	Introduction

Both congressional and executive branch policy makers assert that science and technology play significant roles in improving homeland security. Congress established the Directorate of Science and Technology (S&T) within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to ensure that DHS has access to science and technology advice and research and development (R&D) capabilities. However, successful R&D activities may not result in a deployable product for many years. Additionally, the directorate supports the development of operational requirements and oversees the operational testing and evaluation of homeland security systems throughout the department. Mission

The Homeland Security Act of 2002 ( P.L. The groups are:
Homeland Security Advanced Research Projects Agency (HSARPA) , which contains six technical divisions that manage R&D in different topical areas and the Special Projects Office that oversees the directorate's classified R&D; Support to the Homeland Security Enterprise and First Responders Group , which is responsible for technology interoperability and compatibility, transfers technologies to first responders, and oversees the National Urban Security Technology Laboratory (formerly the Environmental Measurements Laboratory); Acquisition Support and Operational Analysis Division , which oversees the requirements generation process, interfaces with some DHS federally funded research and development centers, and provides test and evaluation policy oversight, including management of the test and evaluation activities of the Transportation Security Laboratory; and Research and Development Partnerships Division , which serves as the primary external interface for the S&T Directorate, coordinates work with the DHS University Centers of Excellence, oversees several DHS laboratories, and manages the relationship between the S&T Directorate and the Department of Energy national laboratories. Selected Issues

The Homeland Security Act provided direction and broadly defined functions for the S&T Directorate. This section highlights a selection of issues: priority-setting mechanisms for the directorate's R&D programs; the scope of the directorate's R&D activities; efforts to consolidate R&D activity within the S&T Directorate; and the directorate's role in the DHS acquisition process. Coordination of R&D Activities in Other DHS Components

As mentioned above, although the S&T Directorate is the primary R&D entity within DHS, the Homeland Security Act of 2002 allows other DHS components to perform R&D activities so long as they are coordinated through the Under Secretary for Science and Technology.
Policy makers generally believe that science and technology can and will play significant roles in improving homeland security. When Congress established the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), through the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (P.L. 107-296), it included the Directorate of Science and Technology (S&T) to ensure that the new department had access to science and technology advice and research and development (R&D) capabilities.
The S&T Directorate is the primary organization for R&D in DHS. It conducts R&D in several DHS laboratories and funds R&D conducted by other government agencies, the Department of Energy national laboratories, academia, and the private sector. Additionally, the directorate supports the development of operational requirements and oversees the operational testing and evaluation of homeland security systems for DHS. The Homeland Security Act of 2002 provided direction and broadly defined functions for the Under Secretary for Science and Technology and the S&T Directorate. Within this broad statutory framework, congressional and executive branch policy makers face many challenges, including balancing funding for R&D activities, which may not result in a deployable product for many years, with other near-term homeland security needs.
Despite several restructurings and close congressional oversight, the S&T Directorate continues to face difficulties in meeting congressional expectations. The 113th Congress may consider several policy issues related to the performance of the S&T Directorate. These include
priority-setting mechanisms for the directorate's R&D programs, such as strategic planning and targeting high-priority investments; the scope of the directorate's R&D activities, such as balancing incremental efforts with efforts that offer high risk, but high reward; whether R&D efficiency and effectiveness could be enhanced through further consolidations of R&D activities into the S&T Directorate or through dispersing these activities to other entities; and the directorate's role in the DHS acquisition process, both in identifying operational requirements and assessing operational effectiveness.