DOD acts to modernize export control process

Major acquisition program will design, develop and deploy modern electronic export license review system; approach to be interoperable among federal agencies; industry/government interface to be set up

Moving to modernize the export control process, the Department of Defense (DoD) has opened its U.S. Export Systems Interagency Program Management Office (USXPORTS IPMO). USXPORTS is a major acquisition program to design, develop and deploy a modern electronic export license review system that will be interoperable among interested government agencies. Modernization of the export control process will be achieved by ensuring easy and timely electronic access to pertinent export data, while protecting national security interests and industry proprietary data. This program is fully funded for $30 million over three years.

Why is this program needed?
Today, the departments of State and Commerce submit export licenses for review to DoD. Inspector General and Congressional reviews have determined those automated systems in DoD, Commerce and State are neither standardized nor interoperable among the reviewing agencies. Thus, the workflow process is inefficient and suffers from unnecessary delays. Additionally, reviews often require multiple copies of technical or other supporting documentation that are delivered and disseminated manually. DoD has established USXPORTS to address and solve these automation problems.

The objectives are to incrementally:

1. establish a common electronic interface between industry and government,
   
2. improve the quality of the reviews that protect military capabilities,
   
3. improve and standardize data and systems architecture among government agencies,
   
4. accelerate the licensing process workflow to meet global marketplace demands, and
   
5. ensure the process is secure.

The Clinger-Cohen Act requires the addressing of "complex information technology objectives incrementally in order to enhance the likelihood of achieving workable solutions".

How does it work?
The USXPORTS Program Management Office (PMO) is developing a project plan to field a series of incremental software builds while coordinating areas of process improvement. The USXPORTS PMO will:

1. employ rigorous requirement analysis and business process/reengineering,
   
2. establish technical infrastructure to include security safeguards,
   
3. design and implement data management tools,
   
4. design, develop and procure desired hardware/software modules,
   
5. test designed and developed modules against requirements and other metrics, and
   
6. manage system integration and deployment to include training and user assistance.

The USXPORTS program is approved as a New Start initiative and will follow the applicable guidelines established by DoD directives and the Clinger-Cohen act. A Mission Need Statement is in final review by senior officials. The preliminary Economic Analysis is available and will be refined throughout the program life cycle. The National Security Agency (NSA) continues to review the concept and security model for USXPORTS to ensure the latest security measures are employed.

The first prototype is in test with the Department of Commerce to support electronic delivery of technical documents from industry to the government. In FY01, system communications requirements will be evaluated and implemented. In FY02, DoD decision support and analysis modules will be developed and tested. Integration with existing systems and completion of the project will occur in FY03.

Edited by Bob Arguero, Managing Editor, GovCon