Subject: [NEXTEL-1] Science and Technology Fact Sheet Working with Private Industry:

From: [email-masked]
Date: Mon, 17 Nov 2003 14:44:38 -0500

Science and Technology Fact Sheet Working with Private Industry:
Partners in Protecting the Nation

For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
November 14, 2003

Through the Science and Technology division, the Department of Homeland
Security is harnessing the nation's scientific knowledge to protect America
and our way of life from terrorists and their weapons of mass destruction.
Private industry is a key partner in this effort and the division is working
with large and small firms in the following ways:

Contracting Tools that Simplify Interactions with Private Industry:

Through the Homeland Security Act of 2002, the Department of Homeland
Security was statutorily given Other Transactions (OT) authority. This
authority gives the Department of Homeland Security, and specifically, the
Science and Technology division, flexibility in engaging non-traditional
vendors, including contractors that are reluctant to do business with the
federal government because of its unique accounting requirements and
inability to freely negotiate intellectual property rights. OT authority
allows the Science and Technology division to behave more like a commercial
partner and flexibly negotiate agreements that protect the Department's
interests while being attractive to the commercial contractor.

HSARPA, Leading the Department's Efforts to Attract Private Industry to
Homeland Security Research and Development:

The Science and Technology division's Homeland Security Advanced Research
Projects Agency (HSARPA) is the external funding arm for the Department of
Homeland Security. HSARPA performs its functions in part by awarding
procurement contracts, grants, cooperative agreements, or other transactions
for research or prototypes to public or private entities, businesses,
federally funded research and development centers and universities. HSARPA
invests in programs that offer the potential for revolutionary improvement
in homeland security capability or that accelerate the prototyping and
deployment of near-term technologies intended to reduce homeland
vulnerabilities.

In May 2003, HSARPA and the Technical Support Working Group (TSWG) released
a joint Broad Agency Announcement for near-term technologies that can be
rapidly prototyped and deployed to the field. More than 3,340 responses were
received in the following broad categories: chemical, biological, radiation
and nuclear countermeasures; personnel protection; explosives detection;
infrastructure protection; physical security; improvised device defeat; and
investigative support and forensics. Responses are currently being reviewed
and contract awards began in November 2003.

On September 22, HSARPA issued a Research Announcement for Detection Systems
for Biological and Chemical Countermeasures.  Over 500 White Papers were
received in response to this solicitation.  Responses are currently being
reviewed.

On September 29, HSARPA held its first Bidders Conference in Washington, DC,
focused on developing countermeasures to the threats from biological and
chemical terrorism. Approximately 420 private sector and university
representatives attended the event.

On November 14, 2003, HSARPA released a Small Business Innovation Research
(SBIR) Program Solicitation. The SBIR solicitation invites small businesses
to submit innovative research proposals that address high priority
requirements of the Department.

On November 17, 2003, HSARPA will host a one-day workshop to obtain feedback
from industry on how businesses want to work with the Department's research
and development program. The goal is to gather input on best practices and
to optimize the solicitation, bid, procurement and program execution process
for both industry and HSARPA. On December 15, a similar event will be held
for the academic community.

Implementing the SAFETY Act, a Tool to Encourage Development and Deployment
of Selected Anti-terrorism Technologies:

On October 10, 2003, Secretary Ridge signed an interim final rule
implementing the Support Anti-Terrorism by Fostering Effective Technologies
(SAFETY) Act of 2002.  The SAFETY Act is designed to encourage the
development and rapid deployment of anti-terrorism technologies by providing
manufacturers and sellers with limited liability risks.  The Science and
Technology division is now accepting applications on behalf of the
Department of Homeland Security for designation under the Act.

In September and October, the Science and Technology division led a series
of nation-wide seminars (Dallas, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Chicago and
Washington) to introduce the public to the process to implement the SAFETY
Act.  The seminars provided large and small firms with general information
about the Act, introduced the pre-application process, and provided a forum
for questions about the Department's implementation processes.

Working with Private Industry on Interoperability of Communications:

The Science and Technology division held its first SAFECOM Vendor
Demonstration Day in August 2003, with an overwhelmingly positive response
from technology providers. Due to the increasing number of vendor requests
to present their technologies to the SAFECOM Program, the division is
holding a vendor demonstration day on the last Friday of every month.
Project SAFECOM is the nation's program for developing standards and
technologies for wireless communication interoperability between local,
state, tribal, and federal agencies.
 http://www.dhs.gov/dhspublic/display?content=2226

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