IB 
Union Calendar No. 471 
115TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 3548 
[Report No. 115–505, Part I] 
To make certain improvements to the security of the international borders 
of the United States, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 28, 2017 
Mr. MCCAUL (for himself, Mr. THORNBERRY, Mr. SESSIONS, Mr. BISHOP of 
Utah, Mr. SHUSTER, Mr. SMITH of Texas, Mr. BRADY of Texas, Mr. 
CONAWAY, Mr. HENSARLING, Mr. CARTER of Texas, Ms. GRANGER, Mr. 
CALVERT, Mr. KING of New York, Ms. MCSALLY, Mr. KATKO, Mr. 
DONOVAN, Mr. RATCLIFFE, Mr. HIGGINS of Louisiana, Mr. ESTES of 
Kansas, Mr. POE of Texas, Mr. OLSON, Mr. BURGESS, Mr. MARCHANT, 
Mr. FARENTHOLD, Mr. SAM JOHNSON of Texas, Mr. ARRINGTON, Mr. 
CULBERSON, Mr. WEBER of Texas, Mr. WILLIAMS, Mr. BABIN, Mr. BAR-
TON, Mr. FLORES, Mr. MEADOWS, Mr. HUNTER, Mr. COOK, Mr. 
BRIDENSTINE, Mr. PALAZZO, Mr. BERGMAN, Mr. KELLY of Mississippi, 
Mr. COLLINS of New York, Mr. POLIQUIN, Mr. FRANKS of Arizona, Mr. 
GOODLATTE, Mr. CRAMER, and Mr. LOUDERMILK) introduced the fol-
lowing bill; which was referred to the Committee on Homeland Security, 
and in addition to the Committees on Armed Services, Foreign Affairs, 
Natural Resources, Agriculture, Transportation and Infrastructure, Ways 
and Means, and Oversight and Government Reform, for a period to be 
subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration 
of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee con-
cerned 
JANUARY 10, 2018 
Reported from the Committee on Homeland Security with an amendment 
[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 
JANUARY 10, 2018 
The Committees on Foreign Affairs, Natural Resources, Agriculture, Trans-
portation and Infrastructure, Ways and Means, and Oversight and Gov-
ernment Reform discharged 
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JANUARY 10, 2018 
Referral to the Committee on Armed Services extended for a period ending 
not later than March 23, 2018 
MARCH 23, 2018 
Additional sponsors: Mr. PITTENGER, Mr. DESJARLAIS, Mr. LANCE, Mr. 
CHABOT, Mr. JODY B. HICE of Georgia, Mr. FLEISCHMANN, Mr. GALLA-
GHER, Mr. BYRNE, Mr. WITTMAN, Mr. RENACCI, Mr. ZELDIN, Mr. 
GROTHMAN, Mr. LAMALFA, Mr. HARPER, Mr. GARRETT, Mr. ABRAHAM, 
Mr. MCCLINTOCK, Mr. BISHOP of Michigan, Mr. RUSSELL, Mr. RUTHER-
FORD, Mrs. BROOKS of Indiana, Mr. BACON, Mr. KINZINGER, Mrs. 
NOEM, Mr. ROTHFUS, Mr. NORMAN, Mr. ROKITA, Mr. BARR, Mr. HUD-
SON, Mr. BUCSHON, Mr. BANKS of Indiana, Mr. GAETZ, and Mr. 
FRANCIS ROONEY of Florida 
MARCH 23, 2018 
The Committee on Armed Services discharged; committed to the Committee 
of the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed 
[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on July 28, 2017] 
A BILL 
To make certain improvements to the security of the inter-
national borders of the United States, and for other 
purposes. 
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Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘Border Security for America Act of 2017’’. 
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 
this Act is as follows: 
Sec. 1. Short title. 
TITLE I—BORDER SECURITY 
Sec. 101. Definitions. 
Subtitle A—Infrastructure and Equipment 
Sec. 111. Strengthening the requirements for barriers along the southern border. 
Sec. 112. Air and Marine Operations flight hours. 
Sec. 113. Capability deployment to specific sectors and transit zone. 
Sec. 114. U.S. Border Patrol physical infrastructure improvements. 
Sec. 115. U.S. Border Patrol activities. 
Sec. 116. Border security technology program management. 
Sec. 117. National Guard support to secure the southern border and reimburse-
ment of States for deployment of the National Guard at the 
southern border. 
Sec. 118. Operation Phalanx. 
Sec. 119. Merida Initiative. 
Sec. 120. Prohibitions on actions that impede border security on certain Federal 
land. 
Sec. 121. Landowner and rancher security enhancement. 
Sec. 122. Eradication of carrizo cane and salt cedar. 
Sec. 123. Southern border threat analysis. 
Sec. 124. Amendments to U.S. Customs and Border Protection. 
Sec. 125. Agent and officer technology use. 
Sec. 126. Integrated Border Enforcement Teams. 
Sec. 127. Tunnel Task Forces. 
Subtitle B—Personnel 
Sec. 131. Additional U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents and officers. 
Sec. 132. U.S. Customs and Border Protection retention incentives. 
Sec. 133. Anti-Border Corruption Reauthorization Act. 
Sec. 134. Training for officers and agents of U.S. Customs and Border Protection. 
Subtitle C—Grants 
Sec. 141. Operation Stonegarden. 
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Subtitle D—Authorization of Appropriations 
Sec. 151. Authorization of appropriations. 
TITLE II—EMERGENCY PORT OF ENTRY PERSONNEL AND 
INFRASTRUCTURE FUNDING 
Sec. 201. Ports of entry infrastructure. 
Sec. 202. Secure communications. 
Sec. 203. Border security deployment program. 
Sec. 204. Pilot and upgrade of license plate readers at ports of entry. 
Sec. 205. Non-intrusive inspection operational demonstration. 
Sec. 206. Biometric exit data system. 
Sec. 207. Sense of Congress on cooperation between agencies. 
Sec. 208. Authorization of appropriations. 
Sec. 209. Definition. 
TITLE I—BORDER SECURITY 
SEC. 101. DEFINITIONS. 
In this title: 
(1) 
ADVANCED
UNATTENDED
SURVEILLANCE 
SENSORS.—The term ‘‘advanced unattended surveil-
lance sensors’’ means sensors that utilize an onboard 
computer to analyze detections in an effort to discern 
between vehicles, humans, and animals, and ulti-
mately filter false positives prior to transmission. 
(2) 
APPROPRIATE
CONGRESSIONAL
COM-
MITTEE.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com-
mittee’’ has the meaning given the term in section 
2(2) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 
101(2)). 
(3) COMMISSIONER.—The term ‘‘Commissioner’’ 
means the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border 
Protection. 
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(4) HIGH TRAFFIC AREAS.—The term ‘‘high traf-
fic areas’’ has the meaning given such term in section 
102(e)(1) of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Im-
migrant Responsibility Act of 1996, as amended by 
section 111 of this Act. 
(5) OPERATIONAL CONTROL.—The term ‘‘oper-
ational control’’ has the meaning given such term in 
section 2(b) of the Secure Fence Act of 2006 (8 U.S.C. 
1701 note; Public Law 109–367). 
(5) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 
the Secretary of Homeland Security. 
(6) SITUATIONAL AWARENESS.—The term ‘‘situa-
tional awareness’’ has the meaning given such term 
in section 1092(a)(7) of the National Defense Author-
ization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 (Public Law 114– 
328; 6 U.S.C. 223(a)(7)). 
(7) TRANSIT
ZONE.—The term ‘‘transit zone’’ 
has the meaning given such term in section 
1092(a)(8) of the National Defense Authorization Act 
for Fiscal Year 2017 (Public Law 114–328; 6 U.S.C. 
223(a)(7)). 
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Subtitle A—Infrastructure and 
Equipment 
SEC. 111. STRENGTHENING THE REQUIREMENTS FOR BAR-
RIERS ALONG THE SOUTHERN BORDER. 
Section 102 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and 
Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (Division C of Public 
Law 104–208; 8 U.S.C. 1103 note) is amended— 
(1) by amending subsection (a) to read as fol-
lows: 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Homeland Secu-
rity shall take such actions as may be necessary (including 
the removal of obstacles to detection of illegal entrants) to 
construct, install, deploy, operate, and maintain tactical 
infrastructure and technology in the vicinity of the United 
States border to achieve situational awareness and oper-
ational control of the border and deter, impede, and detect 
illegal activity in high traffic areas.’’; 
(2) in subsection (b)— 
(A) in the subsection heading, by striking 
‘‘FENCING’’ and inserting ‘‘PHYSICAL
BAR-
RIERS’’; 
(B) in paragraph (1)— 
(i) in subparagraph (A), by inserting 
‘‘situational awareness and’’ before ‘‘oper-
ational control’’; and 
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(ii) by amending subparagraph (B) to 
read as follows: 
‘‘(B) TACTICAL INFRASTRUCTURE.— 
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Not later than Jan-
uary 20, 2021, the Secretary of Homeland 
Security, in carrying out subsection (a), 
shall deploy along the United States border 
the most practical and effective tactical in-
frastructure available for achieving situa-
tional awareness and operational control of 
the border. 
‘‘(ii) EXCEPTION
FOR
CERTAIN
TAC-
TICAL
INFRASTRUCTURE.—The deployment 
of tactical infrastructure under this sub-
paragraph shall not apply in areas along 
the border where natural terrain features, 
natural barriers, or the remoteness of such 
area would make deployment ineffective, as 
determined by the Secretary, for the pur-
poses of gaining situational awareness or 
operational control of such areas.’’; and 
(iii) in subparagraph (C)— 
(I) by amending clause (i) to read 
as follows: 
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‘‘(i) IN
GENERAL.—In carrying out 
this section, the Secretary of Homeland Se-
curity shall, before deploying tactical infra-
structure in a specific area or region, con-
sult with the Secretary of the Interior, the 
Secretary of Agriculture, the Governors for 
each State on the southern land border and 
northern land border, other States, local 
governments, Indian tribes, representatives 
of the U.S. Border Patrol and U.S. Customs 
and Border Protection, relevant Federal, 
State, local, and tribal agencies that have 
jurisdiction on the southern land border or 
in the maritime environment along the 
southern border, and private property own-
ers in the United States to minimize the 
impact on the environment, culture, com-
merce, quality of life for the communities 
and residents located near the sites at which 
physical barriers, tactical infrastructure, 
and technology are to be constructed.’’; 
(II) by redesignating clause (ii) 
as clause (iii); and 
(III) by inserting after clause (i), 
as amended, the following new clause: 
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‘‘(ii) NOTIFICATION.—Not later than 
60 days after the consultation required 
under clause (i), the Secretary of Homeland 
Security shall notify the Committee on 
Homeland Security of the House of Rep-
resentatives and the Committee on Home-
land Security and Governmental Affairs of 
the Senate of the type of tactical infrastruc-
ture and technology the Secretary has deter-
mined is most practical and effective to 
achieve operational control and situational 
awareness in a specific area and the other 
alternatives the Secretary considered before 
making such a determination.’’; 
(C) in paragraph (2)— 
(i) by striking ‘‘Attorney General’’ and 
inserting ‘‘Secretary of Homeland Secu-
rity’’; and 
(ii) by striking ‘‘construction of fences’’ 
and inserting ‘‘the construction of physical 
barriers’’; and 
(D) by amending paragraph (3) to read as 
follows: 
‘‘(3) AGENT SAFETY.—In carrying out this sec-
tion, the Secretary of Homeland Security, when con-
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structing tactical infrastructure, shall incorporate 
such safety features into the design of such tactical in-
frastructure that the Secretary determines, in the Sec-
retary’s sole discretion, are necessary to maximize the 
safety and effectiveness of officers or agents of the De-
partment of Homeland Security or of any other Fed-
eral agency.’’; 
(3) in subsection (c), by amending paragraph 
(1) to read as follows: 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 
provision of law, the Secretary of Homeland Security 
is authorized to waive all legal requirements the Sec-
retary, in the Secretary’s sole discretion, determines 
necessary to ensure the expeditious construction, in-
stallation, operation, and maintenance of the tactical 
infrastructure and technology under this section. Any 
such decision by the Secretary shall be effective upon 
publication in the Federal Register.’’; and 
(4) by adding after subsection (d) the following 
new subsections: 
‘‘(e) CONSTRUCTION, INSTALLATION, AND MAINTE-
NANCE
OF TECHNOLOGY.—Not later than January 20, 
2021, the Secretary of Homeland Security, in carrying out 
subsection (a), shall deploy along the United States border 
the most practical and effective technology available for 
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achieving situational awareness and operational control of 
the border. 
‘‘(f) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
‘‘(1) HIGH
TRAFFIC
AREAS.—The term ‘high 
traffic areas’ means areas in the vicinity of the 
United States border that— 
‘‘(A) are within the responsibility of U.S. 
Customs and Border Protection; and 
‘‘(B) have significant unlawful cross-border 
activity. 
‘‘(2) OPERATIONAL CONTROL.—The term ‘oper-
ational control’ has the meaning given such term in 
section 2(b) of the Secure Fence Act of 2006 (8 U.S.C. 
1701 note; Public Law 109–367). 
‘‘(3) SITUATIONAL
AWARENESS
DEFINED.—The 
term ‘situational awareness’ has the meaning given 
such term in section 1092(a)(7) of the National De-
fense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 (Public 
Law 114–328). 
‘‘(4) TACTICAL
INFRASTRUCTURE.—The term 
‘tactical infrastructure’ means— 
‘‘(A) boat ramps, access gates, checkpoints, 
lighting, and roads; and 
‘‘(B) physical barriers (including fencing, 
border wall system, and levee walls). 
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‘‘(5) TECHNOLOGY
DEFINED.—The term ‘tech-
nology’ includes border surveillance and detection 
technology, including the following: 
‘‘(A) Tower-based surveillance technology. 
‘‘(B) Deployable, lighter-than-air ground 
surveillance equipment. 
‘‘(C) Vehicle and Dismount Exploitation 
Radars (VADER). 
‘‘(D) 3-dimensional, seismic acoustic detec-
tion and ranging border tunneling detection 
technology. 
‘‘(E) Advanced unattended surveillance sen-
sors. 
‘‘(F) Mobile vehicle-mounted and man-port-
able surveillance capabilities. 
‘‘(G) Unmanned aerial vehicles.’’. 
SEC. 112. AIR AND MARINE OPERATIONS FLIGHT HOURS. 
(a) INCREASED FLIGHT HOURS.—The Secretary shall 
ensure that not fewer than 95,000 annual flight hours are 
carried out by Air and Marine Operations of U.S. Customs 
and Border Protection. 
(b) UNMANNED AERIAL SYSTEM.—The Secretary shall 
ensure that Air and Marine Operations operate unmanned 
aerial systems on the southern border of the United States 
for not less than 24 hours per day for five days per week. 
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(c) CONTRACT AIR SUPPORT AUTHORIZATION.—The 
Commissioner shall contract for the unfulfilled identified 
air support mission critical hours, as identified by the Chief 
of the U.S. Border Patrol. 
(d) PRIMARY MISSION.—The Commissioner shall en-
sure that— 
(1) the primary missions for Air and Marine 
Operations are to directly support U.S. Border Patrol 
activities along the southern border of the United 
States and Joint Interagency Task Force South oper-
ations in the transit zone; and 
(2) the Executive Assistant Commissioner of Air 
and Marine Operations assigns the greatest priority 
to support missions established by the Commissioner 
to carry out the requirements under this Act. 
(e) HIGH-DEMAND FLIGHT HOUR REQUIREMENTS.— 
In accordance with subsection (d), the Commissioner shall 
ensure that U.S. Border Patrol Sector Chiefs— 
(1) identify critical flight hour requirements; 
and 
(2) direct Air and Marine Operations to support 
requests from Sector Chiefs as their primary mission. 
(f) SMALL UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLES.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Chief of the U.S. Border 
Patrol shall be the operational lead for U.S. Customs 
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and Border Protection’s use of small unmanned aerial 
vehicles for the purpose of meeting the U.S. Border 
Patrol’s unmet flight hour operational requirements 
and to achieve situational awareness and operational 
control. 
(2) COORDINATION.—In carrying out paragraph 
(1), the Chief of the U.S. Border Patrol shall coordi-
nate with the Executive Assistant Commissioner for 
Air and Marine Operations of U.S. Customs and Bor-
der Protection to ensure the safety of other aircraft 
flying in the vicinity of small unmanned aerial vehi-
cles operated by the U.S. Border Patrol. 
(3) DEFINITION.—In this subsection, the term 
‘‘small unmanned aerial vehicle’’ means any un-
manned aerial vehicle operated by U.S. Customs and 
Border Protection weighing less than 55 pounds. 
(4) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Paragraph (3) 
of section 411(e) of the Homeland Security Act of 
2002 (6 U.S.C. 211(e)) is amended— 
(A) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘and’’ 
after the semicolon at the end; 
(B) by redesignating subparagraph (C) as 
subparagraph (D); and 
(C) by inserting after subparagraph (B) the 
following new subparagraph: 
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‘‘(C) carry out the small unmanned aerial 
vehicle requirements pursuant to subsection (f) of 
section 112 of the Border Security for America 
Act of 2017; and’’. 
SEC. 113. CAPABILITY DEPLOYMENT TO SPECIFIC SECTORS 
AND TRANSIT ZONE. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than January 20, 2021, 
the Secretary, in implementing section 102 of the Illegal 
Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 
1996 (as amended by section 111 of this Act), and acting 
through the appropriate component of the Department of 
Homeland Security, shall deploy to each sector or region 
of the southern border and the northern border, in a 
prioritized manner to achieve situational awareness and 
operational control of such borders, the following additional 
capabilities: 
(1) SAN DIEGO SECTOR.—For the San Diego sec-
tor, the following: 
(A) Tower-based surveillance technology. 
(B) Subterranean surveillance and detection 
technologies. 
(C) To increase coastal maritime domain 
awareness, the following: 
(i) Deployable, lighter-than-air surface 
surveillance equipment. 
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(ii) Unmanned aerial vehicles with 
maritime surveillance capability. 
(iii) Maritime patrol aircraft. 
(iv) Coastal radar surveillance sys-
tems. 
(v) Maritime signals intelligence capa-
bilities. 
(D) Ultralight aircraft detection capabili-
ties. 
(E) Advanced unattended surveillance sen-
sors. 
(F) A rapid reaction capability supported 
by aviation assets. 
(G) Mobile vehicle-mounted and man-port-
able surveillance capabilities. 
(H) Man-portable unmanned aerial vehi-
cles. 
(I) Improved agent communications capa-
bilities. 
(2) EL CENTRO SECTOR.—For the El Centro sec-
tor, the following: 
(A) Tower-based surveillance technology. 
(B) Deployable, lighter-than-air ground sur-
veillance equipment. 
(C) Man-portable unmanned aerial vehicles. 
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(D) Ultralight aircraft detection capabili-
ties. 
(E) Advanced unattended surveillance sen-
sors. 
(F) A rapid reaction capability supported 
by aviation assets. 
(G) Man-portable unmanned aerial vehicles. 
(H) Improved agent communications capa-
bilities. 
(3) YUMA SECTOR.—For the Yuma sector, the 
following: 
(A) Tower-based surveillance technology. 
(B) Deployable, lighter-than-air ground sur-
veillance equipment. 
(C) Ultralight aircraft detection capabili-
ties. 
(D) Advanced unattended surveillance sen-
sors. 
(E) A rapid reaction capability supported 
by aviation assets. 
(F) Mobile vehicle-mounted and man-port-
able surveillance systems. 
(G) Man-portable unmanned aerial vehicles. 
(H) Improved agent communications capa-
bilities. 
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(4) TUCSON SECTOR.—For the Tucson sector, the 
following: 
(A) Tower-based surveillance technology. 
(B) Increased flight hours for aerial detec-
tion, interdiction, and monitoring operations ca-
pability. 
(C) Deployable, lighter-than-air ground sur-
veillance equipment. 
(D) Ultralight aircraft detection capabili-
ties. 
(E) Advanced unattended surveillance sen-
sors. 
(F) A rapid reaction capability supported 
by aviation assets. 
(G) Man-portable unmanned aerial vehicles. 
(H) Improved agent communications capa-
bilities. 
(5) EL PASO SECTOR.—For the El Paso sector, 
the following: 
(A) Tower-based surveillance technology. 
(B) Deployable, lighter-than-air ground sur-
veillance equipment. 
(C) Ultralight aircraft detection capabili-
ties. 
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(D) Advanced unattended surveillance sen-
sors. 
(E) Mobile vehicle-mounted and man-port-
able surveillance systems. 
(F) A rapid reaction capability supported 
by aviation assets. 
(G) Mobile vehicle-mounted and man-port-
able surveillance capabilities. 
(H) Man-portable unmanned aerial vehi-
cles. 
(I) Improved agent communications capa-
bilities. 
(6) BIG BEND SECTOR.—For the Big Bend sec-
tor, the following: 
(A) Tower-based surveillance technology. 
(B) Deployable, lighter-than-air ground sur-
veillance equipment. 
(C) Improved agent communications capa-
bilities. 
(D) Ultralight aircraft detection capabili-
ties. 
(E) Advanced unattended surveillance sen-
sors. 
(F) A rapid reaction capability supported 
by aviation assets. 
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(H) Improved agent communications sys-
tems. 
(12) HAVRE SECTOR.—For the Havre sector, the 
following: 
(A) Increased flight hours for aerial detec-
tion, interdiction, and monitoring operations ca-
pability. 
(B) Mobile vehicle-mounted and man-port-
able surveillance capabilities. 
(C) Advanced unattended surveillance sen-
sors. 
(D) Ultralight aircraft detection capabili-
ties. 
(E) Man-portable unmanned aerial vehicles. 
(F) Improved agent communications sys-
tems. 
(13) GRAND
FORKS
SECTOR.—For the Grand 
Forks sector, the following: 
(A) Increased flight hours for aerial detec-
tion, interdiction, and monitoring operations ca-
pability. 
(B) Mobile vehicle-mounted and man-port-
able surveillance capabilities. 
(C) Advanced unattended surveillance sen-
sors. 
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(D) Ultralight aircraft detection capabili-
ties. 
(E) Man-portable unmanned aerial vehicles. 
(F) Improved agent communications sys-
tems. 
(17) HOULTON SECTOR.—For the Houlton sector, 
the following: 
(A) Increased flight hours for aerial detec-
tion, interdiction, and monitoring operations ca-
pability. 
(B) Mobile vehicle-mounted and man-port-
able surveillance capabilities. 
(C) Advanced unattended surveillance sen-
sors. 
(D) Ultralight aircraft detection capabili-
ties. 
(E) Man-portable unmanned aerial vehicles. 
(F) Improved agent communications sys-
tems. 
(18) TRANSIT ZONE.—For the transit zone, the 
following: 
(A) Not later than two years after the date 
of the enactment of this Act, an increase in the 
number of overall cutter, boat, and aircraft hours 
spent conducting interdiction operations over the 
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average number of such hours during the pre-
ceding three fiscal years. 
(B) Increased maritime signals intelligence 
capabilities. 
(C) To increase maritime domain aware-
ness, the following: 
(i) Unmanned aerial vehicles with 
maritime surveillance capability. 
(ii) Increased maritime aviation pa-
trol hours. 
(D) Increased operational hours for mari-
time security components dedicated to joint 
counter-smuggling and interdiction efforts with 
other Federal agencies, including the Deployable 
Specialized Forces of the Coast Guard. 
(E) Coastal radar surveillance systems with 
long range day and night cameras capable of 
providing full maritime domain awareness of the 
United States territorial waters surrounding 
Puerto Rico, Mona Island, Desecheo Island, 
Vieques Island, Culebra Island, Saint Thomas, 
Saint John, and Saint Croix. 
(b) TACTICAL FLEXIBILITY.— 
(1) SOUTHERN
AND
NORTHERN
LAND
BOR-
DERS.— 
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(A) IN GENERAL.—Beginning on January 
20, 2020, or after the Secretary has deployed at 
least 25 percent of the capabilities required in 
each sector specified in subsection (a), whichever 
comes later, the Secretary may deviate from such 
capability deployments if the Secretary deter-
mines that such deviation is required to achieve 
situational awareness or operational control. 
(B) NOTIFICATION.—If the Secretary exer-
cises the authority described in subparagraph 
(A), the Secretary shall, not later than 90 days 
after such exercise, notify the Committee on 
Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of 
the Senate and the Committee on Homeland Se-
curity of the House of Representatives regarding 
the deviation under such subparagraph that is 
the subject of such exercise. If the Secretary 
makes any changes to such deviation, the Sec-
retary shall, not later than 90 days after any 
such change, notify such committees regarding 
such change. 
(2) TRANSIT ZONE.— 
(A) NOTIFICATION.—The Secretary shall no-
tify the Committee on Homeland Security and 
Governmental Affairs of the Senate, the Com-
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mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor-
tation of the Senate, the Committee on Home-
land Security of the House of Representatives, 
and the Committee on Transportation and Infra-
structure of the House of Representatives regard-
ing the capability deployments for the transit 
zone specified in paragraph (18) of subsection 
(a), including information relating to— 
(i) the number and types of assets and 
personnel deployed; and 
(ii) the impact such deployments have 
on the capability of the Coast Guard to con-
duct its mission in the transit zone referred 
to in paragraph (18) of subsection (a). 
(B) ALTERATION.—The Secretary may alter 
the capability deployments referred to in this 
section if the Secretary— 
(i) determines, after consultation with 
the committees referred to in subparagraph 
(A), that such alteration is necessary; and 
(ii) not later than 30 days after mak-
ing a determination under clause (i), noti-
fies the committees referred to in such sub-
paragraph regarding such alteration, in-
cluding information relating to— 
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(I) the number and types of assets 
and personnel deployed pursuant to 
such alteration; and 
(II) the impact such alteration 
has on the capability of the Coast 
Guard to conduct its mission in the 
transit zone referred to in paragraph 
(18) of subsection (a). 
(c) EXIGENT CIRCUMSTANCES.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Notwithstanding subsection 
(b), the Secretary may deploy the capabilities referred 
to in subsection (a) in a manner that is inconsistent 
with the requirements specified in such subsection if, 
after the Secretary has deployed at least 25 percent 
of such capabilities, the Secretary determines that exi-
gent circumstances demand such an inconsistent de-
ployment or that such an inconsistent deployment is 
vital to the national security interests of the United 
States. 
(2) NOTIFICATION.—The Secretary shall notify 
the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of 
Representative and the Committee on Homeland Se-
curity and Governmental Affairs of the Senate not 
later than 30 days after making a determination 
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under paragraph (1). Such notification shall include 
a detailed justification regarding such determination. 
SEC. 114. U.S. BORDER PATROL PHYSICAL INFRASTRUC-
TURE IMPROVEMENTS. 
The Secretary shall upgrade existing physical infra-
structure of the Department of Homeland Security, and 
construct and acquire additional physical infrastructure, 
including— 
(1) U.S. Border Patrol stations; 
(2) U.S. Border Patrol checkpoints; 
(3) mobile command centers; and 
(4) other necessary facilities, structures, and 
properties. 
SEC. 115. U.S. BORDER PATROL ACTIVITIES. 
The Chief of the U.S. Border Patrol shall prioritize 
the deployment of U.S. Border Patrol agents to as close to 
the physical land border as possible, consistent with border 
security enforcement priorities and accessibility to such 
areas. 
SEC. 116. BORDER SECURITY TECHNOLOGY PROGRAM MAN-
AGEMENT. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle C of title IV of the Home-
land Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 231 et seq.) is amended 
by adding at the end the following new section: 
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