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Release Date: 06/01/04 00:00:00
On-time award marks “important milestone” for US-VISIT program
For Immediate Release
Press Office
Contact: Kimberly Weissman 202-927-8727
Bill Strassberger 202-282-8010
June 1, 2004
Asa Hutchinson, Under Secretary of Border and Transportation Security for the Department of Homeland Security, today announced the selection of Accenture LLP to serve as the Prime Contractor for US-VISIT to help strengthen security at America’s borders and modernize the border management process.
“This award marks an important milestone in the history of Homeland Security and the US-VISIT Program,” said Under Secretary Hutchinson. “By harnessing the power of the best minds in the private sector, we have taken a major step toward accomplishing our goals of enhancing the security of our country while increasing efficiency at our borders.”
The award, made on schedule on May 28, 2004, went to Accenture LLP and its team.
The contract covers a base period of five years, with five one-year options. The contract value is for a minimum of $10 million and a maximum of $10 billion. The prime contractor will provide a wide range of professional services including strategic support, design and integration activities, technical solutions, deployment activities, training, and organizational change management.
The US-VISIT Program is a top priority for the Department of Homeland Security. US-VISIT has four goals:
Each goal is important, and together they coalesce into a unified objective. The vision of US-VISIT is to deploy end-to-end management and sharing of data on foreign nationals covering their interactions with federal officials before they enter, when they enter, while they are in the United States, and when they exit. This comprehensive view of border management will eventually lead to the creation of a virtual border and will set a course for improved processes to manage and share data on foreign nationals.
Since deploying US-VISIT entry capabilities at 115 airports and 14 seaports on January 5, 2004, more than 4 and half million foreign nationals have been processed without adversely impacting wait times. Since its launch in January, the US-VISIT program has helped the Departments of Homeland Security and State intercept more than 500 persons with prior or suspected criminal or immigration violations. These included convicted rapists, drug traffickers, individuals convicted of credit card fraud, a convicted armed robber, and numerous immigration violators and individuals using falsified documents.
Currently, US-VISIT requires that most foreign visitors traveling to the United States on a visa and arriving at an air or sea port have their two index fingers scanned and a digital photograph taken to verify their identity at the port of entry. By September 30, 2004, this process will also apply to visitors traveling under the visa waiver program at all air and sea ports of entry.
For more information, visit www.dhs.gov/us-visit.
This page was last reviewed/modified on 06/01/04 00:00:00.
