PEARL Act
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The bill would require Customs and Border Protection to create a pilot program adopting shelter dogs to be trained as support dogs for its Support Canine Program, which provides grief assistance and morale support to agency personnel.
The three-year pilot would give shelter animals a new role while offering CBP staff a source of trauma mitigation and emotional support amid demanding border enforcement work.
What this bill would do
What it would do
The bill would direct the Secretary of Homeland Security, acting through the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, to establish a pilot program within 60 days of enactment to adopt dogs from local animal shelters and train them as support dogs for CBP's existing Support Canine Program. That program provides grief assistance, trauma mitigation, and morale support to CBP personnel. The pilot program would terminate automatically three years after it is established. The bill does not specify a funding level, staffing structure, or selection criteria for shelters or dogs, leaving those implementation details to CBP.
Key provisions
- 1Would require CBP to establish, within 60 days of enactment, a pilot program adopting shelter dogs for training as support dogs
- 2Would set the pilot program to terminate automatically three years after its establishment
Who would be affected
U.S. Customs and Border Protection and its Support Canine Program, CBP personnel who would interact with the support dogs, local animal shelters from which dogs would be adopted, and the shelter dogs selected for training.
Why it matters
If established, the pilot could give CBP a new, lower-cost source of support dogs while providing shelter animals with adoption opportunities and training. CBP employees, who often face high-stress and traumatic incidents in their work, would gain expanded access to canine-assisted emotional support during the program's three-year run.
What would change
Agencies directed to act
Effective dates
- Deadline for CBP to establish the shelter-dog support dog pilot program
- Termination of the pilot program
Funding and costs
Congressional Budget Office estimate
CBO estimates H.R. 3965 would cost $4 million over the 2025–2030 period, subject to appropriations, with no effect on direct spending, revenues, or the deficit.
H.R. 3965, the PEARL Act, would direct Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to run a three-year pilot program adopting and training dogs from local animal shelters for its Support Canine Program, which organizes visits between officers and emotional support dogs to promote employee mental health. CBO estimates the bill would cost $4 million over the 2025–2030 period — $3 million for the salaries of support canine handlers and $1 million for the procurement, training, and travel of therapy dogs — all of which is discretionary spending subject to the availability of appropriated funds. The bill would have no effect on direct (mandatory) spending, revenues, or the deficit. CBO identified no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates in the bill.
How implementation would work
Within 60 days of enactment, the Commissioner of CBP would need to stand up the pilot program, likely coordinating with local animal shelters to identify and adopt suitable dogs, then routing them through the existing Support Canine Program's training process. The bill sets no reporting requirement, funding authorization, or evaluation criteria, leaving CBP discretion over shelter partnerships, dog selection, and program design. The pilot would automatically sunset three years after it begins operating.
Legislative status & sources
Latest action
Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
Official CRS summary
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This bill requires U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to establish a pilot program to adopt dogs from local animal shelters to be trained as support dogs for CBP’s Support Canine Program. Support dogs are used for grief assistance, trauma mitigation, and morale.
Legislative subjects
Animal protection and human-animal relationships; Border security and unlawful immigration; Government employee pay, benefits, personnel management; Immigration; Law enforcement officers; Mental health; Service animals
Committee report
H. Rept. 119-314