Golden Fleece Award

Congressman French Hill (R-AR) named the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) as the latest winner of the Golden Fleece award for their wasteful spending on polygraph tests. Earlier this month, an Office of Inspector General (OIG) report found that the CBP had spent more than five million dollars on polygraph tests for job candidates who had previously disclosed disqualifying conduct, such as drug use.

According to the OIG’s report, “CBP administered polygraph examinations to applicants who previously provided disqualifying information on employment documents or during the pre-test interview. This occurred because CBP’s process did not stop, and is not sufficient to prevent, unsuitable applicants from continuing through the polygraph examination. As a result, we estimated CBP spent about $5.1 million completing more than 2,300 polygraphs for applicants with significant pre-test admissions.”

“The inability of the CBP to stop spending money on people they are never going to hire is just one more example of inefficient government bureaucracy,” said Rep. Hill. “Hardworking Arkansans and Americans across the nation should not have their tax dollars spent on this kind of waste. This is the kind of oversight and accountability I am proud to deliver for my constituents.”

Earlier this year, the House passed Rep. Martha McSally’s (R-AZ) bill, H.R. 2213, the Anti-Border Corruption Reauthorization Act. One provision in this bill gives the CBP hiring flexibility for certain qualified candidates. If signed into law, full-time law enforcement officers and members of the Armed Services that meet certain qualifications, such as previously having a Top Secret clearance, may have the polygraph exam requirement waived.

“I have visited our southern border several times and I’ve heard about how hard it is for the CBP to hire qualified candidates,” said Rep. Hill. “Part of that has to do with the polygraph process. While I am giving the CBP this month’s Golden Fleece award, it is time for the Senate to act on the House’s bill and get it to the President’s desk to sign so that the CBP will have the flexibility they need.”