Securing the Resources to Control the Border

By Jon Kyl Congress has taken a huge step in getting more serious about securing our border with Mexico. Last week the Senate approved the Homeland Security Appropriations Bill, which includes funding for a host of border control and immigration initiatives that I've long pushed for Arizona. Now awaiting President Bush's expected signature, the bill includes a total of nearly $9 billion for securing the nation's borders, including $1.7 billion for staffing between ports of entry and 1,000 new Border Patrol agents. This is on top of funding already in place for another 500 agents and other resources. The bill also provides $1.4 billion for new detention capacity, which, along with the expansion of expedited removal authority, will help end the current practice of releasing detainees from countries other than Mexico simply for lack of a place to keep them while they await processing for removal. After learning of this problem in a hearing of my Subcommittee on Terrorism, Technology and Homeland Security, I worked with Department of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff to implement this new policy. The bill also includes funding for a variety of other projects that I requested and helped push through the appropriations process. A total of $1.3 billion is dedicated to Immigration and Customs Enforcement investigations and intelligence programs, including 250 additional investigators who will help enforce worksite and other immigration laws. Of that funding, $536 million will help support and expand air and marine capabilities across U.S. Customs and Border Protection operations, including $20 million for new helicopters. About $35 million is also included for the construction of tactical infrastructure along the Arizona border, such as roads, barriers and lights. These investments, known as "force multipliers," will dramatically improve the Border Patrol's ability to reach and provide coverage of the more remote sections of the desert. They will be augmented by the construction of new Border Patrol stations in Willcox and Sonoita, providing bases for operations as well as processing and detention facilities. A total of $3.3 billion is included for first responder grants and assistance under the Office for Domestic Preparedness, including: * $40 million for grants to States to implement the REAL ID Act of 2005, which standardizes requirements for state-issued drivers' licenses and makes them harder to counterfeit; * $1.3 billion in grants to support state, local and urban governments' efforts to equip, train and exercise personnel and assess their levels of emergency preparedness; * $400 million for local law enforcement grants related to terrorism prevention; and * $655 million in grants for upgrades and improvements for local firefighters, emergency medical personnel, and other "first responders." Finally, the appropriations bill sets aside $340 million to continue the development of US Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology (US VISIT), which I originally co-sponsored in 1996. Although implementation of this program has been more complicated than expected, the technology involved holds great promise for providing quicker, more reliable identification of those crossing the border and monitoring their departure status. The lesson of this appropriations legislation is that, while we are awaiting enactment of comprehensive immigration reform - like the legislation I have introduced - we don't have to wait for that to happen in order to move more aggressively to control our borders by simply enforcing existing law. Americans are beginning to realize what we in Arizona have known for a long time - that illegal immigration has become a crisis far beyond the southwestern desert. The funding in this bill is a strong step in the direction of providing desperately-needed resources to the border, which is our first line of defense. It's taken a long time to get to this point, , and there's much more work to be done, but Congress is now recognizing that illegal immigration is not just our problem - it's the nation's. Senator Kyl serves on the Senate Finance and Judiciary committees and chairs the Senate Republican Policy Committee.