On March 11, 2021, President Biden signed the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, a $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package that expands benefits for the federal workforce and Americans.

Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC) and 16 other lawmakers reintroduced the Protect and Serve Act, which would create federal penalties for individuals who target law enforcement officers at the federal, state, and local levels.

The Judicial Conference of the United States—the Judiciary’s policy-making body—recently proposed 79 new judgeships for courts across the country and initiatives to improve both personal security and courtroom security.

Secretary of Homeland Security Alexander Mayorkas recently signed an Interim Final Rule (IFR) to help U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) implement provisions from the Synthetics Trafficking and Overdose Prevention (STOP) Act.

A recent report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has not been able to come up with outcome-oriented measures to gauge their success when it comes to bringing small businesses into the market of security infrastructure.

Two top Department of Justice (DOJ) nominees, deputy attorney general nominee Lisa Monaco and associate attorney general nominee Vanita Gupta, attended a joint confirmation hearing in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee on March 9, 2021.

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) plans to hire 6,000 new Transportation Security Officers before summer 2021 to prepare for the influx of travelers that is expected as COVID-19 vaccine rollout accelerates. At approximately 430 airports nationwide, TSA is ramping up efforts to add staff who can assist with security screenings and other airport tasks.

Christopher Wray, Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee on March 2, 2021 to answer questions from lawmakers about events that transpired during the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol. The hearing focused on what the FBI knew leading up to the attack and its general response to the rising threat from domestic violent extremists.

From February 22 to February 23, the Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on the nomination of Judge Merrick Garland to the position of Attorney General in the Biden administration.

The federal government’s efforts to modernize and rationalize its workforce vetting policies and protocols continue to move forward, with actions coming at the tail end of the last administration and in the first month of the Biden administration.

The Biden administration recently proposed the 2021 U.S. Citizenship Act to Congress. The bill has been introduced in both chambers by Congressional Democrats. The act would revamp the United States immigration system and reverse many immigration initiatives that were introduced by the Trump administration. The plan also includes several reforms aimed at improving the homeland security workforce.

The African American Federal Executive Association, Executive Women in Government, Senior Executives Association, and Management Concepts partnered to present "It Starts with Us: Forging the Future of Federal Leadership.” The event featured Ambassador Susan Rice, current head of the White House Domestic Policy Council, as a keynote speaker and then continued with a panel discussion on the role of leaders in increasing equity, diversity, and inclusion in the federal leadership cadre of the future.

Representatives Bill Pascrell, Jr. (D-NJ), Andrew Garbarino (R-NY), Gerry Connolly (D-VA), and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) recently reintroduced the Law Enforcement Officers Equity Act. The bill has bipartisan support and would guarantee that law enforcement officers across the federal government have full access to federal retirement benefits.

The House Committee on the Judiciary held a hearing on February 11, 2021 titled The U.S. Immigration System: The Need for Bold Reforms. The discussion covered a number of topics ranging from the terminology of using “illegal alien” versus “undocumented immigrant” to some policy steps the government can take to better approach the immigration system and solve its problems.

Leading House Democrats on the Homeland Security, Appropriations, and Transportation Committees re-introduced the Rights for the Transportation Security Administration Workforce Act of 2021 in Congress. The bill, passed twice by the House in the 116th Congress, would expand workforce protections for employees of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA).

On February 4, 2021, President Joe Biden released a national security memo that focused on revitalizing American foreign policy and restoring the national security workforce, institutions, and partnerships. He also recently appeared at the Department of State to send a message on foreign policy to the workforce, saying, “I want the people who work in this building, and our embassies and consulates around the world, to know I value your expertise, and I respect you. And I will have your back.”

Last week, a hacker was able to breach the computer system of the water treatment facility in Oldsmar, Florida. The attack was detected before it affected the population. Initial reports indicate the hacker or hackers attempted to add dangerous levels of sodium hydroxide to the water supply using the plant’s remote access software. Cyber experts have warned that the attack highlights cyber infrastructure vulnerabilities.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) announced on February 2, 2021 that the Integrated Justice Information Systems (IJIS) Institute will take charge of a new project to develop interoperability standards between the Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) systems used by the nation’s public safety agencies.

Acting Secretary of Homeland Security David Pekoske has issued a National Terrorism Advisory System (NTAS) Bulletin due to security concerns following the inauguration of President Joe Biden. According to the bulletin, there is reason to believe that Domestic Violent Extremists (DVEs) could be ideologically motivated to challenge the presidential transition and exercises of governmental authority.

President Biden has issued many executive actions within his first week in office. Several of these actions relate directly to criminal justice reform and immigration policy.