NIH badging statistics from HHS as of September 26, 2014  

Sponsored: 38,304  Enrolled: 37,854  Issued: 37,073*

*This figure represents 96.8% of individuals who have been sponsored.

DPSAC News reports the latest Departmental figures for NIH in the first issue published for that month. 

Badge Renewal Notice to Foreign Nationals Advises Close Coordination with AO

Dear colleague:

You are receiving this notice because your HHS ID Badge will need to be renewed soon. It is important to coordinate your badge renewal activity with your Administrative Officer (AO) in order to avoid the temporary loss of your access privileges to the NIH campus and/or NIH networks.

Your current ID badge will be immediately deactivated when your AO requests a new ID badge for you in the NIH Enterprise Directory (NED) due to limitations in the HHS card management system.

Steps You and Your AO Can Take to Avoid Loss of Access Privileges

The most important step is to coordinate your badge renewal with your AO.  If your AO has not already received a request to process your ID Badge renewal, they will in the next two weeks.  As soon as your AO approves that request, your current badge will be deactivated and you will receive an e-mail asking you to schedule your enrollment and issuance appointments for your new badge.      

The HSPD-12 Program Office is recommending that you schedule your badge enrollment and issuance appointments immediately after your AO approves your badge request in NED. 

You will want to get your new ID badge the same day that your AO approves the new badge.  We strongly recommend that your AO approve your badge renewal task in the morning after you have arrived at NIH. This gives you an entire business day to obtain your new ID badge.  

Our office recommends that you reach out to your AO NOW to remind him/her that your badge is coming up for renewal.  You and your AO can then coordinate the day that the new badge request is approved by your AO. Planning in advance will ensure that your access privileges to the NIH campus and network systems continue uninterrupted.* 

Remember, you want to make sure that both you and your AO are prepared to coordinate your badge renewal activities before he or she starts the badge renewal task for you. You will want to be able to pick up your new badge on the same day that your current badge is deactivated.

By coordinating the timing of these two activities, the AO can help you obtain your new badge quickly and avoid any interruption to your access privileges at NIH. 

If you have questions, please contact the ORS Personnel Security helpdesk at 301-402-9755 or ORSPersonnelSecurity@mail.nih.gov. 

Sincerely,

NIH HSPD-12 Program Office

FY 2015 OPM Pricing Schedule for Background Investigations

Costs for the eight most commonly ordered investigations at the NIH are listed in the table below:

NED Training Scheduled for October 14, 2014  

The HSPD-12 Program Office will be offering basic and advanced NED classes on Tuesday, October 14, 2014. This training is designed to help beginners and advanced users quickly master NED in a hands-on computer lab environment. All classes are FREE!  

How to Enroll

The NED courses are posted on the CIT Training site where visitors can view availability for any class and receive a confirmation immediately after registering. The catalog of NED classes is posted at: http://training.cit.nih.gov/coursecatalog.aspx under "General Seminars."

When you see a course you want to take, just click on the course name (listed in the right column of the table). You will be taken to the HHS Learning Management System (LMS) where you can register for the course online.

DPSAC Wants to Hear from its Customers

News Briefs

Important Changes to the Extended Visitor Badge Program at NIH  

Only Certified AOs Can Sponsor Extended Visitor Badge Applicants

This article, which first appeared in the September 17, 2014 DPSAC News, can be read in its entirety by clicking on the link: Extended Visitor Badge Program.   

Beginning September 2, 2014, NIH implemented revised policies and procedures for issuing "extended visitor" badges as part of a continuing effort to improve security at NIH. NIH Extended Visitor badges are issued to individuals affiliated with NIH who need frequent physical access to NIH facilities.

In the past, NIH would access the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) criminal history database to conduct background investigations on Extended Visitor applicants. The requirement of background investigations for anyone receiving an NIH identification badge comes from the Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12 (HSPD-12) Program and HHS Departmental policy.   

Due to recent restrictions limiting NIH's access to the NCIC database, NIH had to change how it issues these badges.

The most significant procedural change involves limiting sponsorship of Extended Visitors to Administrative Officers (AOs) certified by the Division of Personnel Security and Access Control (DPSAC) who currently sponsor federal employees, contractors and affiliates for HHS identification badges (PIV cards).  

AO Sponsors will be responsible for authorizing and sponsoring an individual to obtain employee-like access to NIH. AO Sponsors will also serve as the point of contact with the responsibility for fielding questions from individuals who are requesting Extended Visitor badges.

Read more... 

The following article was prepared by the Division of the Fire Marshal, ORS.

This year the Fire Prevention Week campaign takes aim at having working smoke alarms in your home. In fact, working smoke alarms cut the risk of dying in home fires in half!
             

Home fires in the United States continue to claim many lives each year. In fact, 85 percent of all fire deaths occur in the home, and the majority happen at night when most people are sleeping.

Smoke alarms are an important first line of defense against fire  --but if they don't work, they can't protect you. It is essential for every household to have working smoke alarms. Data indicate that 40 percent of home fire deaths happen in homes with no smoke alarms and another 23 percent happen in homes with smoke alarms that don't work.

When smoke alarms fail to sound, it's usually because they have missing, dead, or disconnected batteries.

The Division of the Fire Marshal, Office of Research Services is strongly urging the NIH community to ensure their homes and loved ones are adequately protected by using battery operated smoke detectors in their residences.
           

Most fatal home fires begin in one room and then kill people elsewhere in the house. This occurs after the fire has reached extremely high temperatures in the room where it began and then smoke and toxic gases migrate to other areas.
            

These fires are readily detected by all common types of smoke detectors in time for sleeping occupants to awaken and safely escape. Data indicate that a typical living room fire can become deadly in only two minutes or less after the smoke alarm activates and has the potential to kill household members in as little as four and a half minutes after it begins.
             

Smoke alarms are not created equally -- hard-wired smoke alarms will not work during a power outage, unless they are equipped with a battery back-up and many are not so equipped. Homeowners are strongly urged to install battery operated smoke alarms in order to provide maximum protection when power is interrupted, a common occurrence during thunderstorms and heavy snow storms.
           

Smoke alarms must be properly located, installed and maintained in order to be effective. To afford adequate protection, smoke alarms must be: (1) located on every level of the home; (2) installed properly and in working condition; and (3) tested at least once a month by pushing the "test button." Batteries should be routinely replaced twice a year.

For existing homes, the National Fire Protection Association's National Fire Alarm Code requires a minimum of one smoke alarm on every floor of the home, preferably in the vicinity of the sleeping areas. In addition, in newly constructed homes, smoke alarms are required inside each room used for sleeping.

Remember, at the first sound of the alarm, all occupants should evacuate, call the fire department from a phone away from the house and remain out of the house until the responding firefighters allow reentry.

If you experience a fire in your home, and your house contains properly installed and maintained smoke alarms, the chances of serious injury or death are significantly reduced.
             

Working smoke alarms save lives! Test yours every month!
If you have any questions regarding residential smoke alarms, including detailed advice on their proper placement in your home, please contact the Division of the Fire Marshal, Office of