II 

Calendar No. 447 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 1305 

[Report No. 115–270] 

To provide U.S. Customs and Border Protection with adequate flexibility 

in its employment authorities. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 7, 2017 

Mr. FLAKE (for himself and Ms. HEITKAMP) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs 

JUNE 7, 2018 

Reported by Mr. JOHNSON, with an amendment 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

A BILL 

To provide U.S. Customs and Border Protection with 

adequate flexibility in its employment authorities. 

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 ‘‘U.S. Customs and Bor3 der Protection Hiring and Retention Act of 2017’’ or the 

4 ‘‘CBP HiRe Act’’. 

5 SEC. 2. FLEXIBILITY IN EMPLOYMENT AUTHORITIES. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 97 of title 5, United 

7 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol8 lowing: 

9 ‘‘§ 9702. U.S. Customs and Border Protection employ10 ment authorities 

11 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

12 ‘‘(1) the term ‘Commissioner’ means the Com13 missioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection; 

14 ‘‘(2) the term ‘covered CBP employee’ means— 

15 ‘‘(A) a customs and border protection offi16 cer, as defined in section 8331(31); and 

17 ‘‘(B) a border patrol agent, as defined in 

18 section 5550(a); 

19 ‘‘(3) the term ‘Director’ means the Director of 

20 the Office of Personnel Management; 

21 ‘‘(4) the term ‘local infrastructure’ means— 

22 ‘‘(A) established communities; 

23 ‘‘(B) suitable places of residence, including 

24 sufficient affordable housing choices; 


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1 ‘‘(C) amenities and services, including 

2 medical care, child care, and schools, that con3 tribute to quality of life; 

4 ‘‘(D) consumer goods and services; or 

5 ‘‘(E) other local infrastructure, as deter6 mined by the Commissioner; and 

7 ‘‘(5) the term ‘rural or remote area’ means an 

8 area within the United States— 

9 ‘‘(A) in which a facility of U.S. Customs 

10 and Border Protection is located; 

11 ‘‘(B) that is so distant from the nearest 

12 local infrastructure as to require an appreciable 

13 degree of expense, hardship, and inconvenience, 

14 beyond that normally encountered in metropoli15 tan life, on the part of an individual living or 

16 working in the area; and 

17 ‘‘(C) that— 

18 ‘‘(i) has not been defined and des19 ignated as an urbanized area by the Bu20 reau of the Census during the most re21 cently completed decennial census; or 

22 ‘‘(ii) has been determined by the Com23 missioner to be a rural or remote area 

24 based on any other factors that the Com25 missioner considers relevant. 


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1 ‘‘(b) DEMONSTRATION OF RECRUITMENT AND RE2 TENTION DIFFICULTIES IN RURAL OR REMOTE AREAS.— 

3 For purposes of subsections (c), (d), and (e), the Commis4 sioner shall demonstrate a direct relationship between the 

5 rural or remote nature of a rural or remote area, and dif6 ficulty in the recruitment and retention of covered CBP 

7 employees in the area, by providing evidence— 

8 ‘‘(1) that the Commissioner— 

9 ‘‘(A) is unable to efficiently and effectively 

10 recruit individuals for positions as covered CBP 

11 employees, which may be demonstrated with 

12 various types of evidence, including— 

13 ‘‘(i) evidence that multiple positions 

14 have been continuously vacant for signifi15 cantly longer than the national average pe16 riod for which similar positions in U.S. 

17 Customs and Border Protection are va18 cant; or 

19 ‘‘(ii) recruitment studies that dem20 onstrate the inability of the Commissioner 

21 to efficiently and effectively recruit covered 

22 CBP employees for positions in the area; 

23 or 

24 ‘‘(B) experiences a consistent inability to 

25 retain covered CBP employees that negatively 


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1 impacts agency operations at a local or regional 

2 level; or 

3 ‘‘(2) of any other inability, directly related to 

4 recruitment or retention difficulties, that the Com5 missioner determines sufficient. 

6 ‘‘(c) DIRECT HIRE AUTHORITY; RECRUITMENT AND

7 RELOCATION BONUSES; RETENTION BONUSES.— 

8 ‘‘(1) DIRECT HIRE AUTHORITY.— 

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In addition to the au10 thority under section 3304(a)(3)(B), the Com11 missioner may appoint, without regard to the 

12 provision of sections 3309 through 3318, can13 didates to positions as covered CBP employees 

14 if the Commissioner determines that there ex15 ists a severe shortage of highly qualified can16 didates because the positions are in a rural or 

17 remote area. 

18 ‘‘(B) PRIORITIZATION OF HIRING VET19 ERANS.—If the Commissioner uses the direct 

20 hiring authority under subparagraph (A), the 

21 Commissioner shall work to prioritize the hiring 

22 of veterans by following the principles contained 

23 in part 307 of title 5, Code of Federal Regula24 tions, or any successor regulation, regarding the 


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1 appointment of qualified veterans to the com2 petitive service. 

3 ‘‘(2) RECRUITMENT AND RELOCATION BO4 NUSES.—The Commissioner may pay a bonus to an 

5 individual if the Commissioner determines that— 

6 ‘‘(A) the conditions under paragraphs (1) 

7 and (2) of subsection (b) of section 5753 are 

8 satisfied with respect to the individual (without 

9 regard to any other provision of that section); 

10 and 

11 ‘‘(B) the position to which the individual is 

12 appointed or to which the individual moves or 

13 must relocate— 

14 ‘‘(i) is a position as a covered CBP 

15 employee; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) is in a rural or remote area. 

17 ‘‘(3) RETENTION BONUSES.—The Commis18 sioner may pay a retention bonus to a covered CBP 

19 employee if the Commissioner determines that— 

20 ‘‘(A) the condition under subsection (b)(1) 

21 of section 5754 is satisfied (without regard to 

22 any other provision of that section); 

23 ‘‘(B) the covered CBP employee is em24 ployed in a rural or remote area; and 


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1 ‘‘(C) in the absence of a retention bonus, 

2 the covered CBP employee would be likely to 

3 leave— 

4 ‘‘(i) the Federal service; or 

5 ‘‘(ii) for a different position in the 

6 Federal service, including a position in an7 other agency or component of the Depart8 ment of Homeland Security. 

9 ‘‘(4) OPM OVERSIGHT.—The Director— 

10 ‘‘(A) may set aside a determination of the 

11 Commissioner under this subsection only if the 

12 Director finds substantial evidence that the 

13 Commissioner abused the discretion of the 

14 Commissioner in making the determination; and 

15 ‘‘(B) shall oversee the compliance of the 

16 Commissioner with this subsection. 

17 ‘‘(d) SPECIAL PAY AUTHORITY.—In addition to the 

18 circumstances described in subsection (b) of section 5305, 

19 the Director may establish special rates of pay in accord20 ance with that section if the Director finds that the re21 cruitment or retention efforts of the Commissioner with 

22 respect to positions for covered CBP employees in one or 

23 more areas or locations are, or are likely to become, sig24 nificantly handicapped because the positions are located 

25 in a rural or remote area. 


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1 ‘‘(e) ALLOWANCE BASED ON DUTY AT REMOTE

2 WORKSITES.— 

3 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 5942(a) shall be 

4 applied, with respect to a covered CBP employee, as 

5 if ‘of not to exceed $10 a day’ and all that follows 

6 were replaced with ‘for the cost of the commute at 

7 a mileage reimbursement rate determined by the Di8 rector of the Office of Personnel Management’. 

9 ‘‘(2) OPM DETERMINATION.—For purposes of 

10 section 5942(a), as applied in accordance with para11 graph (1) of this subsection, the Director shall pub12 lish in the Federal Register a notice of a mileage re13 imbursement rate that is equivalent, to the max14 imum extent practicable, to the mileage reimburse15 ment rate for privately owned automobiles prescribed 

16 by the Administrator of General Services under sec17 tion 5707(b)(2). 

18 ‘‘(3) NON-COMMUTING FACTORS.— 

19 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A covered CBP em20 ployee who is assigned to duty, except tem21 porary duty, at a location in a rural or remote 

22 area is eligible for, in addition to pay otherwise 

23 due the employee, an allowance in an amount 

24 not to exceed the necessary amount per day, as 


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1 determined by the Commissioner in accordance 

2 with subparagraph (C). 

3 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—The Commissioner 

4 shall not be required to pay the allowance under 

5 subparagraph (A) if the covered CBP employee 

6 does not routinely operate the personal vehicle 

7 of the employee for transportation between the 

8 duty station and place of residence of the em9 ployee. 

10 ‘‘(C) DETERMINATION OF NECESSARY

11 AMOUNT; OPM APPROVAL.— 

12 ‘‘(i) DETERMINATION OF NECESSARY

13 AMOUNT.—In determining the necessary 

14 amount of an allowance under subpara15 graph (A), the Commissioner shall consider 

16 the factors considered by the Director 

17 under regulations implementing section 

18 5942. 

19 ‘‘(ii) OPM APPROVAL.—The Commis20 sioner may not pay an allowance under 

21 subparagraph (A) unless the Director ap22 proves the amount of the allowance. 

23 ‘‘(f) IMPROVING CBP HIRING AND RETENTION.— 

24 ‘‘(1) EDUCATION OF CBP HIRING OFFICIALS.— 

25 Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment 


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1 of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Hiring 

2 and Retention Act of 2017, and in conjunction with 

3 the Chief Human Capital Officer of the Department 

4 of Homeland Security, the Commissioner shall de5 velop and implement a strategy to improve education 

6 regarding hiring and human resources flexibilities 

7 (including hiring and human resources flexibilities 

8 for locations in rural or remote areas) for all em9 ployees, serving in agency headquarters or field of10 fices, who are involved in the recruitment, hiring, as11 sessment, or selection of candidates for locations in 

12 a rural or remote area, as well as the retention of 

13 current employees. 

14 ‘‘(2) ELEMENTS.—Elements of the strategy 

15 under paragraph (1) shall include the following: 

16 ‘‘(A) Developing or updating training and 

17 educational materials on hiring and human re18 sources flexibilities for employees who are in19 volved in the recruitment, hiring, assessment, or 

20 selection of candidates, as well as the retention 

21 of current employees. 

22 ‘‘(B) Regular training sessions for per23 sonnel who are critical to filling open positions 

24 in rural or remote areas. 


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1 ‘‘(C) The development of pilot programs or 

2 other programs, as appropriate, to address 

3 identified hiring challenges in rural or remote 

4 areas. 

5 ‘‘(D) Developing and enhancing strategic 

6 recruiting efforts through relationships with 

7 local colleges and universities, veterans transi8 tion and employment centers, and job place9 ment program in regions that could assist in 

10 filling positions in rural or remote areas. 

11 ‘‘(E) Examination of existing agency pro12 grams on how to most effectively aid spouses 

13 and families of individuals who are candidates 

14 or new hires in a rural or remote area. 

15 ‘‘(F) Feedback from individuals who are 

16 candidates or new hires at locations in a rural 

17 or remote area, including feedback on the qual18 ity of life in rural or remote areas for new hires 

19 and their families. 

20 ‘‘(G) Feedback from covered CBP employ21 ees, other than new hires, who are stationed at 

22 locations in a rural or remote area, including 

23 feedback on the quality of life in rural or re24 mote areas for those covered CBP employees 

25 and their families. 


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1 ‘‘(H) Evaluation of Department of Home2 land Security internship programs and the use3 fulness of those programs in improving hiring 

4 by the Commissioner in rural or remote areas. 

5 ‘‘(3) EVALUATION.— 

6 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each year, the Com7 missioner shall— 

8 ‘‘(i) evaluate, on an annual basis, the 

9 extent to which the strategy developed and 

10 implemented under paragraph (1) has im11 proved the hiring and retention ability of 

12 the Commissioner; and 

13 ‘‘(ii) make any appropriate updates to 

14 the strategy under paragraph (1). 

15 ‘‘(B) INFORMATION.—The evaluation con16 ducted under subparagraph (A) shall include— 

17 ‘‘(i) any reduction in the time taken 

18 by the Commissioner to fill mission-critical 

19 positions in rural or remote areas; 

20 ‘‘(ii) a general assessment of the im21 pact of the strategy implemented under 

22 paragraph (1) on hiring challenges in rural 

23 or remote areas; and 

24 ‘‘(iii) other information the Commis25 sioner determines relevant. 


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1 ‘‘(g) LIMITATION ON USE OF POLYGRAPHS.— 

2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If an applicant for a posi3 tion in U.S. Customs and Border Protection does 

4 not successfully complete a polygraph examination 

5 required for appointment to that position, the Com6 missioner may not disclose the results of the poly7 graph examination to any other Federal agency or 

8 non-Federal employer unless the applicant signs a 

9 release granting the Commissioner permission to re10 lease all background investigation and adjudication 

11 materials to another Federal agency or a non-Fed12 eral employer. 

13 ‘‘(2) DISCLOSURES.— 

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Commissioner 

15 shall provide each applicant for a position in 

16 U.S. Customs and Border Protection who will 

17 be required to successfully complete a polygraph 

18 examination before appointment to the position 

19 a list of actions or conduct of, or events relating 

20 to, the applicant that could disqualify the appli21 cant from being appointed to the position, 

22 which may include— 

23 ‘‘(i) the criteria for making a suit24 ability determination under part 731 of 


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1 title 5, Code of Federal Regulations (or 

2 any successor regulation); or 

3 ‘‘(ii) the criteria for making an eligi4 bility determination under part 732 of title 

5 5, Code of Federal Regulations (or any 

6 successor regulation). 

7 ‘‘(B) LIST REQUIREMENTS.—When pro8 viding the list required under subparagraph 

9 (A), the Commissioner shall clearly inform all 

10 applicants that the list may not constitute the 

11 complete list of potential disqualifying actions, 

12 conduct, or events. 

13 ‘‘(3) USE OF POLYGRAPHS.—Paragraph (1) 

14 shall not— 

15 ‘‘(A) restrict the authority of the Commis16 sioner to report or refer an admission of crimi17 nal conduct or activity made by an applicant 

18 during a polygraph examination to appropriate 

19 law enforcement officials; 

20 ‘‘(B) limit the authority of the Commis21 sioner to use the results of a polygraph exam22 ination administered as a requirement for ap23 pointment to a position in U.S. Customs and 

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1 mining whether to appoint the individual to the 

2 position; or 

3 ‘‘(C) limit the authority of another Federal 

4 agency or another agency or component of the 

5 Department of Homeland Security to use the 

6 results of a polygraph examination administered 

7 to an individual by a Federal agency other than 

8 U.S. Customs and Border Protection, in whole 

9 or in part, in determining whether to appoint 

10 the individual to a position in the agency or 

11 component. 

12 ‘‘(h) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec13 tion shall be construed to exempt the Commissioner or the 

14 Director from the applicability of the merit system prin15 ciples under section 2301.’’. 

16 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 

17 The table of sections for chapter 97 of title 5, United 

18 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol19 lowing: 

‘‘9702. U.S. Customs and Border Protection employment authorities.’’. 

20 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

21 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘U.S. Customs and Bor22 der Protection Hiring and Retention Act of 2017’’ or the 

23 ‘‘CBP HiRe Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. FLEXIBILITY IN EMPLOYMENT AUTHORITIES. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 97 of title 5, United States 

3 Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: 

4 ‘‘§ 9702. U.S. Customs and Border Protection employ5 ment authorities 

6 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

7 ‘‘(1) the term ‘CBP employee’ means an em8 ployee of U.S. Customs and Border Protection; 

9 ‘‘(2) the term ‘Commissioner’ means the Com10 missioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection; 

11 ‘‘(3) the term ‘Director’ means the Director of the 

12 Office of Personnel Management; 

13 ‘‘(4) the term ‘rural or remote area’ means an 

14 area within the United States that is not within an 

15 area defined and designated as an urbanized area by 

16 the Bureau of the Census in the most recently com17 pleted decennial census; and 

18 ‘‘(5) the term ‘Secretary’ means the Secretary of 

19 Homeland Security. 

20 ‘‘(b) DEMONSTRATION OF RECRUITMENT AND RETEN21 TION DIFFICULTIES IN RURAL OR REMOTE AREAS.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of subsections 

23 (c) and (d), the Secretary shall determine, for a rural 

24 or remote area, whether there is— 

25 ‘‘(A) a critical hiring need in the area; and 

26 ‘‘(B) a direct relationship between— 


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1 ‘‘(i) the rural or remote nature of the 

2 area; and 

3 ‘‘(ii) difficulty in the recruitment and 

4 retention of CBP employees in the area. 

5 ‘‘(2) FACTORS.—To inform the determination of 

6 a direct relationship under paragraph (1)(B), the 

7 Secretary may consider evidence— 

8 ‘‘(A) that the Secretary— 

9 ‘‘(i) is unable to efficiently and effec10 tively recruit individuals for positions as 

11 CBP employees, which may be demonstrated 

12 with various types of evidence, including— 

13 ‘‘(I) evidence that multiple posi14 tions have been continuously vacant for 

15 significantly longer than the national 

16 average period for which similar posi17 tions in U.S. Customs and Border Pro18 tection are vacant; and 

19 ‘‘(II) recruitment studies that 

20 demonstrate the inability of the Sec21 retary to efficiently and effectively re22 cruit CBP employees for positions in 

23 the area; or 

24 ‘‘(ii) experiences a consistent inability 

25 to retain CBP employees that negatively 


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1 impacts agency operations at a local or re2 gional level; or 

3 ‘‘(B) of any other inability, directly related 

4 to recruitment or retention difficulties, that the 

5 Secretary determines sufficient. 

6 ‘‘(c) DIRECT HIRE AUTHORITY; RECRUITMENT AND

7 RELOCATION BONUSES; RETENTION BONUSES.— 

8 ‘‘(1) DIRECT HIRE AUTHORITY.— 

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may ap10 point, without regard to any provision of sec11 tions 3309 through 3319, candidates to positions 

12 in the competitive service as CBP employees, in 

13 a rural or remote area, if the Secretary— 

14 ‘‘(i) determines that— 

15 ‘‘(I) there is a critical hiring 

16 need; and 

17 ‘‘(II) there exists a severe shortage 

18 of qualified candidates because of the 

19 direct relationship identified by the 

20 Secretary under subsection (b)(1)(B) of 

21 this section between— 

22 ‘‘(aa) the rural or remote na23 ture of the area; and 


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1 ‘‘(bb) difficulty in the re2 cruitment and retention of CBP 

3 employees in the area; and 

4 ‘‘(ii) has given public notice for the po5 sitions. 

6 ‘‘(B) PRIORITIZATION OF HIRING VET7 ERANS.—If the Secretary uses the direct hiring 

8 authority under subparagraph (A), the Secretary 

9 shall apply the principles of preference for the 

10 hiring of veterans established under subchapter I 

11 of chapter 33. 

12 ‘‘(2) RECRUITMENT AND RELOCATION BO13 NUSES.—The Secretary may pay a bonus to an indi14 vidual (other than an individual described in sub15 section (a)(2) of section 5753) if— 

16 ‘‘(A) the Secretary determines that— 

17 ‘‘(i) conditions consistent with the con18 ditions described in paragraphs (1) and (2) 

19 of subsection (b) of such section 5753 are 

20 satisfied with respect to the individual 

21 (without regard to any other provision of 

22 that section); and 

23 ‘‘(ii) the position to which the indi24 vidual is appointed or to which the indi25 vidual moves or must relocate— 


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1 ‘‘(I) is a position as a CBP em2 ployee; and 

3 ‘‘(II) is in a rural or remote area 

4 for which the Secretary has identified 

5 a direct relationship under subsection 

6 (b)(1)(B) of this section between— 

7 ‘‘(aa) the rural or remote na8 ture of the area; and 

9 ‘‘(bb) difficulty in the re10 cruitment and retention of CBP 

11 employees in the area; and 

12 ‘‘(B) the individual enters into a written 

13 service agreement with the Secretary— 

14 ‘‘(i) under which the individual is re15 quired to complete a period of employment 

16 as a CBP employee of not less than 2 years; 

17 and 

18 ‘‘(ii) that includes— 

19 ‘‘(I) the commencement and ter20 mination dates of the required service 

21 period (or provisions for the deter22 mination thereof); 

23 ‘‘(II) the amount of the bonus; 

24 and 


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1 ‘‘(III) other terms and conditions 

2 under which the bonus is payable, sub3 ject to the requirements of this sub4 section, including— 

5 ‘‘(aa) the conditions under 

6 which the agreement may be ter7 minated before the agreed-upon 

8 service period has been completed; 

9 and 

10 ‘‘(bb) the effect of a termi11 nation described in item (aa). 

12 ‘‘(3) RETENTION BONUSES.—The Secretary may 

13 pay a retention bonus to a CBP employee (other than 

14 an individual described in subsection (a)(2) of section 

15 5754) if— 

16 ‘‘(A) the Secretary determines that— 

17 ‘‘(i) a condition consistent with the 

18 condition described in subsection (b)(1) of 

19 such section 5754 is satisfied with respect to 

20 the CBP employee (without regard to any 

21 other provision of that section); 

22 ‘‘(ii) the CBP employee is employed in 

23 a rural or remote area for which the Sec24 retary has identified a direct relationship 


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1 under subsection (b)(1)(B) of this section be2 tween— 

3 ‘‘(I) the rural or remote nature of 

4 the area; and 

5 ‘‘(II) difficulty in the recruitment 

6 and retention of CBP employees in the 

7 area; and 

8 ‘‘(iii) in the absence of a retention 

9 bonus, the CBP employee would be likely to 

10 leave— 

11 ‘‘(I) the Federal service; or 

12 ‘‘(II) for a different position in 

13 the Federal service, including a posi14 tion in another agency or component of 

15 the Department of Homeland Security; 

16 and 

17 ‘‘(B) the individual enters into a written 

18 service agreement with the Secretary— 

19 ‘‘(i) under which the individual is re20 quired to complete a period of employment 

21 as a CBP employee of not less than 2 years; 

22 and 

23 ‘‘(ii) that includes— 

24 ‘‘(I) the commencement and ter25 mination dates of the required service 


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1 period (or provisions for the deter2 mination thereof); 

3 ‘‘(II) the amount of the bonus; 

4 and 

5 ‘‘(III) other terms and conditions 

6 under which the bonus is payable, sub7 ject to the requirements of this sub8 section, including— 

9 ‘‘(aa) the conditions under 

10 which the agreement may be ter11 minated before the agreed-upon 

12 service period has been completed; 

13 and 

14 ‘‘(bb) the effect of a termi15 nation described in item (aa). 

16 ‘‘(4) RULES FOR BONUSES.— 

17 ‘‘(A) MAXIMUM BONUS.—A bonus paid to 

18 an employee under— 

19 ‘‘(i) paragraph (2) may not exceed 100 

20 percent of the annual rate of basic pay of 

21 the employee as of the commencement date 

22 of the applicable service period; and 

23 ‘‘(ii) paragraph (3) may not exceed 50 

24 percent of the annual rate of basic pay of 


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1 the employee as of the commencement date 

2 of the applicable service period. 

3 ‘‘(B) RELATION TO BASIC PAY.—A bonus 

4 paid to an employee under paragraph (2) or (3) 

5 shall not be considered part of the basic pay of 

6 the employee for any purpose. 

7 ‘‘(5) OPM OVERSIGHT.—The Director shall, to 

8 the extent practicable— 

9 ‘‘(A) set aside a determination of the Sec10 retary under this subsection if the Director finds 

11 substantial evidence that the Secretary abused 

12 the discretion of the Secretary in making the de13 termination; and 

14 ‘‘(B) oversee the compliance of the Secretary 

15 with this subsection. 

16 ‘‘(d) SPECIAL PAY AUTHORITY.—In addition to the 

17 circumstances described in subsection (b) of section 5305, 

18 the Director may establish special rates of pay in accord19 ance with that section if the Director finds that the recruit20 ment or retention efforts of the Secretary with respect to 

21 positions for CBP employees in an area or location are, 

22 or are likely to become, significantly handicapped because 

23 the positions are located in a rural or remote area for which 

24 the Secretary has identified a direct relationship under sub25 section (b)(1)(B) of this section between— 


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1 ‘‘(1) the rural or remote nature of the area; and 

2 ‘‘(2) difficulty in the recruitment and retention 

3 of CBP employees in the area. 

4 ‘‘(e) REGULAR CBP REVIEW.— 

5 ‘‘(1) ENSURING FLEXIBILITIES MEET CBP

6 NEEDS.—Each year, the Secretary shall review the 

7 use of hiring flexibilities under subsections (c) and (d) 

8 to fill positions at a location in a rural or remote 

9 area to determine— 

10 ‘‘(A) the impact of the use of those flexibili11 ties on solving hiring and retention challenges at 

12 the location; 

13 ‘‘(B) whether hiring and retention chal14 lenges still exist at the location; and 

15 ‘‘(C) whether the Secretary needs to con16 tinue to use those flexibilities at the location. 

17 ‘‘(2) CONSIDERATION.—In conducting the review 

18 under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall consider— 

19 ‘‘(A) whether any CBP employee accepted 

20 an employment incentive under subsection (c) or 

21 (d) and then transferred to a new location or left 

22 U.S. Customs and Border Protection; and 

23 ‘‘(B) the length of time that each employee 

24 identified under subparagraph (A) stayed at the 

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1 cation or leaving U.S. Customs and Border Pro2 tection. 

3 ‘‘(3) DISTRIBUTION.—The Secretary shall submit 

4 to Congress a report on each review required under 

5 paragraph (1). 

6 ‘‘(f) IMPROVING CBP HIRING AND RETENTION.— 

7 ‘‘(1) EDUCATION OF CBP HIRING OFFICIALS.— 

8 Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment 

9 of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Hiring 

10 and Retention Act of 2017, and in conjunction with 

11 the Chief Human Capital Officer of the Department 

12 of Homeland Security, the Secretary shall develop 

13 and implement a strategy to improve education re14 garding hiring and human resources flexibilities (in15 cluding hiring and human resources flexibilities for 

16 locations in rural or remote areas) for all employees, 

17 serving in agency headquarters or field offices, who 

18 are involved in the recruitment, hiring, assessment, or 

19 selection of candidates for locations in a rural or re20 mote area, as well as the retention of current employ21 ees. 

22 ‘‘(2) ELEMENTS.—Elements of the strategy under 

23 paragraph (1) shall include the following: 

24 ‘‘(A) Developing or updating training and 

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1 sources flexibilities for employees who are in2 volved in the recruitment, hiring, assessment, or 

3 selection of candidates, as well as the retention 

4 of current employees. 

5 ‘‘(B) Regular training sessions for personnel 

6 who are critical to filling open positions in rural 

7 or remote areas. 

8 ‘‘(C) The development of pilot programs or 

9 other programs, as appropriate, to address iden10 tified hiring challenges in rural or remote areas. 

11 ‘‘(D) Developing and enhancing strategic 

12 recruiting efforts through relationships with in13 stitutions of higher education, as defined in sec14 tion 102 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 

15 (20 U.S.C. 1002), veterans transition and em16 ployment centers, and job placement program in 

17 regions that could assist in filling positions in 

18 rural or remote areas. 

19 ‘‘(E) Examination of existing agency pro20 grams on how to most effectively aid spouses and 

21 families of individuals who are candidates or 

22 new hires in a rural or remote area. 

23 ‘‘(F) Feedback from individuals who are 

24 candidates or new hires at locations in a rural 

25 or remote area, including feedback on the quality 


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1 of life in rural or remote areas for new hires and 

2 their families. 

3 ‘‘(G) Feedback from CBP employees, other 

4 than new hires, who are stationed at locations in 

5 a rural or remote area, including feedback on the 

6 quality of life in rural or remote areas for those 

7 CBP employees and their families. 

8 ‘‘(H) Evaluation of Department of Home9 land Security internship programs and the use10 fulness of those programs in improving hiring by 

11 the Secretary in rural or remote areas. 

12 ‘‘(3) EVALUATION.— 

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each year, the Sec14 retary shall — 

15 ‘‘(i) evaluate the extent to which the 

16 strategy developed and implemented under 

17 paragraph (1) has improved the hiring and 

18 retention ability of the Secretary; and 

19 ‘‘(ii) make any appropriate updates to 

20 the strategy under paragraph (1). 

21 ‘‘(B) INFORMATION.—The evaluation con22 ducted under subparagraph (A) shall include— 

23 ‘‘(i) any reduction in the time taken 

24 by the Secretary to fill mission-critical posi25 tions in rural or remote areas; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) a general assessment of the im2 pact of the strategy developed and imple3 mented under paragraph (1) on hiring chal4 lenges in rural or remote areas; and 

5 ‘‘(iii) other information the Secretary 

6 determines relevant. 

7 ‘‘(g) INSPECTOR GENERAL REVIEW.—Not later than 2 

8 years after the date of enactment of the U.S. Customs and 

9 Border Protection Hiring and Retention Act of 2017, the 

10 Inspector General of the Department of Homeland Security 

11 shall review the use of hiring flexibilities by the Secretary 

12 under subsections (c) and (d) to determine whether the use 

13 of those flexibilities is helping the Secretary meet hiring and 

14 retention needs in rural and remote areas. 

15 ‘‘(h) REPORT ON POLYGRAPH REQUESTS.—The Sec16 retary shall report to Congress on the number of requests 

17 the Secretary receives from any other Federal agency for 

18 the file of an applicant for a position in U.S. Customs and 

19 Border Protection that includes the results of a polygraph 

20 examination. 

21 ‘‘(i) EXERCISE OF AUTHORITY.— 

22 ‘‘(1) SOLE DISCRETION.—The exercise of author23 ity under subsection (c) shall be subject to the sole 

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1 missioner, as applicable under paragraph (2) of this 

2 subsection), notwithstanding chapter 71. 

3 ‘‘(2) DELEGATION.— 

4 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara5 graph (B), the Secretary may delegate any au6 thority under this section to the Commissioner. 

7 ‘‘(B) OVERSIGHT.—The Commissioner may 

8 not make a determination under subsection 

9 (b)(1) unless the Secretary approves the deter10 mination. 

11 ‘‘(j) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec12 tion shall be construed to exempt the Secretary or the Direc13 tor from the applicability of the merit system principles 

14 under section 2301. 

15 ‘‘(k) SUNSET.—The authorities under subsections (c) 

16 and (d) shall terminate on the date that is 5 years after 

17 the date of enactment of the U.S. Customs and Border Pro18 tection Hiring and Retention Act of 2017.’’. 

19 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The 

20 table of sections for chapter 97 of title 5, United States 

21 Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘9702. U.S. Customs and Border Protection employment authorities.’’. 


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Calendar No. 447 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 1305 

[Report No. 115–270] 

A BILL 

To provide U.S. Customs and Border Protection 

thorities. with adequate flexibility in its employment auJUNE 7, 2018 

Reported with an amendment 


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