Senator Also Advances Legislation to Ban Stock Trading by Public Officials
WASHINGTON – Today, the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee unanimously voted to advance Senator Ruben Gallego’s (D-AZ) Shadow Wolves Improvement Act, a bipartisan bill to strengthen border security and expand career opportunities for Native American law enforcement agents on tribal lands.
“The chaos at our southern border has harmed Arizona communities and caused a dangerous rise in illicit smuggling, especially on tribal lands like the Tohono O’odham Nation. This has stretched tribal law enforcement thin and diverted them from doing their primary jobs of policing their streets. That’s why the Shadow Wolves program is so important,” said Senator Gallego. “I want to thank my colleagues Senators Hoeven, Lankford, and Kelly for co-sponsoring this legislation, and Chairman Paul and Ranking Member Peters for working with me to pass this through committee.”
The Shadow Wolves Improvement Act codifies key recommendations from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to enhance and expand the Shadow Wolves program. Shadow Wolves are members of the Tohono O’odham Nation who patrol the 76-mile stretch of land the Nation shares with Mexico. They are known for their ability to track drug smugglers as they attempt to smuggle illegal commodities across Tribal land, thanks to their unique geographical and cultural knowledge.
Despite their critical role in border security, Shadow Wolves currently lack the same career advancement and compensation opportunities as other Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agents. Senator Gallego’s bill corrects this by allowing ICE to convert Shadow Wolves from excepted to competitive service status after three years.
Senator Gallego also voted to advance legislation introduced by Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) to ban stock trading by members of Congress, the president, and the vice president.
Watch Senator Gallego’s remarks HERE.
Senator Gallego has long supported efforts to hold public officials accountable and prevent self-enrichment. He introduced legislation which would establish an Inspector General (IG) at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) to ensure that trade policy and tariff exclusions are made in the best interest of American workers and small businesses – not political donors and companies with high-priced lobbyists. He also backed the Curbing Officials’ Income and Nondisclosure (COIN) Act, the End Crypto Corruption Act, and the Ban Congressional Stock Trading Act to ensure public officials and their families cannot exploit their positions for financial gain. In the wake of President Trump’s on-again, off-again tariffs causing massive swings in the stock market, Senator Gallego also demanded that the White House provide information about potential violations of federal ethics and insider trading laws, and called on the Office of Government Ethics and U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to investigate whether President Trump, any members of his cabinet, or other donors, insiders, and Administration officials engaged in insider trading, market manipulation, or other securities laws violations.
7/30/25