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CBP reports roughly 67,000 staff with about 5,900 retirement-eligible; members press for hiring reforms
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Summary
Acting Commissioner Flores told the subcommittee CBP employs just over 67,000 people and identified roughly 5,900 employees currently eligible to retire, including about 3,300 law enforcement officers. Members pressed for hiring reforms, staffing at ports of entry and restoration of reduced land-port hours.
Acting Commissioner Flores told lawmakers CBP ‘‘has currently little over 67,000 employees’’ and that roughly 5,900 employees are eligible to retire now, including about 3,300 law enforcement officers, figures he gave during questioning about workforce and retirement trends.
Members pressed Flores on recruitment, retention and the agency’s hiring pipeline. Flores said CBP is reviewing its hiring process to reduce delays in medicals, testing and background investigations and is assigning recruiters to applicants to improve yield and shorten time from application to onboarding.
Rep. Siscamani and others asked specifically about the Federal Employee Retirement System supplement for law enforcement and the effect of potential legislative changes on recruitment. Flores said CBP ‘‘tracks retirements on a regular basis’’ and that any statutory changes to retirement supplements would be set by Congress and could affect morale and retention.
Several members raised chronic staffing shortfalls at ports of entry. Flores said the Office of Field Operations’ workload-staffing model indicates a shortfall (he cited a historical figure of about 5,000 shortages for OFO) and that CBP is pursuing operational improvements such as trusted-traveler and trusted-trader programs and other process changes to manage throughput while seeking additional staffing and funding.
Lawmakers also asked about Stone Garden grants and small-county needs for equipment and communications; Flores said requests for equipment typically originate from state and local applicants and CBP will review equipment and communications priorities under Stone Garden.
On hiring-process reforms, Flores said CBP has identified long poles in the process and is combining steps, expanding background-investigator capacity and assigning recruiters to applicants to increase onboarding rates. The subcommittee requested written follow-ups and data on retirements, hiring timelines and port staffing within 15 business days.
