New reimbursable services agreements will help promote cross-border trade and facilitate essential travel.
WASHINGTON – U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced today 10 tentative selections for new reimbursable services agreements that will promote cross-border trade and facilitate essential travel to the United States.
These public-private partnerships will allow approved private sector and state and local government entities to reimburse CBP for expanded services for incoming commercial and cargo traffic and international traveler arrivals in California; Florida; Georgia; Hawaii; Illinois; Maine; Michigan; Mississippi; Missouri; Nebraska; New Jersey; New York; Oklahoma; Oregon; Tennessee; Texas; the U.S. Virgin Islands; and Virginia.
“Reimbursable services agreements help CBP facilitate the cross-border movement of food, fuel, workers and life-saving medicines that are needed to protect our nation,” said Todd Owen, CBP Executive Assistant Commissioner of the Office of Field Operations. “These public-private partnerships help CBP fulfill its dual mission of securing and facilitating essential trade and travel.”
Since the Reimbursable Services Program began in 2013, CBP has expanded it to include 212 stakeholders. The program has provided more than 808,000 additional processing hours at the request of CBP’s partners—accounting for the processing of more than 14.1 million travelers and more than 1.9 million personal and commercial vehicles.
Authorized by Section 481 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002, reimbursable services agreements increase CBP’s ability to provide new or enhanced services on a reimbursable basis by creating partnerships with private sector and government entities. Reimbursable services under this authority include customs, agricultural processing, border security services, immigration inspections and support services at ports of entry.
The statute includes several limitations at CBP-serviced airports. Reimbursable services are limited to overtime costs and support services for airports with 100,000 or more arriving international passengers annually. Airports with fewer than 100,000 arriving international passengers annually may offset CBP for the salaries and expenses of not more than five full-time equivalent CBP officers. Reimbursable services agreements will not replace existing services.
The entities tentatively selected for new reimbursable services agreements in the air environment were:
- Blue City Holdings LLC (Teterboro Airport and San Francisco International Airport);
- Citigroup Inc. (Westchester County Airport);
- ConocoPhillips Corporation (George Bush Intercontinental Airport);
- Franklin Templeton Travel, Inc. (Palm Beach International Airport, Portland International Airport, Sacramento International Airport, and San Francisco International Airport);
- GECAS Materials (Greenwood Leflore Airport);
- Jet Linx Aviation, LLC (Dekalb-Peachtree Airport, Washington Dulles International Airport, Bangor International Airport, Eppley Airfield, St. Louis Lambert International Airport, Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, San Antonio International Airport, Tulsa International Airport, William P. Hobby Airport, Palm Beach International Airport, Nashville International Airport, Teterboro Airport and Westchester County Airport);
- Qantas Airways Limited (Chicago O'Hare International Airport, Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, Los Angeles International Airport and Daniel K. Inouye International Airport); and
- Standard Aviation LLC (Cyril E. King International Airport).
The entity tentatively selected for a new reimbursable services agreement in the land environment was:
- FedEx Ground (Port Huron, MI).
The entity tentatively selected for a new reimbursable services agreement in the sea environment was:
- Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. (Long Beach, CA; Miami, FL; and Port Canaveral, FL).
CBP used a rigorous, multi-layered process to evaluate selectees’ proposals and ensure compatibility with CBP’s mission priorities.
The reimbursable services authority is a key component of CBP’s Resource Optimization Strategy, and will allow CBP to provide new or expanded services at domestic ports of entry reimbursed by the partner entity.