CBP Considering Feasibility of Scanning All Commercial Trucks
CBP is looking at the feasibility of scanning all commercial trucks coming into the U.S. with non-intrusive inspection (NII) technology, said Office of Field Operations Deputy Executive Assistant Commissioner John Wagner at a House Appropriations Homeland Security Subcommittee hearing June 13 (here). Asked about the use of non-intrusive technology, Wagner said "we are looking at some things with commercial truck traffic and being able to run trucks through, 100 percent through, the scanning." The agency will "look at what the impact could be, and could we actually accomplish that in the right amount of time," he said. Wagner also emphasized CBP’s requested increase to fund its Office of Trade, which he said should fulfill the office’s need to hire more employees to help with analysis, rulemaking and “regulatory work.” The budget (here) requests $263.3 million for the Office of Trade in fiscal year 2018, a $51.5 million increase over the annualized fiscal year 2017 continuing resolution funding level.
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During the hearing, which focused on CBP’s and ICE’s fiscal 2018 budget requests, subcommittee Chairman John Carter, R-Texas, called for a greater focus from CBP on determining why it hasn’t put more emphasis on personnel and technology at ports of entry, noting that a vast majority of illegal drugs enter the U.S. through them. Wagner highlighted that CBP’s budget for fiscal 2018 (see 1705250030) requests a more than $54 million increase for National Targeting Center analytical modeling specifically. This should help CBP build better analytical systems, he said. Rep. Chuck Fleischmann, R-Tenn., expressed pleasure at CBP’s proposed $109.2 million increase to its NII inspection program for fiscal 2018, and asked Wagner whether it would make sense to use the technology to scan all passenger vehicles coming through land ports. Wagner said it would be too challenging due to the time, resources, and physical logistics that would be associated with such an activity.
There's some concern that the agency might install outmoded NII systems in at least one port of entry, Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, said. Cuellar requested that the government put the latest NII technology at the Port of Laredo after a May 21 storm damaged the Laredo World Trade Bridge border crossing, which sees 8,000 crossings daily (see 1705240019). “I’ve been hearing that we’re not going to get the best technology, and I’d like to give you that opportunity,” Cuellar said. Wagner said he would look into it.