The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has made progress during the past few years but faces numerous challenges strengthening America’s visa security, members of the House Committee on Homeland Security learned during a task force hearing last week.
“This is a critical time for our nation’s security and we must prevent terrorists from gaining entry by abusing our immigration program. The U.S. is a prime terrorist target,” said U.S. Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-WI) chairman of the committee’s Task Force on Denying Terrorists Entry to the United States.
While the American immigration system provides benefits, including tourism, trade and business, Gallagher said, “We should never cease to examine our processes through the lens of a terrorist in search of potential gaps. We must always strive to stay one step ahead.”
As part of being proactive, the bipartisan task force examines the threat posed to the U.S. by foreign fighters—especially those traveling in and out of Europe. The task force also receives border security reports that include information on visa security from the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO).
GAO released a May 3 report on the same day the House task force hearing was held that detailed DHS’s efforts to address high-risk travelers and ramp up visa security.
“GAO has a body of work addressing federal efforts in this area, we have ongoing work and we plan to report on that work later this year,” testified Rebecca Gambler, director of Homeland Security and Justice at GAO.
Specifically, Gambler summarized for the task force the efforts and challenges facing U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), which operates under DHS; the Visa Security Program (VSP), which is managed by U.S. Immigration and Customs (ICE) under DHS; and DHS oversight of the Visa Waiver Program (VWP).
Plugging gaps
DHS is charged with identifying and stopping travelers who are potential U.S. security threats, such as foreign fighters, terrorists, human traffickers and drug smugglers, among others.
DHS also must decide on petitions for certain visa categories and has certain responsibilities for strengthening the security of the visa process, including oversight of VSP and VWP. The State Department manages the visa adjudication process for foreign nationals seeking admission to the United States.
One of the attackers who killed 14 people in San Bernardino, California, in 2015 legally entered the United States on a K-1 ‘fiancé’ visa—“raising questions about the level of scrutiny given to visa applications,” said Gallagher, a former combat veteran and military interrogator.
The example proves that “despite the reforms undertaken in the wake of 9/11, there are still gaps and weaknesses” in the U.S. system, he added, citing vetting and screening of VWP applicants and information sharing with other countries as examples. “Both [are] vital in the fight against the terrorist diaspora,” Gallagher said.
“Blocking terrorists and criminals is a top priority,” testified Michael Dougherty, acting assistant secretary of the Border, Immigration, and Trade Policy Office at DHS.
Dougherty said that most countries are engaged and in compliance with U.S. policies and procedures. Reviews to ensure such compliance are conducted every two years but may be accelerated if DHS doesn’t think a country is up to speed, he added.
But GAO’s Gambler testified that DHS hasn’t been submitting reports to Congress in a timely manner, although she said the department is “working toward that goal.”
Regarding a potential screening and vetting problem or concern, Edward Ramotowski, deputy assistant secretary in the Office of Visa Services at the State Department, said face-to-face interviews may always be conducted between State Department officials and visa holders.
When a screening raises a concern, then a review is requested and on-site vetting is performed, Ramotowski explained.
“Security doesn’t stop when the visa is issued,” he said. “We use our authority to revoke those visas when warranted and a notice of revocation is released across agencies in real-time. We are working on standardizing vetting across our immigration programs to deport criminal aliens. We take this job very seriously. The U.S. visa system is focused first and foremost on national security.”
Ramotowski added that the department conducts roughly 13 million visa cases a year, refusing about 2 million and approving approximately 11 million. “We limit officers to conducting about 120 interviews per day. Most posts also have a fraud prevention unit. And we provide a comprehensive training process that continues throughout the career of officers,” he said.
Portside problems
The same seriousness is subscribed to the role of securing international travel, which is done as far in advance as possible, said John Wagner, CBP’s deputy executive assistant commissioner at DHS.
All travelers entering the U.S. by air or sea under the VWP must hold a valid ESTA travel authorization. ESTA stands for Electronic System for Travel Authorization; it’s an online application system to pre-screen travelers before they board a plane or ship that’s U.S. bound while they are still in their respective countries.
“Any denials are due to national security concerns” and last year there were about 13,000 ESTAs denied, Wagner said. And with continuous vetting being conducted, he said 1,800 visas were revoked; 450 of them due to national security concerns.
Wagner testified that such pre-clearance ops are America’s highest level of capabilities overseas to deny someone entry while still on foreign soil. And once here, an ESTA is inspected by CBP, marking what Wagner called “the final piece to pre-arrival vetting to determine a person’s purpose and intent of travel.”
“We are continually striving to improve and stay coordinated,” he added.
A challenge pointed out by Rep. Nanette Diaz Barragán (D-CA) is that CBP is short-staffed by 1,400 security officers at U.S. ports of entry.
“Security is suffering and there are zero officers proposed to be hired by the president. What are we supposed to do about this?” she asked.
Wagner said CBP is trying to balance the shortage in places where it can by offering employed officers over-time work or by using technology to close the security gap.
And there are other challenges CBP is working to rectify, he said.
Currently, attrition is low, but hiring is slow so CBP is barely keeping pace with attrition. Wagner said the office is reviewing how to get better at recruiting in order to get better applicants, and to determine where applicants are falling out of the hiring process.
CBP also needs to make progress in shortening the time it takes to hire more officers and is working with the U.S. military to do so, Wagner said. Reportedly, half of those who apply for a job don’t show up to take the written exam. They also are required to take a polygraph test and medical exam.
“These are great jobs; we need better advertising. We’re very strict on backgrounds. We need to find the right people to take these jobs on,” Wagner said.