Legislators demand cost estimate for border program

Lawmakers and the Homeland Security Department's top inspector said Wednesday they want department officials to tell them how much it will cost to secure the nation's borders, especially since the department has started issuing multimillion-dollar contracts for border control efforts.

"We want to know what you are going to do, over what time line and what is it going to cost, Those are three very clear questions," House Homeland Security Management Subcommittee Chairman Mike Rogers, R-Ala., told department officials during a hearing. "We are not going to let this [move] along unchecked."

In September, the department awarded Boeing Co. a three-year contract with three one-year options for the SBInet (Secure Border Initiative) program, which is expected to integrate technology, personnel and infrastructure along the nation's borders.

Homeland Security Inspector General Richard Skinner told lawmakers during the hearing that estimates for SBInet wildly range from $8 billion to $30 billion. Others have put the total price tag at about $2 billion.

Skinner said those amounts are based on estimates from industry insiders rather than his office, which is now trying to evaluate the costs.

"Our frustration right now is that we don't know what it's going to cost," he said. "We just don't know what the big picture is."

Greg Giddens, who manages SBI, said the department is not yet prepared to publish funding projections for the program. He said the department will give lawmakers a report Dec. 4 laying out the program's costs, schedule and deployments.

Members of the subcommittee questioned whether the department has proper controls over the Boeing contract. "How does somebody bid and how do you choose a contactor without having any idea of a price range?" asked Rep. Mark Souder, R-Ind. "It just seems extraordinary to me. I'm baffled"

Rogers added, "You're not the only one in this room."

Elaine Duke, the Homeland Security Department's chief procurement officer, said the department is carefully managing the SBInet contract. Each task order to Boeing is being individually negotiated, for example, and the department has the discretion to award contracts to other venders, she said.

"The SBInet program incorporates acquisition best practices and lessons learned from previous border technology procurements to provide the most cost and operationally effective solution for securing the border," she said in written testimony to the subcommittee.

Skinner said the department has not adequately defined the program's operational requirements or developed a solid acquisition baseline for it. He said the program is not yet on the verge of spinning out of control, but said Homeland Security must move fast to implement better contract and program oversight.

"Those are the types of contracts that are going to get us in trouble down the road," he said. "That's why it's essential that we develop an acquisition baseline and that we have clearly defined operational requirements."