Senate Budget Committee Probing CBP $13.6Mln Expenses for Hiring 2 New Staffers

01:23 GMT, 20 December 2018

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) should explain whether it is capable of hiring 7,500 border agents after spending more than $13 million on a private contract that resulted in only two new hires, according to a letter from Senate Budget Committee Chair Mike Enzi to CPB Commissioner Kevin McAleenan.

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Enzi cited a recent report by the CBP Office of the Inspector General (OIG) on a contract worth $297 million for a private company to help the agency hire 7,500 agents and officers during the next five years, the letter said.

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"OIG found that in the first ten months of the contract, CBP paid approximately $13.6 million for start-up costs, security requirements, recruiting and applicant support but that the contractor processed only two accepted job offers," the letter said.

In addition to asking CBP how the contract had been managed and modified, Enzi’s letter questioned whether the agency is capable of meeting a goal to hire 7,500 agents in the next five years.

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A CBP staffing shortfall was one reason cited in President Donald Trump’s decision to deploy nearly 6,000 US military forces to the border prior to the arrival of multiple migrant caravans from Central America.

Trump has repeatedly called for an increase in border agents to enforce US immigration laws.