§221. Requirements with respect to administering polygraph examinations to law enforcement personnel of U.S. Customs and Border Protection

(a) In general

The Secretary of Homeland Security shall ensure that-

(1) by not later than 2 years after January 4, 2011, all applicants for law enforcement positions with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (except as provided in subsection (b)) receive polygraph examinations before being hired for such a position; and

(2) by not later than 180 days after January 4, 2011, U.S. Customs and Border Protection initiates all periodic background reinvestigations for all law enforcement personnel of U.S. Customs and Border Protection that should receive periodic background reinvestigations pursuant to relevant policies of U.S. Customs and Border Protection in effect on the day before January 4, 2011.

(b) Waiver

The Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection may waive the polygraph examination requirement under subsection (a)(1) for any applicant who-

(1) is deemed suitable for employment;

(2) holds a current, active Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information Clearance;

(3) has a current Single Scope Background Investigation;

(4) was not granted any waivers to obtain his or her clearance; and

(5) is a veteran (as defined in section 2108 of title 5).

( Pub. L. 111–376, §3, Jan. 4, 2011, 124 Stat. 4104 ; Pub. L. 114–279, §5, Dec. 16, 2016, 130 Stat. 1422 .)

Editorial Notes

Codification

Section was enacted as part of the Anti-Border Corruption Act of 2010, and not as part of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 which comprises this chapter.

Amendments

2016-Pub. L. 114–279 designated existing provisions as subsec. (a), inserted heading, in par. (1) inserted "(except as provided in subsection (b))" after "Border Protection", and added subsec. (b).

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Waiver of Certain Polygraph Examination Requirements

Pub. L. 114–328, div. A, title X, §1049, Dec. 23, 2016, 130 Stat. 2396 , provided that: "The Secretary of Homeland Security, acting through the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, may waive the polygraph examination requirement under section 3 of the Anti-Border Corruption Act of 2010 (Public Law 111–376) [6 U.S.C. 221] for any applicant who-

"(1) the Commissioner determines is suitable for employment;

"(2) holds a current, active Top Secret clearance and is able to access sensitive compartmented information;

"(3) has a current single scope background investigation;

"(4) was not granted any waivers to obtain the clearance; and

"(5) is a veteran (as such term is defined in section 2108 or 2109a [probably should be "2108a"] of title 5, United States Code)."

Findings

Pub. L. 111–376, §2, Jan. 4, 2011, 124 Stat. 4104 , provided that: "Congress makes the following findings:

"(1) According to the Office of the Inspector General of the Department of Homeland Security, since 2003, 129 U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials have been arrested on corruption charges and, during 2009, 576 investigations were opened on allegations of improper conduct by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials.

"(2) To foster integrity in the workplace, established policy of U.S. Customs and Border Protection calls for-

"(A) all job applicants for law enforcement positions at U.S. Customs and Border Protection to receive a polygraph examination and a background investigation before being offered employment; and

"(B) relevant employees to receive a periodic background reinvestigation every 5 years.

"(3) According to the Office of Internal Affairs of U.S. Customs and Border Protection-

"(A) in 2009, less than 15 percent of applicants for jobs with U.S. Customs and Border Protection received polygraph examinations;

"(B) as of March 2010, U.S. Customs and Border Protection had a backlog of approximately 10,000 periodic background reinvestigations of existing employees; and

"(C) without additional resources, by the end of fiscal year 2010, the backlog of periodic background reinvestigations will increase to approximately 19,000."