Department of Homeland Security Intelligence and Analysis Training Act

Summary of HR 7436: Department of Homeland Security Intelligence and Analysis Training Act (119th Congress)

Purpose and intent

HR 7436 would amend the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to mandate the development and implementing of a formalized, standardized training program for employees of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office of Intelligence and Analysis (I&A). The goal is to ensure consistent entry-level and advanced training across I&A, enhance analytic capabilities, and promote responsible handling of information.

Key provisions and changes

• and Sections amended:

  • Adds new subsection (f) to Section 201 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 establishing comprehensive I&A-specific training requirements.
  • Renames subsections f and g to g and h, respectively, as part of the amendment.

• Standardized entry-level basic intelligence training (paragraph (1)):

  • The Secretary, via the Under Secretary for Intelligence and Analysis, must implement a standardized entry-level basic intelligence curriculum for all I&A employees.
  • New hires must complete this training within 90 days of their official start date and before starting official duties.
  • Training must include civil rights, civil liberties, privacy rights, and information practices under the Privacy Act of 1974, and other relevant laws.

• Analyst training (paragraph (2)):

  • In addition to basic training, new analytic hires receive training on:
  • I&A’s mission, integration of intelligence into operations, dissemination to partners (state/local/tribal/territorial and private sector) to identify, mitigate, and respond to threats.
  • Intelligence Community analytic standards, methodologies, sourcing requirements, writing standards, and competency directories.

• Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) training (paragraph (3)):

  • New OSINT-specific hires receive training on:
  • OSINT collection principles and techniques within constitutional/legal privacy protections.
  • Data management, storage/retention consistent with privacy laws and policies.
  • IC OSINT standards and the DHS statutory authority governing OSINT.

• Specialized and advanced training (paragraph (4)):

  • DHS/Under Secretary for I&A to develop and provide specialized/advanced curricula, including raw intelligence release authority training.
  • Quarterly, a list of available specialized training from IC elements and the DoD must be publicly available to I&A personnel.

• Training for non-I&A DHS employees (paragraph (5)):

  • The Secretary may extend training developed under this subsection to employees, officials, and senior executives of the DHS intelligence components, pursuant to section 208.

• Tracking progress (paragraph (6)):

  • A system must be implemented to track training completion for I&A employees, including training from DHS, IC elements, and DoD.

• Implementation timeline (paragraph (7)):

  • The new requirements take effect one year after enactment and apply progressively:
  • New hires after enactment, those employed two years or less, and lower-grade positions must complete the entry-level training.
  • All I&A employees will complete analyst, OSINT, and related training as applicable.

• Reporting (paragraph (8)):

  • The Under Secretary for I&A must report to Congress two years after enactment and annually for five years, detailing curricula, numbers completing various training, and cross-component training diffusion.

• Definitions (paragraph (9)):

  • Clarifies terms including “appropriate congressional committees” and “intelligence community.”

Oversight and evaluation

• Comptroller General review (Section 2):
  • Within two years of enactment, the GAO must report on the training program’s implementation, compare DHS I&A curricula against other IC and DoD training, assess alignment with best practices, and suggest improvements.

Who is affected

• Primary: Employees of the DHS Office of Intelligence and Analysis.
• Potentially: Other DHS intelligence components and senior DHS officials may receive training under this act.
• Broader impact: Could influence DHS-IC interoperability, privacy and civil liberties protections in I&A training, and coordination with partner agencies.

Procedural/timeline notes

• Introduced February 9, 2026, and referred to the House Homeland Security Committee, with subsequent subcommittee actions noted.
• Implementation would begin one year after enactment, with annual congressional reporting for five years and a GAO review within two years.