Southwest Border Security Technology Improvement Act of 2020

II Calendar No. 625 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION S. 4224 [Report No. 116–322] 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 SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES JULY 20, 2020 Ms. SINEMA (for herself, Mr. CORNYN, and Mr. LANKFORD) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs DECEMBER 14, 2020 Reported by Mr. JOHNSON, with an amendment [Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 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 Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Southwest Border Se- 4 curity Technology Improvement Act of 2020’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:45 Dec 20, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S4224.RS S4224 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 2 •S 4224 RS SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 1 In this Act: 2 (1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT- 3 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com- 4 mittees’’ means— 5 (A) the Committee on Homeland Security 6 and Governmental Affairs of the Senate; and 7 (B) the Committee on Homeland Security 8 of the House of Representatives. 9 (2) DEPARTMENT.—The term ‘‘Department’’ 10 means the Department of Homeland Security. 11 (3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 12 the Secretary of Homeland Security. 13 (4) SOUTHWEST BORDER.—The term ‘‘South- 14 west border’’ means the international land border 15 between the United States and Mexico, including the 16 ports of entry along such border. 17 SEC. 3. SOUTHERN BORDER TECHNOLOGY NEEDS ANAL- 18 YSIS AND UPDATES. 19 (a) TECHNOLOGY NEEDS ANALYSIS.—Not later than 20 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 21 Secretary shall submit, to the appropriate congressional 22 committees, a technology needs analysis for border secu- 23 rity technology along the Southwest border. 24 (b) CONTENTS.—The analysis required under sub- 25 section (a) shall include an assessment of— 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:45 Dec 20, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S4224.RS S4224 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 3 •S 4224 RS (1) the technology needs and gaps along the 1 Southwest border— 2 (A) to prevent terrorists and instruments 3 of terror from entering the United States; 4 (B) to combat and reduce cross-border 5 criminal activity, including, but not limited to— 6 (i) the transport of illegal goods, such 7 as illicit drugs; and 8 (ii) human smuggling and human 9 trafficking; and 10 (C) to facilitate the flow of legal trade 11 across the Southwest border; 12 (2) recent technological advancements in— 13 (A) manned aircraft sensor, communica- 14 tion, and common operating picture technology; 15 (B) unmanned aerial systems and related 16 technology, including counter-unmanned aerial 17 system technology; 18 (C) surveillance technology, including— 19 (i) mobile surveillance vehicles; 20 (ii) associated electronics, including 21 cameras, sensor technology, and radar; 22 (iii) tower-based surveillance tech- 23 nology; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:45 Dec 20, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S4224.RS S4224 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 4 •S 4224 RS (iv) advanced unattended surveillance 1 sensors; and 2 (v) deployable, lighter-than-air, 3 ground surveillance equipment; 4 (D) nonintrusive inspection technology, in- 5 cluding non-X-ray devices utilizing muon to- 6 mography and other advanced detection tech- 7 nology; 8 (E) tunnel detection technology; and 9 (F) communications equipment, includ- 10 ing— 11 (i) radios; 12 (ii) long-term evolution broadband; 13 and 14 (iii) miniature satellites; 15 (3) any other technological advancements that 16 the Secretary determines to be critical to the De- 17 partment’s mission along the Southwest border; 18 (4) whether the use of the technological ad- 19 vances described in paragraphs (2) and (3) will— 20 (A) improve border security; 21 (B) improve the capability of the Depart- 22 ment to accomplish its mission along the South- 23 west border; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:45 Dec 20, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S4224.RS S4224 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 5 •S 4224 RS (C) reduce technology gaps along the 1 Southwest border; and 2 (D) enhance the safety of any officer or 3 agent of the Department or any other Federal 4 agency; 5 (5) the Department’s ongoing border security 6 technology development efforts, including efforts 7 by— 8 (A) U.S. Customs and Border Protection; 9 (B) the Science and Technology Direc- 10 torate; and 11 (C) the technology assessment office of any 12 other operational component; 13 (6) the technology needs for improving border 14 security, such as— 15 (A) information technology or other com- 16 puter or computing systems data capture; 17 (B) biometrics; 18 (C) cloud storage; and 19 (D) intelligence data sharing capabilities 20 among agencies within the Department; 21 (7) any other technological needs or factors, in- 22 cluding border security infrastructure, such as phys- 23 ical barriers or dual-purpose infrastructure, that the 24 Secretary determines should be considered; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:45 Dec 20, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S4224.RS S4224 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 6 •S 4224 RS (8) currently deployed technology or new tech- 1 nology that would improve the Department’s abil- 2 ity— 3 (A) to reasonably achieve operational con- 4 trol and situational awareness along the South- 5 west border; and 6 (B) to collect metrics for securing the bor- 7 der at and between ports of entry, as required 8 under subsections (b) and (c) of section 1092 of 9 division A of the National Defense Authoriza- 10 tion Act for Fiscal Year 2017 (6 U.S.C. 223). 11 (c) UPDATES.— 12 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 13 the submission of the analysis required under sub- 14 section (a), and annually for the following 4 years, 15 the Secretary shall submit an update to such anal- 16 ysis to the appropriate congressional committees. 17 (2) CONTENTS.—Each update required under 18 paragraph (1) shall include a plan for utilizing the 19 resources of the Department to meet the border se- 20 curity technology needs and gaps identified pursuant 21 to subsection (b), including developing or acquiring 22 technologies not currently in use by the Department 23 that would allow the Department to bridge existing 24 border technology gaps along the Southwest border. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:45 Dec 20, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S4224.RS S4224 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 7 •S 4224 RS (d) ITEMS TO BE CONSIDERED.—In compiling the 1 technology needs analysis and updates required under this 2 section, the Secretary shall consider and examine— 3 (1) technology that is deployed and is sufficient 4 for the Department’s use along the Southwest bor- 5 der; 6 (2) technology that is deployed, but is insuffi- 7 cient for the Department’s use along the Southwest 8 border; and 9 (3) technology that is not deployed, but is nec- 10 essary for the Department’s use along the Southwest 11 border; 12 (4) current formal departmental requirements 13 documentation examining current border security 14 threats and challenges faced by any component of 15 the Department; 16 (5) trends and forecasts regarding migration 17 across the Southwest border; 18 (6) the impact on projected staffing and deploy- 19 ment needs for the Department, including staffing 20 needs that may be fulfilled through the use of tech- 21 nology; 22 (7) the needs and challenges faced by employees 23 of the Department who are deployed along the 24 Southwest border; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:45 Dec 20, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S4224.RS S4224 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 8 •S 4224 RS (8) the need to improve cooperation among 1 Federal, State, tribal, local, and Mexican law en- 2 forcement entities to enhance security along the 3 Southwest border; 4 (9) the privacy implications of existing tech- 5 nology and the acquisition and deployment of new 6 technologies and supporting infrastructure, with an 7 emphasis on how privacy risks might be mitigated 8 through the use of technology, training, and policy; 9 (10) the impact of any ongoing public health 10 emergency that impacts the Southwest border; and 11 (11) the ability of, and the needs for, the De- 12 partment to assist with search and rescue efforts for 13 individuals or groups that may be in physical danger 14 or in need of medical assistance. 15 (e) CLASSIFIED FORM.—To the extent possible, the 16 Secretary shall submit the technology needs analysis and 17 updates required under this section in unclassified form, 18 but may submit such documents, or portions of such docu- 19 ments, in classified form if the Secretary determines that 20 such action is appropriate. 21 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 22 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Southwest Border Secu- 23 rity Technology Improvement Act of 2020’’. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:45 Dec 20, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S4224.RS S4224 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 9 •S 4224 RS SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 1 In this Act: 2 (1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT- 3 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional commit- 4 tees’’ means— 5 (A) the Committee on Homeland Security 6 and Governmental Affairs of the Senate; and 7 (B) the Committee on Homeland Security of 8 the House of Representatives. 9 (2) DEPARTMENT.—The term ‘‘Department’’ 10 means the Department of Homeland Security. 11 (3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 12 the Secretary of Homeland Security. 13 (4) SOUTHWEST BORDER.—The term ‘‘Southwest 14 border’’ means the international land border between 15 the United States and Mexico, including the ports of 16 entry along such border. 17 SEC. 3. SOUTHERN BORDER TECHNOLOGY NEEDS ANAL- 18 YSIS AND UPDATES. 19 (a) TECHNOLOGY NEEDS ANALYSIS.—Not later than 20 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Sec- 21 retary shall submit, to the appropriate congressional com- 22 mittees, a technology needs analysis for border security tech- 23 nology along the Southwest border. 24 (b) CONTENTS.—The analysis required under sub- 25 section (a) shall include an assessment of— 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:45 Dec 20, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S4224.RS S4224 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 10 •S 4224 RS (1) the technology needs and gaps along the 1 Southwest border— 2 (A) to prevent terrorists and instruments of 3 terror from entering the United States; 4 (B) to combat and reduce cross-border 5 criminal activity, including, but not limited 6 to— 7 (i) the transport of illegal goods, such 8 as illicit drugs; and 9 (ii) human smuggling and human 10 trafficking; and 11 (C) to facilitate the flow of legal trade 12 across the Southwest border; 13 (2) recent technological advancements in— 14 (A) manned aircraft sensor, communica- 15 tion, and common operating picture technology; 16 (B) unmanned aerial systems and related 17 technology, including counter-unmanned aerial 18 system technology; 19 (C) surveillance technology, including— 20 (i) mobile surveillance vehicles; 21 (ii) associated electronics, including 22 cameras, sensor technology, and radar; 23 (iii) tower-based surveillance tech- 24 nology; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:45 Dec 20, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S4224.RS S4224 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 11 •S 4224 RS (iv) advanced unattended surveillance 1 sensors; and 2 (v) deployable, lighter-than-air, ground 3 surveillance equipment; 4 (D) nonintrusive inspection technology, in- 5 cluding non-X-ray devices utilizing muon tomog- 6 raphy and other advanced detection technology; 7 (E) tunnel detection technology; and 8 (F) communications equipment, includ- 9 ing— 10 (i) radios; 11 (ii) long-term evolution broadband; 12 and 13 (iii) miniature satellites; 14 (3) any other technological advancements that 15 the Secretary determines to be critical to the Depart- 16 ment’s mission along the Southwest border; 17 (4) whether the use of the technological advances 18 described in paragraphs (2) and (3) will— 19 (A) improve border security; 20 (B) improve the capability of the Depart- 21 ment to accomplish its mission along the South- 22 west border; 23 (C) reduce technology gaps along the South- 24 west border; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:45 Dec 20, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S4224.RS S4224 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 12 •S 4224 RS (D) enhance the safety of any officer or 1 agent of the Department or any other Federal 2 agency; 3 (5) the Department’s ongoing border security 4 technology development efforts, including efforts by— 5 (A) U.S. Customs and Border Protection; 6 (B) the Science and Technology Directorate; 7 and 8 (C) the technology assessment office of any 9 other operational component; 10 (6) the technology needs for improving border se- 11 curity, such as— 12 (A) information technology or other com- 13 puter or computing systems data capture; 14 (B) biometrics; 15 (C) cloud storage; and 16 (D) intelligence data sharing capabilities 17 among agencies within the Department; 18 (7) any other technological needs or factors, in- 19 cluding border security infrastructure, such as phys- 20 ical barriers or dual-purpose infrastructure, that the 21 Secretary determines should be considered; and 22 (8) currently deployed technology or new tech- 23 nology that would improve the Department’s abil- 24 ity— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:45 Dec 20, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S4224.RS S4224 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 13 •S 4224 RS (A) to reasonably achieve operational con- 1 trol and situational awareness along the South- 2 west border; and 3 (B) to collect metrics for securing the border 4 at and between ports of entry, as required under 5 subsections (b) and (c) of section 1092 of division 6 A of the National Defense Authorization Act for 7 Fiscal Year 2017 (6 U.S.C. 223). 8 (c) UPDATES.— 9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years after 10 the submission of the analysis required under sub- 11 section (a), and biannually thereafter for the fol- 12 lowing 4 years, the Secretary shall submit an update 13 to such analysis to the appropriate congre [Text truncated for display. 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