Kristi Noem vows to shut down CBP One app as DHS Sec

Current South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem, who was nominated by President-elect Donald Trump to serve as Homeland Security secretary in the forthcoming administration, told the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs during her confirmation hearing of Friday that on day one, she would end the CBP One app that was pushed heavily under the Biden-Harris administration.

During questioning from Senator Josh Hawley about the app, which he called "concierge service for illegal immigrants," Noem said, "If confirmed and I have the opportunity to be secretary, on day one CBP One will be shut down."

She said that there’s "data and information in there that we will preserve so that we can ensure we know who’s coming into this country and who’s already here that we need to go find, but also make sure that — there’s another program, CHNV, which I’m sure you’re very familiar with, where our federal government actually paid to fly people into this country directly from other countries without any vetting or knowing who they are."

"So there’s several of these programs that need to be eliminated and we need to ensure that we’re following legal immigration laws," Noem added.

A December 2024 monthly update from US Customs and Border Patrol stated that CBP "processed almost 44,000 individuals at ports of entry with information submitted in advance through CBP One" in the month. The agency said that since appointment scheduling was introduced to the app in January of 2023, over 936,500 individuals have used this function to schedule "appointments to present at ports of entry instead of risking their lives in the hands of smugglers."

CHNV, which stands for Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela, has seen around 531,690 people come into the country and be granted parole. The program had been temporarily paused in mid-July for around six weeks after an audit revealed that people sponsoring immigrants were lying about being family or friends of those seeking to enter America.

Among those who have used the CBP One app to gain entry to the US are a Haitian illegal immigrant accused of murdering his New York roommates, as well as an illegal immigrant from Tajikistan with suspected ties to ISIS.

In September, Senators sent a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas demanding that the CHNV program be terminated "immediately," saying that it is "ineffective, unlawful, and hazardous." They said that "There have been many instances of crimes, such as sexual assault, rape, and murder committed by CHNV participants."