U.S. Customs and Border Protection expands reimbursable services partnerships across U.S. ports of entry

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CBP reimbursable services expansion

Highlights

U.S. Customs and Border Protection selected 31 air and 6 sea entities for late-October expansion of its Reimbursable Services Agreement program.
The expanded program now covers 635 stakeholders, with partners requesting over 1.9 million additional processing hours since 2013.
CBP reports the program supported processing of more than 23.2 million travelers and 2.4 million personal and commercial vehicles to date.

Late-October expansion across air and sea ports

As reported by U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the new tentative selections cover 31 entities in the air environment and six in the sea environment under the agency's Reimbursable Services Agreement program. The agency says the agreements allow approved partners to reimburse CBP for added inspection and support services that would otherwise not be available, including coverage beyond standard operating hours or staffing levels.

CBP says the authority is a key part of its Resource Optimization Strategy and applies to services such as customs processing, agriculture inspections, border security, immigration checks and support for cargo traffic and international traveler arrivals. The selected air partners include airport operators, aviation service providers and airlines tied to facilities across states including Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, New York, Texas and Washington, while sea selections include operators in Florida, Delaware, Hawaii and Louisiana.

The agency says the program follows statutory limits under Section 481 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002. At CBP-serviced airports, reimbursable services are limited to overtime and support services for airports with at least 100,000 arriving international passengers a year, while smaller airports may offset salaries and expenses for up to five full-time equivalent CBP officers.

Program scale and trade-processing impact

CBP says it has expanded the reimbursable services program to 635 stakeholders since its launch in 2013. According to the agency, partners have requested more than 1.9 million additional processing hours, supporting the processing of more than 23.2 million travelers and more than 2.4 million personal and commercial vehicles.

Executive Assistant Commissioner Diane Sabatino of CBP's Office of Field Operations says the program helps trade and travel continue at remote locations without delay and that the agency values the partnerships enabling those services. CBP also says it used a multi-layered review process to evaluate proposals and determine whether they align with mission priorities at domestic ports of entry.

Our earlier coverage of the House-passed Farm Bill focused on lawmakers’ push to strengthen U.S. food security and bolster farmers facing volatile markets and climate pressures. We noted the measure’s emphasis on increased agricultural research funding, expanded farm safety net programs, and rural infrastructure investment aimed at improving resilience in rural economies.

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