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Study of Navy Enlisted Attrition: Race, Ethnicity, and Type of Occupation
"The primary objective of this study is to gain a better understanding of Navy first-term enlisted attrition among racial/ethnic minorities by comparing attrition rates in technical and non-technical occupations. This study uses a special database developed by the Defense Manpower Data Center in Monterey, CA. that contains the records of 186,938 male recruits who enlisted in the Navy during calendar years 1996 through 2000. These individuals are tracked over a four-year period to determine rates of failure to complete the initial enlistment contract. Cross-tabulation and frequency analysis are first used to examine attrition rates by race, racial/ethnic group, and ethnicity. The attrition behavior of these groups is then investigated using two factors shown to correlate with attrition, Armed Forces Qualification Test category and educational Tier Group. Finally, the attrition behavior of these groups is examined by assigned occupation, grouped by technical and non-technical categories. The study finds that occupational assignment is related to the attrition behavior of first-term enlisted personnel, and that the relationship is different between Whites and most minorities. On average, Non-Hispanic Asians and Non-Hispanic Whites are more likely to attrite when assigned to a non-technical job than to a technical one; in contrast, most minorities are far more likely to attrite when serving in a technical job. Further research is recommended to explore these results and to suggest approaches that might assist in lowering attrition rates among minorities, particularly those assigned to technical occupations."
Naval Postgraduate School (U.S.)
Carroll, James M.
2008-09
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Littoral Combat Vessels: Analysis and Comparison of Designs
"The introduction of new technologies force navies to adapt and the introduction of surface-to-surface anti-ship cruise missiles from a large number of small coastal combatants created vulnerability in the Navy's force structure of large, expensive, nonexpendable warships. To counter this threat, the adoption by the U.S. Navy of small, inexpensive, missile bearing vessels is recommended. Four alternative candidate vessels are evaluated using a mathematical simulation. The candidates are a Littoral Combat Ship with a surface warfare module, a National Security Cutter augmented with offensive and defensive weaponry, a 'Sea Lance' inshore combat vessel, and a Combat Patrol Craft, a variant of the Cyclone class patrol craft augmented with offensive and defensive weaponry. Equal cost force structures for the four candidate vessels are developed, and then these forces are 'fought' in simulated battles against a missile-firing opponent force of variable strength. Additional roles such as maritime interdiction and theater security cooperation are considered and the candidate vessels are qualitatively compared for their ability to perform in these missions. Sea Lance is demonstrated to be the most effective and lowest cost candidate vessel. The driving force behind this is the large number of vessels the equal-cost Sea Lance squadron makes possible by its low procurement and operating costs, a result predicted by Lanchester and Hughes because in naval combat, numerical superiority is the single most important factor in determining the outcome of a battle."
Naval Postgraduate School (U.S.)
Christiansen, Bryan J.
2008-09
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Readout of Secretary Napolitano's Visit to Belgium [November 6, 2009]
"Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano today met with members of the European Parliament to discuss the importance of guarding against threats of terrorism while protecting privacy and civil liberties. 'Confronting borderless threats like terrorism requires close international cooperation,' said Secretary Napolitano. 'Through strengthened information sharing partnerships, we are better able to secure our borders and interdict terrorists and criminals while protecting the privacy of law-abiding citizens.'"
United States. Department of Homeland Security. Press Office
2009-11-06
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Secretary Napolitano Unveils New Veterans Website Designed to Highlight Veteran Employment and Contracting Opportunities [November 10, 2009]
"Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano today unveiled a new website designed to provide a one-stop location for veterans and veterans organizations to learn about DHS' many veteran outreach initiatives and hiring and contracting opportunities. 'This new website reflects the shared commitment across the Department to hiring American veterans,' said Secretary Napolitano. 'Veterans play a vital role in the Department of Homeland Security's mission to protect the nation, and this website will help us build our veteran workforce to more than 50,000 Department-wide by 2012.'"
United States. Department of Homeland Security. Press Office
2009-11-10
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International Monetary Fund: Lending Programs Allow for Negotiations and Are Consistent with Economic Literature, Report to the Chairman, Committee on Financial Services, House of Representatives
"The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has significantly increased its total committed lending to countries from about $3.5 billion in August 2008 to about $170.4 billion in August 2009, as countries have been severely affected by the global economic crisis. IMF-supported programs are intended to help countries overcome balance-of-payments problems, stabilize their economies, and restore sustainable economic growth. Critics have long-standing concerns that the IMF has an overly austere approach to macroeconomic policy that does not sufficiently heed country viewpoints. To help address these concerns, the IMF recently stated that it has changed its policies, including by increasing its flexibility. GAO was asked to examine (1) the process for designing an IMF-supported program, (2) the IMF-supported programs in four recipient countries, and (3) the extent to which the findings of empirical economic studies are consistent with the IMF's macroeconomic policies. GAO analyzed IMF and recipient country documents; interviewed U.S., IMF, and foreign government officials, conducting fieldwork in four relatively large recipient countries; and analyzed published or widely cited empirical studies. GAO received written comments from the Department of the Treasury, noting its concurrence with the report's conclusions."
United States. Government Accountability Office
2009-11-12
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President Obama Announces New Initiatives During National Disability Employment Awareness Month [October 5, 2009]
President Obama today [October 5, 2009] announced that his Administration is taking several steps to ensure that there is fair and equal access to employment for all Americans, particularly the 54 million people in this country living with disabilities. The announcement comes during National Disability Employment Awareness Month." This press release also includes five steps that the Obama Administration plans to take.
United States. Office of the White House Press Secretary
2009-10-05
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How to Prepare for a Winter Storm
"The extreme cold and heavy snowfall that accompany winter storms can be debilitating and dangerous. Winter storms can affect everyone, even those who usually experience mild winters. Heavy snowfall can be blinding for drivers and dangerous for those it traps indoors. Winter storms may also include high winds, sleet, freezing rain, frozen roads, power outages and dangerously cold temperatures."
United States. Department of the Army. Office of the Assistant Chief of Staff for Installation Management
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Secretary Napolitano and World Customs Organization Secretary General Kunio Mikuriya Announce Preliminary Results of Largest Global Cash Smuggling Operation [November 6, 2009]
"Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano and World Customs Organization (WCO) Secretary General Kunio Mikuriya today announced the preliminary results of Operation ATLAS--the largest multilateral operation in history targeting cash smugglers which took place from Oct. 26-30. More than 80 countries participated in Operation ATLAS (an acronym for Assess, Target, Link, Analyze and Share)--leading to more than $3.5 million in cash seized and the identification of $24 million in undeclared currency that may have otherwise gone undetected at ports of entry around the world during the five-day period. 'In our increasingly networked world, multinational cooperation is critical to combating transnational criminal activity,' said Secretary Napolitano. 'Today's announcement reflects an unprecedented model of international collaboration that we will continue to build upon in the future.'"
United States. Department of Homeland Security. Press Office
2009-11-06
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Statement by the Press Secretary on H.R. 2892 and H.R. 3183 [October 28, 2009]
This October 28, 2009 press release states that President Obama "signed into law H.R. 2892, the 'Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 2010,' which provides FY 2010 appropriations for the Department of Homeland Security; and H.R. 3183, the 'Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2010,' which provides FY 2010 appropriations for the Department of Energy, the Department of the Interior's Bureau of Reclamation, the Army Corps of Engineers, and other agencies."
United States. Office of the White House Press Secretary
2009-10-28
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Educational Impact of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act
"Providing a high-quality education for all children is critical to America's economic future. Our nation's economic competitiveness depends on providing every child with an education that will enable them to succeed in a global economy that is predicated on knowledge and innovation. In recognition of this fact, the 'American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009' (ARRA) provided approximately $100 billion to deliver emergency education funding to states and drive key school reforms. While a share of the ARRA funds has yet to be allocated to the states, preliminary data submitted by the states to the U.S. Department of Education suggests that ARRA funds are accomplishing both of these essential objectives. Immediately after President Obama signed ARRA into law on February 17th, 2009, the Department acted swiftly to move the first phase of these funds to states in response to drastic budget shortfalls. Over $67 billion in formula grants have been obligated as of September 30th, 2009. As part of the unprecedented transparency requirements of ARRA, the first quarterly public accounting of all expenditures to date will be posted by the Recovery, Accountability, and Transparency Board on October 30th, 2009. Initial reporting from states find that the October 30 release will show at least 250,000 education jobs created or saved across the nation that are supporting our students and fueling our economy."
United States. Department of Education; United States. Executive Office of the President
2009-10-19
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Policy Framework for PACE [Property Assessed Clean Energy] Financing Programs
"The following Policy Framework has been developed by the White House and the relevant agencies as a policy framework for Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) financing programs. Today [October 18, 2009], the Vice President is announcing support for the use of federal funds for pilot programs of PACE financing to overcome barriers for families who wish to invest in energy efficiency and renewable energy improvements. The innovative PACE approach attaches the obligation to repay the cost of improvements to the property, not the individual borrower, creating a way to pay for the improvements if the property is sold. This Policy Framework provides important safeguards for the relevant parties, including homeowners and mortgage lenders. The Policy Framework applies to federal funding of PACE programs and also is designed to serve as a resource for state, local, and tribal governments who seek to carry out PACE activities without federal funding." This document also includes an overview of PACE and some challenges it faces.
United States. White House Office
2009-10-18
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State Governments Expected to Credit Recovery Act with Creating, Saving At Least 250,000 Education Jobs Nationwide [October 19, 2009]
"The Obama Administration today [October 19, 2009] announced that preliminary indications are that state governments will credit the Recovery Act with creating and saving at least 250,000 education jobs across the country when reports filed on Recovery Act education spending to-date are posted online later this month." This press release discusses "a report released today [October 19, 2009] by the Domestic Policy Council, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Education, finds that preliminary data shows that Recovery Act funding has enabled states to restore nearly all of their projected education budget shortfalls for FY09 and FY10. Filling these budget gaps has allowed the Recovery Act to avert layoffs of educators in school districts and universities across the nation, saving and creating at least a quarter of a million education jobs, while helping school districts make progress on reforms that will improve teaching and learning in America's classrooms."
United States. Office of the White House Press Secretary
2009-10-19
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Homeland Security: Federal Protective Service Should Improve Human Capital Planning and Better Communicate with Tenants, Report to Congressional Requesters
"The Federal Protective Service (FPS), as part of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is responsible for providing security services to about 9,000 federal facilities. In recent years, FPS downsized its workforce from 1,400 to about 1,000 full-time employees. In 2008, GAO expressed concerns about the impact that downsizing had on FPS's mission, and in fiscal years 2008 and 2009 Congress mandated FPS maintain no fewer than 1,200 employees. GAO was asked to determine the extent to which (1) FPS has hired and trained new staff to address its mandated staffing levels, (2) FPS has developed a strategic human capital plan to manage its current and future workforce needs, and (3) FPS's customers are satisfied with the services it provides. To address these objectives, we reviewed relevant laws and documents, interviewed officials from FPS and other federal agencies, and conducted a generalizable survey of FPS's customers."
United States. Government Accountability Office
2009-07
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Secretary Napolitano and ICE Assistant Secretary Morton Announce That the Secure Communities Initiative Identified More Than 111,000 Criminal Aliens in Its First Year [November 12, 2009]
"Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Assistant Secretary John Morton today announced that ICE's Secure Communities initiative--a partnership with local law enforcement agencies that uses biometrics to identify and remove criminal aliens--identified more than 111,000 criminal aliens in local custody during its first year. 'Secure Communities provides our local partners with an effective tool to identify and remove dangerous criminal aliens who pose a threat to public safety,' said Secretary Napolitano. 'We will continue to expand these partnerships to provide a force multiplier for ICE's immigration enforcement efforts across the country.'"
United States. Department of Homeland Security. Press Office
2009-11-12
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Statement by Secretary Napolitano on Veterans Day [November 11, 2009]
This Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Press Release highlights Secretary Janet Napolitano's statement on Veterans Day 2009.
United States. Department of Homeland Security. Press Office
2009-11-11
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Acting Under Secretary for Intelligence and Analysis Bart R. Johnson Speech at National Homeland Defense Foundation Symposium [November 9. 2009]
This Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Press Release presents the prepared remarks of DHS Acting Under Secretary for Intelligence and Analysis Bart R. Johnson at the National Homeland Defense Foundation Symposium VII in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Secretary Johnson states the following in his remarks: "I'm delighted to be with you this morning, ladies and gentlemen, to speak about the exciting and important work that DHS, and specifically my Office of Intelligence and Analysis, is doing to further evolve and define how the department works with the Intelligence Community and our federal, state, local, tribal, and private sector partners to keep the Nation safe and secure. DHS I&A was established by statute after the September 11 attacks to improve the coordination of intelligence in order to prevent, deter and prevent terrorist attacks. This includes serving as a smart and aggressive customer of the Intelligence Community, having a seat at the table when our nation's intelligence collection priorities are determined, and serving as a single repository where crucial information may flow between the Intelligence Community and our homeland security federal, state, local, tribal, and private sector partners. We have a unique mission at I&A--to be the premier provider of homeland security information and intelligence to state, local and tribal governments--and Secretary Napolitano has tasked us to do a better job of focusing and defining that mission."
United States. Department of Homeland Security. Press Office
2009-11-09
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Federal Real Property: An Update on High Risk Issues, Statement of Mark L. Goldstein, Director, physical Infrastructure Issues, Testimony before the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management, Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, House of Representatives
"In January 2003, GAO [Government Accountability Office] designated federal real property as a high-risk area because of long-standing problems with excess and underutilized property, deteriorating facilities, unreliable real property data, over-reliance on costly leasing, and security challenges. In January 2009, GAO found that agencies have taken some positive steps to address real property issues but that some of the core problems that led to the designation of this area as high risk persist. This testimony focuses on (1) progress made by major real property-holding agencies to strategically manage real property, (2) ongoing problems GAO has identified in recent work regarding agencies' efforts to address real property issues, and (3) underlying obstacles GAO has identified through prior work as hampering agencies' real property reform efforts governmentwide. This testimony is largely based on GAO's extensive body of work on real property high-risk issues, including reports on efforts by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and executive branch agencies to address real property issues. No new recommendations are being made."
United States. Government Accountability Office
2009-07-15
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Congressional Budget Office: The Affordable Health Care for America Act
"The legislation would establish a mandate for most legal residents of the United States to obtain health insurance; set up insurance 'exchanges' through which certain individuals and families could receive federal subsidies to substantially reduce the cost of purchasing that coverage; establish a public plan that would be administered by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS); significantly expand eligibility for Medicaid; substantially reduce the growth of Medicare's payment rates for most services (relative to the growth rates projected under current law); impose an income tax surcharge on high-income individuals; and make various other changes to the federal tax code, Medicaid, Medicare, and other programs."
United States. Congressional Budget Office
2009-11-05
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Proceedings of the 1st Army Installation Energy Security and Independence Conference
"This report is about energy security … for mission accomplishment. Is energy security assured by backup generator sets dedicated to individual buildings that are pre-identified as critical assets - with fuel for 3-5 days? Suppose a utility power grid outage occurs. Today it is impossible to locally wheel power from dispersed individual onsite fossil-fueled or renewable power sources to facilities or other power loads … anywhere at any time. Each power source is stranded; powering only one load. Relocating generator sets and engineering their electrical connections to other power loads are not speedy or trivial tasks. There are many mission aspects that go unpowered in a blackout because Army cannot afford backup generator sets for every building, training range, sewer treatment plant, warehouse, motor pool, etc. Even if everything has dedicated backup generators, experience shows that 50 percent will not operate right anyway … and they will run out of gas after 3-5 days. Mission priorities are dynamic; power outages are unpredictable. Commanders must have the ability to wheel dispersed and finite on-installation power anywhere at anytime and to allocate stored fuels for extended outages. A new vision of energy security is needed for the asymmetrical threats and dynamics of the GWOT era."
United States. Army. Corps of Engineers
Grady, Dennis; Yeboah, Frank; Hartranft, Thomas J.
2007-04-05
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National Infrastructure Protection Plan: Healthcare and Public Health Sector [Snapshot]
"Homeland Security Presidential Directive 7 (HSPD-7) identified 17 critical infrastructure and key resources (CIKR) sectors and designated Federal Government Sector-Specific Agencies (SSAs) for each of the sectors. Each sector is responsible for developing and implementing a Sector-Specific Plan and providing sector-level performance feedback to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to enable gap assessments of national cross-sector CIKR protection programs. SSAs are responsible for collaborating with private sector security partners and encouraging the development of appropriate information-sharing and analysis mechanisms within the sector." This National Infrastructure Protection Plan gives a snapshot of the Healthcare and Public Health Sector. Information includes a Sector Overview, Sector Vision, CIKR Protection Focus, Priority Programs, and Sector Partnerships. Currently, there is no full Healthcare and Public Health Sector plan available for public release.
United States. Department of Homeland Security
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Report of the Trans-Federal Task Force on Optimizing Biosafety and Biocontainment Oversight
The purpose of this report "is to propose options and recommendations to improve biosafety and biocontainment oversight of research and research-related activities at high and maximum containment laboratories in the United States, without hindering the progress of science. The scope of activities considered by the Task Force includes those that occur in all high and maximum containment research laboratories in all sectors (government [Federal, State, Tribal, and municipal], academia, privately funded research institutions, and private industry) utilizing potentially hazardous biological agents. The activities covered include research with disease-causing agents (pathogens) that can infect humans, zoonotic agents that can infect both animals and humans, biologic toxins, and agricultural pathogens and pests. Also included are activities related to research, such as the maintenance of facilities and equipment needed for effective biosafety and biocontainment, incident-reporting, and public outreach and communication efforts. Outside the scope of the Task Force report are non-research activities that take place in diagnostic and treatment (non-research) facilities such as hospitals, clinics, veterinary, and food diagnostic laboratories. Non-research activities in most licensed biomedical production facilities and mobile field analytical laboratories also lie outside the scope of this report because they vary markedly from those of facilities engaged in high and maximum containment research." This report also "discussed the accountability and compliance of individuals and institutions; training and competency of relevant staff at high and maximum containment research institutions; incident-reporting, analysis, and information-sharing; maintenance of facility infrastructure and equipment; applied biosafety research programs; and public communication, outreach, and transparency."
United States. Department of Agriculture; United States. Department of Health and Human Services
2009-07
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United States Civilian Linguist Reserve Corps Feasibility Study
The Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2003 "directs the Secretary of Defense, acting through the Director of the National Security Education Program (NSEP), to prepare a report on the feasibility of establishing a Civilian Linguist Reserve Corps (CLRC) comprised of individuals with advanced levels of proficiency in foreign languages. In this report, the Department of Defense was specifically tasked to outline the following: 1) Consideration of the military reserve model, 2) CLRC structure and operations, 3) Requirements for levels of proficiency and performance of duties, and 4) Requirements for skill maintenance and training requirements. NSEP initiated the process by assembling a CLRC Task Force, composed of experts from the Federal Government and higher education, knowledgeable in developing a reserve corps and in advancing foreign language skills." The feasibility study was completed in 2004, and acting on its results the government formally launched a National Language Service Corps (NLSC) pilot program in 2007.
National Security Education Program (U.S.)
2004
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U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Ice and Water Response to the 2008 Hurricane Season
"[The Department of Defense Inspector General (DOD IG)] reviewed the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' (USACE) response to the 2008 hurricane season. [Their] review was divided into two subprojects. Specifically, [they] reviewed the award and administration of contracts for ice and water distribution during the disaster relief efforts. See Appendix A for a discussion of the scope and methodology and Appendix B for prior coverage related to the objective. The audit is based on the commitment of the President's Council on Integrity and Efficiency (now known as the Council of Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency) to take a proactive approach in reviewing disaster relief efforts. In addition, the DOD Office of Inspector General (IG) reviewed the award and administration of contracts for temporary roofing and temporary power for the 2008 hurricane season. We will issue a separate report for Project No. D2009-D000CG-0027.000 to address the temporary roofing and temporary power contracts."
United States. Department of Defense. Office of the Inspector General
2009-09-18
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National Security Education Program 2009 Annual Review
"The National Security Education Program (NSEP) is a major federal effort designed to build a large qualified pool of U.S. citizens who have superior skills in foreign languages and international experience in areas critical to national security. Its two major objectives are (a) to enable and enhance the capacity of the U.S. educational system to train a new generation of globally competent students and (b) to identify candidates for federal employment from this pool of students. The only federally funded effort that addresses the combined issues of language proficiency and federal workforce needs in support of national security, NSEP focuses on the critical languages and cultures of Africa, Asia, Central and Eastern Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East. [...] To meet its goals, NSEP sponsors five initiatives in the form of broad strategic partnerships that connect the U.S. education community, government agencies that have national security interests, global businesses, and individuals who are impassioned to learn languages that are less commonly taught. Each initiative is designed to provide the language skills required to ensure U.S. national security and competitiveness in a global economy." These initiatives include David L. Boren Scholarships, David L. Boren Fellowships, the Language Flagship, the English for Heritage Language Speakers (EHLS) program, and the National Language Service Corps (NLSC).
National Security Education Program (U.S.)
2009
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U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Temporary Roofing and Temporary Power Response to the 2008 Hurricane Season
"[The Department of Defense Inspector General (DOD IG)] reviewed the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' (USACE) response to the 2008 hurricane season. [Their] review was divided into two areas. Specifically for this project, [they] reviewed the temporary roofing mission's quality assurance (QA) process and safety requirements, and the current procedures for administering the temporary power mission. See Appendix A for a discussion of scope and methodology and Appendix B for prior coverage related to the objective. The audit is based on the commitment of the President's Council on Integrity and Efficiency (now known as the Council of Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency) to take a proactive approach in reviewing disaster relief efforts. In addition, the DOD Inspector General (IG) reviewed the award and administration of contracts for ice and water for the 2008 hurricane season. We issued Report No. D-2009-103, 'The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Ice and Water Response to the 2008 Hurricane Season,' on September 18, 2009 to address the USACE ice and water missions."
United States. Department of Defense. Office of the Inspector General
2009-09-22
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Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction: Looking Back, Looking Ahead
"Nearly 20 years have passed since the United States began worrying in earnest about the risks of regional weapons of mass destruction (WMD) proliferation. Never have weapons so seldom used commanded such attention for so long. It is one of the more notable continuities across the post-Cold War administrations. Countering WMD: Looking Back, Looking Ahead, the seventh Occasional Paper of the Center for the Study of Weapons of Mass Destruction at the National Defense University, examines the evolution of U.S. perceptions of the WMD threat and major responses to that threat from the Clinton administration to the first few months of the Obama administration. It also considers why our worst fears for WMD use and proliferation have not been realized and anticipates some of the major WMD challenges that lie ahead."
National Defense University Press
Carus, W. Seth; Caves, John P.; Bernstein, Paul I.
2009-10
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Crisis and Emergency Risk Communication [2002 Edition]
This book is part of the course material for a Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) course. "The purpose of this [document] is to introduce the reader to communication principles and tools as they relate to what we have called emergency risk communication. The principles in this course borrow from (1) font of classical rhetoricians, (2) wealth of modern crisis, issues management, communication and psychological theory and, (3) lessons learned form the real and often painful world of experience, old-fashioned trial and error. [This document] is an introductory course that addresses a number of topics critical to successful public, partner and stakeholder communication during an emergency situation. This is not an in depth course on risk communication, issues management, crisis or disaster communication. It is an amalgamation of all of these incorporating from their theory and practical applications." This document "is the attempt by science- or public health professionals to provide information that allows an individual, stakeholders, or an entire community to make the best possible decisions during a crisis emergency about their well being, and communicate those decisions, within nearly impossible time constraints, and ultimately, to accept the imperfect nature of choices as the situation evolves."
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (U.S.)
2002-09
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Privacy Protection Standards for the Information Sharing Environment
"Created in response to findings of the 9/11 Commission concerning the lack of information sharing as a primary factor in the failure to stop the September 11, 2001, attacks, the Information Sharing Environment (ISE) was mandated by the Intelligence Reform and Terrorist Prevention Act of 2004 (IRTPA). The ISE was intended to build on existing information sharing systems and promote increased information sharing through the creation of a collaborative culture among a diverse group of participants. Another goal of the ISE is to protect information privacy. ISE efforts to meet the goal of information privacy protection are stymied by a lack of uniform privacy standards that are equally applicable to all ISE participants. The thesis compares two policy options--voluntarily adopted mandatory standards and federally imposed mandatory standards--to the status quo system of voluntary guidelines. These policy options are evaluated in terms of their effect on collaboration and information sharing, their constitutionality, their consistency and enforceability in application, and political acceptability. Based on projected relative outcomes, this thesis recommends that the ISE adopt a privacy protection system consisting of voluntary standards that, once adopted, become mandatory in application."
Naval Postgraduate School (U.S.). Center for Homeland Defense and Security; Naval Postgraduate School (U.S.)
Holmstrup, Mark A.
2009-09
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Defining Stability, Security, Transition, and Reconstruction (SSTR) Operations Requirements for Future Department of the Navy Training and Analytical Models and Simulations
"The Department of Defense elevated stability operations to equal importance as combat operations. With 75 percent of the world's population located in the littorals, the Navy-Marine Corps team is poised to be the country's instrument of choice for military support to Stability Operations. This brings the need to train and plan for these non-traditional missions. Furthermore, simulations are force multipliers in both the training and planning arenas, but no current simulation exists that adequately addresses stability operations. This thesis reviews how Navy-Marine Corps leaders plan and train for restoring a civilian population's essential services, via the guidance of The Department of Defense Directive 3000.05 and National Security Presidential Directive 44. The objective for this thesis is to create a documented methodology, define requirements, and provide metrics that will assist analysts and instructors during naval support to Stability, Security, Transition, and Reconstruction (SSTR) operations. In addition, it evaluates the capability gaps in current simulations. Lastly, a conceptual model is proposed using water as a proof of concept essential service, and a prototype framework simulation is presented. This work provides a working foundation to begin developing the next generation of simulations that will support or warfighters into the next era of warfare."
Naval Postgraduate School (U.S.)
Beris, Jonathan; Whittington, Eric
2008-09
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Investigating the Effects of Higher Spatial Resolution on Benthic Classification Accuracy at Midway Atoll
"Effective monitoring of coral reefs is important for ecological and economic reasons, and satellite remote sensing has been shown to be useful for mapping and monitoring these ecosystems. This thesis will compare 2 multispectral systems and investigate the effects of increased spatial resolution on benthic classifications in the highly heterogeneous coral reef environment of Midway Atoll. It will evaluate the utility of QuickBird's increased spatial resolution compared to IKONOS imagery in the same study area at multiple scales. Previous studies (e.g., Mumby and Edwards, 2002; Capolsini et al., 2003; Wang et al., 2004; Benefeild et al., 2007) comparing various satellite sensors suggest that greater spatial resolution should lead to more accurate classifications, but a direct comparison of QuickBird and IKONOS sensors has not been carried out in marine environments. Light interactions in marine environments are complex and add difficulty to spectral discrimination, producing more variable results in classification accuracy than in terrestrial environments. This research does not find any significant improvements in thematic mapping accuracy of benthic environment from QuickBird's higher spatial resolution satellite imagery. Additionally, a cost benefit analysis did not show a decisive advantage in choosing either imagery type for the application of monitoring the extent, biodiversity, and health of coral reef habitats."
Naval Postgraduate School (U.S.)
Arledge, Richard K.; Hatcher, Ervin B.
2008-09