Ports address Congress on CBP shortfalls exacerbating congestion

Ms. Kristen Decas, Chief Executive Officer of the Port of Hueneme, and Mr. John Wolfe, Chief Executive Officer of the Northwest Seaport Alliance speaking on behalf of members of the American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA)—the unified voice of seaports in the Americas— met with the U.S. House Committee on Homeland Security Republican leaders on June 30th. At the meeting Decas and Wolfe discussed ongoing challenges faced by ports regarding U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) shortfalls in carrying out its inspection mission and urging Congress to help.

 In their statements Decas and Wolfe noted that ports are dedicated to their partnership with CBP ensuring safety and security are carried out through the agency’s inspection mission. However, CBP has been chronically understaffed. According to CBP’s own Workplace Staffing Model the agency has indicated it is short at least 1,400 officers. This deficit means that CBP limits the number of inspection officers deployed creating processing delays and further contributing to port congestion. To alleviate this bottleneck, ports have been burdened with paying for overtime reimbursement to CBP officers. In addition, CBP has been increasingly making demands that ports pay for on-site facilities for CBP’s officers. These demands often include extravagant items.

“Congress must fully fund and invest in CBP to ensure seaports don’t continue to bear the burden of facilitating unbearable demands,” said Rep. Carlos Gimenez, Ranking Member of the House Transportation and Maritime Security Subcommittee. “The work our seaports conduct to facilitate trade and commerce is essential to our economic recovery. Security at our ports has never been more important.”

Port executives Decas and Wolfe urged Congress to ensure that CBP is adequately staffed, and that officers and resources are deployed equitably to avoid further cargo processing delays. Affirming that Congress needs to establish a sustainable funding mechanism to ensure CBP can carry out its mission without placing undue burden on ports. President Biden’s FY22 budget includes $660 million for land port of entry upgrades but ignores seaports. Congress must act to make seaports a priority. They suggested that Congress should call for an immediate halt on facilities demands at ports and require a report from CBP about their needs. AAPA is working to set up a similar conversation with Committee Democrats.