[House Hearing, 110 Congress] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office] HEARING ON THE ADMINISTRATION AND MANAGEMENT OF THE UNITED STATES CAPITOL POLICE ======================================================================= HEARING before the SUBCOMMITTEE ON CAPITOL SECURITY COMMITTEE ON HOUSE ADMINISTRATION HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ONE HUNDRED TENTH CONGRESS SECOND SESSION __________ HELD IN WASHINGTON, DC, MAY 1, 2008 __________ Printed for the use of the Committee on House Administration Available on the Internet: http://www.gpoaccess.gov/congress/house/administration/index.html U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 43-593 PDF WASHINGTON DC: 2008 --------------------------------------------------------------------- For Sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Internet: bookstore.gpo.gov Phone: toll free (866) 512-1800; (202) 512�091800 Fax: (202) 512�092104 Mail: Stop IDCC, Washington, DC 20402�090001 COMMITTEE ON HOUSE ADMINISTRATION ROBERT A. BRADY, Pennsylvania, Chairman ZOE LOFGREN, California VERNON J. EHLERS, Michigan Vice-Chairwoman Ranking Minority Member MICHAEL E. CAPUANO, Massachusetts DANIEL E. LUNGREN, California CHARLES A. GONZALEZ, Texas KEVIN McCARTHY, California SUSAN A. DAVIS, California ARTUR DAVIS, Alabama S. Elizabeth Birnbaum, Staff Director William Plaster, Staff Director ------ Subcommittee on Capitol Security MICHAEL E. CAPUANO, Massachusetts, Chairman ROBERT A. BRADY, Pennsylvania DANIEL E. LUNGREN, California ADMINISTRATION AND MANAGEMENT OF THE UNITED STATES CAPITOL POLICE ---------- -- THURSDAY, MAY 1, 2008 House of Representatives, Subcommittee on Capitol Security, Committee on House Administration, Washington, DC. The subcommittee met, pursuant to call, at 11:39 a.m., in room 1310, Longworth House Office Building, Hon. Michael E. Capuano (chairman of the subcommittee) Presiding. Present: Representatives Capuano, Brady and Lungren. Staff Present: Liz Birnbaum, Staff Director; Darrell O'Conner, Professional Staff; Michael Harrison, Professional Staff; Matt Pinkus, Professional Staff/Parliamentarian; Kyle Anderson, Press Director; Kristin McCowan, Chief Legislative Clerk; Gregory Abbott, Policy Analyst; Fred Hay, Minority General Counsel; Alec Hoppes, Minority Professional Staff; and Bryan T. Dorsey, Minority Professional Staff. Mr. Capuano. Basically, I want to thank everybody for coming today. I have an opening statement I will not read, but I will put in for future posterity if anybody wants to read it. We have two panels today. Our first panel is with Chief Morse. He is accompanied by Assistant Chief Nichols and Ms. Jarmon, who is the chief administrative officer of the Capitol Police. Our second panel will be Mr. Stana from the GAO and Mr. Tighe from the U.S. Capitol Police Officers Labor Committee. We are here today to kind of catch up on certain aspects particularly with relation to the GAO report. But whatever else comes up is fine. I want to make it clear to everybody that we are having a public meeting today, but I believe firmly that Capitol security matters are best handled in a nonpublic forum on a regular basis. So I wouldn't expect that we have a whole lot of public hearings on this particular matter. I know some people don't like that, but I think that security is more important than anything else, and it is important to have it in a forum where people can speak openly and honestly. Today we have certain issues that can be spoken about in a public manner, and I think they are appropriate for it. And with that, I will stop and ask Mr. Brady for his lengthy opening statement. And when Mr. Lungren gets here if he wants to do one, he is more than welcome to. With that, I am just going to turn it over to you, Chief, and feel free to say whatever you want. [The statement of Mr. Capuano follows:] [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.001 STATEMENT OF CHIEF PHILLIP D. MORSE, UNITED STATES CAPITOL POLICE; ACCOMPANIED BY DANIEL NICHOLS, ASSISTANT CHIEF OF POLICE; AND GLORIA L. JARMON, CHIEF ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER Chief Morse. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and members of the subcommittee. I would like to thank you for the opportunity to be here today. We are going to discuss with you a lot of things about the Capitol Police and what we have done in the last 15 months. I am pleased to be joined here to my right by my assistant chief, Dan Nichols, and my chief administrative officer, Gloria Jarmon, here to my left. As you know, Ms. Jarmon recently joined the Capitol Police from the Government Accountability Office. And her background and expertise provide the department with well-rounded leadership and completes our team that is necessary for our efforts to become a premiere organization, both operationally and administratively. I would also like to thank the subcommittee for its interest and support for the men and women of the United States Capitol Police. Your support, as well as the support from our oversight and appropriations committees, is crucial to the successful execution of our mission. It has been a little over a year since I was selected to be the chief of police. During this time, the department has undergone many cultural, operational, and management changes. These changes are a larger process to modernize the department for mission capability and efficiency, while enhancing our ability to protect Congress. I welcome this opportunity to provide you with an update on our successes thus far and the challenges that remain before us, as well as a vision for shaping the future. As in any organization, teamwork and leadership are essential qualities of a well-managed security and law enforcement operation. It is through this teamwork and leadership that the Capitol Police has been able to achieve many successes over the last year. I would like to recognize the hard work of all the sworn and civilian staff of the United States Capitol Police, who exhibit their leadership and dedication to teamwork in meeting our mission every single day. Every day of the year, without exception, these dedicated individuals, with the support of the Capitol Police Board and the Congress, ensure the safety of Members, staff, and millions of visitors from across the globe who come to see democracy at work. In addition, I would like to recognize the department's unions, the Fraternal Order of Police and the Teamsters, for their contributions to our overall success as well. It is through this teamwork that the department has been able to progress over the last year. I would like to talk a little bit about our progress. To ensure our success, we have established several tiers of management communication in order to keep all employees better informed on the workings of the department and the expectation of leaders and stakeholders. The Executive Management Team, the Senior Management Team, and our Frontline Management Team have been effective in developing accountability down through all levels of management so that the senior leaders can count on the frontline supervisors to run day-to-day operations while we make a concerted effort to map out the strategic path for the department. Here are some of our progress highlights. We have handled multiple special events to include the State of the Union, Capitol concert series, large demonstrations, and congressional events. We have adopted a concept, similar to community policing, which provides direct outreach by our Capitol Police officers and officials to the committees and Members' offices with the congressional community. We use this program to visit every office in the House Office Building to inform them of emergency evacuation procedures for their specific building. We implemented new security screening guidelines throughout the Capitol complex. We planned, coordinated, and evaluated a number of exercises within the Capitol related to air evacuations, lock downs, and active shooter response. We finalized our continuity-of-operations plan and implemented a process for review and enhancement of the plan to meet evolving threats and requirements. We conducted multiple training exercises across the Capitol campus to improve readiness for sworn personnel in the field. There have been expressed interest and concern related to the department's effort to address the GAO's recommendations, and today I am happy to report that, since October 2007, we have closed 33 percent of the GAO recommendations, and we are actively working to address the rest of them. We have developed a full set of financial statements for FY 2007 and are actively working on statements for 2008. We have completed a full inventory of our capital assets and assigned values to these assets. We have redesigned our budget planning and execution process to include formalizing the department's Investment Review Board. At the direction of the committees of jurisdiction, we completed the operational and administrative requirements to the merger of the Library of Congress Police, and this resulted in the passage of legislation. We have revised the uniform and equipment policy of the Capitol Police that will result in uniformity of appearance and overall cost. And in closing, I would like to say that I am looking forward to continuing my efforts as chief to make the U.S. Capitol Police a best practices organization. I would like to thank you once again for allowing us to appear before you. And my colleagues and myself would be happy to answer any questions that you may have. [The statement of Chief Morse follows:] [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.002 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.003 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.004 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.005 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.006 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.007 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.008 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.009 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.010 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.011 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.012 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.013 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.014 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.015 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.016 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.017 Mr. Capuano. Thank you, Chief. I don't know if Chief Nichols or Ms. Jarmon had an opening statement, but even if they do, I would like to offer Mr. Lungren an opportunity to make an opening statement. Mr. Lungren. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman, and I am sorry that I was late. I had to be a ranking member at two other subcommittees so far this morning, and it isn't even noon yet. So thank you. One of the reasons I returned to the Congress was my desire to keep our country safe and secure from future terrorist attack. And because we cherish freedom and the democratic process in our Nation, obviously we want to keep our legislative process, our Capitol buildings and our lawmakers to be accessible and therefore accountable to those they serve. But the very openness with which we operate this legislative body also produces unique security challenges when considering the vigor with which some want to inflict terror and harm on our country. So I am pleased today this subcommittee is taking the opportunity to have a hearing on this important subject. Since being selected to serve on this subcommittee, I have made it a point to visit the Capitol Police Command Center and the K-9 training facility. I have even visited the Capitol Power Plant to see firsthand some of the more unusual challenges that come with securing the Capitol complex. So, Mr. Chairman, the topic of Capitol security is a bipartisan issue, and I look forward to working with you in the days ahead. And the administrative functions of the department are important and ultimately allow the force to more ably and efficiently meet its security requirements. However, I believe it is important for the subcommittee to be more fully informed and engaged in the present threats--on the present threats facing the Congress and the actions that the Capitol Police are taking to address these threats. I would hope that we could have a classified briefing on the actual security matters as soon as possible and that we could include a discussion on recent troubling incidents and the steps that have been taken in response. And I just have to say this, since this is the first meeting of our subcommittee, I find it very troubling to see the manner in which a recent incident was handled in the Capitol complex where an unknown was allowed to exist for 3 weeks. And the procedures that were followed at that time seemed to contradict every bit of training and every bit of information that I had received up to that time as to how we handle security threats here at the Nation's Capitol. So I hope that we can get involved with the hearings, not to make headlines, but behind closed doors perhaps as quickly as possible. Mr. Capuano. That is what I said at the beginning before you got here, Mr. Lungren, is I plan to have many more meetings privately, because I think that is where we need to talk about certain things. Mr. Lungren. Thank you. Mr. Capuano. Chief, I am not sure if you wanted either Chief Nichols or Ms. Jarmon to make a statement, then that is fine. Whether you do or you don't, whatever you want, is fine by me. Mr. Nichols. No, sir. I am here to support the chief and answer any questions you may have. Ms. Jarmon. No. Mr. Capuano. All right. In that case, I have several questions. First of all, I know the GAO report was just about a year ago, a little over a year ago, I am just curious, do you have a general idea of the time frame of completion of adoption? I know you are in the midst of them. I know you have done some; you are doing others. Do you have an idea how long it will take to adopt all of them, or goal, I should say, or a target? Chief Morse. Every single day, we are certainly working toward actively closing them. We have, made certain things a priority in doing so. One is certainly the hiring and staffing of employees in certain areas like financial management, in which many recommendations came. Ensuring that the financial statements, that we get a clean audit on them. And the chief administrative officer is responsible for that. And perhaps she can talk a little more to that in a second. And then we have policies and procedures that need to be adopted or drafted and put into place. And then protection of our information and systems. So we've identified a methodology in which to do that. And I think within the last fiscal year closing 33 percent of those shows that we are very actively working on that. Mr. Capuano. Do you think that if we have a hearing next year you will be able to tell me you closed a hundred percent of them or 90 percent of them? Chief Morse. I would think that next year we would probably be able to match what we have done this year. And I look forward to next year, because I think that we will have significant, significant progress in all areas, as we have shown in the past year. Mr. Capuano. I am specifically interested in human capital, if you want the truth. And there are two areas that have concerned me a little bit--well, two areas with one subset area. One is the financial services end of it. Honestly, it makes it almost impossible for us to really kind of oversee anything unless we have an idea of the numbers. And the numbers have to be--I have to have confidence in those numbers, and we can't do it without an auditing company saying that those numbers are fair and reasonable and appropriate. That can't be done unless you can attract and maintain appropriate financial services people. I am just wondering--I know you have hired somebody in the last recent weeks--what is the problem? Why are we having so much difficulty attracting and retaining them? Chief Morse. Well, first, the appointment of Gloria Jarmon is one step toward improvement of that overall process. And her expertise, knowledge, skills and abilities really are about financial management. With regard to the office itself, there were several factors involved in the hiring and turnover. One of them was the fact of all the recommendations not being accomplished there, the lack of policy and procedure and direction, which created sort of a chaotic atmosphere, if you will, which led to overworked employees. So that was one thing that we had to address. The second thing was there were some losses to the private industry, which are very highly paid. And then we worked under a CR for some time where we couldn't hire. But what we did during that time was we reviewed positions. We took a look at what we needed to close those recommendations, the knowledge, skills, and abilities of those employees we were going to hire, and we upgraded those. And I am happy to report that, on May 12th, our new director of financial management will be joining us, Mr. Steve Haughton. And also we are in the process of hiring a budget and procurement analyst. Ms. Jarmon. Right. Just to add a little more to that, I have been here almost 3 months, and I have been focused on trying to make sure we can hire and retain competent financial management people. Because of the GAO recommendations, three of those recommendations that were not closed or are considered little progress completely related to the ability to hire and retain people so we have been focused on that. And I think we made good progress. We have had some very competent applicants for the positions. And I think if we are back here next year, you will see we have made significant progress in that area. Mr. Capuano. That is good, because, again, it makes it difficult for us to do our oversight unless we have numbers that we feel comfortable with. If you need assistance, Chief, whether it is with a CR or anything else, attracting and retaining personnel, obviously, I think we would like to hear about it so we can be helpful. It also relates to my last question really, at the moment, is relative to the same thing, relative to officers. I know you have a relatively high rate of turnover. And I am just curious, what are we trying to do in general to address those issues? Chief Morse. This all really goes back to really gaining control of how the office is operated, providing a vision and direction for where we are wanting to go. And right now, we have an Executive Management Team that is in place that is very highly skilled. These are some of the positions that a year ago, a year-and-a-half ago, were not filled. For instance, our information technology, human resources, our office of homeland security and planning, just to name a few. And now with a new CAO, a new director of finance, we have a complete team and a very talented team. And with that, we expect to have great things happen. The other side is the recommendations themselves. I mean, they are the guidance to our success, along with those things that we also developed of our own. And we work with the GAO, and we work with our Inspector General in order to find the best path to success. We have also adopted the Government's Performance Act. We have methodology for closing our GAO recommendations. And we have a plan. And I don't know that with lacking the GAO recommendations and having those in place, that we really had a plan for any success. So, with all those things combined, we are looking forward to the coming years and really professionalizing and making it a best practices organization. Mr. Capuano. In the year that both you have been here and this report has come out, have you seen a change in retaining young officers, or has it stayed steady, or have you gotten worse? Chief Morse. With regard to officers, I think that we have a very good retention rate. And I spoke to an officer yesterday who told me that he saw a change, and positive change, and he was excited about that. And I think that with change and the significant change that we have had over the course of the 15 months, you are going to have some resistance. But that resistance is overcome when they see the result of that. And the result of that is that the organization is going in the right direction. We are making significant progress, both administratively and operationally. Some of the things that we have done over the past year are just extraordinary, and as a result of the committees of jurisdiction allowing us to use our facilities here to train our personnel. We were able to train all our personnel on lockdown procedures, evacuations, and active shooter response. That is something that has never been done before, especially right here on campus. And that was a significant, not only a morale booster but also from the standpoint of being prepared and being prepared for the things that occur or can occur here on the campus was significant. So, you know, retention is where it should be. We would always want it to be lower. And I think that a lot of that has to do with the progress that we are making. Mr. Capuano. Thanks, Chief. Mr. Lungren. Mr. Lungren. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. Chief, can you tell me what's the total number of personnel for your agency? Chief Morse. The authorized strength is 1,702, and I think we are currently at 1,611. That would be sworn personnel. Mr. Lungren. Sworn. Chief Morse. The authorized strength for civilian is 414, and I believe we are currently at 59 below that. I don't have the exact---- Mr. Lungren. How does that compare with other metropolitan departments, that is civilian to sworn? Chief Morse. With respect to the ones in this area, I would believe that the metropolitan police has a larger sworn force than us, as well as civilian. I would say we are probably average. Mr. Lungren. I am not talking about total size. I am talking about percentage of civilian versus sworn. You say you are average? Chief Morse. I think that would be average. Mr. Lungren. That would be average around the country, or do you know? Chief Morse. I think the numbers, the numbers of supporting civilians for supporting the number of sworn officers and programs, initiatives that come with that, I think that our authorized numbers are pretty much where they should be. Mr. Lungren. As I understand it, an officer at appointment receives $49,631, and after they successfully complete training, they are bumped up to $51,370 annual pay. And after their first 30 months on the job, they become private first class at a salary of $57,601. At least that is the latest information I have. How does that compare with other law enforcement agencies in this area? Chief Morse. That is much higher than most municipal or State law enforcement agencies in the metropolitan area, and it is very competitive with the Federal agencies here in the District of Columbia and the United States. Mr. Lungren. Chief, let me ask you this about your statement that you have followed a threat-based staffing model as you explained your efforts to tie resources to risks. Could you give us some examples of changes that we would see in a transition to a threat-based staffing model and how far along you are on that? Chief Morse. Well, the concept of operations for a threat- based model is concentric rings of security, which wehave; prevent, detect, respond, and mitigate as a part of that. We would like to be able to address the threat as far away from the Capitol complex as we possibly can. Some of the changes that you might see and some that we are currently actively doing are in relation to, for instance, our truck interdiction and monitoring program. Where we are able to establish 75 new camera systems that focus on possible threats approaching the campus well before they get here. Giving the officers the time to react to that and apply the prevention and/or mitigation of that threat before it reaches the campus. And that is really what our truck interdiction and monitoring program is. And you see that here on the four corners of the campus. And we are expanding upon that daily using technology to do so. That would be an example. Another example would be the bollard systems that you see, Delta barriers for access into secure locations. All our screening methodology addresses all the most current threats, to include, you know, obviously weapons and chemicals, biological, nuclear, et cetera. Mr. Lungren. You pronounced that last word the same way the President does. That is very interesting. In designing training plans, Chief, to meet the human capital requirements for the force--and the reason I ask that is there are different cultures in different departments. And I saw that as the Attorney General of California looking at various departments throughout California, saw that as I was able to compare them with others across the country. And some departments have a culture where physical fitness is very, very important. Others don't seem to have that. I happen to be one that happens to believe that that's important, particularly here at the Capitol, because not only do you want people to be able to physically respond to any emergency, and we could have any type of emergency here, but it also has to do with, it is the Nation's Capitol, and we ought to look our best so to speak. So I wonder whether you would be considering mandatory physical fitness standards for sworn personnel, not only as they come out of the training program and as they are first employed but on a regular basis. Chief Morse. Yes, that is something that we are looking at. Mr. Lungren. You are looking at it, but I mean what does that mean? Chief Morse. We are analyzing it. There is a lot of things that go with putting a physical fitness program in place, from a legal standpoint and then from a validation standpoint. We would want it to be right for what we do. And we would want it to be something that was achievable. And we would want it to be something that our current employees could also achieve. So I do agree with you that physical fitness and appearance are not only important for people to see, but it is also important for the health of our officers, and it serves as a great deterrent. Mr. Lungren. So, as I take it, that is something you would like to achieve, but you are looking at how it is achievable as opposed to whether or not you think it is a good idea to do. Chief Morse. That is correct. I think it is a great idea, and it is something that we are hopefully going to be able to achieve. Mr. Lungren. Thank you. Mr. Chairman, I have some other questions, but are we going to have a second round? Mr. Capuano. Yes. Mr. Lungren. Okay. Mr. Capuano. Mr. Brady. The Chairman. Yes. Thank you, Chief, for being here. As you know, my father was a police officer, so I feel some type of bond here. And I was a sergeant at arms, so I feel some type of bond with our sergeant at arms, Mr. Livingood. I know both of you work together, and I do appreciate and want to thank you for the cooperation that you have always given me. And I appreciate that. You know, when these bells and whistles go off, and when we hear airplanes flying above us, you know, we are all being escorted out of the building and you all are running into the building. So you certainly have my respect simply because you deserve it. In any way I can be cooperative and help you, please feel free to call me. And thank you again for your appearance today and also for your men. Thank you. Mr. Capuano. Chief, I just have one other question. It relates to overtime. I have no problem with overtime. I think overtime is actually a good thing for most of the rank-and- file. I think it helps encourage morale and gets the most out of your employees. Of course, there is always a balance. I am just curious, do you have any operating procedures or whatever, limitations in place as to how much overtime an individual can get or--I am not worried about the dollar amounts. I am more interested in making sure there is not somebody on duty who has been on duty constantly for 36 hours unless absolutely necessary. Mr. Nichols. Yes, sir, that is one of our ongoing concerns. We do have a current cap in place for our officers. They can work up to 56 hours a pay period, which is a 2-week period of additional duty. And it is for the same reasons that you just articulated. We want to make sure that our officers are sharp and are able to respond to anemergency situation. If they are overworked, working too much overtime, it degrades that readiness and capabilities. So we have those policies and procedures in place for that very reason. Mr. Capuano. Thank you. Mr. Lungren. Mr. Lungren. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Chief, one of the concerns I think outlined by the GAO report, or at least it has come to my attention, was that there appeared to be a significant number of employment-related lawsuits in the past. As you have reformed human resource practices, have we seen a reduction in lawsuits or complaints? Chief Morse. I don't know the answer to that question right now. I can get statistics for you---- Mr. Lungren. Can you get that back to me, please? Chief Morse [continuing]. And get that for the record. [The information follows:] [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.018 Mr. Lungren. Thank you. Last year I had the chance, with Assistant Chief Nichols, to meet at the Command Center. And at that time, I asked you, you know, what resources did you think you needed? You didn't ask me to give you that; I asked you that. You responded with two letters, including one that outlined the costs involved. It is not insubstantial, nor did I think it would be insubstantial. And I wonder, Mr. Chairman, if in the future, at some point in the time in the future we could off line sit down with the chief and the assistant chief about that list. And again, I say they didn't ask me to do it, I asked them, what do you need in terms of additional capital investments so that we could be informed and take a look at it. And I think some of them it would be better for us to probably discuss it behind closed doors just because of the nature of the equipment and what it would be used for. And I think maybe, at least for me, it would be helpful and perhaps for the subcommittee. Mr. Capuano. Just one final question, Chief, and I apologize I didn't ask earlier. I am also interested in diversity, particularly in the higher ranks, not as much in the entry level ranks. I mean, from what I see, I don't know the numbers, but it looks like a diverse workforce. But when it gets up there, it doesn't look like a diverse workforce. I am just curious, are you taking positive steps to address--first of all, is my perception correct? And second, if it is, are you taking steps to address that? Chief Morse. Well, first of all, I am very proud of our posture regarding diversity in the workplace. And we are obviously committed to moving forward to an increased representation of both women and minorities in the police department, both sworn and civilian, as well as in the sworn ranks. What we do is, to ensure that we have the highest qualified people and that the promotional process is not one that is biased or discriminatory, is that we use an outside contractor. And we also use subject matter experts from within the police department. We are inclusive of everyone from the top down. So that makes for a process that everyone feels comfortable in being a part of. And I think that increases the number of people who enlist to become officials. Also of our 21 SES-equivalent positions, 6 are represented by women and 3 are represented by minorities, which is over 43 percent of our Executive Management Team that we spoke of earlier. And most recently, in the last 6 months, four women and minority sworn employees have been promoted to the official ranks. And in addition, we recently promoted two internal minority females to manager positions in our financial management and human resources offices. So these are done through a competitive process. They are done in an open and fair way, which I think attracts the most qualified people for the position but also is a process that is transparent and people want to be a part of. Mr. Capuano. Chief, I respect all that, but I have done a fair amount of hiring in my life, and I have almost never found a job for which one person is solely and uniquely qualified. That includes my job. That includes your job. I mean, for my job I got 635,000 constituents, and myexpectation is there are 634,000 that are more qualified than me, but I got it. And that being the case, I totally understand and absolutely agree. I am not looking for quotas. I am not looking for some alleged neutral review of the whole thing. I would never suggest that the best qualified person shouldn't get it. But it is awfully hard, I can never believe--not never, but seldom believe that there is any job for which one person, regardless of anything, where one person is the only person who is qualified for that job. I have almost always found I could get 10 people for any one job, and then you get down to, of those 10 people, any one of them are qualified for it, which one do I pick. And my hope and expectation is that a goal of diversity is part of that judgment process once you get down to those qualified people. Chief Morse. One of the things that we requested in our 2009 budget that will address the type of situation that you are talking about where we get direction is for a diversity officer. And specifically, that person, we are an organization that does not have that, and that particular position would allow direction, best practices and so forth in relation to diversity and promotion and hiring and recruiting and such. So that is one positive step that we have made to diversity within our organization. And we hope that we would be able to bring that person on in 2009 to help us. Mr. Capuano. That is fair enough, Chief. But you know, the city I ran had more people than you have, and we didn't have a diversity officer. We didn't need one. Not a problem having one, but the commitment has to come from people who do the hiring. The commitment has to come from the people who do the promotions. In the final analysis, a diversity officer is only just somebody there whose only job really is to make sure that you do the right thing. And if you want to do the right thing, you don't really need somebody who is standing there telling you to do the right thing, though my staff does that to me on a regular basis, and my wife in particular. I need it. My hope is that the people who are making the decisions don't really need that. And if they do, they won't need it for long. Chief Morse. I just wanted to add that we do want to do the right thing. And hopefully, this will help us make it so it is transparent. But I am committed to doing the right thing. And I support what you are saying. Mr. Lungren. I just have one last question. Chief, you mentioned that you have authorized 1,702 sworn, and you have 1,611. Do you need 1,702, or do you need 1,611? And if you need 1,702, why aren't we closer to that? And if you don't, should we reduce the authorization down to 1,611? Chief Morse. We actually need more than that, which is evident by the amount of overtime that we expend. Mr. Lungren. Why are we missing 91 then? Chief Morse. Well, several factors there. One, our new mission sets. For instance, the CVC, 10 sworn were requested in 2009 to fill that position and 11 sworn to support the new Visitors Experience at the Library of Congress. And also we have attrition. And I believe, in 2009, we are asking for classes to train 264 personnel. Mr. Lungren. What about your civilian? You say you are down 59. Do you need those people or not need those people? Chief Morse. We absolutely do need those people. But in the budget, sometimes the budget is prioritized in a way that we have to prioritize hiring. And we absolutely need those people, which is why we requested it. And in the 2009 budget, we have re-requested civilian personnel from previous budgets that were not appropriated for. Mr. Lungren. Okay. Thank you. Mr. Capuano. Thank you, Chief. I appreciate it. Asst. Chief Nichols, Ms. Jarmon, I appreciate your coming and your openness and candor. And I look forward to working with you on a regular basis and more often on a more private basis. Chief Morse. Thank you, Chairman. Mr. Nichols. Thank you very much. STATEMENTS OF RICHARD M. STANA, DIRECTOR, HOMELAND SECURITY AND JUSTICE, U.S. GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE; AND U.S. CAPITOL POLICE OFFICER MATTHEW TIGHE, CHAIRMAN, U.S. CAPITOL POLICE LABOR COMMITTEE Mr. Capuano. On the second panel we have Mr. Stana, who is a director of homeland security and justice issues at the U.S. GAO, and Mr. Tighe, who is a U.S. Capitol Police Officer and chairman of the Fraternal Order of Police at the U.S. Capitol Police Labor Committee. And I believe we will start with Mr. Stana. STATEMENT OF RICHARD M. STANA Mr. Stana. Thank you, Chairman Capuano, Mr. Lungren, for the invitation to testify on our work on the U.S. Capitol Police. As you know, USCP performs many essential functions that are key to the efficient and effective workings of the congressional branch. It is responsible for securing the 276- acre Capitol complex, for protecting Members of Congress, their staffs, visitors, 19 buildings, and national treasures, and for regulating traffic within the Capitol grounds. Having efficient and effective operations and related administrative and management functions are important if USCP is to achieve its overall mission to protect the United States Capitol complex and the on-site public. Over the years, in response to various requests of legislative mandates, we identified and reported on management control problems in a range of operations, financial management, human capital management, and information technology, and made 46 recommendations for improvement in these areas. In response to our work, USCP recently created a framework to help them, us, and interested congressional committees to track progress in implementing our recommendations. Our recent review showed that USCP has completed actions on 15 recommendations and is making progress toward addressing 28 recommendations but has not made progress on 3 recommendations. My prepared statement discusses in detail the nature and importance of these recommendations and the status of USCP's efforts to address them. In my oral statement, I would like to highlight just a few main points. First, we reported that USCP needed a system to link its resource requests and allocations to identified risks, threats, and vulnerabilities. In response, USCP has completed risk assessments for 18 of 19 congressional facilities it currently protects and is scheduled to complete all assessments in this fiscal year. It also plans to complete additional assessments after it assumes responsibility for the Library of Congress facilities in just a few months. Additional actions will be required to adequately test and review its overall risk management approach. And until this process is completed, it will not be in the best position to justify resource requests and mitigate potential threats to Members, staff, visitors and facilities. Second, USCP faces major challenges in its financial management. We reported in the past on a high level of staff turnover and open vacancies, weaknesses in financial reporting, problems with the implementation of a new financial management system, and the need to follow through with plans to develop and implement an internal control problem. In the past year, USCP assessed its staffing needs and procurement processes and issued its first full set of financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. USCP is also making progress in the areas of financial management training, policies, procedures, and internal controls. On the other hand, it had not made significant progress in filling vacancies that are critical to stabilizing its financial management workforce. Until our recommendations are fully implemented, its ability to sustain improvements and meet long-term financial management goals will be limited. Third, in the area of human capital management, USCP has adopted a hiring policy and is making progress on other recommendations related to workforce planning and training. Work still remains to be done to complete a strategic workforce plan and master training plan, which should include long-term strategies for acquiring, developing, retaining a workforce with the critical skills and competencies needed to accomplish the department's mission. And lastly, USCP has made progress in the information technology management area by establishing important IT management capabilities, such as those used--as the use of a disciplined system acquisition management practice. However, more work remains to be done in the area of enterprise architecture, investment management, information security, and continuity-of-operations planning. In closing, USCP has made significant progress in addressing operational and administrative weaknesses, but there still remains a substantial amount of work to be done. Until these weaknesses are completely addressed and our recommendations are fully implemented, USCP will not be in the best position to achieve its overall mission in the most efficient and effective manner. This underscores Congress's need to stay closely attuned to USCP's progress toward addressing the administrative and management challenges we identified. I would be happy to answer any questions you may have. [The statement of Mr. Stana follows:] [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.019 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.020 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.021 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.022 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.023 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.024 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.025 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.026 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.027 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.028 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.029 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.030 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.031 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.032 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.033 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.034 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.035 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.036 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.037 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.038 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.039 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.040 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.041 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.042 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.043 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.044 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.045 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.046 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.047 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.048 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.049 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.050 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.051 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.052 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.053 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.054 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.055 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.056 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.057 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.058 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.059 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.060 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.061 Mr. Capuano. Thank you, Mr. Stana. Mr. Tighe, I think we are going to have to go to a vote soon. Okay, I just want people to know we are going to have to go off to a vote. And I apologize, we have a series of votes, but Mr. Tighe, we will be more than happy to take your testimony. STATEMENT OF U.S. CAPITOL POLICE OFFICER MATTHEW A. TIGHE Mr. Tighe. Thank you, sir. First time I have ever done anything like this, so bear with me. Mr. Capuano. Don't worry, we are easy. Mr. Tighe. Thanks a lot. Honorable Chairman and members of the committee, I would like to thank you for the opportunity to testify before you today. I am here not only to speak to you as chairman of the Capitol Police Labor Committee, but as a police officer as well. As chairman of the Fraternal Order of Police Labor Committee for the United States Capitol Police, I represent more than 1,000 sworn Members of our department. We meet regularly to discuss our experiences on the job. While much of what we discuss relates to traditional workplace issues that face union memberships in a variety of work settingsrepresented by organized labor, we also hear constant constructive criticism regarding how well we protect those we are sworn to serve. I am proud of my fellow officers' interest in supporting the goals our oath of office sets for us. They are professionals who want to contribute more. The men and women of the United States Capitol Police take great pride in being given the responsibility to protect Members of Congress, the congressional community, and the millions who visit here. Those who are recruited and trained to carry out our vital mission are among the best educated and motivated people I have encountered anywhere in the law enforcement community. They bring intellect and on-the-ground experience to the myriad tasks associated with securing and protecting everyone within the Capitol complex. I believe we are a well of underutilized insights and ideas that could support further improvements in securing the Capitol. The Capitol complex faces a constant threat that is not always easy to detect or identify. To deter and combat threats, the department must be given adequate and appropriate resources to fulfill our mission. We believe a longer view of the technology and equipment that can significantly enhance our mission must be taken. Further, that the integration and scalability existing in future systems must be given more weight in order to maximize the effectiveness of tax dollars spent while projecting future needs in a manner that will make improvements more affordable and compatible. In addition to the obvious need for training, equipment and adequate funding to carry out our mission for the Congress and the Nation, we need you to understand our mission and your cooperation in the performance of our mission. We recognize that often our duties may be viewed as an inconvenience, but they are essential for maintaining the security throughout the Capitol complex. An officer needs to stay focused on the possible threat without fear from reprisal for properly carrying out their duties. Due to this ever-changing threat, officers cannot passively monitor activity, but must be able to take a proactive approach to investigate suspicious activity. The effectiveness of the individual officers at each post, each of the patrol vehicles, and various support positions around the department is most affected by their personal motivation. It is dangerous for everyone who relies upon us if we are reluctant to do what is difficult but required. The human factor in our profession is unusually critical because a blind eye or turned head can allow the person intent on harm to bring arms, toxins or other dangerous commodities to the halls and offices of the Capitol Complex. Your police officers must feel that they will be supported by their supervisors, their chief, the Police Board, and Members when they make good faith efforts to do their job. If they come to a common sense, that good efforts are punished by the powers that be because they feel inconvenienced, then more damage is done to our security than you may understand. I urge this committee and the Congress to regularly publish its support for its police officers who diligently perform their duties as individuals and as an agency. When inconvenience meets security, we must encourage the responsible officers and officials to support security and to recognize those who work to secure those who we protect. I have devoted a lot of my time to our mission to protect you. Now I wish to raise a serious issue that is a more traditional union concern. I would like to highlight our retirement. The law enforcement profession is more competitive now than ever. It is critical to the Capitol Police to not only recruit the most qualified personnel possible but also to retain them for the length of their career. One of the greatest deciding factors that an applicant considers when making a decision for employment in law enforcement is the compensation package offered by each agency. Our goal is to enhance our retirement benefits to be more competitive with other agencies, thus more appealing to potential applicants. In doing so, we will not only be able to attract the best applicants but retain the officers thatare currently in the field. The costs associated with training a new officer just to have them leave for another agency is wasting the resources provided by Congress and the taxpayers. In too many instances, the U.S. Capitol Police department is the recruiting arm for competing local and Federal law enforcement agencies. Many young men and women who become U.S. Capitol Police officers begin to look elsewhere after completing a few years in our department. This very issue faced the Metropolitan Police Department in the early 1970s when the Congress approved an expansion of its authorized strength. Even with the unprecedented step of authorizing early outs for military personnel who joined the Metropolitan Police Department, the MPD was unable to reach the new authorized strength because too many new recruits left for law enforcement careers elsewhere after securing a few years of experience. It is a matter of record that the only thing that stabilized MPD's workforce was the adaptation of a 20-year retirement system by the Congress. Subsequent to home rule for the District, the city abandoned the 20-year retirement. They are now in the process of passing legislation that will restore 20-year retirement as they work to increase the size of their police department and stabilize their police force again. We look forward to working with all the relevant committees to accomplish this goal in the future. That concludes my statement. I will be happy to answer any questions. [The statement of Mr. Tighe follows:] [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.062 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] T3593A.063 Mr. Capuano. Again, as I said, I apologize, but we have a roll call vote over which, as you all know, we have no control. I expect, I am told there are four votes, guessing 45 minutes or so. When we return, I will understand if you can't stay, but if you can stay, obviously we would like you to stay. And I apologize again. Mr. Capuano. First of all, thank you for sticking around. I apologize, but this is what we do. I have also been informed that my colleagues will not be able to make it back. And they have asked and I think it is perfectly fine to let the record show that we will be allowing written questions. Hopefully you will be able to answer at a later time. Oh, you are here. You can still do written questions. For myself, I have a few questions. I would like to start with you, Mr. Stana. I heard you use some very carefully selected words, and that's a good thing. I tend not to do that the way I should. But I know that there has been progress made, and I know there are things left to do. We all know that. In your opinion, has satisfactory progress been made? Nobody expects any of these things to be done overnight. Do you think there has been satisfactory progress on the report, on adopting recommendations in the report? And do you think that what you heard earlier about the general time frame of potential completion, understanding it is just a time frame, do you think that is a reasonable response? Mr. Stana. Let me put my answer into a context.These deficiencies that we have identified, we have identified them again and again over the years. So we were a bit disappointed and in March 2007 we reported that many of these existing and persistent deficiencies had really not been addressed. And that was because of a couple of reasons. One is there is quite a bit of turnover at the highest levels. The other, they were focused a lot on the day-to-day as opposed to the strategic. So when the Chief came in and took to heart the recommendations that we made and created a framework for addressing them, we were heartened. So what he listed as some of the recommendations that were closed, we were glad to see that. I also would like to say that where we are still looking for policies and procedures to be put in place, it is not the case that none currently exist. The issue is they are not particularly robust in some cases. In other cases, they have to be more attuned to the current circumstances and situations, and so on. With respect to how long it is going to take to close the recommendations I wish I could say it is going to take 5 months, 10 months, 2 years, 5 years. Some of these things are living and breathing, like enterprise architecture, which is a blueprint for the organization, where they are today, where they want to get to tomorrow or in 5 years, 10 years, and what kind of technology they need to get there. Those efforts are never ending. Some they could do relatively quickly. There are two things that I think are particularly important to get done. One is to get on top of the staff turnover and churning. Get the already authorized positions filled, get the people on board. Get the people trained so they have the right knowledge, skills and abilities to get the job done. Then we're going to see how many people we need, to answer Mr. Lungren's question. The second thing is they will need a top management commitment to see that these new policies and procedures are actually implemented and that people are held to account for the results, and that this isn't just another set of recommendations that we answer for today and tomorrow it is a different story. Mr. Capuano. I appreciate it, Mr. Stana. I can only tell you that as long as I am here we are going to do that. I understand fully well where there are differences of opinions on certain things. I didn't hear them today and maybe we will hear them later on. That I respect. But when everybody is on the same page as to what should be done, I can promise you we will be holding everybody to account. Mr. Stana. I appreciate your concern, Mr. Chairman, about some of the sensitive items, particularly with our set of recommendations dealing with threat assessment, and vulnerability assessment, and the way you right size an organization, and where you place the people, allocate the resources to respond to threats. We really shouldn't discuss those kinds of things in this forum, but I can say that they have applied a threat matrix that we worked with them on to the buildings and to the grounds. That was encouraging, too. It is not quite finished yet, but at least they are on the road to being able to say this is the right number or this is the right capability, this is the right equipment because we have a systematic way of assessing that. Mr. Capuano. I think those are fair comments. I see the Chief shaking his head a little bit and I think he accepts it. Mr. Tighe, relative to your testimony, the thing that I am most interested in, I understand fully well that there are changes going on in the Capitol Police ranks all across the board, new leadership and new procedures. I am particularly interested in morale, which I know is a difficult thing to assess, a difficult thing to put your finger on. I heard you say concerns about retirement benefits. Retirement benefits obviously is subject to financial limitations and negotiations and the like. Are there other things in particular that you think would improve the morale? Well, I shouldn't say improve too much. I would like your assessment on the general level of morale, not specifically on a specific point. And then I would also like your opinion on one or two items other than retirement. I have heard the retirement thing, I accept it. We might be able to do it in the short term to be able to improve that if you think it needs improving. Mr. Tighe. Morale has really increased, I would say, in the last couple of months. The Chief has made a great effort to get out there and get his message out to the officers. I think when the Chief first came on board the message wasn't getting out there. Since the message is really filtering down to the officers I think morale has made a huge turn around in the last few months. It is really increasing. Mr. Capuano. That is great to hear. Again, having done this in my past life, I have always thought you will have differences of opinion, but communication---- Mr. Tighe. If I could add one thing, I am not used to doing this. I think a lot of times you are so accessible to Members of Congress and we really appreciate, the officers appreciate that there is always an ear that we can speak to. Sometimes what happens is the squeaky wheel will come up and talk to you. I don't think you get to talk to the 90 percent of these guys that are out here, and are getting the message, and are happy with the way the department is going. Mr. Capuano. I understand the squeaky wheel. As a matter of fact, most Members of Congress' lives are built around the squeaky wheel. If I heard from all 635,000 constituents in one day the world would come to a halt. Weunderstand that. Most of us are pretty adept at recognizing that. At the same time I also know that oftentimes when we get a comment or complaint or a suggestion, it is not just that one person. Sometimes it is broad based, and that is why you, in your representative capacity, I thought it was important to ask you as well. Thank you. Mr. Lungren. Mr. Lungren. Well, let me be the squeaky wheel to ask some questions here. Mr. Stana, you talked about disappointment year after year after year, although you have seen improvement in the last year. Can you venture an opinion as to whether or not the difficulty in making some of these changes is as a result of the fact that you have got a police department that responds to a Capitol Police Board? It responds to authorization committees both in the House and Senate and responds to appropriations subcommittees in both Houses? Does that have anything to do with the difficulty in making some of these changes? Mr. Stana. Well, the kinds of changes that we are interested in pursuing I don't think would be particularly sensitive to that. We are talking about bread and butter management issues. We are talking about having policies in place. We are talking about having position descriptions that adequately describe the work that is supposed to be done and the training that is supposed to be received. We are talking about an enterprise architecture that any organization of any size should have. We are talking about financial management to produce documents that you can rely on with numbers that are reliable. We are talking about a police force that should be able to have a rational way of assigning staff and knowing what the right number is to perform its mission. So no, I wouldn't say that there would be any difficulty there. Mr. Lungren. You gave us some reasons or at least you articulated the frustration with not seeing changes year after year after year, but you have seen some changes in the last year. Can you venture an opinion as to why the department's been able to achieve some of these changes in this last year but were unable to in the previous years? Mr. Stana. Well, I would say this. For years and years and years these problems persisted because there was preoccupation with other issues. And perhaps you would have to ask the former regime whether they figured that that was as important as some of the security missions. But when the Chief took over he was responsive to our recommendations. He set up a framework of assigning responsibility and accountability, checking quarterly on progress and reporting to you semiannually on progress there. Now, I am not saying that there is a difference between night and day. What I am saying, it is midnight and maybe 9 a.m. There is a ways to go here, but the signs are all pointing in the right direction. Mr. Lungren. Have you had to identify any major remaining risks from the standpoint of how you would see the greatest risks or failures to improve in the administrative operations of the department? What would those risks be as you would see them, and do you have a sense that they are being viewed by the administration with a sense of urgency? Mr. Stana. I pointed out that there are many policies and procedures and plans that have to be put in place, and many can soon be put in place. But I think the two greatest risks are first, they can't get on top of the churning of staff, can't stabilize that staff. This is extremely important, particularly in two areas, the financial management and information technology. Mr. Lungren. You are talking primarily administrative staff? Mr. Stana. Yes, yes. I think that is key. The other is I just hope that we don't declare victory by having all these policies and procedures put in place and sort of putting them on the shelf and worrying about the next thing. You have to sustain the interest in accountability, in getting this job done right day after day, and putting controls in place to recognize when circumstances are requiring adifferent way of doing things. Mr. Lungren. Thank you. Officer Tighe, would you individually and the organization that you represent support the idea of mandatory physical fitness standards for Capitol Hill Police officers? Mr. Tighe. We would have to see how it would be put into place, how it would affect the officers that are on the job right now. I think physical fitness for any officer is a good idea. I think encouraging even voluntary, giving officers time to work out while they are on duty is a good idea, but I imagine it would be very costly to be able to do that. Mr. Lungren. So you don't have an already formed position against the idea? It is the question of how it would apply and how we would make it work, is that correct? Mr. Tighe. No, sir. I believe every officer on this department should be physically fit, and be able to go out there and effectively do their job. And I think it would be another tool that you put in your tool belt to help the officers. Mr. Lungren. Let me ask you this, it seems to me that one of the difficulties in the job of being a Capitol Hill Police officer is that as opposed to many other departments where you are out on patrol, most of the officers out on patrol are detectives doing their work. We have, because of what the role is here of the department, the obligation to have permanent stations. They are physical stations where officers are basically standing there, trying to look out for any potential problem that might exist and also being officer friendly to the people who are there. It seems to me you could run the risk of getting stale at that. How do we do in terms of the department's either rotating of positions or keeping your people fresh? How is that done and how successfully is that done right now? Because it seems to me if I were part of this department and I am manning my station day after day after day after day, I might look at another department and say I could be in a patrol car out there on a regular basis or I could be moving around, and that would attract me as long as you have equivalent wages and retirement, and so forth. Mr. Tighe. No. The officers for the most part know what the job is when they come here. They are prepared to stand post. They are made fully aware when they come here they are going to be more of a security force than proactive police force of what you associate with a traditional police department. I guess is what I'm trying to say. I think making more career paths available to the officers, giving them more training and making them feel they are part of the system, making them know that we are backing them up and when they are doing their job that they will have the full backing of the department and the community. The officers that are here take great pride in what they protect. It is not the same when you go to a local department. I mean, you are protecting the Nation's Capitol. That is something to go home and be proud of. I think our officers take great pride in that, and that is why we are here to do our job. We are here because we want to be here. Mr. Lungren. In your testimony you mentioned the dichotomy between creating the security against a potential attack on the one hand. An inconvenience I think is the word you used, but it's probably more than inconvenience. It is a sense of hospitality. It is a sense of welcoming people. From the standpoint of the officers and the training they receive, how is that dealt with? How is that dealt with so that the officer can be officer friendly and at the same time be the officer that is on the lookout for suspicious activity given the fact that you are there for hours and hours? Mr. Tighe. I think it is the training we are given in the academy. It is to be engaging to the people coming through the doors. Believe it or not, that is a great way of finding out. If people are not receptive to your friendliness and engaging them in conversation, that is a great way to get a clue right there. The training, the security training we have been given right now is a lot more comprehensive than when I went through the academy. You are trained to look for a lot more threats than just a simple knife or a gun coming through the doors. Now there are a lot of different items that we are looking for, and it is a lot more training than was initially given to guys who have been in the department 10, 15 years ago. Mr. Lungren. Mr. Stana, from the standpoint of the GAO report, was there any inquiry made of how the department is organized to ensure that you have supervisory personnel on a regular basis checking the performance of officers? Mr. Stana. No, that was outside the scope of our review. We have done a number of reviews of the U.S. Capitol Police over the years. I don't think we have gone into the area much beyond staffing ratios. Mr. Lungren. Okay, thank you very, very much. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Capuano. I just have one last question, Mr. Stana. It is my understanding that the department has engaged the services of an outside company to look at best practices, and I am just wondering if they are working with you or are you aware of their efforts? Mr. Stana. We worked with the Capitol Police on a risk matrix to identify potential threats, vulnerabilities and potential responses. I believe they have engaged with Enlightened Leadership Solutions, ELS, to take that threat assessment further. We have not reviewed that study. We would be happy to do so if you would like us to. Mr. Capuano. I would like that. Not because I have any questions about it, but because I think every view you get, every thoughtful, insightful view you get of anything always adds to it. Mr. Stana. Yes, I know they've engaged with that firm to do a number of things, not the least of which was in some sense a peer review, to call around to the different agencies in town to see if the way the Capitol Police is structuring its risk management framework is similar to what the FBI would do or the CIA or Homeland Security would do. And ELS got back pretty high marks for the Capitol Police effort, but then they did their own assessment, and we haven't reviewed that. Mr. Capuano. Okay. Mr. Stana. We have been briefed on it, but we haven't reviewed it. Mr. Capuano. Whenever you feel it is appropriate. I don't feel these things have to be done right this minute. When you get a moment, I think it would be helpful to get another set of eyes on it. Not because I have any questions about it, it is just an independent review of the matter. I have no further questions. Again, gentlemen, thank you very much. I appreciate it, I apologize for the delay, but it is what we do here. I know you know that. I want to thank everybody. I also want to repeat what Mr. Brady said earlier. I can't tell you how high a regard we hold the Capitol Police here. We think you do a great job for us. I feel like every member of the force is very friendly, very open, yet very professional, and I think I can speak for every Member that we really appreciate what you do for us. And we really appreciate how you balance security with the desire to have an open, friendly environment to the best of your ability. I want to thank you and praise you for what you have done, and I look forward to working with you as you go forward to improve it even more. Thank you. [Whereupon, at 1:38 p.m., the subcommittee was adjourned.]