Homeland Security Presidential Directive (HSPD) 12

Administration of George W. Bush, 2004 / Aug. 27
(k) recommended research and development on technologies designed to enhance screening effectiveness and further protect privacy interests; and
(l) a plan for incorporating known traveler programs into the screening procedures, where appropriate.
(7) Not later than 90 days after the date
of this directive, the Secretary of Homeland
Security, in coordination with the heads of
the Federal departments and agencies listed in section 4 of this directive, shall also
provide to me, through the Assistant to the
President for Homeland Security and the
Director of the Office of Management and
Budget, a prioritized investment and implementation plan for a systematic approach
to terrorist-related screening that optimizes
detection and interdiction of suspected terrorists and terrorist activities. The plan shall
describe the scope, governance, principles,
outcomes, milestones, training objectives,
metrics, costs, and schedule of activities to
implement the policy set forth in section
1 of this directive. The Secretary of Homeland Security shall further provide a report
on the status of the implementation of the
plan to me through the Assistant to the
President for Homeland Security 6 months

after the date of this directive and shall
thereafter report to me on such progress
or any recommended changes from time
to time as appropriate.
(8) In order to ensure comprehensive
and coordinated terrorist-related screening
procedures, the implementation of this directive shall be consistent with Government-wide efforts to improve information
sharing. Additionally, the reports and plan
required under sections 4 and 7 of this
directive shall inform development of Government-wide information sharing improvements.
(9) This directive does not alter existing
authorities or responsibilities of department
and agency heads including to carry out
operational activities or provide or receive
information. This directive is intended only
to improve the internal management of the
executive branch of the Federal Government, and it is not intended to, and does
not, create any right or benefit enforceable
at law or in equity by any party against
the United States, its departments, agencies, entities, officers, employees, or agents,
or any other person.
GEORGE W. BUSH

Homeland Security Presidential Directive/HSPD–12—Policy for a
Common Identification Standard for Federal Employees and Contractors
August 27, 2004
Subject: Policy for a Common Identification
Standard for Federal Employees and
Contractors
(1) Wide variations in the quality and
security of forms of identification used to
gain access to secure Federal and other
facilities where there is potential for terrorist attacks need to be eliminated. Therefore, it is the policy of the United States
to enhance security, increase Government
efficiency, reduce identity fraud, and protect personal privacy by establishing a man-

datory, Government-wide standard for secure and reliable forms of identification
issued by the Federal Government to its
employees and contractors (including contractor employees).
(2) To implement the policy set forth
in paragraph (1), the Secretary of Commerce shall promulgate in accordance with
applicable law a Federal standard for secure and reliable forms of identification
(the ‘‘Standard’’) not later than 6 months
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Aug. 27 / Administration of George W. Bush, 2004
after the date of this directive in consultation with the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Defense, the Attorney General,
the Secretary of Homeland Security, the
Director of the Office of Management and
Budget (OMB), and the Director of the
Office of Science and Technology Policy.
The Secretary of Commerce shall periodically review the Standard and update the
Standard as appropriate in consultation with
the affected agencies.
(3) ‘‘Secure and reliable forms of identification’’ for purposes of this directive
means identification that (a) is issued based
on sound criteria for verifying an individual
employee’s identity; (b) is strongly resistant
to identity fraud, tampering, counterfeiting,
and terrorist exploitation; (c) can be rapidly
authenticated electronically; and (d) is
issued only by providers whose reliability
has been established by an official accreditation process. The Standard will include
graduated criteria, from least secure to
most secure, to ensure flexibility in selecting the appropriate level of security for
each application. The Standard shall not
apply to identification associated with national security systems as defined by 44
U.S.C. 3542(b)(2).
(4) Not later than 4 months following
promulgation of the Standard, the heads
of executive departments and agencies shall
have a program in place to ensure that
identification issued by their departments
and agencies to Federal employees and
contractors meets the Standard. As promptly as possible, but in no case later than
8 months after the date of promulgation
of the Standard, the heads of executive departments and agencies shall, to the maximum extent practicable, require the use
of identification by Federal employees and
contractors that meets the Standard in gaining physical access to Federally controlled
facilities and logical access to Federally
controlled information systems. Departments and agencies shall implement this
directive in a manner consistent with ongoing Government-wide activities, policies and
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guidance issued by OMB, which shall ensure compliance.
(5) Not later than 6 months following
promulgation of the Standard, the heads
of executive departments and agencies shall
identify to the Assistant to the President
for Homeland Security and the Director
of OMB those Federally controlled facilities, Federally controlled information systems, and other Federal applications that
are important for security and for which
use of the Standard in circumstances not
covered by this directive should be considered. Not later than 7 months following
the promulgation of the Standard, the Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and the Director of OMB shall make
recommendations to the President concerning possible use of the Standard for
such additional Federal applications.
(6) This directive shall be implemented
in a manner consistent with the Constitution and applicable laws, including the Privacy Act (5 U.S.C. 552a) and other statutes
protecting the rights of Americans.
(7) Nothing in this directive alters, or
impedes the ability to carry out, the authorities of the Federal departments and
agencies to perform their responsibilities
under law and consistent with applicable
legal authorities and presidential guidance.
This directive is intended only to improve
the internal management of the executive
branch of the Federal Government, and it
is not intended to, and does not, create
any right or benefit enforceable at law or
in equity by any party against the United
States, its departments, agencies, entities,
officers, employees or agents, or any other
person.
(8) The Assistant to the President for
Homeland Security shall report to me not
later than 7 months after the promulgation
of the Standard on progress made to
implement this directive, and shall thereafter report to me on such progress or any

Administration of George W. Bush, 2004 / Aug. 28
recommended changes from time to time
as appropriate.
GEORGE W. BUSH

The President’s Radio Address
August 28, 2004
Good morning. In the 3 years since our
country was attacked, America has remained on the offensive against terrorist
enemies wherever they hide and plot. Part
of that offensive has been to reorganize
our Government so that all our intelligence
and law enforcement agencies cooperate effectively to expose and disrupt threats
against America.
The Commission on Terrorist Attacks
Upon the United States, also known as the
9/11 Commission, concluded that these efforts have made America safer. They also
concluded that America is still not safe.
I agree with both of those conclusions, and
so my administration is taking additional
actions to reform our intelligence services
and improve America’s ability to find, track,
and stop dangerous terrorists.
This week, I signed a series of Executive
orders to ensure that the people in Government responsible for defending America
and countering terrorism have the best possible information and support to identify
threats and to protect the homeland. Some
of these orders reflect specific recommendations of the 9/11 Commission. All
of them are essential to America’s security
as we wage the war on terror.
First, I have ordered the Director of
Central Intelligence to perform the functions of the National Intelligence Director
within the constraints of existing law, until
Congress establishes that position. I agree
with the 9/11 Commission that America
needs a single official to coordinate the foreign and domestic activities of the intelligence community with authority over personnel, budgeting, and policy. I am working

with Members of Congress to create this
position, and while we act, the Director
of Central Intelligence will play an expanded role. I also urge Congress to act
swiftly on my nomination of Porter Goss,
a proven reformer with decades of experience in intelligence to lead the CIA.
Second, I have ordered the establishment
of a National Counterterrorism Center.
This new center builds on the capabilities
of the Terrorist Threat Integration Center,
which I created more than a year ago. The
Center will become our Government’s central knowledge bank for information about
known and suspected terrorists and will
help ensure effective joint action across the
Government so that our efforts against terrorists are unified in priority and purpose.
Center personnel will also prepare the daily
terrorism threat report that comes to me
and to senior Government officials.
Third, we’re making sure that all agencies of our Government share vital threat
information. I have ordered the Director
of Central Intelligence to ensure that we
have common standards and clear accountability measures for intelligence sharing
across the agencies of our Government. I
have established a new Information Systems Council to identify and break down
any remaining barriers to the rapid sharing
of threat information by America’s intelligence agencies, law enforcement agencies,
and State and local governments. To continue to protect the freedoms and privacy
of our citizens, I’ve established a Civil Liberties Board to monitor information-sharing
practices.
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