According to the El Paso Times, an inspector at the Zaragoza Bridge was arrested for allegedly allowing vehicles containing more than 5 kilograms of cocaine to pass his booth without inspection in exchange for $6,000 last week.  The inspector was indicted on drug and bribery charges.

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The Washington Post reported last week that the Department of Homeland Security reorganized its 18,000 Customs and Border Protection officers under the same overtime and premium pay schedule.  The new system replaces the three different schemes that applied to inspection personnel who had been transferred from the Agriculture, Justice, and Treasury Departments when the Homeland Security Department formed.  In an effort to recruit and retain qualified employees, the Department selected the existing Customs system.  According to DHS, it facilitates scheduling, tailors overtime and premium pay more closely to the work officers do, and provide favorable benefits for the employees.

Moreover, a House committee approved a bill that would raise recruitment and relocation bonuses for all federal employees.  It would require federal agencies to provide compensatory time off for work-related travel.  The bill would enable agencies to offer more incentives for hard-to-fill positions.

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The Department of Homeland Security issued a press release last week announcing its bilateral agreement with Mexico for the voluntary repatriation of Mexican nationals.  A pilot program will begin this month whereby undocumented Mexican migrants may elect to return via charter flights and then by bus to their hometowns.  The program only applies to the Arizona-Sonora region, with the goal of protecting Mexican migrants from death and injury that often follows from illegal border crossings in the deadly summer heat.  The Mexican Consul in Arizona will ensure that volunteers willingly decide to participate in the repatriation.  The agreement declares that the program will abide by the applicable laws of both countries as well as international law in a way that preserves the safety and dignity of Mexican nationals.

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The San Diego Union Tribune reported last week that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will review the hundreds of recent arrests of undocumented immigrants that occurred more than 50 miles from the U.S.-Mexico border.  The arrests marked a departure from previous practices of Boarder Patrol agents and have caused increased fear by Latinos in areas near San Diego.  The review was prompted by requests from members of Congress that represent the affected areas.  The DHS said that the arrests are legal, but they violate policy because they were done without advance authorization.  DHS Undersecretary Asa Hutchinson said that the arrests would continue until he issues a report in the next week.