The U.S. Department of Homeland Security announces its first-ever Equity Action Plan.

DHS made the announcement April 14 regarding the Equity Action Plan, which will primarily concentrate on seven focus areas "to comprehensively advance equity across the Department's policies, programs and operations."

"The Department of Homeland Security interacts with the public on a daily basis more than any other federal agency. Since January 2021, DHS has taken several meaningful steps to ensure we are equitably serving the public and every community across the country," said Secretary Alejandro N. Mayorkas in the news release. "The DHS Equity Action Plan builds on our Department's progress in better integrating equity into the full range of DHS activities and reinforces our commitment to continuing this critical work."

The news release reported the Equity Action Plan focuses on the following areas, applying for naturalization, accessing humanitarian protection during immigration processing, bidding on DHS contracts, countering all forms of terrorism and targeted violence, filing complaints and seeking redress in DHS programs and activities, airport screening and accessing trusted traveler programs.

The agency's Equity Action Plan is in accordance to the Biden-Harris Administration's executive order 13985: Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government. This executive order calls for federal agencies to review their programs and policies and assess whether members of underserved communities face systemic barriers in accessing benefits and opportunities.