WASHINGTON, DC – Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick (PA-1), Jamie Raskin (MD-8), Juan Ciscomani (AZ-6), and Steven Lynch (MA-8) introduced today the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Officer Retirement Technical Corrections Act.
The bill would require the U.S. Customs and Border Protection to fix its error and grant officers their promised retirement benefits that were removed from them through no fault of their own.
Newly hired officers’ benefits were stripped away after the agency incorrectly informed them that they would be eligible for proportional annuity, which means they would not need to retire at a certain age or accrue 20 services years in order to qualify for enhanced retirement benefits.
The Senate previously passed the companion bill led by Senators Peters (MI) and Hawley (MO) by unanimous consent.
“We must do right by the dedicated Customs and Border Protection officers who defend our ports of entry and work every day to keep our nation safe,” said Congressman Fitzpatrick. “I am proud to be able to introduce this bipartisan legislation with Reps. Raskin, Ciscomani, and Lynch to fix this error and give our officers the retirement benefits they earned during their years of service to the United States.”
“A decades-long error should not mean that 1,200 Customs and Border Patrol Officers are denied the retirement benefits they were promised. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection Officer Retirement Technical Corrections Act will ensure that these officers—who protect the American people and secure our borders—receive the benefits they earned. Recognizing mistakes and working to correct them, as this legislation aims to do, is the right thing to do,” said House Committee on Oversight and Accountability Ranking Member Raskin.
“Every day they put on the uniform, our Customs and Border Protection officers and agents put their life on the line defending our country, with many of them dedicating their careers to protecting our homeland. This bipartisan legislation takes the necessary steps to ensure our officers can retire comfortably and receive the benefits they were promised,” said Rep. Ciscomani.
“Our Customs and Border Protection officers carry out critical public safety and national security duties on behalf of the American people,” said Rep. Lynch. “They are responsible for safeguarding our ports of entry, disrupting transnational criminal activity and illegal narcotics, and preventing terrorist activity and human trafficking. I am proud to cosponsor this bipartisan legislation to ensure that these dedicated law enforcement officers receive the retirement benefits that they have paid for and earned.”
“Our nation’s Customs and Border Protection officers serve the American people every day as they seek to secure our border and ports of entry from illicit activity and promote lawful travel and trade. These brave men and women are owed the retirement benefits they deserve, and I thank Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick for introducing legislation to fix a clerical error that has impacted their benefits. We look forward to advancing this bill at the Oversight Committee markup this week,” said House Committee on Oversight and Accountability Chairman James Comer.
"The U.S. Customs and Border Protection Retirement Technical Corrections Act is more than just fixing a clerical error. This bill will give 1,500 CBP Officers we represent the law enforcement retirement benefits they were promised. NTEU is grateful to Reps. Fitzpatrick, Raskin, Ciscomani, and Lynch for their support of the federal employees who have dedicated their careers to protecting our country while facilitating trade and travel through our nation's ports,” said National President of the National Treasury Employees Union Doreen Greenwald.
Read the bill here.