Training and continuing education

(a) Mandatory training and continuing education To promote CBP agent and officer safety and professionalism (1) Policies and guidelines The Secretary of Homeland Security shall establish policies and guidelines to ensure that all U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents and officers receive a minimum of— (A) 19 weeks of training for employees of U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Office of Field Operations, and 23 weeks of training for employees of the U.S. Border Patrol, that— (i) is directly related to the mission of the U.S. Border Patrol or the mission of U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Office of Field Operations before the initial assignment of such agents and officers; and (ii) is in alignment with curriculum developed and endorsed by FLETC; and (B) 8 hours of training and continuing education annually after the completion of the training referred to in subparagraph (A). (2) Trainers The training and continuing education required under paragraph (1) shall be conducted by attorneys who— (A) have experience with the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution, including appropriate application of the use of force by agents and officers of U.S. Customs and Border Protection; and (B) are members of the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of General Counsel. (b) FLETC The Secretary of Homeland Security shall establish policies and guidelines governing training with FLETC and continuing education of agents and officers of U.S. Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement regarding border awareness, accountability, and oversight. Such training with FLETC shall include individual courses regarding— (1) community relations, including— (A) best practices in community policing; (B) best practices to adhere to policies limiting the location of enforcement and cooperation with local law enforcement; and (C) best practices in responding to grievances, including how to refer complaints to the Ombudsman for Border and Immigration-Related Concerns in accordance with section 406 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002, as added by section 3; (2) interdiction, including— (A) instruction regarding formal and proper command language; (B) situational awareness of what language is appropriate in a given situation; (C) policies and guidelines regarding the legal application of use of force; (D) policies and training scenarios necessary to ensure the safety of the agent or officer and the surrounding community during interventions in urban areas, including— (i) scenario-based training and guidelines; and (ii) non-lethal force training and certification on at least 1 non-lethal force instrument, including electronic control weapons; and (E) policies necessary to ensure the safety of the agent or officer and the surrounding community during interventions in rural and remote locations; (3) vulnerable populations, including instruction on screening, identifying, and responding to vulnerable populations, such as children, victims of human trafficking, victims of trauma, and the acutely ill; (4) cultural and societal issues, including— (A) understanding the diversity of immigrant communities; (B) language and basic cultural awareness of major migrant-sending countries; (C) natural resource protection and environmental policies along the United States border; (D) privacy considerations regarding border-related technologies; and (E) the history and ethics of asylum law; and (5) standards of professional conduct, including— (A) the lawful use of force; (B) complying with chain of command and lawful orders; (C) conduct and ethical behavior toward the public in a civil and professional manner; (D) respect for civil rights and the protection of the well-being of individuals; (E) non-racially biased questioning techniques; and (F) de-escalation tactics and alternatives to the use of force. (c) Supervisor training In addition to the training and continuing education required to be established under subsections (a) and (b), the Secretary of Homeland Security shall establish policies and guidelines governing the continuing education of agents and officers of U.S. Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in supervisory or management positions, including— (1) instruction relating to management and leadership best practices; (2) refresher instruction or in-service training relating to legal application of use of force policies and guidelines, intervention, community relations, and professional conduct; and (3) mitigation training to identify, diagnose, and address issues within such supervisory and management roles. (d) Review process The Secretary of Homeland Security shall establish a review process to ensure that port supervisors and managers of U.S. Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement receive annual evaluations regarding— (1) their actions and standards of conduct; and (2) the actions, situational and educational development, and standards of conduct of their staffs. (e) Continuing education (1) In general The Secretary of Homeland Security shall require all agents and officers of U.S. Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement who are required to undergo training under subsections (a) through (c) to participate in annual continuing education to maintain and update their understanding of Federal legal rulings, court decisions, and Department of Homeland Security policies, procedures, and guidelines related to the subject matters described in such subsections. (2) Subject matters Continuing education under this subsection shall include training courses on— (A) protecting the civil, constitutional, human, and privacy rights of individuals, with special emphasis on the scope of enforcement authority, including— (i) chain of evidence practices and document seizure; and (ii) use of force policies available to agents and officers; (B) the scope of authority of agents and officers to conduct immigration enforcement activities, including interviews, interrogations, stops, searches, arrests, and detentions, in addition to identifying and detecting fraudulent documents; (C) identifying, screening, and responsibility for vulnerable populations, such as children and victims of trafficking; and (D) cultural and societal issues, including— (i) the diversity of immigrant communities; (ii) language and basic cultural awareness of major migrant-sending countries; and (iii) natural resource protection and environmental policies along the United States border. (3) Administration Courses offered under this subsection— (A) shall be administered in consultation with FLETC by the individual U.S. Border Patrol sectors and U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Office of Field Operations in order to provide such sectors’ field offices with flexibility to design or tailor such courses to the specific needs and conditions of each such sector and field office; and (B) shall be approved in advance by the Secretary of Homeland Security to ensure that such courses satisfy the requirements for training under this section. (4) Rotation Courses offered as part of continuing education under this subsection shall include— (A) an annual course focusing on the curriculum described in paragraph (2)(A); (B) a triennial course focusing on curriculum described in paragraph (2)(B); (C) a triennial course focusing on curriculum described in paragraph (2)(C); and (D) a triennial course focusing on curriculum described in paragraph (2)(D). (f) Assessment Not later than 6 years after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit a report to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of Representatives that assesses the training and education, including continuing education, required under this section.