Improving border security: The CBSA's Arming Initiative

The Government of Canada is committed to protecting those who protect our border. Budget 2006 provided $101 million over two years to begin the process of arming CBSA officers and eliminating work-alone situations. The Government is arming CBSA officers to enhance border security and officer safety.

The arming of CBSA officers has not changed their authorities, mandate, duties or responsibilities. Their role with regard to facilitating the smooth flow of legitimate trade and travel across our border while keeping Canada's border secure remains unchanged.

When this initiative is fully implemented, a total of 4,800 officers will be armed.

• This number includes all border services officers who work at land and marine ports of entry, as well as officers who perform enforcement functions within Canada.
• It also includes 400 new permanent officers who will be hired, trained and equipped in order to eliminate work-alone situations.

Providing officers with duty firearms and training improves their effectiveness at the border by enabling them to pursue enforcement activities to a greater extent before involving police agencies.

Ensuring the safety of CBSA officers and the travelling public

The CBSA is putting in place a number of measures to ensure the safety of CBSA officers, the travelling public and border communities. These include the following:

• A rigorous screening process for CBSA officers to ensure that they are physically and psychologically suited to handle a duty firearm safely and responsibly.
• A comprehensive firearms training program, which includes the proper use and storage of a duty firearm and the handling of dangerous situations.
• An ongoing proficiency requirement in the use of firearms, including mandatory annual re-certification.
• Incident reporting and investigation procedures.

At no time will the CBSA ask officers to place themselves, other officers or members of the public in undue danger. Officers will continue to assess situations using their extensive skills, training, tools and good judgement. Armed officers will only resort to using their duty firearm when deemed necessary for the protection or preservation of life, and when all other reasonable alternatives are unsuccessful or unsafe.

Implementation strategy

Moving from an unarmed to an armed workforce is a major undertaking. An effective firearms training program and both operational and human resources policies had to be implemented before the first armed officers were deployed.

Recognizing that all this takes time, the CBSA has adopted a phased-in strategy to arm its officers. The CBSA is committed to ensuring that this initiative is implemented properly, safely, efficiently and without undue delay.

The implementation plan was developed in consideration of the Government's direction to focus early implementation on large-volume ports of entry and on the overall level of risk.

Year One

The first group of armed officers was deployed at large-volume land border crossings and some small and medium-sized ports of entry in August 2007. As well, a small number of inland officers were trained during the first year.

Future Years

Over the coming years, the CBSA will continue to train officers from the areas included in year one, as well as an increasing number of small and medium-sized ports, marine operations, criminal investigations and intelligence.

Rigorous officer screening process

To ensure that CBSA officers are physically and psychologically suited to carry a duty firearm safely and responsibly, a thorough screening process has been established. Officers need to pass this testing before taking the firearms training program.

The CBSA recognizes that not every officer will qualify to carry a duty firearm. The CBSA is committed to making every reasonable effort to accommodate those officers.

Comprehensive firearms training program

With the assistance of the RCMP, the CBSA has developed a comprehensive training program tailored to the needs and realities of its officers.

The three-week program has several key components:

• The safe handling, storage and transportation of a duty firearm.
• Firearms proficiency.
• The handling of dangerous situations, based on simulations from real-life situations faced by officers working at the border as well as those performing inland enforcement activities.
• The new and revised CBSA policies and procedures.

While working closely with RCMP experts during the initial phases of implementation, the CBSA will ultimately manage and deliver its own training program. CBSA trainers, who are responsible for delivering the program, are trained under the supervision of expert RCMP officers. Only those trainers who have met the RCMP's stringent standards are qualified to train CBSA officers.

Training and practice facilities

Future CBSA officers will be trained, and proficiency maintained, at the CBSA's Learning Centre in Rigaud, Quebec. However, the facility needs to be renovated to meet the requirements of the firearms program.

In the interim, the CBSA is using RCMP facilities in Ottawa and Chilliwack, B.C.  As of February 2009, a total of 776 armed officers have been deployed throughout the country.

The CBSA is also looking at securing other, private or public, facilities to train and practice.

Annual re-certification

Once a year, armed officers must demonstrate that they have maintained the established standards in the use of the duty firearm and control and defensive tactics by completing a re-certification process. The CBSA re-certification program is being offered at various facilities located across the country.

Policies and human resources products related to the arming of officers

The CBSA has developed and updated a series of policies related to arming its officers. For example:

• Policy on the Use of Force
• Policy on the Acquisition and Reporting of Agency Firearms
• Policy on the Handling of Agency and Protected Firearms
• Policy on the Wearing of Protective and Defensive Equipment including Firearms
• Policy on the Possession, Transportation and Storage of Agency Firearms, Ammunition and Controlled Items
• Policy on Training Prerequisites
• Policy on Use of Force Incident Reporting and Investigation

Key human resources products that have been developed or revised include the following:

• A duty to accommodate strategy to help ensure every reasonable effort is made to accommodate employees who are unable to undertake, or meet, the requirements and prerequisites.
• A Policy on employee support, including the employee assistance program and critical incident stress management.

In developing these policies, the CBSA has consulted widely with many stakeholders, including employees, union officials, other government departments and law enforcement agencies.

Selection of a duty firearm

Whether they are working at a land border crossing or a marine port of entry or investigating cross-border smuggling, CBSA officers have unique jobs and face unique circumstances. Following a rigorous, open and transparent process led by Public Works and Government Services Canada, the CBSA selected the Beretta Px4 9mm as its duty firearm. The firearm performed well during extensive testing. It also surpassed the CBSA's requirements and specifications, including the need to be lightweight, reliable, safe and easy to use in a variety of work environments. Beretta has been providing firearms to law enforcement agencies and military organizations around the world for almost 500 years.

About the CBSA

News Releases

• 2007-09-11 Canada's New Government to expand CBSA training facility in Rigaud
• 2007-08-31 Armed border officers deployed at the Pacific Highway border crossing
• 2007-08-31 Armed border officers deployed at the Peace Bridge
• 2007-07-27 Minister Day attends graduation of Canada's first armed
  border services officer
• 2006-08-31 Prime Minister Harper announces initiatives to improve Canada's border security (Office of the Prime Minister)