Spotlights

A spirit of cooperation was the prevailing mood when members of the new 16th term Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee, known as COAC, gathered last week in Washington, D.C., for their first public meeting with U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Chris Magnus. The meeting, held on March 31, was also the first time that the trade advisory group had gathered in person since the start of the pandemic. For the past two years, the committee’s public meetings were held virtually. “It’s been a long time since we’ve been able to have this kind of gathering, a meeting ‘in real…

The seeds that blossomed into U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Special Agent David Chin’s decade-long career in law enforcement were planted long before he ever joined the agency. “I really have always wanted to go into law enforcement,” said Chin, who has been with the CBP Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR) Investigative Operations Directorate (IOD) for just over a year. But while Chin’s passion for law enforcement has deep roots, it is CBP’s emphasis on nurturing interests outside of work that he likes best. “I’m happy to be with CBP,” Chin said. “It’s very family friendly…

It was an exciting matchup watched ‘round the world, as the Los Angeles Rams and Cincinnati Bengals and battled to an exciting 23-20 finish, in favor of the Rams. While the Super Bowl kept the thousands of fans in the stadium … and nearly 100 million viewers globally … on the edge of their seats with game-changing dramas seemingly on every set of downs, the security around the game was far less dramatic. And that was just fine with the person in charge of U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s efforts at the game. “Thank you to all of our partners for all of the cooperation and communication...

From social distancing to antigen to PPE, the pandemic has changed our everyday vocabulary. Add to the list another new household term: global supply chain. Whether it’s gloves stitched in Malaysia or tomatoes grown in Mexico, each year trillions of dollars of consumer products rely on the global supply chain - the worldwide system through which businesses produce and distribute goods and services — and which comprises hundreds of millions of workers who continue to be affected by the pandemic. But this global supply chain, along with the multitude of problems that may beset it and the human…

The path to becoming a U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) attaché is rarely conventional. As CBP Attaché Paul Posner put it, “Being an attaché requires a specific combination of knowledge, skills, and abilities.” However, each attaché has a unique journey to success. Posner is the Regional Attaché for the Rome, Italy, Area of Responsibility. He serves as the senior diplomatic representative in the region and is responsible for promoting CBP programs, capabilities, and priorities in 11 countries in Southern Europe. Now, in his third year in the position, Posner would like potential...

The first thing to know about Michael Ferguson, an information specialist with U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Office of Information and Technology, is that he is a reader. If you ask him to describe the core ideas that inform his worldview, you’re likely to hear a favorite passage from something he’s read, recited by heart. About weathering the ups and downs of a 30-plus-year career, for example, Ferguson quotes from Spencer Johnson’s “Peaks and Valleys”: “You change your valley into a peak when you find and use the good that is hidden in the bad time.” Ferguson’s ability to turn low...

Twenty-three names read aloud. Twenty-three colleagues lost in the line of duty. Twenty-three families left to mourn, but not left alone and not forgotten. Twenty-three lives memorialized during U.S Customs and Border Protection’s National Police Week and Valor Memorial and Wreath Laying Ceremony at the agency’s headquarters in Washington, D.C., Oct. 15. Some of the names were recent; some were from CBP’s legacy agencies more than 100 years ago. But all were remembered. “We come together during National Police Week to honor our fallen, to mourn our lost brothers and sisters, and to grieve…

Thousands of twinkling lights memorializing the fallen glistened on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., as dusk settled over the nation’s capital on Thursday evening. Employees from U.S. Customs and Border Protection and thousands of other law enforcement personnel from across the country gathered with family and friends at the 33rd Annual Candlelight Vigil to remember their colleagues and loved ones who had died in the line of duty. The vigil, held on Oct. 14, was a special tribute to 701 fallen officers whose names were read during the ceremony this year and etched on the walls of the...

New Border Patrol Processing Coordinators have Early Impact on Operations After completing 36 training days and 288 training hours, the fifth class of the U.S. Border Patrol Processing Coordinators (BPPC) proudly received their badge and credentials on Sept. 21, 2021 excited for what they just accomplished as well as for the mission ahead. This time last year, the position did not exist. One year later, there are now 160 BPPCs supporting operations in each of the nine southwest border sectors with more classes currently going through training and plans to grow to 1,200 over the next three...

As America continues to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, U.S. Customs and Border Protection hosted its second Virtual Trade Week, July 20-22, bringing its industry and government partners together. The three-day event, which drew nearly 3,000 registered attendees, emphasized strengthening America’s economic growth through partnerships. “As we collectively exhale from 2020 and the COVID-19 pandemic, I think it’s important to take stock of everything we’ve been through,” said CBP Acting Commissioner Troy A. Miller in his welcoming address. “We’ve seen a lot of change in our country in the...