Legislation by Sen. Mark Pryor to help prevent corruption in the U.S. Customs and Border agency unanimously passed the Senate.
The Anti-Border Corruption Act, designed to prevent Mexican drug cartels from corrupting U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents, requires applicants for law enforcement positions take polygraph tests and background checks be completed on all backlogged CBP employees within six months.
“Border patrol agents are the first line of defense in the fight to secure our borders. We can’t have them waiving through drug smugglers or potential terrorists,” Pryor said. “That’s why it’s crucial to have a rigorous hiring process and consistent background checks to weed out bad apples. I am pleased that the Senate put party politics aside to pass this critical legislation,” Pryor said.
In March, Pryor held a hearing investigating corruption of U.S. border officials. During the hearing, CBP officials revealed that less than 15 percent of job applicants receive a polygraph test during the hiring process, although standing policy calls for all to be examined. Of those, about 60 percent of candidates failed the test. Officials at the hearing also said that while CBP employees were required to undergo a background check every five years, the agency has a backlog of 10,000 cases that is expected to rise to 19,000 by year’s end.
Investigations of CBP officials have tripled since 2006, and there were 576 allegations of corruption in 2009 alone. In August of 2010, Congress passed and the President signed into law a bill that requires the CBP to hire an additional 1,000 new border patrol agents.