Security First Act
Bill: H.R.812 | Sponsor: Rep. Gonzales, Tony (R-TX)
Policy area: Immigration

Summary:
Security First Act
This bill provides statutory authorization for the Operation Stonegarden program from FY2022 through FY2025 and contains other provisions related to border security. (Operation Stonegarden provides grants to enhance the border security capabilities of state, local, and tribal governments.)
From FY2022 through FY2025, the money from unreported monetary instruments seized from individuals crossing the U.S.-Mexico border and transferred into the Department of the Treasury general fund shall be made available without further appropriation to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to fund Operation Stonegarden.
DHS shall report to Congress on (1) DHS hiring practices from 2017 to 2020, and (2) whether certain Mexican drug cartels meet the criteria to be designated as foreign terrorist organizations. DHS shall also periodically report to Congress about the technology needed to secure the U.S.-Mexico land border.


To authorize certain appropriations for certain fiscal years for 
             Operation Stonegarden, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Security First Act''.

SEC. 2. OPERATION STONEGARDEN APPROPRIATIONS AND TRUST FUND.

    (a) Certain Appropriations.--There is authorized to be appropriated 
for each of fiscal years 2022 through 2025 $180,000,000 for the 
Operation Stonegarden grant program, and not less than $60,000,000 for 
each of fiscal years 2022 through 2025 to procure technology and 
equipment, including communications equipment, sensors, and drone 
technology.
    (b) Operation Stonegarden Trust Fund.--
            (1) Creation of trust fund.--There is established in the 
        Treasury of the United States a trust fund to be known as the 
        ``Operation Stonegarden Trust Fund'' (referred to in this 
        section as the ``Trust Fund''), consisting of amounts 
        transferred to the Trust Fund under paragraph (2).
            (2) Transfers to trust fund.--The Secretary of the Treasury 
        shall transfer to the Trust Fund, from the general fund of the 
        Treasury, for fiscal year 2022 and each fiscal year thereafter 
        until 2025, an amount equivalent to the amount received into 
        the general fund during that fiscal year attributable to 
        unreported monetary instruments seized by U.S. Customs and 
        Border Protection from individuals crossing the United States 
        and Mexico border.
            (3) Use of trust fund.--Amounts in the Trust Fund shall be 
        made available to the Secretary of Homeland Security, without 
        further appropriation, to fund the Operation Stonegarden grant 
        program.
            (4) Limitation.--The Secretary may only expend funds made 
        available from the Trust Fund to carry out the activity 
        described in paragraph (3).
            (5) Monetary instrument.--
                    (A) In general.--Except as provided in subparagraph 
                (B), a monetary instrument means--
                            (i) coin or currency of the United States 
                        or of any other country;
                            (ii) traveler's checks in any form;
                            (iii) negotiable instruments, including 
                        checks, promissory notes, and money orders in 
                        bearer form, endorsed without restriction, made 
                        out to a fictitious payee, or otherwise in such 
                        form that title thereto passes upon delivery;
                            (iv) incomplete instruments, including 
                        checks, promissory notes, and money orders that 
                        are signed but on which the name of the payee 
                        has been omitted; and
                            (v) securities or stock in bearer form or 
                        otherwise in such form that title thereto 
                        passes upon delivery.
                    (B) Exception.--A monetary instrument referred to 
                in subparagraph (A) does not include--
                            (i) checks or money orders made payable to 
                        the order of a named person which have not been 
                        endorsed or which bear restrictive 
                        endorsements;
                            (ii) warehouse receipts; or
                            (iii) bills of lading.

SEC. 3. REPORT RELATING TO HIRING PRACTICES OF THE DEPARTMENT FROM 2016 
              TO 2020.

    (a) Report.--Not later than 120 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the appropriate 
congressional committees a report relating to the hiring practices of 
the Department that includes--
            (1) information relating to the recruiting practices of the 
        Department from 2017 to 2020; and
            (2) recommendations with respect to improving the 
        operational capacity of the Department workforce.
    (b) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
        ``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
                    (A) the Committee on Homeland Security and the 
                Committee on Appropriations of the House of 
                Representatives; and
                    (B) the Committee on Homeland Security and 
                Governmental Affairs and the Committee on 
                Appropriations of the Senate.
            (2) Department.--The term ``Department'' means the 
        Department of Homeland Security.
            (3) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Homeland Security.

SEC. 4. DESIGNATION OF MEXICAN DRUG CARTELS AS TERRORIST ORGANIZATIONS.

    (a) Report.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 60 days after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the 
        appropriate congressional committees a report on whether 
        Mexican drug cartels meet the criteria for designation as 
        foreign terrorist organizations.
            (2) Mexican drug cartels described.--The Mexican drug 
        cartels described in this paragraph are each of the following:
                    (A) Jalisco New Generation Cartel.
                    (B) Sinaloa Cartel.
                    (C) Juarez Cartel.
                    (D) Tijuana Cartel.
                    (E) Gulf Cartel.
                    (F) Los Zetas.
    (b) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
        ``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
                    (A) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the 
                Committee on Homeland Security of the House of 
                Representatives; and
                    (B) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the 
                Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs 
                of the Senate.
            (2) Foreign terrorist organization.--The term ``foreign 
        terrorist organization'' has the meaning given the term in 
        section 219 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
        1189).
            (3) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of State.

SEC. 5. SOUTHERN BORDER TECHNOLOGY NEEDS ANALYSIS AND UPDATES.

    (a) Technology Needs Analysis.--Not later than 1 year after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit, to the 
appropriate congressional committees, a technology needs analysis for 
border security technology along the Southwest border.
    (b) Contents.--The analysis required under subsection (a) shall 
include an assessment of--
            (1) the technology needs and gaps along the Southwest 
        border--
                    (A) to prevent terrorists and instruments of terror 
                from entering the United States;
                    (B) to combat and reduce cross-border criminal 
                activity, including, but not limited to--
                            (i) the transport of illegal goods, such as 
                        illicit drugs; and
                            (ii) human smuggling and human trafficking; 
                        and
                    (C) to facilitate the flow of legal trade across 
                the Southwest border;
            (2) recent technological advancements in--
                    (A) manned aircraft sensor, communication, and 
                common operating picture technology;
                    (B) unmanned aerial systems and related technology, 
                including counter-unmanned aerial system technology;
                    (C) surveillance technology, including--
                            (i) mobile surveillance vehicles;
                            (ii) associated electronics, including 
                        cameras, sensor technology, and radar;
                            (iii) tower-based surveillance technology;
                            (iv) advanced unattended surveillance 
                        sensors; and
                            (v) deployable, lighter-than-air, ground 
                        surveillance equipment;
                    (D) nonintrusive inspection technology, including 
                non-X-ray devices utilizing muon tomography and other 
                advanced detection technology;
                    (E) tunnel detection technology; and
                    (F) communications equipment, including--
                            (i) radios;
                            (ii) long-term evolution broadband; and
                            (iii) miniature satellites;
            (3) any other technological advancements that the Secretary 
        determines to be critical to the Department's mission along the 
        Southwest border;
            (4) whether the use of the technological advances described 
        in paragraphs (2) and (3) will--
                    (A) improve border security;
                    (B) improve the capability of the Department to 
                accomplish its mission along the Southwest border;
                    (C) reduce technology gaps along the Southwest 
                border; and
                    (D) enhance the safety of any officer or agent of 
                the Department or any other Federal agency;
            (5) the Department's ongoing border security technology 
        development efforts, including efforts by--
                    (A) U.S. Customs and Border Protection;
                    (B) the Science and Technology Directorate; and
                    (C) the technology assessment office of any other 
                operational component;
            (6) the technology needs for improving border security, 
        such as--
                    (A) information technology or other computer or 
                computing systems data capture;
                    (B) biometrics;
                    (C) cloud storage; and
                    (D) intelligence data sharing capabilities among 
                agencies within the Department;
            (7) any other technological needs or factors, including 
        border security infrastructure, such as physical barriers or 
        dual-purpose infrastructure, that the Secretary determines 
        should be considered; and
            (8) currently deployed technology or new technology that 
        would improve the Department's ability--
                    (A) to reasonably achieve operational control and 
                situational awareness along the Southwest border; and
                    (B) to collect metrics for securing the border at 
                and between ports of entry, as required under 
                subsections (b) and (c) of section 1092 of division A 
                of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal 
                Year 2017 (6 U.S.C. 223).
    (c) Updates.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 2 years after the 
        submission of the analysis required under subsection (a), and 
        biannually thereafter for the following 4 years, the Secretary 
        shall submit an update to such analysis to the appropriate 
        congressional committees.
            (2) Contents.--Each update required under paragraph (1) 
        shall include a plan for utilizing the resources of the 
        Department to meet the border security technology needs and 
        gaps identified pursuant to subsection (b), including 
        developing or acquiring technologies not currently in use by 
        the Department that would allow the Department to bridge 
        existing border technology gaps along the Southwest border.
    (d) Items To Be Considered.--In compiling the technology needs 
analysis and updates required under this section, the Secretary shall 
consider and examine--
            (1) technology that is deployed and is sufficient for the 
        Department's use along the Southwest border;
            (2) technology that is deployed, but is insufficient for 
        the Department's use along the Southwest border;
            (3) technology that is not deployed, but is necessary for 
        the Department's use along the Southwest border;
            (4) current formal departmental requirements documentation 
        examining current border security threats and challenges faced 
        by any component of the Department;
            (5) trends and forecasts regarding migration across the 
        Southwest border;
            (6) the impact on projected staffing and deployment needs 
        for the Department, including staffing needs that may be 
        fulfilled through the use of technology;
            (7) the needs and challenges faced by employees of the 
        Department who are deployed along the Southwest border;
            (8) the need to improve cooperation among Federal, State, 
        Tribal, local, and Mexican law enforcement entities to enhance 
        security along the Southwest border;
            (9) the privacy implications of existing technology and the 
        acquisition and deployment of new technologies and supporting 
        infrastructure, with an emphasis on how privacy risks might be 
        mitigated through the use of technology, training, and policy;
            (10) the impact of any ongoing public health emergency that 
        impacts Department operations along the Southwest border; and
            (11) the ability of, and the needs for, the Department to 
        assist with search and rescue efforts for individuals or groups 
        that may be in physical danger or in need of medical 
        assistance.
    (e) Form.--To the extent possible, the Secretary shall submit the 
technology needs analysis and updates required under this section in 
unclassified form, but may submit such documents, or portions of such 
documents, in classified form if the Secretary determines that such 
action is appropriate.
    (f) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
        ``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
                    (A) the Committee on Homeland Security and 
                Governmental Affairs of the Senate; and
                    (B) the Committee on Homeland Security of the House 
                of Representatives.
            (2) Department.--The term ``Department'' means the 
        Department of Homeland Security.
            (3) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Homeland Security.
            (4) Southwest border.--The term ``Southwest border'' means 
        the international land border between the United States and 
        Mexico, including the ports of entry along such border.
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