GovernmentExecutive.com

Democrats on a House panel on Thursday asked Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff to explain why they were not told that a high-ranking personnel official had tendered his resignation days before testifying about staffing woes.

Reps. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., and Kendrick Meek, D-Fla., said the resignation of K. Gregg Prillaman, DHS' chief human capital officer, also creates doubt surrounding the department's planned personnel reforms.

Prillaman told the department on May 15 about his plans to resign, but Democrats on the House Homeland Security Committee said that three days later, he testified at a hearing without notifying them of his upcoming departure. DHS initially declined to confirm reports of his resignation, they said.

"It appears that the department's human capital system is in critical condition, possessing neither steady, seasoned leadership nor clearly defined goals," the representatives wrote in a letter sent Thursday to Chertoff.

"The report of Mr. Prillaman's impending resignation is disturbing not only because it raises issues about the department's commitment to addressing attrition and morale issues but also because it further underscores the need for a proven human capital system."

Thompson and Meek grouped Prillaman's resignation with "several unfavorable court decisions" and decreased congressional appropriations as bad omens for the agency's new personnel system, which among other reforms, will base annual pay raises on performance ratings. The letter also criticized the performance system's evaluation process, citing a Government Accountability Office report that lawmakers said called the evaluations "highly questionable."

National Treasury Employees Union President Colleen Kelley said Friday the letter makes it "crystal clear to everyone that the personnel system has been in critical condition for some time, and should be scrapped."

The Democrats also asked how DHS will confront "severely decreased appropriations" for its new personnel system. Prillaman, in a speech earlier this week, said DHS was surprised by employees' negative reaction to the implementation of the new system.

DHS spokesman Larry Orluskie would not comment directly on the letter, except to say the department will respond "in a timely fashion." The letter called for a written response by mid-June.

Orluskie said an acting director will be named in Prillaman's place next week, and will serve until a presidential appointment is made for the position. Prillaman will leave June 9.

The House Government Reform Committee also plans to question DHS officials later this month on the separate issue of grants allocations. The panel will call officials to testify as early as mid-June, a source said.

The grants allocations, which were announced earlier this week, brought drastic cuts for many state and local anti-terror and disaster preparedness programs, including those in New York City and Washington, D.C. Available funds went from $2.5 billion last fiscal year to $1.7 billion this year.

In a separate letter to Chertoff also sent June 1, Thompson criticized the reductions, calling it unconscionable that New York, Boston and Washington received significantly less than last year. "I simply do not understand the grant-funding game that the department is playing with America's security," he wrote.

Karen Rutzick contributed to this report.

COMMENTS

• Congress again has missed the point! They should be asking why Chertoff has not resigned! Taxpayer Posted June 6, 2006 7:36 AM
• It amuses me that any of this comes as a surprise to anyone! Respected and retired ICE employees and outside private entities have been testifying before congressional committees for some time highlighting what needs to be addressed and fixed within DHS! Most of this information has been pushed to the wayside or ignored. As I can only speak for the ICE concept, the idea of combining the powers of Customs and Immigration laws and regulations seems like a great and powerful idea. The implementation is a train wreck. First off, put ICE and CBP back together. If you wish to attack an issue, start at the place where it first starts. That is at the border. You must address the entrance of the individuals and their tools where they come in. You cannot separate the problem that exists at our borders by separating our uniformed force (CBP) and the investigators (ICE) by saying that the one takes care of the borders, and the other handles "interior enforcement." Put them back together so we can address the issue in a cohesive fashion. Second, if ICE is DHS' "investigative arm," ICE should be first and foremost in our fight against those who wish to harm our homeland. After that, if local municipalities are complaining about the lack of allocated funds, then how do they think DHS employees feel about being told not to do certain things (like repairs to government owned vehicles) due to lack of funds? Let’s put some real teeth into immigration laws and regulations so that "undesirables" can be deported or subject to criminal violations. I am sure there is much more to be done but for now, let’s fix DHS so it becomes a real protector of the homeland, a premier law enforcement agency and a place where people are lining up to work at, not bailing from at a unexplainable pace! S/A ICE, New York GovExec.com reader Posted June 3, 2006 3:34 PM
• Prillaman's departure is no surprise. But to hold back this fact to the congressional committee that was questioning him just days before just further illustrates this agency’s contempt for everyone. Prillaman is just a symptom of the overall problem with the agency. Being from the legacy INS, I thought that nothing could be worse than the INS that I came from. Well, I was wrong. The DHS, ICE from the secretary on down to the SAC offices take the cake, they are a major failure and disgrace for all employees who have the misfortune to work for this dysfunctional agency and under their dismal direction and control. MAX HR and paybanding are just the rotten icing on the cake. I’m glad I’m bailing out of this sorry organization and retiring shortly. Every one else better start manning the life rafts, women and children first! GovExec.com reader Posted June 4, 2006 4:05 PM