Congressman Henry Cuellar (D-TX28) released the following statement on the release of the Privacy Impact Assessment on Customs & Border Protection’s use of both manned and unmanned aircraft systems:

“As a Congressman representing a district with over 300 miles of border, I applaud U.S. Customs & Border Protection (CBP) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Privacy Office for their efforts to ensure the transparency of our border security activities,” said Congressman Henry Cuellar (D-TX28).  “These two agencies recently published a report that found minimal risk of unintentional privacy violations from the use of manned and unmanned aircraft for border security and law enforcement purposes. Unmanned aerial systems are monitored at all times by operators and only used in support of authorized missions. In addition, all unmanned systems are protected from potential hackers and any data collected by aircraft sensors is safely stored in secure locations.”

“I remain committed to the use of technology and smart border security to keep Americans safe but I will be the first to support continued investigation of potential privacy concerns regarding unmanned systems. Ensuring that our nation’s borders are secured and Americans’ privacy remains protected is a delicate balance, but it is one that we must engage in to fulfill our responsibility to the American people.”