Whistleblower Disclosures Lead to Border Patrol Reforms and $100 Million in Savings
March 12, 2015
OSC sent findings to the President and Congress on recent positive efforts to address widespread misuse of millions of taxpayer dollars within the Department of Homeland Security.
Yesterday, the U.S. Office of Special Counsel (OSC) sent findings to the President and Congress on recent positive efforts to address widespread misuse of millions of taxpayer dollars within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). In response to whistleblower disclosures about long-standing abuse of overtime, Congress and DHS took action last year to reform and largely replace DHS’s outdated “Administratively Uncontrollable Overtime” (AUO) system. For example, in 2014, by removing employees’ eligibility for AUO payments, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reduced its biweekly overtime payment by $3.2 million – an annualized savings of $83.7 million. In addition, in December 2014, Congress passed the Border Patrol Agent Pay Reform Act, which is estimated to save $100 million a year, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
“I applaud the government’s collective response to the long-standing problem of overtime pay abuse through the AUO system. After years of inaction, the entrenched AUO problem is now on a path toward resolution,” said Special Counsel Carolyn Lerner. “It’s important to recognize that if the whistleblowers had not stepped forward, this waste of taxpayer funds would never have been corrected.”
AUO is only for employees whose hours cannot be controlled and are often unpredictable, such as border patrol agents who must respond to criminal activity along the border, even if that means staying on duty beyond normal hours. According to federal regulation, AUO is limited to “irregular” or “occasional” circumstances, such that failure to stay on duty “would constitute negligence.” However, contrary to regulation, AUO became an entrenched, routine part of the compensation system at many DHS components.
The DHS investigative reports, supplemental information, and whistleblower comments generated in response to disclosures made by employees at ten different DHS offices are on OSC’s website. The CBP and Immigration and Customs Enforcement offices are in El Centro, California; Bakersfield, California; San Ysidro, California; Washington, D.C.; Glynco, Georgia; Laredo, Texas; El Paso, Texas; Houston, Texas; Herndon and Reston, Virginia; and Chattanooga, Tennessee. OSC also released information about AUO investigations in 2013 and in 2008.