The Department of Justice Office of Inspector General found that because of inadequate resources, faulty computer data and insufficient training, the INS’ inspectors at the United States’ 220 designated airports of entry did not properly screen the 70 million visitors they inspected last year.

Immigration inspectors are charged with inspecting all travelers at ports of entry to determine they may enter the United States. At airports, the inspection consist of a primary inspection and when required a secondary inspection. The aim of this report was to evaluate the procedures for referring persons to secondary inspection. Of the 70 million inspections last year at the nation's air ports of entry, INS inspectors denied admission to 208,000 travelers .

The report stated that these primary inspections are critically important in protecting the nation’s border from terrorists, illegal entries, foreign smugglers, and other illegal activities. The Inspector General’s report has been forwarded to the new immigration bureaus in the Department of Homeland Security.

The Inspector General identified three key problems:

1. The capability of INS staff at airports of entry to analyze advance passenger information to identify high-risk and inadmissible travelers and monitor the results of such targeting was limited due to the lack of adequate resources. Such information is critical in identifying travelers who should be referred for more detailed inspections.

2. The INS' computer database system, known as the "lookout system," did not always provide inspectors critical information known to the INS that could enable them to identify high-risk and inadmissible travelers. In addition, inspectors were not always querying lookout databases as required, and controls were not sufficient to ensure that all inspectors and supervisors could access backup information systems in case of computer outages.

3. Inadequate training increases the risk that inspectors could admit inadmissible travelers. The computer training provided to new inspectors was insufficient to allow them to capably use the systems that provide lookouts and other critical information about travelers seeking entry into the United States. The INS invested more than $19 million in fiscal year 2002 to train 1,000 new immigration inspectors. The report found that the basic training course does provide a good foundation for newly hired inspectors, but needs to sufficiently improve terrorism awareness.

Commercial airlines are required to submit detailed passenger manifests before arriving or departing the United States, including the names and dates of birth for each passenger, their citizenship, passport numbers and information on their U.S. visas as well as an address in the United States. The inspector general stated the need to expeditiously improve the capability to perform passenger analyses prior to flight arrival. The report contains 27 recommendations to improve the primary inspections at the airports of entry.