First announced on April 23, 2004 and operational in June 2004, the HSI was DHS's first federally funded research and development center or think tank. (DHS, DHS Today, Vol. 6, Issue No. 14, April 21, 2008; See also: DHS, Fact Sheet: Homeland Security Establishes Its First Government "Think Tank" HSI, April 23, 2004)