Securing America's Borders Act of 2019

To require the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection to annually hire at least 600 new Border Patrol agents, to report quarterly to Congress on the status of the Border Patrol workforce, and to conduct a comprehensive staffing analysis. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Securing America's Borders Act of 2019 2. Additional border patrol personnel (a) Agents The Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection shall hire, train, and assign not fewer than 600 new Border Patrol agents, compared to the current attrition level, during every fiscal year until the total number of Border Patrol agents equals and sustains the requirements identified in Executive Order 13767 (82 Fed. Reg. 8793). (b) Support staff The Commissioner is authorized to hire, train, and assign support staff to perform non-law enforcement administrative functions to support the new Border Patrol agents hired pursuant to subsection (a). (c) Reports to Congress Not later that 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, and every 90 days thereafter, the Commissioner shall submit a report to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security of the House of Representatives (1) the total number of Border Patrol agents; (2) the total number of Border Patrol support staff; (3) the number of Border Patrol agents and support staff hired during the reporting period; (4) the number of Border Patrol agents and support staff lost to attrition, broken down by port of entry; and (5) any hiring authorities, incentive pay, or other special pay incentives utilized during the reporting period. 3. Comprehensive staffing analysis The Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection shall— (1) not later than 60 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, amend the comprehensive staffing analysis required under section 2(e) of the Border Patrol Agent Pay Reform Act of 2014 ( Public Law 113–277 (2) not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, submit a report to the Comptroller General of the United States that includes the results of a comprehensive staffing analysis, as required under section 2(e) of the Border Patrol Agent Pay Reform Act of 2014 ( Public Law 113–277 4. Authorization of appropriations There are authorized to be appropriated, for each of the fiscal years 2020 through 2026, such sums as may be necessary to carry out this Act.

Summary: Securing America's Borders Act of 2019 This bill addresses the hiring, training, and retention of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) employees. CBP shall hire a certain number of new Border Patrol agents each fiscal year until there is an equivalent of 26,370 full-time agents. CBP may hire Border Patrol processing coordinators to assist with processing apprehended persons. CBP shall establish a program to provide emergency medical technician (EMT) and paramedic training to selected agents. CBP shall also take efforts to ensure that at least 10% of agents have EMT or paramedic certifications and that such agents are assigned in sufficient numbers to the U.S. southern border. Furthermore, the bill contains provisions to address staffing shortages in rural and remote areas, including by (1) waiving certain hiring-related requirements in some instances; (2) authorizing recruitment, relocation, and retention bonuses, subject to various requirements; and (3) authorizing special pay rates in certain instances. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shall establish a CBP Hiring and Retention Innovation Council, which shall report to Congress as to whether a new pay and employee classification system would improve CBP hiring and retention. DHS shall also carry out pilot programs to improve CBP hiring and retention. The bill also requires CBP to make various updates and changes to its comprehensive staffing analysis. The Government Accountability Office shall report to Congress on CBP's efforts to increase the percentage of agents with EMT or paramedic certifications and on CBP's comprehensive staffing analysis.