DHS Procurement Head Touts Benefits of Robotic Process Automation

Paul Courtney, the Department of Homeland Security’s chief procurement officer, recently talked about ways internal operations are being streamlined using robotic process automation.

In an interview with Federal News Network, he highlighted an electronic contract filing system as one of several initiatives his office has undertaken to simplify processes. It uses RPA to upload certain files.

He said the filing system was developed prior to the COVID-19 pandemic and helped DHS maintain operational continuity at the time. According to Courtney, the pandemic inspired a “focus on things to make life better.”

Courtney noted other DHS efforts to apply RPA such as a six-month pilot run of the U.S. Army’s determination of responsibility assistant to support Immigration and Customs Enforcement. At U.S. Customs and Border Protection, an AI called “D the bot” has been deployed to perform rules-based administrative tasks for employees, Federal News Network reported Monday.

In 2022, CBP announced that it would try automating certain citizenship verification processes at the National Vetting Center. Eric Sanders, the DHS Office of Intelligence and Analysis’ chief information security officer, said the technology should keep personal information secure while simplifying intelligence delivery regarding individuals entering the United States.