Sen. Jon Tester extended an invitation Wednesday to the chairman of the Senate Homeland Security Committee, suggesting members hold a field hearing in Montana this summer to address northern border security.

Tester, D-Mont., made the request one day after the Department of Homeland Security released its first report to Congress analyzing the needs and weaknesses of the northern border.

The 20-page report summarized the border as porous and vulnerable to clandestine crossings, particularly between ports of entry. The potential for extremists to enter the U.S. remains the primary threat to the border, the report suggests.

The nonpartisan Government Accountability Office will now use the report to make recommendations to Congress on ways to improve northern border security.

The GAO’s report is expected out in June, as mandated in last year’s bill based on recommendations from the 9/11 commission.

“Whether it’s making sure we have enough people to staff the Port of Sweetgrass, or getting better radar coverage to detect small planes that can currently fly across unnoticed, we have no room to fail,” Tester said Wednesday. “This report is a valuable kick start.”

Tester submitted his request to hold a field hearing in Montana on northern border security to Joe Lieberman, I-Conn. Lieberman chairs the Senate Homeland Security Committee, on which Tester is a member.

“The request was made in the form a formal letter,” said Tester spokesman Aaron Murphy. “It’s just waiting for a reply.”

While the new report leaves security fixes to the June report, it does give color to a perceived threat that could, the report notes, be carried out by extremists crossing the 3,987-mile border from Canada into the U.S. Nearly 545 of those miles span Montana.

Mike Milne, spokesman for the Seattle field office of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, said he had not seen the report as of Wednesday afternoon.

Milne added that he had also received a call from a Canadian counterpart asking for details on the report, which could prompt Congress to change the nature of northern border security.

“We in the field have not seen the report,” Milne said. “What ends up being policy is the report we get.”

Reporter Martin Kidston: 447-4086 or mkidston@helenair.com