Veterans Border Patrol Training Act

Veterans Border Patrol Training Act

This bill requires the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to collaborate with the Department of Defense (DOD) and Department of Veterans Affairs to establish an interdepartmental pilot program for five years. Under the program, DHS must use the DOD SkillBridge Program to train and hire transitioning servicemembers as border patrol agents for U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 774 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 774

   To direct the Secretary of Homeland Security to establish a pilot 
   program to hire transitioning servicemembers to be Border Patrol 
                                agents.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 9, 2023

  Mr. Tester (for himself and Mr. Lankford) introduced the following 
 bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' 
                                Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To direct the Secretary of Homeland Security to establish a pilot 
   program to hire transitioning servicemembers to be Border Patrol 
                                agents.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Veterans Border Patrol Training 
Act''.

SEC. 2. BORDER PATROL SKILLBRIDGE PILOT PROGRAM.

    (a) Establishment.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security, in 
collaboration with the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs, shall establish an interdepartmental pilot program 
through which the Department of Homeland Security shall use the 
Department of Defense SkillBridge Program to train and hire 
transitioning servicemembers as Border Patrol agents for U.S. Customs 
and Border Protection.
    (b) Employment Skills Training.--In carrying out the pilot program 
established pursuant to subsection (a), the Secretary of Homeland 
Security, in collaboration with the Secretary of Defense, shall use the 
authorities available under section 1143 of title 10, United States 
Code, to train and facilitate the transition of members of the armed 
forces to service as Border Patrol agents.

SEC. 3. ANNUAL REPORTS.

    Not later than 1 year after the pilot program is established 
pursuant to section 2(a), and annually thereafter until the date 
referred to in section 4, the Secretary of Homeland Security, in 
consultation with the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs, shall submit a report to the Committee on Homeland 
Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate, the Committee on Armed 
Services of the Senate, the Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the 
Senate, the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of 
Representatives, the Committee on Armed Services of the House of 
Representatives, and the Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the House of 
Representatives that includes for the reporting period--
            (1) the number of participants in the pilot program;
            (2) the number of eligible participants who applied to be 
        part of the pilot program; and
            (3) the number of pilot program participants who are--
                    (A) members the Armed Forces;
                    (B) reserve members of the Armed Forces;
                    (C) commissioned officers or non-commissioned 
                officers;
                    (D) enlisted members of the Armed Forces;
                    (E) veterans;
                    (F) spouses of such members of the Armed Forces or 
                veterans; and
                    (G) dependents of such members of the Armed Forces 
                or veterans.

SEC. 4. SUNSET DATE.

    The pilot program established pursuant to section 2 shall be 
terminated on the date that is 5 years after the date on which such 
program is established.
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