[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 703 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 703
To establish a pilot program to assess the use of technology to speed
up and enhance the cargo inspection process at land ports of entry
along the border.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
February 25, 2025
Mr. Cornyn (for himself, Ms. Hassan, Mr. Lankford, Mr. Justice, Mr.
Kelly, Mr. Heinrich, Mr. Lujan, Mr. Moreno, Mr. Tillis, Mrs. Capito,
and Mrs. Blackburn) introduced the following bill; which was read twice
and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To establish a pilot program to assess the use of technology to speed
up and enhance the cargo inspection process at land ports of entry
along the border.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLES.
This Act may be cited as the ``Contraband Awareness Technology
Catches Harmful Fentanyl Act'' or the ``CATCH Fentanyl Act''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term
``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
(A) the Committee on Homeland Security and
Governmental Affairs of the Senate; and
(B) the Committee on Homeland Security of the House
of Representatives.
(2) Artificial intelligence; ai.--The terms ``artificial
intelligence'' and ``AI'' have the meaning given the term
``artificial intelligence'' in section 238(g) of the John S.
McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019
(Public Law 115-232; 10 U.S.C. 4061 note).
(3) CBP innovation team.--The term ``CBP Innovation Team''
means the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Innovation Team
within the Office of the Commissioner.
(4) Nonintrusive inspection technology; nii technology.--
The terms ``nonintrusive inspection technology'' and ``NII
technology'' means technical equipment and machines, such as X-
ray or gamma-ray imaging equipment, that allow cargo
inspections without the need to open the means of transport and
unload the cargo.
(5) Pilot projects.--The term ``pilot projects'' means the
projects required under section 3(a) for testing and assessing
the use of technologies to improve the inspection process at
land ports of entry.
(6) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of Homeland Security.
SEC. 3. PILOT PROJECTS ALLOWING ADDITIONAL TECHNOLOGY PROVIDERS TO
PARTICIPATE IN INSPECTING CARS, TRUCKS, AND CARGO
CONTAINERS AT CERTAIN PORTS OF ENTRY.
(a) Establishment.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary, acting through CBP
Innovation Team, and in coordination with the Office of Field
Operations and the Department of Homeland Security Science and
Technology Directorate, shall begin the implementation of pilot
projects for testing and assessing the use of technologies or
technology enhancements to improve the process for inspecting,
including by increasing efficiencies of such inspections, any
conveyance or mode of transportation at land ports of entry
along the borders of the United States. The technologies or
technology enhancements tested and assessed under the pilot
projects shall be for the purpose of assisting U.S. Customs and
Border Protection personnel to detect contraband, illegal
drugs, illegal weapons, human smuggling, and threats on inbound
and outbound traffic, in conjunction with the use of imaging
equipment, radiation portal monitors, and chemical detectors.
(2) Requirements.--
(A) In general.--In implementing the pilot projects
at ports of entry, the CBP Innovation Team, in
coordination with the Department of Homeland Security
Science and Technology Directorate, shall test and
collect data regarding not fewer than 5 types of
nonintrusive inspection technology enhancements that
can be deployed at land ports of entry. The CBP
Innovation Team shall test technology enhancements from
at least 1 of the following categories:
(i) Artificial intelligence.
(ii) Machine learning.
(iii) High-performance computing.
(iv) Quantum information sciences,
including quantum sensing.
(v) Other emerging technologies.
(B) Identification of effective enhancements.--The
pilot projects shall identify the most effective types
of technology enhancements to improve the capabilities
of nonintrusive inspection systems and other inspection
systems used at land ports of entry based on--
(i) the technology enhancement's ability to
assist U.S. Customs and Border Protection
accurately detect contraband, illegal drugs,
illegal weapons, human smuggling, or threats in
inbound and outbound traffic;
(ii) the technology enhancement's ability
to increase efficiencies of inspections to
assist U.S. Customs and Border Protection
address long wait times;
(iii) the technology enhancement's ability
to improve capabilities of aging detection
equipment and infrastructure at land ports of
entry;
(iv) the technology enhancement's safety
relative to As Low As Reasonably Achievable
(ALARA) standard practices;
(v) the ability to integrate the new
technology into the existing workflow and
infrastructure;
(vi) the technology enhancement's ability
to incorporate automatic threat recognition
technology using standard formats and open
architecture;
(vii) the mobility of technology
enhancements; and
(viii) other performance measures
identified by the CBP Innovation Team.
(C) Private sector involvement.--The CBP Innovation
Team may solicit input from representatives of the
private sector regarding commercially viable
technologies.
(D) Cost effectiveness requirement.--In identifying
the most effective types of technology enhancements
under subparagraph (B), the pilot projects shall
prioritize solutions that demonstrate the highest cost-
effectiveness in achievement the objectives described
in clauses (i) through (ix) of subparagraph (B). Cost
effectiveness shall account for improved detection
capabilities, increased inspection efficiencies,
reduced wait times, and total cost of implementation
(including infrastructure upgrades and maintenance
expenses).
(3) Nonintrusive inspection systems program.--The CBP
Innovation Team shall work with existing nonintrusive
inspection systems programs within U.S. Customs and Border
Protection when planning and developing the pilot projects
required under paragraph (1).
(4) Data privacy protections.--In implementing the pilot
projects and utilizing new technologies, the Secretary shall
safeguard the privacy and security of personal data collected
during inspections through appropriate measures, including--
(A) adherence to relevant privacy laws and
regulations;
(B) implementation of data anonymization
techniques, if applicable; and
(C) regular audits to assess compliance with data
privacy standards.
(5) Science and technology directorate.--The CBP Innovation
Team shall work with the Department of Homeland Security
Science and Technology Directorate to align existing
nonintrusive inspection research and development efforts within
the Science and Technology Directorate when planning and
developing pilot projects required under paragraph (1).
(b) Termination.--The pilot projects shall terminate on the date
that is 5 years after the date of the enactment of this Act.
(c) Reports Required.--Not later than 3 years after the date of the
enactment of this Act, and 180 days after the termination of the pilot
projects pursuant to subsection (b), the Secretary shall submit a
report to the appropriate congressional committees that contains--
(1) an analysis of the effectiveness of technology
enhancements tested based on the requirements described in
subsection (a)(2);
(2) any recommendations from the testing and analysis
concerning the ability to utilize such technologies at all land
ports of entry;
(3) a plan to utilize new technologies that meet the
performance goals of the pilot projects across all U.S. Customs
and Border Protection land ports of entry at the border,
including total costs and a breakdown of the costs of such
plan, including any infrastructure improvements that may be
required to accommodate recommended technology enhancements;
(4) a comprehensive list of existing technologies owned and
utilized by U.S. Customs and Border protection for cargo and
vehicle inspection, including--
(A) details on the implementation status of such
technologies, such as whether the technologies have
been fully installed and utilized, or whether there are
challenges with the installation and utilization of the
technology;
(B) an evaluation of the compatibility,
interoperability, and scalability of existing cargo and
vehicle inspection technologies within U.S. Customs and
Border Protection's physical and information technology
infrastructure; and
(C) identification of any obstacles to the
effective deployment and integration of such
technologies; and
(5) the analysis described in subsection (d).
(d) Areas of Analysis.--The report required under subsection (c)
shall include an analysis containing--
(1) quantitative measurements of performance based on the
requirements described in subsection (a)(2) of each technology
tested compared with the status quo to reveal a broad picture
of the performance of technologies and technology enhancements,
such as--
(A) the probability of detection, false alarm rate,
and throughput; and
(B) an analysis determining whether such observed
performance represents a significant increase,
decrease, or no change compared with current systems;
(2) an assessment of the relative merits of each such
technology;
(3) any descriptive trends and patterns observed; and
(4) performance measures for--
(A) the technology enhancement's ability to assist
with the detection of contraband on inbound and
outbound traffic through automated (primary) inspection
by measuring and reporting the probability of detection
and false alarm rate for each NII system under
operational conditions;
(B) the throughput of cargo through each NII system
with a technology enhancement, including a breakdown of
the time needed for U.S. Customs and Border
Protection--
(i) to complete the image review process
and clear low-risk shipments; and
(ii) to complete additional inspections of
high-risk items;
(C) changes in U.S. Customs and Border Protection
officer time commitments and personnel needs to sustain
high volume NII scanning operations when technology
enhancements are utilized; and
(D) operational costs, including--
(i) estimated implementation costs for each
NII system with technology enhancements; and
(ii) estimated cost savings due to improved
efficiency due to technology enhancements, if
applicable.
(e) Privacy and Civil Liberties Reports.--The Secretary, in
consultation with the CBP Innovation Team and other appropriate
offices--
(1) prior to the implementation of the technologies
referred to in this section, shall submit--
(A) a report or reports to the appropriate
congressional committees regarding the potential
privacy, civil liberties, and civil rights impacts of
technologies being tested under the pilot projects
pursuant to this section, including an analysis of the
impacts of the technology enhancements on individuals
crossing the United States border; and
(B) recommendations for mitigation measures to
address any identified impacts; and
(2) not later than 180 days after the termination of the
pilot projects pursuant to subsection (b), shall submit a
report to the appropriate congressional committees containing--
(A) findings on the impacts to privacy, civil
rights, and civil liberties resulting from the pilot
projects;
(B) recommendations for mitigating these impacts in
implementation of approved technologies; and
(C) any additional recommendations based on the
lessons learned from the pilot projects.
SEC. 4. PROHIBITION ON NEW APPROPRIATIONS.
No additional funds are authorized to be appropriated to carry out
this Act.
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