[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1598 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1598

 To require the Secretary of Homeland Security to issue a strategy to 
  improve hiring and retention of U.S. Customs and Border Protection 
      personnel in rural or remote areas, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 7, 2019

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

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To require the Secretary of Homeland Security to issue a strategy to 
  improve hiring and retention of U.S. Customs and Border Protection 
      personnel in rural or remote areas, 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 ``U.S. Customs and Border Protection 
Rural and Remote Hiring and Retention Strategy Act of 2019''.

SEC. 2. STRATEGY.

    (a) In General.--Not later than one year after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security, acting 
through the Chief Human Capital Officer of the Department of Homeland 
Security and the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, 
shall issue a strategy and implementation plan, including benchmarks, 
to improve the hiring and retention of individuals by the Commissioner 
in rural or remote areas.
    (b) Considerations.--The strategy required under subsection (a) 
shall take into consideration the following:
            (1) Feedback from individuals who are U.S. Customs and 
        Border Protection candidates or new hires at locations in rural 
        or remote areas, including feedback on the quality of life in 
        such areas for new hires and their families.
            (2) Feedback from U.S. Customs and Border Protection 
        personnel, other than new hires, who are stationed at locations 
        in rural or remote areas, including feedback on the quality of 
        life in such areas for such personnel and their families.
            (3) An assessment of existing Federal programs, including 
        financial incentives and other compensation-based 
        flexibilities, regarding how to most effectively aid spouses 
        and families of individuals who are candidates or new hires in 
        a rural or remote area.
            (4) An assessment of Department of Homeland Security 
        internship programs and the usefulness of such programs in 
        improving hiring by the Secretary of Homeland Security in rural 
        or remote areas.
    (c) Plan.--The implementation plan required under subsection (a) 
shall--
            (1) include a pilot or other program, as appropriate, to 
        address hiring challenges faced by U.S. Customs and Border 
        Protection in rural or remote areas; and
            (2) enhance strategic recruiting efforts of U.S. Customs 
        and Border Protection through relationships with institutions 
        of higher education (as such term is defined in section 102 of 
        the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002)), veterans 
        transition and employment centers, and job placement programs 
        in regions that could assist in filling positions in rural or 
        remote areas.
    (d) Report to Congress.--Beginning on the date that is one year 
after the date of issuance of the strategy and implementation plan 
required under subsection (a) and for four years thereafter, the 
Secretary of Homeland Security shall report to the Committee on 
Homeland Security of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 
Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate on the extent 
to which such strategy and implementation plan has improved the hiring 
and retention by U.S. Customs and Border Protection of employees in 
rural or remote areas.
    (e) Rural or Remote Areas Defined.--For purposes of this section, 
the term ``rural or remote areas'' means areas within the United States 
that are not within an area defined and designated as urbanized areas 
by the Bureau of the Census in the most recently completed decennial 
census.
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