Why It Matters
Clearspeed Inc. is lobbying on fiscal year 2027 Department of Homeland Security (DHS) appropriations as a continuing appropriations law funds the government through Dec. 11.
Annual DHS appropriations would set funding for the department, and the Clearspeed lobbying disclosure ties the issue to DHS use of fraud prevention, identity verification, and risk-based screening technologies, meaning tools that check who a person is and score risk.
The filing says the work covers border security operations, eligibility checks for federal benefits, and program integrity. It also mentions possible pilot programs, research initiatives, or demonstrations.
By the Numbers
The in-house team reported $330,000 for the third quarter, signed Nov. 4. That is unchanged from the second quarter and up $150,000 from the third quarter of 2025, when it reported $180,000.
Thorn Run Partners, an outside firm, reported $60,000 for the client this quarter. The client's total across both registrants is $390,000, unchanged from the second quarter and up $132,500 from $257,500 a year earlier. The first and second quarters of 2026 also totaled $390,000, and the fourth quarter of 2025 totaled $420,000.
The filing lists one lobbyist, Annabelle Holt, a government affairs associate. Her congressional record shows a legislative aide role in the office of Rep. William Timmons (R-SC-4) from July 1, 2025, to Aug. 4, 2025. The filing adds no firms or lobbyists.
Broader Context
The filing's second issue is Department of Defense (DOD) personnel vetting, insider-threat mitigation, and fraud detection, including possible pilots of screening technology for military, civilian, and contractor populations. Its fiscal 2027 appropriations work covers both departments.
On DHS, the House introduced H.R. 9310, the fiscal 2027 DHS appropriations bill, and reported it. As of Sept. 30, the Senate Appropriations Committee had not marked up a DHS bill.
On defense, the House Appropriations Committee reported H.R. 9495, the fiscal 2027 DOD appropriations bill, on June 24. Rep. Mike Rogers (R-AL) introduced H.R. 8800, the fiscal 2027 National Defense Authorization Act, on May 13. Congress.gov records it as passed by the House, with Senate action listed.
DHS says biometrics support identity verification, vetting, and law enforcement. It says its biometric system holds more than 320 million unique identities and has helped stop thousands of ineligible people from entering the United States. DHS describes this as its own account, not an independent evaluation.
The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights and 24 other groups urged Congress on Feb. 12 to restrict DHS surveillance technology. They argue that biometric identification and data-sharing enable mass surveillance and racial profiling. They want public accuracy audits and a rollback of the Biometric Entry/Exit Program for noncitizens.
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) found in December 2024 that DHS lacked procedures to assess bias risks from all detection and monitoring technologies. On defense, GAO concluded in October 2025 that 8 of 10 reviewed DOD components did not assess threats across required security areas, including insider threat. A December 2025 GAO report described difficulties enrolling national-security personnel in continuous-vetting programs.
The Bottom Line
The stopgap funding runs out Dec. 11. H.R. 9310 awaits further House action, and the Senate Appropriations Committee had not marked up a DHS bill as of Sept. 30.
On the client's team, two outside firms, Vogel Group LLC and Horizons Global Solutions LLC, filed terminations in 2025. Since then, Thorn Run Partners and the in-house lobbyist have filed every quarter with no change in staffing.
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