Congress appropriated about 30% less for IT at the Department of Homeland Security this fiscal year than the Bush administration had requested, according to an analysis conducted by Input, a government-focused market-intelligence firm. When President Bush signed the department’s appropriation in October, funding for the entire department was pegged at $29.4 billion, $1 billion above his original request. Most of the added money, however, will likely go toward salaries of emergency workers and passenger, baggage, and cargo screeners–not technology, says Lauren Jones Shu, Input’s senior federal market analyst. According to Input, Congress appropriated roughly $3 billion for technology spending by the department, representing 10% of Homeland Security’s budget, compared with Bush’s original request of $3.8 billion. Year over year, technology funding remained flat. Full Story