Federal Protective Service director touts new vision for security

Federal Protective Service Director Gary Schenkel has not had an easy time of it during the past 18 months. When Schenkel was appointed to lead the agency tasked with protecting federal buildings in March 2007, he almost immediately was subjected to contentious congressional hearings and reports of lax oversight and lapsed security. But Schenkel insists he is slowly turning the ship in the right direction.

"A lot of people don't understand where FPS is going and a lot of people really don't even understand where FPS is coming from," Schenkel said in an interview with Government Executive. He noted that the service had difficulty making the transition from the General Services Administration to the Homeland Security Department in 2003. "Coming out of GSA, business was done a different way," he said. "Not saying that GSA was doing business wrong. GSA just had a way of doing business differently, and we had to kind of reinvent the wheel when it came down to our business practices."

In addition to the shift of parent agencies, FPS was forced to reconsider its strategic vision in light of modern security threats and budgetary constraints. Schenkel said the new vision entails an increased focus on an overarching "protection mission," rather than the traditional "straight police-type mission." That involves building a workforce made up almost entirely of inspectors and contract security guards with very few dedicated FPS police officers.

While lawmakers and Government Accountability Office auditors have expressed skepticism about the plan, Schenkel is confident that inspectors -- who double as law enforcement officers -- are the best way to balance the service's mission with its financial constraints.

"It gives me the flexibility to not only oversee the contracting … and provide the necessary building security assessments, but I can take that same individual and send them out on a law enforcement mission," he said. "If I just have a police officer … that's all I can do with that person. I can't send that person to do the physical security assessments."

Some FPS overseers have expressed concern that Schenkel's approach will cause a noticeable decrease in the law enforcement presence at federal buildings, particularly in the proactive patrols designed to deter terrorist surveillance. But the activities inspectors perform daily can serve the same purpose as such patrols, Schenkel said.

"The individuals that are doing the security assessments, that are actually checking the guard posts and ensuring compliance," he said. "They're actively patrolling. They're providing a visible presence and reacting if necessary to provide a law enforcement mission just by doing their normal duties. That's proactive patrolling in and of itself."

Schenkel said with more inspectors and better business practices, the much-maligned contract guard program is shaping up. In the past two years, FPS has paid 2,200 outstanding invoices totaling $92 million, he said. The agency now is paying more than 97 percent of its bills on time. Late payments were a critical issue in a series of congressional hearings. Security companies accused of not paying their employees shifted the blame to FPS, saying they had not received payments from the service. The agency recently held an industry day for security firms and is committed to being a better customer. Schenkel said FPS expects to see a similar commitment from the contract guard firms.

"We're setting our expectations very high, and we're obligated to tell them that because maybe they weren't so high before," he said. "It's going to be a pretty dramatic difference."

Schenkel also is taking a structured approach to fixing the massive security infrastructure problems plaguing federal buildings. A June Government Accountability Office report showed widespread malfunctioning of security equipment such as cameras and metal detectors in federal facilities. He acknowledged there had been a "tremendous" problem, but said the service is making significant strides toward solving it.

FPS has launched a national program to schedule replacement of broken or outdated equipment. By February 2009, the agency plans to implement a maintenance program to provide timely repairs of equipment that breaks down.

Schenkel, a career federal executive, said he was grateful FPS does not have to undergo a transition in political leadership at such a sensitive time in its operations. "We've got a long way to go," he said. "We're not there yet but we've certainly made some great strides."