I 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5255 

To amend the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to establish a Department 

of Homeland Security Reserve Service, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 13, 2018 

Mr. CARSON of Indiana introduced the following bill; which was referred to 

the Committee on Homeland Security 

A BILL 

To amend the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to establish 

a Department of Homeland Security Reserve Service, 

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, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Department of Home5 land Security Reserve Service Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS; PURPOSE. 

7 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following find8 ings: 

9 (1) Components within the Department of 

10 Homeland Security face personnel shortages related 


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1 to hiring processes, retention of employees, and 

2 surges in need. 

3 (2) In response to the devastation caused by 

4 Hurricane Harvey, Hurricane Irma, Hurricane Jose, 

5 and Hurricane Maria, the Federal Emergency Man6 agement Agency has deployed thousands of their 

7 temporary on-call reservists and specialized Cadre 

8 On-Call Response/Recovery (CORE) workforces. 

9 (3) In 2017, the Director of the United States 

10 Secret Service asked Congress to increase federally 

11 mandated caps on salary and overtime for the agen12 cy. At the time of the request, more than 1,000 

13 agents had worked numerous, uncompensated hours 

14 of overtime. The Director cited a protracted presi15 dential campaign, a large first family, ongoing per16 sonnel shortages, and increasing demands in inves17 tigative missions as having strained the organiza18 tion. 

19 (4) In 2015, the Committee on Oversight and 

20 Government Reform of the House of Representatives 

21 issued bipartisan report documenting the Secret 

22 Service as understaffed, overburdened, and ‘‘in cri23 sis’’. The agency has posted announcements to hire 

24 annuitants for the position of investigator to help 

25 mitigate shortages in their investigative mission. 


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1 (5) In 2016, Congress approved a request from 

2 the Transportation Security Administration to hire 

3 new officers and pay overtime to ease travel disrup4 tions and increase security. 

5 (6) The Transportation Security Administration 

6 2017 budget request calls for the first Federal Air 

7 Marshal class since 2011. 

8 (7) In 2017, Customs and Border Protection 

9 and Immigration and Customs Enforcement initi10 ated a hiring surge. The Carl Levin and Howard P. 

11 ‘‘Buck’’ McKeon National Defense Authorization 

12 Act for Fiscal Year 2015 (Public Law 113–291), ex13 tended the temporary authority for agency heads 

14 (including the Secretary of Homeland Security) to 

15 grant dual compensation waivers for certain part16 time, temporary reemployed annuitants through De17 cember 2019. Dual compensation waivers allow re18 employed annuitants to receive an unreduced salary 

19 while concurrently receiving their full pension ben20 efit. U.S. Customs and Border Protection is cur21 rently making use of this dual compensation waiver 

22 authority in efforts to rehire retired Customs and 

23 Border Protection officers as reemployed annuitants 

24 to support recruitment and training efforts. 


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1 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con2 gress that by establishing a reserve service comprised of 

3 skilled, ready-to-work former employees, components of 

4 the Department of Homeland Security can better mitigate 

5 personnel shortages and meet emergent demands without 

6 unnecessarily recruiting, hiring, and training new perma7 nent employees. 

8 (c) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to establish 

9 a reserve service to assist the Department of Homeland 

10 Security in maintaining a skilled, ready-to-work pool for 

11 performing non-continuous duties of investigation, patrol, 

12 response, security, protection, recovery, and inspection. 

13 The reserve service capitalizes on investments in human 

14 capital, providing for efficient and effective service to 

15 agency stakeholders. The reserve service is for temporary 

16 needs and shall not be used to supplant new hires. 

17 SEC. 3. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY RESERVE 

18 SERVICE. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title VII of the Homeland Secu20 rity Act of 2002 is amended by adding at the end the fol21 lowing new section: 

22 ‘‘SEC. 708. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY RE23 SERVE SERVICE. 

24 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of Homeland 

25 Security may establish a Homeland Security Reserve ServVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:01 Mar 20, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5255.IH H5255

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1 ice (hereinafter referred to as the ‘Reserve Service’) in 

2 each covered component of the Department, which shall 

3 provide for the temporary employment of former employ4 ees of the covered component and the temporary reemploy5 ment of annuitants of the covered component to stand 

6 ready to mobilize during elevated demands for, or critical 

7 shortages of, personnel and in times of crisis. The Sec8 retary shall develop and implement an expedited process 

9 for hiring such employees and shall not use a competitive 

10 process. 

11 ‘‘(b) COVERED COMPONENTS.—In this section, a cov12 ered component is any of the following: 

13 ‘‘(1) U.S. Customs and Border Protection. 

14 ‘‘(2) U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforce15 ment. 

16 ‘‘(3) The Transportation Security Administra17 tion. 

18 ‘‘(4) The United States Secret Service. 

19 ‘‘(5) The Federal Protective Service of the Na20 tional Protection and Programs Directorate. 

21 ‘‘(c) EMPLOYEES.— 

22 ‘‘(1) SELECTION.—The Secretary shall offer 

23 employment or reemployment under the Reserve 

24 Service to individuals who— 


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1 ‘‘(A) previously served as employees of the 

2 Department whose prior experience and train3 ing qualifies them for investigative, inspection, 

4 response and patrol, security and protective, or 

5 advisory duties as required; 

6 ‘‘(B) are citizens of the United States; and 

7 ‘‘(C) the Secretary determines are fit to 

8 hold the position in the Reserve Service, includ9 ing with respect to health, character, knowl10 edge, and ability. 

11 ‘‘(2) SERVICE.—An individual who is employed 

12 or reemployed under this section may be employed 

13 on a full-time or part-time basis. The period of such 

14 employment or reemployment may not exceed one 

15 year for each assignment for which the individual is 

16 called into service. 

17 ‘‘(3) PAY.— 

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

19 subparagraphs (B) and (C), an individual who 

20 is a member of the Reserve Service shall not be 

21 compensated except for periods during which 

22 the individual performs active service in the Re23 serve Service. For any period during which such 

24 an individual is not performing such service, the 


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1 individual shall be an employee of the Depart2 ment in a non-duty, non-pay status. 

3 ‘‘(B) COORDINATION AND TRAINING.—Ex4 cept as specifically authorized by the Secretary, 

5 in addition to compensation provided under 

6 subparagraph (A), an individual who is a mem7 ber of the Reserve Service may be compensated 

8 for— 

9 ‘‘(i) not more than 80 hours per year 

10 for coordination activities with the Reserve 

11 Service; and 

12 ‘‘(ii) not more than 80 hours per year 

13 while completing mandatory training. 

14 ‘‘(C) EMPLOYMENT-RELATED ACTIVI15 TIES.—In addition to compensation under sub16 paragraphs (A) and (B), an individual who is a 

17 member of the Reserve Service shall be com18 pensated for the performance of employment-re19 lated activities that are time-consuming and re20 quired for employment or continued employ21 ment. For purposes of this subparagraph, the 

22 term ‘time consuming’ means requiring more 

23 than 15 minutes of time. 

24 ‘‘(D) AMOUNT.—The amount of compensa25 tion payable under subparagraphs (A), (B), and 


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1 (C) shall be determined by the head of each 

2 covered component in consultation with appro3 priate human capital managers. 

4 ‘‘(4) BENEFITS.—An individual who is em5 ployed or reemployed under this section shall not be 

6 eligible for any Federal benefits by reason of such 

7 employment or reemployment. Time employed in a 

8 position under this section shall not count toward 

9 competitive status, career tenure, or, consistent with 

10 subsection (d), any additional benefits provided 

11 under chapter 83 or 84 of title 5, United States 

12 Code. 

13 ‘‘(5) NUMBER OF PERSONNEL.— 

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The employment or 

15 reemployment of individuals by a covered com16 ponent under this section shall not— 

17 ‘‘(i) supplant the hiring of new em18 ployees by the component; 

19 ‘‘(ii) result in the elimination of any 

20 full-time or part-time position of employ21 ment at the component; or 

22 ‘‘(iii) force an employee out of a posi23 tion held by that employee so that the em24 ployee can be employed or reemployed 

25 under this section. 


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1 ‘‘(B) OVERSIGHT.—The Inspector General 

2 of the Department shall— 

3 ‘‘(i) provide oversight to ensure the 

4 covered components comply with subpara5 graph (A); and 

6 ‘‘(ii) report to Congress any suspected 

7 malfeasance or violation of subparagraph 

8 (A). 

9 ‘‘(6) PREFERENCE IN HIRING.—No individual 

10 shall receive a preference in hiring or employment in 

11 any position in any Federal department or agency by 

12 reason of the employment or reemployment of the 

13 individual under this section. 

14 ‘‘(7) APPLICABILITY OF ETHICS LAWS.—All 

15 Federal laws and Department regulations and stand16 ards of conduct relating to ethics shall apply with re17 spect to an individual who is employed or reem18 ployed under this section in the same manner as a 

19 full-time employee of the Department. 

20 ‘‘(d) ANNUITANTS.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If an annuitant becomes 

22 temporarily reemployed pursuant to this section, 

23 such annuity shall not be discontinued thereby. Sub24 section (c)(4) shall not be construed to effect any 

25 Federal benefits that such an annuitant is entitled 


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1 to by virtue of employment in the civil service prior 

2 to reemployment under this section. 

3 ‘‘(2) DUAL COMPENSATION WAIVER.—The Sec4 retary may provide dual compensation waivers for 

5 reemployed annuitants. 

6 ‘‘(e) NO IMPACT ON PERSONNEL CEILING.—Reserve 

7 Service members employed on a temporary basis pursuant 

8 to this section shall not count against any personnel ceil9 ing applicable to the Department or any component of the 

10 Department. 

11 ‘‘(f) EXPENSES.—The Secretary may provide mem12 bers of the Reserve Service transportation and per diem 

13 in lieu of subsistence, in accordance with applicable provi14 sions of this Act and title 5, United States Code, for the 

15 purpose of participating in any training that relates to 

16 service as a member of the Reserve Service. 

17 ‘‘(g) LIMITATION.— 

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para19 graph (2), not more than 1,000 individuals may be 

20 employed in the Reserve Service at any given time, 

21 to be divided across covered components as deter22 mined by the Secretary. 

23 ‘‘(2) WAIVER.—The Secretary may waive the 

24 limitation under paragraph (1) for a period of not 

25 more than 90 days.’’. 


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1 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 

2 in section 1(b) of such Act is amended by inserting after 

3 the item relating to section 707 the following new item: 

‘‘708. Department of Homeland Security Reserve Service.’’. 

4 (c) IMPLEMENTATION.— 

5 (1) IMPLEMENTATION DEADLINE.—The Sec6 retary of Homeland Security shall ensure that each 

7 covered component of the Department of Homeland 

8 Security begins to formally initiate policy, regu9 latory, and personnel action to carry out section 708 

10 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002, as added by 

11 subsection (a), by not later than 180 days after the 

12 date of the enactment of this Act. 

13 (2) EXTENSION AUTHORITY.— 

14 (A) IN GENERAL.—If the Secretary deter15 mines it necessary, the Secretary may provide 

16 an extension to a covered component with re17 spect to the implementation deadline under 

18 paragraph (1) for a period of not more than 

19 180 days. No such component may receive more 

20 than two extensions under this paragraph. 

21 (B) NOTICE TO CONGRESS.—If the Sec22 retary provides an extension under this para23 graph to a covered component, the Secretary 

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1 sion and the justification for providing such ex2 tension. 

3 (C) FAILURE TO IMPLEMENT.—If any cov4 ered component receives two extensions under 

5 this paragraph and fails to begin implementa6 tion of such section 708, the Secretary shall ap7 pear before the appropriate committees of Con8 gress to provide an explanation for such failure. 

9 (3) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 

10 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, 

11 the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report on 

12 the plan of the Secretary for fully implementing 

13 such section 708. Such report shall include the plan 

14 of the Secretary— 

15 (A) for creating position descriptions with 

16 sufficient flexibility to utilize the full range of 

17 a reservist’s skill set; 

18 (B) for outlining the processes for calling 

19 reservists into service; 

20 (C) for determining pay scale for each po21 sition, with maximum total annual pay not to 

22 exceed the GS–15 level; 

23 (D) for developing a training plan out24 lining how employees will train and maintain 


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1 standards and certifications necessary to their 

2 reserve position; 

3 (E) for determining a base rate of pay 

4 made to all reservists not called into service, re5 gardless of pay scale determined under sub6 paragraph (C), for attending training to main7 tain skills or acquire skills immediately prior to 

8 knowingly being called into service; 

9 (F) for releasing any individuals who do 

10 not meet the training or certification standards 

11 established for their positions; and 

12 (G) for outlining requirements for non-con13 flicting obligations of reemployed annuitants 

14 and when the component has a right to termi15 nate someone from the pool or while working in 

16 reserve service capacity. 

17 (d) CERTIFICATION.— 

18 (1) INITIAL CERTIFICATION.—Not later than 

19 180 days after the submittal of the report under 

20 subsection (c)(3), the Secretary shall certify to Con21 gress that— 

22 (A) each covered component has a suffi23 cient number of reserve personnel in the Re24 serve Service under such section 708 who are 


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1 ready to be called into service in response to 

2 immediate and short-term requirements; or 

3 (B) the Secretary has provided an exten4 sion to a covered component pursuant to sub5 section (c)(2). 

6 (2) FINAL CERTIFICATION.—Not later than 180 

7 days after the Secretary provides the certification re8 quired under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall cer9 tify to Congress that— 

10 (A) each covered component has completed 

11 the implementation of the Reserve Service 

12 under such section 708; or 

13 (B) the Secretary has provided an exten14 sion to a covered component pursuant to sub15 section (c)(2). 

16 (e) WAIVER AUTHORITY.—After the date that is five 

17 years after the submission of the final certification under 

18 subsection (d)(2), the Secretary may waive the require19 ments of such section 708 for any period of time if the 

20 Secretary submits to Congress notice of the waiver by not 

21 later than 180 days before the date on which the waiver 

22 takes effect. 

23 (f) ANNUAL REPORT.—Not later than one year after 

24 the date on which the final certification is submitted under 

25 subsection (d)(2), and annually thereafter for each of the 


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1 subsequent five years, the Secretary shall submit to Con2 gress a detailed report on the administration of the reserve 

3 service during the 12-month period preceding the date of 

4 the submittal of the report. Each report shall include, for 

5 the period covered by the report, each of the following: 

6 (1) A discussion of any changes to the process 

7 used to recruit, assess and hire Reserve Service per8 sonnel. 

9 (2) A discussion of critical needs areas in the 

10 Reserve Service and how the Secretary or component 

11 plans to fill them, including plans to recruit and re12 tain employees in the positions. 

13 (3) Any actions taken to fulfill such critical 

14 need areas. 

15 (4) A description of any new positions created 

16 for the reserve service along with demonstrated need 

17 for such positions. 

18 (5) The number of personnel onboarded or re19 leased from the Reserve Service. 

20 (6) A discussion of training provided to reserv21 ists and identification of additional training and re22 source needs. 

23 (7) A discussion and description of Reserve 

24 Service activations the circumstances under which 

25 such activations were made. 


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1 (8) A projection of new activations or main2 tained activations for the 12-month period beginning 

3 on the date of the submission of the report and ex4 planations for such projection. 

Æ 


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