[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3622 Introduced in House (IH)]







109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3622

To authorize the Governor of a State to organize and call into service 
    a militia of able-bodied and eligible citizens to help prevent 
   individuals from unlawfully crossing an international border and 
  entering the United States anywhere other than a port of entry, to 
   appropriate funds to support this service, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 29, 2005

  Mr. Culberson (for himself, Mr. Akin, Mr. Bartlett of Maryland, Mr. 
   Bonilla, Mr. Brown of South Carolina, Mr. Burgess, Mr. Burton of 
  Indiana, Mr. Carter, Mrs. Cubin, Mrs. Jo Ann Davis of Virginia, Mr. 
Deal of Georgia, Mr. Doolittle, Mr. Duncan, Mr. Gohmert, Mr. Goode, Mr. 
  Gutknecht, Mr. Hall, Mr. Hayworth, Mr. Herger, Mr. Istook, Mr. Sam 
 Johnson of Texas, Mr. Jones of North Carolina, Mr. Lewis of Kentucky, 
Mr. McCaul of Texas, Mr. McHenry, Mr. Marchant, Mr. Mica, Mr. Miller of 
Florida, Mrs. Myrick, Mr. Norwood, Mr. Otter, Mr. Pence, Mr. Pitts, Mr. 
Poe, Mr. Price of Georgia, Mr. Rogers of Alabama, Mr. Rohrabacher, Mr. 
 Royce, Mr. Schwarz of Michigan, Mr. Simpson, Mr. Smith of Texas, Mr. 
Sullivan, Mr. Tancredo, Mr. Wamp, Mr. Westmoreland, Mr. Wilson of South 
     Carolina, Mr. Young of Alaska, and Mr. Garrett of New Jersey) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
Homeland Security, and in addition to the Committee on Armed Services, 
for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case 
for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of 
                        the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To authorize the Governor of a State to organize and call into service 
    a militia of able-bodied and eligible citizens to help prevent 
   individuals from unlawfully crossing an international border and 
  entering the United States anywhere other than a port of entry, to 
   appropriate funds to support this service, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Border Protection Corps Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds as follows:
            (1) Federal authorities do not have sufficient manpower or 
        resources to patrol and defend the international borders of the 
        United States to prevent individuals from entering the United 
        States illegally.
            (2) An ever-increasing number of heavily armed and 
        dangerous criminals, violent gang members, and drug smugglers 
        are entering the United States illegally over our international 
        borders.
            (3) Federal and State law enforcement authorities have 
        identified an alarming increase in the number of foreign 
        nationals from countries with known connections to terrorist 
        organizations who are hiding among this crowd of dangerous 
        illegal immigrants, and camouflaging themselves among an 
        immense and rapidly growing number of foreign nationals who are 
        entering the United States illegally in search of work.
            (4) The United States is at war with terrorist criminal 
        organizations and individuals from foreign nations who are 
        fanatically committed to the destruction of the United States, 
        who have repeatedly demonstrated their ability and willingness 
        to hide their true identities and their evil purposes, and who 
        will enter and move about the United States illegally and use 
        sneak attacks and any criminal means or method available to 
        them to cause the mass destruction of human life in the United 
        States.
            (5) The history of the United States from the first days of 
        the American Revolution is filled with innumerable examples of 
        honorable and invaluable service by citizen volunteers, 
        organized into well-regulated local militias, who have ably 
        defended the frontiers and borders of the United States 
        whenever and wherever Federal military or law enforcement 
        authorities were unable or unwilling to do so.
            (6) The uniquely devious, criminal, cowardly, and 
        fanatically determined nature of the terrorist criminal 
        organizations and individuals that have declared war on the 
        people of the United States compel the Congress to invoke its 
        constitutional authority to authorize all able-bodied and 
        eligible United States citizens to serve in a militia in 
        defense of our international borders under the direct command 
        and control of the Governors of the border States.
            (7) Therefore, in light of these facts, in response to the 
        continuing threat of these terrorist criminal organizations to 
        carry out future attacks on the people of the United States 
        similar to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, and in 
        order to quickly supplement the inadequate manpower and 
        resources now deployed by the Federal Government in defense of 
        our international borders, it is necessary to invoke 
        congressional authority under article 1, section 8, of the 
        Constitution, to call forth ``the Militia to execute the Laws 
        of the Union'', to provide authorization and funding for 
        ``organizing, arming, and disciplining, the Militia'', and to 
        assist the States with statutory guidance and funding to 
        provide for the common defense of the lives, liberty, and 
        domestic tranquility of the people of the United States.

SEC. 3. PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.

    (a) In General.--The Governor of a State on an international border 
of the United States is authorized to establish and command a militia, 
to be known as the ``Border Protection Corps'' for the State. The 
Border Protection Corps for a State shall include only United States 
citizens with no criminal history and no history of mental illness. 
Such militia shall be called into service by the Governor of the State 
for the purpose of patrolling and defending the international border of 
the State with Canada or Mexico, in order to prevent individuals from 
crossing the international border and entering the United States at any 
location other than an authorized port of entry. The members of the 
militia shall work in cooperation with State and local law enforcement 
officials, as directed by the Governor, and with the United States 
Border Patrol. All members of the militia shall take an oath to uphold 
the laws and Constitution of the United States and of the State, in a 
form to be prescribed by the State, and shall have the right to keep 
and bear arms.
    (b) Limited by State Law.--All United States citizens called into 
service by the Governor of a State under subsection (a) are authorized 
to use any means and any force authorized by State law to prevent 
individuals from unlawfully entering the United States at any location 
other than a port of entry, and to take into custody individuals who 
have so entered the United States. The Governor of a State is 
authorized to call eligible United States citizens into service in the 
militia, and to equip, train, discipline, and otherwise control the 
operation of such militia forces in defense of the international 
borders of the United States under such terms, conditions, and 
requirements as are contained in the laws and constitution of the 
State.
    (c) Disposition of Detained Individuals.--All individuals taken 
into custody under subsection (b) shall be promptly delivered to a 
Federal law enforcement authority. A Federal law enforcement authority 
may not release any individual so detained in the United States. All 
such individuals shall be removed to the country from which they 
entered the United States, but only after Federal law enforcement 
authorities are fully satisfied that each individual so removed is not 
a violent or dangerous criminal, a terrorist, or a potential terrorist, 
in which case that individual shall be prosecuted in the United States 
to the fullest extent provided by law.

SEC. 4. FUNDING.

    (a) In General.--Any State whose Governor calls forth eligible 
United States citizens into service in a militia to patrol and defend 
the international borders of the United States in accordance with 
section 3 shall be promptly reimbursed by the Secretary of Homeland 
Security for funds expended by the State in accordance with such 
section to pay the following costs:
            (1) Costs of calling up eligible United States citizens to 
        serve in the militia.
            (2) Costs of equipping, training, disciplining, and 
        otherwise controlling the operation of the militia, as well as 
        the costs of paying overtime to State and local law enforcement 
        and corrections officers engaged in duties relating to 
        activities authorized by this Act.
            (3) Costs of detaining, housing, and transporting 
        individuals who unlawfully enter the United States at a 
        location other than a port of entry and are taken into custody 
        by the militia.
    (b) Account.--Reimbursement under subsection (a) shall be made from 
funds deposited into a separate account in the Treasury of the United 
States entitled the ``Border Protection Corps Establishment and 
Operation Account''. All deposits into the Border Protection Corps 
Establishment and Operation Account shall remain available until 
expended to the Secretary of Homeland Security to carry out subsection 
(a).
    (c) Transfer of Unexpended Homeland Security Funds.--
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary of the 
Treasury shall transfer and deposit into the Border Protection Corps 
Establishment and Operation Account any funds that--
            (1) were appropriated by a provision of law making 
        appropriations for the Department of Homeland Security for a 
        fiscal year;
            (2) were made available until expended by such provision of 
        law; and
            (3) have remained unexpended for a period of 2 years or 
        more.

SEC. 5. RELATIONSHIP TO NATIONAL GUARD AND OTHER AUTHORIZED DEFENSE 
              FORCES.

    A Border Protection Corps established under this Act shall be 
considered a defense force authorized by section 109(c) of title 32, 
United States Code.

SEC. 6. REGULATIONS.

    The Secretary of Homeland Security shall promptly issue regulations 
governing the distribution of funds under section 4 of this Act for all 
reasonable and necessary costs and other expenses incurred by a State 
and the Border Protection Corps under this Act, and providing uniform 
standards which the United States Border Patrol, Homeland Security 
forces and all other federal law enforcement authorities shall follow 
to implement the requirements of this Act. The provisions of this Act 
shall take effect immediately upon enactment, and the promulgation of 
any such regulations are not a necessary precondition to the immediate 
deployment of the Border Protection Corps by the Governor of a State, 
or to the work of local and state law enforcement authorities or 
corrections officers as authorized by the Act. Any reasonable and 
necessary expense or cost authorized by this Act incurred by the State 
or the Border Protection Corps prior to the promulgation of such 
regulations are eligible for reimbursement under the terms and 
conditions of this Act.

SEC. 7. DEFINITION.

    For purposes of this Act, the term ``State'' means any of the 
several States of the United States that borders Canada or Mexico.
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