The United States is bolstering its defenses against the influx of fentanyl with the deployment of advanced Border Car Scanners. Fueled by $200 million in congressional funding, 56 new scanning systems are set to be installed at southern U.S. border crossings. This move comes after reports highlighted that previously acquired scanners were sitting unused due to a lack of installation funds.
Data from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) reveals a concerning trend: 95% of fentanyl seized by U.S. law enforcement is found in personal vehicles driven across the border, often by U.S. citizens. Border car scanners represent a crucial technology in the Biden administration’s strategy to combat this issue by effectively detecting fentanyl concealed within vehicles.
Following media attention, including reports from NBC News, a bipartisan group of senators, House members, and state attorneys general advocated for allocating funds to activate these vital scanners. The much-needed funding was finally secured through the House Homeland Security appropriations bill, passed by Congress in late March.
The deployment of these 56 new scanners, expected by 2026, will significantly increase scanning capacity. Currently, 31 systems are operational, and 27 more are under construction, all initially approved in 2021. Once fully implemented, these scanners will enable Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to scan approximately 40% of personal vehicles entering the U.S. This is a substantial leap from the current rate of less than 5%, where officers largely rely on subjective intuition for vehicle inspections at unequipped ports of entry.
The journey to deploy fentanyl scanners at border crossings has faced considerable delays since 2021. While acknowledging the progress, critics emphasize that scanning 40% of vehicles is still far from comprehensive. Bobby Watt, a former CBP official with over 30 years of experience in non-intrusive inspection technology, attributes the delays to bureaucratic hurdles. He argues for a goal of scanning 100% of personal vehicles, stating, “It’d be foolish not to…if you were a drug smuggler, would you go to a port that had an X-ray? Or would you go to the one next to it that didn’t have an X-ray?”
DHS cites logistical challenges such as space constraints at ports of entry and insufficient congressional funding to achieve 100% scanning. However, the CBP official clarified that the 40% of vehicles to be scanned will not be random. Instead, they will target vehicles flagged as posing a higher risk, maximizing the effectiveness of the available resources.
The increased funding and scanner deployment are welcomed by groups like Parents Against Fentanyl. Cindy DeMaio, who lost her daughter to fentanyl poisoning, highlights the importance of these scanners: “Anything we can do to increase the catching of these people and decrease the negative impacts on our country is extremely powerful.”
Despite this progress, concerns about the efficiency and effectiveness of the scanners persist. Senator John Cornyn has been a vocal critic of the slow deployment and has urged the Government Accountability Office to investigate DHS spending on X-ray equipment. Senator Cornyn and Senator Maggie Hassan have jointly introduced a bipartisan bill advocating for rigorous testing of various scanner technologies to ensure the most effective tools are utilized in fentanyl detection.
Senator Cornyn emphasizes the urgency: “Last year, Customs and Border Protection seized enough fentanyl at the southern border to kill every American 16 times over, and we have no way of knowing how much more evaded law enforcement.” He believes this legislation will address critical gaps in the fentanyl detection system by evaluating new technologies at land ports of entry.
CBP acknowledges the importance of these scanners as part of a broader strategy. A CBP spokesperson stated, “Non-intrusive inspection technology is one tool in CBP’s multi-layered approach to interdicting fentanyl and contraband.” They have consistently requested funding for scanner installation, recognizing its crucial role in border security and combating the fentanyl crisis.
