[House Report 117-232]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


117th Congress     }                                  {       Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session        }                                  {       117-232

======================================================================



 
   DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY BORDER SUPPORT SERVICES CONTRACTS 
                               REVIEW ACT

                                _______
                                

January 21, 2022.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the 
              State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

 Mr. Thompson of Mississippi, from the Committee on Homeland Security, 
                        submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 5683]

    The Committee on Homeland Security, to whom was referred 
the bill (H.R. 5683) to direct the Under Secretary for 
Management of the Department of Homeland Security to assess 
contracts for covered services performed by contractor 
personnel along the borders of the United States, and for other 
purposes, having considered the same, reports favorably thereon 
with amendments and recommends that the bill as amended do 
pass.

                                CONTENTS

                                                                   Page
Purpose and Summary..............................................     3
Background and Need for Legislation..............................     3
Hearings.........................................................     4
Committee Consideration..........................................     4
Committee Votes..................................................     4
Committee Oversight Findings.....................................     4
C.B.O. Estimate, New Budget Authority, Entitlement Authority, and 
  Tax Expenditures...............................................     4
Federal Mandates Statement.......................................     5
Duplicative Federal Programs.....................................     5
Statement of General Performance Goals and Objectives............     5
Congressional Earmarks, Limited Tax Benefits, and Limited Tariff 
  Benefits.......................................................     5
Advisory Committee Statement.....................................     5
Applicability to Legislative Branch..............................     5
Section-by-Section Analysis of the Legislation...................     5

    The amendments are as follows:
  Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the 
following:

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

  This Act may be cited as the ``Department of Homeland Security Border 
Support Services Contracts Review Act''.

SEC. 2. ASSESSMENT OF CONTRACTS FOR COVERED SERVICES BY THE DEPARTMENT 
                    OF HOMELAND SECURITY.

  (a) Report.--
          (1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act, the Under Secretary for Management 
        of the Department of Homeland Security, in consultation with 
        appropriate officials of the Department, shall submit to the 
        appropriate congressional committees a report on active 
        contracts for covered services of the Department awarded on or 
        before September 30, 2021.
          (2) Elements.--The report required under paragraph (1) shall 
        include the following:
                  (A) The criteria used by the Department to determine 
                whether contractor personnel were necessary to assist 
                the Department in carrying out its mission along the 
                United States land border with Mexico.
                  (B) An analysis of the purpose, quantity, and 
                location of contractor personnel to perform covered 
                services of the Department with respect to 
                effectively--
                          (i) addressing mission needs along such 
                        border; and
                          (ii) enhancing the capability of Department 
                        personnel to perform primary mission 
                        responsibilities, including the number of 
                        Department personnel not removed from their 
                        primary mission responsibilities by reason of 
                        the performance of covered services by 
                        contractor personnel.
                  (C) An assessment with respect to the benefits of 
                contractor personnel performing covered services, 
                including whether the performance of such services by 
                contractor personnel is more efficient or effective 
                than the performance of such services by Department 
                employees.
                  (D) An assessment of opportunities to increase the 
                efficiency of the Department with respect to 
                contracting, including whether Department-wide contract 
                vehicles for covered services would be the most cost 
                effective option for the performance of covered 
                services.
                  (E) A strategy to improve the procurement and 
                delivery of covered services through contracts during 
                the five-year period beginning on the date of the 
                enactment of this Act to achieve the best value for the 
                Department through the use of full and open competition 
                and to ensure no lapse in the performance of such 
                services.
                  (F) Recommendations based on findings resulting from 
                the analysis and assessments required in subparagraphs 
                (B) through (D).
                  (G) Any other information relating to contracts for 
                covered services that the Under Secretary determines to 
                be appropriate.
  (b) Implementation Plan.--
          (1) In general.--The Under Secretary for Management shall 
        transmit with the report required under subsection (a) a plan 
        to implement the recommendations and strategy contained in such 
        report to enhance coordination, minimize overlap, and increase 
        cost effectiveness among contracts for covered services.
          (2) Briefing.--Not later than 180 days after the date on 
        which the Under Secretary for Management submits the report 
        required under paragraph (1) of subsection (a) and the plan 
        required under paragraph (1) and every 180 days thereafter 
        until the plan is fully implemented, the Under Secretary, or 
        the designee of the Under Secretary, shall provide a briefing 
        to the appropriate congressional committees with respect to the 
        status of such implementation.
  (c) Definitions.--In this section:
          (1) The term ``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
                  (A) the Committee on Homeland Security of the House 
                of Representatives; and
                  (B) the Committee on Homeland Security and 
                Governmental Affairs of the Senate.
          (2) The term ``contract for covered services'' means a 
        contract (with a total contract value of $50,000,000 or more, 
        inclusive of contract options) relating to the procurement of 
        covered services for the Department of Homeland Security.
          (3) The term ``covered services'' means, with respect to the 
        United States land border with Mexico, any service, including 
        related to border security, provided by a contractor to be used 
        by the Department.

    Amend the title so as to read:
    A bill to direct the Under Secretary for Management of the 
Department of Homeland Security to assess contracts for covered 
services performed by contractor personnel along the United 
States land border with Mexico, and for other purposes.

                          PURPOSE AND SUMMARY

    H.R. 5683, the ``Department of Homeland Security Border 
Support Services Contracts Review Act,'' directs the Under 
Secretary for Management (USM) of the Department of Homeland 
Security (DHS) to assess contracts for covered services 
performed by contractor personnel along the border of the 
United States. This bill requires the USM to submit to Congress 
a report with recommendations on active contracts utilized for 
border support services, including a strategy to improve the 
procurement and delivery of services through such contracts. 
Additionally, H.R. 5683 also requires the USM to provide 
Congress with an implementation plan for the recommendations 
and strategy contained in the report. Lastly, this bill 
requires the USM, or designee, to brief Congress on the status 
of the implementation plan.

                  BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

    In recent years, the volume of migrant encounters along the 
U.S.-Mexico border has been heavy, necessitating DHS to secure 
goods and services from contractors to care for migrants taken 
into custody by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).\1\ 
Unfortunately, DHS has had issues with respect to awarding such 
contracts. For example, the DHS Office of Inspector General 
(OIG) found that DHS' response to the 2019 surge in migrant 
encounters on the Southwest border required ``forethought, 
multi-component planning, and a coordinated response, which 
ultimately did not occur.''\2\ The OIG found that the surge 
stretched CBP operations and strained the resources of DHS 
partners; as a result, there was severe overcrowding and 
prolonged migrant detention at CBP holding facilities. Despite 
receiving supplemental funding from Congress to address its 
operational needs for the surge, by the time CBP contracted for 
additional facilities to house migrants, the bulk of the surge 
had passed.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\John Gramlich and Alissa Scheller, ``What's happening at the 
U.S.-Mexico border in 7 charts,'' Pew Research Center, (Nov. 9, 2021), 
available at https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2021/11/09/whats-
happening-at-the-u-s-mexico-border-in-7-charts/.
    \2\``DHS' Fragmented Approach to Immigration Enforcement and Poor 
Planning Resulted in Extended Migrant Detention during the 2019 Surge 
(OIG-21-29),'' DHS Office of Inspector General, (Mar. 18, 2021), 
available at https://www.oig.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/assets/2021-
03/OIG-21-29-Mar21.pdf.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Further, in September 2020, the DHS OIG issued a management 
alert ``to advise the Department of Homeland Security and U.S. 
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) of the urgency and short 
timeframe to award a new medical services contract to support 
operations on the Southwest border.''\3\ At that time, CBP had 
less than 30 days before its contract for medical services was 
set to expire. The OIG stated, ``A lapse in this contract could 
jeopardize the health and safety of migrants in CBP custody, as 
well as that of U.S. Border Patrol agents, CBP officers, and 
staff, especially during the current pandemic.''\4\ Due to 
planning delays, CBP issued a bridge contract--a noncompetitive 
contract with the incumbent contractor--preventing the 
government from receiving the benefits of full and open 
competition.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \3\``Management Alert--CBP Needs to Award A Medical Services 
Contract Quickly to Ensure No Gap in Services (OIG-20-70),'' DHS Office 
of Inspector General, (Sept. 3, 2020), available at https://
www.oig.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/assets/Mga/2020/oig-20-70-sep20-
mgmtalert.pdf, at p. 3.
    \4\Id.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Having better oversight and knowledge of contract 
utilization and support needs will help ensure that DHS has the 
appropriate resources in place to care for migrants and 
minimize the need to remove DHS personnel from their area of 
responsibility.

                                HEARINGS

    For the purposes of clause 3(c)(6) of rule XIII of the 
Rules of the House of Representatives, the following hearings 
were used to develop H.R. 5683:
           On March 17, 2021, the Committee on Homeland 
        Security held a hearing entitled, ``The Way Forward on 
        Homeland Security.'' The Committee received testimony 
        from the Hon. Alejandro Mayorkas, Secretary of Homeland 
        Security.
           On June 10, 2021, the Homeland Security 
        Committee's Border Security, Facilitation, and 
        Operations Subcommittee held a hearing entitled, 
        ``Unaccompanied Children at the Border: Federal 
        Response and the Way Forward.'' The Subcommittee 
        received testimony from Mr. David Shahoulian, Assistant 
        Secretary, Border Security and Immigration, DHS; Mr. 
        Benjamine Huffman, Executive Assistant Commissioner, 
        Enterprise Services, CBP, DHS; Ms. Katherine D. 
        Dueholm, Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Western 
        Hemisphere Affairs, Department of State; and Mr. 
        Patrick J. Lechleitner, Acting Executive Associate 
        Director, Homeland Security Investigations, U.S. 
        Immigration and Customs Enforcement, DHS.

                        COMMITTEE CONSIDERATION

    The Committee met on October 26, 2021, a quorum being 
present, to consider H.R. 5683 and ordered the measure to be 
favorably reported to the House, as amended, by voice vote.

                            COMMITTEE VOTES

    Clause 3(b) of rule XIII requires the Committee to list the 
recorded votes on the motion to report legislation and 
amendments thereto.
    No recorded votes were requested during consideration of 
H.R. 5683.

                      COMMITTEE OVERSIGHT FINDINGS

    In compliance with clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII, the 
Committee advises that the findings and recommendations of the 
Committee, based on oversight activities under clause 2(b)(1) 
of rule X, are incorporated in the descriptive portions of this 
report.

CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE ESTIMATE, NEW BUDGET AUTHORITY, ENTITLEMENT 
                    AUTHORITY, AND TAX EXPENDITURES

    With respect to the requirements of clause 3(c)(2) of rule 
XIII and section 308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 
1974, and with respect to the requirements of clause 3(c)(3) of 
rule XIII and section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 
1974, the Committee has requested but not received from the 
Director of the Congressional Budget Office a statement as to 
whether this bill contains any new budget authority, spending 
authority, credit authority, or an increase or decrease in 
revenues or tax expenditures.

                       FEDERAL MANDATES STATEMENT

    An estimate of Federal mandates prepared by the Director of 
the Congressional Budget Office pursuant to section 423 of the 
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act was not made available to the 
Committee in time for the filing of this report. The Chairman 
of the Committee shall cause such estimate to be printed in the 
Congressional Record upon its receipt by the Committee.

                      DUPLICATIVE FEDERAL PROGRAMS

    Pursuant to clause 3(c) of rule XIII, the Committee finds 
that H.R. 5683 does not contain any provision that establishes 
or reauthorizes a program known to be duplicative of another 
Federal program.

         STATEMENT OF GENERAL PERFORMANCE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

    Pursuant to clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII, the objective of 
H.R. 5683 is to enhance coordination, minimize overlap, and to 
increase cost effectiveness among those contracts for covered 
services performed by contractor personnel along the border of 
the United States.

   CONGRESSIONAL EARMARKS, LIMITED TAX BENEFITS, AND LIMITED TARIFF 
                                BENEFITS

    In compliance with rule XXI, this bill, as reported, 
contains no congressional earmarks, limited tax benefits, or 
limited tariff benefits as defined in clause 9(d), 9(e), or 
9(f) of rule XXI.

                      ADVISORY COMMITTEE STATEMENT

    No advisory committees within the meaning of section 5(b) 
of the Federal Advisory Committee Act were created by this 
legislation.

                  APPLICABILITY TO LEGISLATIVE BRANCH

    The Committee finds that H.R. 5683 does not relate to the 
terms and conditions of employment or access to public services 
or accommodations within the meaning of section 102(b)(3) of 
the Congressional Accountability Act.

             SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS OF THE LEGISLATION

    Section 1. Short Title.
    This section states that the Act may be cited as the 
``Department of Homeland Security Border Support Services 
Contracts Review Act''.
    Sec. 2. Assessment of Contracts for Covered Services by the 
Department of Homeland Security.
    This section requires that not later than 180 days after 
the date of the enactment of this Act, the USM for DHS shall 
submit to the House Committee on Homeland Security and Senate 
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs a 
report on active contracts with a value of $50 million or more 
for services related to the United States land border with 
Mexico awarded on or before September 30, 2021. The required 
report shall include an analysis of the effectiveness of 
contracts in meeting mission needs, assessments of the benefits 
of using contracts and opportunities to increase efficiency, a 
strategy to improve the procurement and delivery of services 
through contracts, and recommendations based on findings 
resulting from the analysis and assessments.
     This section also requires that the USM transmit an 
implementation plan with the required report that includes a 
plan to implement the recommendations and strategy contained in 
the report to enhance coordination, minimize overlap, and 
increase cost effectiveness among contracts.
    Further, this section requires that the USM brief the House 
Committee on Homeland Security and Senate Committee on Homeland 
Security and Governmental Affairs not later than 180 days after 
submission of the required report and implementation plan, and 
every 180 days thereafter until the plan is fully implemented.

                                  [all]