The Homeland Security Studies and Analysis Institute was envisaged by the National Research Council of the National Academies in its report, Making the Nation Safer: The Role of Science and Technology in Countering Terrorism, which proposed the creation of a dedicated, not-for-profit institute to provide the federal government with analytic capabilities to support effective counterterrorism-related decision making and program execution.
The Homeland Security Act of 2002 called for the establishment of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and directed the new Secretary to "establish a federally funded research and development center (FFRDC) to be known as the 'Homeland Security Institute.'" The Institute became operational in 2004 and by law was terminated in 2009. In 2009 Analytic Services Inc. was awarded a contract to operate a new FFRDC, the Homeland Security Studies and Analysis Institute.
Since its inception, HSSAI has completed more than 650 studies and provided support to virtually every major staff function and component within DHS. HSSAI also supports the homeland security needs of other organizations such as the Departments of Defense, Education, Interior, Health and Human Services, and State.
What is an FFRDC?
FFRDCs are independent organizations sponsored by the U.S. government. FFRDCs focus on addressing complex and long-term problems, working as strategic partners with their sponsoring agencies. They are independent entities (typically managed by academic institutions or nonprofit organizations) with limitations and restrictions on their activities.
An FFRDC is required to operate in the public interest with objectivity and independence, to be free from organizational conflicts of interest, and to have full disclosure of its affairs to the sponsoring agency. Long-term relationships between the sponsoring agency and FFRDCs encourage the FFRDC to maintain currency in its fields of expertise, maintain its objectivity and independence, preserve its familiarity with the needs of its sponsor, and provide a quick response capability.
