides richer data feeds on the Senate network. These improvements
allow us to more clearly identify malicious activity, and thus, have
resulted in an increase in the number of events we have observed.
Looking ahead, we project that in-progress infrastructure improvements
will allow our information security operations centers to evaluate many
more events in a 24-hour period. This capability will help prevent our
systems from being overwhelmed during a widespread malware outbreak or
distributed denial of service attack, and will also allow for
significant improvements to our security monitoring sensor network.
Our anti-virus controls detected and countered nearly 52,500 virus-
related events on Senate computers during 2008. Similarly, our client-
based firewalls detected and countered approximately 52,000 attempted
exploits on Senate computers during the same period. Almost all offices
use our managed anti-virus system to detect and prevent malware
infections, and receive patches to repair critical software
vulnerabilities from our software update servers. These systems protect
more than 12,000 Senate computers from malicious software and other
known software vulnerabilities that would otherwise allow attackers to
compromise these systems. With this said, security controls best
prevent against unsolicited network traffic, which is to say traffic
that is not initiated from internal users. We have continued to see an
increase in infection attempts brought about by users opening malicious
e-mail attachments or visiting infected Web sites. While the Senate did
experience an assortment of viral infections on multiple systems in
2008, our security controls prevented any of these isolated events from
turning into a widespread outbreak. All our information security
monitoring activities are in compliance with the SAA's information
privacy policy.
Our new information security Watchstander role, patterned after
similar security operations center positions in other agencies,
requires around-the-clock availability of our information security
staff. The position provides the Senate community a central point of
contact when reporting and responding to IT security events. The
Watchstander also reviews and responds to IT security alerts,
suspicious activity bulletins, and warnings compiled by public and
private sources. Watchstander services include responding to office
complaints about e-mail spam, e-mail disruptions due to blacklisting by
external Internet service providers, and phishing attempts. The
Watchstander also creates user notices in response to warnings on new
vulnerabilities, and responds to reports of suspicious network traffic
identified by our information security operations center.
Emergency and Contingency Communications
This year we continued upgrading and testing our two Senate
emergency response communications vehicles according to a monthly
exercise plan. These assets are available for deployment with data
network, telephone, and satellite connectivity and provide the ability
to relocate significant information infrastructure virtually anywhere.
We also continue to train and expand our deployment teams, and work to
revise and refine our operations procedures for deployment of these
vehicles in support of the Senate.
During the year we refined the in-building wireless infrastructure
in the Capitol and the Capitol Visitor Center. This infrastructure
provides coverage in areas where it was previously poor or non-existent
and also allows Senate staff to connect back to their offices via
wireless remote computing. The wireless infrastructure also supports
the major cellular carriers, allowing Senators and staff to use the
carrier of their choice with the device of their choice across the
Senate campus.
As we continue to demonstrate during continuity of operation
exercises, staff can work and communicate from virtually anywhere at
any time. Because these capabilities are crucial to our ability to
support the Senate in an emergency, we continue to enhance and expand
these capabilities in order to support a potentially dispersed
workforce with the ability to telecommute. It also allows us to provide
employees with flexible work options on a daily basis and, by allowing
those options, keeps their remote access skills honed and ready to use
as needed.
Enhancing Stewardship through Fiscal and Environmental Responsibility
Stewardship of our resources is intertwined in everything we do, as
well as being a driving force for some of our activities. We are always
looking for ways to improve our processes or technologies so that we
save time, money, electricity, paper, or other resources. Our CIO
organization is a good steward of the fiscal resources of the Senate,
as they are consistently and continuously improving on the services
offered to our customers while seeking only modest increases in
funding. Many of their initiatives save offices hundreds or thousands
of dollars in costs that would otherwise be borne out of their official
accounts. As most of these initiatives save money due to a reduction in
the purchase of some commodity, they also fit in with our efforts
toward environmental stewardship. Some examples of our efforts to
enhance fiscal and environmental stewardship are:
--Continuation of our virtualization efforts, where we now save
$100,000 in annual energy costs and $975,000 in maintenance and
support costs by running more than 150 servers/services in
virtual environments. We will continue an aggressive campaign
to virtualize more systems.
--During the past year we replaced all Internet e-mail gateway
servers with new appliances. The appliances have a much smaller
footprint than the servers that they replaced, use much less
power, and provide more computing power than the older servers,
which allowed us to reduce the number of servers. The
appliances also come pre-configured so support is much less
labor-intensive. Addition of new appliances or upgrades to
existing appliances should also be easier. The overall effect
of this replacement project is a ``greener'' computing center.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pre- Post- Difference
Metric consolidation Consolidation (percent)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Power consumption......................................... 80,000W 32,760W -59
Number of servers......................................... 25 20 -20
Rack space................................................ 100 rack units 40 rack units -60
Heat dissipation.......................................... 136,475 BTU/hr 59,464 BTU/hr -56
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--The newly implemented virtual machine infrastructure allows us to
centrally host office file and application servers on shared
hardware at our primary and the alternate facilities as well as
consolidate the test and production servers we manage. The
infrastructure greatly increases server hardware efficiency
over both the previous virtual file server offering and in-
office servers, and through system duplication and data
replication, offers enterprise class data redundancy and
recovery in the event of a critical local failure or crisis.
The virtual solution will also relieve offices of considerable
noise, excess heat, and will increase usable office working
areas for staff. It removes the single point of failure from
existing office servers and meets continuity of operations and
data replication requirements for approximately half the cost
of existing solutions. To date, we are hosting 28 Senate office
file servers on our virtual infrastructure. Virtual servers
running in the Data Center consume only 15 percent of the
energy of a comparable number of physical servers. This means a
reduction in power consumption and air conditioning
requirements, saving Senate funds, while enhancing our ability
to provide reliable and redundant services.
--Adding network services to copier maintenance contracts allows
offices to consider purchasing a networked multi-function
copier that can perform print, scan, and fax functions rather
than having three separate machines. One machine doing the work
of three decreases energy consumption as well as consumable
costs. Because network services were previously a billable item
for offices, the initiative to bundle network services into the
maintenance contracts also reduces invoicing costs.
--We continue to upgrade and enhance the electronic fax system to
encourage offices to use this as well. Senate Fax Services
saves hundreds of thousands of pages of paper each year by
allowing staff to dispose of unwanted fax messages
electronically before they are printed, and reduces the need
for fax toner cartridges, which again reduces the need for
manufacturing and disposal of them, and saves tens of thousands
of dollars a year on their purchase.
--Online Verizon Wireless billing through our TranSAAct system has
eliminated a significant amount of paper. Each invoice was
potentially several hundred pages long and at least three paper
copies of each invoice were sent to the Senate.
--Scrutiny of our telecommunications bills for overcharges and
incorrect items has saved us more than $100,000 in the current
fiscal year.
We also ensure that the devices we recommend to the Senate meet the
applicable EnergyStar guidelines, and where feasible, the guidelines
for the responsible manufacture of information technology equipment.
IT security is, and will continue to be in the near term, a growth
area. We anticipate that the trend of cyber attacks associated with
geopolitical events will continue. In response, our operating model
emphasizes speed and agility and the ability to bring needed resources
to bear quickly. Our cyber security contract provides additional
resources to support this operating model. We continually work to stay
ahead of threats and put new safeguards in place to protect the
Senate's information and computing infrastructure. In support of our
efforts to increase both our analytical and defensive capabilities, we
are filling two new full-time positions in our IT Security Branch
approved in our fiscal year 2009 appropriations. We are also deploying
additional security mechanisms and other protective technologies in the
Senate network, which will enhance our ability to protect the Senate
from cyber threats, malware, and other network-borne threats that
originate from external networks. In addition, we are assisting in
efforts to integrate sophisticated security products and technologies
into the new telecommunications system, thus providing a monitoring,
detection, and active prevention capability that will further protect
us from current and future cyber threats and better satisfy the
Senate's requirements for voice communications privacy and reliability
Capitol Visitor Center
Our office has been involved with the Capitol Visitor Center (CVC)
since its inception. We have worked collaboratively on this bicameral
project with representatives from Leadership, oversight committees and
other agencies to ensure the design, construction and operational
aspects of the facility achieve the desired results. Our participation
and the challenges presented have been vast and varied, including but
not limited to: security; hours of operation; transitioning the Capitol
Guide Service; emergency preparedness; information technology;
furnishings for the Senate side of the CVC; Senate Meeting Rooms
design, set-up and maintenance; bus routes; Capitol tour routes; coat
checks; official appointments; accommodating visitors to the Senate
Gallery; broadcast media infrastructure; ATM service; telephone service
and other communications infrastructure.
We have several departments that have been impacted by the CVC.
Their operation and processes changed with its opening.
Senate Appointments Desks
To improve security and the flow of visitors to the Capitol, the
Senate Appointments Desk added two desks in the CVC, one located near
the main entrance and the other located outside of the Senate Meeting
Rooms on the lower level. Our goal is to process approximately 80
percent of the people who have appointments at the Capitol through the
CVC, reducing congestion within the Capitol and minimizing processing
and waiting time for our guests. We have maintained scaled versions of
the Capitol and the Russell Appointments Desks for visitors with
appointments with Leadership and for those who have appointments in
both the Senate office buildings and the Capitol. Our Appointments
Desks staff expanded from six to ten and we researched avenues to fill
these vacancies without increasing the Sergeant at Arms budget. The
labor efficiencies we implemented in the Senate Post Office enabled us
to transfer 4 FTEs to the Senate Appointments Desk team to fill the
vacancies created by our expansion of services to the CVC.
Senate Gallery Visitors
We improved the visitor experience for those who want to witness
Senate proceedings from the Gallery. We now process these guests
through the CVC, rather than the Capitol's North Door. This process
enhancement improved security, as well as the visitor experience, by
eliminating the long lines and congestion that had been commonplace
throughout the Capitol. Our Senate Doorkeepers team manages a staging
room in the CVC that facilitates the collection of Gallery prohibited
items and the movement of people in a secure manner. The staging room
and the surrounding areas offer our guests numerous creature comforts
and educational opportunities.
The number of visitors to the Senate Gallery has increased by
nearly 300 percent during the first 2 months of the 111th Congress as
compared to the same period during 2008. We expect this trend to
continue throughout 2009 and beyond. Despite the significant increase,
the feedback from our visitors has been extremely positive. Senate
Gallery visitors have complemented our processes, including the
elimination of long lines waiting outside in the elements, the speed of
gaining access to the Gallery, and the educational opportunities
afforded by the CVC.
This was another opportunity where our team was able to make
significant improvements without adding FTEs. Despite the fact that our
Doorkeepers' footprint of responsibility increased by over 70 percent,
we were able to improve our performance with existing resources.
The opening of the CVC has had a major impact on the duties of
Capitol Facilities. We procured and installed both modular and standard
furniture and relocated other office goods to the Senate Expansion
Space occupied by the Office of Police Operations, Security and
Emergency Preparedness (POSEP), Senate Security, the United States
Capitol Police (USCP), the Senate Curator's office, the Senate
Recording Studio, and Closed Captioning Services. We also procured
special event seating, tables and podiums to support ten meeting rooms
in the CVC that fall under Facilities' purview.
Capitol Facilities is responsible for providing planning assistance
for special event set-up, including tables, chairs, podiums, and
easels. We provide daytime cleaning of space occupied by Senate
Security, as well as the setup, take down and clean up for each special
event in the Senate Meeting Rooms. Our Facilities team assisted in the
conversion of vacated Capitol space due to CVC moves. This included the
installation of new carpeting and furnishings, as well as furniture
moving and deep cleaning of renovated spaces. Future expenditures can
be anticipated as the useful life of furnishings and equipment will be
determined by the frequency of use.
Virtually all of the Senate side of the CVC's IT infrastructure is
supported by the SAA. Maintenance initially will be minimal and will
not require additional FTEs. However, changes in requirements or
technological enhancements could require significant time and
resources. Additionally, as time passes, obsolescence and advances in
technology become issues that have significant impact on costs.
Recording Studio
Our Recording Studio is responsible for providing gavel-to-gavel
coverage of Senate floor proceedings, broadcasting Senate committee
hearings, and providing radio and television production studios, and
equipment for Senators' use. Last year, we televised all Senate floor
proceedings, broadcast 1,309 radio and television productions, and 885
committee hearings. The committee hearing broadcasts represented a 17
percent increase versus 2007. This trend continues with the 111th
Congress as, in the month of January, committee hearing broadcasts
increased by 86 percent, and radio and television productions increased
by 62 percent as compared to the previous year. This is another example
of where we have increased productivity by utilizing process
improvements and technology rather than adding FTEs. In coming years,
the Recording Studio will require new cameras in the Senate Chamber and
replacement of a satellite truck necessary for alternate chamber
broadcasts and other COOP events.
Committee Hearing Room Upgrade Project
Demand for additional committee broadcasts has been continually
increasing. In 2003, we began working with this Committee and the
Committee on Rules and Administration to upgrade and install multimedia
equipment in Senate committee hearing rooms. The project includes
digital signal processing audio systems and broadcast-quality robotic
camera systems.
To date, we have completed 21 hearing rooms, S-207, S-211, and we
are currently working on SH-219. Room enhancements include improved
speech intelligibility and software-based systems that we can configure
based on individual committee needs. The system is networked; allowing
committee staff to easily and automatically route audio from one
hearing room to another when there are overflow crowds. Additionally,
the system's backup will take over quickly if the primary electronics
fail.
As part of the upgrades, we installed technologies in our new
Capitol Visitor Center (CVC) Recording Studio to enhance our ability to
provide broadcast coverage of more hearings simultaneously without
adding staff. For example, the Committee Hearing Room Upgrade Project
will allow us to cover a hearing with one staff member. Before the
upgrade, three staff members were required to adequately cover a
hearing. These technology enhancements, coupled with the expansion of
the number of control rooms for committee broadcasts to twelve, will
enable us to increase our simultaneous broadcast coverage of committee
hearings from five to as many as twelve.
Migration to the Capitol Visitor Center
Our Senate Recording Studio was one of the first departments to
move into the recently completed Capitol Visitor Center. We
successfully moved from eight dispersed offices in the Capitol to our
state-of-the-art facility in the CVC. This move enabled the Recording
Studio to complete its upgrade to a fully digital, high definition
facility, which began almost 10 years ago. The Studio completed the
move of all aspects of its operation, including the engineering shops,
the Senate Television operation, Studio production and post-production
facilities, committee broadcast services, and all administrative and
management offices to the CVC by September 2008, when the Senate
returned to session.
Our new facility has received accolades from guests since its
opening, including Senate Leadership, Senators and their staffs. The
convenience of the Studio's location and proximity to the Senate Floor
and Senate subway is a benefit to Senators and staff.
We completed the move on time despite the challenge of broadcasting
ten pro forma sessions during August. We successfully used equipment
designated for Continuity of Operations (COOP) events to broadcast
these sessions, allowing us to exercise our COOP processes and
equipment simultaneously.
Media Galleries
Our four Media Galleries experienced one of their busiest years on
record and performed their tasks exceptionally well despite numerous
challenges. Changes in technology have created significant issues for
our Galleries as they seek avenues to accommodate the various new media
that have been emerging over the past 10 years. All Galleries have
worked to incorporate as many online and multimedia organizations as
possible within the current rules and structure of each respective
Gallery.
A significant accomplishment was expanding ``Wi-Fi'' to all rooms
occupied by Gallery staff and media. This was done in an efficient and
secure fashion. All involved worked very hard to maintain necessary
firewalls while providing the wireless access.
The Media Galleries moved their respective gallery membership data
files into online applications. This data is housed on more secure SAA
servers, is easily accessible to Gallery staff, and is available for
day-to-day credentials, as well as numerous upcoming special events.
Our Media Galleries work in some of the most beautiful areas of the
Capitol. Last year we renovated the Daily Press Gallery with a complete
remodeling of furniture, and installed the latest technology so that we
may better serve our Members and the media who cover the Senate. The
Senate Radio/TV Gallery Studio was also renovated in order to install
the latest technology and provide a modern look for Senators'
appearances on camera.
The historic 2008 election cycle was the major story that occupied
much of the news over the past 2 years. The declaration of six sitting
Senators seeking their respective party's Presidential nomination and
the election of two sitting Senators as President and Vice President
was significant and kept our Galleries busy. This story, coupled with
the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the declining economic conditions
created great interest among those in the media throughout 2008.
Election years require significant additional efforts from our
staff who work in the Media Galleries because, in addition to their
normal duties, the scope of their responsibilities is expanded to
making media arrangements for the Democratic and Republican Conventions
and the Inaugural Ceremonies. While our Media Gallery staff has worked
diligently on the Presidential Conventions since 1904, that role was
codified through legislation this past year.
Preparations for the 2008 Republican and Democratic Presidential
Nominating Conventions in Minneapolis, Minnesota and Denver, Colorado
began in January 2008. After months of working on preliminary
arrangements, workspace assignments, screening applicants, press stand
allocations, and numerous other logistics, staff were on-site at the
convention cities from mid-August through the first week in September.
Approximately 15,000 media attended the conventions. While onsite, the
Media Galleries allocated approximately 200,000 square feet of
workspace for news organizations. Additionally, they accredited press,
oversaw workspace, assigned positions on press and camera stands, and
distributed floor passes. This year, most arrangements for the
Democratic convention had to be done twice, since the first three
nights took place in the Pepsi Center Arena, and the final night was
held at a second venue, the Denver Broncos football stadium.
As soon as the conventions ended, our Media Galleries immediately
shifted their attention to the Inauguration. This year was
extraordinary: we had approximately a 400 percent increase in the
number of organizations who wanted to cover the Inaugural compared to
2005. Newspapers and reporters from all over the United States and from
countries around the globe applied for credentials. Between the four
galleries, roughly 5,000 media were on the Capitol's West Front for the
swearing-in ceremony.
After January 20th, the work of the Galleries was not done. The
first year of an Administration is always the busiest time for the
media, and this one, like the conventions and Inauguration, has had
more media interest than anything we have seen.
OPERATIONS AND SUPPORT
Capitol Facilities
Capitol Facilities serves the Senate community by providing a clean
and professional work environment through its Environmental Services
Division. The Furnishing Division provides creative framing services to
all Senators and committees, custom cabinets and other high quality
furniture, carpeting and draperies.
The Senate Expansion Space of the Capitol Visitor Center (CVC) has
impacted both the Furnishings Division and the Environmental Services
Division of Capitol Facilities. Through multi-year funding, furnishings
were procured for the offices located in this space. The Environmental
Services Division has accommodated the additional ten event spaces by
providing meeting planning through our administrative division and room
setup. Daytime cleaning is also provided for the Senate Security
offices.
The Cabinet Shop designer has been instrumental in providing space
planning for the Senate Expansion Space offices and the newly renovated
Capitol offices. Through the use of computer aided design, floor plans
were constructed easing the transition of Capitol offices into their
new CVC spaces.
An online request system known as CAPFOR (Capitol Facilities Online
Request) has been launched to provide online access for Capitol work
requests. This system provides an instantaneous way for staff to make
service requests and view photos of the office furniture inventory.
Capitol Facilities completed 5,000 service requests from staff;
planned and provided 2,600 setups for special events; constructed 140
pieces of furniture; and matted and framed 1,900 documents, photos and
memorabilia for Senators.
Central Operations
Printing Graphics and Direct Mail
The Printing, Graphics, and Direct Mail (PGDM) branch provides
high-level, direct customer support to the Senate community in
photocopying, print design, and production services. During 2008, PGDM
responded to customer requests for color printing by utilizing digital
and traditional full-color offset printing equipment to produce over
19.7 million full-color pages, an increase of 4 percent over 2007.
PGDM retained high levels of customer satisfaction through
maintaining reliable, user-friendly copiers in convenient satellite
copy centers which produced over 8.6 million copies in 2008. In
response to many requests, PGDM expanded its very popular microfilm
conversion service and produced over 551 CDs from microfilm, a 77
percent increase over 2007. PGDM also met growing Senate office
requests for report printing and produced 2.8 million pages, up 16
percent over 2007.
As a good steward of its own resources and that of others, PGDM
saved the Senate over $2.2 million in postage costs (53 percent more
than 2007) by pre-sorting 10.9 million pieces of Senate franked mail, a
126 percent increase over 2007. PGDM's commitment to teamwork and to
excellent customer service extends to our Senate partners as well. The
department's collaborative work with the Architect of the Capitol (AOC)
fulfilled 65,000 flag requests during 2008 and in tandem with the
Government Printing Office, delivered over 1 million documents (Pocket
Constitutions, Our Flag, Our American Government, etc.) to requestors.
PGDM's Senate Support Facility upheld the SAA mission for
operational security by receiving 65,425 items from the United States
Capitol Police Off-Site inspection facility and transferring them to
the Senate Support Facility in 2008. This eliminated 619 truck
deliveries to the Capitol complex.
Parking Office
The Senate Parking, Transportation and Fleet Office is a leader in
``green'' initiatives:
--The fleet includes 22 flex-fuel vehicles, two hybrid vehicles and
one electric car. In a collaborative agreement with the AOC,
eleven E85-compatible Senate vehicles have access to the AOC
E85 fuel station.
--Six motorcycle parking spaces were added on the Northwest Lower
Drive in 2008. In combination with 28 motorcycle spaces on Lot
16 and 12 spaces on Lot 12, this gives Senate staff more
choices when considering their commuting options.
--Solar panel lighting was added to Lot 18 to provide heightened
security and energy efficient illumination for customers.
Photography Studio
The Photography Studio provides photography and imaging services
for Senate offices, capturing 75,000 photo images and producing more
than 100,000 photo prints in fiscal year 2008. The Photography Studio's
popular image archiving service was used to scan, organize, and
transfer more than 113,000 photo images to portable hard drives for
departing Senators.
The Photography Studio is currently replacing the Photo Browser
application. After extensive research and evaluation of numerous
commercial off-the-shelf products, a selection was made and application
installation began in December 2008. North Plains Telescope is a fully
supported Digital Asset Management (DAM) product that is well-
architected and meets all modern, open architecture programming
standards. General Dynamics is working with North Plains and Photo
Studio staff to identify design and configuration requirements, and
plans to test the new application by June 2009.
Senate Hair Care
Following careful market research, Senate Hair Care increased
prices on selected services in July 2008. Within the following 7
months, revenue increased by $18,565 (7 percent) over the same period
in 2007. After listening to customers, services and retail product
offerings were also expanded to include more personal care products and
travel-sized items which keep customers compliant with Transportation
Security Administration security. Customers are responding positively
to the new services and retail products offered in Senate Hair Care.
CONCLUSION
We take our responsibilities to the American people and to their
elected representatives seriously. The composition of the Office of the
Sergeant at Arms is comparable to a number of small businesses, each
with its own primary mission, each with its own measures of success,
and each with its own culture. It has a fleet of vehicles that serves
Senate Leadership, delivers goods, and provides emergency
transportation. Our Photography Studio records historic events, takes
official Senate portraits, provides a whole range of photography
services, and delivers thousands of pictures each year. The SAA's
printing shop provides layout and design, graphics development, and
production of everything from newsletters to floor charts. The Office
of the Sergeant at Arms also operates a Page dormitory, a hair salon,
and parking lots. It provides many other services to support the Senate
community, including framing, flag packaging and mailing, and intranet
services. Each of these businesses requires personnel with different
skills and abilities. One thing that they all have in common is their
commitment to making the Senate run smoothly.
Over the past year, the staff of the SAA has kept the Senate safe,
secure, and operating efficiently. This Committee and the Committee on
Rules and Administration have provided active, ongoing support to help
us achieve our goals. We thank you for your support and for the
opportunity to present this testimony and respond to any questions you
may have.
Appendix A--Fiscal Year 2010 Budget Request
ATTACHMENT I--FINANCIAL PLAN FOR FISCAL YEAR 2010
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: OFFICE OF THE SERGEANT AT ARMS--UNITED STATES SENATE
[Dollar amounts in thousands]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fiscal year 2010 vs.
Fiscal year fiscal year 2009
Fiscal year 2010 --------------------------
2009 budget request Percent
Amount Incr/Decr
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Salaries................................................... $66,800 $75,044 $8,244 12.3
Expenses................................................... $83,472 $91,712 $8,240 9.9
----------------------------------------------------
Total General Operations & Maintenance............... $150,272 $166,756 $16,484 11.0
====================================================
Mandated Allowances & Allotments........................... $63,118 $55,114 ($8,004) -12.7
Capital Investment......................................... $2,315 $15,185 $12,870 555.9
Nondiscretionary Items..................................... $4,696 $6,450 $1,754 37.4
----------------------------------------------------
TOTAL................................................ $220,401 $243,505 $23,104 10.5
====================================================
Staffing................................................... 958 963 5 0.5
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
To ensure that we provide the highest levels and quality of
security, support services and equipment, we submit a fiscal year 2010
budget request of $243,505,000, an increase of $23,104,000 or 10.5
percent compared to fiscal year 2009. The salary budget request is
$75,044,000, an increase of $8,244,000 or 12.3 percent, and the expense
budget request is $168,461,000, an increase of $14,860,000 or 9.7
percent. The staffing request is 963, an increase of five.
We present our budget in four categories: General Operations and
Maintenance (Salaries and Expenses), Mandated Allowances and
Allotments, Capital Investment, and Nondiscretionary Items.
The general operations and maintenance salaries budget request is
$75,044,000, an increase of $8,244,000 or 12.3 percent compared to
fiscal year 2009. The salary budget increase is due to the addition of
five FTEs, a COLA, and merit funding. The additional staff will support
increased demand for services, as well as advancing technology.
The general operations and maintenance expenses budget request for
existing and new services is $91,712,000, an increase of $8,240,000 or
9.9 percent compared to fiscal year 2009. Major factors contributing to
the expense budget increase are equipment and software maintenance
costs for enterprise storage, $1,235,000; professional services,
software purchase and technical support for IT Security, $1,094,000;
escalating costs of the IT Support Contract and other IT Support
agreements, $844,000; smart card badges for the ID Office, $650,000;
and system design costs for the Senate services portal, $600,000;
system design services for admin systems, $553,000; and telephone
system maintenance, $551,000.
The mandated allowances and allotments budget request is
$55,114,000, a decrease of $8,004,000 or 12.7 percent compared to
fiscal year 2009. This budget supports state office rents, $17,644,000;
voice and data communications for Washington, DC and state offices,
$13,200,000; purchase of computer equipment, $12,315,000; procurement
and maintenance of office equipment for Washington, DC and state
offices, $4,665,000; maintenance and procurement of Member mail
systems, $4,500,000; and state office security enhancements,
$2,700,000.
The capital investment budget request is $15,185,000, an increase
of $12,870,000 or 555.9 percent compared to fiscal year 2009. The
fiscal year 2010 budget request includes funds for audio and video
upgrades for committee hearing rooms, $5,000,000; hardware for network
upgrades, $2,500,000; equipment purchases for the storage area network,
$1,600,000; replacement of printing equipment, $1,540,000; and state
office wide area network hardware, $1,150,000.
The nondiscretionary items budget request is $6,450,000, an
increase of $1,754,000 or 37.4 percent compared to fiscal year 2009.
The request funds three projects that support the Secretary of the
Senate: contract maintenance for the Financial Management Information
System, $3,427,000; costs related to the replacement of the Senate
Payroll System, $2,150,000; and maintenance and necessary enhancements
to the Legislative Information System, $873,000.
attachment ii--fiscal year 2010 budget request by department
The following is a summary of the SAA fiscal year 2010 budget
request on an organizational basis.
[Dollar amounts in thousands]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fiscal year 2010 vs.
Fiscal year fiscal year 2009
Fiscal year 2010 --------------------------
2009 budget request Percent
Amount Incr/Decr
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Capitol Division........................................... $31,307 $39,566 $8,259 26.4
Operations................................................. $42,827 $47,120 $4,293 10.0
Technology Development..................................... $47,877 $62,523 $14,646 30.6
IT Support Services........................................ $81,752 $75,368 ($6,384) -7.8
Staff Offices.............................................. $16,638 $18,928 $2,290 13.8
----------------------------------------------------
TOTAL................................................ $220,401 $243,505 $23,104 10.5
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Each department's budget is presented and discussed in detail on
the next pages.
CAPITOL DIVISION
[Dollar amounts in thousands]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fiscal year 2010 vs.
Fiscal year fiscal year 2009
Fiscal year 2010 -------------------------
2009 budget request Percent
Amount Incr/Decr
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
General Operations & Maintenance:
Salaries................................................ $17,537 $19,612 $2,075 11.8
Expenses................................................ $10,970 $12,254 $1,284 11.7
---------------------------------------------------
Total General Operations & Maintenance................ $28,507 $31,866 $3,359 11.8
===================================================
Mandated Allowances & Allotments............................ $2,700 $2,700 ........... ...........
Capital Investment.......................................... $100 $5,000 $4,900 4,900.0
Nondiscretionary Items...................................... ........... ........... ........... ...........
---------------------------------------------------
TOTAL................................................. $31,307 $39,566 $8,259 26.4
===================================================
Staffing.................................................... 287 287 ........... ...........
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Capitol Division consists of the Executive Office, the Office
of Police Operations, Security and Emergency Preparedness, Post Office,
Recording Studio and Media Galleries.
The general operations and maintenance salaries budget request is
$19,612,000, an increase of $2,075,000 or 11.8 percent. The salary
budget increase is due an expected COLA and merit increases, and other
adjustments.
The general operations and maintenance expenses budget request is
$12,254,000, an increase of $1,284,000 or 11.7 percent primarily in
support of the new smart card badges for the ID Office.
The mandated allowances and allotments budget request for state
office security initiatives is $2,700,000.
The capital investments budget request of $5,000,000 will fund
hearing room audio and video upgrades.
OPERATIONS
[Dollar amounts in thousands]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fiscal year 2010 vs.
Fiscal year fiscal year 2009
Fiscal year 2010 -------------------------
2009 budget request Percent
Amount Incr/Decr
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
General Operations & Maintenance:
Salaries................................................ $18,509 $20,358 $1,849 10.0
Expenses................................................ $6,876 $7,028 $152 2.2
---------------------------------------------------
Total General Operations & Maintenance................ $25,385 $27,386 $2,001 7.9
===================================================
Mandated Allowances & Allotments............................ $16,992 $17,744 $752 4.4
Capital Investment.......................................... $450 $1,990 $1,540 342.2
Nondiscretionary Items...................................... ........... ........... ........... ...........
---------------------------------------------------
TOTAL................................................. $42,827 $47,120 $4,293 10.0
===================================================
Staffing.................................................... 305 307 2 0.7
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Operations Division consists of the Central Operations Group
(Director/Management, Parking Office, Printing, Graphics and Direct
Mail, Photo Studio, and Hair Care Services), Facilities, and the Office
Support Services Group (Director, Customer Support, State Office
Liaison, and Administrative Services).
The general operations and maintenance salaries budget request is
$20,358,000, an increase of $1,849,000 or 10.0 percent. The salary
budget increase is due to an expected COLA, merit increases, two new
FTEs to support increased service levels, and other adjustments.
The general operations and maintenance expenses budget request is
$7,028,000, an increase of $152,000 or 2.2 percent. This increase is
primarily due to increases in equipment maintenance costs.
The mandated allowances and allotments budget request is
$17,744,000, an increase of $752,000 or 4.4 percent due to increased
commercial and federal office rents.
The capital investment budget request is $1,990,000, an increase of
$1,540,000 or 342.2 percent. This request includes funds for a color
network printer, $500,000; laser printer, $400,000; copy center
copiers, $200,000; and servers, $200,000; a digital printing and
processing machine, $200,000.
TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT
[Dollar amounts in thousands]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fiscal year 2010 vs.
Fiscal year fiscal year 2009
Fiscal year 2010 -------------------------
2009 budget request Percent
Amount Incr/Decr
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
General Operations & Maintenance:
Salaries................................................ $13,922 $16,306 $2,384 17.1
Expenses................................................ $27,594 $31,572 $3,978 14.4
---------------------------------------------------
Total General Operations & Maintenance................ $41,516 $47,878 $6,362 15.3
===================================================
Mandated Allowances & Allotments............................ ........... ........... ........... ...........
Capital Investment.......................................... $1,665 $8,195 $6,530 392.2
Nondiscretionary Items...................................... $4,696 $6,450 $1,754 37.4
---------------------------------------------------
TOTAL................................................. $47,877 $62,523 $14,646 30.6
===================================================
Staffing.................................................... 146 149 3 2.1
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Technology Development Services includes the Technology
Development Director, Network Engineering and Management, Enterprise IT
Operations, Systems Development Services, Information Systems Security
and Research Services.
The general operations and maintenance salaries budget request is
$16,306,000, an increase of $2,384,000 or 17.1 percent. The salary
budget increase is due to the addition of three FTEs, an expected COLA
and merit funding for fiscal year 2010. Technology Development requires
three FTEs in support of wireless network services and to provide
expertise in mass distribution of software solutions in the SAA LAN
environment.
The general operations and maintenance expense budget request is
$31,572,000, an increase of $3,978,000 or 14.4 percent. This increase
is due to equipment and software maintenance costs for enterprise
storage, $1,235,000; professional services, software purchase and
technical support for IT security, $1,094,000; and systems design
services for admin systems, $553,000.
The capital investment budget request is $8,195,000, an increase of
$6,530,000 or 392.2 percent. This request includes data network upgrade
project, $2,500,000; data network engineering, $2,200,000; upgrade of
the Storage Area Network (SAN), $1,600,000; and state office wide area
network hardware, $1,500,000.
The nondiscretionary items budget request is $6,450,000, an
increase of $1,754,000 or 37.4 percent. The request consists of three
projects that support the Secretary of the Senate: contract maintenance
for the Financial Management Information System, $3,427,000;
replacement of the Senate Payroll System, $2,150,000; and maintenance
and necessary enhancements to the Legislative Information System,
$873,000.
IT SUPPORT SERVICES
[Dollar amounts in thousands]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fiscal year 2010 vs.
Fiscal year fiscal year 2009
Fiscal year 2010 --------------------------
2009 budget request Percent
Amount Incr/Decr
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
General Operations & Maintenance:
Salaries............................................... $6,916 $7,669 $753 10.9
Expenses............................................... $31,310 $33,029 $1,719 5.5
----------------------------------------------------
Total General Operations & Maintenance............... $38,226 $40,698 $2,472 6.5
====================================================
Mandated Allowances & Allotments........................... $43,426 $34,670 ($8,756) -20.2
Capital Investment......................................... $100 ........... ($100) -100.0
Nondiscretionary Items..................................... ........... ........... ............ ...........
----------------------------------------------------
TOTAL................................................ $81,752 $75,368 ($6,384) -7.8
====================================================
Staffing................................................... 113 113 ............ ...........
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The IT Support Services Department consists of the Director, Office
Equipment Services, Telecom Services and Desktop/LAN Support branches.
The general operations and maintenance salaries budget request is
$7,669,000, an increase of $753,000 or 10.9 percent. The salary budget
will increase due to an expected COLA and merit funding for fiscal year
2010.
The general operations and maintenance expenses budget request is
$33,029,000, an increase of $1,719,000 or 5.5 percent. This increase is
primarily due to escalating costs of the IT Support Contract and other
IT support agreements, $844,000; telephone system maintenance,
$551,000; and upgrade of Postal Square voice and data cabling,
$354,000.
The mandated allowances and allotments budget request is
$34,670,000, a decrease of $8,756,000 or 20.2 percent. This budget
supports voice and data communications for Washington, DC and state
offices, $13,200,000; computer equipment, $12,315,000; procurement and
maintenance of office equipment for Washington, DC and state offices,
$4,665,000; and maintenance and procurement of Member and Committee
mail systems, $4,500,000.
The capital investment budget request is $0.
STAFF OFFICES
[Dollar amounts in thousands]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fiscal year 2010 vs.
Fiscal year fiscal year 2009
Fiscal year 2010 -------------------------
2009 budget request Percent
Amount Incr/Decr
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
General Operations & Maintenance:
Salaries................................................ $9,916 $11,099 $1,183 11.9
Expenses................................................ $6,722 $7,829 $1,107 16.5
---------------------------------------------------
Total General Operations & Maintenance................ $16,638 $18,928 $2,290 13.8
===================================================
Mandated Allowances & Allotments............................ ........... ........... ........... ...........
Capital Investment.......................................... ........... ........... ........... ...........
Nondiscretionary Items...................................... ........... ........... ........... ...........
---------------------------------------------------
TOTAL................................................. $16,638 $18,928 $2,290 13.8
===================================================
Staffing.................................................... 107 107 ........... ...........
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Staff Offices Division consists of Process Management &
Innovation, Education and Training, Financial Management, Human
Resources, Employee Assistance Program, and Special Projects.
The general operations and maintenance salaries budget request is
$11,099,000, an increase of $1,183,000 or 11.9 percent. The salary
budget increase is due an expected COLA, merit funding and other
personnel adjustments.
The general operations and maintenance expenses budget request is
$7,829,000, an increase of $1,107,000 or 16.5 percent. This increase is
primarily due to system design costs for the Senate services portal,
$600,000.
UNITED STATES CAPITOL POLICE
STATEMENT OF PHILLIP D. MORSE, SR., CHIEF
ACCOMPANIED BY:
DAN NICHOLS, CHIEF OF OPERATIONS AND ASSISTANT CHIEF OF POLICE
GLORIA JARMON, CHIEF ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER
Senator Nelson. Chief Morse.
Chief Morse. Good afternoon, Mr. Chairman and Ranking
Member Murkowski, Senator Pryor, Senator Tester. It certainly
is an honor for me to be here today.
I do have written testimony that I would like to submit for
the record.
Senator Nelson. It will be received.
Chief Morse. I also have a brief opening statement, if that
would be okay with you?
Senator Nelson. That would be fine. Thank you.
Chief Morse. First, I would like to make just two
introductions. First, to my left is the chief of operations,
our assistant chief of police Dan Nichols. And to his left is
our chief administrative officer, Gloria Jarmon.
Over the past year, several years, the department has
undergone many changes. While all of these are necessary to
move the department forward, I believe that our focus for the
next fiscal year will be one of leveling out our operational
and administrative activities.
FUNDING EFFICIENCIES AND ADDRESSING DEFICIENCIES
My direction to my management team is to focus on finding
efficiencies and addressing longstanding deficiencies to meet
the department's core mission as well as focus on
institutionalizing and standardizing repeatable business
practices.
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) and the Office
of Inspector General has made over 169 recommendations since
2005, which were intended to improve the department's
operations, and most of these were geared toward the
administrative operations. These administrative operations
encompass more than just how we manage our finances.
The audit recommendations cover how we maintain our
physical inventory, how well we control privacy information,
how well we secure our information systems, as well as how
efficiently and effectively we recruit, select, train, and pay
our employees. I am pleased to report that, again, we have made
significant progress.
We have now closed over one-half of all these
recommendations. This is despite the addition of 40 additional
recommendations this past year alone. We currently have just 85
of 169 still open and are in the process of implementing
corrective actions to close these in the near future.
Recently, we closed 16 Office of Inspector General
recommendations dealing with property management, the memorial
fund, hiring standards, and the student loan repayment program.
We also anticipate closing many GAO recommendations in the
coming months.
The department, as you mentioned, produced a fiscal year
2008 financial statement in time for a complete independent
audit, which resulted in the department receiving a clean
opinion on our financial statements for the first time in our
history.
We received reaccreditation from the Commission of
Accreditation in Law Enforcement after undergoing an extensive
onsite evaluation to review operations and supporting
documentation to verify that we have maintained compliance with
standards over the 3-year accreditation review period. This
confirmed the fact that we achieved mandatory compliance for
almost 300 accreditation requirements.
We issued our updated strategic plan and strategic human
capital plan, which will improve our ability to link our human
resources programs to our strategic goals and enable us to
measure out our staffing needs and progress much more
efficiently and effectively. We implemented effective business
practices and internal controls in our financial and human
capital resources, facilities, and information technology.
We reconciled our financial management and property
management systems and performed a complete physical inventory.
We aligned our salary and benefits data with the National
Finance Center. We revised our budget justifications to
incorporate strategic objectives, accomplishments, and
schedules consistent with executive and other legislative
branch agency budgets.
Finally, on the operational side of the mission, again, our
police officers and our operational civilians have once again
done an outstanding job representing our police department and
protecting the legislative process and all its members, staff,
visitors, and dignitaries. And I want to thank them today for a
job well done.
PREPARED STATEMENT
At this time, sir, I will answer any questions that you
have.
Senator Nelson. Thank you.
[The statement follows:]
Prepared Statement of Phillip D. Morse, Sr.
Chairman Nelson, Ranking Member Murkowski, and Members of the
Committee, I am honored to be here to testify before you today. With me
today are Dan Nichols, our Chief of Operations, and Gloria Jarmon, our
Chief Administrative Officer.
Over the past several years, the Department has undergone many
changes. While all of these were necessary to move the Department
forward, our focus for the next fiscal year will be one of ``leveling
out'' our operational and administrative activities. My direction to my
management team is to focus on institutionalizing standard and
repeatable business practices, finding efficiencies, and addressing
longstanding deficiencies to meet the Department's core mission set. To
do so, we have developed a budget proposal that I believe meets my
vision.
Our total budget request for fiscal year 2010 is $410.1 million.
This represents a requested increase of $104.3 million. Of this
increase, about 69 percent or about $71.6 million is for modernization
of our radio system and 20 percent or about $18 million is for items
over which we have no control such as cost of living and salary
adjustments, costs associated with the merger of the Capitol Police
with the Library of Congress Police, plus uncontrollable inflation
increases. The remaining portion of our requested increase is primarily
to cover additional positions to help us reduce the overtime that we
need to properly cover everyday post requirements, as well as to
address the lifecycle replacement of systems that have been deferred in
previous fiscal years. Due to the time critical nature of the radio
modernization project, we have also requested that the same $71.6
million be included in the President's fiscal year 2009 Supplemental
Request.
I would like to take a few minutes to expand on some of these areas
and provide you with the highlights for some of our accomplishments
over the last year.
RADIO MODERNIZATION PROJECT
First, let me address our request for funding to support the new
radio system. There are three critical life and safety tools that our
officers need in the performance of their duties. They are reliable
radio communications, weapons, and protective equipment. The radio
system currently in use is the only one of these three that we believe
may present an unacceptably high risk to the life and safety of our
officers, Members of Congress, their staff, family, and visitors, as
well as to our ability to properly respond to emergency situations on
Capitol Hill. Since the attacks of 9/11, the threat posed to the
Congress, the Capitol, and the Complex has changed significantly. It
has become much more critical for us to have reliable radio
communications that provide for interoperability between the Department
and our other federal, state and local law enforcement partners in the
area. As the scope of this increased threat on the Congress has
evolved, it has become increasingly apparent that our current radio
system, which is over 20 years old and experiencing multiple regular
failures, is not capable of providing the reliable communication
capability that we need.
In addition, we have recently received notice from the manufacturer
of our dispatch consoles that they will no longer be providing us
technical support because of the age of our equipment. These
circumstances create a substantive risk to our ability to properly
carry out our mission, especially during a time of emergency.
Increasing that risk is our lack of an interoperable system able to
communicate with other first responding organizations such as the
Secret Service, the Metropolitan Police, the Metropolitan Fire
Department and the U.S. Park Police. We believe this risk to be
significant and immediate. Another area of vulnerability is the lack of
encryption for our current radio system. This lack of encryption
enables our adversaries, the press and others to monitor our radio
transmissions, which has potential to compromise our mission.
To address this risk, the U.S. Capitol Police plans to procure a
VHF trunked radio system in order to achieve adequate on street, in-
buildings, garages, basements and in-tunnels radio coverage throughout
the Capitol Complex as well as our extended area of operation.
Therefore, we are requesting a total of $71.6 million in multi-year
funding for this project.
Because of the criticality of this requirement, we have expedited
our request for this funding by asking that it also be included in the
President's fiscal year 2009 Supplemental Request. The sequence that we
would otherwise follow would require us to complete the detailed design
and hopefully obtain funding in fiscal year 2010, and then procure the
necessary equipment and services. If funding is delayed (by a CR, for
example) due to circumstances beyond our control we would need to
suspend procurement activity until such time as funding could be made
available, and that would slip project completion dates accordingly.
If we could get supplemental funding in fiscal year 2009 rather
than in fiscal year 2010 it would permit us to begin the acquisition
process for segments of the project as soon as the detailed engineering
design is completed for each segment rather than having to delay all
procurement activities until we are able to obtain funding in fiscal
year 2010. By doing so we could begin to roll out these segments much
sooner than we would otherwise be able to do and consequently may be
able to shave several months off the time required to fully implement a
new system. Given the increased risks associated with the continued
problems we are experiencing with an aging system, we believe it
prudent for us to expedite our new system implementation as much as we
can.
We believe that the nature of the radio modernization project
comports with the intent of emergency supplemental bills, which
frequently fund ``pressing domestic needs.'' This new system is
critical to our ability to effectively address anti-terrorism, and the
continuity of government operations. The initial funding of $10 million
for this project was provided in the fiscal year 2007 emergency
supplemental bill because of the urgency associated with beginning the
planning and detailed engineering design of the new system as quickly
as possible. We believe that urgency still exists and justifies our
request that funding for the project be included in the pending
supplemental.
The requested amount of $71.6 million for the radio project
includes $4 million for the build out or construction of a mirror or
alternate site; $31.1 million for equipment hardware costs; $20.1
million for subscriber equipment; $9.9 million for travel equipment,
encryption, and professional services; and $6.5 million for contingency
funds for unforeseen conditions with strict controls on the use of such
funds. However, the Department's funding requirements for a new radio
system are estimated at $89.6 to $97.6 million, which includes the $10
million previously provided by the Congress for this purpose and the
$71.6 million included in this request. The remaining $8 to $16
million, which is expected to be requested in fiscal year 2011, relates
to the indoor coverage requirements, which cannot be finalized until
after the completion of the design engineering, plus project
contingency requirements.
The Department has evaluated a number of alternatives regarding how
to proceed with this critical procurement. We have also sought the
advice of various independent experts, who have advised us to enlist
the project management and related services of an outside government
agency with considerable expertise in technical procurements of a
similar magnitude. For this reason, we have established an interagency
agreement with the Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR). NAVAIR's Special
Communications Requirements Division has accomplished numerous
communications efforts for other U.S. government agencies, to include
the White House Communications Agency, the U.S. House of
Representatives, the U.S. Senate, the Department of Homeland Security's
Office of Emergency Communications and various other classified
efforts.
For this effort, they have already begun to develop a detailed
design engineering study of each building, garage, tunnel, and outdoor
site so we will have complete technical specifications for the project
once we have the funding and are ready to proceed.
OVERTIME/STAFFING
Our other area of requested growth is related to additional sworn
personnel, whom we would use to help us reduce the Department's
dependence on overtime in meeting our normal mission requirements. Over
the last year, we have continued to analyze and evaluate posts and
other staffing needs and have concluded that we could increase
operational efficiency through the addition of sworn personnel.
The Department has continued to approach its sworn manpower
requirements through a three-pronged approach. This approach includes
the assessment of threats against the Capitol Complex using the risk
matrix we designed in collaboration with the Government Accountability
Office, the physical security surveys we have conducted on the Capitol
Complex buildings under our jurisdiction, and the alignment of
available sworn staff to meet the threats.
The Department began the first step in this effort in fiscal year
2007 with a review of our overtime utilization in relation to mission
requirements. The review resulted in a manpower study that was
performed for us by Enlightened Leadership Solutions (or ELS).
We have begun to use the ELS study as a guiding management tool for
the alignment of functions and the deployment of personnel, but this
study does not represent a complete analysis of our sworn manpower
requirements. We will also need to assess the staffing requirements for
the Library of Congress and Capitol Visitor Center, since these
missions were added subsequent to the completion of the ELS study. As a
result, we are continuing to analyze ELS data, current threat
assessment data and the ability of our infrastructure to support sworn
growth, in order to establish and validate an appropriate staffing
level for the Capitol Police, as well as an appropriate level of
overtime. We expect this analysis to be completed no later than our
fiscal year 2012 budget submission. In the meantime, we believe that
our fiscal year 2010 sworn staffing request represents a reasonable
first step toward the proper balance of overtime and full-time sworn
staff and can be supported within our current infrastructure.
This year's request is an important step in an ongoing evaluation
that we will use to identify an overtime level that will be balanced
and more efficient.
New Sworn Positions
Therefore, we have requested an increase of 89 sworn positions in
fiscal year 2010, which includes 76 to help us to fulfill our current
mission while enabling us to begin reducing our use of overtime. The
other 13 sworn positions are requested in our Protective Services
Bureau for counter surveillance and investigative intelligence
gathering in order to conduct basic surveillance detection and field
collection operations across the Complex. This will bring the sworn
positions to 1,888 by the end of fiscal year 2010.
Our plan is for the new sworn officers we are requesting to enable
us to reduce the amount of overtime worked by most of our sworn
positions once recruit training is completed. Of course, there will
always be a need for overtime to cover uncontrollable protective
details of Members and certain intermittent work requirements, such as
scheduled events like the Fourth of July celebration. In addition,
unpredictable overtime to support events, such as unplanned late
Congressional sessions, Congressional delegations, unplanned special
events, unplanned major demonstrations, and emerging threats, will also
be needed. Scheduled and unscheduled events such as these will continue
to be staffed by using overtime, as they reasonably should be.
New Civilian Positions
In fiscal year 2010, we have also requested 48 new civilian
positions. Twenty-one of these positions are for civilian employees who
were formerly LOC officers, transferring to the USCP as a result of the
Capitol Police and Library of Congress Police merger. Several of the
remaining positions would eliminate our need to use contractors to
accomplish critical mission sets, as well as to address outstanding
audit findings. Additionally, four of these positions are to support
the Department's Office of the Inspector General.
Highlights
We recognize that our requested salaries and general expenses
increases are significant in today's fiscal environment, but we believe
these funds are critical to the Department's ability to efficiently,
effectively and--most importantly--safely perform our mission.
However, I believe that when an agency is making such a request for
increased budgetary consideration, we must also demonstrate to you the
value we bring to the overall community. Therefore, I would like to
provide some brief highlights of these operational and mission support
efforts to you.
Over the last year, the Department has made significant efforts to
review its operations for efficiency, standardize its business
practices, address its management and fiscal shortcomings and address
outstanding audit recommendations and findings. During this same
period, we also provided law enforcement operations for a number of
high profile activities, while continuing to provide for the safety and
security of the Capitol Complex.
Operational Activities
Nearly 400 officers and support staff participated in the law
enforcement and security activities associated with the Republican and
Democratic Conventions. These efforts included dignitary protection and
protective intelligence.
The Department played a key role in the planning and execution of
the law enforcement support for the 56th Presidential Inauguration. By
any measure, the Inauguration of President Barack Obama was historic
with an unprecedented 1.8 million people gathered to witness and
experience this historic event.
In addition:
--We provided security and counter-intelligence support for 63 Head
of State arrivals, 34 Presidential and Vice Presidential
Motorcades, the State of the Union, the Papal Visit, the 2008
Concert Series and over 2,000 VIP arrivals to include Supreme
Court Justices, Cabinet Members and other U.S. and foreign
dignitaries.
--We screened 8.7 million staff and visitors to the Complex,
including the Capitol Visitor Center (CVC) that opened in
December 2008.
--As a result of law enforcement actions, we confiscated several
handguns, an AK-47, a number of .22 Caliber Rifles, shotguns, a
BB rifle, ammunition, a sword, a night stick, several knives, a
bayonet, a machete, a hatchet, a stun gun, metal pipes,
grenades, pepper spray, mace, box cutters and razor blades, a
sling shot, a table leg and a baseball bat.
--We conducted over 163,000 K-9 security sweeps.
--We screened over 32,000 vehicles at our offsite facility.
--We conducted over 24,000 Transportation Interdiction Group
Emergency Response Team (T.I.G.E.R.) vehicle screenings, which
resulted in 11 vehicles being refused access to the Complex, 3
arrests and 104 citations.
--We conducted 3,500 foundation checks of the buildings on the
Complex utilizing the Department's mountain bike patrols
yielding 9 arrests, and 532 Notices of Interest.
--We conducted 3,800 hazardous materials/weapons sweeps and responded
to over 150 suspicious package and substance incidents.
--We conducted 90 emergency evacuation drills in conjunction with the
House, Senate and the Architect of the Capitol to ensure that
the Congressional Community is trained to respond to
emergencies.
--We completed 5,664 preventative maintenance checks on security
equipment, up from 2,229 checks in 2007, partially due to
delays in lifecycle replacement.
--We completed 7,172 checks on Barriers, up from 2,263 in 2007,
partially due to delays in lifecycle replacement.
--We performed 3,697 Magnetometer calibrations, up from 1,997 in
2007, partially due to delays in lifecycle replacement.
Administrative Activities
Over the last year, we have also provided a significant level of
mission support to the overall operational mission, and we improved
upon our administrative capabilities.
As you know, both the Government Accountability Office and our
Inspector General have made 169 recommendations since 2005 intended to
improve the Department's operations, and most of these are geared
toward administrative operations. These administrative operations
encompass more than just how we manage our finances. The audit
recommendations cover how we maintain our physical inventory; how well
we control privacy information; how we secure our information systems;
as well as how efficiently and effectively we recruit, select, train,
and pay our employees. Responding to these recommendations with limited
staff has been a challenge for us, but we are pleased to report that we
have made significant progress.
We have now closed about half of all these recommendations--this
despite the addition of 40 recommendations in the past year alone. We
currently have just 85 of the 169 still open and are in the process of
implementing corrective actions to close these in the near future.
Recently, we closed 16 OIG recommendations dealing with property
management, the Memorial Fund, hiring standards, and the Student Loan
Repayment Program. We also anticipate closing many GAO recommendations
in the coming months. We believe we are beginning to get ahead of the
curve on improving our administrative operations, and while we realize
we have a lot of work ahead of us, we anticipate more improvement as
the year proceeds.
Some of the best progress we have made in the past year has been in
the financial management arena. In order to achieve these results, we
focused on the hiring of a Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Deputy CFO,
Budget Officer, Deputy Procurement Officer, as well as several other
professional positions within the Office of Financial Management. The
hiring of these highly qualified managers allowed the Department to
benefit from their experience, talent, knowledge and understanding,
along with a high level of integrity that is critical to agency
operations. They have federal--as well as considerable legislative
branch--expertise, and we are optimistic that with this team we can
establish the practices, policies and procedures that (as this
Committee has noted in the past) we have been lacking. The professional
administrative oversight from these individuals, as well as the many
other professional and technical civilians within the Department, has
enabled us to begin to institutionalize an administrative operation in
the U.S. Capitol Police that will be as responsive, accountable, and
transparent as any in the federal government.
To this end, we have recently completed classes in appropriation
law for all of the Department personnel who have any impact on
appropriated funds. This makes it the perfect time for us to continue
to examine our procurement and budgeting standard operating practices
to ensure we comply with all mandates. In addition, we are now
ascribing salary data to the Bureaus and Offices that directly benefit,
and thus in the future, we will be better able to project salary data
and trends. Having tied our strategic goals to spending of our general
expenses appropriation in the fiscal year 2010 budget request, we will
be able to do this with our salary appropriation, as well, for the
fiscal year 2011 budget cycle.
Other administrative accomplishments and enhancements within the
past year have included the following:
--The Department produced an fiscal year 2008 financial statement in
time for a complete independent audit, which resulted in the
Department receiving a clean opinion on our financial statement
for the first time in the Department's history.
--We received reaccreditation from the Commission on Accreditation of
Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) after undergoing an extensive
on-site evaluation to review operations and supporting
documentation to verify that we have maintained compliance with
standards over the 3 year accreditation review period. This
confirmed the fact that we achieved mandatory compliance for
all of the almost 300 accreditation requirements and resulted
in the Department receiving its third accreditation award.
--We issued our updated Strategic Plan and our Strategic Human
Capital Plan which will improve our ability to link our human
resources programs to our strategic goals and enable us to
measure our staffing needs and progress much more efficiently
and effectively.
--We implemented effective business practices and internal controls
into our financial, human resources, facilities, and
information technology operations.
--We reconciled our financial management and property management
systems, and performed a complete physical inventory.
--We aligned our salary and benefit data with the National Finance
Center budget object codes to be able to respond to Committee
requests with more precision.
--We revised our budget justification to incorporate strategic
objectives, accomplishments, and schedules consistent with
Executive and other Legislative Branch agency budget reports.
Even with these significant achievements, the Department continues
to struggle to level off its administrative operations. One of our
biggest concerns is the retention of professional talent within our
civilian staff that we know to be necessary to move the Department
forward. We simply cannot sustain the turnover rates in critical
civilian positions that we have experienced in the past. By continuing
this level of attrition, we lose far too much in productivity,
institutional knowledge and employee morale. We need to be able to
provide the same flexibilities for our civilian employees that other
federal government agencies provide.
While we have authorization and often funding to provide
recruitment and retention bonuses, as well as to administer a Student
Loan Repayment Program and tuition reimbursement program, the
Department has either not had sufficient program staff onboard to
develop, implement and manage a best-practices program for each of
these areas, or the onboard staff has been overburdened with workloads
necessary to maintain other areas of the Department.
Additionally, we do not have alternate work schedule or telework
programs or an incentives awards program that provides for cash and
time off incentives, programs for which many federal civilian employees
have grown accustomed in their workplace.
All of these factors have contributed to the Department's
challenges in recruiting qualified candidates or retaining those we
currently have onboard. In fact, during our attempts to fill some of
the current civilian vacancies, the process has proceeded to the point
of selection, only to have the selectee decline the job offer when they
found out that the Department could not offer workplace benefits or
quality of life programs similar to those of other federal entities.
To address these challenges, the Department is working on policies
to administer these programs in accordance with applicable laws,
regulations and consistent with best practices. However, the Department
wants to be thoughtful in its rollout, so that the programs are not
compromised, which could result in additional audit findings and
stakeholder recommendations.
Additionally, we are planning our first all-employee customer
satisfaction survey, and have begun regularized exit interviews for
terminating employees to better understand how to improve the workplace
in order to retain our talented sworn and civilian workforce.
Another area in which we also hope to achieve greater efficiencies
is in fleet management. We are completing a comprehensive analysis of
our fleet services, including a cost-benefit analysis of leasing versus
buying vehicles, which we plan to present to the Committees for funding
consideration. This plan will focus on providing justification for the
fleet requirements, demonstrating areas where we have reduced or plan
to reduce the fleet, and it will provide for a 5-year fleet management
plan to meet the validated fleet requirements. This plan will also
address our efforts to make the fleet more energy efficient.
CONCLUSION
In conclusion, I believe that there is much work left to be
undertaken, but we expect that the combined efforts of many of our
dedicated staff will result in the continued transformation of the
Department into a more efficient and accountable organization.
Recognizing that the Committees have expressed concerns over the
last several years about the Department's leadership, internal
controls, and financial management, we have placed significant emphasis
on addressing these shortcomings.
Under the leadership of Gloria Jarmon, the Department achieved a
clean opinion on its financial statements 2 years earlier than
expected; our Office of Financial Management has become more efficient
and it has achieved staffing stability; we have addressed numerous
oversight studies and inquiries; we have developed a comprehensive plan
to procure and implement a new radio system; we have redesigned our
budget development and execution processes; we have completed
appropriations law training for all Department personnel who have any
impact on appropriated funds; and we have resolved numerous audit and
oversight findings and recommendations.
On our Operational side, under the leadership of Dan Nichols, the
Department has continued our efforts to find efficiencies in sworn
staffing and the utilization of those personnel resources. This effort
has resulted in a savings in the Department's overtime utilization.
All these achievements have been accomplished while supporting the
operational mission of protecting the Capitol Complex, providing
security for two national political conventions and supporting a
Presidential Inauguration of historic size and capacity.
It is through this leadership and the dedication of our employees
that the Department has been able to realize these achievements, even
with a large number of civilian vacancies and under a continuing
resolution. With a continued focus on addressing our civilian staffing
needs, balancing the optimum sworn personnel levels against overtime
requirements and resolving audit recommendations and findings, I
believe that the next year will see even greater efficiencies and
effectiveness from our team.
I believe that our fiscal year 2010 budget request supports the
goals I have stated here today. Please be assured that this management
team, with the continued support of the Capitol Police Board and our
stakeholders, is committed to moving the Department forward to meet
these operational and administrative goals.
I am happy to answer any questions you may have.
Senator Nelson. Senator Tester, do you have any opening
remarks you might like to make before we go to the questions?
Senator Tester. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I just want to thank you for the work you do, and we will
grill you on the budgets here in a bit.
So, thank you.
Senator Nelson. Thank you.
Ms. Erickson, can you discuss the project that you are now
working on jointly with the Sergeant at Arms to replace the
current Senate payroll system? How that will work and how it
will be improved, what it will cost, and how long it will take
to complete?
Ms. Erickson. Sure thing. Our payroll system has served us
well over the years, but it has been what we call patched and
updated to meet the growing demands of the system. And it was
actually brought to my attention by the Sergeant at Arms IT
staff that there are concerns that the technology--our payroll
system uses a mainframe technology--has a declining market
share these days. And as a result, there is declining vendor
support.
I felt that it was prudent to look ahead at other options
for our payroll system and had asked our financial clerk to
work with his counterpart, Jay Moore, in the Sergeant at Arms
IT shop to begin the process of looking at what is available
out there for technology that would meet the increasingly
complex demands of the Senate community.
Senator Nelson. In the improvement of that, will there be
some cost savings that are identifiable? In other words, will
it be not only more efficient, but will that efficiency
translate into lesser costs?
Ms. Erickson. Yes, I believe over the long run, it will be
a more efficient system. And as this subcommittee well knows,
our payroll system is highly customized to meet the
requirements of Federal statutes, title II. We have a unique
semi-monthly or 24-pay cycle. We have shared employees often
between Senate offices and committees. And we don't have a
uniform pay scale. We also have unique minimum and maximum
salaries.
So it is a very highly customized system, but I am
confident, Mr. Chairman, that the system will in the long run
be efficient.
Senator Nelson. I know that Senator Pryor is worried that
his check will come on time.
I am sure that you can assure us that there won't be any
slowdown in pay?
Ms. Erickson. I promise. I promise.
Senator Nelson. Good. For both Ms. Erickson and Mr. Gainer,
a question on evacuation drills. I know that we have from time
to time tried to go through evacuation drills to keep everybody
aware of what is necessary in the case of an emergency. And it
seems like it is a better process than the first time that I
heard officers running through the Capitol--near the Senate
chamber yelling, ``Get out of the building,'' which was fairly
mundane compared to what I think we are perhaps able to do
today.
Can you tell us where we are on the security that would be
involved to get people out of the Capitol in an organized,
prompt, and safe manner?
Mr. Gainer. Senator, thank you.
We have come a long way, I think, since the--one of the
first mass evacuations after 9/11 when I was the Chief of the
Capitol Police, when we had the incoming aircraft, Senator, at
Reagan's funeral----
Senator Nelson. That is the one I was referring to.
Mr. Gainer [continuing]. Which didn't go as smooth as it
would today. And what it meant was between the Chief's office
and our office and others was to put together programs and
practice those programs that would get as orderly an evacuation
as you can when everybody is pretty terrorized.
So we have plans. We work with your offices and staff so
that they understand those. There are plans for each one of the
offices, and we have been drilling those. And in fact, next
month there will be another drill on the Senate floor, where we
will exercise staying in place or evacuating. And we work very
closely with the floor staffs to do that and your office and
Nancy's and the police departments.
And we just had a meeting in the Secretary's office
yesterday, I believe, with the other officers of the Senate,
and we will come to each one of your luncheons--the Democratic
luncheon and the Republican luncheon--to give a little bit more
focused information for you as we do with your staff. So I
think we are actually in a pretty good place on it.
Senator Nelson. I have a question that was submitted to us
from Senator Inouye, the chairman of the Appropriations
Committee. He says that a few years ago, the offices submitted
in conjunction with the Senate Rules Committee, a contract for
a study of the Senate employees childcare center. Based on the
findings of this study, do we have a shortfall of adequate
childcare available to Senate employees, or is it okay? If it
isn't, what is the next step in addressing that challenge?
Ms. Erickson. Well, the Senate Rules and Administration
Committee asked my office in 2007 to conduct a childcare
survey, and it was the first survey that was done since the
childcare center opened in 1984.
And if my memory serves me correctly, I believe we had
roughly 3,500 Senate employees, including State staff
employees, who participated in the survey. And to my
recollection, there were roughly 850 people who responded who
indicated that they were using childcare services or plan to in
the very near future.
We do have a problem, particularly with infant care. There
are only nine infant slots. I have someone on my staff who has
put her name in the Senate childcare center and was told there
was a waiting list of 99 people for infant care with the Senate
childcare center.
It has been a problem for a long time. My baby, who is now
14, was on the waiting list back in 1994. He never got off the
waiting list. So I am empathetic to the young parents in the
Senate community who are trying to get into the center.
Some of the options that the study looked at were possibly
expanding the facility; collaborating with other childcare
centers, particularly those on Capitol Hill; purchasing slots
for Senate employees; providing specialized referral services
for our staff, as well as looking at other family friendly
policies; and providing folks, when applicable, telecommuting
opportunities.
My staff was asked to look at some property. There is a
townhouse located next to the childcare center that is
currently for sale. The assistant secretary and my chief of
staff went to look at the property. A follow-up visit was done
by the Architect of the Capitol's staff, who determined that
the row house would not be feasible for a childcare center.
One positive result of the study, I will say, is that it
prompted the Senate childcare center, which is a nonprofit run
by a parent cooperative board, to retool their admission
policy, which now gives preference to Senate employees.
Another promise that was made by the childcare center is
that they would increase transparency in their waiting list.
Unfortunately, a promised Web site that would give people who
apply to the childcare center a sense of where they are at on
the wait list hasn't been launched yet.
But I am, again, very empathetic to the situation. It is a
problem, and I am grateful for Senator Inouye's and all of your
interest in this issue and advocacy on behalf of young parents
in the Senate.
Senator Nelson. Thank you.
Senator Murkowski.
Senator Murkowski. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Nancy, you had mentioned in response to the chairman's
inquiry on the payroll system, explaining the importance of it
and the need to advance with the Sergeant at Arms. I didn't
hear if you mentioned what the estimated cost is for that new
system.
Ms. Erickson. I believe $2 million. Is that----
Mr. Gainer. If I may?
Ms. Erickson. Go ahead.
Mr. Gainer. Well, the initial funds we are asking you for
is $2 million. I think the total cost for its full
implementation won't be known until the first quarter of fiscal
year 2010. But we have discussed with the Secretary if that is
the case, if it gets much beyond where we are at, then we will
sit down collaboratively and see how we can come up with those
funds and perhaps not have to come back to you.
So we are aware it could be more, and we just wait to see
that final price.
Ms. Erickson. And I would also add we are obviously
consulting with your subcommittee, keeping you posted as we
learn more about the potential costs for such a system.
Senator Murkowski. Okay. So at this point in time, we are
just in the process of identifying----
Ms. Erickson. The very beginning.
Senator Murkowski [continuing]. What it is that we are
looking at there.
Ms. Erickson. The very beginning.
Senator Murkowski. I appreciate that.
Terry, let me ask you, you had indicated that after
conversations with the chairman--and this is as to the staffing
within the Sergeant at Arms office--that you were now prepared
to perhaps pull back on some of the full-time equivalents
(FTEs) that you had advanced. Now I just want to have a clear
sense as to what the staffing issues and needs are within the
Sergeant at Arms office.
You are proposing an increase in the salary budget of over
12 percent, and as I understand, you are requesting 878
employees, and expect to have approximately 824 onboard this
year. I can very clearly see, as you look at the numbers
advancing since the year 2001, you can clearly appreciate the
need for additional staffing.
But talk to me a little bit about why we would continue to
expect to see an increase. Since 9/11, it was about a 35
percent increase is what I understand. In view of that and
recognizing that at some point you expect to be tapering off,
tell me why I should expect to see continued increase in
staffing with each subsequent year?
Mr. Gainer. Sure. Thank you, ma'am.
We looked at it, and actually, over the last 6 years or so,
we have grown by nearly 100 positions. And it is something that
we continue to wrestle in this organization, as I have in the
others, and what I wanted and was provided a breakdown of where
those positions went. And the largest majority, as I recall, 60
went to our IT group.
And with this ever-increasing technology, there is the
requirement to manage it and care for it. So, in some respects,
to an old sociologist like myself--and cop--it would seem that
as we get the better technology, we should have fewer people.
Senator Murkowski. Right.
Mr. Gainer. But it just requires more sophisticated people
to take care of those things, and we keep adding IT
requirements. So, for instance, over those years, I think it
may have been the year 2000, I am not sure we had many
BlackBerries. We initially distributed 100 or so to the
Members. We now have 6,000 BlackBerries distributed to staff.
So when you add the computers and the BlackBerries and the
servers and all that is required, and especially the other area
is the security issue of our technology. We have expanded that
shop.
And I was reading in the New York Times today that the New
York Police Department indicated--this is related to security--
had 70,000 attempts per day to hack into their computer system.
In talking to our chief information officer, we may have 10
times that a day, people trying to hack into our system.
So we really have set up a large shop to counter those
types of activities. Now that is just an example, and we will
continue to work with you and your staff to point those out.
Other areas, 20 people went into the operations division,
and they went into printing and graphics. As I mentioned, it
was just a few short years ago that we had monstrous machines
not unlike that you see at the Government Printing Office, and
now it is technology driven. But with that technology and
maintenance, it requires a more sophisticated individual, and
those are where those people have gone.
And when I looked at these five, and again, based on
conversations as recently as Tuesday with the chairman, as he
did when he was Governor and I worked for my Governor, you have
to take some of this out of hide. So we went back and looked.
We saw that last year, we asked you for 19. I believe you gave
us 19.
We actually only hired 15 of those 19. One more I think is
in the pipeline someplace. So I challenged our own staff to say
we didn't even hire all the ones we asked for last time. Let us
take a look at what we are doing. As of this morning, we had
about 38 vacancies in our staff. I said, okay, let us see if we
can see where and how long we have gotten away with not filling
those and see if we can convert those to some of the new
positions.
So technology actually is driving the more people.
Senator Murkowski. Which seems counterintuitive.
Mr. Gainer. Yes.
Senator Murkowski. You think that if we have got the smart
technology, you don't need to have as many human beings behind
it. I would be curious to see a little bit more in terms of the
breakdown and where it is going. Just because the four of us
have new BlackBerries doesn't mean that we have got to have one
person to check up on each of the equipment that is out there.
Let us have a discussion, though, about these vacancies.
Now it was my understanding that there is somewhere around 50
vacancies throughout the organization. You say perhaps it is
closer to 38. And I appreciate the fact that you are doing a
specific assessment as to those vacancies. How long have they
been vacant? Can you do without them? How much funding could we
save if, in fact, we reprogrammed to other priorities?
Within these areas of vacancies, where are you seeing that?
You are saying that they are not in the IT area specifically.
So what aspect of the organization----
Mr. Gainer. Sure. Actually, I was looking this morning at a
spreadsheet, and I will provide that to you and your staff to
spell it out. One of the things I learned was we really got
behind with the--where our budget wasn't approved for about 6
months so we couldn't hire. That is how we got behind in some
areas.
And I think these positions are spread throughout the
agencies. And as I sit here, ma'am, I can't recite those. I
have a spreadsheet, and I will give it to you and your staff.
Senator Murkowski. Well, I have just been handed a
spreadsheet here, and it looks like there is a lot in tech
development and support services. But I think that would be
important to take a look at those and determine if we need more
folks now in the IT and tech support, okay, are there other
areas that are perhaps dated now? I think that is going to be
important as we look at the staffing.
I also understand that there have been funds available from
prior years, fiscal year 2006 through 2008, totaling over $17
million that aren't needed for the purposes for which they were
appropriated. Can you tell me a little bit about the status of
those funds? Why, what do you propose to be doing with them?
And do you anticipate that any of the funds provided in fiscal
year 2009 not to be needed for the purpose for which they were
initially appropriated?
Mr. Gainer. Well, the easy answer to the last one is,
first, we need to work with your staff to see how we can best
utilize those funds. And the other question we asked, Drew and
I did, how did we get to that position?
So, over the 5 years, we have developed that extra funds,
but also we should keep in mind that over those 5 years, we
were actually dealing and managing a budget of $750 million of
$1 billion. So some analysts might say a 3 percent overage is a
reasonable ballpark and has added up.
But I did get some specific breakdowns in unexpected
reductions in the volume of local and especially long distance
calls. So as I talk about those 6,000 BlackBerries, the upside
of the 6,000 are people are making fewer telephone calls. We
ended up saving $5 million in the last 3 years just on that
alone.
In the performance incentives in our IT contracts, when we
let those contracts, we assume that contractors will meet or
exceed the expectations so that there are performance awards in
there. And to the extent they don't, that again produces money.
And that was to the tune of about $2 million.
So I, of course, said to my CFO, well, are we bad
estimators or are we contracting improperly? And appropriately,
they educated me on the fact that the best business practice is
to assume that your contractor is going to meet all those
requirements, come in under funds, and come in early, and we
will owe them the incentive. So our preference would be to
continue to budget like that and not underbudget what a
contract may be.
Let us see, $1.5 million, a customer requirements change,
the cost of the equipment changed. And so sometimes, blessedly,
as the process is delayed from the day you order it, envision
it to 3 years later, it becomes cheaper. And we have picked up
some funds that way.
But clearly, that is money we all need to look at to see if
that can help all of us out in this fiscal year.
Senator Murkowski. Mr. Chairman, I have other questions for
Chief Morse, but in deference to my colleagues, I will yield to
them at this time.
Senator Nelson. Thank you.
Senator Pryor.
Senator Pryor. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Now I understand that Senator Tester may have to leave at
3:30 p.m.? Do you want to--why don't you go first?
Senator Tester. If you would be so kind? Thank you very
much. I owe you--hopefully not too much.
RADIO MODERNIZATION PROGRAM
The question I have deals about the radio modernization
program. Terry, you talked about it in your testimony. Chief
Morse, you talked about it in your testimony. Where is the
money? Which budget is it coming out of?
Chief Morse. Thank you, Mr. Tester.
We have also requested funding for the radio modernization
program in the supplemental. The reason that we have----
Senator Tester. Is that the $71.6 million?
Chief Morse. Yes, sir.
Senator Tester. Okay.
Chief Morse. The reason we have requested in the
supplemental is due to the criticality of the system itself. It
is one of our critical life safety tools, communication. And
the immediacy in which we can begin to purchase technical
equipment and such, the supplemental would help us to do that
in a more timely fashion.
Senator Tester. And that takes care of the entire project?
Is there money that comes out of your budget for 2010 also, or
is it just the supplemental dollars?
Chief Morse. The supplemental dollars take care of the
project.
Senator Tester. Okay. Any out of your budget, Terry?
Mr. Gainer. No, sir.
Senator Tester. Okay. If you look at your budget, Nancy, it
shows an increase of about $2 million, if I am correct----
Ms. Erickson. Actually, sir, I am not requesting an
increase in my operating budget. It will remain the same at $2
million.
Senator Tester. Okay.
Senator Nelson. No increase, yes.
Ms. Erickson. But an increase in the salaried portion of
the budget, roughly $1.7 million.
Senator Tester. Okay. So the budget for--let us go this
way. The budget for fiscal year 2010 is at $27.790 million,
includes $25.790 million in salary costs and $2 million for
operating budget. And then the salary budget increases of about
$1.770 million. That is outside the $2 million for the
operating budget?
Ms. Erickson. Yes.
Senator Tester. Okay. All right. What was your budget in
2009?
Ms. Erickson. Our budget for operating costs was at $2
million. So we are requesting the same level of funding that we
requested last year.
Senator Tester. Okay, and what was your salary?
Ms. Erickson. And the salary budget is $1.7 million more
this year, which consists of providing a cost-of-living (COLA)
benefit for employees.
Senator Tester. Right. So your budget this year is $1.7
million higher than over last year?
Ms. Erickson. Roughly a 7 percent----
Senator Tester. Seven percent? Seven percent, is that what
the----
Ms. Erickson. Right.
Senator Tester. All right. The issue of the five FTEs, what
kind of savings does that represent of budget?
Mr. Gainer. Approximately, I think the salary savings was
$400,000. That would----
Senator Tester. Is there any other savings that will accrue
from that, those five FTEs that you are going to pull out?
Mr. Gainer. I am guessing out-year merit issues and other
pay adjustments would be affected by that. But the basic salary
and the COLA would be saved. So probably just close to
$500,000.
Senator Tester. Oh, okay. All right. Thank you.
The payroll system, if I heard the answer to the question
of Senator Murkowski, was that this was going to be a study to
see what kind of payroll system you needed?
Ms. Erickson. Right. I think it is important that we not
rush ahead, that we take our time.
Senator Tester. As do I. The question is, is how old is the
one you have got now?
Ms. Erickson. Chris, how old?
Mr. Doby. Twenty plus years.
Ms. Erickson. Twenty plus years.
Senator Tester. Twenty plus years. All right. And do you--
and this applies to all three of the entities. Do you do long-
range planning for these kind of things? In other words,
payroll is something that is going to be around for a while.
And your payroll system, once you get this one in, it is going
to be obsolete after x number of years.
The same thing could be said about the radios. The same
thing could be said just about everything. I mean, it all is
going to wear out. It is going to become obsolete. Do you have
those kind of things within your budget that you set aside so
much for obsolescence?
Ms. Erickson. Well, the payroll issue was brought to my
attention this last year. But----
Senator Tester. I should ask to begin with, can you even do
that?
Ms. Erickson. Can I do that? Well, the two systems that I
would think of that would be our payroll system and then our
financial management information system (FMIS) system, which is
a Web-based system for creating and processing vouchers.
But I do think that we can do a better job of long-range
planning, and that is my concern with the payroll system is
that it is an old system. And I would hate to have the Senate
in a position where something happens to the system and we
hadn't done our job to look ahead.
Senator Tester. Right. I understand. But currently, it is
not a matter of practice to--and this is a revolving thing. You
don't have this job forever. So, I mean, but there is not a
system in place where you plan for that right now, at least not
in your office?
And I mean, it is not a negative thing if that is the way
it is. But if that is the way it is, that is the way it is. I
am just curious.
Ms. Erickson. Yes. I think we can do a better job of long-
range planning.
Senator Tester. Okay. Terry.
Mr. Gainer. Yes, we do. And in fact, as part of this
budget, I am trying to do some quick numbers on your question.
It might be as much as $10 million is built in there to replace
and upgrade equipment or replace printing equipment or other
items. And I can get more specific.
Senator Tester. Okay.
Mr. Gainer. And we do have kind of a 5-year vision of how
those affects----
Senator Tester. Is that public information? Can I get that?
Mr. Gainer. Yes. You sure can, Senator.
Senator Tester. Okay.
[The information follows:]
FINANCIAL PLAN FOR FISCAL YEAR 2010--EVERGREEN BUDGET BY EXPENSE TYPE
[Dollars in thousands]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
111th Congress 112th Congress 113th Congress
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Fiscal Fiscal Fiscal Fiscal Fiscal Fiscal
year 2009 year 2010 year 2011 year 2012 year 2013 year 2014
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Operations and Maintenance:
Salaries.................................. 66,800 75,044 80,414 86,225 92,260 98,719
Expenses.................................. 83,472 91,712 97,867 101,388 96,722 100,762
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Total Operations and Maintenance........ 150,272 166,756 178,281 187,613 188,982 199,481
=================================================================
Allowances and Allotments..................... 63,118 55,114 55,460 55,826 56,591 57,291
Capital Investments........................... 2,315 15,185 7,982 12,100 8,800 5,821
Nondiscretionary Items........................ 4,696 6,450 9,982 10,073 6,145 6,210
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Grand Total............................. 220,401 243,505 251,705 265,612 260,518 268,803
=================================================================
Staffing...................................... 958 963 964 966 966 966
=================================================================
Totals:
Salaries.................................. 66,800 75,044 80,414 86,225 92,260 98,719
Expenses.................................. 153,601 168,461 171,291 179,387 168,258 170,084
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Total Salaries and Expenses............. 220,401 243,505 251,705 265,612 260,518 268,803
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Senator Tester. Chief Morse.
Chief Morse. Yes. We strategically plan in our budget for
lifecycle replacement with the things that we know will become
obsolete or wear out. The radio system, of course, is a more
robust system that lasts longer than most technology.
Senator Tester. I understand. Do you have the same kind of
situation as Terry has? Do you have a 5-year plan or a 10-year
plan or longer than that as far as replacement of equipment in
your agency?
Chief Morse. We do. It may be equipment or technology
specific, but we do look at each item and strategically plan
for when it will need to be replaced in the budget.
Senator Tester. Is that something I can lay my hands on?
Chief Morse. Yes.
Senator Tester. And it is not that I want to micromanage
anybody's agencies. I don't. I just am curious to see where you
guys put your priorities.
Chief Morse. Okay. Thank you.
Senator Tester. Thank you very much.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Nelson. Now Senator Pryor.
Senator Pryor. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Let me start, if I may, with you, Ms. Erickson, about the
daycare center. The Rules Committee, which we are members of,
asked was it last year to review and evaluate what is going on
with the daycare center and to come back with some
recommendations. What is the current policy about former staff
members being able to have their children in the daycare
center?
Ms. Erickson. Well, it is my understanding that the policy,
the current policy is that Senate--a sibling of a current
Senate employee's child or Senate childcare employee's child
already in the center has preference, followed by a child of
Senate or childcare center employees. After that preference is
given to a sibling of a child already enrolled in the center
who has a parent employed by another legislative branch agency,
followed by a child of an employee of another legislative
branch agency. Children whose parents are not employed by the
legislative branch are further down on the order of preference.
But that wasn't the case before the study. So you had the
situation where former staffers who had left the Hill and were
lobbyists, for example, had their children enrolled in the
center ahead of current Senate employees.
Senator Pryor. My understanding, though, is there are still
22 children enrolled that are children of former staffers. Do
you know?
Ms. Erickson. I can get that information and follow up with
you. But I believe that there are children that have worked
their way up into the system that are still there.
Senator Pryor. That are of former staffers?
Ms. Erickson. Yes.
Senator Pryor. Okay, yes, I would like to know that. But
the policy is that if they are former staffers, they shouldn't
be there. Am I wrong on that?
Ms. Erickson. Well, that would be a decision for the parent
board, the cooperative board that runs the childcare center
with oversight of the Senate Rules Committee.
Senator Pryor. Okay. I would like to know----
Ms. Erickson. But I would share your--I mean, my personal
opinion is obviously that the current Senate employees should
be given preference.
Senator Pryor. Right. Yes, I would like to know the facts
on that, if I may? If you could provide that, I would
appreciate it.
[The information follows:]
[From Senate Employee's Child Care Center Parent Handbook--2009-2010
School Year]
ENROLLMENT AND WAIT LIST INFORMATION
Applications for enrollment will be considered without regard to
race, color, national origin, religion, sex, or disability.
A wait list has been established to accommodate the demand for
child care. Placement on the wait list is determined by (1) priority
ranking, which is based upon where the parent(s) are employed; (2)
registration date, which is the date your check for your wait list
registration fee and your annual Corporation membership fee are
received at the SECCC (details below); and (3) the age range of the
vacancy to be filled. Unfortunately, not all applicants will be able to
enroll because the demand for child care exceeds the current
availability. Parents are therefore encouraged to place their child,
expected child, or adoptive child (completed or in a formal adoption
process) on the wait list at the earliest possible date to increase the
likelihood that a space will be available at the Center when needed.
You must have a child, be pregnant or be in a formal adoption process
to apply for the wait list. Once a space becomes available for a child,
the parents will be contacted by the Director and given two business
days to decide whether to enroll their child at the Center. If a
position is declined, the child will remain in his or her current
position on the wait list as long as the family remains current with
annual Corporation dues. Failure to pay annual Corporation dues in a
timely manner results in removal of a child from the wait list.
Priority for enrollment is given in the following manner:
--Sibling of a U.S. Senate employee's child or SECCC employee's child
already enrolled in the Center;
--Child of a U.S. Senate or SECCC employee;
--Sibling of a child already enrolled in the Center who has a parent
employed by another entity of the legislative branch of the
Federal Government;
--Child of an employee of another entity of the legislative branch of
the Federal Government;
--Sibling of a child already enrolled in the Center whose parents are
not employed by the legislative branch of the Federal
Government; and
--Child of parents not employed by the legislative branch of the
Federal Government.
A Senate employee is classified as someone who receives his or her
paycheck from the Secretary of the Senate. A legislative branch
employee is classified as an employee of the U.S. House of
Representatives, the Library of Congress, the Capitol Police, the
Architect of the Capitol, the U.S. Government Accountability Office,
the Office of Technological Assessment, the Government Printing Office,
and any other legislative branch activity and spouses of such
employees.
In the unlikely event that wait list children have the same
registration date, the same priority ranking, and the same age range,
wait list placement will be differentiated additionally by a random
drawing.
In order to facilitate transparency of the wait list and assist
families in making child care decisions, the SECCC offers online wait
list access to Senate families. The system is accessible through the
SECCC website and allows individuals to:
--Enroll as members of the Corporation;
--Register their child(ren) to be on the wait list;
--Modify contact and employment information; and
--Monitor their position on the wait list.
The online system does not have the capability of accepting
payments. Therefore, new families that enroll as members of the
Corporation and register to be on the wait list must deliver or mail a
check for their wait list registration fee and annual Corporation fee
to the SECCC in order to activate their account and be assigned a
registration date. The registration date is the date Corporation
membership and wait list registration fees are received at the SECCC.
Non-Senate families may contact the Director to apply and monitor
their placement on the wait list.
Families must keep the Center updated with current home, work and
cell phone numbers, address, employment status and preferred email
address to ensure that the Center is able to contact families with
Center information and in the event that a space becomes available for
a child.
RADIO FUNDING IN SUPPLEMENTAL BILL
Senator Pryor. Chief Morse, let me ask you about your radio
system. There is $71 million in the supplemental for that. That
seems awfully high to me.
I know that Arkansas went through this process a few years
ago where they put in a statewide system that was
interoperable, that the idea was that all the counties and all
the local first responders and all that could tie into the same
system. I think the cost to do that system statewide was $94
million, and that was covering 53,000 square miles. And you
know, you are covering more like 300 acres. So tell me why it
is so expensive.
Chief Morse. Certainly. The system and our operations are
rather unique. In most municipalities, State organizations, and
some of our Federal partners, there is probably about 80
percent external use of a radio system, with about 20 percent
being internal. Here, it is just the opposite. Eighty percent
of it is internal, and about 20 percent is external.
That drives the cost because of the infrastructure and
engineering design that takes place to have adequate coverage
subterraneally in our garages, subways, and basement areas. So
that drives the costs. Whereas in an external system, you would
not have that significant cost.
Senator Pryor. I can understand how that would drive the
cost, but not to $71 million. That is an enormous amount of
money for a radio system.
Chief Morse. I do have some of the technical experts with
me. But I believe our coverage would be about 100 square miles
of area covering a 25-mile radius, which is specific to our
responsibility for continuity of Government, continuation of
operations. And perhaps not in this forum, but sidebar, I could
and the Sergeant at Arms could brief you specifically on that.
But our operations do not just exist here within the
Capitol campus. It does reach out far beyond that, and that
also drives the cost of a system of this nature.
Senator Pryor. Do you have a breakdown of the costs?
Chief Morse. Yes, sir. I do.
Senator Pryor. Do you have a contractor already in place
that is doing this?
Chief Morse. No, sir. We do not. This will be an RFP, an
open competitive bid that will be put out once our engineering
design is complete for the system.
Senator Pryor. All right. I would like to see the
breakdown. Again, not in this forum because I don't want to
waste my colleagues' time on that, but I would like to look at
that.
SPECIFICATIONS OF THE RADIO SYSTEM
And also I am curious about the life expectancy of this
system. It is like what Senator Tester was asking a few moments
ago about long-range planning. What is the life expectancy on a
system like this?
Chief Morse. The life expectancy of this particular system
is about 10 to 15 years.
Senator Pryor. And do I understand that it is going to be
encrypted?
Chief Morse. Yes, sir. That is one of the pieces of the
uniqueness of our operations.
Senator Pryor. Why? Why does it have to be encrypted?
Chief Morse. Currently, our system is not encrypted.
Therefore, anyone in the public, press, or another adversary
could listen to any of our operations. In order to mitigate any
circumstance that we would have in a critical incident, it is
imperative that we be able to communicate without others
listening in or knowing what it is that we are doing to
mitigate the crisis that we are dealing with.
So encryption is necessary to protect the legislative body
as well as visitors and staff that we are trying to protect. If
we were giving direction to, for instance, shelter in place or
relocate, and the adversary knew where that was, then it would
be adverse to the action that we are trying to take.
Senator Pryor. Do you know how much the encryption adds to
the cost?
Chief Morse. I don't have the figure with me, but we do
have a specific figure for that.
Senator Pryor. Okay. And I would like for you to provide
that to the subcommittee, if you could?
[The information follows:]
Encryption
The table below (excerpted from the USCP budget request) specifies
the encryption costs associated with designing a radio communication
system for USCP.
Encryption.--OTAR, Secure Cards for each Console, Packet Data
Gateways--$1,300,000.
Notes:
OTAR (Over-The-Air-Rekeying) is the common name for the method of
changing encryption keys in a two-way radio system over the radio
channel (``over the air'').
Packet Data Gateways (PDGs) integrate alternative Internet protocol
(IP) access networks into the mobile core and enable delivery of
services over the IMS (IP multimedia subsystem) control layer. IMS is a
unified service architecture for all networks.
Senator Pryor. And I will note that my understanding is--I
am getting this from just some research I have done--that when
the District of Columbia went to a new system, in the District,
it was about $40 million. And I think, to me, $71 million just
seems way out of line with--and I understand the uniqueness,
and I understand the challenges, and I understand the old
buildings and the subterranean nature of some of the things you
have to do. But that just seems very, very expensive.
ADDITIONAL PERSONNEL REQUEST
And I would like to look at your requirements that you have
in mind, and I would like to look at that and work with you,
with the chairman's permission, because that just seems awfully
high. And I need to look more closely at your budget, but are
you adding police officers as well?
Chief Morse. Yes, sir. We are.
Senator Pryor. And how many are you adding?
Chief Morse. We are adding 89.
Senator Pryor. And why?
Chief Morse. Seventy-six of those are to apply to our
deployment for our mission in order to reduce the overtime.
Senator Pryor. Are you basing that on this most recent
year? How do you make--I mean, is that what you are averaging
in overtime, the equivalent of 76 additional officers?
Chief Morse. No, actually, we have had to do a
comprehensive manpower survey to give us a template in which to
assess the manpower that we need versus the threat that we
face. So one of our first bites at the apple with this new
template is--with the other things that we have to deal with--
for instance, attrition and the ability to have facilities to
train--is to try to reduce overtime with the new 76.
The remaining 13 is an enhancement that we are asking for
with the ability to detect or deter any criminal activity or
terrorist activity.
Senator Pryor. Is that counterintelligence?
Chief Morse. Yes, sir.
Senator Pryor. Okay. I have a concern about doing
counterintelligence as well. I am not trying to be a naysayer
on the Capitol Police because I appreciate what you all do, and
it is a very important mission. But tell me why you think the
U.S. Capitol Police should be doing counterintelligence work.
Chief Morse. First, we--the police department has had
countersurveillance capability since probably about 2003. We
know that in terrorist planning for any sort of operation that
they must first come and surveil. They must first actually come
to the location and to review the type of operation that they
are going to do at the facility that they are going to do it.
One of the ways that law enforcement has found most
effective in deterring that or discovering that is through
countersurveillance activities as well as strengthening the
training and observation and vigilance of our police officers.
So we believe that with the program that we currently have,
making it more robust is a benefit to detecting or deterring
any type of criminal or terrorist activity that may be planned
for our facilities.
Senator Pryor. When you talked about that I think you said
76 or 79 additional officers?
Chief Morse. Seventy-six.
Senator Pryor. Are you talking about actually officers in
uniform that are going to be patrolling the area, or is that
administrators as well?
Chief Morse. Those are sworn police officers in uniform to
be deployed in the field for the various post assignments.
Senator Pryor. And you already have 1,799 officers?
Chief Morse. That is correct. That is our current
authorized strength.
Senator Pryor. And basically, those 1,800 officers--I mean,
is it fair to say that they are basically covering about a 300-
acre area?
Chief Morse. Yes, sir. With also protective operations with
Members of Congress throughout the United States.
Senator Pryor. Let me ask, and again, I understand the
unique mission that the U.S. Capitol Police have and the unique
circumstances in which you serve and what your responsibilities
are, but is there--give me a sense of a city that has about
1,800 police officers right now. I mean, can you point to a
city or some cities around the country that have about that
many police officers?
Chief Morse. I would say probably the county, some of the
larger counties in the metropolitan area would come close to
that.
Mr. Gainer. Senator, would you mind if I just chimed in a
little bit? Chief.
Senator Pryor. Sure.
Mr. Gainer. Because having run the Illinois State Police
for 9 years, I remember when I came here and had the chance to
get the chief's job before Phil. Many of the Members of
Congress said, jeepers, you have a police department up here
larger than our State police or larger than our county police
or larger than our city for a substantially smaller area.
So over these 7 years that I have been around, we continue
to wrestle with this, and it is not just the officers per acre,
but it is the demands we put on them. And I can tell you from
my office now, with Phil, I have made demands on your behalf.
And I will just give you some for instances.
The CVC, which I think many thought was going to be the
panacea for security, really resulted in more doors open for
the Capitol Police and for the responsibilities of the Senate
now Sergeant at Arms. Not another single door in this
institution closed. That just opened more doors.
And when we look around at all the millions of dollars that
Congress has given the police department and the Sergeant at
Arms office to put up the physical security, we take a look at
Hart and the Hart building, and it is not any top secret issue
about the openness of Second Street and the vulnerabilities of
the Hart building.
So it wasn't too long ago that while the chief and his
deputies struggled with how to tighten security, that we in the
Sergeant at Arms office, on behalf of the Senate, said you just
have to operate different. And they ended up putting, I don't
know, a dozen or two dozen officers in and around the Hart on
the streets, on A Street, on Second Street, to try to minimize
the risk from suicide bombers, improvised explosive devices,
and trucks.
And the number of doors that we, the Senate or the House,
require to be open for the convenience and the egress of
Members have encumbered that. And so, over the years, the
Police Board or others have said there are a lot of ways to
save officers up here. And we could close a lot of doors to do
that, but there has never been the will on the part of people
to inconvenience themselves in some respects on door openings
and in other respects because we have the place open 24/7 to
provide the access that everybody has.
Senator Pryor. Well, I will tell you what. I still--my
sense is that we are heavy in this area, and we are expensive
in this area. And again, the radio system is a prime example of
that.
So what I would like to do is at some point in the future,
you know, fairly soon, sit down with you and really download on
the specifics of what your requests are, what your needs are.
And if you think that we need to close doors, I need to know
that. You maybe have already mentioned that to the Rules
Committee or something like that.
But if you think we need to change some things around here,
I would like to hear that from you. So let us just set up a
time sometime in the next week or two where we can really visit
in detail about it.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Nelson. Thank you.
INCREASE IN STAFF AND EFFECT ON OVERTIME
Let us stay with the police issue for the moment. Chief,
your force has grown in manpower by 38 percent since 2000, and
the overtime has continued to grow steadily as well. In fact,
between 2006 and 2008, the sworn staff increased by 25 percent,
and overtime still increased by 80,000 hours.
I know there is always an argument to be made that it is
the amount of staff that will dictate whether or not there is
overtime. But it appears that staff and overtime continue to
grow at about the same level, and there is another
countervailing theory that overtime becomes part of regular
compensation just as a normal happening.
There does seem to be some correlation between the
increases here. One would have thought that the increase in
staff would have decreased the overtime, but that is not
occurring. Can you help us understand that?
Chief Morse. Yes, sir. And I don't know that I will be able
to do that in the limited time that we have. So----
Senator Nelson. Well, we can plan to talk about it further,
too.
Chief Morse. But I would like to just sort of give you a
broad brush of what might be able to answer the question. Is
that one of the most significant tragedies in my career here at
the Capitol Police occurred in 1998 with the loss of our two
police officers.
And since that time, we have had 9/11, anthrax, and ricin.
And with each of these incidents have really come new missions.
Some of the missions have been related to physical securities.
Some have been related to post standing, and many have been
related to technology. So the increase that I have seen, as a
police officer here since 1985, has been directly related to
posting of new posts, new technology, and physical securities.
A lot of our overtime certainly is generated by things that
we cannot control, and sometimes that is affected by the
environment in which we live. For instance, last year we had
many war demonstrations that we did not expect. We have had
many significant demonstrations this year. One most recent, the
Power Plant. And I just learned recently there will be a
significant event on May 30 down at the Lincoln Memorial.
So there are many unexpected events that take place here on
the Capitol grounds as well as off the grounds that Capitol
Police have authority and responsibility for.
What I do want to assure you is that the Capitol Police, my
managers, the professionals who are sitting behind me, do have
a plan to be as efficient and effective as we can with our
people. We, as I mentioned earlier, have recently gone through
a manpower study. That manpower study gives us a template that
is--its foundation is threat based, which came through our GAO
recommendations.
What we are trying to do now is apply that to every program
that we have and every facility that we have. Two facilities
that are--one is most recent to us and one that will be coming
in October, the CVC and the Library of Congress. We have not
yet been able to apply that template, but we will.
In addition to that, we have looked at many programs where
technology can replace people, and we are working on doing that
as well. So not only does the Enlightened Leadership Solutions
(ELS) study help us--the manpower study by ELS helped us to
better effectively ask you for people, but it could also result
in decreasing the size.
So this is really a very lengthy process. It is one that we
take very seriously. We understand the sensitivity of the
growth and the budget, and we are working very hard to not only
minimize over time, but have the most effective and efficient
use of our people for the safety and security of the complex.
Senator Nelson. Well, I hope the report will enlighten us
because if I understand the numbers right, by adding 55 FTEs,
you will save $2.5 million. However, the cost of the 55 FTEs is
$3.7 million. So we get worse off under those numbers by adding
individuals. We would be better off to spend $2.5 million
rather than $3.7 million.
So I hope that as you work through this manpower study that
you will be able to help us better understand how there will be
true reductions, bottom-line reductions.
Chief Morse. Yes, sir, Mr. Chairman. We will do that.
Senator Nelson. Thank you.
Senator Murkowski.
Senator Murkowski. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Chief Morse, I want to go back to questions about the radio
system that Senator Pryor was discussing with you. We are
talking about a total cost now of $71.6 million. I would agree
it seems extraordinarily high, and I think it is important that
we fully understand and appreciate all that is going into this.
How confident, though, are we really about this as a cost
estimate? It is my understanding that when you were first
looking at this, there was a rough estimate back in 2007 that
the total of this radio system would be about $35 million. So
we have essentially doubled it in a 2-year period. So is $71.6
million a number that we can really believe in?
Chief Morse. $71.6 million was the request that we had in
the 2010 budget and for the supplemental. There is an
engineering design study taking place right now for the
infrastructure of the building, and we could expect to ask for
$8 million to $16 million more in the 2011 budget, depending on
the results of the engineering design and coverage for the
system itself.
So we are still what we have done is with the current $71.6
million request is had many people review the technical
requirements and the technology associated with that, and we
are comfortable that those figures are accurate.
Senator Murkowski. Accurate, but what you are saying is
that it could be anywhere from $8 million to $16 million in
addition to the $71.6 million after we get this engineering
design proposal back?
Chief Morse. Yes, ma'am.
Senator Murkowski. So it is getting worse.
Chief Morse. The cost will rise, yes.
MANAGEMENT OF THE RADIO PROJECT
Senator Murkowski. Okay. How are we going to ensure that we
will have proper management of the procurement to ensure that
once we identify what that cost is that we stay on budget and
on time?
Chief Morse. Let me first just add one other figure--that
we did receive $10 million back in the 2007 supplemental to go
toward the radio system.
But to answer your second question, we have designed a
five-phase approach to this. It is a 36-month project. We have
through the Economy Act looked at Naval Air Systems Command
(NAVAIR) systems, who have expertise not only with some of the
existing technologies here on Capitol Hill, but also the
procurement capabilities and the expertise in that field to
augment our staff. They have a team and integrated approach and
will be our consultants.
In addition to that, we have had the RFP and the technical
requirements as well as the engineer design reviewed by the
Government Accountability Office as a safeguard that we are on
track and doing things right.
Senator Murkowski. Let me ask about some of the
administrative issues, and I will echo what was said earlier in
recognizing the accomplishment of a clean opinion from the
auditors on the financial statements.
I do understand that we do have some areas of improvement.
But there are some 85 open recommendations from GAO or the
inspector general on the need for improved internal controls,
whether it is improved asset management, control of travel
vouchers, payroll processing, information security.
And you ticked off a few of those areas that have been
closed out, but given what you have outstanding, what would you
say are your biggest challenges in resolving these
administrative deficiencies? Where are your highest priorities
here?
Chief Morse. Well, we do prioritize our recommendations. We
try to go for the low-hanging fruit, the ones that don't cost
us a lot of money, and get those out of the way first.
Our biggest challenge is really the people to get this
done. We have been struggling with that. Most of our folks who
are working on this, working very hard on this, have other
duties and responsibilities within the agency. But they work
very hard to prioritize this. Our chief administrative officer
works very closely with the Office of Inspector General. We
have a great working relationship with the Government
Accountability Office.
And we try to prioritize these recommendations based on
risk to our organization. So the ones with the most risk we go
after first. So we keep track of this. We can actually produce
a document for the record or for your review that can see how
we manage the recommendations, how we go about closing them,
and how we interact with the GAO----
ONGOING ADMINISTRATIVE ISSUES
Senator Murkowski. Well, I would appreciate that. If we
have got 85 that are outstanding that need to be resolved, it
is one thing to go after the low-hanging fruit, but if you have
issues out there that are problematic and have been problematic
for a period of time, I know that the inspector general has
recently reported that you didn't have adequate spending
controls on travel. And I don't know whether or not those
controls are being put in place.
I also understand that there were problems with the payroll
processing, the need to make sure that we have got timekeeping
records that are adequate. And following in the chairman's
concern about overtime, is this an issue and an area that needs
to be placed higher on the priority list?
Can you just speak to these two? If, in fact, your auditor
has indicated that with the payroll processing that this is a
material weakness for you, when do you get to that point where
you implement those recommendations from the audits?
Chief Morse. Well, let me just start by saying that by
getting that clean financial statement, we very aggressively
went after the recommendations in our financial management.
That was our most risk to our organization. And I think the
fact that we were able to obtain clean financial opinion a year
earlier than we were directed to do so shows the aggressiveness
in which we go after these recommendations.
Many of the recommendations that you just mentioned, for
instance, the travel vouchers, et cetera, we are actively
working on closing those recommendations as well as many other
GAO recommendations. We----
Senator Murkowski. Do you think you are going to have a
clean report again this year?
Chief Morse. Absolutely. And our Office of Inspector
General and the Capitol Police Board, we really work together
to make--to find out what we need and prioritize what we need
as an organization, what the Board would like the Capitol
Police to expound upon, and what the Capitol Police needs.
We work together so that we are not overwhelmed or
inundated by audits. So we try to work closely together. We try
to identify what causes most risk to the organization, and we
are very transparent about that. We accept the fact that we
have weaknesses. We accept the fact that we have challenges,
and we work together to address them.
So we would be happy to show you how we do that and much of
the accomplishment that we have had in the last 2 years.
CIVILIAN STAFFING
Senator Murkowski. Let me ask one more question before I
turn it back to my colleagues here, and this is on the civilian
staffing. I understand that you currently have about 75
civilian vacancies, about 15 in the Office of Human Resources.
Another 21 civilian positions have been requested in fiscal
year 2010. Tell me why you need these additional positions and
the prioritization, if you will, for these slots.
Chief Morse. With respect to some of the civilian
positions, they are ones that will be coming to us from the
Library of Congress. There are 23 new positions, 19 of which
were submitted in previous budgets, and 4 of those are related
to the radio system, technical experts to do the radio system.
We also have been working very hard as a part of our audit
is to reevaluate each position and, in some cases, rewrite
position descriptions, which has added some delay in those
positions. Currently, of the 79, we have 25 of which are in the
hiring phase right now, along with 25 which are currently being
announced, and we are preparing advertisements for 22 others
and then the----
Senator Murkowski. And in what areas would those be, these
new ones that you are announcing?
Chief Morse. Those are already approved positions.
Senator Murkowski. Okay.
Chief Morse. So of the new 23----
Senator Murkowski. These are not the 21 that you are then
requesting in fiscal year 2010?
Chief Morse. That is correct.
Senator Murkowski. Okay. So you have got these 23 that you
are filling that have already been authorized, and you are
seeking then an additional 21?
Chief Morse. Yes, ma'am.
Senator Murkowski. And in what areas would these additional
21 be?
Chief Morse. They would be helping us with the audit
findings. Those are specific to the audit findings or the
intelligence enhancement, or radio engineering. We have
requested one diversity officer and training coordinators,
which are for another program we are working on within our
Training Services Bureau, a budget analyst, an accountant,
legal administrative assistant, and then a mission assurance
bureau person. So some are related to audit findings to help us
improve in those areas. Some are related to the radio and
information technology, and others are related to the Training
Services Bureau and our finances.
Senator Murkowski. Well, Mr. Chairman, I know that the GAO
has been closely involved in reviewing these administrative--
not only the administrative problems, but some of the staffing
issues. I would like to hear what their recommendations are on
the need for these additional positions and just understand.
It seems to me that at this time we don't need to be
necessarily adding more and more and more in terms of staffing,
we are doing that in very many areas, and I will express my
concern about it. I would like to understand the need more.
Senator Nelson. I believe we can probably obtain that
information. Is that accurate?
Chief Morse. Yes.
Senator Nelson. Well, let us do that. Let us get that
distributed to the subcommittee for our review.
Senator Murkowski. Appreciate it.
Senator Nelson. Thank you, Senator.
We understand that the number for the radio project is well
established. Now I am a little unclear because I heard you say
$71.6 million as the base, but that is after $10 million that
has already been put in. So this is a multiyear process. What I
am trying to find out is the additional $8 million to $16
million, this is the total as it all comes together so that it
won't change? Is that fair?
I am just trying to understand that the costs are
established and they have been because it is a multiyear
process that is going on here. Is that accurate?
Chief Morse. Once we do the engineering design phase within
the infrastructure of the buildings, the additional cost for
indoor requirements could be $8 million to $16 million.
Senator Nelson. Eight to 16.
Chief Morse. There was $10 million given to us in 2007.
Senator Nelson. Right.
Chief Morse. And then the request for $71.6 million.
Senator Nelson. Does not include that $10 million already
received or the additional of $8 million to $16 million?
Chief Morse. That is correct.
Senator Nelson. There is not another part of the project
that is not included within those numbers?
Chief Morse. That is correct.
Senator Nelson. Okay. I just want to get that for the
record so we have the total numbers. I was unclear. I
appreciate that.
Let us see now. If you didn't have the radio project in
place and you didn't have that capability that the radio
project is going to give you when it is complete, what are the
implications for security on the campus?
Chief Morse. Let me just give you real quick the status of
our current system. We are unable with our current system to be
interoperable with any of our partners who would respond here
to assist us in the event of an emergency.
Senator Nelson. And they would be who, the partners?
Chief Morse. It would include the fire departments, the
local police, and other Federal agencies. The other concern is
that we most recently were contacted from one of the vendors on
our dispatch technology who said they could no longer service
it because it was outdated.
And we have experienced pretty routinely both software and
hardware failures with our system, and at one point within the
last 3 years, we had a complete failure of the system.
Therefore, it would cripple our ability to communicate with
each other in a critical incident situation should that system
fail, which is, like I mentioned before, is one of the three
critical life safety tools for a police officer, and a life
safety tool for the legislative process.
So we are obviously very concerned about that. That is why
we brought it as a priority. This was originally looked at in
2005 to begin the process of replacing the system.
OVERTIME AND ADDITIONAL STAFFING
Senator Nelson. Switching now, going back to the overtime
and additional staff question, let me just see if I am clear
here. Is your goal to eventually eliminate the use of overtime
in your day-to-day operations, or are you intending to use a
combination of overtime and onboard staff? And have you
established what positions are better utilized through the use
of overtime if you plan to continue to have overtime?
Chief Morse. We plan to use a combination. As I mentioned
before, in some cases, we are using technology, and I could
provide that information to you in a sidebar. But we are using
technology that will decrease the number of officers we need to
do a specific mission. Therefore, we can put them back into the
field.
In other instances, by adding, for instance, the 76, we can
perhaps downsize the amount of overtime that we are using and
enhance our capability with our mission. So we are using a
combination of technology as well as redeployment of our
personnel.
We have also worked very closely with our oversight
committees in detail, for instance, we're checking how many
people come through a specific door during a specific time. And
the committees have worked with us, for instance, at adjusting
the hours of those doors.
So we have done things on the very low level and on the
very high level to try to lower the amount of overtime and have
the most efficient and effective use of our police officers. So
it is a challenge. I don't know that we could ever eradicate
overtime because there are so many variables that come with
that. For instance, the special events and demonstrations, et
cetera, that I had mentioned before, just to name a few.
Senator Nelson. It appears you are having some difficulty
attracting and retaining civilian personnel, some in positions
that are quite critical to your mission. How many civilian
openings would you have at the present time and why?
Chief Morse. There are 79 or 78 vacancies that are
currently open. As I was saying earlier, in some cases, we are
reevaluating the need or the position description or
reclassifying it to meet our current mission. Many of the
recommendations that we receive change the way we do business.
We are trying to do business more efficiently.
So some of the delays have been with redoing the position
descriptions. But as I mentioned before, many of these are in
the hiring process currently, and they passed me a note that
most recently we just hired four additional personnel. But 16
are in the hiring process. Twenty-five have vacancy
announcements out right now.
So as fast as we can make sure or ensure that these
personnel are the positions that we need, that we have the
right person in those positions, then we will, in fact, fill
them.
As far as retention is concerned, there is a turnover, and
some of that has been remedied by simply answering
recommendations and gaining control and organization over these
entities and ensuring that we have a strategic plan for where
it is that we are going to go. And one example of that is our
Office of Financial Management, where we have current
tremendous leadership, which resulted in a positive thing for
the police department.
But in hiring some of these additional personnel and some
of the reclassifications, we will do some of the things that
the other Federal agencies do with regard to retention
benefits, where we could be more attractive to those from the
private industry as well as other Federal agencies.
Senator Nelson. Well, my final question is relating to
those 13 additional officers for counterintelligence. Have you
considered in some way partnering with the Department of
Homeland Security (DHS) or some other agency, perhaps even the
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), to attract that kind of
capability rather than try to develop it within the police
department yourselves?
Chief Morse. Well, first, let me say that we have wonderful
relationships with our area law enforcement agencies. We do
have liaisons at the major intelligence organizations as well
as DHS, the FBI, Central Intelligence Agency, the Defense
Intelligence Agency, the metropolitan police fusion center. So
we work very closely with them. And I won't speak for any one
of those agencies specifically, but the countersurveillance
capability is taxing on their own specific mission.
We are, as you know, the only Federal law enforcement
agency who has authority and responsibility for protecting this
branch of Government. And we feel that it is our responsibility
to recommend that a more robust countersurveillance operation
would minimize the risk of any criminal or terrorist activity
that could be planned for our facility. And certainly no one is
more dedicated to protecting this legislative body than the men
and women of the United States Capitol Police.
Senator Nelson. Senator Murkowski.
Senator Murkowski. One final. The President's budget is
about an 8 percent increase over last year, if I remember
correctly. What would happen if we were to set that standard
within the legislative branch? Right now, we are looking at
about a 15 percent increase.
What would that mean to you in terms of your budget and
your priorities if you were told you got about 8 percent
increase over last year? Where would you go? We will start with
you, Ms. Erickson.
Ms. Erickson. Well, I think I am in the best----
Senator Nelson. You would have to raise yours, yes.
Senator Murkowski. Yes. We will start with the easy one.
Ms. Erickson. I think I am in the best shape of the three
of us. My operating budget has remained the same, and I will
say we look for every opportunity to cut costs, down to our
Senate librarian who just renegotiated some vendor contracts
and saved $352,000 over 4 years.
I personally look at every voucher, and I can say our chief
employment counsel's attorneys have cut back on their travel or
look for conferences that are held in Washington, DC, rather
than traveling across the country. So we take that
responsibility very, very seriously.
The budgetary impact for our operation would be salary and
that would mean that I would not be able to offer a COLA to our
employees or implement our employee performance program for
merit pay, which, with few exceptions, is capped at 3 percent.
So that would be the impact for the Secretary of the Senate's
employees.
Senator Murkowski. What is the longevity of the employees
within----
Ms. Erickson. We have very low turnover. We have I think it
is 3,000--if you add up the total, we have 3,000 years of
Federal experience, 238 employees. So there isn't a lot of
turnover, but there are employees who have a great deal of
institutional expertise that we hope to keep for a long time.
Senator Murkowski. Terry, how would you reprioritize if you
had to?
Mr. Gainer. I would eliminate the $2 million that I have
asked for Nancy.
Seriously, I wouldn't do that because she pays us, too.
Most of what we do, aside from the salary issues, are
really for your benefit and your offices. So, number one, we
would work with you and see how to scale that back.
But it is really, I think, adjusting the Members' and their
staffs' and your 450 State offices' expectations so that each
year, for instance, when we add money in to try to get more
bandwidth so that your computer works quicker in your home
State, we would scale that back. And rather than have someone
come and repair the computer in your office within 30 minutes,
it might take 2 days.
So we can adjust that, and we would work with you to try to
figure that out.
Senator Murkowski. Chief Morse.
Chief Morse. Well, it would certainly take some very
serious analysis to prioritize what we would lose by that. I
would fear that a lot of our lifecycle replacement that we
talked about earlier in our technology that helps safeguard the
campus would be at jeopardy, along with hiring.
We certainly talked about a significant amount with the
radio system that is critical to the life safety not only for
our police officers and employees, but for the legislative
process. And if we were to still go with the radio project,
then that would significantly impact other areas of the police
department.
Our employees are certainly here and dedicated to you under
any condition, and I would be remiss if I didn't say that I
would want to take care of them first.
So I think that a lot of the significant areas of concern
would be mostly with the technology, the lifecycle replacement,
the radio system, and hiring, which I think would probably
cascade on us as the years went on. We would probably never be
able to recover from the not hiring.
Senator Murkowski. Appreciate your responses.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Nelson. Thank you.
ADDITIONAL COMMITTEE QUESTIONS
And I would like to personally thank our witnesses for
attending today's hearing and providing us with their excellent
responses.
[The following questions were not asked at the hearing, but
were submitted to the agencies for response subsequent to the
hearing:]
Questions Submitted to Terry Gainer
Questions Submitted by Senator Ben Nelson
FISCAL YEAR 2010 BUDGET REQUEST
Question. If the Legislative Branch Appropriations bill for fiscal
year 2010 is held to current year levels, what will be the impact to
your agency's operations and on the day to day operations of the
Senate?
Answer. We understand that the Committee may face challenges in
preparing the fiscal year 2010 Appropriation. If we are held at the
current level, we will examine all of our initiatives and establish
priorities that reflect the funding allowed. We will review spending on
capital investments and maintenance; we will defer expenditures for new
equipment to the extent that we can. We will work with Committee staff
to ensure that all Senate priorities are funded.
Question. Your organization has requested a 10 percent increase--to
$243.5 million in fiscal year 2010. As we have discussed, increases are
going to be very difficult in a tight budget year. Regardless, the SAA
has grown from an enacted budget of $109 million in fiscal year 2000 to
well over $200 million in the current year. I, like most Members, have
a great deal of respect and gratitude for the work your organization
does around here--but do you mind spending a couple of minutes telling
us how you got from there to here in terms of budget and staffing?
Where do you see the trend line moving in the next few years?
Answer. Our organization has changed dramatically since 2000. To
set the stage, in 2000 our budget was just about $100 million. In
fiscal year 2009, our budget is $220 million. We had 780 employees then
and have 958 now. In almost all respects, we no longer are the same
organization. Let me give you some specifics of the changes.
With the exception of POSEP (formerly OSEP), generally, the
responsibilities of the SAA have not changed since 2001. However, the
scope of those responsibilities has expanded materially. Our goal is to
support Senate offices to enable Members and staff always to more
effectively manage their business and communicate with their
constituents. It takes people and money to initiate, implement, operate
and maintain the infrastructure that provides the systems and services
to the Senate. In a sense, we do this so that you don't have to. More
specifically, here are some of the changes that have occurred over the
years.
Post Office--receipt and delivery of mail in 2001. Today, receipt,
inspection and delivery of all mail and packages to Senate offices. We
have our own offsite facility for mail and package inspection.
Warehouse--in 2001, we operated four warehouse locations. We now
have a central facility double the size if the four locations that is
modern and functional for all of our needs.
PGDM--in 2001, old press model. Since then, all equipment is
digital and run by computer operation. This improves resource use and
quality of printed products.
Recording Studio--complete conversion to digital High Definition
since 2001 replacing an infrastructure that was entirely film based.
Combined with the Hearing Room upgrade project, we can remotely manage
and broadcast about 12 hearings at the same time. Previously, we were
able to film three at once.
CIO Organization--small infrastructure in 2001 with limited backup
capabilities. Today, we have a fully operational alternate computer
facility that serves as a real time back up site for all major Senate
applications and for data storage for many Senate offices. Our primary
service contracts are all performance based. We have very high
performance standards which the contractors regularly meet. This is, of
course, costly.
We also have state-of-the-art network monitoring capabilities that
protect the Senate networks from attack. This Security Operations
Center also has a back up at the ACF.
As more processes can be automated and managed electronically, we
have added those applications to our inventory. These applications
improve customer service, management of our processes and enable new
services to be offered in a cost effective manner. Applications that
come to mind include TranSAAct (for managing parking and ID requests,
floor privileges and SAA billings), MCS (for requesting BlackBerry and
cell phone services) and the IT Catalog (for ordering computer
equipment). All Senate offices use these systems.
In addition to BlackBerrys and cell phones, there are other
wireless technologies that are expected to expand in the future and we
must be prepared to support wireless services demanded by Senate
offices.
Additionally, we have the ability to set up an alternate Senate
site, chamber and offices, through the use of satellite and
communications vehicles. Prior to 2001, there was no such capability.
POSEP--in 2001, the office did not exist. Since then, the office
provides nationwide office outreach for security planning and response.
POSEP leads the Senate's COOP program and coordinates with other
agencies in the planning and development of COOP and other exercises
and training events.
Question. I recently received tea bags in the mail, as did many of
my colleagues as a result of the organized tax day protests last week.
Obviously, these envelopes had been subjected to a significant amount
of screening. Do you mind updating me on the mail and package screening
processes utilized here in the Senate?
Answer. All United States Postal Service (USPS) letter mail
addressed to the Senate zip code 20510 is irradiated by a USPS
contractor. After irradiation, all mail is x-rayed, opened and tested
for contaminants at an offsite facility operated by Senate Post Office
employees, prior to delivery to the Senate office. The mail is
quarantined, awaiting clear test results.
Packages are not irradiated. All packages addressed to the Senate
zip code 20510 are delivered to the same offsite facility operated by
Senate Post Office employees. Packages are x-rayed, opened and tested
for possible contaminants, prior to delivery to the Senate office. The
packages are quarantined, awaiting clear test results.
The Senate Post Office operates an on-campus facility for expected
courier deliveries to Senate offices. The items are x-rayed, opened and
tested for contaminants. Expected items are delivered by the Senate
Post Office, after the items have clear test results.
Under no circumstances should anyone bring mail and/or packages
into the Capitol or Senate buildings that have not undergone the
Senate's mail and package testing protocols. Tested items are clearly
marked and are delivered by uniformed Senate Post Office employees
bearing a Senate ID.
We provide safe mail handling training for Senate state offices.
Additionally, our science advisors developed the Postal Sentry, a
device designed to contain contaminants that a terrorist could send in
an envelope.
Question. Your expense budget includes an increase of $15 million--
or 10 percent this year. Yet your office has identified substantial
multi-year unobligated balances and savings--much of that resulting
from savings in your Information Technology investments. Can you take
advantage of prior year savings to reduce your fiscal year 2010
request?
Answer. Yes. We will work with the Committee to use these funds in
a manner that meets your needs.
Question. Most of the Legislative Branch agencies--including yours
have requested significant increases for technology development
upgrades this year. Since most of your prior year unobligated balances
reflect savings in IT what can you do to improve budgeting for these
large-ticket items?
Answer. In some cases, we have already refined our budgets for the
items that produced the savings. In the other cases, we are reviewing
our cost estimates and contracts to determine if we can improve our
budget processes.
Question. You are requesting funding for five new FTEs--bringing
your total FTE up to 963. What is your current on-board staffing level?
Will you work with my staff to arrive at a fiscal year 2010 funding
level that better addresses your on-board staffing level?
Answer. We withdraw the request for the additional five positions.
Our managers will prioritize positions and fill those most necessary to
complete their respective missions. We have 905 on board at the end of
April 2009. And we will work with Committee staff to refine our salary
funding needs for fiscal year 2010 that addresses current and expected
staffing levels.
Question. I understand the Senate has invested some $20 million on
a new telephone system, but that it has been somewhat delayed. What is
the status of the $20 million telecom modernization project--when will
it be complete?
Answer. The Telecom Modernization Project is nearing the end of the
Final Engineering and Design phase. While this phase took much longer
than expected, it served its purpose in that we have modified the
proposed design to better meet the Senate's needs. To begin addressing
operational issues, we will implement a new voicemail system this fall.
We are currently preparing for a testing phase to validate the
design. Upon successful completion of testing, we will order and
install the equipment which will take about 6 months. We expect to be
piloting the solution within the Sergeant at Arms organization in the
spring of 2010 and making it available to offices in the summer. The
time it takes to migrate all offices to the new system will depend on
the willingness of the offices to migrate, and could take as long as 3
years.
Question. Your salary budget increase totals nearly 13 percent
which is very high. In your budget submission you used a 4.5 percent
increase as your COLA base. Other Legislative Branch agencies used a
2.9 percent formula for their COLA. Why was yours higher?
Answer. We base our COLA on the most recent base COLA amount plus
an estimate of the locality adjustment. At the time the fiscal year
2010 budget was prepared, the general base COLA was 2.99 percent to
which we added an estimate of locality of 1.5 percent. That resulted in
the 4.5 percent amount used in the fiscal year 2010 budget. We included
the COLA for 9 months of 2010 (January through September).
Question. Your fiscal year 2010 request includes $5 million for
hearing room upgrades. How much have we invested in this effort so far
and how much longer will this item be included in your request?
Answer. The Committee on Rules and Administration selects the rooms
and identifies the requirements for this project. Since 2003, 21
hearing rooms have been completed and $25.4 million has been funded for
this project. Another 11 rooms have been identified as future rooms for
renovation and upgrades. We anticipate that, with our funding request
for fiscal year 2010, we will complete the hearing room upgrades that
we have been tasked to do.
______
Questions Submitted to Phillip D. Morse, Sr.
Questions Submitted by Senator Ben Nelson
RADIOS
Question. We understand that the engineering design for the radio
project is scheduled to be complete at the end of 2009. If you obtain
supplemental funding for this project would you be able to accelerate
the purchase of any portion of this project prior to December?
Answer. Yes, if we could get supplemental funding in fiscal year
2009 it would permit us to begin the acquisition process for segments
of the project as soon as the detailed engineering design is completed
for each item; this would permit us to roll out these segments much
sooner than we would otherwise be able to do. We believe that the
nature of the radio modernization project comports with the intent of
emergency supplemental bills, which frequently fund ``pressing domestic
needs''. This new system is critical to our ability to effectively
address anti-terrorism, and the continuity of government operations.
Question. Would there be any advantages to acquiring increments of
this system prior to the completion of the final design?
Answer. As the design engineering study progresses, and technical
issues are identified, we would be able to begin to contract to acquire
the technology to meet the specifications the engineering study
indicates (such as purchasing certain antennas, repeaters, cabling,
etc.). Additionally, contracting can commence once a final
determination on the mirror site has been recommended and approved. The
principal advantage of being able to proceed with procuring increments
of the project would be overall implementation several months sooner
than if we were to wait to begin any procurement activity until all of
the engineering design is complete. The procurement process itself can
be lengthy. The sooner we are about to begin that process the sooner
the radio system will be able to go live.
Question. Can you briefly outline for me what vulnerabilities or
disadvantages we continue to have in the Capitol Complex by not having
this technology in the event of an emergency?
Answer. The most significant vulnerability is our current inability
to effectively communicate with other first responders as well as some
of our Legislative Branch partners. In addition, the reliability of the
current 20-year-old system presents an unacceptable risk of a complete
system failure during an emergency situation. Also, there are places in
the Capitol Hill complex (e.g., the Capitol Visitor Center, new
tunnels, garage areas and other subterranean locations) that the
current system was not designed or intended to cover and where reliable
radio communication cannot be expected.
There are three critical life safety tools for a law enforcement
agency: proper weapons, protective equipment, and reliable
communications. Our current communications system is an antiquated
analog system without interoperability capabilities, and it is not
encrypted. In many cases, it has been failing us both in the hardware
and software areas. We most recently had one of our vendors call us to
say that they could no longer service our dispatch equipment or
technology because of its age. In the threat environment in which we
work after 9/11, it is critical that we be able to communicate with our
partners in a critical incident situation, which we currently cannot
do. Additionally, we have experienced dead spots with our current
system. This makes us unable to receive subterraneous communications in
some of our garage areas, tunnel systems, subways, etc. Part of the
reason for this is the lack of cabling, antennas, etc., in areas where
essential communication could not have been foreseen over 20 years ago
when the system was put in place. In view of the these issues, we
believe it is critical that we move towards modernizing our radio
system as soon as possible to ensure the continued safety of Members,
staff and visitors on the Capitol Complex.
OVERTIME
Question. You are requesting $3.7 million for 55 FTE to reduce your
overtime to about 10 percent. What percent of overtime are you
utilizing right now? Is your overtime in a ``pool'' where officers who
want to work overtime can do so while officers who prefer not to can
elect to defer? Aren't some of these officers depending on overtime to
augment their salaries?
Earlier this year USCP worked with the GAO to review and validate
our methodologies in the computation, management and reporting of OT
and utility of officers. The ACOP was notified by the GAO that the
methodologies were using were consistent and measurable to allow proper
management and control of its personnel and distribution of OT across
USCP for controllable OT.
In the utilization of Load Leveling USCP uses this methodology in
conjunction of its Officer Voluntary Reassignment Program (OVRP) to
staff division so that there is fairness in the use overtime across its
divisions. USCP staffs most of its divisions between 80 percent-90
percent to regular requirements and available and qualified personnel,
the remainder requirements are staffed with overtime.
Regular requirements include the following:
--The difference between the total Uniformed Services Bureau (USB)
post hours and the total USB officer availability (USCP has
deemed that each available officer is available 1560 hours per
year).
--The difference between the average usage of overtime used by
specialty assignments and the total specialty assignment
officer availability (USCP has deemed that each available
officer is available 1560 hours per year).
--Specialty assignments include Containment Emergency Response Team
(CERT), Dignitary Protection Division (DPD) (in-town),
Hazardous Devices Section (HDS), Hazardous Materials Response
Team (HMRT), Security Services Bureau (SSB)) and a minimal
amount of supervisory overtime.
--46 K-9 handlers are currently receiving handler pay; handler pay is
30 minutes of additional duty per day paid to the handler to
provide care for the K-9 after normal duty hours.
USCP must also abide in the distribution and assignment of OT based
on statutory Pay Caps and agreements stated in the Collective
Bargaining Agreement (CBA). The Office of Human Resources (OHR) and
Office of Financial Management (OFM) continuously monitor and control
this area to ensure that no officers exceed these amounts.
Additionally, Officers direct supervisors determine whether an Officer
is operationally qualified, eligible and authorized to stand any
overtime.
In fiscal year 2009 USCP has had several variable and unscheduled
OT requirements which are monitored through coding in the time and
attendance system. USCP has some control of the use of overtime in
these areas but a majority of these requirements for OT are event, risk
and threat or member driven and are staffed to maintain the appropriate
levels of protection and security for the facilities and personnel.
Some examples are DPD out of area OT, Extended Sessions, House and
Senate Codels, additional post to the Opening of the CVC, Earlier
opening of the CVC, special events such as the Capitol Power Plant
Protest, and ANSWER Demonstration. The level of staffing for the above
mentioned items are based on the risk and threat associated with them.
Overtime is allocated evenly within organizational units, but some
units are required to work more overtime by the nature of their
assignment. For example, House and Senate Chambers are required to stay
when Congress is in session late, as is the Dignitary Protection
Division. However, officers who don't want to work overtime (or
overtime at the particular time they are scheduled to work) can ask
someone else to work their hours. Therefore, there is substantial
variance in how much overtime officers earn per year, although the
majority earn less than $10,000.
We have not conducted any analysis to determine whether and to what
degree officers rely on income from overtime to augment their salaries.
Question. Your budget request suggests we will realize a savings in
overtime of $2.5 million if we fund the additional 55 FTE you've
requested for this purpose. Yet the 55 FTE will cost $3.7 million. This
seems like a negative savings to me if we spend $3.7 million to save
$2.5 million of taxpayers' money. Can you explain your rationale in
making this request?
Answer. In the first year of funding for additional FTE, it is true
that adding them would cost more. The cost of recruiting and outfitting
the new officers alone is substantial, and benefits add to the cost.
However, not all of the benefit that would derive from decreasing
overtime would be realized in the first year of the additional
recruits' tenure, since they would be in training for approximately 6
months. The full benefit in terms of reducing overtime happens once
they complete their training, in 2010, 2011, and thereafter.
In addition, although we have not directly analyzed how working
prohibitively long hours, or sequential shifts, may affect the
effectiveness of the officers who are protecting the Capitol and its
inhabitants, it stands to reason that rested officers will do the job
better than their tired counterparts, with faster response times in the
event of a true emergency. A sufficient work/family balance will also
help sustain the morale that is essential in a police force with such a
critical mission.
Question. Your force has grown in manpower by 38 percent since 2000
and yet your overtime has continued to grow steadily as well. In fact,
between fiscal year 2006 and fiscal year 2008 your sworn staff
increased by 25 percent and still overtime increased by 80,000 hours.
So there doesn't seem to be a trend that shows that more staff equals
less overtime. What can you do to better manage your overtime usage?
Answer. Since 2000, the Department's mission load has increased,
which has outpaced the sworn staffing provided to meet these mission
requirements. Additionally, the Department has conducted numerous
threat assessments and we have utilized the outcomes from these
assessments to deploy our workforce to meet the threats. The staffing
gap between the required sworn staffing and the mission load
requirements must be met through the use of overtime.
To manage our resources while meeting our mission requirements, we
are also employing various efficiencies Department-wide to reduce
overtime. To this end, we have:
--Conducted load leveling of Operational units to ensure
proportionate staffing across the Department.
--Standardized breaks across divisions to a 1-to-4 ratio.
--Audited the K-9 function. K-9 has undertaken a 4/10 work schedule
for better efficiency in meeting its mission set.
--Approved revisions to the CP-1301 system to better manage overtime
by improving how we draft and manage assignments. While the CP-
1301 process modification has been approved, the assignment of
overtime is currently being reviewed and negotiated as part of
the Fraternal Order of Police Union Contract.
--Included 76 new sworn officers in the fiscal year 2010 budget
request in order to reduce overtime and increase capability to
address threats.
--Audited and reorganized the Truck Interdiction Program (TIPS), in
order to return officers to posts.
--Directed TIPS midnights staffing reductions.
--Increased the utilization of technology at the Offsite Delivery
Center, in order to return officers to other priority post
requirements.
--Migrated the Security Services Bureau (SSB) to a 4/10 work schedule
for better efficiency in meeting their mission.
--Migrated the Mission Assurance Bureau to a 4/10 work schedule for
better efficiency in meeting their mission.
--Incrementally increased DPD to reduce overtime utilization and
better meet the mission. Although DPD is not staffed to the ELS
recommendation level, we are migrating to that point based on
threat analysis and evolving mission.
--Assigned recruit officers to USB directly from officer training for
distribution following their field training.
--Assigned HMRT to conduct random sampling of deliveries at the
Offsite Delivery Center to leverage their staffing and mission
capabilities.
We have also instituted several cross-training initiatives to
achieve additional efficiencies. We have:
--Trained over 1,000 sworn in x-ray security screening protocols to
better identify and address threats.
--Trained all recruit classes in detecting surveillance techniques to
enhance officers'' ability to detect individuals conducting
surveillance, to elicit information from the individuals during
conversations, and to determine what actions to take based on
the information obtained.
--Directed the integration of all divisions within the Patrol Mobile
Response Division (PMRD) into one holistic operation, rather
than focused units like heavy motors, mountain bikes, TIGER,
etc.
We are continuing several works in progress to reduce overtime and
increase our overall efficiency. We are completing a staffing gap
analysis for Uniformed Services Bureau Divisions. Gap analyses from all
divisions within the Uniformed Services Bureau are due by June 1, 2009.
We have also directed that a study be conducted to review civilization
of the USCP Command Center. We are looking at using the Wounded Warrior
program for this purpose.
Finally, we are implementing upgrades to version 8.3 of Workbrain,
so we can adopt electronic scheduling in fiscal year 2010.
Question. Is your goal to eventually eliminate the use of overtime
in your day to day operations? Or do you want to use a combination of
overtime and on-board staff? What positions are better utilized through
the use of overtime?
Answer. Our goal is to utilize the findings of the ELS Manpower
Study and current risk and threat analyses for the Capitol Complex to
determine the proper mix of full-time sworn staffing, overtime
utilization, outsourcing, civilianization and technology to meet the
mission requirements facing the Department.
As a part of this effort, we believe we must balance the cost-
effectiveness of full-time staffing against the cost and efficiency of
overtime in meeting mission. In our current configuration, the
Department has limited long-term infrastructure, such as physical
space, with which to support additional sworn and civilian personnel.
Therefore, we believe that any new personnel must be directed at normal
post requirements for which we currently do not have full-time sworn
staffing. These post requirements are driven by threat and have pre-
determined sworn staffing requirements against which to manage
personnel deployment.
Because many events such as demonstrations, Congressional hearings,
extended sessions of Congress and other unplanned events on the Complex
are unpredictable, we believe these are the sworn assignments that are
best covered using overtime. Additionally, because our dignitary
protection responsibilities are often unpredictable, we believe that we
must utilize a balance of sworn staffing and overtime to meet these
mission requirements.
Additionally, as a part of our ELS Study implementation, we are
reviewing normal post requirements to determine any that might be
candidates for technology implementation, civilianization or
outsourcing, rather than utilizing sworn personnel or overtime to meet
the need.
We do not believe that we could or should eliminate overtime
utilization to meet mission requirements. Rather, we must find the
correct balance for its utilization as a part of achieving our overall
mission or protecting the legislative process.
Question. Have you conducted an employee survey recently to
determine your employees' level of satisfaction?
Answer. USCP has recently taken aggressive steps to gather data
from its employees regarding satisfaction with their work lives.
More comprehensive in nature is USCP's effort to gather feedback
with its Human Capital Survey (Climate Survey), which is currently
underway. Open for participation throughout the months of May and June,
this completely online survey will be the first Department-wide
examination designed to give insight into employees' work life
perceptions. So far, more than 33 percent (almost 700) of the employees
have submitted their responses, and we're continuing to encourage their
participation.
CIVILIAN STAFFING
Question. You are apparently having significant difficulty
attracting and retaining civilian personnel--some in positions critical
to your mission. How many civilian openings do you currently have and
why?
Answer. We currently have 78 civilian openings. We are planning to
fill 51 of these by the end of this fiscal year. In the past year, we
had management challenges in our Office of Human Resources, and we also
had the need to review job descriptions and classifications carefully
before posting positions. We also recently issued a Human Capital
Workforce Plan and are conducting an employee survey for the first
time. Both of these initiatives, along with others designed to enhance
our human capital programs, should assist in our efforts to hire and
retain highly qualified civilian personnel.
It is also unusually time-consuming to hire civilian employees at
the U.S. Capitol Police. Prospective employees are required to undergo
a background investigation, and it is required that they be approved by
House and Senate oversight committees. Not infrequently, we find that
fact that many of the people who apply for civilian jobs actually find
other jobs before we get the approvals necessary to make them an offer.
Question. With regard to the Library of Congress merger--you are
obtaining approximately 21 former Library officers who do not meet the
criteria to become Capitol Police officers. What will these employees
be doing and can they help in addressing your request for new civilian
FTE?
Answer. There are currently 23 LOC sworn officers who have been
determined to be ineligible for consideration to transfer to the USCP
as sworn officers, because they cannot meet the statutory requirement
for 20 years of ``continuous'' Federal service prior to becoming 60
years of age. These individuals will transfer to Department as
civilians (i.e., as ``civilianized'' former officers) on October 11,
2009, which is the 1st day of the 1st pay period following the
completion of the merger transition period.
The Department is also finalizing the positions that may be
civilianized in order to support the transition of the Library of
Congress sworn to civilian employees. The positions being considered
are:
--LOC Dispatchers (Currently a sworn assignment)
--LOC Call Takers
--LOC Computer Emergency Notification System (CENS) Messengers
--LOC Deaf Pager Notifications
--LOC Fire Panel Monitors
--Firearms Range Instructors (Currently a USCP sworn assignment)
--LOC Exit Inspections (Currently a sworn assignment. Two positions
and one relief position)
--CVC Exit Inspection Post
--Cannon/Madison Tunnel Exit Post
--LOC Division Support
We plan to have decisions on the civilianization of these positions
by mid-June, 2009. These employees will transition into civilian
positions on October 11, 2009 in accordance with the merger statute.
Currently, the Library of Congress utilizes sworn officers to staff
their dispatch operation. This operation is intended to continue to
reside within the LOC until the USCP's new radio system is implemented.
Therefore, we intend to look at utilizing up to 16 of these
civilianized employees for this purpose. This will allow us to
reallocate the sworn resources currently used for this purpose to meet
other critical security requirements upon the merger transition
completion. We also intend to consider these civilianizing employees
for exit screener positions at the LOC, as well as for monitoring of
the exits to ensure that collection materials are not removed from the
LOC, and to support the LOC division. Additionally, two civilianized
employees are certified firearms instructors and will be considered for
placement at the USCP firearms range. Finally, any transferring
civilian employee who does not get placed into any of these
opportunities, because of a lack of knowledge, skills and abilities
necessary to meet the position requirements, will be placed at the time
of transition into a mission support function within the Department
where their knowledge, skills and abilities are better suited.
Those LOC sworn officers eligible for sworn consideration who do
not successfully meet the prescribed hiring standards will transfer as
civilian employees in accordance with the statute and will be placed
according to the mission needs of the Department at the time of
transfer.
COUNTER-INTELLIGENCE
Question. You are requesting 13 additional officers for ``counter-
intelligence'' work. I don't want to ``reinvent the wheel'' here. Are
you currently coordinating with the Department of Homeland Security and
the Federal Bureau of Investigation on assessing threats to the
National Capitol Region--and to Capitol Hill in particular?
Answer. The Department has three USCP liaisons assigned to
coordinate with both the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security.
We currently have agents assigned to the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task
Force and the FBI's National Joint Terrorism Task force. These agents
work closely with their counterparts in the FBI, other Federal agencies
as well as State and local law enforcement agencies in the national
capitol region. The USCP has one Intelligence Research Specialist
assigned to the Department of Homeland Security and this analyst
provides analysis on international and domestic terrorist threats
toward the U.S. Congress.
The 13 additional counter surveillance agents would provide broader
coverage within the USCP jurisdiction and be primarily assigned to the
detection of hostile surveillance towards the congressional campus,
Members of Congress and congressional staff. Their primary assignment
would be the Legislative Branch of the government, as opposed to other
agency counterparts for whom Congress, its Members, visitors and staff
represent collateral interests. The current agents assigned perform
collateral duties outside of the counter surveillance scope to include
demonstrations, protective operations for congressional leadership
visiting dignitaries and special congressional events. There are
currently nine agents assigned to complete all of these tasks.
Question. What will you do if this committee does not fund these
additional FTE for counter-intelligence?
Answer. Should the Department not receive additional sworn FTE to
meet this mission need, we will continue to run the risk of not having
the necessary counter-intelligence information necessary to address
threats against the legislative process. If additional sworn resources
are not provided, the Department may need to utilize overtime or detail
sworn officers from other mission activities to address this risk.
______
Questions Submitted by Senator Lisa Murkowski
Question. If your agency were to receive only half of the requested
increase for fiscal year 2010, what would be the impact and what
changes would you make to your budget?
Answer. If USCP were to receive only half of the requested increase
(excluding the radio project funding and LOC merger effect), we would
adjust our projected hiring to focus on replacing attrition and hiring
the most critical civilian positions including most of the backfills
and those needed to civilianize the dispatch and alarm monitoring
program, training managers, and radio technicians. Most of this
increase would be used to cover mandatory personnel costs including
COLAs. We would also cover some of the infrastructure and/or lifecycle
replacements.
We would not be able to fund all of the infrastructure and/or
lifecycle replacement projects included in our request for security
systems (about $3 million was included), information technology (about
$3.8 million included in our request), vehicle replacements, and other
infrastructure projects. We would also not be able to hire all of the
critical civilians we have included in our request, nor new sworn
officers, and as a result our overtime would once again increase.
Question. What were the results of the ELS staffing study completed
a year ago? Did it result in any efficiencies or improvements in
operations?
Answer. The Department views the Enlightened Leadership Solutions
(ELS) Manpower Study (``the Study'') as a living document of guidelines
and methodologies from which the Department can develop and manage its
sworn manpower requirements.
Because the threats facing the Capitol Complex are ever changing,
items may be added to the list of recommendations as these threats and
mission requirements change. Likewise, recommendations may be removed,
because they are completed, determined as not feasible or overcome by
events.
Built into the Study are new security protection and response
protocols, as well as reviews and recommendations from previous
security studies. After the Study was reviewed by the Government
Accountability Office and others, additional processes were added, such
as budgeting via a threat-based approach, in order to ensure holistic
analysis, consideration and implementation.
As a first step in implementing the Study's recommendations, the
Chief of Operations reviewed and prioritized its recommendations based
on the current threat level facing the Capitol Complex. The Department
is in the process of documenting this decision making process in the
recommendation action and tracking matrix described below.
As a result of his review, the following mission sets received top
priority for review and implementation of recommendations: the Capitol
Division (CD), to include the Capitol Visitor Center (CVC), the
Hazardous Incident Response Division, the Protective Services Bureau's
Intelligence operation, the Containment Emergency Response Team (CERT),
and the Truck Interdiction Program.
Many of the changes we have made or that we will make to theses
areas are done by optimizing the staffing resources that we have
currently, which is what we are currently doing within the Capitol
Division to our assigned personnel. In addition, we are realigning the
Civil Disturbance Unit (CDU) and Hostage Negotiation Team (HNT) to the
Mission Assurance Bureau (MAB) in an effort to group mission
responsibilities for efficiency. Neither action requires additional
resources to accomplish these recommended efficiencies.
The Department has implemented many ELS recommendations or taken
actions in order facilitate the future implementation of
recommendations in both the USB and other organizational elements
throughout the Department. (Some of these also assist us in reducing
our reliance on overtime, and are included in the response to Question
#6 above.) These include:
Mission Efficiencies
Conducted load leveling of Operational units to ensure
proportionate staffing across the Department.
Standardized breaks across divisions to a 1-to-4 ratio.
Changed the CODEL footprint, so that roles are performed during
deployment in line with how they are performed on the Capitol Complex.
For example, MAB now operates the Command Vehicle when deployed for
CODELs.
Reviewed the requirements for a podium camera program and are
working toward the implementation of the program.
Restructured the Capitol Division in order to address the
additional threats resulting from the Capitol Visitor Center
operations.
Implemented the assignment of Protective Services Bureau
intelligence/threat agents traveling with the Speaker's detail.
Standardized the make up of leadership protective details with
Dignitary Protection Division to seven agents, except for the Speaker's
detail.
Audited the K-9 function. K-9 has undertaken a 4/10 work schedule
for better efficiency in meeting its mission set. The Chief of
Operations is evaluating K-9 stopping its search and rescue program and
the patrol dog program, implementing a vapor wake detection program to
meet emerging threats.
Directed that all POAs and Operation Orders go through MAB and the
Office of the Chief of Operations to create a historical record of
activities and operational decision-making, as well as to standardize
the process for developing and implementing them.
Trained over 1,000 sworn in x-ray security screening protocols and
podium training to better identify and address threats.
Reviewed and revised the screening standard operating procedures
and training for barrier access, and entry points and doors, in order
to standardize the processes across the Complex. We have also reviewed
and revised the directive addressing screening and it is now being
vetted as a part of the Department's directives modernization project.
Purchased and installed computer x-ray image interpretation
software on division computers to enhance the officer's ability to
detect threats in x-ray images.
Training all recruit classes in detecting surveillance techniques
to enhance officers' ability to detect individuals conducting
surveillance, to elicit information from the individuals during
conversations, and to determine what actions to take based on the
information obtained.
Staffing Efficiencies
Approved revisions to the CP-1301 system to better manage overtime
(OT) by improving how we draft and manage assignments. While the CP-
1301 process modification has been approved, the assignment of overtime
is currently being reviewed and negotiated as part of the Fraternal
Order of Police Union Contract.
Established a standardized positioning of officers at security
screening posts (doors) to ensure the officer are optimally positioned
for mission effectiveness and officer safety reasons, and to ensure
consistency of operations.
Included 76 new sworn officers in the fiscal year 2010 budget
request in order to reduce overtime and increase capability to address
threats.
Reassigned outside patrols to the House and Senate Divisions for
better efficiency and effectiveness in addressing threats.
Audited the CERT function--the Assistant Chief has provided
tentative approval to restructure CERT.
Audited the Hazardous Materials Response Team (HMRT) program--
Letters are being prepared for the Capitol Police Board's concurrence
to reorganize this function to meet the current threats facing the
Complex.
Audited and reorganized the Truck Interdiction Program (TIPS), in
order to return officers to posts.
Directed TIPS midnights staffing reductions.
Directed the integration of all divisions within the Patrol Mobile
Response Division (PMRD) into one holistic operation, rather than
focused units like heavy motors, mountain bikes, TIGER, etc.
Increased the utilization of technology at the Offsite Delivery
Center, in order to return officers to other priority post
requirements.
Automated the Officer Voluntary Reassignment Program.
Migrated the Security Services Bureau (SSB) to a 4/10 work schedule
for better efficiency in meeting their mission.
Migrated the Mission Assurance Bureau to a 4/10 work schedule for
better efficiency in meeting their mission.
Interim Steps Necessary To Implement Recommendations
Incrementally increased the Dignitary Protection Division (DPD) to
reduce overtime utilization and better meet the mission. Although DPD
is not staffed to the ELS recommendation level, we are migrating to
that point based on threat analysis and evolving mission.
Included the intelligence capability business case in the fiscal
year 2010 budget request. (This was previously requested in fiscal year
2009, but not funded.)
Assigned recruit officers to USB directly from officer training for
distribution following their field training.
Implemented revised protocol, so that officers can transfer into
Patrol Mobile Response Division (PMRD) without a formal selection
process. This has added to better efficiencies in addressing emerging
staffing requirements in a timely manner.
Assigned HMRT to conduct random sampling of deliveries at the
Offsite Delivery Center to leverage their staffing and mission
capabilities.
Work in Progress
Completed the gap analysis for the House Division.
Conducted an assessment of applying a 4/10 shift to the Chambers,
but this analysis determined that there would be offsetting staffing
needs, so implementation has been suspended at this time.
Directed that a study be conducted to review civilization of the
USCP Command Center. To accomplish this effort we are looking at using
the Wounded Warrior program for this purpose.
Approved the movement of Civil Disturbance Unit to the Mission
Assurance Bureau (MAB). The Department is currently working on the
implementation.
Approved the movement of the Crisis Negotiation Team to MAB. The
Department is also working on this implementation.
Reviewing operational requirements for the staffing of the
Communications activities. Originally the Department considered the
civilianization of Communications, but based on additional analysis, we
decided to make Communications all integrated sworn activity. These
sworn officers will rotate between duties within Communications to
better utilize available resources and achieve efficiency in the
delivery of the mission set.
Implementing upgrades to version 8.3 of Workbrain, so we can adopt
electronic scheduling.
To better document the Department's ongoing efforts to utilize the
Study's recommendations and methodology to determine the staffing and
overtime requirements necessary to meet the various subsets of our
mission, as well as achieve business process reengineering, we are
implementing a formal tracking matrix for the recommendations contained
in the Study. This matrix will be used to assist the Department in our
evaluation and prioritization of initiatives to be considered in our
annual budget formulation.
We plan to catalog each of the recommendations contained in the
Study on this matrix, as well as add new recommendations based on
emerging threat or mission requirements. We also plan to capture the
outcome of the feasibility review conducted on each recommendation, the
management decisions or authorities governing the implementation, the
preliminary list of resource requirements, training and competencies
required, and the status of the implementation effort.
Question. In preparing your staffing request, how were the results
and recommendations of the ELS study factored into your analysis and
what type of risk and threat assessments were performed to arrive at
the number and mix of staff requested for fiscal year 2010?
Answer. In developing the Department's fiscal year 2010 budget
request, we looked at several factors in determining the number of new
sworn and civilian positions that were requested. Because the
Department is undertaking a three pronged approach to reviewing,
validating and implementing the ELS study recommendations, the fiscal
year 2010 sworn staffing request was a limited step forward toward this
end.
The Department views the Enlightened Leadership Solutions (ELS)
Manpower Study (the Study) as a living document of guidelines and
methodologies from which the Department can develop and manage its
sworn manpower requirements. Because the threats facing the Capitol
Complex are ever changing, items may be added to the list of
recommendations as these threats and mission requirements change.
Likewise, recommendations may be removed, because they are completed,
determined as not feasible or overcome by events.
Built into the Study are new security, protection and response
protocols, as well as reviews and recommendations from previous
security studies. After the Study was reviewed by the Government
Accountability Office, House Appropriations Surveys and Investigations
and others, additional processes were added, such as budgeting in a
threat-based approach in order to ensure holistic implementation.
In order to balance the sworn staffing requirements versus the need
for overtime and/or technology to address mission requirements, the
Department believes it must validate the total number of sworn
personnel necessary to achieve the Department's mission. To do so, we
plan to use the ELS Manpower Study data as a baseline for reviewing
each post against current threat and mission requirement. This
validation will determine the total number of staff hours necessary to
achieve the mission and the best methods for achieving these
requirements, such as the appropriate ratio for sworn staffing,
overtime, outsourcing, and the utilization of technology.
The 13 sworn positions that were requested for enhanced counter-
intelligence capability were directly related to recommendations
contained within the ELS study. This request is also directly linked to
continued threat analysis conducted for the Capitol Complex.
The 76 requested sworn positions were intended to address existing
core mission post requirements for which we do not currently have sworn
staffing. The addition of these sworn positions, once deployed, would
directly reduce overtime utilization necessary to address normal post
requirements as determined by our continued threat and risk analyses
for the Complex. Additionally, these sworn positions when deployed
would begin to address ELS recommendations as the feasibility for each
recommendation is validated for implementation. In determining the
number of sworn positions to request in our fiscal year 2010 budget,
the Department also had to consider our ability to support recruit
training activities, as well as our ability to provide the long-term
infrastructure necessary to support the deployment of these sworn
personnel.
The 23 civilian positions were intended to address several critical
areas, such as positions currently staffed by contractors, positions
directly related to addressing audit findings and positions necessary
to support the new radio system and training transformation efforts.
Question. When will you complete a risk assessment and staffing
analysis for the CVC and LOC?
Answer. The Department plans to undertake a risk assessment of the
Library of Congress (LOC) following the transition of the law
enforcement functions from the LOC to the USCP in October 2009.
This LOC review will include a threat analysis, as well as a
facility security survey, of the LOC's facilities to determine the risk
and threat levels requiring mitigation. These findings will be applied
to a gap analysis to determine the appropriate staffing levels required
to staff the LOC mission under the USCP's sworn staffing model, as well
as potential alternate staffing models for Capitol Police Board
consideration. Based on the identified threats facing the LOC
facilities, the USCP may utilize its existing sworn staffing model or
an alternate model which best mitigates the identified and validated
risks. We believe that this threat analysis will be completed during
the second quarter of fiscal year 2010.
Similarly, the Capitol Division will undertake a staffing review
and gap analysis of the CVC to review the current sworn staffing
pattern against the identified threats and known mission requirements.
Since opening to the public in the fall of 2008, the CVC's operating
assumptions have changed and the alignment of posts was altered from
the original planning assumptions. To address these changes--many of
which resulted in new posts or extended/expanded hours of operations,
the Capitol Division has had to realign staffing within the Division
and utilize overtime to meet the mission. We believe that this staffing
and gap analyses will be completed by the end of June 2009.
Both of these assessments will be conducted using the methodology
developed in the ELS Manpower Study.
Question. What are the positions you intend to assign the LOC
officers transferring as civilians to USCP? How will you take advantage
of their sworn experience?
Answer. There are currently 23 LOC sworn officers who have been
determined to be ineligible for consideration to transfer to the USCP
as sworn officers, because they cannot meet the statutory requirement
for 20 years of ``continuous'' Federal service prior to becoming 60
years of age. These individuals will transfer to Department as
civilians on October 11, 2009, which is the 1st day of the 1st pay
period following the completion of the merger transition period.
The Department is also finalizing the positions that may be
civilianized in order to support the transition of the Library of
Congress sworn to civilian employees. The positions being considered
are:
--LOC Dispatchers (Currently a sworn assignment.)
--Call Takers
--Computer Emergency Notification System (CENS) Messengers
--Deaf Pager Notifications
--Fire Panel Monitors
--Firearms Range Instructors (Currently a USCP sworn assignment)
--LOC Exit Inspections (Currently a sworn assignment. Two positions
and one relief position)
--CVC Exit Inspection Post
--Cannon/Madison Tunnel Exit Post
--LOC Division Support
We plan to have decisions on the civilianization of these positions
by mid-June, 2009 and will begin meeting with the affected employees
shortly thereafter. These employees will transition into civilian
positions on October 11, 2009 in accordance with the merger statute.
Currently, the Library of Congress utilizes sworn officers to staff
their dispatch operation. This operation is intended to continue to
reside within the LOC until the USCP's new radio system is implemented.
Therefore, we intend to look at utilizing up to 16 of these
civilianized employees for this purpose. This will allow us to
reallocate the sworn resources currently used for this purpose to meet
other critical security requirements upon the merger transition
completion. We also intend to consider these civilianizing employees
for exit screening positions at the LOC, as well as for monitoring of
the exits to ensure that collection materials are not removed from the
LOC, and to support the LOC division.
Additionally, two civilianized employees are certified firearms
instructors and will be considered for placement at the USCP firearms
range. Finally, any transferring civilian employee who does not get
placed into any of these opportunities, because of a lack of knowledge,
skills and abilities necessary to meet the position requirements, will
be placed at the time of transition into a mission support function
within the Department where their knowledge, skills and abilities are
better suited.
Question. Please provide a list of all light duty posts.
Answer. Please see below table, which includes 27 employees on
light duty, 5 of whom are pregnant, and 7 are on Workers' Compensation.
Recently, the bureaus were authorized to assign light duty officers to
administrative positions within the organization.
RESTRICTED DUTY EMPLOYEES
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Name Detail to
------------------------------------------------------------------------
T.D........................................ PD-K9
J.T........................................ LOC
R.H. (Sgt.)................................ DPD
D.S........................................ DPD
D.C........................................ Training
T.H........................................ Training
J.J........................................ HD-2
D.P........................................ WC
M.D........................................ Cap Div
L.B........................................ PD
H.E........................................ PD
S.G........................................ LOC
D.S........................................ Sen Div
E.W........................................ Sen Div
M.R........................................ Sen Div
E.R. (Lt.)................................. Comm
L.H. (Sgt)................................. CC-1
B.R........................................ DPD
S.W........................................ House Div
R.E........................................ FRU-2
D.N........................................ Veh Maint
K.G........................................ Veh Maint
E.V. (civ.)................................ PD
L.W........................................ Spec Event
C.Y........................................ Cap Div-1
A.B........................................ OHR
A.M........................................ House Div
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question. What is the status of reorganizing the Hazardous
Materials Response Team, and what specific changes will be made to this
unit?
Answer. The Department has reviewed the mission requirements for
the Hazardous Materials Response Team (HMRT) and has determined that
the scope of the HMRT's role, duties and responsibilities should be
reorganized to better support the Department's protective mission in
accordance with our Strategic Plan.
To guide this effort, a broadly representative task force was
established within the Hazardous Incident Response Division (HIRD) to
develop recommendations and mission-driven proposals for improving the
Department's Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Law
Enforcement (CBRN-LE) program.
The Department is recommending the following changes to the Capitol
Police Board for consideration:
--Reallocation of duties of the HMRT Manager, the Planning and
Readiness Manager, and the HMRT Operations Supervisor to
improve leadership and quality management within the
organization.
--Elimination of the Level ``B'' Response Team (LBT) program and
incorporation of those members into the Advanced Law
Enforcement Response Team (ALERT) program, which will expand
the ALERT program to approximately 160 members.
--Training for all sworn officers and officials to the Hazardous
Materials Operations level through a combination of on-line and
roll call training.
--Issuance of new and improved highly portable and compact protective
masks to all sworn officers and officials. This will enable
USCP officers to quickly evacuate a contaminated environment,
establish a secured perimeter and effectively assist others in
an emergency situation.
--Creation of an Integrated Response Team (IRT) under the command of
the HDS Commander.
--Rotation of ALERT officers through the HIRD facility four times per
year (one week per quarter) for fit testing of equipment,
medical screening, classroom training and practical training
with the Integrated Response Team.
--Unification of ALERT management functions under the command of HIRD
Management.
--Centralize training at the HIRD Headquarters offices, including
review of current training, development of ALERT training
modules, and creation of USCP Executive Management Overview
training to be provided to Captains and above.
--Creation of a permanent hazardous materials screening team at the
Off-Site Delivery Center (OSDC) tasked with conducting random
vehicle screening and responding to requests to inspect
suspicious mail at the Senate mail handling facility.
Upon concurrence of the Capitol Police Board, the Department will
request the appropriate committee approvals to effect the
reorganization of the Hazardous Incident Response Division, to include
the Hazardous Materials Response Team.
Question. What are you doing to ensure overtime is used only where
it is truly necessary? What controls have been put in place to better
manage overtime in the last year?
Answer. In an effort to align overtime usage to the budget
allocation, several measures were taken to reduce overtime without
adversely affecting our ability to meet our mission.
The following Department-wide guidelines have been set in place in
order to efficiently manage necessary post assignments, enabling our
continued reduction and management of overtime.
--Training that is not mission critical or requires back fill by
overtime is not authorized, which is a continuation of how the
Department has operated during the continuing resolution.
--Handgun qualifications will continue at the RHOB Range instead of
Cheltenham. When handgun requalifications are held at
Cheltenham, the officers are removed from the field and must be
replaced with overtime for 16 hours per year per officer. When
the handgun requalifications are held at our RHOB Range, the
officers are not removed from the field and accomplish their
requalifications during their tours of duty, requiring no
overtime.
--Restricted Duty personnel will be utilized on Sections 1 and 3 for
administrative duties in lieu of officers being paid overtime.
--Personnel will be relieved when the need for overtime dissipates.
Instead of keeping officers for an entire 8-hour tour of duty
when they are working overtime, the officers will be sent home
if their overtime assignments end prior to the end of their
tours of duty.
--Bureaus are to ensure a 1:4 break ratio for fixed posts.
--Overtime for sergeants, lieutenants, and their civilian equivalents
is to be approved by Division Commanders.
--No officers are to be assigned to administrative offices. The
duties performed by these officers are being assumed by
civilian employees or restricted duty officers.
--Day off allocations are to be adjusted to decrease the scheduling
OT on any one particular day.
--Line reduction posts will not be staffed.
--Emergency Responder posts are not staffed on Section 1. Uniformed
Services Bureau (USB) sergeants and Patrol Mobile Response
Division (PMRD) sergeants will assume these duties.
--House and Senate Office Buildings outside foot patrols staffed by
the House and Senate Divisions were eliminated. PMRD will
assume these patrols as collateral duties.
--For out of town protectees, we will request that the local law
enforcement agencies begin their D checks as soon as the
protectee arrives at their residence, instead of at 2300 hours
as they do currently.
--Officers in the Field Training Officer (FTO) Program (trainee) will
be used as the 2nd officer at posts. Previously, trainees
shadowed their FTO and were not included in the staffing for
the Section. Now they are assigned a post but must always work
with their FTO present.
In addition to the above Department-wide guidelines, the Department
has taken several measures at the Division level to control or reduce
overtime utilization. Because the posts described are law enforcement
sensitive, the list of post reductions will be provided to the
Committee separately.
Question. Please provide a breakout of your total officer staffing
request by division.
Answer. See table below.
OFFICER COUNTS (ON-BOARD AS OF 5/15/09)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Additional
Fiscal year Fiscal year officers Fiscal year Projected
Bureau name/Division name Title/rank # of 2009 2009 projected requested 2010 projected total at
officers additional attrition--PP (fiscal year attrition fiscal year
sworn 10 to year-end 2010) \1\ 2010 year-end
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chief Of Police.................. COP....................... 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
CAPTAIN................... 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
LIEUTENANT................ 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
SERGEANT.................. 7 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total, Chief Of Police..... .......................... 10 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
==========================================================================================
Chief Of Operations.............. COO....................... 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
INSPECTOR................. 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total, Chief Of Operations. .......................... 2 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
==========================================================================================
Long Term Absence
OHR--OPERATIONS DIVISION......... LIEUTENANT................ 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
PRIVATE FIRST CLASS....... 18 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
PRIVATE W/TRAINING........ 5 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
SERGEANT.................. 2 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total, Long Term Absence... .......................... 26 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
==========================================================================================
Office Of Human Resources
OHR--PROGRAMS DIVISION........... LIEUTENANT................ 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
SERGEANT.................. 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
PRIVATE FIRST CLASS....... 2 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total, Office Of Human .......................... 4 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
Resources.
==========================================================================================
Mission Assurance Bureau
MAB.............................. INSPECTOR................. 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
CAPTAIN................... 4 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
LIEUTENANT................ 6 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
SERGEANT.................. 20 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
PRIVATE FIRST CLASS....... 52 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
PRIVATE W/TRAINING........ 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
SPECIAL TECHNICIAN........ 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
TECHNICIAN................ 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TOTAL, MAB--OPERATIONS .......................... 86 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
(DIVISION).
==========================================================================================
MAB--SPECIAL EVENTS (OFFICE)..... LIEUTENANT................ 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
PRIVATE FIRST CLASS....... 5 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
SERGEANT.................. 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
==========================================================================================
TOTAL, MAB--SPECIAL EVENTS .......................... 7 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
(OFFICE).
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total, Mission Assurance .......................... 93 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
Bureau.
==========================================================================================
Office of Policy and Management PRIVATE FIRST CLASS....... 2 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
Systems.
==========================================================================================
Operational Services Bureau
PATROL DIVISION.................. DEPUTY CHIEF.............. 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
SERGEANT.................. 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
DETECTIVE................. 3 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
INSPECTOR................. 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
LIEUTENANT................ 5 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
PRIVATE FIRST CLASS....... 84 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
SERGEANT.................. 18 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
TECHNICIAN................ 2 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
TECHNICIAN K-9............ 43 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TOTAL, PATROL DIVISION..... .......................... 156 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
==========================================================================================
HAZARDOUS INCIDENT RESPONSE CAPTAIN................... 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
DIVISION (HIRD).
INSPECTOR................. 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
LIEUTENANT................ 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
SERGEANT.................. 2 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
DETECTIVE................. 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
PRIVATE FIRST CLASS....... 9 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TOTAL, HIRD................ .......................... 15 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
==========================================================================================
Total, Operational Services .......................... 173 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
Bureau.
==========================================================================================
Protective Services Bureau
PSB.............................. DEPUTY CHIEF.............. 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
==========================================================================================
INVESTIGATIONS DIVISION.......... CAPTAIN................... 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
DETECTIVE................. 2 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
LIEUTENANT................ 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
SERGEANT.................. 3 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
PRIVATE FIRST CLASS....... 21 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TOTAL, INVESTIGATIONS .......................... 28 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
DIVISION.
==========================================================================================
DIGNITARY PROTECTION DIVISION INSPECTOR................. 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
(DPD).
CAPTAIN................... 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
LIEUTENANT................ 2 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
SERGEANT.................. 11 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
DETECTIVE................. 2 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
SPECIAL TECHNICIAN........ 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
PRIVATE FIRST CLASS....... 116 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TOTAL, DIGNITARY PROTECTION .......................... 134 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
DIVISION.
==========================================================================================
Total, Protective Services .......................... 163 .............. .............. 13 .............. ..............
Bureau.
==========================================================================================
Security Services Bureau
SSB.............................. LIEUTENANT................ 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
SERGEANT.................. 2 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TOTAL, SSB................. .......................... 3 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
==========================================================================================
PHYSICAL SECURITY DIVISION....... SERGEANT.................. 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
PRIVATE FIRST CLASS....... 5 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TOTAL, PHYSICAL SECURITY .......................... 6 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
DIVISION.
==========================================================================================
TECHNICAL COUNTERMEASURES DETECTIVE................. 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
DIVISION.
==========================================================================================
Total, Security Services .......................... 10 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
Bureau.
==========================================================================================
Training Services Bureau
TSB.............................. DEPUTY CHIEF.............. 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
INSPECTOR................. 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
LIEUTENANT................ 4 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
SERGEANT.................. 8 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
PRIVATE FIRST CLASS....... 2 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TOTAL, TSB................. .......................... 16 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
==========================================================================================
ENTRY LEVEL TRAINING DIVISION.... PRIVATE................... 151 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
==========================================================================================
5700--PHYSICAL SKILLS (DIVISION). LIEUTENANT................ 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
SERGEANT.................. 5 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
PRIVATE FIRST CLASS....... 3 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TOTAL, PHYSICAL SKILLS .......................... 9 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
DIVISION.
==========================================================================================
Total, Training Services .......................... 176 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
Bureau.
==========================================================================================
Uniform Services Bureau
USB.............................. DEPUTY CHIEF.............. 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
LIEUTENANT................ 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
DETECTIVE................. 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
PLAINCLOTHESMAN........... 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TOTAL, USB................. .......................... 4 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
==========================================================================================
USB/LOC.......................... INSPECTOR................. 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
LIEUTENANT................ 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
SERGEANT.................. 4 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
PRIVATE FIRST CLASS....... 58 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
PRIVATE W/TRAINING........ 6 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TOTAL, USB/LOC............. .......................... 70 87 .............. .............. .............. ..............
==========================================================================================
HOUSE DIVISION................... INSPECTOR................. 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
CAPTAIN................... 3 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
LIEUTENANT................ 6 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
SERGEANT.................. 27 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
DETECTIVE................. 2 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
PRIVATE FIRST CLASS....... 243 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
PRIVATE W/TRAINING........ 44 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TOTAL, HOUSE DIVISION...... .......................... 326 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
==========================================================================================
SENATE DIVISION.................. INSPECTOR................. 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
CAPTAIN................... 2 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
LIEUTENANT................ 4 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
SERGEANT.................. 19 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
TECHNICIAN................ 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
DETECTIVE................. 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
PRIVATE FIRST CLASS....... 177 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
PRIVATE W/TRAINING........ 65 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TOTAL, SENATE DIVISION..... .......................... 270 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
==========================================================================================
CAPITOL DIVISION................. INSPECTOR................. 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
CAPTAIN................... 3 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
LIEUTENANT................ 9 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
SERGEANT.................. 37 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
PRIVATE FIRST CLASS....... 250 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
PRIVATE W/TRAINING........ 105 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TOTAL, CAPITOL DIVISION.... .......................... 405 .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
==========================================================================================
Total, Uniform Services .......................... 1,075 93 .............. 76 .............. ..............
Bureau.
==========================================================================================
Total...................... .......................... 1,734 \1\ 93 28 \2\ 229 140 1,888
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Total includes 61 LOC Sworn Transfers, 26 LOC Sworn Backfill and 6 USCP Backfill.
\2\ Total includes 89 new sworn positions requested in the fiscal year 2010 budget request and 140 USCP Sworn Backfill
Question. Please provide a list of additional closures that could
be made in posts that are underutilized, and the annual savings that
would be associated with these closures.
Answer. Over the last 2 years, the Chief and Assistant Chief have
continually realigned assignments, looked for efficiencies, and
eliminated and added posts based on threat conditions and stakeholder
requirements. This is a business process to which we are committed to
continuing.
To meet fiscal year 2009 budgetary requirements, the Department has
developed a plan to adjust post requirements to the Capitol complex.
``Round 1'' cuts will have no or minimal impact on the Capitol complex.
The posts identified are not necessarily underutilized, but we have
determined that the requirements may be better absorbed through other
divisions or posts picking up the workload as a secondary
responsibility to their primary responsibility. It should be noted that
if security conditions change these post may have to be reinstated.
By executing the Round 1 cuts the USCP expects to save 1,177 hours
or $61,511 per week in overtime. These cuts were executed at the
beginning of Pay Period 9 and are expected to decrease our overtime
requirement for the remainder of fiscal year 2009 by $1.35 million.
Further, we have included these cuts as an offset for our revised
fiscal year 2010 overtime request of $25.5 million.
Because the posts described above are law enforcement sensitive,
the list of post reductions will be provided to the Committee
separately.
Question. Please provide a list of all new posts created in the
last year, costs for each, and who directed the creation of the post.
Answer. The majority of posts that were added to USCP in fiscal
year 2009 are attributed to the opening of the Capitol Visitor Center
(CVC). In fiscal year 2008 and fiscal year 2009, the Congress
authorized and appropriated funds for 31 new sworn positions for the
CVC based on a proposed staffing plan. This staffing plan was proposed
prior to the final security assessment or the opening of the CVC.
Since this time additional posts have been required for the CVC and
posts that the Department thought would be eliminated were retained.
This equated to an additional 1,811 hours of overtime per week or an
additional $4 million from the beginning of fiscal year 2009 Pay Period
24 until the end of fiscal year 2009. Additionally, requirements for
the CVC to open at 8:30 a.m., 30 minutes prior to the original planned
opening were added, which required an additional 349 hours per week or
an additional $780,000 from fiscal year 2009 Pay Period 24 until the
end of fiscal year 2009.
Below is a more detailed description of the additional posts added
as part of CVC that were not projected in the initial staffing plan:
--Nine mandatory life safety posts required during evacuations (this
does not include two funded and anticipated life safety posts
or ERs, patrols, or perimeter officers). Life safety posts are
staffed only during operating hours of the CVC--additional
overtime is incurred for late night receptions/events based
upon anticipated guest participation.
--Two officers Upper Level of the CVC at base of escalators, Monday-
Friday 0700-1630; one officer, Saturday 0830-1630; and one
officer for late sessions of Congress.
--The escalators leading to the U.S. Capitol from the upper level
of the CVC are the major pedestrian/visitor access point
between the two buildings. As such, in order to ensure the
security of the U.S. Capitol Building and prevent
unauthorized access into the building, additional officers
were assigned in this area, which were not originally
planned. Specifically, during business hours, special
events and late sessions of Congress, it is necessary to
post a minimum of five additional officers--two in the area
of the CVC upper level escalator base, one at the Crypt/top
of the escalators, one on the second floor of the Capitol/
Rotunda entrance, one on the third floor East Front
Corridor.
--One officer at the Rotunda Door interior, Monday-Saturday 0800-
1630.
--One officer at the 3rd floor East Front Corridor, Monday-Friday
0800-1630 or until the House and Senate adjourn.
--Two officers, working 24/7 at the CVC Main Entrance exteriors to
monitor multiple fire doors.
--Two officers working 24/7 to monitor new West Front egress fire
doors.
--Two officers working 24/7 to monitor Law Library and Memorial
Doors.
In addition to the new unplanned posts outlined above, the
Department estimated that 89 sworn FTE would be realized by reassigning
sworn personnel from posts that would close upon the opening of the
CVC. However, some of these closures have not been realized, these
include:
--North Screening/North Door has remained open after CVC opening,
which requires six officers to operate the post.
--S-407 continues to be a 9-5 post which is an unplanned expenditure.
--40 hours per week for an additional 47 weeks in fiscal year 2009
for a cost of ($100,000).
--Five officers are required to prevent early morning/late night
access into the Capitol from the CVC i.e., tunnels, etc. (CVC
opens 30 minutes prior to the Capitol and often has late night,
unescorted events.)
--When the CVC fence was taken down, several doors leading into the
Capitol Building had to be staffed because the doors were not
alarmed or secured. This was a departure from our CVC staffing
plan.
Additionally, requirements for the protection of Leadership
positions of Congress were placed on USCP during fiscal year 2009.
--During the presidential campaign, the Dignitary Protection Division
(DPD) was required to place protective details on Senator John
McCain and Then-Senator Barack Obama while they were within the
Capitol Complex.
--Due to a staffing shortage, DPD was required to work additional
overtime to cover leadership travel. We could not anticipate
this staffing shortfall.
Further, we have had additional requirements, which are:
--We are staffing two new Truck Interdiction Posts (2nd and D Street,
NE, 3rd and C Street, NE).
--Staffed M-F 0900-1700 or until Senate goes out of session and on
weekends when Senate in session; average 80 hours per week
or $4,180 per week. Normally when Senate is in session
posts are open until about 2100 or an additional 40 hours
per week in session or an additional $2,100 per week.
--It is projected in one fiscal year that Congress is in session 39
weeks per year and 13 weeks out of session.
--The money for the overtime required to replace LOC officer during
their transition training ($900,000) was not included in our
2009 budget.
--The requirement for this was that each officer eligible for
transfer form the LOC would be required to attend 10 weeks
of training at Cheltenham. This equated to approximately 57
officers that required backfill or approximately 17,000
hours to backfill with USCP Officers.
Question. A total of $19 million is requested for the Security
Services Bureau, an increase of $3.9 million or 26 percent over fiscal
year 2009. Please explain the need for this increase, and the impact of
deferring or eliminating any of the new items proposed for fiscal year
2010. How frequently does security equipment need to be refreshed?
Answer. The $3.9 million increase in fiscal year 2010 would support
a combination of programs aimed at ensuring that Congressional
facilities meet current USCP standards and compliance with the LOC
merger legislation. It is also intended to minimize security
vulnerabilities, and assist us in maintaining equipment and systems at
manufacturer suggested lifecycle standards for optimum performance.
The $3.9 million increase in fiscal year 2010 (over fiscal year
2009) breaks out as follows:
--$1.37 million to install technical security systems in the
Alternate Computer Facility (ACF) to meet current USCP security
standards;
--$928,000 to design and install Emergency Call Boxes and CCTV
cameras throughout the stairwells, areas of refuge, and safe
havens for Congressional Office Buildings (a new initiative
recommended and approved by the Capitol Police Board);
--$718,000 for LOC access control system and CCTV integration (steps
required to undertake security responsibilities per statutory
merger language); and
--$923,000 for LOC lifecycle replacement of various systems.
All security equipment has lifecycle replacement guidelines per
manufacturer recommendation and industry best practices. When equipment
does not get replaced in a timely manner per these guidelines,
equipment performance slips, downtime increases, and vulnerabilities
are more likely. In addition the LOC does not use the same screening
standards so if the equipment is not procured more officers may be
required to support screening. By not funding these programs, important
security equipment such as explosive detectors and x-ray machines would
be prone to more outages, causing a ripple effect of having to spend
more resources on repair, rather than proactive preventive maintenance.
Question. Please provide the Department's comments and concerns
with legislation passed by the House making technical and other changes
to USCP statutes.
Answer. The Department has coordinated with the House
Administration and Senate Rules Committees on the legislation passed by
the House making technical and other changes to USCP statutes. The
Department has no significant comments or concerns with this
legislation.
Question. For fiscal year 2009 USCP proposed funding to recruit 264
officers, with classes planned for October and November 2008, January,
February and May 2009. What is the status of recruit classes for this
year? How many new recruits do you anticipate?
Answer. As of May 15, 2009, USCP hired 163 recruits and have lost
19 (11.66 percent) recruits in training. We are expecting an additional
32 sworn personnel to start training on June 4th, and have adequate
qualified candidates to fill the August class with an additional 24
hires. Altogether, we could add 56 more recruits to the 163 we've
already hired totaling 219 for fiscal year 2009. We are monitoring our
staffing levels closely to stay within our authorized positions.
Question. Last year USCP estimated it would require $6,956,503 for
costs associated with the LOC merger in fiscal year 2009. (DM#406860)
This included $618,453 in salaries, $3,120,000 in transfers from LOC,
and $3,218,050 in general expenses. What are the current estimates? LOC
estimated overtime and benefits to cover mission during training of the
transferring LOC sworn personnel at $400,000. What is the current
estimate?
Answer. When this document was created, 73 individuals had been
identified as being eligible for consideration to transfer to the USCP
as sworn officers. This was based on an initial review of Federal
service time and other requirements of the U.S. Capitol Police and
Library of Congress Police Merger Implementation Act of 2007. In
addition, 21 LOC sworn officers were determined not to be eligible for
consideration to transfer to the USCP as sworn officers at the end of
the transition period pursuant to the U.S. Capitol Police and Library
of Congress Police Merger Implementation Act of 2007.
Another assumption when this document was created was that the
Department would be able to absorb the overtime necessary to backfill
for the LOC sworn officers who are eligible for consideration to become
USCP sworn officers while they attended transition training. The
Department believed at the time that with the efficiencies we were
realizing in overtime management that additional overtime funding would
not be necessary for this activity. However, this did not come to pass.
Currently, there are 61 LOC sworn officers who have been determined
to be eligible for consideration to transfer to the USCP as sworn
officers based on the statutory requirements. This total may decrease
based on the final certification of eligible sworn transferees against
the standards set by the Capitol Police Board.
Likewise, there are currently 23 LOC sworn officers who have been
determined to be ineligible for consideration to transfer to the USCP
as sworn officers, because they cannot meet the statutory requirement
for 20 years of ``continuous'' Federal service prior to becoming 60
years of age. These individuals will transfer to Department as
civilians (i.e., as ``civilianized'' former officers) on October 11,
2009, which is the 1st day of the 1st pay period following the
completion of the merger transition period. There are also 11
additional LOC sworn vacancies requiring backfill.
To address the backfill requirements for this mission set, the
Department is conducting a recruit officer class in June 2009, in which
we will hire 26 new recruit officers for this purpose. Following the
conclusion of the transition, the Department may need to request
authorization and funding for the eight remaining sworn complement for
this purpose, which are currently vacant.
The current estimates for fiscal year 2009 are:
--The Department received $279,000 in transferred funds from the LOC
to cover the salaries for the four civilians that transferred
from the LOC to the USCP on October 1, 2009.
--The Department projects receiving $88,099 transferred salary
funding from the LOC to cover the salaries, benefits and
overtime from September 27-30, 2009 for the 61 anticipated
sworn transfers.
--The Department will expend $149,000 in general expenses to conduct
the sworn transition training.
--The Department will utilize an estimated $1.615 million in general
expenses to provide uniforms, equipment and weapons for the
certified sworn transferees.
The projected estimates for fiscal year 2010 are:
--The Department requires $4,688,582 in salaries and benefits to
annualize for the 61 sworn officers transferring to the USCP in
the last 3 days of fiscal year 2009.
--The Department requires $1,998,412 in salaries and benefits to
annualize for the 26 LOC backfill officers hired in the June
2009 Recruit Officer Class.
--The Department requires $2,184,000 in salaries and benefits for the
23 current LOC sworn officers who transfer to the USCP on
October 11, 2009 as civilians pursuant to the U.S. Capitol
Police and Library of Congress Police Merger Implementation Act
of 2007 and the three civilians currently with the Department.
(Salaries for these three civilians were transferred to the
USCP form the LOC appropriation for fiscal year 2009.)
--Benefits and a 2.9 percent COLA for the positions noted above are
$2,973,557 and $192,944 respectively.
--$1.42 million in overtime to cover the backfill for the 26 recruit
officers in the recruit officer class until they are deployed
in January 2010 as well as overtime to cover backfill for the
remaining eight LOC sworn vacancies until they are authorized
and funded.
--$873,000 for overtime for normal post requirements that are
currently funded with LOC appropriated salaries funding.
--The Department has requested $1.966 million in general expenses
funding to support the first phase of technical security
integration for the Library buildings when they fall under the
Capitol Buildings and Grounds jurisdiction on October 1, 2009.
Question. Last year USCP estimated (DOC#409916) it would require
$3,064,958 for the 2009 Presidential inaugural, including $2,080,958
for overtime and $984,000 for expenses. What is the current estimate?
Answer. The overtime estimate was revised multiple times up to and
including the $1,646,800 we referenced in our reprogramming request
dated October 3, 2008. That amount was based on the number of hours
employees would work for the Inauguration itself, Inauguration
rehearsals, and the extra hours we planned to work for Inauguration
ticket pickup. We spent approximately $1.2 million in overtime for all
of the Inauguration events combined. There are several contributors to
this variance, the most significant among them that we have not charged
``holiday pay'' to the Inauguration funding--although it had been
included in the estimates--since it is not strictly overtime.
As recently as January 2, we still anticipated using virtually all
of the general expenses funding we had budgeted for the Inauguration
(i.e., $945,700), the same amount referenced in the October 3
reprogramming request. We ultimately used almost $500,000 of the total.
The reason for the variance was the strict control exerted by the
Inauguration Task Force over what expenditures were intrinsic to the
Inauguration, and which were desirable but not absolutely necessary for
that purpose.
Question. Last year USCP estimated (DOC#409919) it would need an
increase of $7,300,000 for the Capitol Visitor Center salary costs.
Total FTE required to meet the mission was estimated at 155 sworn FTE,
of which 134 were offset through previous authorization and
reassignments. What is the current estimate? What additional
requirements have been experienced that were not planned for the CVC?
Answer. The current salaries and benefits costs projected for the
CVC is approximately $2.1 million for the 31 sworn positions provided
to support the staffing shortfalls identified at the time of these
estimates. The current overtime estimate for fiscal year 2009 is $2.191
million, which includes overtime to support the early opening time for
the facility and new post requirements, including life and safety
posts, as well as reduced offset posts following the opening of the
CVC.
In fiscal year 2010, the Department is continuing its load leveling
efforts to evenly spread workloads and overtime impacts across the
Department. In doing so and accounting for new CVC post requirements,
as well as planning assumption changes for the operation of the
facility, the Capitol Division, which includes the CVC, will have a
higher overtime allocation than previously estimated.
The current general expenses projected costs to support the 31 new
sworn officers are $575,000 for uniforms, equipment and weapons.
Since opening to the public in the fall of 2008, the CVC's
operating assumptions have changed and the alignment of posts was
altered from the original planning assumptions. To address these
changes--many of which resulted in new posts or extended/expanded hours
of operations, the Capitol Division has had to realign staffing within
the Division and utilize overtime to meet the mission. To determine the
full impact of these staffing assumption changes, we are conducting a
staffing and gap analysis which will be completed by the end of June
2009.
Additional posts added as part of CVC that were not projected
previously:
--Nine mandatory life safety posts required during evacuations (this
does not include two funded and anticipated life safety posts
or ERs, patrols, or perimeter officers). Life safety posts are
staffed only during operating hours of the CVC--additional
overtime is incurred for late night receptions/events based
upon anticipated guest participation.
--Two officers Upper Level of the CVC at base of escalators, Monday-
Friday 0700-1630; one officer, Saturday 0830-1630; and one
officer for late sessions of Congress.
--One officer at the Rotunda Door interior, Monday-Saturday 0800-
1630.
--One officer at the 3rd floor East Front Corridor, Monday-Friday
0800-1630 or until the House and Senate adjourn.
--Two officers, working 24/7 at the CVC Main Entrance exteriors to
monitor multiple fire doors.
--Two officers working 24/7 to monitor new West Front egress fire
doors.
--Two officers working 24/7 to monitor Law Library and Memorial
Doors.
In addition to the new unplanned posts outlined above, the
Department estimated that 89 sworn FTE would be realized by reassigning
sworn personnel from posts that would close upon the opening of the
CVC. However, some of these closures have not been realized, these
include:
--North Screening/North Door has remained open after CVC opening,
which requires six officers to operate the post.
--S-407 continues to be a 9-5 post which is an unplanned expenditure.
--Five officers are required to prevent early morning/late night
access into the Capitol from the CVC i.e., tunnels, etc (CVC
opens 30 minutes prior to the Capitol and often has late night,
unescorted events.)
Question. Please provide a prioritization of FTEs requested in
fiscal year 2010, and explain whether any of those requested are a
higher priority than those for which vacancies currently exist.
Answer. Realizing that the fiscal year 2010 budget allocation for
the Legislative Branch will not allow for double digit increases for
the Department, we have reprioritized our total salary and general
expenses requirements and determined that it will be more efficient for
the Department to meet its sworn staffing shortages through overtime in
fiscal year 2010, rather than with new sworn officers. While we will
not be able to immediately staff for an increased intelligence
capability, we plan to utilize our overtime and other resources to meet
these and other critical mission requirements.
Likewise, the Department plans to refocus its efforts on hiring the
currently authorized and funded civilian positions during fiscal year
2010. As a part of this effort, we plan to seek authorization to
reallocate some vacant civilian positions to critical mission
requirements that would have been filled by the new civilian positions
included in our fiscal year 2010 budget request. Additionally, we will
be seeking authorization to reallocate current vacant positions to meet
mission needs currently met through outsourcing, such as communications
and dispatch.
Because of reduced benefits costs for overtime and a reduction in
general expense outlays for new positions; we believe we can better
meet our mission requirements, as well as critical infrastructure and
lifecycle needs, within a single digit increase, by utilizing overtime
to meet sworn staffing shortages.
Question. How much overtime has been expended to date on the power
plant utility tunnel project? What is required for fiscal year 2010?
Answer. As of Pay Period 8, the USCP has not yet expended overtime
to support the Architect of the Capitol (AOC) Tunnel Project in fiscal
year 2009. The requirement for overtime is based on the project plan
presented by AOC. Based on AOC estimates for fiscal year 2009, the
Department is projecting to expend $280,000 in fiscal year 2009 for
this purpose.
Recently, the AOC presented USCP with its proposed project plan for
the remainder of fiscal year 2009, as well as for fiscal year 2010. We
are working with the AOC to determine the security requirements, both
in terms of physical security and the physical presence of a USCP
Officer to provide security and protection due to direct access to the
Capitol Complex. Once the AOC has finalized its project plan and
implemented mitigating physical security elements, we will be able to
provide estimates for the overtime needed to support this project in
fiscal year 2010.
Question. USCP generally loses approximately 10 percent of recruits
in any given class for a variety of reasons. What is the cost
associated with this ``drop-out'' rate? What is USCP doing to improve
its ability to recruit those individuals who have a high probability of
graduating from FLETC and becoming USCP officers?
Answer. In terms of human resources costs, the average cost per
recruit who drops from training (which includes removal from training
up to the last day):
--Recruiting/Background Investigation Cost: $8,496 (not including any
salaries for any USCP employee working in recruiting or
Background Investigations (BI) or staffing, etc.)
--Average Salary Cost (loss): $27,169
--Average Overtime Cost: $4,079.
Thus, the OHR drop cost total is $40,122.
Additionally, there are offsetting losses to overtime reductions
for recruits who ``drop-out'' during training. This offset is based on
the recruit officer's contribution to meeting mission requirements
going forward from their time of actual deployment. Because this
contribution varies within a fiscal year dependant on when recruit
classes occur and actual recruit officer deployments take place, it is
hard to determine exact costs within a fiscal year resulting from this
loss recruit officer contribution.
In order to continue to improve our ability to recruit those
individuals who have a high probability of graduating from FLETC, we
are doing the following measures.
--Recruiting and BI operations include a rigorous testing and
evaluation system that includes testing of cognitive skills and
evaluation of psychological, medical, polygraph, and personal
history as well as a personal interview with an investigator.
--Applicants who meet the highest of standards in each category then
have their packages reviewed by a panel of USCP senior leaders
at the rank of Inspector, who make recommendations to the Chief
of Police on the best qualified candidates for hire.
--The Chief of Police reviews these recommendations and makes a final
determination of the best candidates to send forward for hiring
approval.
--From there, each individual is approved for hire by the Committee
on House and the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration
Chairs after first passing through the Capitol Police Board.
We believe this rigorous multi-faceted, multi-phased approach has
so far yielded consistent results in effectively prescreening
applicants prior to the appointment to the USCP.
Additionally, the Department is drafting updated sworn hiring
standards, which will include physical fitness aptitude testing, for
the consideration of the Capitol Police Board. Because many recruit
officers either ``drop-out'' or are recycled into future recruit
classes are as a result of physical injury resulting from the recruit's
inability to meet the rigorous physical fitness requirements of
training, we felt it was important to recommend the implementation of a
physical fitness aptitude test prior to hiring a recruit officer.
SUBCOMMITTEE RECESS
Senator Nelson. The subcommittee will stand in recess until
2:30 p.m. on May 7, 2009, when we will meet in room SD-124 to
take testimony on the fiscal year 2010 budget requests of the
Architect of the Capitol and the Office of Compliance.
We are recessed.
[Whereupon, at 4:19 p.m., Thursday, April 23, the
subcommittee was recessed, to reconvene at 2:30 p.m., Thursday,
May 7.]
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