Fusion center

Overview
Improving intelligence gathering and information sharing at all levels of government has been a major concern and priority since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. To promote greater information sharing and collaboration among federal, state, and local intelligence and law enforcement entities, state and local authorities established fusion centers throughout the country. These centers are "a collaborative effort of two or more agencies that provide resources, expertise, and information to the center with the goal of maximizing its ability to detect, prevent, investigate, and respond to criminal and terrorist activity."

Among the primary focuses of fusion centers are the intelligence and fusion processes, through which information is collected, integrated, evaluated, analyzed, and disseminated. Nontraditional collectors of intelligence, such as public safety entities and private sector organizations, possess important information (e.g., risk assessments and suspicious activity reports) that can be “fused” with law enforcement data to provide meaningful information and intelligence about threats and criminal activity. It is recommended that the fusion of public safety and private sector information with law enforcement data be virtual through networking and utilizing a search function.

Examples of the types of information incorporated into these processes are threat assessments and information related to public safety, law enforcement, public health, social services, and public works. Federal data that contains personally identifiable information should not be combined with this data until a threat, criminal predicate, or public safety need has been identified. These processes support efforts to anticipate, identify, prevent, monitor, and respond to criminal activity. Federal law enforcement agencies that are participating in fusion centers should ensure that they comply with all applicable privacy laws when contemplating the wholesale sharing of information with nontraditional law enforcement entities. Fusion centers are joint multi-jurisdictional information centers that combine data from various sources and disciplines. They provide for information sharing at the federal level (horizontally, between federal agencies such as the CIA, FBI and U.S. Department of Justice) and at the state and local level (vertically). A fusion center may also be affiliated with an Emergency Operations Center that responds in the event of a disaster.

The term fusion refers to the process of managing the flow of information and intelligence across all levels and sectors of government and private industry, and through analysis, provides meaningful intelligence.

History
Fusion centers were started as a joint project by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Department of Justice's Office of Justice Programs. In June 2006, the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security signed an implementation plan to support state and local fusion centers and designated the Office of Intelligence and Analysis as the executive agent for managing the department’s role in the nationwide Fusion Center Initiative.


 * Nearly all of the country’s more than 40 centers were established between 2003 and 2007, and as many as 15 more are planned." The fusion centers gather information not only from government sources, but also from "private sector partners." These fusion centers now play a prominent role in collecting, analyzing, and sharing terrorism information. These centers are not homogenous &mdash; considerable variations exist in terms of operations and mission focus (e.g., homeland security, law enforcement, emergency response). Significant effort has gone into developing and adopting standards to facilitate easier information access, sharing, and use.

As of April 2008, state and local authorities have created 58 fusion centers nationwide. The centers’ goals are to blend law enforcement and intelligence information, and coordinate security measures to reduce threats in local communities. Fusion centers vary in size, scope, jurisdiction, capability, and maturity. The missions of these centers also vary. For example, some fusion centers are focused specifically on terrorism-related threats, others deal with information sharing related to all crimes, while other centers focus on addressing all hazards.

Privacy issues
Because of privacy concerns that attach to personally identifiable information, fusion centers do not combine federal databases containing personally identifiable information with state, local, and tribal databases into one system or warehouse. Rather, when a threat, criminal predicate, or public safety need is identified, fusion centers allow information from all sources to be readily gathered, analyzed, and exchanged, based upon the predicate, by providing access to a variety of disparate databases that are maintained and controlled by appropriate local, state, tribal, and federal representatives at the fusion center. The product of this exchange is stored by the entity taking action in accordance with any applicable fusion center and/or department policy, including state and federal privacy laws and requirements.

Fusion Centers
Information on currently operating fusion and intelligence centers can be accessed via the National Criminal Intelligence Resource Center.

Curren Fusion Centers include:


 * The Arizona Counter Terrorism Information Center (ACTIC)
 * Georgia Information Sharing and Analysis Center (GISAC)
 * Terrorism Early Warning Center (TEW) in Los Angeles
 * Northeast Ohio Regional Fusion Center (NEORFC)
 * Michigan Intelligence Operation Center (MIOC)
 * Washington Joint Analytical Center (WAJAC)

Video

 * Democracy Now! story about fusion centers (Aug. 2008).