# U.S. Secret Service Protection Mission Funding and Staffing: Fact Sheet

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URL: https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/documents/crs%3AR43797

## Record

- **Collection:** Congressional research report
- **Document type:** CRS Report
- **Published:** November 25, 2014
- **Citation:** R43797

## Text

U.S. Secret Service Protection Mission
Funding and Staffing: Fact Sheet
name redacted
Analyst in Emergency Management and Homeland Security Policy
name redacted
Analyst in Emergency Management and Homeland Security Policy
name redacted
Information Research Specialist
name redacted
Research Assistant
November 25, 2014

Congressional Research Service
7-....
www.crs.gov
R43797

U.S. Secret Service Protection Mission Funding and Staffing: Fact Sheet

Introduction
The U.S. Secret Service (USSS) has two broad missions, criminal investigations and protection.
The protection mission, which is the focus of this fact sheet, covers the President, Vice President,
their families, and candidates for those offices, along with the White House and Vice President’s
residence, through the Service’s Uniformed Division. Protective duties also extend to foreign
missions in the District of Columbia and to designated individuals, such as the DHS Secretary
and visiting foreign dignitaries. Protection is defined as any activity that is directly related to the
USSS mission of protecting the persons1 and facilities2 that are designated for USSS protection in
statute or U.S. Code. These activities, as delineated in budgetary documents, include Protection of
Persons and Facilities; National Special Security Events; Protective Intelligence Activities; White
House Mail Screening; and Presidential Candidate Nominee Protection.
This fact sheet provides information on USSS funding and staffing because congressional
attention has turned to the USSS and its operations due to several recent incidents.
The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee held a hearing entitled “White House
Perimeter Breach: New Concerns about the Secret Service,” on September 30, 2014, which
addressed a security breach on September 19th, where a person gained unauthorized entrance into
the White House after climbing the perimeter fence, and previous incidents.3 The committee
inquired if deficient protection procedures, insufficient training, inadequate funding, personnel
shortages, or low morale contributed to these security breaches. Later, on the same day as the
hearing, it became public knowledge that earlier in the year a private security contractor at a
federal facility, while armed, was allowed to share an elevator with President Barack Obama
during a site visit, in violation of U.S. Secret Service security protocols. The following day,
October 1, 2014, USSS Director Julia Pierson resigned. These security breaches followed a series
of confirmed and alleged incidents of misconduct by USSS agents. The House Appropriations
Committee stated in the report accompanying the FY2015 Department of Homeland Security
(DHS) appropriations bill that it was “deeply disappointed by recurring allegations of misconduct
within the Secret Service. The committee withheld $20 million from the USSS management
budget until they submit a report providing evidence that the USSS has addressed these
confirmed and alleged incidents of misconduct.4
Specifically this fact sheet provides:
•

Annual Appropriations for the U.S. Secret Service, FY2004-FY2015 (Table 1);

•

U.S. Secret Service Obligations for Protective Mission Activities FY2004FY2015 (Table 2);

•

Budget Authority for the U.S. Secret Service Protection Mission Activities,
FY2014-FY2015 (Table 3); and

1

18 U.S.C. §3056(a).
84 Stat. 74-75 authorizes the USSS to secure the White House complex, the Vice President’s official residence at the
Naval Observatory, the Treasury Building, and foreign diplomatic missions in Washington, DC. 90 Stat. 2475
authorizes the USSS to temporarily secure the President’s and Vice President’s personally owned residences.
3
U.S. Congress, House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, White House Perimeter Breach: New
Concerns about the Secret Service, 113th Cong., 2nd sess., September 30, 2014.
4
H.Rept. 113-481, p. 86.
2

Congressional Research Service

1

U.S. Secret Service Protection Mission Funding and Staffing: Fact Sheet

•

U.S. Secret Service Personnel Numbers, FY2014-FY2015 (Table 4).

For an in-depth discussion of the USSS and its missions, see CRS Report RL34603, The U.S.
Secret Service: History and Missions, by (name redacted).
Table 1. Annual Appropriations for the U.S. Secret Service, FY2004-FY2015
(Amounts in Millions of Dollars)
Fiscal Year
FY2015 USSS Total
Protection Accounts
FY2014 USSS Total
Protection Accounts
FY2013 USSS Totala
Protection Accounts
FY2012 USSS Total
Protection Accounts
FY2011 USSS Total
Protection Accounts
FY2010 USSS Total
Protection Accounts
FY2009 USSS Total
Protection Accounts
FY2008 USSS Total
Protection Accounts
FY2007 USSS Total
Protection Accounts
FY2006 USSS Total
Protection Accounts
FY2005 USSS Total
Protection Accounts
FY2004 USSS Total
Protection Accountsb

Request

Enacted

Difference

$1,636

na

na

$973

na

na

$1,546

$1,585

$39

$913

$920

$7

$1,601

$1,611

$10

$988

$985

-$4

$1,699

$1,667

-$32

$1,073

$1,052

-$21

$1,572

$1,515

-$56

$905

$879

-$26

$1,490

$1,483

-$7

$854

$847

-$7

$1,414

$1,413

-$1

$849

$841

-$8

$1,399

$1,385

-$14

$867

$854

-$14

$1,265

$1,277

$13

$732

$742

$10

$1,204

$1,212

$8

$649

$651

$2

$1,163

$1,175

$12

$642

$647

$5

$1,124

$1,141

$17

$1,051

$1,065

$14

Source: CRS analysis of congressional appropriations documents: For FY2004, H.Rept. 108-280 (accompanying
H.R. 2555); for FY2005, H.Rept. 108-774 (accompanying P.L. 108-334); for FY2006, H.Rept. 109-241
(accompanying P.L. 109-90); for FY2007, H.Rept. 109-699 (accompanying P.L. 109-295); for FY2008, Division E of
the House Appropriations Committee Print (accompanying P.L. 110-161); for FY2009, Division D of House
Appropriations Committee Print (accompanying P.L. 110-329); for FY2010, H.Rept. 111-298 (accompanying P.L.
111-83); for FY2011, H.Rept. 112-331 (accompanying P.L. 112-74); for FY2012, H.Rept. 112-331 (accompanying
P.L. 112-74); for FY2013, Senate explanatory statement (accompanying P.L. 113-6); for FY2014, the explanatory
statement accompanying P.L. 113-76; and for FY2015, H.Rept. 113-481 (accompanying H.R. 4903).

Congressional Research Service

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U.S. Secret Service Protection Mission Funding and Staffing: Fact Sheet

Notes: Table displays rounded numbers, but all operations were performed with unrounded data; therefore,
amounts may not sum to totals.
a.

Enacted numbers for FY2013 include impact of across-the-board cuts in P.L. 113-6, but do not reflect the
impact of sequestration.

b.

The structure of USSS protection mission accounts was different in FY2004, including a much larger share
of investigative mission costs than was done in later years. Direct comparison with later years is not
advised.

Table 2. U.S. Secret Service Obligations for Protective Mission Activities
FY2004-FY2015
(Amounts in Millions of Dollars)
Protection
of Persons
and
Facilities

Protective
Intelligence
Activities

Presidential
Candidate
Nominee
Protection

FY2004

$630

$46

-

FY2005

$620

$52

FY2006

$609

$56

Fiscal Year

National
Special
Security
Events

White
House Mail
Screening

Protection
Mission
Total

$30

$16

$722

-

$3

$16

$691

-

-

$15

$680
$1,058

FY2007

$894

$81

$12

-

$71a

FY2008

$706

$53

$112

$1

$16

$888

FY2009

$743

$64

$46

$7

$28

$888

FY2010

$792

$70

-

$1

$20

$883

FY2011

$808

$68

$17

$6

$10

$909

FY2012

$846

$68

$78

$18

$18

$1,028

FY2013

$858

$67

$30

-

-

$955

FY2014
Estimate

$860

$67

-

$9

-

$936

FY2015
Estimate

$870

$68

$26

$5

-b

$969

Source: Compiled from the President’s Budget Appendixes, FY2006-FY2015.
Notes: Table displays rounded numbers, but all operations were performed with unrounded data; therefore,
amounts may not sum to totals.
a.

FY2007 actual obligation data was taken from the FY2009 President’s budget submission. This submission
(Fiscal Year 2009 President’s Budget Appendix, p. 482) lists the “White House Mail Screening” protection
mission activities twice, with one showing an actual obligation of $41 million and another of $30 million.
CRS is unable to determine if this is an erroneous submission or a reflection of previous unobligated funds.

b.

White House mail screening is now part of “Protection of Persons and Facilities.”

Congressional Research Service

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U.S. Secret Service Protection Mission Funding and Staffing: Fact Sheet

Table 3. Budget Authority for the U.S. Secret Service Protection Mission Activities,
FY2014-FY2015
(All Amounts in Millions of Dollars)
Programs

FY2015 HouseReported

FY2015 SenateReported

FY2014 Enacted

FY2015 Request

$920

$973

$965

$965

Protection of
Persons and
Facilities

$848

$870

$868

$868

Protective
Intelligence
Activities

$67

$68

$68

$68

National Special
Security Events

$5

$5

$5

$5

-

$26

$26

$26

Protection

Presidential
Candidate
Nominee
Protection

Source: CRS analysis of the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Secret Service, FY2015 Budget Justification,
H.Rept. 113-481, S.Rept. 113-198.
Note: Table displays rounded numbers, but all operations were performed with unrounded data; therefore,
amounts may not sum to totals.

Table 4. U.S. Secret Service Personnel Numbers, FY2014-FY2015
USSS Total

Special Agents

Uniformed Division

Fiscal Year

FTE

Positions

FTE

Positionsb

FTE

Positions

FTE

Positions

FY2014

3,290

3,282c

1,316

1,346

1,773

1,750

6,379

6,378

FY2015d

-

3,396

-

1,497

-

1,774

6,572

6,667

APTa

Source: Email correspondence with U.S. Secret Service Congressional Liaison Office, and Workforce Planning
Division.
Notes:
a.

“APT” stands for Administrative, Professional, and Technical positions.

b.

Uniformed Division position numbers are determined within the USSS and a “target” number of Uniformed
Division officers are determined through an analysis and assessment of the Uniformed Division’s work
requirements.

c.

Special Agent staffing position numbers are not broken down between protection and investigation divisions
due to USSS’s classification of this data as “Law Enforcement Sensitive.”

d.

USSS did not provide FY2015 FTE data for Special Agents, Uniformed Division, or APT. The USSS only
provided an FTE total for the USSS for FY2015.

Congressional Research Service

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U.S. Secret Service Protection Mission Funding and Staffing: Fact Sheet

Author Contact Information
(name redacted)
Analyst in Emergency Management and Homeland
Security Policy
-redacted-@crs.loc.gov, 7-....

(name redacted)
Information Research Specialist
-redacted-@crs.loc.gov, 7-....

(name redacted)
Analyst in Emergency Management and Homeland
Security Policy
-redacted-@crs.loc.gov, 7-....

(name redacted)
Research Assistant
-redacted-@crs.loc.gov, 7-....

Congressional Research Service

5

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Source: Frix Law Library, https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/documents/crs%3AR43797. Public record. Not legal advice.
