Homeland Security Task Forces (HSTFs) are interagency law-enforcement task forces in the United States established in 2025 to investigate and disrupt transnational criminal organizations, human-smuggling networks, cartel operations, weapons trafficking, money laundering, and related cross-border criminal activity. HSTFs combine federal, state, and local law-enforcement agencies to conduct intelligence-driven investigations and regional operations against complex criminal networks.
HSTFs were introduced following Executive Order 14159, issued in 2025, which directed the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to establish a nationwide network of task forces to address transnational criminal threats and unlawful cross-border activity. [1] The HSTF concept was rolled out as part of a broader enforcement initiative referred to in government materials as "Operation Take Back America," and early HSTFs were announced in several states and regions in 2025. [2]
HSTFs are typically co-led by components of DHS (principally Homeland Security Investigations, HSI) and DOJ components such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Participating agencies commonly include enforcement efforts of multiple agencies from several cabinet departments including:
Each regional HSTF is generally supported by an executive committee or steering group that coordinates multi-agency operations and intelligence sharing. [3]
Several early HSTFs were publicly announced in 2025. Notable examples include the Virginia Homeland Security Task Force (VHSTF), which launched in March 2025 and was described by officials as part of Operation Take Back America, [4] and regional HSTFs in Texas, including units announced for the Houston and South Texas areas. [5] [6]
The introduction of HSTFs coincided with a major reorganization within the DOJ during the FY 2026 budget cycle. In DOJ budget materials and related internal memoranda, the long-standing Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) program was identified for dissolution as a stand-alone program, with OCDETF resources proposed to be redistributed into the budgets of participating DOJ components. [7] Reporting based on DOJ documents indicated that many OCDETF functions and ongoing cases were to be transferred into newly created HSTFs or absorbed by component offices, reflecting a shift from a DOJ-centered task-force model toward integrated, DHS-and-DOJ multi-agency task forces. [8] [9]
The creation of HSTFs and the concurrent redistribution of OCDETF functions prompted debate among lawmakers, prosecutors, and analysts. Supporters argued that HSTFs provide enhanced interagency cooperation, better intelligence fusion, and a unified operational framework to address evolving transnational threats. Critics expressed concern that dissolving OCDETF could erode specialized prosecutorial experience in complex narcotics and financial investigations, risk disruption of long-running cases, and shift prosecutorial authority and priorities toward DHS-led structures. [10] In June 2025, several Democratic senators formally requested that the Attorney General provide information and justification for plans to close OCDETF and explain how ongoing cases and coordination functions would be preserved. [11]