Senate passes biil that would increase DHS' IT funding
Data center consolidation, cybersecurity would get more money
The Senate has passed
a measure to fund the Homeland Security Department for fiscal 2010 that would increase funding for some major information technology programs.
The Senate approved by 79 to 19 legislation that reconciles different House and Senate DHS appropriations bills passed by each house. The House approved the measure Oct. 15, the Senate's approval came on Oct. 20, and President Barack Obama is expected to sign it.
Some key IT appropriations include:
- Spending $397.2 million for DHS' National Cyber Security Division compared with $313.5 million for 2009. The U.S. Computer Emergency Response Team would get $323.63 million compared with $254.92 million for 2009.
- Allocating $338.39 million for DHS' Office of the Chief Information Officer compared with $272.17 million for 2009.
- Spending $373 million for the U.S. Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology program that uses biometrics to verify the identities of non-U.S. citizens at the country’s entry and exit points. That spending was $300 million in 2009.
- Allocating $137 million and granting a three-year extension for the E-Verify employment eligibility verification program.
- Spending $58.8 million for data center development and operations and maintenance. Meanwhile, DHS agencies would also get $91.2 million for their data center migration efforts.
In total, the legislation would give DHS about $42.78 billion of discretionary budget authority in fiscal 2010, about $2.65 billion more than in 2009.
About the Author
Ben Bain is a reporter for Federal Computer Week.