Bush makes a smart transition

Feb 1, 2001 12:00 PM, Jeanne Bonner

Presidential elections are time-honored traditions of American politics that proceed more or less the same every four years. But the 2000 Presidential election rewrote history, and the ensuing transition was uncharacteristically marked by doubt, haste and extreme partisanship.

The transition was unique in another way as well. The incoming team didn't receive keys to the transition office because no keys existed. Gaining entrance the transition office, rather, was via a Gemplus smart card. The hybrid contactless Mifare standard cards were used by George W. Bush's transition team for access control and asset tracking.

By federal law, the General Services Administration (GSA) organizes the Presidential transition process. The Presidential transition office was a level four secure facility (level five is the highest). The transition team occupied two floors, plus the visitor's center, in the eight-floor building on F Street in Washington, D.C.

The use of smart cards met with the transition team's overwhelming approval. Smart cards had been used successfully at past inaugurations.

According to Mickey Femino, director of the GSA smart card program, the cards had many advantages. "The transition went smoothly in part because the cards offered a higher level of security. Everything was pre-programmed so it speeded up the process."

Litton PRC, as the primary vendor, coordinated the subvendors, such as ADT, which supplied the cameras. Cirrus adapted the hardware on site.

The enrollment process consisted of several steps. GSA employees and volunteers who needed smart cards underwent background checks, after which the Federal Protective Services, an arm of the GSA, entered the data into a database. A photo was taken and the card was printed on Datacard printers.

Jim Schoening, the technical project manager for the transition and a technical expert for the GSA, was in charge of designing the card. "It was an ongoing creative process. I designed the card, submitted it and then received feedback from the transition team."

The smart cards were color-coded to instantly convey a person's security level. The colors also designated the employee's branch: green indicated the GSA, for example. Card holders also included members of the transition team, secret service agents, GSA support staff and contractors.

The card contained gradient decoration including the Presidential eagle and American flags. Underneath the eagle lay the photo and the person's identification. The graphic portion of the cards was printed at the GSA office and then brought to the transition office, where the personal data and photo were added. In all, 10 types of cards were produced.

At the peak of activity, the transition office had 25 Casi-Rusco smart card readers in operation.

The average visitor to the transition office passed through two security checks, in addition to passing through metal detectors.

The 16K cards interfaced with a Maximus 3GI asset tracking system. Any property loaned to a staffer, i.e. laptop computers, was tied to the person's card. Femino says, "We didn't lose any property so the asset tracking system worked well."

In all, 1,300 actual smart cards were printed. Between 1,500 and 2,000 inactive cards were produced for use as souvenirs.

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