The DHS Office of Intelligence and Analysis (I&A) has a strong state and local engagement program, whose mission is to make sure that state and local partners can quickly access the capabilities, resources, and expertise necessary to share information and intelligence and serve as full participants in the homeland security intelligence enterprise. I&A’s State and Local Partner Engagement provides a single, reliable, and dependable touch point dedicated to supporting I&A-wide relationships with state and local partners in order to facilitate communications and engagement, run outreach, ensure transparency, and address any issues, concerns, and questions.
A safe and secure homeland requires state and local partners to have the capability and capacity to access, collect, analyze, and disseminate threat information to operators and decision makers across all levels of government. State and local partners possess unique capabilities, data, and expertise that can assist DHS and the Intelligence Community (IC) in filling critical information and intelligence gaps, while also providing local context to improve the national threat picture and inform investigations conducted by federal entities.
Our primary customers include national-level state and local associations, organizations, working groups, councils, and committees.
Our goals are to engage and collaborate with state and local partners in order to:
- Maintain ongoing dialogue, communication, and meaningful relationships with state and local partners
- Conduct customer outreach to build partnerships and provide transparency
- Solicit customer requirements and facilitate feedback on I&A products and services
- Obtain buy-in/support for I&A initiatives
- Facilitate opportunities for collaboration, including joint production and reporting
- Facilitate delivery of products and services (i.e. briefings, training, etc.)
Key Partners
I&A collaborates closely with partner engagement offices from across the federal government and the Intelligence Community, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)’s Office of Partner Engagement, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI)’s Partner Engagement, and the DHS Office for State and Local Law Enforcement, as well as state and local government entities, including State and Major Urban Area Fusion Centers and the Criminal Intelligence Coordinating Council (CICC).
Additionally, I&A’s State and Local Partner Engagement manages the following initiatives designed to ensure state and local partners remain engaged as full participants in the homeland security intelligence enterprise.
In support of the National Strategy for Information Sharing, DHS I&A established the State and Local Intelligence Council (SLIC) to create a trusted community of state and local professionals from the homeland security, intelligence, law enforcement, and emergency responder communities who use and share homeland security information to address threats to the Homeland. The Council is a practitioner-level forum that reviews and provides feedback to facilitate and improve the operational sharing of information between the DHS I&A and state and local partners.
The Homeland Security Information Network–Intelligence (HSIN-Intel) is a community of interest (COI) located on HSIN. The purpose of HSIN-Intel is to provide intelligence stakeholders across the Homeland Security Enterprise with a secure platform for effective, efficient, and timely collaboration and sharing of information, data, products, analytic exchange, and situational awareness. HSIN-Intel is a vetted community of intelligence professionals from homeland security, intelligence, and law enforcement communities at all levels of government who share homeland security-related information and analyses in order to address threats to the Homeland.
The Specialized Analytic Seminar Series brings together a diverse range of federal, state, and local subject-matter experts (SMEs) and partner agencies/organizations to inform analytic capabilities. The program addresses specialized-threat topic areas and the associated patterns, trends, skills, and resources necessary to effectively monitor and evaluate potential threats in the analyst’s area of responsibility. These 1½- to 2-day seminars present a detailed overview of the topic area from multiple SME perspectives, including associated patterns, trends, and potential impacts; a dynamic presentation of case studies, tools, and/or resources; and a discussion of available training, techniques, and approaches to support implementation and/or enhancement of associated analytic capabilities.
The DHS I&A State and Local Fellows Program is designed to integrate state and local partners into the intelligence and information sharing processes resident across the federal government and the Intelligence Community (IC). This program provides a unique opportunity for state and local partners to collaborate with DHS and the IC, through the Joint Counterterrorism Assessment Team (JCAT), in order to make sure that threat information is most effectively shared between all levels of government. Fellows will be expected to collaborate with their federal counterparts and state and local customers through participation in a variety of intelligence functions. Through these engagements, fellows will collaborate with DHS and IC partners to develop and execute strategies for sharing information and intelligence across all levels of government. Additional information on the fellows program and the associated application can be found here.
For additional information, please contact SLTTPartnerEngagement@hq.dhs.gov.