The Dept. of Homeland Security (DHS) is one of the largest procurement spending agencies in the federal gov¿t. In FY 2007, DHS obligated $12 billion for a wide range of goods and services to meet mission needs. Like other fed. agencies, DHS has faced challenges in building and sustaining a capable workforce to support its acquisitions. This report: identifies and assesses DHS's efforts to build and sustain an effective acquisition workforce, and determines the extent to which DHS has planned strategically for the acquisition workforce. To conduct the work, the author collected and reviewed data and interviewed officials from the Office of the Chief Procurement Officer (CPO), DHS's 9 procurement offices, and 9 program offices. Charts and tables.

This is a print on demand edition of a hard to find publication. From FY 2000-08, the number of persons employed by fed. agencies who perform law enforcement (LE) functions and receive either special pay or enhanced retirement benefits, in the form of a faster-accruing pension, has increased by 55%. In addition, as of Sept. 2008, 51,000 personnel were employed in LE-related occupations that could seek enhanced retirement benefits in the future. This report reviewed the retirement benefits provided to LE personnel. It addresses: (1) the processes used to grant enhanced retirement benefits to federal LE personnel; (2) the rationales and potential costs for extending benefits to additional occupations; and (3) the extent to which fed. agencies used human capital tools to retain LE and other personnel. Illus.