Title page
Contents
Highlights 2
Letter 6
Background 9
DHS Organization 9
Coast Guard Missions 10
AMO Missions 12
Border Patrol Riverine Missions 14
CBP and Coast Guard Air and Marine Mission Activities Varied across Operating Locations 16
Majority of CBP Air and Marine Mission Activities Were for Law Enforcement Purposes across All Operating Locations 16
Training Missions Accounted for the Largest Proportion of Coast Guard Air and Marine Mission Activities across Operating Locations 25
CBP and Coast Guard Use Various Coordination Mechanisms for Air and Marine Mission Activities and Identified Actions to Address Coordination Challenges 33
CBP and Coast Guard Use a Variety of Mechanisms to Coordinate Missions Activities 33
CBP and Coast Guard Identified Actions to Address Air and Marine Mission Coordination Challenges 36
DHS Has Assessed Operating Locations but Does Not Have a Mechanism to Compare Marine Operating Costs 37
DHS Has Conducted Various Assessments of Component Air and Marine Operating Locations 37
DHS Does Not Have a Mechanism to Compare Marine Operating Location Costs across Components and Operating Locations 38
Conclusions 40
Recommendation for Executive Action 41
Agency Comments 41
Appendix I: Objectives, Scope, and Methodology 43
Appendix II: U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Mission Activities 48
Appendix III: Perspectives on Consolidation and Colocation of Air and Marine Operating Locations 51
Appendix IV: Comments from the Department of Homeland Security 53
Appendix V: GAO Contact and Staff Acknowledgments 55
Table 1. U.S. Coast Guard Mission Activities 10
Table 2. Air and Marine Operations Mission Activities 13
Table 3. U.S. Border Patrol Riverine Mission Activities 15
Table 4. Air and Marine Operations-Flight Hours by Region, Fiscal Years 2016 through 2018 17
Table 5. Air and Marine Operations-Flight Hours by Mission Category, Fiscal Years 2016 through 2018 18
Table 6. Air and Marine Operations-Float Hours by Region, Fiscal Years 2016 through 2018 20
Table 7. Air and Marine Operations-Float Hours by Mission Category, Fiscal Years 2016 through 2018 21
Table 8. U.S. Border Patrol-Riverine Float Hours by Border Region, Fiscal Years 2016 through 2018 23
Table 9. U.S. Border Patrol-Riverine Float Hours by Mission Category, Fiscal Years 2016 through 2018 23
Table 10. U.S. Coast Guard-Air Station Flight Hours by District, Fiscal Years 2016 through 2018 26
Table 11. U.S. Coast Guard-Air Station Mission Hours by Mission Type, Fiscal Years 2016 through 2018 27
Table 12. U.S. Coast Guard-Boat Station Float Hours by District, Fiscal Years 2016 through 2018 30
Table 13. U.S. Coast Guard-Boat Station Mission Hours by Mission Type, Fiscal Years 2016 through 2018 31
Table 14. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Assessments of Air and Marine Operating Locations 37
Table 15. List of U.S. Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Coast Guard Air and Marine Operating Locations Visited 45
Table 16. U.S. Coast Guard-Cutter Types and Numbers, Fiscal Years 2016 through 2018 48
Table 17. U.S. Coast Guard-Cutter Float Hours by Type, Fiscal Years 2016 through 2018 49
Table 18. U.S. Coast Guard-Cutter Mission Hours by Mission Type, Fiscal Years 2016 through 2018 50
Figure 1. U.S. Coast Guard Air and Marine Operating Locations by District 12
Figure 2. Air and Marine Operations Air and Marine Operating Locations by Region 14
Figure 3. U.S. Border Patrol Riverine Operating Locations by Sector 16
Figure 4. Air and Marine Operations (AMO) Flight Hours by Mission Types and Region, Fiscal Years 2016 through 2018 19
Figure 5. Air and Marine Operations (AMO) Float Hours by Mission Types and Region, Fiscal Years 2016 through 2018 22
Figure 6. U.S. Border Patrol (Border Patrol) Riverine Float Hours by Mission Types and Border Region, Fiscal Years 2016 through 2018 24
Figure 7. U.S. Coast Guard (Coast Guard) Air Station Mission Hours by Mission Types and Districts, Fiscal Years 2016 through 2018 28
Figure 8. U.S. Coast Guard (Coast Guard) Boat Station Mission Hours by Mission Types and Districts, Fiscal Years 2016 through 2018 32