Info Sharing - Some Good News But More Is Needed

A brief article in GovExec describes some information-sharing efforts among the various levels of government. Fusion centers continue to be the standard-bearer for successful information-sharing enterprises, and more needs to be done:

Homeland Security Chief Intelligence Officer Charles Allen said he is working on information-sharing outreach to state and local governments. "We have made progress," but we need to move faster, he said.

In 2006, authorities created 38 [fusion] centers, which, according to DHS, "blend relevant law enforcement and intelligence information analysis and coordinate security measures in order to reduce threats in local communities."

Homeland Security has provided hundreds of millions of dollars to support the centers.

The department said in 2006 that it would have tailored "multidisciplinary teams of intelligence and operational professionals in major fusion centers nationwide by the end of fiscal year 2008."

It's good to hear someone in Allen's position acknowledging that more needs to be done to share information among local, state, and federal officials.