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Washington, D.C.—A plan by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to combine in a single employee the border protection responsibilities held by three highly-skilled specialists raises concerns that this will lead to a serious loss of expertise, the president of the union representing nearly 12,000 DHS employees said today.

“It’s unclear to me how having one person perform the jobs of three increases their abilities,” said President Colleen M. Kelley of the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU). “We clearly need more information” about the plan to create a “super-inspector” in the Customs and Border Protection Bureau (CPB) announced by DHS Secretary Tom Ridge.

Under the DHS plan, a new position—Customs and Border Patrol Officer (CBPO)— would encompass the duties of inspectors from three of the key agencies that make up DHS—the U.S. Customs Service, Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS), and the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS).

“Each of these functions is complex,” President Kelley said, “requiring specialized skill sets, and broad knowledge of laws and regulations.” The DHS proposal “clearly raises far more questions than answers,” she said.

Another part of the DHS plan would shift air marshals from the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (BICE) to use existing Customs and INS agents to bolster the air marshal program.

President Kelley said that is hardly an effective use of resources. If the administration wants to bolster the air marshal program, she said, it should seek and provide the necessary funding, rather than shifting personnel from other critical duties.

NTEU is the largest independent federal union, representing more than 150,000 employees in 29 agencies and departments.