United States 119th Congress Status: In Committee Bipartisan · 2 R · 2 D cosponsors

S 578 — BEST Facilitation Act

Last action — Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.

  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. 2
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed Senate
  4. 4
    Passed House
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill is in committee in the Senate. Introduced February 13, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.

Next likely step: a committee vote, then a floor vote in the Senate.

Odds of enactment

Low chance

Based on the sponsor, cosponsors, and committee posture, this bill has a low chance of becoming law.

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A statistical estimate from our own model of past outcomes — an insight, not a guarantee. Policymaking is volatile.

Prognosis

Advancing 38% · moderate confidence

  • In Committee

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 4 sponsors

    1 primary, 3 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Bipartisan support

    Sponsored across 2 parties (2 R · 2 D) — cross-party backing.

Based on stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes, and cross-state momentum — a description of the observable signals, not a prediction.

Summary

Border Enforcement, Security, and Trade Facilitation Act of 2025 or the BEST Facilitation ActThis bill establishes a pilot program for positions within U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to review inspection images of vehicles and cargo entering or exiting the United States.Specifically, the bill establishes the position of image technician 1 within the CBP Office of Field Operations. An image technician must (1) review nonintrusive inspection images of vehicles and cargo entering or exiting the United States; (2) assess whether such vehicles and cargo contain contraband, illicit drugs, weapons, or persons seeking to unlawfully enter the United States; and (3) refer suspicious vehicles and cargo for further inspection by a CBP officer. These reviews must take place at one of five regional command centers established pursuant to this pilot program.The bill also establishes the position of image technician 2 with additional responsibilities, including receiving and reporting intelligence to the National Targeting Center about techniques used by malign actors to transport contraband, illicit drugs, weapons, and persons seeking to unlawfully enter the United States.Image technicians must be supervised by a supervisory CBP officer.The bill establishes annual training requirements for both positions, including training on privacy and civil liberties and how to analyze inspection images.This pilot program ends five years after the date of enactment of this bill. Individuals employed as image technicians at the end of the pilot program may transfer to comparable positions within CBP or the Department of Homeland Security.

Bill Text

Action History

  1. Introduced in Senate

  2. Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 3 co-sponsors · 543 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (3)

Not signed on (543)

543 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 543 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Subjects

public-safety immigration
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

What does S 578 do?
Border Enforcement, Security, and Trade Facilitation Act of 2025 or the BEST Facilitation ActThis bill establishes a pilot program for positions within U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to review inspection images of vehicles and cargo entering or exiting the United States.Specifically, the bill establishes the position of image technician 1 within the CBP Office of Field Operations. An image technician must (1) review nonintrusive inspection images of vehicles and cargo entering or exiting the United States; (2) assess whether such vehicles and cargo contain contraband, illicit drugs, weapons, or persons seeking to unlawfully enter the United States; and (3) refer suspicious vehicles and cargo for further inspection by a CBP officer. These reviews must take place at one of five regional command centers established pursuant to this pilot program.The bill also establishes the position of image technician 2 with additional responsibilities, including receiving and reporting intelligence to the National Targeting Center about techniques used by malign actors to transport contraband, illicit drugs, weapons, and persons seeking to unlawfully enter the United States.Image technicians must be supervised by a supervisory CBP officer.The bill establishes annual training requirements for both positions, including training on privacy and civil liberties and how to analyze inspection images.This pilot program ends five years after the date of enactment of this bill. Individuals employed as image technicians at the end of the pilot program may transfer to comparable positions within CBP or the Department of Homeland Security.
Who sponsors S 578?
S 578 is sponsored by Lankford, James (Republican), Kelly, Mark (Democratic), Cornyn, John (Republican), and Warnock, Raphael G. (Democratic).
What is the current status of S 578?
This bill is in committee in the Senate. Introduced February 13, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.
Where can I track S 578?
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