Title: Southwest Border Security Technology Improvement Act of 2020
Policy area: Immigration

Summary:
Southwest Border Security Technology Improvement Act of 2020
This bill requires the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to report to Congress an analysis of border security technology along the Southwest border.
The report shall address the technology DHS needs to (1) prevent terrorists from entering the United States, (2) reduce cross-border criminal activity such as drug smuggling, and (3) facilitate legal trade flow. The report shall also address recent technological advancements and assess whether such advancements can help achieve these goals.
DHS shall submit the report within a year of this bill's enactment and provide periodic updates for six more years.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7944 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 7944

  To require the Secretary of Homeland Security to assess technology 
  needs along the Southern border and develop a strategy for bridging 
                               such gaps.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             August 4, 2020

 Ms. Torres Small of New Mexico (for herself, Mr. McCaul, Ms. Slotkin, 
and Mr. Cloud) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                     Committee on Homeland Security

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To require the Secretary of Homeland Security to assess technology 
  needs along the Southern border and develop a strategy for bridging 
                               such gaps.

    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 ``Southwest Border Security Technology 
Improvement Act of 2020''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (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.

SEC. 3. 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) Classified 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.
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