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  1. Oklahoma Sen. Tom Coburn questions effectiveness of Homeland Security 'fusion centers' – The Oklahoman
  2. 20 years after 9/11, 'fusion centers' have done little to combat terrorism – NBC News
  3. Report: Federal Support for and Involvement in State and Local Fusion Centers – U.S. Senate, Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations

State and major urban area fusion centers (fusion centers) are owned and operated by state and local entities, and are designated by the governor of their state. – DHS.gov

In accordance with the Federal Resource Allocation Criteria (RAC) policy (PDF), which defines objective criteria and a coordinated approach for prioritizing federal resource allocation to fusion centers, the federal government recognizes these designations and has a shared responsibility with state and local governments to support the national network of fusion centers. – DHS.gov

 

 

Fusion Center Locations and Contact Information

Overview

A cyber fusion is an intelligence gathering, analysis and dissemination state or major urban area center, which is owned by state, local, and territorial law enforcement and Department of Homeland Security entities, many of which were jointly created between 2003 and 2007 under the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Office of Justice Programs in the U.S. Department of Justice. The DHS Office of Intelligence and Analysis (I&A) and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) provide Fusion Centers with resources, training, and other coordinated services. The goal of such centers are to strengthen National anti-terrorism networks within the U.S. Federal government.

Fusion Centers are designed to promote information sharing at the federal level between agencies such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the U.S. Department of Justice, and state, local, and tribal law enforcement. As of February 2018, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security recognized 79 fusion centers. Fusion centers may also be affiliated with an Emergency Operations Center that responds in the event of a disaster.

The National Network of Fusion Centers was established after the September 11 attacks to provide a focal point for successful collaboration across jurisdictions and sectors to effectively and efficiently detect, prevent, investigate, and respond to criminal and terrorist activity. It is a decentralized, distributed, self-organizing national asset composed of state and major urban area fusion centers and their respective nodes within each center's area of responsibility (AoR). This composition enables the National Network to meet local needs, while providing value information to understand the national landscape of threats and criminal activity.

The fusion process is an overarching method of managing the flow of information and intelligence across levels and sectors of government to integrate information for analysis. That is, the process relies on the active involvement of state, local, tribal, and federal law enforcement agencies—and sometimes on non-law enforcement agencies (e.g., private sector)—to provide the input of raw information for intelligence analysis. As the array of diverse information sources increases, there will be more accurate and robust analysis that can be disseminated as intelligence.

Primary Fusion Centers
A primary fusion center typically provides information sharing and analysis for an entire state. These centers are the highest priority for the allocation of available federal resources, including the deployment of personnel and connectivity with federal data systems.
Recognized Fusion Centers
A recognized fusion center typically provides information sharing and analysis for a major urban area. As the Federal Government respects the authority of state governments to designate fusion centers, any designated fusion center not designated as a primary fusion center is referred to as a recognized fusion center.

Disputed Findings and Abuse of Authority

It’s troubling that the very ‘Fusion Centers' that were designed to share information in a post-9/11 world, have become part of the problem. Instead of strengthening our counterterrorism efforts, they have too often wasted money and stepped on Americans’ civil liberties.

U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Muskogee via The Oklahoman

Fusion Centers have not produced useful intelligence to support federal counterterrorism efforts. Instead, so-called “intelligence” shared between facilities consisted of tidbits of shoddy quality that was often outdated and “sometimes endangering citizen‘s civil liberties and Privacy Act protections. More often than not, the information collected and shared at DHS Fusion Centers was unrelated to terrorism.

U.S. Senate, Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations: Federal Support for and Involvement in State and Local Fusion Centers

Missouri Information Analysis Center (MIAC) Report

Missouri Information Analysis Center (MIAC) made news in 2009 for targeting supporters of third party candidates, Ron Paul supporters, pro-life activists, and conspiracy theorists as potential militia members. Anti-war activists and Islamic lobby groups were targeted in Texas, drawing criticism from the ACLU.

U.S. Senates on Homeland Security Report

Despite reviewing 13 months' worth of reporting originating from fusion centers from April 1, 2009 to April 30, 2010, the Subcommittee investigation could identify no reporting which uncovered a terrorist threat, nor could it identify a contribution such fusion center reporting made to disrupt an active terrorist plot.

– Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations (PSI), U.S. Senates on Homeland Security

An example of useless intelligence highlighted by the committee was a report on a foreigner with an expired visa who had been caught speeding and shoplifting; his name was promptly added to the list of "known or appropriately suspected" terrorists. A reviewer of that report intimated: "I am actually stunned this report got as far as it did," because "the entire total knowledge about the subject" was that he "tried to steal a pair of shoes from Neiman Marcus" with everything else in the report being commentary. The reviewer concluded: "I have no idea what value this would be adding to the [Intelligence Community (IC)]."

Yet another example was a California fusion center report on the Mongols Motorcycle Club's distribution of leaflets to its members instructing them how to behave when stopped by police. According to the Senate report, the leaflet suggested to the Club members that they should be courteous, control their emotions and, if drinking, have a designated driver. One supervisor eventually killed the fusion center report, noting that "There is nothing illegal or even remotely objectionable [described] in this report," and that "The advice given to the groups' members is protected by the First Amendment."

Part of the problems identified by the Senate report is that the DHS Office of Intelligence and Analysis imposed a quota of reports to be filed by the fusion centers, leading to diminished quality. The Senate committee estimated that about $1.4 billion had been spent on the fusion centers.

2009 Virginia Terrorism Threat Assessment

In early April 2009, the Virginia Fusion Center came under criticism for publishing a terrorism threat assessment which stated that certain universities are potential hubs for terror related activity.The report targeted historically black colleges and identified hacktivism as a form of terrorism.

2011 Illinois Fusion Center Finds Water Pump Was "Hacked"; The FBI Disagrees

A November 2011 report by the Illinois fusion center was criticized for alleging that Russia hacked and deliberately disabled a water pump of the municipal water system in Illinois. The Senate report writes: "Apparently aware of how important such an event could have been had it been real, DHS intelligence officials included the false allegations—stated as fact—in a daily intelligence briefing that went to Congress and the intelligence community." A subsequent FBI investigation found however that: "The only fact that they got right was that a water pump in a small Illinois water district had burned out."

Washington State Fusion Center

A lawsuit alleges that a WSFC employee added members of the Port Militarization Resistance to the domestic terrorists list on unsubstantiated grounds.

There are two types of fusion centers:

Primary Fusion Centers
A primary fusion center typically provides information sharing and analysis for an entire state. These centers are the highest priority for the allocation of available federal resources, including the deployment of personnel and connectivity with federal data systems.
Recognized Fusion Centers
A recognized fusion center typically provides information sharing and analysis for a major urban area. As the Federal Government respects the authority of state governments to designate fusion centers, any designated fusion center not designated as a primary fusion center is referred to as a recognized fusion center.

List of Fusion Centers

Alabama

Alaska

  • Alaska Information and Analysis Center (Primary) – 907-269-8900 / 855-692-5425

Arizona

Arkansas

  • Arkansas State Fusion Center (Primary) – 501-618-8001/866-787-2332

California

Colorado

Connecticut

Delaware

District of Columbia

Florida

Georgia

Guam

Hawaii

Idaho

Illinois

Indiana

Iowa

Kansas

Kentucky

Louisiana

Maine

Maryland

Massachusetts

Michigan

Minnesota

Mississippi

Missouri

Montana

Nebraska

Nevada

New Hampshire

New Jersey

  • New Jersey Regional Operations Intelligence Center (Primary) – 609-963-690

New Mexico

New York

  • New York State Intelligence Center (Primary) – 866-723-3697

North Carolina

North Dakota

Ohio

Oklahoma

Oregon

Pennsylvania

Puerto Rico

  • National Security State Information Center (Primary) – 787-399-0833

Rhode Island

South Carolina

South Dakota

Tennessee

Texas

U.S. Virgin Islands

  • U.S. Virgin Islands Fusion Center (Primary) – 340-776-3013

Utah

Vermont

Virginia

  • Virginia Fusion Center (Primary) – 804-674-2196
  • Northern Virginia Regional Intelligence Center; Fairfax, VA (Recognized) – 703-802-2746

Washington

West Virginia

Wisconsin

Wyoming

Source: US Department of Homeland Security

United States DHS