~ INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL POLICE ORGANIZATION (INTERPOL)

 

INTERPOLWashington FY 2012 Performance Budget

 

Congressional   Submission

 

 

I.          Overview for the U.S. National Central Bureau of INTERPOL

 

A.        Introduction

 

In FY 2012, the U.S. National Central Bureau of INTERPOL (INTERPOL Washington) requests a total of $33,456,000, 79 FTE, and 77 positions to prevent crime, enforce federal laws and prevent terrorism.  This request includes an Adjustment to Base (ATB) increase of $3,391,000.  Note that INTERPOL Washington is not requesting any enhancements for information technology (IT).  However, the request does include $2,221,000, 4 FTE, and 5 positions for base IT activities and continued support for ongoing technological expansion of our Law Enforcement Information Sharing initiatives.  With these resources, INTERPOL Washington will be able to increase the number of quality cases related to terrorism, violent crime, drug trafficking, and cyber crime, as well as further extend our state and local outreach efforts.

 

Electronic copies of the Department of Justice’s Congressional Budget Justifications and Capital Asset Plan and Business Case exhibits can be viewed or downloaded from the Internet using the Internet address: http://www.usdoj.gov/jmd/2012justification/.

 

B.        Background

 

The concept of achieving cooperation and information sharing among police agencies in different countries became a reality in 1923 with the creation of the International Criminal Police Organization, known today as INTERPOL.  The Secretary of the Treasury realized the creation of the U.S. National Central Bureau, also known as INTERPOL Washington, in 1968.  Its first Chief, a special agent with the U.S. Secret Service, was named in 1969.  The staff in 1969 numbered three:  the Chief, a clerk, and a translator.  The organization has grown since that time and returned to its original home within the U.S. Department of Justice.  However, its history and mission have remained consistent: to facilitate international law enforcement cooperation; to transmit information of a criminal justice, humanitarian or other law enforcement related nature between law enforcement agencies; to respond to law enforcement requests; to coordinate and integrate information for investigations of an international nature; and to identify patterns and trends in criminal activities.

 

INTERPOLWashington is the link to more than 18,000 U.S. federal, state, and local law enforcement authorities and 187 other member countries for all INTERPOL related matters. This role firmly places INTERPOL Washington in the forefront of all INTERPOL and domestic law enforcement communication.  This role is enhanced by INTERPOL Washington’s aggressive strategy of expanding INTERPOL services throughout the United States.  Expansion has led to an increasing number of law enforcement officers accessing INTERPOL information for the first time.  These data exchanges often result in alerts and hits that require instantaneous responses and analytical review.

 

By expanding and providing access to INTERPOL information throughout the United States and abroad, critical attention must be paid to the analytical processes and tools that will be needed to decipher the valuable information flowing through INTERPOL Washington systems.  For the first time, one U.S. law enforcement office has the capability of accessing and visualizing information for various international checks conducted by domestic agencies on international systems. 

 

C.        Challenges

 

INTERPOL Washington’s mission remains unchanged for FY 2012.  INTERPOL Washington continues to face new expectations unprecedented in its history as a result of an Inspector General audit conducted during FY 2008 and FY 2009.  It is being called upon to assume added responsibilities and to view its role in fundamentally different ways.  These new expectations come with a sense of urgency that change is required without delay.  One of the themes running consistently through the OIG report is the recognition that INTERPOL Washington has a wealth of intelligence data, but that our data and electronic systems, as well as our internal processes, are antiquated and need to take greater advantage of advancing technologies and efficiencies.   

 

This request identifies specific outcome-based objectives that we are currently establishing and will continue to advance through FY2012.  These objectives will move INTERPOL Washington toward greater cooperation and information sharing among law enforcement organizations throughout the world.  Our success can be evaluated based on how well our strategies address the challenges identified by ourselves and the OIG, as well as by our progress in contributing to the Department’s Goals.

 

Following is a brief summary of the Department’s Strategic Goals and Objectives in which INTERPOL Washington plays a role and how our request fits within these goals.

 

DOJ Strategic Goal 1:  Prevent Terrorism and Promote the Nation’s Security  

 

·         Prevent, disrupt, and defeat terrorist operations before they occur (1.1)

·         Strengthen partnerships to prevent, deter, and respond to terrorism incidents (1.2)

 

DOJ Strategic Goal 2:  Prevent Crime, Enforce Federal Laws and Represent the Rights and Interests of the American People

 

·         Strengthen partnerships for safer communities and enhance the Nation’s capacity to prevent, solve and control crime (2.1)

·         Reduce the threat, incidence and prevalence of violent crime (2.2)

·         Prevent, suppress and intervene in crimes against children (2.3)

·         Reduce the threat, trafficking, use and related violence of illegal drugs (2.4)

·         Combat public and corporate corruption, fraud, economic crime and cybercrime (2.5)

 

D.        Full Program Costs

 

INTERPOL Washington is one decision unit and all requested funds will support the Department’s Strategic Goals and Objectives, and therefore each performance objective is linked with the costs of critical strategic actions.  Also, in communicating with more than 18,000 federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies and 187 other member countries, INTERPOL Washington has been able to identify emerging needs in the various communities that will require investment.

 

Resources for each Strategic Goal and Objective that INTERPOL Washington supports are provided.  The total costs include the following:

 

·         Operating costs

o       The direct costs of all outputs, and

o       Common administrative systems

·         Indirect costs

o       Contribution of U.S. dues to INTERPOL

 

Figure 1

 

Both performance and resource tables define the total cost of achieving the strategies INTERPOL Washington will implement in FY 2012.  Also included are the indirect costs of continuing activities, which are central to the operations of INTERPOL Washington.

 

E.        Performance Challenges

 

The challenges that impede progress towards achievement of agency goals are complex and ever changing.  Internal agency dynamics, political decisions, technological developments, and criminal behavior are only a few factors that impact law enforcement practices and pose challenges that demand attention.  The following situations are challenges that INTERPOL Washington sees as potential obstacles. 

 

External Challenges:  The increase in transnational crime and the risks associated with international terrorism result in a continually growing need for international law enforcement cooperation and access to international law enforcement information.  INTERPOL Washington’s responsibility to respond to increasing foreign and domestic requests places additional operational demands on the resources of this organization.

 

·         Member countries expansion of INTERPOL databases to border points has led to a significant increase in cases and message traffic across the network (Figure 2).

 

Figure 2

 

·         INTERPOL has ceased to translate all messages; especially noteworthy are notices and diffusions.  As a consequence, INTERPOL Washington will have to absorb the cost of translating diffusions, notices, and other INTERPOL message traffic.

·         INTERPOL Washington receives no funding from participating agencies for operating expenses for their detailed personnel.

·         Enhancing U.S. domestic agencies access to INTERPOL databases involves a number of technical, administrative, and legal agreements that are slow to implement.

·         U.S. federal, state, local and municipal law enforcement agencies are not taking full advantage of important information and communications tools available through INTERPOL Washington.

 

Funding U.S. Dues to the INTERPOL Organization

 

The INTERPOL General Assembly (IGA), in its September 2001 session, initiated an important policy change affecting member countries and their contributions.  The IGA established a new dues structure whereby the six countries with the highest Gross Domestic Product would pay the highest dues.  In 2010, the 79^th INTERPOL General Assembly adopted a pegged-increase to Dues Statutory Contribution for all three years, from 2011 through 2013, at a constant rate increase of 2.1 percent for each year.  As a result, the United States dues for FY 2011 is 14.9 percent, for FY 2012 it is 17 percent, and for FY 2013 it is 19.1 percent.  We are projecting an increase to 20.8 percent in FY 2014.

 

Figure 3

 

The resulting dues contribution, paid in Euro, has increased from €1.23 million in 2001 to €7.401 million in 2011.  The current IGA proposal will raise the INTERPOL Washington dues payment to €11.303 million by 2014, assuming the INTERPOL budget increases at an inflationary rate only.   However, past experience has led us to anticipate that the INTERPOL budget will continue to increase above a standard inflationary rate as it has done consistently as a result of post-9/11 needs.

 

Another uncontrollable factor is the value of the U.S. dollar relative to the Euro.  Beginning in 2003, the U.S. dollar’s value relative to the Euro began to decline, resulting in additional dues increases as the dollar “bought” fewer Euro.  Fortunately, current projections have the Euro either declining or holding steady against the U.S. dollar.  As a result of the relative stabilization of the Euro over the past year and the desire to assist the Department in meeting its mandate to freeze the budget, INTERPOL Washington will not request an increase in funding as we are projecting that the current services level of funding will be sufficient to cover this expense in FY2012.

 

Internal Challenges:  INTERPOL Washington faces many internal challenges in FY 2012, primarily in enhancing its analytical capability and strengthening its information technology architecture.  Approximately 25 percent of INTERPOL Washington’s permanent workforce will be eligible for retirement in the next 3-4 years.  In addition, 30 percent of the workforce is detailed from agencies with fluctuating support of the INTERPOL Washington mission.  While the OIG noted that the numbers of personnel detailed from other agencies fluctuates over the years, current staffing from other law enforcement agencies is lower now than immediately after the terrorist acts of 9/11.  To mitigate the skill gap that may occur as more and more tenured employees retire and detailees come and go, INTERPOL Washington must further develop its recruiting tools to attract qualified applicants into its ranks and build a cadre of analytical subject matter experts on the various international crimes to which we respond.  In proactively responding to this need, INTERPOL Washington is partnering with the Office of Personnel Management’s Training and Management Assistance group to conduct human capital and information technology evaluations with the end result of developing comprehensive Human Capital Management, Information Technology, and Mission Strategic Plans to guide this organization through FY 2016.  These strategic plans will be completed in FY 2011.

 

F.         Environmental Management System

 

INTERPOL Washington does not yet have an Environmental Management System in place.  However, INTERPOL Washington will develop and implement an agency-wide environmental management system by the end of FY 2011 in accordance with the schedule established by the Department of Justice.  This organization will adopt agency requirements for environmental management, and will also implement agency-wide programs, policies, and procedures to manage environmental aspects as needed on a more specific level to include policies related to acquisition.

 

G.        Component Transfers

 

The component transfers for the Professional Responsibility Advisory Office (PRAO) and the Office of Information Policy (OIP) into the General Administration appropriation will centralize appropriated funding and eliminate the current reimbursable financing process.  The centralization of the funding is administratively advantageous because it eliminates the paper-intensive reimbursement process.  The FY 2012 transfer amounts for OIP and PRAO are based on the FY 2010 actual costs plus standard inflation per year (the average increase over the past three years) to bridge to FY 2012 amounts.  The amount per component is based on the average percentage of total costs paid by that component since 2007.

 

 

II. Summary of Program Changes

 

Item Name	Description				Page
		Pos.	FTE	Dollars ($000)
Admin Efficiencies	Programs and Operations Cost Saving Efficiencies	0	0	(15)	14
Technology Refresh	Extend the refresh rate of all desktops and laptops by one year	0	0	(11)	16

 

III. Appropriations Language and Analysis of Appropriations Language

 

Appropriations Language

 

No changes proposed.

 

Analysis of Appropriations Language

 

No substantive changes proposed.

 

 

IV. Decision Unit Justification

 

Key INTERPOL Washington budget data for FY 2010-2012 is provided in the tables below:

 

A.  United States National Central Bureau

 

INTERPOL Washington TOTAL	Perm. Pos.	FTE	Amount
2010 Enacted with Rescissions	77	73	30,091
2010 Supplemental	0	0	0
2010 Enacted w/Rescissions and Supplemental	77	73	30,091
2011 CR	77	73	30,091
Adjustments to Base and Technical Adjustments	0	6	3,391
2012 Current Services	77	79	33,482
2012 Program Increases	0	0	0
2012 Program  Offset	0	0	(26)
2012 Request	77	79	33,456
Total Change 2011-2012	0	6	3,365

 

 

INTERPOL Washington Technology Breakout Decision Unit TOTAL	Perm. Pos.	FTE	Amount
2010 Enacted with Rescissions	5	4	2,232
2010 Supplemental	0	0	0
2010 Enacted w/Rescissions and Supplemental	5	4	2,232
2011 CR	5	4	2,232
Adjustments to Base and Technical Adjustments	0	0	0
2012 Current Services	5	4	2,232
2012 Program Increases	0	0	0
2012 Program  Offset	0	0	(11)
2012 Request	5	4	2,221
Total Change 2011-2012	0	0	(11)

 

1.         Program Description

 

The U.S. National Central Bureau facilitates international law enforcement cooperation by serving as a police-to-police communications and intelligence network for both American and foreign police seeking assistance in criminal investigations.  INTERPOL Washington brings together international and U.S. police at federal, state, local, municipal, and tribal levels, providing a neutral territory where jurisdictions and mandates are interwoven to permit cooperation and assistance in combating international crime.  INTERPOL Washington initiates and responds to criminal investigative requests; transmits national requests for international cooperation; facilitates requested police action or operations; and collects, analyzes, and shares relevant criminal intelligence.

 

 

2.         Performance Tables

3.         Performance, Resources, and Strategies

 

a.         Performance Plan and Report Outcomes

 

INTERPOL Washington will support DOJ’s Strategic Goals by executing the following functions:

 

• Coordinate arrangements for payment of the mandatory INTERPOL member dues;
• Communicate and exchange information between international and domestic law enforcement agencies;
• Ensure that the common interests of the United States are represented to the international law enforcement community;
• Delineate trends and patterns in international criminal activity;
• Provide leadership and expertise at global law enforcement symposia, conferences and meetings.
• Ensure access to INTERPOL data for U.S. federal, state, local, tribal and municipal law enforcement.
• Champion greater use by U.S. federal, state, local, tribal and municipal law enforcement of information and communications tools through INTERPOL Washington.

 

INTERPOL Washington will continue to facilitate cooperation among foreign and domestic law enforcement by making it easier to obtain information and evidence needed to pursue fugitives and track criminal activity.  INTERPOL Washington is leveraging authorized and existing information sharing environments. 

 

b.         Strategies to Accomplish Outcomes

                                   

INTERPOL Washington has formed strategic partnerships with U.S. law enforcement agencies that have assigned agents to INTERPOL Washington to initiate and respond to international inquiries.  INTERPOL Washington further participates in such international law enforcement initiatives as:  Fusion Task Force (provides link analysis on terrorist groups and individuals); Millennium Project (Eastern European Organized Crime); Project Rockers (International Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs); Project Bridge (human trafficking); International Stolen Vehicle Programs, International Stolen/Lost Travel Documents Program and the INTERPOL Bioterrorism Program. The Notice and Diffusion program builds the capacity to rapidly identify and arrest known and internationally wanted individuals leading to their eventual extradition, deportation and/or prosecution.

 

INTERPOL Washington will also continue to use its expertise to assist in halting international parental abductions in progress, pursue child abductors, and locate victim children.

 

Through INTERPOL, every law enforcement agency in the United States can contact police, customs, and immigration authorities in 187 other member countries.  The anticipated outcome is the reduction of crime domestically and internationally.

 

 

V.     Program Increases by Item

 

INTERPOL Washington has no program increases

 

 

VII.    Program Offsets by Item

 

A.   Item Name:                                 Administrative Efficiencies

 

Budget Decision Unit(s):                    United States National Central Bureau (USNCB)

Strategic Goal(s) & Objectives:          Goal 2; Objectives 2.2 & 2.3

Organizational Program:                     INTERPOL-U.S. National Central Bureau

 

Component Ranking of Items:           1 of 2

 

Program Reduction:                          Positions 0        FTE   0 Dollars    (15,000)      

Description of Item

 

The Department is continually evaluating its programs and operations with the goal of achieving across-the-board economies of scale that result in increased efficiencies and cost savings.  In FY 2012, the Department is focusing on areas in which savings can be achieved, which includes: printing, publications, travel, conferences, supplies, and general equipment.  For INTERPOL Washington, these administrative efficiencies will result in an offset of $15,000.

 

 

Impact on Performance

 

The reduction in administrative expenditures is anticipated to have no adverse impact to INTERPOL Washington’s operations.
Funding

 

Base Funding

 

FY 2010 Enacted (w/rec./supps)				FY 2011 CR				FY 2012 Current Services
Pos	Agt/Atty	FTE	$(000)	Pos	Agt/Atty	FTE	$(000)	Pos	Agt/Atty	FTE	$(000)
0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

 

Personnel Reduction Cost  Summary

 

Type of Position	Modular Cost per Position ($000)	Number of Positions Reduced	FY 2012 Request ($000)	FY 2013 Net Annualization (change from 2012) ($000)	FY 2014 Net Annualization (change from 2013) ($000)
	0	0	0	0	0
Total Personnel				0	0

 

Non-Personnel Reduction  Cost Summary

 

Non-Personnel Item	Unit Cost	Quantity	FY 2012 Request (000)	FY 2013 Net Annualization (change from 2012) ($000)	FY 2014 Net Annualization (Change from 2013) ($000)
			(15)	0	0
Total Non- Personnel			(15)	0	0

 

Total Request for this Item

 

	Pos	Agt/Atty	FTE	Personnel ($000)	Non- Personnel      (000)	Total ($000)	FY 2013 Net Annualization (change from 2012)  ($000	FY 2014 Net Annualization (change from 2013)  ($000)
Current Services
Decreases					(15)	(15)
Grand Total					(15)	(15)

B.   Item Name:                                 Extend Technology Refresh

 

Budget Decision Unit(s):                    United States National Central Bureau (USNCB)

Strategic Goal(s) & Objectives:          Goal 2; Objectives 2.2 & 2.3

Organizational Program:                     TINTERPOL U.S. National Central Bureau

 

Component Ranking of Items:           2 of 2

 

Program Reduction:                           Positions 0       FTE 0 Dollars   (11,000)      

Description of Item

 

As desktops and laptops are used primarily for basic office automation applications (e.g., spreadsheets and word processing), replacing this inventory at a slower rate is expected to have minimal impact on Department operations.  In FY 2012, the Department is proposing to extend the refresh rate of all desktops and laptops by one year, resulting in an offset of $11,000 for INTERPOL Washington.

 

Impact on Performance

 

The reduction in expenditures is anticipated to have no adverse impact to INTERPOL Washington’s operations. 

 

 

 

Funding

 

Base Funding

 

FY 2010 Enacted (w/rec./supps)				FY 2011 CR				FY 2012 Current Services
Pos	Agt/Atty	FTE	$(000)	Pos	Agt/Atty	FTE	$(000)	Pos	Agt/Atty	FTE	$(000)
0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

 

Personnel Reduction Cost  Summary

 

Type of Position	Modular Cost per Position ($000)	Number of Positions Reduced	FY 2012 Request ($000)	FY 2013 Net Annualization (change from 2012) ($000)	FY 2014 Net Annualization (change from 2013) ($000)
				0	0
Total Personnel				0	0

 

Non-Personnel Reduction  Cost Summary

 

Non-Personnel Item	Unit Cost	Quantity	FY 2012 Request (000)	FY 2013 Net Annualization (change from 2012) ($000)	FY 2014 Net Annualization (Change from 2013) ($000)
			(11)	0	0
Total Non- Personnel			(11)	0	0

 

Total Request for this Item

 

	Pos	Agt/Atty	FTE	Personnel ($000)	Non- Personnel      (000)	Total ($000)	FY 2013 Net Annualization (change from 2012)  ($000	FY 2014 Net Annualization (change from 2013)  ($000)
Current Servicesl				0		0
Decreases	0	0	0	0	(11)	(11)
Grand Total					(11)	(11)

                                                                                                                                               

VI.    Exhibits