“The Information Analysis and Infrastructure Protection Directorate (IAIP) gets a lot of attention because it is truly the nerve center of the new Department of Homeland Security. IAIP is at the heart of DHS’ core mission to prevent terrorism and protect the infrastructure that is vital to the security and economic well-being of our Nation.

“IAIP is tasked with integrating information from various public and private sources to form a comprehensive picture of the terrorist threats we face, and to map this assessment against the vulnerabilities of our critical infrastructure to produce a prioritized and risk-based plan for securing our homeland. This is not a one-time task, but a continuous responsibility, in a dynamic and constantly changing environment.

“We have no choice but to continue to press IAIP to build the analytic capabilities necessary to carry out its mandate under the Homeland Security Act. Risk-based assessments produced by IAIP must guide both the Department’s overall homeland security strategy and the allocation of resources to priority areas.

“Eighty-five percent of our critical infrastructure is owned by the private sector, and it is appropriate that the private sector take a lead role in protecting these assets, with assistance – including the provision of actionable threat-based information – and oversight by the Federal government.

“One key manifestation of the public-private partnership envisioned by the Homeland Security Act is the continued operation of – and in some cases, the creation of new – Information Sharing and Analysis Centers (ISAC) for critical infrastructure sectors. I wish to examine how the ISAC model has worked so far and whether we need to formalize and fund the ISAC process legislatively.