Border Patrol should consider outsourcing its training, lawmaker says

By STEPHEN LOSEY

The Homeland Security Department may need to contract out the training for new Border Patrol agents to save money, a leading House Republican said.

Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Ala., chairman of the House Homeland Security subcommittee on management, integration and oversight, expressed shock at a May 24 hearing when reviewing cost estimates for the training of new agents. New agents are trained at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) in Glynco, Ga.

The 2006 Homeland Security appropriations bill allots $189,000 per agent for training. Other estimates by the Congressional Budget Office and the White House put the cost lower.

"It's going to cost more to train a Border Patrol officer in a 10-month program than it is for a four-year degree at Harvard University," Rogers said.

Thomas Walters, assistant commissioner for training and development at Customs and Border Protection, said the $189,000 estimate include the cost of recruiting and hiring new agents, as well as office space and equipment such as pistols, uniforms and computers.

But Rogers was dissatisfied with the explanation.

"We've got to get a handle on what the costs would be," Rogers said in a May 25 interview with Federal Times. "Based on the testimony, DHS has no idea how they got to those numbers."

Rogers said the government may need to turn to Blackwater USA or other contractor if they can do the job cheaper.

"We have a fiduciary obligation to taxpayers to look at other options," Rogers said. "It's irresponsible to go forward with that in the absence of supporting documentation."

A $34 billion Homeland Security authorization bill passed May 18 provides funding to add 2,000 new Border Patrol agents to the 11,000 already on the force.

Original Article: http://federaltimes.com/index2.php?S=871199