ARCHIVED - NEXUS Highway and FAST Programs
(Trusted Travellers)
Evaluation Study

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May 2008

Table of Contents

• Executive Summary
• Introduction and Context
  • Evaluation Purpose and Expected Results
  • Evaluation Methodology
• Key Findings
  • Relevance
  • Program Design and Delivery
  • Results
  • Program Effectiveness and Efficiency
• Key Conclusions and Recommendations
• Management Response

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Executive Summary

Since September 11, 2001, Canada and the United States have increasingly worked together to secure the cross-border flow of travellers and goods, as well as to implement supporting infrastructure. The Smart Border Declaration, signed in December 2001, and the associated Action Plan for Creating a Secure and Smart Border provided the cornerstone for the coordination of activities and sharing of information between the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Two of the four pillars of the Action Plan are “the secure flow of people” and “the secure flow of goods.”[1]

The CBSA and U.S. CBP have introduced a number of joint programs that facilitate border crossing for travellers and goods while enhancing border security. The NEXUS and Free and Secure Trade (FAST) programs are part of the Alternate Inspection Services (AIS) programs, which are designed to simplify the cross-border movement of low-risk frequent travellers. NEXUS Highway members and FAST commercial drivers can use dedicated lanes at select Canada–U.S. land borders to expedite border crossing.[2] This is intended to reduce traffic congestion and delays, thereby improving service to the travelling public while enabling the CBSA and U.S. CBP to concentrate their efforts on individuals of higher or unknown risk.

This report presents the evaluation findings of the NEXUS Highway and FAST programs, which were evaluated under the umbrella of the trusted traveller programs. The evaluation assessed the continued relevance of the NEXUS Highway and FAST programs and their progress (with a focus on the driver component of FAST) in achieving expected results.[3] In addition, the evaluation explored the effectiveness and efficiency of the programs’ design, delivery and management. Although both NEXUS Highway and FAST are binational programs, the evaluation focused on the CBSA’s delivery of the programs. Given the differences between the two programs, the findings for each program are presented separately where appropriate.

Methodology

The Evaluation Division, Strategy and Coordination Branch, planned and conducted this evaluation. The evaluation research was conducted between March 2007 and January 2008, and the following methodologies were used:

• a document review of the NEXUS Highway and FAST programs using CBSA, U.S. CBP and other sources;
• site visits to various ports of entry (POEs) in the Pacific, Windsor–St. Clair, Niagara–Fort Erie and Quebec regions to observe passage, application and enrolment processes at Canadian processing centres (CPCs) and enrolment centres (ECs);
• one-on-one and group interviews with management and staff in the three regions and at Headquarters;
• surveys of NEXUS Highway members and FAST drivers; and
• statistical analyses of CBSA program data.

Key conclusions and recommendations

Overall, the evaluation found that the NEXUS Highway and FAST programs are highly relevant to a risk-based approach to border management. The programs are well-aligned with the CBSA’s vision of improved border management that contributes to safety, security and prosperity. The programs enable the Agency to segment a portion of travellers as low risk, thus placing it in a better position to use its resources for unknown- and potentially high-risk travellers and goods. Both programs streamline and expedite border clearance for members and facilitate the flow of travellers and goods crossing into Canada. The programs mutually benefit members and the CBSA.

Membership in the two programs is substantial and continues to grow. The programs are becoming increasingly important in other contexts as well, especially under the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI), which will accept NEXUS and FAST membership cards as valid travel documents to enter the United States starting at land borders in June 2009. Member satisfaction with the programs and related application and border clearance processes is exceptionally high.

Both NEXUS Highway and FAST are delivered across several CBSA branches. A draft roles and responsibilities document for the NEXUS Highway and FAST Commercial Driver programs, among other AIS programs, was created in early 2007. However, this document has not been fully signed off, thus there has been no communication to the field to clarify each delivery partner’s roles and responsibilities. Because of the change in responsibility for NEXUS Highway from the Innovation, Science and Technology Branch to the Admissibility Branch and the fact that the FAST Commercial Driver Program does not benefit from a strong policy capacity, policy and functional guidance to the field is not as consistent and efficient as it could be. For example, standard operating procedures (SOPs) for the FAST Commercial Driver Program are still in draft form. In addition, the policies related to the FAST Commercial Driver Program fall under the responsibility of a directorate other than the one governing FAST company and commercial goods policies. While this instability in governance has not had a major negative impact on the effectiveness of the programs, it has, nevertheless, produced a number of inconsistencies and uncertainties regarding how the programs are delivered in the field.

Only initial formal training is offered to border services officers (BSOs) on processing trusted travellers when a new NEXUS/FAST site is opened. No AIS training is provided to BSOs in their initial training at Rigaud, resulting in POEs themselves being responsible for training the BSOs assigned to NEXUS or FAST lanes. While job shadowing is a low-cost, common approach to training BSOs, there are no criteria that the “shadowee” can use to train the new BSO. As well, BSOs are often not aware of a number of tools at their disposal. For example, many of the BSOs interviewed for this evaluation were not aware of the online NEXUS training. The AIS information technology (IT) systems Helpline and the AIS Helpdesk are important tools for BSOs; however, the existence of these resources was not widely known, and neither was the existence of detailed, up-to-date SOPs for the NEXUS Highway program. These elements point to communication weaknesses between Headquarters and front-line staff.

A substantial amount of performance data is available for NEXUS Highway. Data that are not available and would have been useful to the evaluation include detailed reasons for the rejection of applications and consistent, standardized, detailed national data on membership revocations. These data, especially on membership revocations, would provide insight on non-compliance with the NEXUS program and the associated potential risks. The FAST Commercial Driver Program, on the other hand, does not collect a number of key data. For example, there are no data on passage, driver history or driver compliance (e.g. customs infractions and seizures). As well, the reasons for membership revocation are not always available. However, there are data on the number of applications accepted and denied, and the reasons for not granting membership.

Recommendation 1 – Finalize and distribute governance documents to delivery partners in Headquarters and to the regions, such as those outlining the delivery partners’ roles and responsibilities regarding the NEXUS Highway and FAST Commercial Driver programs, and those outlining SOPs for the enrolment and processing of FAST commercial drivers. In addition, consider the following:

• Communicate SOPs (for NEXUS), online NEXUS training (which needs to be updated to reflect program changes) and AIS IT systems Helpline information to front-line staff, possibly by developing a trusted traveller portal.
• Develop criteria for job shadowing (e.g. prepare a checklist of what must be covered and shown to prepare BSOs for their new duties).
• Enhance performance measurement data for NEXUS and implement a performance measurement data collection strategy related to FAST commercial drivers (including exploring options for ensuring that all FAST commercial drivers are processed in the Integrated Primary Inspection Line or IPIL).

There are a number of differences between Canada and the United States in terms of eligibility criteria (the acceptance of pardons and driving under the influence or DUI charges) and the value of personal exemptions. Unlike NEXUS, FAST applicants can be admitted into the program with minor customs infractions and criminal charges. Similarly, there are inconsistencies in how members of the programs are processed at different Canadian POEs. Having a higher standard for NEXUS members than other travellers and FAST commercial drivers has resulted in a higher number of NEXUS membership revocations.

Members bringing goods into Canada using NEXUS lanes must be signed up for the Traveller Declaration Card (TDC). FAST commercial drivers can either sign up for the card or verbally declare to the BSO the goods they are carrying within their allotted exemption limit. A number of challenges are associated with the use of the TDC. The TDC is reported by members as not being user friendly since the traveller must report goods under different categories and duty brackets. The instructions are long and complex to understand and remember. The cards are not available at all POEs, and when filled in, the cards may not be processed for payment at all. Furthermore, travellers in regular lanes are commonly waived through without having to pay duty and taxes on goods of smaller value, yet NEXUS members would likely be charged in such cases under the zero tolerance policy. NEXUS members entering the United States are allowed to bring in goods valued within the limit of their personal exemption/entitlement.

Since FAST commercial driver applicants can participate in the program even if they have minor customs infractions and/or criminal convictions, such drivers are more likely to be subject to a mandatory referral for examination when they cross into Canada. As well, BSOs may not scan the cards of FAST commercial drivers who frequently haul goods into Canada, sometimes several times a day, in IPIL. While it is understandable that the CBSA wants to ensure expedited passage for drivers they have come to know as a result of frequent passage, this nevertheless is associated with a number of issues, such as inaccurate passage and driver history data, and potential security gaps.

Recommendation 2 – Consider harmonizing the NEXUS and FAST membership requirements between Canada and the United States, to the extent possible (including assessing whether zero tolerance should apply to NEXUS), and address inconsistencies in enrolment and passage processes by:

• resolving bilateral differences in the consideration of DUI charges and pardons/expungements;
• considering implementing a warning system or penalty regime rather than revoking membership for minor infractions; and
• reviewing passage policies, such as whether the TDC should be simplified and/or kept mandatory for NEXUS Highway and FAST members, and the consistency of waive-through of travellers in regular lanes versus those in NEXUS lanes.

The evaluation found that the risk assessment of NEXUS and FAST applicants is generally working well, especially to ascertain whether an applicant does not have any prior customs infractions and criminal records, or for FAST, that these do not present a threat to program integrity. However, there are potential gaps in regard to verifying prior immigration violations. There has been at least one incidence whereby a permanent resident became a NEXUS member in spite of a previous immigration violation. This issue was only brought to light during this person’s renewal application for NEXUS membership. In addition, once permanent residents become Canadian citizens, previous immigration violations are not readily available to risk assessment officers, which means that such applicants could participate in the programs. Risk assessments against databases of known and recorded violations does not necessarily guard the programs against national security threats. With NEXUS and FAST cards becoming valid WHTI travel documents, this issue poses a risk to the integrity of not only the programs themselves, but also for WHTI.

There is supposed to be an annual re-risking process for NEXUS Highway and FAST members. This is to ensure that no current members have received recent convictions or committed any other violations that would exclude them from the programs. The re-risking is, at this time, conducted for FAST members every year, but may not be done at all over a five-year period for NEXUS members. Given that U.S. CBP has an automated re-risking process every 24 hours whereby law enforcement databases are run against the NEXUS and FAST member databases, the risk gap is somewhat mitigated.

The CBSA does not use the information in its intelligence databases to make membership decisions. It is not clear to what extent intelligence information is used to verify that applicants for each program do not pose a national security threat prior to enrolment. The Enforcement Branch is in the process of examining if there are any national security gaps in the application risking process.

Recommendation 3 – Consider implementing additional checks in the risk assessment of NEXUS and FAST applicants to ensure compliance and program integrity by:

• exploring measures to ensure that previous immigration violations are available to risk assessment officers, giving equal importance to customs and immigration requirements;
• using intelligence information to make membership determinations; and
• ensuring that NEXUS members are subject to annual re-risking.

POEs where NEXUS and FAST are available, but where the traffic volume is low, are using more resources than they would if they did not have these passage options. In order to keep the lanes and booths open for members, some, but not all POEs have developed solutions to minimize resource use and technology to support flex-lanes.

FAST-approved commercial drivers crossing the border on personal travel must use the regular non-commercial lanes. The FAST commercial drivers surveyed were of the opinion that being able to use the NEXUS lanes would be a great benefit. Allowing the more than 77,000 FAST commercial drivers to use NEXUS lanes on their personal trips could also benefit the CBSA by further decreasing the traffic in regular lanes.

The number of FAST carriers depends on the number of Customs Self Assessment (CSA) importers — the more importers, the greater the need for carriers. It has been questioned whether FAST would benefit from being delinked from CSA, but this is challenging to answer. While CSA has attracted the largest importers and continues to market the program to other large importers, the increase in CSA membership — and thus FAST membership — is limited by restrictions pertaining to offshore goods and other government department-regulated goods. At this time, the costs for a carrier to be a member of FAST are low as it is importers who would have to invest to upgrade their accounting processes and systems to meet the CBSA’s requirements.

FAST and CSA releases are treated the same way. Releases in regular lanes are increasingly processed by electronic data interchange, although accounting aspects differ for CSA and FAST releases. As such, a CSA program delinked from FAST but having a FAST-only option whereby participating companies would only need to be enrolled in the Partners in Protection (PIP) program beforehand could provide opportunities for small and medium-sized companies. From a release perspective, delinking would not make much of a difference to the CBSA nor to the trade entity.

Recommendation 4 – Explore enhancements to the efficiency and effectiveness of program delivery by:

• identifying alternative reporting methods at POEs where FAST and NEXUS traffic is low (e.g. exploring the reliability and efficiency of having one BSO in a single booth serving two lanes, using cameras);
• allowing FAST commercial drivers to use NEXUS lanes when on personal travel, which would mean activating the radio frequency identification chip in FAST cards to enable the transmission of the holder’s photo; and
• further exploring the policy position of delinking FAST from CSA.

Introduction and Context

The evaluation of the NEXUS Highway and FAST programs was identified as a priority for 2007–2008 in the 2006–2009 Canada Border Service Agency (CBSA) Risk-Based Multi-Year Evaluation Plan, approved by the then-Internal Audit and Evaluation Committee in June 2006.

NEXUS Highway and FAST are joint initiatives of the CBSA and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and part of the CBSA Alternate Inspection Services (AIS) programs.[4] The AIS programs are designed to expedite the flow of low-risk travellers across the Canada–U.S. border. Through the Smart Border Declaration, Canada and the United States undertook to implement systems to collaborate in identifying security risks while expediting the flow of low-risk travellers, to establish a secure system to allow low-risk frequent travellers to move efficiently across the border, and to harmonize commercial processing and clearance away from the border.[5]

Members of NEXUS Highway and FAST benefit from access to dedicated lanes at designated land borders and expedited border crossing between Canada and the United States. This is intended to reduce traffic congestion and delays, thereby improving service to the travelling public and drivers of commercial goods while enabling the CBSA and U.S. CBP to concentrate their efforts on individuals and goods of higher or unknown risk.

NEXUS Highway

The very first NEXUS Highway program started as a pilot project in 2000. In March 2002, the Shared Border Accord Coordinating Committee (SBACC) instructed that a national NEXUS Highway program be launched, and in 2002–2003, the program was implemented at seven border crossings. Four more locations were added in 2003–2004. Since then, the program has been made available at three more locations, for a current total of 14 locations. The CBSA and U.S. CBP are considering further expansion. In 2004–2005, NEXUS border clearance became available in the air and marine modes of transportation as well. In December 2006, the NEXUS Highway,[6] Air and Marine programs were harmonized (“in for one, in for all”). Members can now use their card for expedited border clearance in all three modes.

FAST

FAST was implemented in 2002 to support the movement of eligible goods across the border at designated land crossings, and is now available in 20 high-volume ports of entry (POEs). FAST is a commercial program offered to pre-approved importers, carriers and drivers who import or carry eligible goods into Canada. Its goal is to reduce border clearance delays and compliance costs. Importers do not have to transmit data for each transaction; there are dedicated lanes for FAST border clearance (where feasible), a reduced rate of border examinations, and streamlined accounting and payment processes for eligible goods imported by approved importers (in Canada only).

Canada and the United States approve carriers and importers separately. However, FAST commercial drivers are jointly approved by each country.

To be FAST-approved in Canada, importers and carriers have to be participants in the Customs Self Assessment (CSA) [7] and Partners in Protection (PIP) programs, which were initiated under the Customs Action Plan (CAP) 2000–2004. To be FAST-approved in the United States, companies must already be approved by the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism.

Application and enrolment

The NEXUS and FAST programs are open to citizens and permanent residents of Canada, and citizens and resident aliens of the United States who have resided in either country, or a combination of both countries, for the last three years. To become FAST members, applicants must also be at least 18 years of age and have a valid driver’s licence. There is no age limit for NEXUS membership.

NEXUS is a zero-tolerance program. As such, NEXUS applicants must not have violated customs or immigration legislation, and they must not have any criminal convictions.

There are three AIS Canadian processing centres (CPCs) involved in reviewing the completeness of applications and conducting risk assessments of NEXUS and FAST applications. Of these CPCs, one is responsible for FAST application processing. As well, more than 25 enrolment centres (ECs) across Canada are responsible for applicant verification, validation and biometric capture.[8]

Prospective members can apply online using the U.S. Global Online Enrollment System (GOES) or submit a hard-copy application form to one of the CPCs, along with photocopies of their supporting documentation and a non-refundable processing fee of CAN or US$50. Membership is free for children under the age of 18.[9]

Applicants who have passed the initial CBSA and U.S. CBP risk assessment are invited to an EC for an interview. NEXUS applicants must come to an EC for their interview within 90 days of the date on their invitation letter. [10] After 90 days, they are required to reapply (and pay the full processing fee), and another full risk assessment is conducted. At the EC, CBSA officers interview U.S.-based applicants, and U.S. CBP officers interview all applicants. Dual citizens are interviewed by the CBSA if they are residents of the United States and U.S. CBP officers interview them if they are residents of Canada.[11]

FAST commercial driver applicants receiving conditional approval letters from the FAST processing centre have 90 days from the date of issuance of the letter to set up an appointment at one of the ECs. Applicants who do not do this within the 90 days may be required to reapply to the program. If at any time an officer feels that the applicant should be re-risk-assessed based on new information obtained during the interview, a request for a security review will be sent to the FAST processing centre. In such cases, EC officers use their discretion in deciding whether or not a FAST card should be issued conditionally, or if this issuance should wait for the applicant to return to the EC.

For both NEXUS Highway and FAST, applicants’ original identification documents are verified and photocopied, and their photo and fingerprints are taken and kept on file. Officers explain the programs’ terms and conditions, and show them how the passage processes work.

Border passage process

The highway border passage process for NEXUS members is technologically assisted. Members use dedicated lanes where equipment with radio frequency identification device technology reads their membership card. Their card is scanned by a proximity card reader, which transmits a unique code that links the card to a record in the membership information database. Information on the program member is called up on a computer in the Primary Inspection Line (PIL) booth for the officer to review. At the same time, a licence plate reader also transmits the licence plate number to the same computer. This permits the completion of the border passage process in an expedited manner. Members are subject to examination and their membership is affected if they are found to be in violation of customs or immigration laws, or the program’s requirements.

The passage process for FAST is also automated. Upon arrival at the PIL booth, border services officers (BSOs) scan the driver’s FAST card or the carrier or importer bar code into the Accelerated Commercial Release Operations Support System (ACROSS). This is done to confirm the status of the CSA importer, CSA carrier or FAST commercial driver as a member of the FAST program. The shipment is then authorized for delivery or referred for secondary inspection.

Canadian residents have the option of signing up for the Traveller Declaration Card (TDC). In order to use the TDC, members provide credit card information, and applicable duties and taxes on declared goods are charged to it. Canadian resident NEXUS Highway members must always use the TDC card if they have any goods to declare when using the NEXUS Highway passage process. However, FAST commercial drivers can declare goods verbally to BSOs if the value of the goods is within their allotted exemption. FAST commercial drivers can submit their TDC to the BSO at the commercial PIL booth, unlike NEXUS Highway members who must drop the TDC in the designated box before approaching the PIL booth.

Evaluation Purpose and Expected Results

The evaluation of the NEXUS Highway and FAST programs was identified as a priority in the 2006–2009 CBSA Risk-Based Multi-Year Evaluation Plan, which was approved by the then-Internal Audit and Evaluation Committee in June 2006. The evaluation was conducted between March 2007 and January 2008.

The effectiveness and efficiency of the two programs, as well as their design, delivery, continued relevance and governance structure were examined. While these programs are binational, this evaluation focused on the CBSA’s delivery.

Table 1 summarizes the key evaluation questions explored.

Table 1: Key Evaluation Questions

Evaluation issue	Evaluation questions
Relevance	To what extent are the NEXUS Highway and FAST programs aligned with government-wide and CBSA priorities, and do they realistically address an actual need?
Program designand delivery	To what extent is the management structure for the NEXUS Highway and FAST programs effective? To what extent is the delivery of NEXUS Highway and FAST consistent across Canada, and between Canada and the United States? To what extent have the programs’ internal and external communications and outreach activities been effective? How effective are the performance measurement systems for the NEXUS Highway and FAST programs? To what extent is BSO training related to NEXUS Highway and FAST effective and adequate?
Results	To what extent have the NEXUS Highway and FAST programs been effective in meeting their objectives? To what extent are trusted traveller program members benefiting from the programs? To what extent are the NEXUS Highway and FAST enrolment and passage processes effective? To what extent can trusted travellers be trusted?
Program effectiveness and efficiency	To what extent are the NEXUS Highway and FAST programs delivered cost-effectively? What are the potential benefits of harmonizing the programs and expanding them to additional border crossings? Are there more efficient and effective alternative delivery methods?

Evaluation Methodology

Multiple sources of information and research methods were used in this evaluation.

Review of program documents and statistics

The following documents and statistics were reviewed and analyzed:

• NEXUS Highway and FAST program documents, such as program guides, evaluation, audit and post-implementation review reports, relevant correspondence, training materials, and budget and expenditure reports;
• relevant policy documents, including the Accord on our Shared Border, the Smart Border Declaration and its 32-point Action Plan;
• SBACC and national and binational working group meeting documents;
• program-related statistics;
• CBSA, U.S. CBP and other government and business group Internet sites; and
• studies on Canada–U.S. cross-border trade and traffic.

Site visits

The evaluation team visited 11 POEs, on both the Canadian and U.S. sides, including POEs in the Pacific, Niagara–Fort Erie, Windsor–St. Clair and Quebec regions. The sites were selected based on traffic volume and the presence of dedicated NEXUS Highway and FAST lanes. During these site visits, the team toured ECs and processing centres, observed NEXUS and FAST border clearance passages, and conducted interviews with CBSA and U.S. CBP staff and management.

Data analysis

The Consolidated Management Reporting System (CMRS) was the primary source of quantitative information for the evaluation. Data on NEXUS Highway and FAST membership, as well as revocations, passages, compliance verification rates, etc. were used.

In-depth interviews

Interviews were conducted at CBSA Headquarters (HQ) with representatives from the Admissibility; Enforcement; Innovation, Science and Technology (IST); and Operations Branches. Interviews were also held with regional staff, including directors general (or their representatives) from four regions: Niagara–Fort Erie, Pacific, Quebec and Windsor–St. Clair. A number of interviews with U.S. CBP officials and external stakeholders including representatives of the bridge authorities in Fort Erie and Niagara Falls were also conducted. A breakdown of the interviews is shown in Table 2.

Table 2: Interviews Conducted

Interview category	Number of Interviews
CBSA HQ management and staff	13
CBSA regional management and staff	43
External stakeholders	7
Total	63

Surveys of FAST drivers and NEXUS Highway members

Separate telephone surveys of NEXUS Highway members and FAST drivers were conducted to find out how members learned about the programs, their reasons for participating, their expected and realized benefits, and their levels of satisfaction with the application, enrolment and passage processes.

A total of 2,000 randomly selected Canadian and U.S. NEXUS members and 2,500 FAST commercial drivers were sent an introduction letter explaining the purpose of the survey and inviting them to participate. FAST carrier and importer companies received written prior notice that FAST commercial drivers would be contacted for the survey. A total of 403 NEXUS Highway member interviews were conducted between November 5 and 8, 2007. Between December 12 and 16, 2007, 401 interviews were conducted with FAST commercial drivers. The survey results were within a 95 percent confidence level and had an error rate of ±4.9 percent.

Study limitations

The surveys were limited to persons who were members at the time they were contacted. Members whose membership had been revoked were not contacted or interviewed, thus their perspectives were not included in the surveys. In addition, the lack of accurate and complete information about members (500 of the 2,000 letters sent out to NEXUS members and 287 of the 2,500 letters sent out to FAST commercial drivers were returned due to inaccurate and/or incomplete address information) introduced a possible bias in the survey samples. However, the weighting of responses was conducted according to original member lists, making those surveyed reflective of the populations.

While a substantial amount of data were accessed for the evaluation, there were gaps in the data. For example, FAST passage data and reasons for membership revocation were not available, and NEXUS passage data only included passages at POEs having the proximity card reader technology. The NEXUS figures and statistics presented in this report therefore do not include NEXUS passages at land border crossings that do not have this technology.

Key Findings

Relevance

To what extent are the NEXUS Highway and FAST programs aligned with government-wide and CBSA priorities, and do they realistically address an actual need?

NEXUS Highway and FAST are designed to expedite the flow of low-risk travellers and goods. Through the Smart Border Declaration, Canada and the United States undertook to implement systems to collaborate in identifying security risks while expediting the flow of low-risk travellers, to establish a secure system to allow low-risk frequent travellers to move efficiently across the border, and to implement a system to collaborate in identifying high-risk goods while expediting the flow of low-risk goods.[12]

During the 2007 Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America Summit,[13] Canada, the United States and Mexico agreed to collaborate to establish risk-based screening standards for goods and people that rely on technology, information sharing and biometrics, and develop standards and options for secure documents that facilitate cross-border travel. The NEXUS Highway and FAST programs are also fully aligned with the Canadian government’s mandate to strengthen national security by making our streets safe, our borders secure and our country strong. The February 26, 2008 budget allocated $174 million for border security and $14 million to expand the NEXUS program.

Every day, the CBSA processes more than 191,000 [14] travellers entering Canada by highway. Canada and the United States benefit from the largest bilateral commercial trade relationship in the world, with two-way trade estimated at $1.9 billion a day.[15]

Trusted traveller programs are central components of risk-based border management. Given that NEXUS and FAST members have been risk-assessed and identified as low risk prior to crossing the border, BSOs can focus their efforts on travellers and goods of unknown or high risk. As such, the trusted traveller programs facilitate the lawful flow of people and goods and support national security and public safety objectives.[16] NEXUS Highway and FAST enable participants to use dedicated booths and lanes for quicker clearance and reduced border wait times.

The importance of the two programs to the economy is further highlighted by the level of support the programs receive from the private sector. The business community actively urges the Canadian and U.S. governments to expand the NEXUS Highway and FAST programs. Many bridge and airport authorities, and other business organizations, have also invested their own resources in promoting the programs, including by providing free advertisements and paying for application fees.[17]

Program Design and Delivery

To what extent is the management structure for the NEXUS Highway and FAST programs effective?

The SBACC, composed of senior managers from both the CBSA and U.S. CBP, meets quarterly on a variety of joint programs including NEXUS Highway and FAST. In addition, the binational trusted traveller working group provides strategic and functional direction to the programs.

This working group is occasionally tasked with conducting studies. One such study dealt with the benefits of expanding NEXUS Highway to new locations. Another looked at the harmonization of the NEXUS and FAST programs, including their eligibility criteria and penalty regimes. Yet, the recommendations from these studies are not always implemented and in fact, the action taken may be contrary to the recommendations. For instance, a recommendation the working group made in 2005 to harmonize NEXUS and FAST and institute a graduated penalty regime has yet to be implemented. Similarly, NEXUS lanes were opened at POEs where the working group concluded these lanes would not be beneficial. For the CBSA, investing in trusted traveller programs in low-volume POEs means taking resources away from regular processing.

Although there is good collaboration between the CBSA and U.S. CBP, there have been instances when increased alignment could have avoided challenges. For example, CBSA officers were not given adequate prior notice and training when U.S. CBP launched GOES. As a result, CBSA employees were unable to assist clients trying to use GOES to complete their application. This also resulted in double bookings of interviews. Similarly, when the CBSA adjusted the application processing fee for the two programs to CAN or US$50, down from CAN$80 and US$50, it did not notify U.S. CBP in advance.

Three CBSA branches have direct roles and responsibilities in the design and delivery of NEXUS and FAST. The Admissibility Branch is responsible for overall policy and functional direction, and the Operations Branch liaises with the regions, oversees the delivery of the programs in the field and operates the AIS Helpdesk. The Operations Branch also provides direction on process-related matters. The IST Branch is responsible for ongoing systems maintenance for existing AIS programs and the operation of the AIS information technology (IT) systems Helpline. Currently, the IST Branch is also leading the expansion and harmonization efforts of the trusted traveller programs, as well as the marketing of NEXUS.

The roles and responsibilities of the different branches associated with NEXUS Highway are still evolving.[18] The IST Branch was responsible for the design and implementation of the program. The Operations Branch became responsible for day-to-day operations in June 2006, while the Admissibility Branch became responsible for NEXUS-related polices and procedures in January 2007.[19] The Admissibility Branch has yet to build up program-specific knowledge and expertise, resulting in the field not yet receiving solid policy guidance. For instance, there is no national policy on how infractions in NEXUS lanes should be dealt with. In addition, the IST Branch continues to be involved in NEXUS Highway since it is responsible for the harmonization of NEXUS and FAST, and for the associated revisions of standard operating procedures (SOPs) and training materials. The Operations Branch, in collaboration with the Admissibility Branch, also makes modifications to these SOPs. The Admissibility Branch is additionally responsible for redress and appeal activities. Currently, there is no formal redress mechanism for the revocation of NEXUS or FAST memberships for reasons other than seizure, except in regions that have created their own mechanisms.

Responsibility for the CSA/FAST goods component was transitioned to the then-Commercial Operational Policy Division in the Admissibility Branch in 2004. In 2007, the commercial drivers component was transferred from the IST Branch to the Admissibility and Operations Branches, and a collaborative work plan of FAST Commercial Drivers Program roles and responsibilities was developed but is yet to be finalized.[20] The Driver Registration Program Manual is the main SOP document for the FAST Commercial Drivers Program and includes instructions on application processing, risk assessments and passage processing relating to FAST commercial drivers. The SOPs were finalized in October 2006 by the IST Branch before the transfer of the AIS programs in 2007.

A number of the CBSA regional staff interviewed for this evaluation were not clear on who should be providing them with policy direction. As a result, regional staff and management reported taking the initiative to develop their own POE-specific policies and guidelines (e.g. on addressing infractions, enforcing the NEXUS zero tolerance policy and overriding mandatory referrals). There was also a lack of knowledge of the existence of the SOPs and online training materials for NEXUS enrolment and passage processes. Staff at one EC had taken the initiative to develop a training manual not knowing the existence of these materials.

The FAST program does not have a single functional authority, and creating one would be challenging. This is because the program encompasses both goods and travellers, with the policies and procedures governing the program being developed in four program areas. Compounding the complexity is FAST’s requirement that participating importers and carriers must first be CSA and PIP members to be considered, and that FAST commercial drivers are processed separately and differently than participating companies.

To what extent is the delivery of NEXUS Highway and FAST consistent across Canada, and between the Canada and the United States?

Generally, the CBSA and U.S. CBP use the same criteria for determining eligibility for the NEXUS program. The differences in criteria that seem to have the greatest impact relate to how applicants with a driving under the influence (DUI) conviction or with a Canadian pardon are treated. Although the exact number was not available, it appears that many of the rejections of Canadian resident applicants by U.S. CBP at the interview stage after having been risk-assessed relate to past convictions for which these individuals have received a Canadian pardon. The vast majority of U.S. residents who were refused membership by the CBSA after U.S. CBP found them to be eligible were denied due to having DUI records, which is a criminal offence in Canada but not in all U.S. states.

The fact that applications are rejected for such reasons is not made clear to applicants in advance. The NEXUS application form asks if applicants have “ever been convicted of an offence in any country for which [they] have not received a pardon.” It also states that “for background checks, [applicants] may be questioned by an officer about full criminal history, including arrests and pardons.” [21] However, this does not specify that a conviction for which one has received a pardon is grounds for rejecting applications.

The NEXUS Highway SOPs allow officers to use their discretion to determine whether they should take enforcement action against members who do not comply with the SOPs. In fact, the most recent SOPs explicitly state that NEXUS members should be given the same level of lenience as those crossing the border in regular lanes. BSOs have different interpretations of, levels of confidence in (e.g. are members trustworthy?) and degrees of knowledge of NEXUS program requirements. Most of the BSOs interviewed stated that they had no discretionary power due to the NEXUS zero tolerance criteria, a view that is contrary to the SOPs. Unless BSOs have made clear errors in applying the Customs Act, their decisions are upheld. Thus, infractions such as not declaring low-value items can result in membership terminations. As an example, some POEs give NEXUS members warnings before revoking membership while others revoke membership for any infraction. This results in NEXUS Highway members being treated more harshly at some POEs and by some BSOs than regular travellers who are regularly waived through with low-value goods purchased in the United States. Some POEs, such as those in the Pacific and Niagara–Fort Erie regions, have developed redress or appeal mechanisms whereby identical infractions may not lead to suspended or revoked membership at these POEs.

Similar types of challenges are associated with the FAST program. Since drivers with past customs infractions or criminal convictions can be members of the FAST program, entering their tombstone data into the Integrated Primary Inspection Line (IPIL) may trigger a flag for BSOs to send these drivers to secondary inspection every time they cross the border, which could sometimes be several times a day. To avoid delaying the drivers, BSOs may not enter their tombstone data into IPIL. This does not allow the CBSA to gather and use passage history information, and may limit performance reporting and the gathering of investigation and intelligence information.

To what extent have the programs’ internal and external communications and outreach activities been effective?

At one EC, old NEXUS application forms were provided to applicants even though new harmonized forms were to be used, resulting in applicants having to resubmit their applications. It was also common for BSOs to have never seen the SOPs that govern the administration of the NEXUS Highway program. Regional staff processing FAST commercial drivers and shipments reported that they were not aware of the existence of the AIS IT systems Helpline and AIS Helpdesk

NEXUS membership cards are valid for five years. It is members’ responsibility to ensure that they have a valid card. GOES generates a 90-day notice of renewal for members upon passage into the United States. The CBSA has produced information sheets and posters reminding members to renew their membership. In order to ensure that members are not penalized for not knowing the expiry date of their membership, the CBSA and U.S. CBP give a grace period of 90 days for those who have expired cards but who have applied for renewal. However, those who acknowledge not having applied for renewal have their card taken away and cannot use the NEXUS lane until their membership is renewed. The fact that members are not reminded that their membership will expire in short order might have contributed to the large number of cancelled NEXUS memberships. While this reinforces the importance of members’ responsibility to maintain their membership, it also creates an inconvenience for members to be without a valid card and decreases NEXUS passages for the CBSA. During site visits to ECs, FAST commercial drivers reported that their employer notes the date of membership expiry and notifies them to reapply within the 90-day renewal period.

The CBSA has used a multi-pronged approach to promote the NEXUS Highway and FAST programs. For example, CBSA staff submitted articles to local newspapers describing the trusted traveller programs as options to avoid delays at the border. Private sector stakeholders initiated their own promotion efforts to their benefit. The IST Branch signed agreements with private sector organizations in order to ensure that these organizations distribute correct information to the public and that all marketing activities meet CBSA requirements. The IST Branch, in collaboration with the regions, has coordinated a number of marketing activities to promote the NEXUS Highway program. Examples include television coverage on NEXUS border openings, print advertisements, and NEXUS information handouts to travellers crossing the border.[22]

n 2007, the CBSA conducted a public awareness survey[23] to establish baseline data on issues related to its mandate. When the Canadian population was asked to name any CBSA program that makes it easier for people or goods to cross the Canada–U.S. border, of the 11% of people who were able to name a program, 18% mentioned the NEXUS program, and 7% knew of the FAST program. When all respondents were asked if they supported or opposed this type of program, 72% stated that they supported the NEXUS program strongly or somewhat.

Significant FAST program promotion has been conducted by the CBSA since the program was launched in 2002. Promotion focused on outreach and consultations with trade organizations. The IST Branch organized commercial information sessions, made presentations on the FAST program, and worked with driving schools to increase awareness of and interest in the program. In October 2004, the IST Branch organized coast-to-coast consultations on the potential delinking of the CSA program from FAST.

According to the survey, the most common source of information for FAST commercial drivers about the FAST program was their employers (Table 3).

Table 3: FAST Commercial Drivers’ First Knowledge About the FAST Program

How did you first learn about the FAST program?	Percent[24]
Your employment (employer, business colleague, associate, client, etc.)	71
Word of mouth (friend, family, acquaintance, etc.)	10
A U.S. CBP or CBSA officer	8
Brochure/flyer/poster about FAST	3
The CBSA or U.S. CBP Web site	3
Driver training school	3
Radio, television or newspaper ad or report about FAST	1
Other	3

Source: Survey of FAST drivers, January 2008.

How effective are the performance measurement systems for the NEXUS Highway and FAST programs?

Considerable amounts of performance data related to the NEXUS Highway program are available, including data on the passage process and lane use, compliance with program requirements and membership rates. Data on application processing, administrative rejections, risk-assessment processing and the revocation of memberships are also available from regional CPCs. Since these data are regionally specific, they allow for a partial view of program performance. Detailed reasons for the rejection of applications and consistent, standardized, detailed national data on membership revocations are not available. With this information, there would be a better understanding of areas of non-compliance and the potential risks posed by NEXUS Highway members.

A number of key metrics are not available for the FAST program. For example, FAST driver history, beyond the last passage, is not available at the PIL booth. The impact of this is that valuable indicators of route and travel frequency are unavailable to the CBSA for analysis and to support an investigation. In addition, there are no FAST passage statistics or compliance information on the drivers.

On the goods side, the measurements of FAST goods are combined with those of CSA goods. A CSA release is a FAST release, but currently eight CSA importers are not yet FAST importers. CSA releases are not counted in the same way as other releases, which makes determining the CSA and FAST proportions of all releases challenging.

While the number of cancelled FAST memberships was available, these data did not include the reasons why the memberships were cancelled. Since the FAST program’s launch, 14% of applicants have had their applications denied or memberships cancelled. Thus, there are no solid data to indicate the degree to which these trusted travellers can be trusted.

Data were obtained from the FAST CPC on application processing, including the weekly and monthly applications received and administrative rejections.[25] The FAST risk assessment centre collects data on the status of the risk-assessment processing of applicants, which includes the numbers of pending, completed and failed applications. Prior to November 2007, the FAST CPC was collecting more detailed data on applicants who failed to pass the risk-assessment process. Data on FAST commercial drivers who had their memberships revoked during 2007 and the first quarter of 2008 included the number of failed applicants who requested the redress process.

To what extent is BSO training related to NEXUS Highway and FAST effective and adequate?

The CBSA is responsible for the administration of over 90 acts, regulations and international agreements. Training is therefore important so that BSOs exercise the various authorities and associated delegations. Trusted traveller programs are for people and companies that have been pre-screened and determined to be low risk. As such, the regions balance training investments with operational requirements.

In terms of NEXUS Highway, the AIS team at HQ provides training and guidance to the field. The team distributes memoranda to staff and has developed online training. The online NEXUS training module is available to anyone with access to the CBSA intranet. According to the NEXUS SOPs, BSOs are encouraged, but not required, to use this training tool. Only a few BSOs interviewed for this evaluation were aware of the existence of the tool. The 2004 module has not been updated to reflect changes in the program and thus does not include the information reflected in the revised SOPs (the fact that a NEXUS Highway card can now be used in other modes of transportation, etc.)

The majority of front-line NEXUS staff indicated that their knowledge of the program was based on job shadowing. Experienced BSOs are paired with those who are new to NEXUS processing, although there is no list or criteria for the kind of instruction that should take place. While job shadowing is a powerful method to train people, it is only as good as the person being shadowed.

For FAST, BSOs receive two weeks of training in commercial processing in the region to which they are deployed upon having terminated their initial BSO training. The training covers how to use ACROSS and how to process FAST commercial drivers and shipments at the border. Once assigned to a FAST lane in a commercial POE, BSOs spend another two weeks learning through job shadowing. There is also an online training module for CSA/FAST that focuses on using ACROSS to process FAST shipments.

Since there is no AIS module within BSO training at Rigaud, BSOs’ knowledge about the intent of the NEXUS Highway and FAST programs is limited. There is a common perception among BSOs that individuals in the trusted traveller programs are not low risk and that they are not more compliant than others. This belief stems from seeing non-compliant members and a lack of knowledge about the trusted traveller programs (e.g. not knowing the steps of the screening process and the need for and benefits of risk-based border management). A number of the BSOs interviewed were of the opinion that the programs provide “a licence to smuggle.” While BSO training to detect and interdict suspicious people and goods ensures integrity of the programs and contributes to border security, scrutinizing members of the trusted traveller programs the same way as other travellers runs counter to the CBSA’s risk-based border management strategy.

Results

To what extent have the NEXUS Highway and FAST programs been effective in meeting their objectives?

The CBSA has more information about NEXUS and FAST members than regular travellers and commercial drivers. To enrol, individuals must provide personal information to the CBSA and U.S. CBP, and both countries perform risk assessments. In contrast, travellers and commercial drivers in regular lanes are risk assessed by a brief interview at the PIL booth, through which the BSO has to determine admissibility.

A key objective of the trusted traveller programs is to assist the CBSA in refocusing resources from known- and lower-risk travellers to unknown- and higher-risk travellers. Realizing the potential of the programs requires a considerable membership base. Currently, over 176,000 NEXUS members and 77,000 FAST commercial drivers are enrolled. The critical mass that would enable the CBSA to refocus its resources is not known, although high-volume POE managers have indicated that without the NEXUS and FAST lanes, wait times would be higher and such programs are the only option to meet demand. The total number of NEXUS passages have increased annually since program inception (in 2005–2006, there were 1.25 million NEXUS passages, compared to 1.56 million in 2006–2007). When the NEXUS Highway pilot was launched in 2000, one of the established success criteria was that NEXUS would account for five percent of total traffic where NEXUS is available. Five years into the program, except at three border crossings of which one is a dedicated ‘NEXUS only’ bridge, NEXUS passages have stayed under five percent of total passage volume (see Figure 6). While the trusted traveller programs are key to managing traffic in high-volume POEs, for low-volume POEs, NEXUS and FAST can have an effect opposite to the desired one in relation to resources, requiring BSOs to be assigned to NEXUS and FAST PIL booths with little traffic.

The evaluation found that smaller POEs offering NEXUS and FAST have implemented approaches to increase efficiency. For example, one POE is set up so that one officer processes persons in two lanes — one for FAST shipments, the other for regular commercial processing. Another POE has set up a camera in the NEXUS lane so that the officer can handle both the NEXUS lane and other responsibilities at the office a few metres away. While this approach allows the NEXUS lane to be available, the officer does not have a good view of the inside of the vehicle.

A recent CBSA evaluation study of the CSA program found that processing a CSA (or FAST) release takes about 14 seconds less than processing a regular release.[26] At a POE with 1,000 releases a day, this saves 3.88 hours. Time is also saved as a result of lower rates of examinations.

About a quarter of all Canadian truck drivers declaring their profession as solely focused on the transportation of goods participate in FAST.[27] This shows that the trucking industry and profession recognize the value of a FAST membership card.

To what extent are trusted traveller program members benefiting from the programs?

Almost all members (97%) joined NEXUS Highway to avoid line-ups and benefit from quicker border clearance. Consideration as a low-risk traveller was also important for 31%, while 20% joined in order to answer fewer questions by BSOs. Seventy-three percent became members for travelling across the border for pleasure or personal reasons (excluding shopping), while business or job-related reasons were the main reasons for 22%. Four percent of members indicated shopping as their primary purpose for enrolling.

Members agree that NEXUS processing saves time — 93% saved time when entering Canada and 95% when entering the United States. They estimated saving about 30 minutes each time they crossed the land border into Canada and the United States. The average NEXUS Highway traveller processing time at 10 border crossings for the month of January 2008 was 17.6 seconds.[28]

Respondents of the survey of NEXUS Highway members indicated that referrals for examination were now less frequent for them than before they became members, whether they were entering Canada (44%) or the United States (47%). Another 3% and 8% of members said that these referrals had become more frequent when entering Canada and the United States respectively. CBSA statistics show that NEXUS Highway members are generally examined less (Figure 1).

Figure 1: Rates of Examination of NEXUS Highway Members vs. Total Highway Traveller Examinations (as a percentage of total NEXUS Highway members and total travellers)[29]

Source : SIRG, février 2008

The benefits identified by FAST commercial drivers included quicker border clearance (30%), reduced questioning (13%) and consideration as a low-risk traveller (8%). For an additional 15%, quicker border clearance was an unexpected benefit, as was reduced questioning for 11%. As many as 53% of those surveyed reported that even when crossing the border at a POE without dedicated FAST lanes or booths, being a FAST member was a benefit.

The FAST commercial drivers surveyed for this study reported that they save on average 27 minutes when entering the United States, and 18 minutes when entering Canada when they use the FAST lane compared to a regular lane. Of the 6% of FAST commercial drivers who reported unexpected drawbacks, the slow movement of traffic, lack of facilitating infrastructure and lane closures were cited as the main disadvantages. When asked how the program could be improved, respondents suggested more lanes and access hours (29%), and faster lanes and the better management of lanes to cross faster (23%).

FAST, along with CSA, is designed to move pre-approved eligible goods across the border quickly and to verify trade compliance away from the border. Saving costs by expedited border and streamlined commercial clearances is key to the continued health and growth of the Canadian economy. The cost of border delays, already high for many companies, is expected to grow significantly in the future. It is projected that by 2015, Ontario’s trade with the United States will increase by 180 percent.[30]

Of FAST commercial drivers, 53% reported that during the last six months, they were never subject to a verification of goods upon entering Canada. For close to half of those who had been subject to this, examinations meant cost and time delays, and dissatisfaction. It was reported by HQ management that the examination rate for FAST shipments was as high as 20% in some POEs. The recent evaluation of the CSA program found that the examination rate for CSA members has decreased over the years and has been generally lower than the rate applied to non-CSA-approved importers and carriers. Of FAST commercial drivers, 70% reported having been subject to a verification of goods in the last six months when entering the United States. No data were available to confirm the examination rates for FAST commercial drivers.

To what extent are the NEXUS Highway and FAST enrolment and passage processes effective?

As Figure 2 shows, more than twice as many NEXUS applications were submitted in 2007–2008 (over 12,000) as in 2006–2007. From April 2006 to January 2007, a total of 27,796 new applications were received, but just 8 renewals. However, between April 2007 and January 2008, 85,911 new and 14,798 renewal applications were received.[31]

Of NEXUS Highway members, 62% are Canadian citizens and residents, and the remaining are U.S. citizens and residents. Of Canada-based applicants, 55% reside in British Columbia, 37% in Ontario and 6% in Quebec.

Figure 2: Membership Applications Received and Renewed (2006–2007 and 2007–2008)

Sources: NEXUS membership database,; CMRS, March 2008

In 2005, NEXUS Highway membership (including membership in NEXUS Marine) was expected to grow at a rate of 1,200 per month. During the first 10 months of fiscal year 2007–2008, NEXUS gained an average of 8,591 new members a month, about 700% higher than what was expected in 2005.

The high level of interest in NEXUS membership can be attributed to a combination of factors, including program harmonization (i.e. being able to use one NEXUS card for all modes of travel, which became effective in December 2006), program expansion and the introduction of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI). In 2005, NEXUS Marine was a pilot program available only at a limited number of designated sites in the Windsor–Detroit area.[32] Since April 30, 2007, it is available at approximately 450 designated marine reporting sites. Similarly, the NEXUS Air program, which was piloted at one airport in 2004–2005, is now available at Canada’s eight major airports. The number of Canada–U.S. land border crossings offering NEXUS passage has reached 14. With NEXUS cards considered as a valid alternative under WHTI requirements, members will benefit even further.

Demand for membership in the FAST program has remained steady since its inception in 2002. The CPC received an average of 824 applications per month between September 2003 and December 2006 (see Figure 3). The FAST membership card is also a WHTI-compliant document, and this is anticipated to further enhance the appeal of the FAST program. Of all FAST commercial drivers, 85% are Canadian citizens and/or residents. Unlike in Canada, commercial drivers can present their FAST card to U.S. CBP officers when transporting hazardous materials and other restricted goods into the United States.

Figure 3: FAST Commercial Driver Applications Received Between 2003 and 2006

Source: CMRS, January 2008

Between 2002 and 2007, the percentage of FAST passages per POE steadily increased. In 2007, 18% of all commercial shipments at the Ambassador Bridge in Windsor were CSA/FAST program shipments, 12% at the Blue Water Bridge in Sarnia, 4% at the Peace Bridge in Fort Erie and 2% at the Queenston–Lewiston Bridge in Queenston.

The survey of FAST drivers shows that most of the commercial drivers who enrolled in the program in the last two years are using the more recently-added FAST process (e.g. Lacolle–Champlain, see Table 4). This indicates that the availability of FAST lanes and interest in joining the program are correlated, and new lanes and POEs are a source of potential growth.

Table 4: Fast Commercial Drivers and Most Used POE in the Past Six Months

		Years enrolled
FAST POEs used most often in past 6 months	Average Percentage	2 years or less Percentage	More than 2 years Percentage
Windsor–Detroit (Ambassador Bridge)	38	25	43
Sarnia–Port Huron (Blue Water Bridge)	12	14	11
Lacolle–Champlain	9	12	8

Source: Survey of FAST drivers, 2008.

Application and enrolment processing

A 2007 internal audit of the NEXUS application process found that, based on a randomly selected sample, 31% of 153 applications had been processed within four weeks, 43% within six weeks, 52% within eight weeks and 70% by the end of 12 weeks of original receipt. Where there were delays, the reasons were often beyond the control of the CBSA. [33]Service standards on the NEXUS Web site indicate that the application processing time is approximately six weeks. Measures have been taken over the past year to meet these service standards.

According to a CPC report, during the first 46 weeks of 2007–2008, the CPC had received a total of 62,861 NEXUS and 20,976 FAST applications, of which 9,722 (15%) and 7,989 (38%) were rejected respectively.

A fee is charged for replacing lost or stolen NEXUS and FAST cards. In the case of a lost, defective or stolen NEXUS card, members must report to one of the ECs in person and a CBSA or U.S. CBP officer can issue a new card after verifying the members’ identity and ensuring that the address information is current. In the case of FAST, both commercial drivers and the CBSA have to re-do the entire application process, which for drivers, could mean job loss.

Figure 4: NEXUS Membership Reapplication [34]

Source: CMRS, March 2008.

The CBSA and U.S. CBP conduct risk assessments of applicants simultaneously using law enforcement, customs and immigration databases. Law enforcement screening includes Canadian Police Information Centre and U.S. National Crime Information Centre database checks. FAST commercial drivers are fingerprinted and the prints are forwarded to the RCMP for analysis. Meanwhile, although the drivers can already be enrolled in FAST, should there be a disqualifying hit against the RCMP’s database, the driver’s card would be revoked, and if the applicant is not yet enrolled, the applicant would have to reapply.

Any past customs infraction committed by a NEXUS applicant results in membership denial. While this is also the case for immigration violations, there is a potential security gap in the risk assessment process. Customs infractions entered into the Integrated Customs Enforcement System (ICES) are accessible regardless of the applicant’s status in Canada. However, the risking officers’ level of Field Operations Support System (FOSS) access may not allow for a full check of the FOSS database. The evaluators learned of at least one person whose renewal application was rejected due to a prior immigration violation. Since NEXUS has a zero tolerance policy, it is an issue that this was not previously discovered but was caught during the renewal process.

At this time, intelligence information is not used to make membership decisions. It is not clear to what extent intelligence information is used to ensure national security prior to accepting applicants into the NEXUS Highway and FAST programs. The Enforcement Branch is currently verifying whether there are gaps in the risk assessment process pertaining to national security concerns.

The eligibility criteria for FAST commercial drivers define ‘good character’ as not having had “a serious customs infraction that undermines the confidence the CBSA has that they will comply with program regulations.” Applicants with one minor criminal conviction that is over three years old are eligible, provided the conviction was not related to drugs, weapons or money laundering. According to the same eligibility criteria, an “applicant may have a criminal record, but has received a pardon from the Canadian government or [the] applicant has received rehabilitation or is deemed rehabilitated under Citizenship and Immigration Canada legislation.”[35] This is another example of how the risk assessments of applicants rely more heavily on customs-related information than on immigration-related information.

According to the NEXUS SOPs, during the enrolment process, the interviewing CBSA officer has to be convinced that the applicant is of ‘good character.’ But what constitutes ‘good character’ is not clearly defined in the SOPs and is only mentioned in the context of customs infractions, making this criterion discretionary in nature.[36]

Since the FAST card is linked to employability and is a requested form of identification when transporting goods into the United States by truck, the fee was not seen as a significant deterrent by the drivers surveyed for this evaluation. A recent study of the Canadian public found that interest in applying for NEXUS cards and other travel documents decreased significantly when they had to pay for them.[38] On the other hand, applications with no associated costs can also result in more forms with incomplete information or individuals not showing up for the enrolment interview.[39] The fees charged do not cover the full cost of application processing ($165 in 2002), they cover about half.

CBSA officers working in NEXUS ECs were found to be generally knowledgeable about the program, although they acknowledged that they were not fully informed about new program features and rules. A recently completed comparative analysis of NEXUS ECs reported that CBSA officers find that there is a lack of clarity in the program’s rules and regulations, which leads to inconsistencies in the information they give to clients.

One of the tools used to explain NEXUS-related rules and regulations to applicants is a NEXUS program video. Though a valuable tool, the video is more than five years old and does not factor in program changes. For instance, the implications of the harmonization of the NEXUS programs are not covered in the video. As such, new members are not given information on how to use NEXUS processing in the various modes of transportation. As well, CBSA officers are supposed to demonstrate the program technology to applicants at the EC, such as the proximity card reader and iris scan technology. However, the iris scan technology, which is necessary to record the iris of applicants interested in using NEXUS in the air mode, is not available at all ECs, so applicants may have to go to two ECs to complete the enrolment process.

FAST commercial drivers reported being very satisfied with the FAST enrolment process. Walk-in service interviews were observed at FAST ECs during site visits, including a card renewal walk-in. The quality of service observed at all ECs visited was high. FAST commercial drivers suggested that more ECs should be made available in urban areas, such as Toronto, Ontario.

Passage

Figure 5 shows the number of NEXUS Highway passages at 11 Canada–U.S. land borders.

Figure 5: NEXUS Highway Passages from July 2004 to May 2007

Source: CMRS, March 2008

Figure 6 shows the share of NEXUS Highway passages at select POEs. The two POEs with the highest level of NEXUS traffic are in the Pacific Region.

Figure 6: NEXUS Highway Passages from March 2005 to March 2007 Compared to All Passages

Source: CMRS, March 2008

NEXUS Highway members use the NEXUS lanes 7 and 8 times out of 10, going to Canada and the United States respectively (Table 5).

Table 5: NEXUS Highway Lane Use

Over the past 12 months	When entering Canada Percent	When entering the United States Percent
Crossed the border at any Canada–U.S. land border crossing
Never	7	8
At least once	93	92
More than 10 times	46	46
Used the NEXUS lane
Never	18	18
At least once	82	82
More than 10 times	32	35
NEXUS lane use ratio [40]	.69	.76

Source: Survey of NEXUS Highway members, January 2008.

Table 6: Reasons for Not Using NEXUS Lanes

Why a NEXUS lane was not used	When entering Canada Percent	When entering the United States Percent
NEXUS lane closed	24	28
Not all passengers were NEXUS members	26	25
Goods to declare	13	5
No NEXUS lane at that border	6	4
Line-ups	4	4

Source: Survey of NEXUS Highway members, January 2008.

Canadian resident members bringing goods into Canada using NEXUS lanes must be signed up for the Traveller Declaration Card (TDC). There are a number of challenges associated with the use of the TDC.[42] The TDC is reported not to be user friendly as it requires the traveller to report goods under different categories and duty brackets. As well, the related instructions are long and complex to understand and remember.[43]

According to the survey of NEXUS Highway members, about half of Canadian residents who brought goods into Canada using NEXUS lanes did not submit a TDC for the goods carried. Also, of those who had submitted a completed TDC, 67% were never charged the taxes and/or duties due on the goods they declared. There could be a number of reasons for this, including the low value of the goods brought in; the fact that TDC cards remain in drop-off boxes at the PIL booth for weeks, even months, without being collected and processed; or possibly because the goods the residents brought in fell within their personal exemption limit. The TDC represents an administrative challenge to the CBSA. Almost 60% of Canadian citizen and resident NEXUS members have not signed up for a TDC. Close to 40% of those surveyed who had enrolled for a TDC have never submitted a completed TDC when crossing into Canada with goods using NEXUS lanes.

What makes this issue more complex is the fact that many travellers carrying similarly valued goods in the regular lanes are often waived through by BSOs. Therefore, NEXUS members are not receiving the same treatment during passage. The evaluation found that BSOs enforce the requirement to declare and pay duties on goods more strictly in NEXUS lanes than the regular lanes. While the end result may be the same, as NEXUS members are not always charged the duty and taxes on their credit card, and regular lane travellers are waived through, the perception of unfairness is there. Some NEXUS members have reported that they avoid using NEXUS lanes if they have goods to declare because of more stringent rules in the NEXUS lanes.

The rules for FAST commercial drivers are different, and as such, the TDC represents less of a challenge under the FAST program. FAST commercial drivers only present a TDC when bringing goods into Canada for personal consumption that exceed their personal exemption limit. Also, FAST drivers hand over their TDC directly to BSOs at the PIL booth or declare their goods verbally if the value of the goods is within their personal exemption limit. However, this indicates that NEXUS Highway members are held to a higher standard than FAST commercial drivers.

A compounding factor is that there are different personal exemption limits in the United States and Canada. Since individuals who are away from Canada for less than 24 hours cannot bring any goods at all back with them without paying duty and taxes, BSOs regularly remove small, insignificant goods from NEXUS members and potentially revoke their membership. This difference between Canada and the United States can be confusing for frequent cross-border travellers.

An impact of this is that NEXUS lanes are not used to their fullest potential, which is an obstacle to the CBSA being able to refocus its resources on the unknown- and high-risk travellers crossing into Canada in the regular lanes.

To what extent can trusted travellers be trusted?

The data available show that NEXUS Highway members’ compliance rate is in the high 90% range. At one land border crossing point in the dedicated NEXUS lane, a total of 2,966 referrals for examination were made between March 2004 and January 2008. Of these referrals, only 30 (or 1.01%) resulted in seizures or forced payments. While data show that compliance is high in NEXUS lanes, it is also high in the regular lanes. Between April and December 2007, 60,821, 75,082 and 108,339 vehicles were examined at three POEs, resulting in compliance rates of 95%, 96% and 98% respectively.[44]

Only one of the three CPCs was able to provide detailed comparable data on NEXUS membership revocations, making it difficult to have a national picture. According to the information from this CPC, the overwhelming majority of the revocations resulted from customs infractions. A few revocations were due to re-risking failures, including DUI charges. The NEXUS members’ customs infractions mostly involved failure to declare low-value goods. Although there were some high-value infractions, including a $186,180 undervalued boat, most involved a failure to report goods valued under $200.[45]

Respondents of the survey of NEXUS Highway members, on the other hand, revealed that they do not always comply with the requirement that Canadian residents must not use the NEXUS lane if they are bringing goods into Canada without first having signed up for the TDC. About half of those surveyed reported having used the NEXUS lane to bring in personal goods without having signed up for and/or submitted completed TDCs.

No FAST-specific compliance data were available. A CBSA 2006–2007 compliance measurement report includes results from compliance stints conducted in commercial lanes at highway border points across the country. The average rate of compliance for regular commercial lanes in terms of goods was found to be 96% with a confidence rate of 3.3%.[46] Regarding CSA-specific penalties,[47] the majority of Administrative Monetary Penalties System (AMPS) penalties issued to CSA importers were for late accounting [48] (3,067 in total over five years) and the majority of AMPS penalties issued to CSA carriers were for using a non-registered FAST commercial driver (a total of 692 over five years) and failing to keep updated lists of authorized transporters (92 AMPS penalties over five years). A media search was conducted covering the period of January 1, 2002 to January 1, 2008, and no information was found related to any non-compliant FAST commercial drivers. An Internet search found two press releases on FAST commercial drivers, one who had been arrested for a suspected drug seizure, and the other for war crimes, although neither was intercepted while crossing the border in the FAST lane.

CBSA statistics [49] on the total number of national commercial releases and examinations, along with the number of enforcement actions taken, including forced payments and customs, drug and prohibited goods seizures, do not differentiate between FAST commercial drivers’ goods and goods from other commercial drivers. According to these data, in fiscal year 2006–2007, a total of 670 drug seizures, 1,608 commercial seizures and 568 prohibited goods seizures were made in the regular commercial highway lanes.

Approximately 25% of the letters inviting NEXUS Highway members to participate in the survey in support of this evaluation and 11% of those sent to FAST commercial drivers were undeliverable and returned to the Evaluation Division. Failure to contact a CPC within 48 hours of being informed of an invalid telephone number and address at the time of passage can result in membership termination.[50] Yet, there were letters returned with notes saying that the person had not lived at the given address for more than three years.

Program Effectiveness and Efficiency

To what extent are the NEXUS Highway and FAST programs delivered cost-effectively?

The NEXUS Highway program had a total budget of $5.284 million for 2006–2007. In 2005–2006, $119 thousand of the program’s funding was reallocated to other Public Security and Anti-Terrorism (PSAT) initiatives, including IPIL, Harmonized Commercial Targeting, the Intelligence Management System, Advance Passenger Information/Passenger Name Record and NEXUS Air.

The FAST program reported that the PSAT budget was $23.6 million in 2006–2007, with actual expenditures in the amount of $16 million. According to a 2006–2007 PSAT budget report,[51] $7.6 million was earmarked for the implementation of transponder technology and graphic user interface screens that would allow driver photos to be displayed and re-profiled to cover pressure costs for the following: ECs and risk assessments; compliance management and coordination; an increase in system maintenance from legacy commercial systems; and the preparatory development of the Global Enrolment Component. These funds will be transferred back to the FAST program when the transponders have been purchased.

Infrastructure constraints are a major bottleneck diminishing the benefits of the programs to members. NEXUS Highway members and FAST commercial drivers cannot get to the designated lanes until a few metres from the PIL booths, reducing the expedited border clearance benefit. All but one bridge between the United States and Canada do not have dedicated NEXUS or FAST lanes. Many of the bridges are privately owned, limiting what the CBSA can do to prevent congestion.[52]

Of 100 respondents of the survey of NEXUS Highway members, 34 who reported having experienced any program drawbacks identified access-related problems: NEXUS lanes not being accessible (8%) and limited opening hours (7%). FAST commercial drivers, on the other hand, reported the following: the process is too slow with border congestion and lane closures (2%); they still get examined with a FAST card (2%); and they cannot use their FAST card if their employer is not a FAST member (1%).

At a few POEs visited for this evaluation, there was a lack of visible NEXUS signs. Unauthorized vehicles slow down the processing of members at PIL booths. The members surveyed also suggested that dedicated lanes reserved for the exclusive use of NEXUS members was a program element that could be improved.

What are the potential benefits of harmonizing the programs and expanding them to additional border crossings?

The “in for one, in for all” approach has benefited the CBSA by eliminating the need for separate enrolment processes and the travelling public by having them pay one application fee for using NEXUS in all modes of transportation.

The eligibility criteria for FAST are less stringent than those for NEXUS.[54] Individuals can become FAST commercial drivers even if they have a criminal record. This is generally attributed to a shortage of truck drivers and the private sector’s difficulty in finding enough truck drivers who meet the NEXUS zero tolerance eligibility criteria. The need to address this inconsistency is recognized by the CBSA and U.S. CBP. In 2005, the joint NEXUS/FAST working group proposed to the SBACC to harmonize the eligibility criteria and the penalty regime for the two programs. It was agreed to implement the recommendation once the necessary information systems were in place. As of yet, no progress has been made on this.

Eliminating the zero tolerance eligibility criteria currently used by the NEXUS program to embrace FAST commercial driver program criteria has pros and cons. On the down side, the level of risk associated with members would increase slightly. On the up side, the CBSA would have more information on travellers prior to clearing the border, which mitigates risk. In the United States, NEXUS members’ car licence plates are linked to the individual. As such, U.S. CBP has access to two pieces of information as members cross the border.

Should NEXUS be fully harmonized with FAST, FAST commercial drivers would be able to use NEXUS lanes during personal travel. Eighty-seven percent of the FAST drivers surveyed indicated that this would be a real benefit to them. The benefits to the CBSA and U.S. CBP include increased NEXUS lane use and avoiding the need to process NEXUS applications for FAST commercial drivers, given that the screening processes for NEXUS members and FAST commercial drivers would be the same.

Are there more efficient and effective alternative delivery methods?

In a study done by the Ontario Chamber of Commerce in 2004, it was estimated that the cost of border delays to the Canadian market is between $952,055 and $1,242,009 per hour, or between $8.34 and $10.88 billion per year. [55] The FAST program’s dedicated lanes are, for the most part, well-situated. Ontario border crossings are believed to be the busiest in the world. The Windsor–Detroit and Sarnia–Port Huron crossings are the busiest in Canada, accounting for 33% and 22% respectively in 2005 of all goods moving out of the country by highway.[56]

One of the issues with using the FAST clearance process for trucks entering Canada is that all of the goods on the truck must be CSA-eligible goods. For a number of carriers, having consolidated shipments with a mixture of CSA- and non-CSA-eligible goods means that the drivers need to be processed in regular commercial lanes. Seventy-two percent of the FAST commercial drivers surveyed had transported at least one FAST (or CSA) shipment in the last six months, with 29% stating that all of their shipments consisted of FAST goods. FAST commercial drivers permanently employed by a carrier (27%) were more likely to report transporting a FAST shipment than independent operators (16%) or those under contract (19%).[57] This indicates that there may be some room for growth should FAST be delinked from CSA.

CSA is viewed as a program designed for large companies, with the FAST program as an added benefit to expedite border clearance. Bringing an accounting system in line with the CBSA’s requirements can be expensive for small and medium-sized importers, limiting CSA membership and thus FAST growth. By offering companies a FAST option that provides streamlined border clearance but has less onerous accounting requirements (without CSA requirements), the program may become more attractive to importers and participation may increase.

The 2005 CAP Interim Evaluation Study [58] recommended the development of a second CSA/FAST option that would provide participants with border streamlining privileges only by being PIP-approved. The level of service of existing CSA importers and carriers would not be affected by delinking FAST and CSA since their affiliation to PIP would already give them access to FAST lanes. This option resembles the U.S. FAST program, which requires enrolment in the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism. The U.S. FAST program does not have a specific accounting component, with trade data compliance covered under the verification of security measures.

Opening FAST to non-CSA members could affect current members’ speed of clearance at the border. Congestion in the dedicated FAST lane could occur with a significant increase in participation. This argument may not be too important since there are only three border crossings with dedicated FAST lanes, [59] FAST shipments can be released at any commercial PIL booth, and other government department-regulated and offshore goods need to be processed in the regular commercial lanes. Because of infrastructure limitations, the advantage of participating in FAST is reduced since all trucks have to wait their turn to cross the border.

This issue needs further study. While a recent evaluation found the CSA program’s benefits to stand on their own merit, it is not possible at this time to determine what FAST would gain by being delinked from CSA.

Key Conclusions and Recommendations

Overall, the evaluation found that the NEXUS Highway and FAST programs are highly relevant to a risk-based approach to border management. The programs are well-aligned with the CBSA’s vision of improved border management that contributes to safety, security and prosperity. The programs enable the Agency to segment a portion of travellers as low risk, thus placing it in a better position to use its resources for unknown- and potentially high-risk travellers and goods. Both programs streamline and expedite border clearance for members and facilitate the flow of travellers and goods crossing into Canada. The programs mutually benefit members and the CBSA.

Membership in the two programs is substantial and continues to grow. The programs are becoming increasingly important in other contexts as well, especially under the WHTI, which will accept NEXUS and FAST membership cards as valid travel documents to enter the United States starting at land borders in June 2009. Member satisfaction with the programs and related application and border clearance processes is exceptionally high.

Both NEXUS Highway and FAST are delivered across several CBSA branches. A draft roles and responsibilities document for the NEXUS Highway and FAST Commercial Driver programs, among other AIS programs, was created in early 2007. However, this document has not been fully signed off, and thus there has been no communication to the field to clarify each delivery partner’s roles and responsibilities. Because of the change in responsibility for NEXUS Highway from the IST Branch to the Admissibility Branch and the fact that the FAST Commercial Driver Program does not benefit from a strong policy capacity, policy and functional guidance to the field is not as consistent and efficient as it could be. For example, SOPs for the FAST Commercial Driver Program are still in draft form. In addition, the policies related to the FAST Commercial Driver Program fall under the responsibility of a directorate other than the one governing FAST companies and commercial goods policies. While this instability in governance has not had a major negative impact on the effectiveness of the programs, it has, nevertheless, produced a number of inconsistencies and uncertainties regarding how the programs are delivered in the field.

Only initial formal training is offered to BSOs on processing trusted travellers when a new NEXUS/ FAST site is opened. No AIS training is provided to BSOs in their initial training at Rigaud, resulting in POEs themselves being responsible for training the BSOs assigned to NEXUS or FAST lanes. While job shadowing is a low-cost, common approach to training BSOs, there are no criteria that the “shadowee” can use to train the new BSO. As well, BSOs are often not aware of a number of tools at their disposal. For example, many of the BSOs interviewed for this evaluation were not aware of the online NEXUS training. The AIS IT systems Helpline and the AIS Helpdesk are important tools for BSOs; however, the existence of these resources was not widely known, and neither was the existence of detailed, up-to-date SOPs for the NEXUS Highway program. These elements point to communication weaknesses between Headquarters and front-line staff.

A substantial amount of performance data is available for NEXUS Highway. Data that are not available and would have been useful to the evaluation include detailed reasons for the rejection of applications and consistent, standardized, detailed national data on membership revocations. These data, especially on membership revocations, would provide insight on non-compliance with the NEXUS program and the associated potential risks. The FAST Commercial Driver Program, on the other hand, does not collect a number of key data. For example, there are no data on passage, driver history or driver compliance (e.g. customs infractions and seizures). As well, the reasons for membership revocation are not always available. However, there are data on the number of applications accepted and denied, and the reasons for not granting membership.

Recommendation 1 – Finalize and distribute governance documents to delivery partners in Headquarters and to the regions, such as those outlining the delivery partners’ roles and responsibilities regarding the NEXUS Highway and FAST Commercial Driver programs, and those outlining SOPs for the enrolment and processing of FAST commercial drivers. In addition, consider the following:

• Communicate SOPs (for NEXUS), online NEXUS training (which needs to be updated to reflect program changes) and AIS IT systems Helpline information to front-line staff, possibly by developing a trusted traveller portal.
• Develop criteria for job shadowing (e.g. prepare a checklist of what must be covered and shown to prepare BSOs for their new duties).
• Enhance performance measurement data for NEXUS Highway and implement a performance measurement data collection strategy related to FAST commercial drivers (including exploring options for ensuring that all FAST commercial drivers are processed in IPIL)

There are a number of differences between Canada and the United States in terms of eligibility criteria (the acceptance of pardons and DUI charges) and the value of personal exemptions. Unlike NEXUS, FAST applicants can be admitted into the program with minor customs infractions and criminal charges. Similarly, there are inconsistencies in how members of the programs are processed at different Canadian POEs. Having a higher standard for NEXUS members than other travellers and FAST commercial drivers has resulted in a higher number of NEXUS membership revocations.

Members bringing goods into Canada using NEXUS lanes must be signed up for the Traveller Declaration Card (TDC). FAST commercial drivers can either sign up for the card or verbally declare to the BSO the goods they are carrying within their allotted exemption limit. A number of challenges are associated with the use of the TDC. The TDC is reported by members as not being user friendly since the traveller must report goods under different categories and duty brackets. The instructions are long and complex to understand and remember. The cards are not available at all POEs, and when filled in, the cards may not be processed for payment at all. Furthermore, travellers in regular lanes are commonly waived through without having to pay duty and taxes on goods of smaller value, yet NEXUS members would likely be charged in such cases under the zero tolerance policy. NEXUS members entering the United States are allowed to bring in goods valued within the limit of their personal exemption/entitlement.

Since FAST commercial driver applicants can participate in the program even if they have minor customs infractions and/or criminal convictions, such drivers are more likely to be subject to a mandatory referral for examination when they cross into Canada. As well, BSOs may not scan the cards of such FAST commercial drivers who frequently haul goods into Canada, sometimes several times a day, in IPIL. While it is understandable that the CBSA wants to ensure expedited passage for drivers they have come to know as a result of frequent passage, this nevertheless is associated with a number of issues, such as inaccurate passage and driver history data, and potential security gaps.

Recommendation 2 – Consider harmonizing the NEXUS and FAST membership requirements between Canada and the United States, to the extent possible (including assessing whether zero tolerance should apply to NEXUS), and address inconsistencies in enrolment and passage processes by:

• resolving bilateral differences in the consideration of DUI charges and pardons/expungements;
• considering implementing a warning system or penalty regime rather than revoking membership for minor infractions; and
• reviewing passage policies, such as whether the TDC should be simplified and/or kept mandatory for NEXUS Highway and FAST members, and the consistency of waive-through of travellers in regular lanes versus those in NEXUS lanes.

The evaluation found that the risk assessment of NEXUS and FAST applicants is generally working well, especially to ascertain whether an applicant does not have any prior customs infractions and criminal records, or for FAST, that these do not present a threat to program integrity. However, there are potential gaps in regard to verifying prior immigration violations. There has been at least one incidence whereby a permanent resident became a NEXUS member in spite of a previous immigration violation. This issue was only brought to light during this person’s renewal application for NEXUS membership. In addition, once permanent residents become Canadian citizens, previous immigration violations are not readily available to risk assessment officers, which means that such applicants could participate in the programs. Risk assessments against databases of known and recorded violations does not necessarily guard the programs against national security threats. With NEXUS and FAST cards becoming valid WHTI travel documents, this issue poses a risk to the integrity of not only the programs themselves, but also for WHTI.

There is supposed to be an annual re-risking process for NEXUS Highway and FAST members. This is to ensure that no current members have received recent convictions or committed any other violations that would exclude them from the programs. The re-risking is, at this time, conducted for FAST members every year, but may not be done at all over a five-year period for NEXUS members. Given that U.S. CBP has an automated re-risking process every 24 hours whereby law enforcement databases are run against the NEXUS and FAST member databases, the risk gap is somewhat mitigated.

The CBSA does not use information in its intelligence databases to make membership decisions. It is not clear to what extent intelligence information is used to verify that applicants for each program do not pose a national security threat prior to enrolment. The Enforcement Branch is in the process of examining if there are any national security gaps in the application risking process.

Recommendation 3 – Consider implementing additional checks in the risk assessment of NEXUS and FAST applicants to ensure compliance and program integrity by:

• exploring measures to ensure that previous immigration violations are available to risk assessment officers, giving equal importance to customs and immigration requirements;
• using intelligence information to make membership determinations; and
• ensuring that NEXUS members are subject to annual re-risking.

POEs where NEXUS and FAST are available, but where the traffic volume is low, are using more resources than they would if they did not have these passage options. In order to keep the lanes and booths open for members, some, but not all POEs have developed solutions to minimize resource use and technology to support flex-lanes.

FAST-approved commercial drivers crossing the border on personal travel must use the regular non-commercial lanes. The FAST commercial drivers surveyed were of the opinion that being able to use the NEXUS lanes would be a great benefit. Allowing the more than 77,000 FAST commercial drivers to use NEXUS lanes on their personal trips could also benefit the CBSA by further decreasing the traffic in regular lanes.

The number of FAST carriers depends on the number of CSA importers — the more importers, the greater the need for carriers. It has been questioned whether FAST would benefit from being delinked from CSA, but this is challenging to answer. While CSA has attracted the largest importers and continues to market the program to other large importers, the increase in CSA membership — and thus FAST membership — is limited by restrictions pertaining to offshore and other government department-regulated goods. At this time, the costs for a carrier to be a member of FAST are low as it is importers who would have to invest to upgrade their accounting processes and systems to meet the CBSA’s requirements.

FAST and CSA releases are treated the same way. Releases in regular lanes are increasingly processed by electronic data interchange, although the accounting aspects differ for CSA and FAST releases. As such, a CSA program delinked from FAST but having a FAST-only option whereby participating companies would only need to be enrolled in the PIP program beforehand could provide opportunities for small and medium-sized companies. From a release perspective, delinking would not make much of a difference to the CBSA nor to the trade entity.

Recommendation 4 – Explore enhancements to the efficiency and effectiveness of program delivery by:

• identifying alternative reporting methods at POEs where FAST and NEXUS traffic is low (e.g. exploring the reliability and efficiency of having one BSO in a single booth serving two lanes, using cameras);
• allowing FAST commercial drivers to use NEXUS lanes when on personal travel, which would mean activating the radio frequency identification chip in FAST cards to enable the transmission of the holder’s photo; and
• further exploring the policy position of delinking FAST from CSA.

Management Response

Recommendation 1 – Finalize and distribute governance documents to delivery partners in Headquarters and to the regions, such as those outlining delivery partners’ roles and responsibilities regarding the NEXUS Highway and FAST Commercial Driver programs, and those outlining SOPs for the enrolment and processing of FAST commercial drivers. In addition, consider the following:

• Communicate SOPs (for NEXUS), online NEXUS training (which needs to be updated to reflect program changes) and AIS IT systems Helpline information to front-line staff, possibly by developing a trusted traveller portal.
• Develop criteria for job shadowing (e.g. prepare a check list of what must be covered and shown to prepare BSOs for their new duties).
• Enhance performance measurement data for NEXUS and implement a performance measurement data collection strategy related to FAST commercial drivers (including exploring options for ensuring that all FAST commercial drivers are processed in IPIL).

Response:

The CBSA concurs with this recommendation. The Admissibility Branch will initiate consultations with delivery partners to further refine their roles and responsibilities, and finalize and distribute program governance documents. In addition, the Operations Branch will, in consultation with the Admissibility and IST branches, finalize and distribute FAST commercial driver registration-related SOPs.

The Operations Branch will review existing channels of communication to ensure that all operational guidelines (e.g. updated SOPs) and support tools (e.g. the AIS Helpdesk and the AIS IT systems Helpline) are made available to front-line staff. The Branch will review existing training materials and provide updates on the CBSA intranet. It will also prepare a generic checklist on the AIS programs for use in the training of new employees, and work with regional operations to provide direction on information and training to employees who are unfamiliar with AIS.

The Admissibility, Operations and IST branches will work together to enhance existing performance measurement tools, and to develop and implement data collection processes for the FAST Commercial Driver Program. In fall 2008, the FAST Commercial Driver Program will move onto the Integrated Customs System platform, which will enable the Agency to generate reports on the same types of data that are currently captured for the NEXUS Highway program. The construction of an electronic library for use in the field will be completed once funding has been secured.

Unless otherwise stated, these actions will be implemented by October 2008.

Recommendation 2 – Consider harmonizing the NEXUS and FAST membership requirements between Canada and the United States, to the extent possible (including assessing whether zero tolerance should apply to NEXUS), and address inconsistencies in enrolment and passage processes by:

• resolving bilateral differences in the consideration of DUI charges and pardons/expungement;
• considering implementing a warning system or penalty regime rather than revoking membership for minor infractions; and
• reviewing passage policies, such as whether the TDC should be simplified and/or kept mandatory for NEXUS Highway and optional for FAST members, and the consistency of waive- through of travellers in regular lanes versus those in NEXUS lanes.

Response:

The CBSA concurs with this recommendation, recognizing that any proposed changes to the programs require agreement from both the CBSA and U.S. CBP. Recently, CBSA and U.S. CBP front-line staff were encouraged to treat NEXUS members with minor infractions in the same manner as regular travellers. These staff are currently reviewing how to further address the minor infractions that result in NEXUS and FAST membership revocations.

The CBSA is working with U.S. CBP on the issue of harmonizing the NEXUS and FAST programs. U.S. CBP has indicated that it is not in favour of eliminating or adjusting the zero tolerance eligibility policy for the NEXUS program, preventing full harmonization with the FAST Commercial Driver Program, which has a lower threshold for membership eligibility. As a result, full harmonization and the development and implementation of a graduated sanctions regime will not occur at this time.

In addition, the bilateral differences between NEXUS and FAST membership with respect to DUI charges, pardons and expunctions go beyond the programs. The CBSA will provide a copy of this evaluation study to Citizenship and Immigration Canada and Public Safety Canada, which are responsible for relevant policy issues.

The Admissibility Branch, in consultation with the Operations Branch and the regions, are reviewing the TDC process for all AIS programs, to be completed by October 2008. The TDC process is governed by a minimum revenue collection policy, which mirrors the waive-through of travellers in regular lanes.

Recommendation 3 – Consider implementing additional checks in the risk assessment of NEXUS and FAST applicants to ensure compliance and program integrity by:

• exploring measures to ensure that previous immigration violations are available to risk assessment officers, giving equal importance to customs and immigration requirements;
• using intelligence information to make membership determinations; and
• ensuring that NEXUS members are subject to annual re-risking.

Response:

The CBSA concurs with this recommendation. The Admissibility Branch, in consultation with the Enforcement Branch, will review the current risk assessment process to identify potential gaps by October 2008. The CBSA will explore measures to ensure that the system used in the ECs can query the entire FOSS database for previous immigration violations, as it does for customs hits in ICES. Currently, ICES and FOSS only query a small portion of the FOSS database. Recently, a manual process was implemented that enables immigration officers to search the full FOSS database for all enforcement actions. The fingerprinting of applicants complements database screening. Both the FBI and the RCMP vet the fingerprints of FAST commercial driver applicants while NEXUS applicant fingerprints are only vetted by the FBI.

Program management stays abreast of and adopts new approaches, as required, to ensure program integrity. While intelligence information is not used to make membership determinations, the Agency is considering using it to monitor persons assessed as being above low risk at the time of admission into trusted traveller programs. It should be noted that in the case of bilateral programs such as NEXUS and FAST, U.S. CBP does consider intelligence information when assessing eligibility for membership.

Monitoring procedures have recently been implemented to ensure that all members are re-risked annually.

Recommendation 4 – Explore enhancements to the efficiency and effectiveness of program delivery by:

• identifying alternative reporting methods at POEs where FAST and NEXUS traffic is low (e.g. exploring the reliability and efficiency of having one BSO in a single booth serving two lanes, using cameras);
• allowing FAST commercial drivers to use NEXUS lanes when on personal travel, which would mean activating the radio frequency identification chip in FAST cards to enable the transmission of the holder’s photo; and
• further exploring the policy position of delinking FAST from CSA.

Response:

The CBSA concurs with this recommendation. Some CBSA low-volume land border sites offering the NEXUS program are fitted with alternative reporting methods (e.g. flex-lane technology, camera equipment, sight of card, and one BSO manning two lanes) thereby allowing POE officials to optimize use of resources and infrastructure. The CBSA is continually exploring lower-cost and less-resource-intensive alternatives to full NEXUS deployment at low-volume POEs.

CBSA and U.S. CBP officials have reached an agreement to allow NEXUS members to travel as passengers in the FAST lane, which will take effect with the introduction of WHTI-compliant cards in the fall of 2008. However, due to the zero tolerance policy of the NEXUS program, a reciprocal agreement has not been reached for FAST commercial drivers to be able to use NEXUS lanes.

The Admissibility Branch will explore the advantages and disadvantages of delinking the CSA and FAST programs by October 2008.