DHS Needs to Improve the Process for Identifying Acquisition Planning Capability Needs

We determined that the Department of Homeland Security has established a process that provides guidance to identify required capabilities, gaps, and opportunities, which are found in capability needs documents. The Department also has controls in place to prevent components from circumventing this process. However, the Department validates noncompliant capability needs documents. DHS does not hold components accountable for failing to follow guidance and also has not provided adequate direction on how to implement the guidance. As a result, the Department cannot be assured that capability needs are properly identified. Additionally, Department analysts are not consistent when reviewing capability documents and applying departmental guidance and the acquisition decision making process is not always documented. This occurred because the Department has neither standard operating procedures to help its analysts consistently review documents and provide feedback, nor a written policy requiring documentation to support validation decisions. Inconsistent analyst reviews affect the Department’s ability to make informed decisions about components’ assessments of capability needs. It may result in components expending additional resources to develop capability documents and may delay the Department’s acquisition of needed goods and services. Furthermore, without proper documentation, issues identified during capability document reviews may not be addressed prior to validation. The Department concurred with the recommendations and described corrective actions taken. We consider three of the four recommendations closed. However, actions taken to address the remaining recommendation do not address the intent of the recommendation. Therefore, we consider the remaining recommendation open and unresolved.