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Washington, D.C.—The leader of the union representing frontline homeland security workers today criticized the failure of a key House subcommittee to take advantage of the opportunity to increase significantly the size of the trained and dedicated workforce providing such security.

“Despite the welcome and increased congressional scrutiny of the need to better secure our nation’s ports,” said President Colleen M. Kelley of the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU), “it is certainly distressing to see the rejection of a legislative amendment that would have added 1,600 Customs and Border Protection Officers (CBPOs) over the next four years.” She called the vote “truly a wasted opportunity for our nation’s security.”

The personnel issue arose today at a meeting of the House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Economic Security, Infrastructure Protection and Cybersecurity. Ranking Member Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS) proposed an amendment to H.R. 4954, the Safe Ports Act, which would have provided for the additional CBPOs. It was defeated on a party-line vote.

President Kelley has been leading the call for additional resources, including personnel, support and training, to help secure the nation’s ports. In the wake of the subcommittee’s vote on the Thompson amendment, Kelley warned against placing the primary focus for the safety of goods—mostly arriving in sealed containers—entering the United States, on either security efforts at overseas shipping locations or voluntary programs undertaken by commercial shipping firms.

“We need to secure our ports here at home,” said NTEU President Kelley. “And the way to do that is to provide the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) with the resources, including personnel, it needs to get that job done.”

While efforts such as the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) and Container Security Initiative (CSI) are part of the port safety net, Kelley said “we should not be blinded by their existence. The fact is that much more cargo needs to be inspected and for that, CBP has to have sufficient people on the ground working in U.S. seaports.”

C-TPAT, which has been criticized by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) and others as inadequate, is intended to safeguard U.S. ports by examining critical security measures of shippers who deliver goods to this country. Less than 10 days ago, a senior CBP executive proposed that private contractors, rather than the CBP workforce, be hired to ensure the safety of such cargo.

That view is in line with CBP’s willingness to let the ranks of import specialists—who play key roles in facilitating trade—dwindle. Legislation proposed just today would require the Department of Homeland Security to increase the number of CBP import specialists by some 14 percent, to the level on the job in fiscal 2001.

“Port security will not come on the cheap,” President Kelley said. “We’ve got to be willing to devote the money, resources, and personnel needed to get the job done.”

NTEU is the largest independent federal union, representing 150,000 employees in 30 agencies and departments, including some 15,000 in CBP.