The recently enacted Border Patrol Agent Pay Reform Act, S-1691, signed by the President on December 18, has given DHS long-anticipated hiring and compensation authorities for cybersecurity professionals similar to those available to DoD.
Included in the bill was language from Sen. Tom Carper’s (D-Del.) cybersecurity Workforce Recruitment and Retention Act, which grants the DHS secretary authority to establish cybersecurity positions in the excepted service including those formerly identified at senior levels and in the SES, and appoint individuals to them (generally with compensation pegged to comparable positions at DoD plus other compensation and incentives).
The bill also establishes a probationary period of three years for all employees hired; Orders the department to report to Congress on the availability of personnel and facilities outside of the National Capital Region and the potential benefits of utilizing them; Directs the DHS secretary to identify cybersecurity workforce areas of critical need, and requires the secretary to basically inventory the DHS cybersecurity workforce and make sure all positions have the right data element codes, as well as establish procedures for identifying open positions and assign the right codes to those – among other provisions.
