Management Alert - FPS Did Not Properly Designate DHS Employees Deployed to Protect Federal Properties under 40 U.S.C. § 1315(b)(1)

DHS OIG issued this management alert to notify the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Federal Protective Service (FPS) of an urgent issue that requires immediate attention and action. DHS must take immediate action to: (1) Ensure that the Director of FPS has authority to designate DHS employees under 40 U.S.C. § 1315(b)(1); and (2) Ensure proper, by-name designation of any DHS employees authorized to exercise authority under 40 U.S.C. § 1315 to protect Federal property and persons on that property. During an ongoing review, we learned that the FPS Director did not properly designate DHS employees deployed to protect Federal properties under 40 U.S.C. § 1315(b)(1). Proper designation is important because deployed law enforcement officers from U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Transportation Security Administration, and U.S. Secret Service typically lack this precise scope of authority. Another effect of the FPS Director’s approach is that several law enforcement personnel were deployed to Portland, Oregon to augment FPS’ protection efforts, but may not have received training on 40 U.S.C. § 1315 before they were deployed.