United States Ports of Entry Threat and Operational Review Act

United States Ports of Entry Threat and Operational Review Act

(Sec. 2) This bill directs U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to submit to the congressional homeland security and tax committees a threat and operational analysis of U.S. air, land, and sea ports of entry.

Such analysis shall include an assessment of:

• current and potential threats posed by individuals and organized groups seeking to exploit security vulnerabilities at ports of entry or to unlawfully enter the United States through such ports of entry;
• methods and pathways used to exploit security vulnerabilities at ports of entry;
• improvements needed at ports of entry to prevent the unlawful movement of people, illicit drugs, and other contraband across U.S. borders;
• improvements needed to enhance travel and trade facilitation and reduce wait times at ports of entry; and
• processes conducted at ports of entry that do not require law enforcement training and could be filled with non-law enforcement staff or by the private sector or be automated.

In compiling such analysis, CBP shall consider and examine: (1) personnel needs, including K-9 units, and estimated costs, at each port of entry; (2) technology needs, including radiation portal monitors and non-intrustive inspection technology, and estimated costs at each port of entry; and (3) infrastructure needs and estimated costs at each port of entry.

CBP shall, at specified intervals, provide to the committees a ports of entry strategy and implementation plan.

[115th Congress Public Law 372]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



[[Page 132 STAT. 5107]]

Public Law 115-372
115th Congress

                                 An Act


 
 To require the Secretary of Homeland Security to conduct a threat and 
         operational analysis of ports of entry, and for other 
            purposes. <<NOTE: Dec. 21, 2018 -  [H.R. 6400]>> 

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled, <<NOTE: United States 
Ports of Entry Threat and Operational Review Act. 6 USC 211 note.>> 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``United States Ports of Entry Threat 
and Operational Review Act''.
SEC. 2. PORTS OF ENTRY THREAT AND OPERATIONAL ANALYSIS.

    (a) In General.--
            (1) <<NOTE: Deadline.>>  Requirement.--Not later than 180 
        days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 
        of Homeland Security, acting through the Commissioner of U.S. 
        Customs and Border Protection, shall submit to the Committee on 
        Homeland Security and the Committee on Ways and Means of the 
        House of Representatives and the Committee on Homeland Security 
        and Governmental Affairs and the Committee on Finance of the 
        Senate a threat and operational analysis of ports of entry.
            (2) <<NOTE: Assessment.>>  Contents.--The threat and 
        operational analysis required under paragraph (1) shall include 
        an assessment of the following:
                    (A) Current and potential threats posed by 
                individuals and organized groups seeking--
                          (i) to exploit security vulnerabilities at 
                      ports of entry; or
                          (ii) to unlawfully enter the United States 
                      through such ports of entry.
                    (B) Methods and pathways used to exploit security 
                vulnerabilities at ports of entry.
                    (C) Improvements needed at ports of entry to prevent 
                the unlawful movement of people, illicit drugs, and 
                other contraband across the borders of the United 
                States.
                    (D) Improvements needed to enhance travel and trade 
                facilitation and reduce wait times at ports of entry, 
                including--
                          (i) security vulnerabilities associated with 
                      prolonged wait times;
                          (ii) current technology at ports of entry that 
                      can be adapted to handle more volume, increase 
                      efficiency, and improve accuracy of detection 
                      efforts; and
                          (iii) infrastructure additions and upgrades.
                    (E) Processes conducted at ports of entry that do 
                not require law enforcement training and could be--

[[Page 132 STAT. 5108]]

                          (i) filled with--
                                    (I) non-law enforcement staff; or
                                    (II) the private sector, for 
                                processes or activities determined to 
                                not be inherently governmental (as such 
                                term is defined in section 5 of the 
                                Federal Activities Inventory Reform Act 
                                of 1998 (Public Law 105-270)); or
                          (ii) automated.
            (3) <<NOTE: Cost estimates.>>  Analysis requirements.--In 
        compiling the threat and operational analysis required under 
        paragraph (1), the Secretary of Homeland Security, acting 
        through the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, 
        shall consider and examine the following:
                    (A) Personnel needs, including K-9 Units, and 
                estimated costs, at each port of entry, including such 
                needs and challenges associated with recruitment and 
                hiring.
                    (B) Technology needs, including radiation portal 
                monitors and non-intrusive inspection technology, and 
                estimated costs at each port of entry.
                    (C) Infrastructure needs and estimated costs at each 
                port of entry.

    (b) Ports of Entry Strategy and Implementation Plan.--
            (1) <<NOTE: Deadlines. Time period.>>  In general.--Not 
        later than 270 days after the submission of the threat and 
        operational analysis required under subsection (a) and every 5 
        years thereafter for 10 years, the Secretary of Homeland 
        Security, acting through the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and 
        Border Protection (CBP), shall provide to the Committee on 
        Homeland Security and the Committee on Ways and Means of the 
        House of Representatives and the Committee on Homeland Security 
        and Governmental Affairs and the Committee on Finance of the 
        Senate a ports of entry strategy and implementation plan.
            (2) Contents.--The ports of entry strategy and 
        implementation plan required under paragraph (1) shall include a 
        consideration of the following:
                    (A) The ports of entry threat and operational 
                analysis required under subsection (a), with an emphasis 
                on efforts to mitigate threats and challenges identified 
                in such analysis.
                    (B) Efforts to reduce wait times at ports of entry 
                and standards against which the effectiveness of such 
                efforts may be determined.
                    (C) Efforts to prevent the unlawful movement of 
                people, illicit drugs, and other contraband across the 
                borders of the United States at the earliest possible 
                point at ports of entry and standards against which the 
                effectiveness of such efforts may be determined.
                    (D) Efforts to focus intelligence collection and 
                information analysis to disrupt transnational criminal 
                organizations attempting to exploit vulnerabilities at 
                ports of entry and standards against which the 
                effectiveness of such efforts may be determined.
                    (E) Efforts to verify that any new port of entry 
                technology acquisition can be operationally integrated 
                with existing technologies in use by the Department of 
                Homeland Security.

[[Page 132 STAT. 5109]]

                    (F) Lessons learned from reports on the business 
                transformation initiative under section 802(i)(1) of the 
                Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015 
                (Public Law 114-125).
                    (G) CBP staffing requirements for all ports of 
                entry.
                    (H) Efforts to identify and detect fraudulent 
                documents at ports of entry and standards against which 
                the effectiveness of such efforts may be determined.
                    (I) Efforts to prevent, detect, investigate, and 
                mitigate corruption at ports of entry and standards 
                against which the effectiveness of such efforts may be 
                determined.

    (c) Ports of Entry Described.--In this section, the term ``ports of 
entry'' means United States air, land, and sea ports of entry.

    Approved December 21, 2018.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY--H.R. 6400:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

HOUSE REPORTS: No. 115-914, Pt. 1 (Comm. on Homeland Security).
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Vol. 164 (2018):
            Sept. 4, considered and passed House.
            Dec. 19, considered and passed Senate.

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