[Senate Report 118-255]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 656
118th Congress } { Report
SENATE
2d Session } { 118-255
_______________________________________________________________________
SHADOW WOLVES IMPROVEMENT ACT
__________
R E P O R T
of the
COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS UNITED STATES
SENATE
to accompany
S. 4676
TO ENHANCE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE SHADOW
WOLVES PROGRAM, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
December 2, 2024.--Ordered to be printed
_______
U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
59-010 WASHINGTON : 2025
COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS
GARY C. PETERS, Michigan, Chairman
THOMAS R. CARPER, Delaware RAND PAUL, Kentucky
MAGGIE HASSAN, New Hampshire RON JOHNSON, Wisconsin
KYRSTEN SINEMA, Arizona JAMES LANKFORD, Oklahoma
JACKY ROSEN, Nevada MITT ROMNEY, Utah
JON OSSOFF, Georgia RICK SCOTT, Florida
RICHARD BLUMENTHAL, Connecticut JOSH HAWLEY, Missouri
LAPHONZA R. BUTLER, California ROGER MARSHALL, Kansas
David M. Weinberg, Staff Director
Alan S. Kahn, Chief Counsel
Christopher J. Mulkins, Director of Homeland Security
Katie A. Conley, Senior Professional Staff Member
William E. Henderson III, Minority Staff Director
Christina N. Salazar, Minority Chief Counsel
Andrew J. Hopkins, Minority Counsel
Megan M. Krynen, Minority Professional Staff Member
Laura W. Kilbride, Chief Clerk
Calendar No. 656
118th Congress } { Report
SENATE
2d Session } { 118-255
======================================================================
SHADOW WOLVES IMPROVEMENT ACT
_______
December 2, 2024.--Ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Peters, from the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs, submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany S. 4676]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs, to which was referred the bill (S. 4676) to enhance
the effectiveness of the Shadow Wolves Program, and for other
purposes, having considered the same, reports favorably thereon
with an amendment, in the nature of a substitute, and
recommends that the bill, as amended, do pass.
CONTENTS
Page
I. Purpose and Summary.......................................... 1
II. Background and Need for the Legislation...................... 2
III. Legislative History.......................................... 3
IV. Section-by-Section Analysis of the Bill, as Reported......... 4
V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact.............................. 4
VI. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate.................... 5
VII. Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported........ 6
I. Purpose and Summary
S. 4676, the Shadow Wolves Improvement Act, amends
requirements of the Shadow Wolves Program to authorize the
Director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to
noncompetitively convert those employed as Shadow Wolves from
the excepted service to the competitive service upon completion
of three years of service.\1\ It also amends the Homeland
Security Act of 2002 to require the Director to specify the
mission and goals of the Shadow Wolves Program and make updates
to the strategy that were previously required by the Shadow
Wolves Enhancement Act. It requires the ICE Director to
determine the number of special agents needed to staff the
Shadow Wolves Program nationally and the knowledge, skills, and
abilities required for such agents. It further requires the ICE
Director to provide written information regarding the
reclassification of positions to each Tactical Officer
currently employed in the Shadow Wolves Program. The Director
is also directed to develop a plan for recruitment and create
criteria for expanding the Shadow Wolves Program to additional
tribal lands. The Director is also required to report to
Congress within one year describing the progress made towards
the implementation of this bill and of the Shadow Wolves
Enhancement Act.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\Pub. L. 117-113.
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II. Background and Need for the Legislation
The participation of the Tohono O'odham Nation in federal
law enforcement at the border traces back to a 1974 effort to
create a native hiring preference for patrol units that operate
on Tribal lands.\2\ Shadow Wolves are members of the Tohono
O'odham Nation who work for the Homeland Security
Investigations (HSI) division of ICE.\3\ To be eligible for the
program, individuals must have at least one-quarter Native
American ancestry, which is determined and approved by the
Tohono O'odham Nation.\4\
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\2\House Committee on Government Operations, Subcommittee on
Legislation and Military Operations, Law Enforcement on the Southwest
Border (Review of Reorganization Plan No. 2 of 1973 and Related
Developments) 93rd Cong. (July 10-11, 16, Aug. 14, 1974) (H. Hrg. 37-
786).
\3\Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security
Investigations, Shadow Wolves (www.dhs.gov/hsi/shadow-
wolves#::text=The%20Shadow%20Wolves%20are%20the,of%20land
%20shared%20with%20Mexico) (accessed Oct. 17, 2024).
\4\Government Accountability Office, U.S. Immigration and Customs
Enforcement: Improvements Needed to Workforce and Expansion Plans for
Unit of Native American Law Enforcement Personnel (GAO-24-106385) (Jan.
2024).
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The Tohono O'odham Nation spans over 2.7 million acres in
southern Arizona's Sonoran Desert, including 62 miles along the
U.S.-Mexico border.\5\ The Tohono O'odham Nation straddles the
U.S.-Mexico border, stretching into the Mexican state of
Sonora.\6\ Both the Tohono O'odham Nation and U.S. Border
Patrol have faced challenges related to transnational criminal
organized crime in their territory.\7\ The Shadow Wolves unit
has proven to be highly effective in disrupting cross-border
smuggling activities on Tribal lands. Between 2010 and 2020,
Shadow Wolves led or participated in interdiction and
investigative efforts resulting in 437 drug- and immigration-
related arrests and the seizure of more than 117,264 pounds of
drugs, 45 weapons, 251 vehicles and $847,928 in U.S. currency.
Shadow Wolves are also a key component of the Native American
Targeted Investigations of Violent Enterprises (NATIVE) Task
Force, a High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA)
initiative working to disrupt and dismantle drug trafficking
organizations operating within the Tohono O'odham Nation.\8\
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\5\Tohono O'odham Nation, History and Culture (www.tonation-
nsn.gov/location/) (accessed Oct. 17, 2024); Tohono O'odham Nation, No
Wall, Background (www.tonation-nsn.gov/nowall/) (accessed October 17,
2024).
\6\Tohono O'odham Nation, No Wall, Background (www.tonation-
nsn.gov/nowall/) (accessed October 17, 2024).
\7\Government Accountability Office, U.S. Immigration and Customs
Enforcement: Improvements Needed to Workforce and Expansion Plans for
Unit of Native American Law Enforcement Personnel.
\8\Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security
Investigations, Shadow Wolves (www.dhs.gov/hsi/shadow-
wolves#::text=The%20Shadow%20Wolves%20are%20the,of%20land
%20shared%20with%20Mexico) (accessed Oct. 17, 2024).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Signed into law in the 117th Congress, the Shadow Wolves
Enhancement Act made several changes to the Shadow Wolves
Program, including authorizing the Director of ICE to
reclassify officers assigned to the tactical patrol unit on
Tohono O'odham Nation land as ICE special agents, upon the
completion of certain training obligations.\9\ Additionally,
the Shadow Wolves Enhancement Act required the Secretary of
Homeland Security to submit a strategy on retention,
recruitment, and expansion of the Shadow Wolves Program and
directed the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to review
and report on the strategy. In its 2024 report on the Shadow
Wolves Program, GAO found that ICE had not defined the
missions, goals, or staffing requirements after it made changes
to the program and that its strategy for recruitment,
retention, and expansion did not include goals, timelines, or
milestones. GAO made six recommendations in this report related
to these findings.\10\ The Shadow Wolves Improvement Act builds
upon the changes made in the Shadow Wolves Enhancement Act by
authorizing the Director of ICE to convert Shadow Wolves from
the excepted service to the competitive service upon completion
of three years of service. Based on the findings and
recommendations of GAO's 2024 report, it also directs the
Director of ICE to develop the goals and missions of the Shadow
Wolves Program and make updates to the strategy.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\9\Pub. L. 117-113.
\10\Government Accountability Office, U.S. Immigration and Customs
Enforcement: Improvements Needed to Workforce and Expansion Plans for
Unit of Native American Law Enforcement Personnel.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
III. Legislative History
Senator Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ) introduced S. 4676, the
Shadow Wolves Improvement Act, on July 11, 2024, with original
cosponsors Senators John Hoeven (R-ND), Mark Kelly (D-AZ), and
James Lankford (R-OK). The bill was referred to the Committee
on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
The Committee considered S. 4676 at a business meeting on
September 18, 2024. At the business meeting, Senator Sinema
offered a substitute amendment to the bill, as well as a
modification to the substitute amendment. The Sinema substitute
amendment, as modified, adds a section stating that no new
funds are authorized to be appropriated for the purposes of
carrying out the bill. The Committee adopted the modification
to the Sinema substitute amendment and the substitute
amendment, as modified, by unanimous consent with Senators
Peters, Carper, Hassan, Sinema, Rosen, Ossoff, Blumenthal,
Butler, Paul, Lankford, Romney, Scott, Hawley, and Marshall
present.
The bill, as amended by the Sinema substitute amendment, as
modified, was ordered reported favorably by a roll call vote of
14 yeas and 0 nays, with Senators Peters, Carper, Hassan,
Sinema, Rosen, Ossoff, Blumenthal, Butler, Paul, Lankford,
Romney, Scott, Hawley and Marshall voting in the affirmative.
Senator Johnson voted yea by proxy, for the record only.
IV. Section-by-Section Analysis of the Bill, as Reported
Section 1. Short title
Section 1 establishes the short title of the bill as the
``Shadow Wolves Improvement Act.''
Section 2. Enhancing the effectiveness of the Shadow Wolves Program
Subsection (a) adds Section 447 to the end of Subtitle D of
Title IV of the Homeland Security Act of 2002, entitled the
Shadow Wolves Program and provides for the mission and goals of
the program within ICE. The new section requires the ICE
Director, in coordination with partnering Tribal governments,
to specify the mission and goals of the program, including
staffing for the program. It also requires the Director to
update the strategy, within 180 days of enactment.
Additionally, this section requires the ICE Director to provide
to each GS-1801 Tactical Officer employed as a Shadow Wolf,
written information that will help them decide whether to
reclassify their position as a special agent. The Director is
also required to develop a succession plan for the timely
recruitment of individuals to fill vacant positions within the
program to address anticipated retirements. Finally, this
section requires the ICE Director to develop criteria for
expanding the Shadow Wolves Program to additional tribal lands.
Subsection (b) makes clerical changes to the table of
contents of the Homeland Security Act of 2002.
Section 3. Report to Congress on implementation of Shadow Wolves
Program Enhancements
Subsection (a) defines ``Director'' and ``relevant
congressional committees.''
Subsection (b) requires the ICE Director, within 1 year of
enactment, to report to Congress on the progress made towards
the full implementation of the Shadow Wolves Enhancement Act,
from the 117th Congress, and this bill, the Shadow Wolves
Improvement Act.
Section 4. Conversion of experienced Shadow Wolves to career
appointment in the competitive Service
Section 4 amends Section 2 of the Shadow Wolves Enhancement
Act by adding a paragraph at the end. The new paragraph (4),
authorizes the Director of ICE to noncompetitively convert
Shadow Wolves, after their successful completion of three years
of service as a Shadow Wolf, from excepted service to career or
career conditional appointments in the competitive service.
Section 5. No additional funds
Section 5 states that no additional funds are authorized to
be appropriated for the purpose of carrying out this Act.
V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact
Pursuant to the requirements of paragraph 11(b) of rule
XXVI of the Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee has
considered the regulatory impact of this bill and determined
that the bill will have no regulatory impact within the meaning
of the rules. The Committee agrees with the Congressional
Budget Office's statement that the bill contains no
intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) and would impose no costs
on state, local, or tribal governments.
VI. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
S. 4676 would authorize Immigration and Customs Enforcement
(ICE) to convert officers who have served for at least three
years in the Native American tactical patrol unit in the Tohono
O'odham Nation, referred to as ``Shadow Wolves,'' to positions
in the federal competitive service. Under current law, Shadow
Wolves are classified as federal excepted service and are
exempt from federal hiring rules. Those rules require
applicants to pass a competitive examination and require
federal agencies to publicly post job announcements and
identify the most qualified candidates.
S. 4676 also would require ICE to consult with tribal
governments and report to the Congress within one year of
enactment on the mission and goals of the program, the
appropriate staffing level needed to expand the program, and
plans for recruitment and retention.
Based on the costs of similar activities, CBO estimates
that implementing S. 4676 would cost less than $500,000 over
the 2025-2029 period, mainly to comply with the bill's
reporting requirements. Reclassifying employees from federal
excepted service to federal competitive service would not
affect their compensation or benefits. Therefore, CBO does not
expect that the authority would have a significant effect on
federal spending.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Jeremy Crimm.
The estimate was reviewed by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy
Director of Budget Analysis.
Phillip L. Swagel,
Director, Congressional Budget Office.
VII. Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported
In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, changes in existing law made by
the bill, as reported, are shown as follows (existing law
proposed to be omitted is enclosed in brackets, new matter is
printed in italic, and existing law in which no change is
proposed is shown in roman):
HOMELAND SECURITY ACT OF 2002
* * * * * * *
SEC. 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) * * *
(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act
is as follows:
Sec. 1. * * *
* * * * * * *
TITLE IV--BORDER, MARITIME, AND TRANSPORTATION SECURITY
* * * * * * *
Subtitle D--Immigration Enforcement Functions
* * * * * * *
Sec. 446. Sense of Congress regarding construction of fencing near San
Diego, California.
Sec. 447. Shadow Wolves Program.
* * * * * * *
TITLE IV--BORDER, MARITIME, AND TRANSPORTATION SECURITY
* * * * * * *
Subtitle D--Immigration Enforcement Functions
* * * * * * *
SEC. 447. SHADOW WOLVES PROGRAM.
(a) Mission and Goals.--The Director of U.S. Immigration
and Customs Enforcement (referred to in this section as the
`Director'), in coordination with appropriate representatives
of partnering Tribal governments, including the Tohono O'odham
Nation, shall specify the mission and goals of the Shadow
Wolves Program.
(b) Staffing.--The Director shall determine--
(1) the number of special agents needed to staff the
Shadow Wolves Program nationally; and
(2) the knowledge, skills, and abilities that such
special agents shall be required to possess.
(c) Strategy.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
the enactment of the Shadow Wolves Improvement Act, the
Director, in consultation with appropriate representatives of
partnering Tribal governments, including the Tohono O'odham
Nation, shall update the strategy required under section 3 of
the Shadow Wolves Enhancement Act (Public Law 117-113) by
adding--
(1) measurable objectives to achieve the retention
and recruitment of law enforcement officers, and the
expansion goals set forth in the strategy;
(2) a timeline for achieving such goals; and
(3) milestones for recruiting qualified special
agents for the Shadow Wolves Program to meet the target
identified in the staffing needs assessment required
under subsection (b)(1).
(d) Provision of Information.--The Director shall provide,
to each GS-1801 Tactical Officer who is employed as a Shadow
Wolf by Homeland Security Investigations as of the date of the
enactment of the Shadow Wolves Improvement Act, written
information that will help them make an informed decision about
reclassifying as a special agent, including--
(1) individualized information regarding how
reclassification would affect pay, including changes to
overtime pay, and retirement compensation;
(2) steps such members are required to complete to be
reclassified as special agents, including--
(A) whether they must meet training
requirements;
(B) a description of those requirements;
(C) whether they are exempt from physical
fitness, medical, or polygraph examinations;
and
(D) whether they are eligible for overtime
pay during such training; and
(3) any other relevant information that the Director
believes would help such members make an informed
decision regarding such classification.
(e) Succession Plan.--The Director shall develop a plan for
the timely recruitment of qualified individuals to fill vacant
special agent positions in the Shadow Wolves Program that will
result from anticipated retirements.
(f) Program Expansion.--The Director shall--
(1) develop criteria for evaluating and selecting
additional tribal lands on which additional Shadow
Wolves units could be located, including the amount of
additional funding necessary and potential sources for
such funding; and
(2) in developing such criteria, give consideration
to tribal lands located in proximity to existing
facilities that provide Federal law enforcement
training.
* * * * * * *
SHADOW WOLVES ENHANCEMENT ACT
* * * * * * *
SEC. 2. RECLASSIFICATION OF SHADOW WOLVES AS GS-1811 SPECIAL AGENTS.
* * * * * * *
(2) to classify any Shadow Wolves who are assigned to
the unit referred to in paragraph (1) after such date
of enactment as GS-1811 special agents upon the
successful completion of the training described in
paragraph (1); [and]
(3) to classify as GS-1811 special agents upon the
successful completion of the training described in
paragraph (1) any Shadow Wolves who are hired as part
of a comparable unit (regardless of location)
established after such date of enactment with the
approval and consent of the appropriate Indian tribe[.]
; and
(4) to noncompetitively convert Shadow Wolves, after
their successful completion of three years as Shadow
Wolves, regardless of location assigned, from the
excepted service to career or career conditional
appointments in the competitive service.
* * * * * * *
[all]