John Sanders Named CBP Acting Commissioner

John Sanders, a more than 30-year national security veteran and chief operating officer of Customs and Border Protection, has been named acting commissioner of the CBP. “Sanders has proven instrumental to advancing CBP’s mission and organizational priorities across the agency,” Kevin McAleenan, acting secretary of the Department of Homeland Security and 2019 Wash100 Award winner, said in a statement released Monday. 

“In addition to bringing greater focus on the agency’s operational requirements, he has provided strategic direction and oversight to critical enterprise services and operations support functions across the agency,” added McAleenan. 

As the CBP COO, Sanders develops the agency’s strategic direction, oversees enterprise services and support units, identifies operational requirements and drives collaborative efforts with industry and other stakeholders.

He previously served as chief technology officer with the Transportation Security Administration and co-founded Reveal Imaging Technologies, a provider of threat detection and screening platforms. Sanders also held positions at M33 Growth, Evolv Technology, Pramatha Solutions, OGSystems and American Science and Engineering.