Speech #1100191531

I believe it is important for this body to act on H.R. 2490 independently. given the uncertain prospect for enactment of the Coast Guard bill in this Congress. My bill requires the Coast Guard to move forward on its biometrics at sea effort within 1 year and provide a cost analysis to Congress on expanding these capabilities to other Coast Guard and Department of Homeland Security vessels and units. As part of this analysis. my bill also encourages DHS to give priority to expanding mobile biometric collection capability to assets and areas that are most likely to encounter illegal border crossings in the maritime environment. The efforts of the Coast Guard in this area show great promise. Since the collection of limited biometrics on individuals interdicted at sea began. the Coast Guard has collected biometric data from 1.530 migrants. resulting in nearly 30 matches against databases of wanted criminals. immigration violators and others who have previously encountered government authorities. Instead of being released to repeat their dangerous and illegal behavior. these individuals are now detained and prosecuted. The U.S. Attorneys Office in San Juan. Puerto Rico. has prosecuted more than 118 Individuals for violations of U.S. immigration laws and other offenses based substantially on information obtained through the biometrics program. The Coast Guard reports that illegal migration in the Mono Pass. an area between the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico. has been reduced by 50 percent in just the past year as a result of the biometrics program. By leveraging Its relationships with DHS. the Coast Guard now has access to millions of fingerprint files It can use to positively identify individuals encountered at sea. those who are without identification and are suspected of attempting to illegally enter the United States.