United States Department of Homeland Security

The United States Department of Homeland Security is the U.S. federal executive department responsible for public security. Its stated missions involve anti-terrorism, border security, immigration and customs, cyber security, and disaster prevention and management. With more than 240,000 employees, DHS is the third largest Cabinet department, after the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs. Homeland security policy is coordinated at the White House by the Homeland security Council.

About United States Department of Homeland Security in brief

The United States Department of Homeland Security is the U.S. federal executive department responsible for public security. Its stated missions involve anti-terrorism, border security, immigration and customs, cyber security, and disaster prevention and management. It began operations in 2003, formed as a result of the Homeland Security Act, enacted the previous year in response to the 911 attacks. With more than 240,000 employees, DHS is the third largest Cabinet department, after the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs. Homeland security policy is coordinated at the White House by the Homeland security Council. Other agencies with significant homeland security responsibilities include the Department of Health and Human Services, Justice, and Energy. It was the largest U. S. government reorganization in the 50 years since the United States. Department of Defense was created in 1947. It is the most diverse merger of federal functions and responsibilities, incorporating 22 government agencies into a single organization. In August 2005, the Office of Personnel Management issued rules and discipline for a personnel system named MaxHR. The rules would allow DHS to override any provision in a contract that would make it impossible, if impossible, for unions to negotiate over staffing, deployments, technology and other workplace matters. A federal court ruled against the DHS in 2006; pending a final resolution to the litigation, DHS’s fiscal year 2008 appropriations bill is not yet in effect. The bill was also controversial for the presence of unrelated \”riders\”, as well as for eliminating certain union-friendly civil service and labor protections for department employees.

Without these protections, employees could be expeditiously reassigned or dismissed on grounds of security, incompetence or insubordination, and DHS would not be required to notify their union representatives. In 2002, Bush officials argued that the September 11 attacks made the proposed elimination of employee protections imperative. The Gilmore Commission, supported by much of Congress and John Bolton, helped further solidify need for the department. The creation of DHS constituted the most significant government. reorganization since the Cold War and the most substantial reorganization of federal agencies since the National Security Act of 1947. The DHS incorporated the following 22 agencies. It also incorporated the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Central Intelligence Agency in part or in whole. The department was established on November 25, 2002, but most of the department’s component agencies were not transferred into the new department until March 1, 2003. It officially began operations on January 24, 2003, but many of its component agencies did not transfer into the department until January 1, 2004. The first secretary of DHS was Tom Ridge, who resigned on November 30, 2004, following the re-election of President Bush. On January 11, 2005, President Bush nominated federal judge Michael Chertoff to succeed Ridge. On December 10, Kerik withdrew his nomination, citing personal reasons and saying it “would not be in the best interests” of the country for him to pursue the post. On February 15,2005, Chertof was confirmed by a vote of 98–0 in the Senate.

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