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Washington, D.C.—The National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) welcomed a letter from key House Homeland Security and Appropriations committee members expressing strong opposition to a proposal to divert Customs user fees for projects unrelated to Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP) border security and trade facilitation missions.

NTEU has voiced strong opposition to a provision in the U.S. Senate-approved highway bill—which awaits House consideration—that would index the fees to inflation and divert the increased amounts to pay for transportation programs.

NTEU’s concerns were echoed in a letter sent by 15 members of the Homeland Security Committee and Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee to the leaders of the House Ways and Means Committee. The call to divert $4 billion in user fees for transportation projects sets a “troubling precedent,” according to the letter sent Tuesday.

Any user-fee increases should be “applied to sorely needed border security needs, including the need for increases to CBP Officer staffing to strengthen America’s border security and economy,” according to the letter signed by Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), ranking member of the House Homeland Security Committee, Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-Calif.), ranking member of the Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee, and 13 of their colleagues.

NTEU National President Tony Reardon said: “At a time when CBP is struggling to fulfill its mission because of chronic understaffing around the country, diverting these user fees to something else is a misguided and harmful idea. That money should be used for its intended purpose. It shouldn’t be used as an offset for a long-term highway bill.”

Opposition to the proposal is growing. A coalition of travel, tourism, airport and airline organizations wrote to the Senate Finance Committee and the House Ways and Means Committee earlier this month urging that the user fee diversion be rejected. In the letter, they said airline passengers “should not be used as a piggy bank” for highway projects.

NTEU, which represents 25,000 CBP employees, firmly believes that increases to the Customs user fee account should be used to enhance CBP’s inspection, enforcement and processing capabilities. According to the letter from the House members, CBP needs 3,811 additional officers to handle the current workload.

“As it is, understaffed sea, land and air ports lead to long delays in commercial lanes and for travelers,” President Reardon said. “NTEU will fight any proposal that would steer these critical funds into programs and activities unrelated to CBP’s mission.”

CBP recoups its costs for inspecting and processing cargo, passengers and commercial shipments by collecting fees from commercial vessels and vehicles; rail companies; private aircraft and vessels; air and sea passengers, Customs brokers and barge/bulk mail carriers. The fees, which are deposited into the Customs User Fee Account, are designated by law to be used for services provided to the user. The fees have stayed the same for years and some cover only a portion of CBP’s costs.

NTEU, the nation’s largest independent federal-employee union, represents 150,000 employees in 31 agencies and departments.