As ordered reported by the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation on February 26, 2015
The Office of Inspection in the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is responsible for ensuring the effectiveness and efficiency of TSA’s operations and identifying vulnerabilities in the agency’s security systems. In carrying out its mission, the office conducts internal inspections, investigations, and covert tests to assess the integrity of the agency’s activities and staff. Under current law, roughly half of the office’s employees are classified as criminal investigators and are eligible for certain statutory employment benefits because they are considered law enforcement officers. In particular, such individuals qualify for additional compensation (known as Law Enforcement Availability Pay) and enhanced retirement benefits.
H.R. 719 would direct the Inspector General of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to review the data and methods that TSA uses to classify personnel as criminal investigators and to reclassify any staff of the Office of Inspection that are currently misclassified according to the results of that review. In addition, the legislation would require DHS to provide a variety of security-related updates and reports to the Congress.
According to DHS, TSA is already undertaking a strategic analysis of the agency’s workforce that, under current law, will serve as the basis for potential reclassifications of investigative staff of the Office of Inspection. As a result of that effort, TSA’s future costs for salaries and benefits of criminal investigators (which are subject to appropriation) could increase or decrease, but CBO does not expect that enacting H.R. 719 would significantly affect the timing or outcome of that process. We estimate that complying with the legislation’s reporting requirements would cost less than $500,000 and would be subject to the availability of appropriated funds. H.R. 719 would not affect direct spending or revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply.
H.R. 719 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal governments.
