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[112th Congress Public Law 205]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office]

[[Page 126 STAT. 1487]]

Public Law 112-205
112th Congress

                                 An Act

 
To establish a Border Enforcement Security Task Force program to enhance 
 border security by fostering coordinated efforts among Federal, State, 
and local border and law enforcement officials to protect United States 
   border cities and communities from trans-national crime, including 
violence associated with drug trafficking, arms smuggling, illegal alien 
trafficking and smuggling, violence, and kidnapping along and across the 
       international borders of the United States, and for other 
             purposes. <<NOTE: Dec. 7, 2012 -  [H.R. 915]>> 

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled, <<NOTE: Jaime Zapata 
Border Enforcement Security Task Force Act.>> 
SECTION 1. <<NOTE: 6 USC 101 note.>>  SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Jaime Zapata Border Enforcement 
Security Task Force Act''.
SEC. 2. <<NOTE: 6 USC 240 note.>>  FINDINGS AND DECLARATION OF 
                    PURPOSES.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) The Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) overriding 
        mission is to lead a unified national effort to protect the 
        United States. United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement 
        (ICE) is the largest investigative agency within DHS and is 
        charged with enforcing a wide array of laws, including laws 
        related to securing the border and combating criminal smuggling.
            (2) Mexico's northern border with the United States has 
        experienced a dramatic surge in border crime and violence in 
        recent years due to intense competition between Mexican drug 
        cartels and criminal smuggling organizations that employ 
        predatory tactics to realize their profits.
            (3) Law enforcement agencies at the United States northern 
        border also face challenges from transnational smuggling 
        organizations.
            (4) In response, DHS has partnered with Federal, State, 
        local, tribal, and foreign law enforcement counterparts to 
        create the Border Enforcement Security Task Force (BEST) 
        initiative as a comprehensive approach to addressing border 
        security threats. These multi-agency teams are designed to 
        increase information-sharing and collaboration among the 
        participating law enforcement agencies.
            (5) BEST teams incorporate personnel from ICE, United States 
        Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the Drug Enforcement 
        Administration (DEA), the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms 
        and Explosives (ATFE), the Federal Bureau of Investigation 
        (FBI), the United States Coast Guard (USCG), and the U.S. 
        Attorney's Office (USAO), along with other key Federal, State 
        and local law enforcement agencies.

[[Page 126 STAT. 1488]]

            (6) Foreign law enforcement agencies participating in BEST 
        include Mexico's Secretaria de Seguridad Publica (SSP), the 
        Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), the Ontario Provincial 
        Police (OPP), and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP).
SEC. 3. BORDER ENFORCEMENT SECURITY TASK FORCE.

    (a) In General.--Subtitle C of title IV of the Homeland Security Act 
of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 231 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the 
following:
``SEC. 432. <<NOTE: 6 USC 240 note.>>  BORDER ENFORCEMENT SECURITY 
                        TASK FORCE.

    ``(a) Establishment.--There is established within the Department a 
program to be known as the Border Enforcement Security Task Force 
(referred to in this section as `BEST').
    ``(b) Purpose.--The purpose of BEST is to establish units to enhance 
border security by addressing and reducing border security threats and 
violence by--
            ``(1) facilitating collaboration among Federal, State, 
        local, tribal, and foreign law enforcement agencies to execute 
        coordinated activities in furtherance of border security, and 
        homeland security; and
            ``(2) enhancing information-sharing, including the 
        dissemination of homeland security information among such 
        agencies.

    ``(c) Composition and Establishment of Units.--
            ``(1) Composition.--BEST units may be comprised of personnel 
        from--
                    ``(A) U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement;
                    ``(B) U.S. Customs and Border Protection;
                    ``(C) the United States Coast Guard;
                    ``(D) other Department personnel, as appropriate
                    ``(E) other Federal agencies, as appropriate;
                    ``(F) appropriate State law enforcement agencies;
                    ``(G) foreign law enforcement agencies, as 
                appropriate;
                    ``(H) local law enforcement agencies from affected 
                border cities and communities; and
                    ``(I) appropriate tribal law enforcement agencies.
            ``(2) Establishment of units.--The Secretary is authorized 
        to establish BEST units in jurisdictions in which such units can 
        contribute to BEST missions, as appropriate. Before establishing 
        a BEST unit, the Secretary shall consider--
                    ``(A) whether the area in which the BEST unit would 
                be established is significantly impacted by cross-border 
                threats;
                    ``(B) the availability of Federal, State, local, 
                tribal, and foreign law enforcement resources to 
                participate in the BEST unit;
                    ``(C) the extent to which border security threats 
                are having a significant harmful impact in the 
                jurisdiction in which the BEST unit is to be 
                established, and other jurisdictions in the country; and
                    ``(D) whether or not an Integrated Border 
                Enforcement Team already exists in the area in which the 
                BEST unit would be established.
            ``(3) Duplication of efforts.--In determining whether to 
        establish a new BEST unit or to expand an existing BEST unit in 
        a given jurisdiction, the Secretary shall ensure that the BEST 
        unit under consideration does not duplicate the

[[Page 126 STAT. 1489]]

        efforts of other existing interagency task forces or centers 
        within that jurisdiction.

    ``(d) Operation.--After determining the jurisdictions in which to 
establish BEST units under subsection (c)(2), and in order to provide 
Federal assistance to such jurisdictions, the Secretary may--
            ``(1) direct the assignment of Federal personnel to BEST, 
        subject to the approval of the head of the department or agency 
        that employs such personnel; and
            ``(2) take other actions to assist Federal, State, local, 
        and tribal entities to participate in BEST, including providing 
        financial assistance, as appropriate, for operational, 
        administrative, and technological costs associated with the 
        participation of Federal, State, local, and tribal law 
        enforcement agencies in BEST.

    ``(e) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date on which BEST 
is established under this section, and annually thereafter for the 
following 5 years, the Secretary shall submit a report to Congress that 
describes the effectiveness of BEST in enhancing border security and 
reducing the drug trafficking, arms smuggling, illegal alien trafficking 
and smuggling, violence, and kidnapping along and across the 
international borders of the United States, as measured by crime 
statistics, including violent deaths, incidents of violence, and drug-
related arrests.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents under section 1(b) of 
the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 101(b)) is amended by 
inserting after the item relating to section 431 the following:

``Sec. 432. Border Enforcement Security Task Force.''.

    Approved December 7, 2012.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY--H.R. 915:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

HOUSE REPORTS: No. 112-268 (Comm. on Homeland Security).
SENATE REPORTS: No. 112-206 (Comm. on Homeland Security and Governmental 
Affairs).
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Vol. 158 (2012):
            May 30, considered and passed House.
            Sept. 21, considered and passed Senate, amended.
            Nov. 27, House concurred in Senate amendment.

                                  <all>
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