For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
March 26, 2003
Presidential Letter
Text of a Letter from the President to the Chairmen of the House and Senate Committees on the Judiciary, the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, the House Committee on International Relations, the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, and the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations
March 25, 2003
Dear Mr. Chairman:
Enclosed is the report to the Congress, prepared by my
Administration, identifying Federal law enforcement and intelligence
community information identified as necessary by the Department of
State (DOS) to screen visa applicants and the Department of Homeland
Security (DHS) to screen applicants for admission to the United States,
and to identify those aliens inadmissible or deportable under the
Immigration and Nationality Act. I am forwarding this report to
fulfill the requirement under section 201(b) of the Enhanced Border
Security and Visa Entry Reform Act of 2002 (Public Law 107-173).
The Federal Government is working to improve data-sharing
capabilities between agencies. To support this effort, the Department
of Homeland Security will create an inventory of essential information
needed to secure our Nation; determine horizontal and vertical
integration requirements; define target architecture for information
integration; and, determine the resources necessary to integrate
information. In the short term, DHS will work to virtually consolidate
or link watch lists from multiple agencies and create a homeland
security portal for users at all levels of government. Additionally,
consular officers and immigration inspectors have access to more
complete intelligence and criminal history information through the
Interagency Border Inspection System (IBIS) and the Consular Lookout
and Support System (CLASS). Since September 11, more than seven
million names of persons with Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
records were added to CLASS so that now it contains approximately 13
million name records from DOS, DHS, the Drug Enforcement
Administration, and intelligence resources. The U.S. Customs Service
has also provided 20,000 name records of serious violators to CLASS.
The CLASS now has over 78,000 records of suspected terrorists, up 40
percent in the past year. Since September 11, 2001, approximately
20,000 new terrorist lookouts have been entered into the DOS's TIPOFF
system.
Furthermore, an Entry-Exit System (EES) project team is building an
integrated, automated information EES to enable existing/ emerging
entry exit processes. This core EES will integrate electronic arrival
and departure manifests, electronic visa data, Federal agency lookouts,
traveler information, Student and Exchange Visitor Information System
(SEVIS) data, Immigration Benefit information, overstay information as
well as perform risk assessment analysis and lookout queries, and
incorporate biometric technology.
Additionally, the newly established Terrorist Threat Integration
Center (TTIC) will analyze terrorist-related infor-mation collected
domestically and abroad in order to form the most comprehensive picture
of the terrorist threats we face. The TTIC will also play a lead role
in overseeing a national counter-terrorism tasking and requirements
system and in maintaining an up-to-date database of known and suspected
terrorists that will be accessible to appropriate officials at all
levels of government. The TTIC represents an important milestone in
our effort to improve collaboration between and among the intelligence
and law enforcement communities.
These efforts and others are improving available information and
systems while planning for the development of compatible information
systems. This will allow Federal, State, and local entities to share
information nationwide that will ultimately contribute to securing our
borders and protecting our Nation.
Sincerely,
GEORGE W. BUSH
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