Homeland Security

CBO analyzes proposals to change federal policies regarding aviation and border security, emergency response, anticounterfeiting measures, the protection of federal infrastructure, cybersecurity, and other topics related to securing the nation from threats.

  • Report
    The Cost of the Coast Guard’s Polar Security Cutter

    CBO estimates that a three-ship Polar Security Cutter program would cost $5.1 billion in 2024 dollars—about 60 percent more than the Coast Guard’s current estimate. Operating those three ships would cost $12.4 billion through 2063.

  • United States Capitol Building in Washington, DC
    Report
    Testimony on the Cost of the Coast Guard’s Polar Security Cutter

    Eric J. Labs, an analyst in CBO’s National Security Division, testifies before the House Homeland Security Committee's Subcommittee on Transportation and Maritime Security on May 7, 2024.

  • Report
    National Cruise Missile Defense: Issues and Alternatives

    CBO examined the threat that adversaries equipped with land-attack cruise missiles might pose to the U.S. homeland and estimated the costs of several defensive systems that could be fielded to protect the United States from such attacks.

  • Report
    Enhancing the Security of the North American Electric Grid

    This report discusses a range of threats that could cause widespread, long-lasting disruptions for the electric grid. CBO examines two illustrative approaches to enhance the security of the electric grid and highlights some considerations for policymakers to take into account.

  • Report
    Scanning and Imaging Shipping Containers Overseas: Costs and Alternatives

    Scanning and imaging all U.S.-bound shipping containers at overseas ports would cost $12 billion to $32 billion over 10 years, CBO estimates. Boosting the number of containers imaged at U.S. ports instead would cost considerably less.