A CBP official said the agency was committed to a requirement that all applicants take a lie detector test but was looking to waive it for a limited number of job seekers, including certain veterans with at least four years of military experience and some law enforcement officers at other federal agencies.
The officials said about 75 percent of applicants fail the polygraph, roughly two-thirds of them for admissions about criminal history or other matters. That's more than double the average rate of applicants at eight law enforcement agencies that provided data to The Associated Press under open-records requests. Applicants to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration failed 36 percent in the last two years.
CBP also plans to test an alternative polygraph that may take less time to administer but still meets federal standards and identifies problem candidates, the officials said.
ICE, which is responsible for deportations and immigrant detention centers, does not require that applicants take a lie detector test.
One official challenged a widespread perception that the Border Patrol's last hiring surge, which doubled the number of agents from 2003 to 2011, resulted in more corruption. The official said there was no evidence to show that agents hired during that time were more corrupt.
Spagat reported from San Diego.