HIDALGO, Texas (Border Report) — President Joe Biden signed a new law that requires more congressional scrutiny and oversight over federal border security contracts in an effort to cut costs and improve goods and services for Border Patrol agents.
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The DHS Border Services Contract Review Act was passed by the Senate earlier this month and signed into law by Biden on Dec. 23.
It will prompt contracts that exceed $50 million to undergo congressional scrutiny, and require the DHS Under Secretary for Management to deliver a report assessing contracts for services performed along the U.S.-Mexico border.
It also requires DHS to be a part of congressional briefings on the contracts and to keep lawmakers aware of expensive procurement projects.
“This law will identify new ways to better protect taxpayer dollars and support our Border Patrol agents, CBP officers, and other personnel who work tirelessly to safeguard Texans,” U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, said in a statement.
Cornyn co-sponsored the legislation in the Senate, which passed Dec. 16.
Rep. Josh Brecheen, R-Oklahoma, who co-sponsored the measure in the House, said it will not cost additional taxpayer funds to implement because it does not allow DHS to spend more to give more guidance for procurement contracts or to prepare reports to Congress on the contracts.
“This measure will not cost a dime,” Brecheen promised in March when the measure passed the House. “This is common-sense legislation.”
“This bill will provide needed clarity and oversight for service contracts and helping DHS at the border, where there’s room for improved efficiencies to ensure that taxpayer dollars are used responsibly,” Brecheen said. “Congress must provide the oversight necessary to provide the power to simultaneously assist Border Patrol and also cut back on inefficient spending. Federal contractors have a role within DHS when the federal government cannot meet the requirements necessary to carry out its mission.”
A 2020 report by the Government Accountability Office found that more congressional oversight of DHS service contracts is needed.
“GAO found that DHS and selected components do not consistently plan for the level of federal oversight needed for these contracts because there is no guidance on how to document and update the number of federal personnel needed to conduct oversight,” according to the report.
The report found that from Fiscal Years 2013 to 2018, DHS increased the agency’s reliance on private contractors to provide border security services. The report cited that during that time, DHS obligated about $70.7 billion, or 76 percent, of its $93.7 billion in total contract obligations on services.
A section of border wall in Hidalgo, County. Border wall construction costs, on average $25 million per mile. (Sandra Sanchez/Border Report File Photo)
Contract services that will be subject to congressional review include: detention facilities, transportation services, border security equipment, and those who provide medical care for migrants who cross the Southwest border into the United States.
The new law also requires DHS to develop a strategy and implementation plan to improve contract services as well as the delivery of services along the U.S. border with Mexico.
DHS will also must report to Congress on active contracts and recommend how to improve them.
“DHS has no consistent plan for contract oversight necessary to prevent overlap of contracting. This lack of guidance and overlap potential overlap in functions highlights a glaring need for this report, especially considering the dilemma financially that we find ourselves in today to combat this potential problem,” Brecheen said.
“We need to continue working across the aisle to strengthen border security,” said Sen. Maggie Hassan, D-New Hampshire, who co-sponsored the bill with Cornyn.
“This bipartisan legislation is one additional way to better achieve that mission, and I am pleased that the president has signed it into law. It will help ensure that the Department of Homeland Security and its contractors are operating as effectively as possible at the border,” Hassan said in a statement.
The measure had widespread bipartisan support.
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It “calls upon DHS to identify areas to improve efficiency and cost effectiveness in its use of service contracts along the Southwest border and to develop a strategy and implementation plan to carry out such improvements,” Rep. Troy Carter, D-Louisiana, said in March when he was supporting the bill.
Cornyn, who has been tapped to be on the incoming Senate DOGE Caucus — which is part of President-elect Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) initiative — says this new law will streamline efficiency by doing away with redundant and costly repetitive border security contracts and will ensure there is oversight to negotiate cost-effective contracts.
“As a founding member of the Senate DOGE Caucus, I’m interested in any and every opportunity to streamline government processes, including at our southern border,” Cornyn said.
Sandra Sanchez can be reached at SSanchez@BorderReport.com.
