IIB 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 7832 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 24, 2024 

Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and 

Governmental Affairs 

AN ACT 

To require the Secretary of Homeland Security to develop 

a plan to identify, integrate, and deploy new, innovative, 

disruptive, or other emerging or advanced technologies 

to enhance, or address capability gaps in, border security 

operations, and for other purposes. 

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


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Emerging Innovative 

3 Border Technologies Act’’. 

4 SEC. 2. INNOVATIVE AND EMERGING BORDER TECH5 NOLOGY PLAN. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the 

7 date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Home8 land Security, acting through the Commissioner of U.S. 

9 Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the Under 

10 Secretary for Science and Technology of the Department 

11 of Homeland Security, shall submit to the Committee on 

12 Homeland Security of the House of Representatives and 

13 the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 

14 Affairs of the Senate a plan to identify, integrate, and de15 ploy new, innovative, disruptive, or other emerging or ad16 vanced technologies that may incorporate artificial intel17 ligence, machine-learning, automation, fiber-optic sensing 

18 technology, nanotechnology, optical and cognitive radar, 

19 modeling and simulation technology, hyperspectral and 

20 LIDAR sensors, imaging, identification, and categoriza21 tion systems, or other emerging or advanced technologies, 

22 to enhance, or address capability gaps in, border security 

23 operations. 

24 (b) CONTENTS.—The plan required under subsection 

25 (a) shall include the following: 


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1 (1) Information regarding how CBP utilizes 

2 CBP Innovation Team authority under subsection 

3 (c) and other mechanisms to carry out the purposes 

4 specified in subsection (a). 

5 (2) An assessment of the contributions directly 

6 attributable to such utilization. 

7 (3) Information regarding the composition of 

8 each CBP Innovation Team, and how each such 

9 Team coordinates and integrates efforts with the 

10 CBP acquisition program office and other partners 

11 within CBP and the Department of Homeland Secu12 rity. 

13 (4) Identification of technologies used by other 

14 Federal departments or agencies not in use by CBP 

15 that could assist in enhancing, or addressing capa16 bility gaps in, border security operations. 

17 (5) An analysis of authorities available to CBP 

18 to procure technologies referred to subsection (a), 

19 and an assessment as to whether additional or alter20 native authorities are needed to carry out the pur21 poses specified in such subsection. 

22 (6) An explanation of how CBP plans to scale 

23 existing programs related to emerging or advanced 

24 technologies into programs of record. 


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1 (7) A description of each planned security-re2 lated technology program, including objectives, goals, 

3 and timelines for each such program. 

4 (8) An assessment of the privacy and security 

5 impact on border communities of security-related 

6 technology. 

7 (9) An assessment of CBP legacy border tech8 nology programs that could be phased out and re9 placed by technologies referred to in subsection (a), 

10 and cost estimates relating to such phase out and 

11 replacement. 

12 (10) Information relating to how CBP is coordi13 nating with the Department of Homeland Security’s 

14 Science and Technology Directorate to— 

15 (A) research and develop new, innovative, 

16 disruptive, or other emerging or advanced tech17 nologies to carry out the purposes specified in 

18 subsection (a); 

19 (B) identify security-related technologies 

20 that are in development or deployed by the pri21 vate and public sectors that may satisfy the 

22 mission needs of CBP, with or without adapta23 tion; 

24 (C) incentivize the private sector to develop 

25 technologies that may help CBP meet mission 


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1 needs to enhance, or address capability gaps in, 

2 border security operations; and 

3 (D) identify and assess ways to increase 

4 opportunities for communication and collabora5 tion with the private sector, small and dis6 advantaged businesses, intra-governmental enti7 ties, university centers of excellence, and Fed8 eral laboratories to leverage emerging tech9 nology and research within the public and pri10 vate sectors. 

11 (11) Information on metrics and key perform12 ance parameters for evaluating the effectiveness of 

13 efforts to identify, integrate, and deploy new, inno14 vative, disruptive, or other emerging or advanced 

15 technologies to carry out the purposes specified in 

16 subsection (a). 

17 (12) An identification of recent technological 

18 advancements in the following: 

19 (A) Manned aircraft sensor, communica20 tion, and common operating picture technology. 

21 (B) Unmanned aerial systems and related 

22 technology, including counter-unmanned aerial 

23 system technology. 

24 (C) Surveillance technology, including the 

25 following: 


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1 (i) Mobile surveillance vehicles. 

2 (ii) Associated electronics, including 

3 cameras, sensor technology, and radar. 

4 (iii) Tower-based surveillance tech5 nology. 

6 (iv) Advanced unattended surveillance 

7 sensors. 

8 (v) Deployable, lighter-than-air, 

9 ground surveillance equipment. 

10 (D) Nonintrusive inspection technology, in11 cluding non-X-ray devices utilizing muon to12 mography and other advanced detection tech13 nology. 

14 (E) Tunnel detection technology. 

15 (F) Communications equipment, including 

16 the following: 

17 (i) Radios. 

18 (ii) Long-term evolution broadband. 

19 (iii) Miniature satellites. 

20 (13) Any other information the Secretary deter21 mines relevant. 

22 (c) CBP INNOVATION TEAM AUTHORITY.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Commissioner of CBP 

24 is authorized to maintain one or more CBP Innova25 tion Teams to research and adapt commercial techVerDate Sep 11 2014 05:45 Sep 25, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7832.RFS H7832

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1 nologies that are new, innovative, disruptive, or oth2 erwise emerging or advanced that may be used by 

3 CBP to enhance, or address capability gaps in bor4 der security operations and urgent mission needs, 

5 and assess potential outcomes, to include any nega6 tive consequences, of the introduction of emerging or 

7 advanced technologies with respect to which docu8 mented capability gaps in border security operations 

9 are yet to be determined. 

10 (2) OPERATING PROCEDURES, PLANNING, STRA11 TEGIC GOALS.—The Commissioner of CBP shall re12 quire each team maintained pursuant to paragraph 

13 (1) to establish the following: 

14 (A) Operating procedures that include 

15 specificity regarding roles and responsibilities 

16 within each such team and with respect to De17 partment of Homeland Security and non-Fed18 eral partners, and protocols for entering into 

19 agreements to rapidly transition such tech20 nologies to existing or new programs of record 

21 to carry out the purposes specified in subsection 

22 (a). 

23 (B) Planning and strategic goals for each 

24 such team that includes projected costs, time 

25 frames, metrics, and key performance paramVerDate Sep 11 2014 05:45 Sep 25, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7832.RFS H7832

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1 eters relating to the achievement of identified 

2 strategic goals, including a metric to measure 

3 the rate at which technologies described in sub4 section (a) are transitioned to existing or new 

5 programs of record in accordance with subpara6 graph (A) 

7 (3) REPORTING.—Not later than 180 days after 

8 the date of the enactment of this Act and annually 

9 thereafter, the Commissioner of CBP shall submit to 

10 the Committee on Homeland Security of the House 

11 of Representatives and the Committee on Homeland 

12 Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate in13 formation relating to the activities CBP Innovation 

14 Teams, including information regarding the fol15 lowing: 

16 (A) Copies of operating procedures and 

17 protocols under paragraph (2)(A) and planning 

18 and strategic goals required under paragraph 

19 (2)(B). 

20 (B) Descriptions of the technologies piloted 

21 by each such team over the immediately pre22 ceding fiscal year, including information regard23 ing which such technologies are determined suc24 cessful and an identification of documented ca25 pability gaps that are addressed. 


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1 (C) Information on the status of efforts to 

2 rapidly transition technologies determined suc3 cessful to existing or new programs of record. 

Passed the House of Representatives September 23, 

2024. 

Attest: KEVIN F. MCCUMBER, 

Clerk. 


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