I 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 9722 

To establish a pilot program to assess the use of technology to speed up 

and enhance the cargo inspection process at land ports of entry along 

the border. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

SEPTEMBER 20, 2024 

Mr. HIGGINS of Louisiana (for himself and Mr. MAGAZINER) introduced the 

following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Homeland Security 

A BILL 

To establish a pilot program to assess the use of technology 

to speed up and enhance the cargo inspection process 

at land ports of entry along the border. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLES. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Contraband Awareness 

5 Technology Catches Harmful Fentanyl Act’’ or the 

6 ‘‘CATCH Fentanyl Act’’. 

7 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

8 In this Act: 


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1 (1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT2 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com3 mittees’’ means— 

4 (A) the Committee on Homeland Security 

5 and Governmental Affairs of the Senate; and 

6 (B) the Committee on Homeland Security 

7 of the House of Representatives. 

8 (2) ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE; AI.—The terms 

9 ‘‘artificial intelligence’’ and ‘‘AI’’ have the meaning 

10 given the term ‘‘artificial intelligence’’ in section 

11 238(g) of the John S. McCain National Defense Au12 thorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019 (Public Law 

13 115–232; 10 U.S.C. 4061 note). 

14 (3) CBP INNOVATION TEAM.—The term ‘‘CBP 

15 Innovation Team’’ means the U.S. Customs and 

16 Border Protection Innovation Team within the Of17 fice of the Commissioner. 

18 (4) NONINTRUSIVE INSPECTION TECHNOLOGY; 

19 NII TECHNOLOGY.—The terms ‘‘nonintrusive inspec20 tion technology’’ and ‘‘NII technology’’ means tech21 nical equipment and machines, such as X-ray or 

22 gamma-ray imaging equipment, that allow cargo in23 spections without the need to open the means of 

24 transport and unload the cargo. 


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1 (5) PILOT PROJECTS.—The term ‘‘pilot 

2 projects’’ means the projects required under section 

3 3(a) for testing and assessing the use of technologies 

4 to improve the inspection process at land ports of 

5 entry. 

6 SEC. 3. PILOT PROJECTS ALLOWING ADDITIONAL TECH7 NOLOGY PROVIDERS TO PARTICIPATE IN IN8 SPECTING CARS, TRUCKS, AND CARGO CON9 TAINERS AT CERTAIN PORTS OF ENTRY. 

10 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

12 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

13 of Homeland Security, acting through CBP Innova14 tion Team, and in coordination with the Office of 

15 Field Operations and the Department of Homeland 

16 Security Science and Technology Directorate, shall 

17 begin the implementation of pilot projects for testing 

18 and assessing the use of technologies or technology 

19 enhancements to improve the process for inspecting, 

20 including by increasing efficiencies of such inspec21 tions, any conveyance or mode of transportation at 

22 land ports of entry along the borders of the United 

23 States. The technologies or technology enhancements 

24 tested and assessed under the pilot projects shall be 

25 for the purpose of assisting U.S. Customs and BorVerDate Sep 11 2014 19:04 Oct 03, 2024 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9722.IH H9722

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1 der Protection personnel to detect contraband, illegal 

2 drugs, illegal weapons, human smuggling, and 

3 threats on inbound and outbound traffic, in conjunc4 tion with the use of imaging equipment, radiation 

5 portal monitors, and chemical detectors. 

6 (2) REQUIREMENTS.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—In implementing the 

8 pilot projects at ports of entry, the CBP Inno9 vation Team, in coordination with the Depart10 ment of Homeland Security Science and Tech11 nology Directorate, shall test and collect data 

12 regarding not fewer than 5 types of nonintru13 sive inspection technology enhancements that 

14 can be deployed at land ports of entry. The 

15 CBP Innovation Team shall test technology en16 hancements from not fewer than 1 of the fol17 lowing categories: 

18 (i) Artificial intelligence. 

19 (ii) Machine learning. 

20 (iii) High-performance computing. 

21 (iv) Quantum information sciences, in22 cluding quantum sensing. 

23 (v) Other emerging technologies. 

24 (B) IDENTIFICATION OF EFFECTIVE EN25 HANCEMENTS.—The pilot projects shall identify 


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1 the most effective types of technology enhance2 ments to improve the capabilities of nonintru3 sive inspection systems and other inspection 

4 systems used at land ports of entry based on— 

5 (i) the technology enhancement’s abil6 ity to assist U.S. Customs and Border 

7 Protection accurately detect contraband, il8 legal drugs, illegal weapons, human smug9 gling, or threats in inbound and outbound 

10 traffic; 

11 (ii) the technology enhancement’s abil12 ity to increase efficiencies of inspections to 

13 assist U.S. Customs and Border Protection 

14 address long wait times; 

15 (iii) the technology enhancement’s 

16 ability to improve capabilities of aging de17 tection equipment and infrastructure at 

18 land ports of entry; 

19 (iv) the technology enhancement’s 

20 safety relative to As Low As Reasonably 

21 Achievable (ALARA) standard practices; 

22 (v) the ability to integrate the new 

23 technology into the existing workflow and 

24 infrastructure; 


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1 (vi) the technology enhancement’s 

2 ability to incorporate automatic threat rec3 ognition technology using standard formats 

4 and open architecture; 

5 (vii) the mobility of technology en6 hancements; and 

7 (viii) other performance measures 

8 identified by the CBP Innovation Team. 

9 (C) PRIVATE SECTOR INVOLVEMENT.—The 

10 CBP Innovation Team may solicit input from 

11 representatives of the private sector regarding 

12 commercially viable technologies. 

13 (D) COST EFFECTIVENESS REQUIRE14 MENT.—In identifying the most effective types 

15 of technology enhancements under subpara16 graph (B), the pilot projects shall prioritize so17 lutions that demonstrate the highest cost-effec18 tiveness in achievement the objectives described 

19 in clauses (i) through (ix) of subparagraph (B). 

20 Cost effectiveness shall account for improved 

21 detection capabilities, increased inspection effi22 ciencies, reduced wait times, and total cost of 

23 implementation (including infrastructure up24 grades and maintenance expenses). 


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1 (3) NONINTRUSIVE INSPECTION SYSTEMS PRO2 GRAM.—The CBP Innovation Team shall work with 

3 existing nonintrusive inspection systems programs 

4 within U.S. Customs and Border Protection when 

5 planning and developing the pilot projects required 

6 under paragraph (1). 

7 (4) DATA PRIVACY PROTECTIONS.—In imple8 menting the pilot projects and utilizing new tech9 nologies, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall 

10 safeguard the privacy and security of personal data 

11 collected during inspections through appropriate 

12 measures, including— 

13 (A) adherence to relevant privacy laws and 

14 regulations; 

15 (B) implementation of data anonymization 

16 techniques, if applicable; and 

17 (C) regular audits to assess compliance 

18 with data privacy standards. 

19 (5) SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY DIREC20 TORATE.—The CBP Innovation Team shall work 

21 with the Department of Homeland Security Science 

22 and Technology Directorate to align existing non23 intrusive inspection research and development efforts 

24 within the Science and Technology Directorate when 


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1 planning and developing pilot projects required 

2 under paragraph (1). 

3 (b) TERMINATION.—The pilot projects shall termi4 nate on the date that is 5 years after the date of the enact5 ment of this Act. 

6 (c) REPORTS REQUIRED.—Not later than 3 years 

7 after the date of the enactment of this Act, and 180 days 

8 after the termination of the pilot projects pursuant to sub9 section (b), the Secretary of Homeland Security shall sub10 mit a report to the appropriate congressional committees 

11 that contains— 

12 (1) an analysis of the effectiveness of tech13 nology enhancements tested based on the require14 ments described in subsection (a)(2); 

15 (2) any recommendations from the testing and 

16 analysis concerning the ability to utilize such tech17 nologies at all land ports of entry; 

18 (3) a plan to utilize new technologies that meet 

19 the performance goals of the pilot projects across all 

20 U.S. Customs and Border Protection land ports of 

21 entry at the border, including total costs and a 

22 breakdown of the costs of such plan, including any 

23 infrastructure improvements that may be required to 

24 accommodate recommended technology enhance25 ments; 


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1 (4) a comprehensive list of existing technologies 

2 owned and utilized by U.S. Customs and Border 

3 protection for cargo and vehicle inspection, includ4 ing— 

5 (A) details on the implementation status of 

6 such technologies, such as whether the tech7 nologies have been fully installed and utilized, 

8 or whether there are challenges with the instal9 lation and utilization of the technology; 

10 (B) an evaluation of the compatibility, 

11 interoperability, and scalability of existing cargo 

12 and vehicle inspection technologies within U.S. 

13 Customs and Border Protection’s physical and 

14 information technology infrastructure; and 

15 (C) identification of any obstacles to the 

16 effective deployment and integration of such 

17 technologies; and 

18 (5) the analysis described in subsection (d). 

19 (d) AREAS OF ANALYSIS.—The report required under 

20 subsection (c) shall include an analysis containing— 

21 (1) quantitative measurements of performance 

22 based on the requirements described in subsection 

23 (a)(2) of each technology tested compared with the 

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1 ance of technologies and technology enhancements, 

2 such as— 

3 (A) the probability of detection, false alarm 

4 rate, and throughput; and 

5 (B) an analysis determining whether such 

6 observed performance represents a significant 

7 increase, decrease, or no change compared with 

8 current systems; 

9 (2) an assessment of the relative merits of each 

10 such technology; 

11 (3) any descriptive trends and patterns ob12 served; and 

13 (4) performance measures for— 

14 (A) the technology enhancement’s ability to 

15 assist with the detection of contraband on in16 bound and outbound traffic through automated 

17 (primary) inspection by measuring and report18 ing the probability of detection and false alarm 

19 rate for each NII system under operational con20 ditions; 

21 (B) the throughput of cargo through each 

22 NII system with a technology enhancement, in23 cluding a breakdown of the time needed for 

24 U.S. Customs and Border Protection— 


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1 (i) to complete the image review proc2 ess and clear low-risk shipments; and 

3 (ii) to complete additional inspections 

4 of high-risk items; 

5 (C) changes in U.S. Customs and Border 

6 Protection officer time commitments and per7 sonnel needs to sustain high volume NII scan8 ning operations when technology enhancements 

9 are utilized; and 

10 (D) operational costs, including— 

11 (i) estimated implementation costs for 

12 each NII system with technology enhance13 ments; and 

14 (ii) estimated cost savings due to im15 proved efficiency due to technology en16 hancements, if applicable. 

17 (e) PRIVACY AND CIVIL LIBERTIES REPORTS.—The 

18 Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation with the 

19 CBP Innovation Team and other appropriate offices, 

20 shall— 

21 (1) prior to the implementation of these tech22 nologies, submit— 

23 (A) a report or reports to the appropriate 

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1 pacts of technologies being tested under the 

2 pilot projects pursuant to this section, including 

3 an analysis of the impacts of the technology en4 hancements on individuals crossing the United 

5 States border; and 

6 (B) recommendations for mitigation meas7 ures to address any identified impacts; and 

8 (2) not later than 180 days after the termi9 nation of the pilot projects pursuant to subsection 

10 (b), submit a report to the appropriate congressional 

11 committees containing— 

12 (A) findings on the impacts to privacy, 

13 civil rights, and civil liberties resulting from the 

14 pilot projects; 

15 (B) recommendations for mitigating these 

16 impacts in implementation of approved tech17 nologies; and 

18 (C) any additional recommendations based 

19 on the lessons learned from the pilot projects. 

20 (f) PROHIBITION ON NEW APPROPRIATIONS.—No 

21 additional funds are authorized to be appropriated to 

22 carry out this Act. 

Æ 


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