Speech #1090054653

This bill continues to improve that which made our Nation and our people much safer than we were before and immediately after 9/11. I am proud to serve with the chairman and the ranking member and our colleagues on this subcommittee. We need to do more to improve our border security and immigration enforcement. however. It is important for Americans to understand that this Congress is making significant progress in this area. Earlier this year. as a result of a ByrdCraig amendment to the fiscal year 2005 emergency supplemental appropriations bill. we began the process of adding 500 new Border Patrol agents. 1.950 additional detention beds. and approximately 118 additional investigators. agents. and officers to the whole effort at Border Patrol. In fiscal year 2006. the bill that is before us continues to implement and build upon the progress that we have made in the ByrdCraig amendment. This bill. as reported by the committee. provides for 1.000 more Border Patrol agents. It increases the total number of beds at immigration detention centers by 2.240 to a total of 22.727. It also adds 300 new immigration investigation positions and 200 new immigration enforcement agents and detention officers. This bill. as reported. in combination with the supplemental bill we passed earlier. makes record increases to commit record resources to border security and immigration enforcement. In total levels of key personnel alone. the Appropriations Committee has provided for 12.400plus Border Patrol agents. 18.200plus Customs and border protection officers: 6.000plus criminal investigators for Customs and immigration work. 1.200plus deportation officers: and 2.700plus immigration enforcement agents and detention officers. In other words. in these positions alone. this bill provides for literally an army of more than 40.000 agents and officers fighting on the front lines for border security and immigration enforcement. The committee has made an earnest attempt to add resources and personnel as fast as the Department of Homeland Security can absorb them and use them effectively. The bill. as reported. makes available more than $7.1 billion for Customs and border protection. and more than $4.5 billion in immigration and Customs enforcement. While those dollars and personnel numbers reflect something of our commitment to improve border security and immigration enforcement. it is important to emphasize the work being