Legislation sponsored by U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX) to allow maintenance projects at land ports of entry to be completed more quickly was approved by the House Homeland Security Committee on June 12.
“Land Ports of Entry are not only critical to border communities, but they also bring in billions of dollars’ worth of trade to our economy,” the congressman said. “That is why our international bridges must be kept in the best shape possible.”
To streamline the process of conducting repairs and maintenance projects at land ports of entry along the southern and northern border, Rep. Gonzales introduced the bipartisan Reducing Excessive Vetting Authorities to Maintain our Ports (REVAMP) Act, H.R. 8150. The bill was introduced with lead cosponsor U.S. Rep. Lou Correa (D-CA) and four other original cosponsors.
The bill would give Customs and Border Protection (CBP) the ability to directly conduct improvements on land ports of entry without the involvement of the General Services Administration (GSA). It would also address a backlog of repairs needed at federal facilities while freeing up the GSA to focus on other major projects.
Under current law, CBP is the only entity authorized to conduct repairs at land ports of entry without authorization from the GSA if the project is valued at less than $100,000. H.R. 8150 would raise that threshold to $300,000 and direct that amount to be tied to inflation. In addition, the bill requires the Commissioner of CBP and the Administrator of the GSA to establish procedures for undertaking such projects.
Rep. Gonzales said his bill would cut red tape.
“H.R. 8150 [the REVAMP Act] is simple. It would provide CBP with the authority it needs to further address urgent maintenance projects more swiftly,” Rep. Gonzales said during the Homeland Security Committee markup of the bill.