What Happened?

Two of the government's most powerful drug enforcement arms are operating without a clear shared rulebook.

A report published Sept. 30 by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) are unclear about which of their longstanding collaboration requirements remain in effect after a May memorandum from the acting attorney general and other developments.

DEA and HSI have worked under formal cooperation agreements since 2009. Still, the GAO found that even before the May memo, key requirements, including joint training and a functioning Headquarters Review Team, had never been fully put in place.

As of June, Justice Department officials told the GAO they were still figuring out how the May memorandum affects those existing requirements.

Why Does it Matter to Me?

The opioid epidemic has been a national public health emergency since October 2017, and the DEA leads federal efforts against illicit drug trafficking, with HSI serving as its partner on illicit drug activity connected to U.S. borders.

When the agencies lack clear rules on sharing case information, joint training, and who supervises whom, investigations into drug trafficking can stall or conflict.

The GAO found the agencies addressed only four of eight leading practices for interagency collaboration before the May memo further complicated things. The four practices left unaddressed include:

  • Ensuring accountability
  • Sustaining leadership
  • Bridging organizational cultures
  • Updating agreements

For communities hit hard by fentanyl and other trafficked drugs, that means the federal response is running on an incomplete foundation. Agents in the field may face conflicting guidance about who leads an investigation, who shares what information, and how joint operations are structured.

Both Sides, Now

Congress requested the GAO report, and the watchdog issued five recommendations, three directed at the Justice Department (DOJ) and two at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). DOJ agreed with its three recommendations. DHS disagreed with both of its recommendations, and the GAO stated it maintains those recommendations are valid.

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that the Drug Enforcement Administration and Homeland Security Investigations are unclear on which requirements in the 2009 interagency agreement and the 2021 joint letter remain in effect after a January 2025 Justice Department legal opinion and a May memorandum from the acting attorney general.

The January 2025 Justice Department Office of Legal Counsel opinion concluded that Homeland Security Investigations special agents and state and local officers on its task forces, once designated to conduct drug investigations under the Controlled Substances Act, must operate under Drug Enforcement Administration supervision when engaged in those investigations.

DHS's disagreement with the GAO's recommendations suggests the two departments have different views on how to structure the partnership going forward. The GAO, for its part, stood by its findings and said the recommendations remain necessary regardless of how the legal questions are resolved.

What Happens Next?

All five GAO recommendations remain open. It recommended that the attorney general and the secretary of homeland security work together to clarify the status of requirements in the 2009 agreement and 2021 joint letter, including the Headquarters Review Team and joint training.

After that clarification, DOJ would direct DEA, working with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), to either update the existing agreements or build a new framework suited to the current operating environment.

Until the two departments resolve their disagreement and act on the GAO's recommendations, the agencies responsible for keeping drugs off American streets will continue working without a clear, agreed-upon set of rules.

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