Homeland Security Dept. Plans IT Contract The Department of Homeland Security will establish a multiple award contract for information technology services solutions, building on acquisition planning conducted by the Coast Guard. The Coast Guard announced March 11 that its planned multiple award vehicle, Coast Guard Information Technology Services Solutions (CGITSS), has been renamed DHS SPIRIT, for Security, Planning and Integrated Resources for Information Technology, and will serve the entire department. In its original announcement last fall, the Coast Guard said the contract would include set-asides for small businesses, 8(a) and HUBZone firms. The anticipated NAICS codes are 541511, 541512, 541513 and 541519. (SAA, 11/29/02) It is not certain when an RFP will be issued. The Coast Guard held two industry days in December and received more than 600 questions. In its latest announcement, the Coast Guard said, “DUE TO OVERWHELMING INTEREST IN THIS REQUIREMENT, NO QUESTIONS OR ONE-ON-ONE MEETINGS REGARDING THE DHS SPIRIT PROJECT (formerly CGITSS) ARE BEING ACCEPTED. E-MAILS OR TELEPHONIC INQUIRIES RECEIVED WILL NOT BE ADDRESSED.” (Emphasis in the original.) The solicitation number, DTCG23-03-R-CGITSS, remains the same. According to the November announcement, the contract will provide IT services through four primary functional areas: Information Management Analysis and Planning (MAP), Information Systems Engineering (ISE) and Design, Information Systems Operations and Management (SOM), and Information Systems Security (ISS). Vendors may submit offers in one or more of those areas. The Homeland Security Department’s chief information officer, Steve Cooper, listed his top priorities: help first responders do their jobs, develop better wireless systems and use geospatial technology to keep America secure, Federal Computer Week reported. Speaking March 13 to the Northern Virginia Technology Council, Cooper said the department will issue a series of requests for information about wireless and geospatial technology. He and his staff are conducting an inventory of the IT assets that 22 separate agencies bring to the new department, to identify candidates for “reuse, renewal, retirement or enhancement.” The two leading members of the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee, Chairwoman Susan Collins (R-ME) and ranking minority member Joe Lieberman (D-CT), urged Secretary Tom Ridge to ensure that businesses all across the country share in DHS contracts. In a March 13 letter, they said, “we urge you to take steps to utilize all of our nation’s resources, especially those outside the Washington Beltway.”