[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 40 (Thursday, April 14, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[Congressional Record: April 14, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
INS DISCUSSION TO HALT IMMIGRANT FINGERPRINT PROCESSING
Mr. ROTH. Mr. President, the Washington Post reported today that
despite administration pledges to crack down on criminals and
terrorists slipping into the country as immigrants, the Federal
Government has stopped running routine fingerprint checks on
immigrants. I find this outrageous.
During the past year, as ranking member of the Permanent Subcommittee
on Investigations, I conducted a lengthy investigation of criminal
aliens in the United States. Our investigation found that criminal
aliens are a serious threat to our public safety that is costing
Federal, State, and local criminal justice systems hundreds of millions
of dollars. The very last thing this country needs to do is import more
criminals--we have more than enough of our own.
The INS decision to stop immigrant fingerprint processing will allow
criminals and terrorists to immigrate to our country. Last year
fingerprint processing prevented some 9,000 criminals from immigrating
to the United States. The INS claims that this is only 1 percent of the
total numbers fingerprinted, but that 1 percent still represents 9,000
criminals, a very significant number. Nine thousand more criminals can
ruin the lives of an enormous number of law-abiding citizens.
What the INS apparently does not realize is that fingerprint
processing deters criminals from even attempting to immigrate to the
United States.
Who knows how many criminals have been deterred from applying for
visas because of the fingerprint check? INS might as well post a big
billboard at the border that says ``Criminals and Terrorists Welcome:
No Background Check Required.''
The Post report quoted an INS official stating that this action is
necessary due to the current budget situation. What the INS does not
say is that only the INS is to blame for this so-called budget
situation.
Immigrant fingerprint processing is paid for out of the examination
fee account. The account is funded by fees the INS charges to those who
immigrate to the United States. These fees have not been raised in over
a decade.
The fees for fingerprint processing, on the other hand, have been
raised. The so-called budget situation is due to the fact that the INS
has not raised its fees along with rising costs for processing
immigrant applicants. The simple solution is to raise immigration fees.
The taxpayers should not have to pay more.
But due to the INS' action, the taxpayers will have to pay more.
While the INS claims that it will save $3 million by eliminating this
program. Nine thousand additional criminal aliens will cost the
taxpayers a lot more; not only the additional costs to the justice
system, where these criminal aliens commit more crimes, but also the
cost of the social welfare programs these criminal aliens will be
eligible for. The INS decision may be penny wise, but it is surely
pound foolish.
In short, this is bureaucracy at its worst.
Our country is facing a serious crime problem. It is facing a serious
terrorist threat from abroad. We need only point to the World Trade
Center bombing in New York, or the wanton murders of CIA employees
outside CIA Headquarters. It is time for the administration and the INS
to wake up to reality. The American public is fed up with crime and
wants terrorism stopped. Eliminating fingerprint checks is the wrong
way to go.
I ask unanimous consent that the Washington Post article by Roberto
Suro be included in the Record.
There being no objection, the article was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
[From the Washington Post, Apr. 14, 1994]
U.S. Halts Immigrant Fingerprint Checks
(By Roberto Suro)
Despite administration pledges to crack down on criminals
and terrorists slipping into the country as immigrants, the
federal government has stopped running routine fingerprint
checks on immigrants, a procedure that has blocked thousands
of people a year from entering the United States because of
criminal records.
In a policy change effective April 1, the Immigration and
Naturalization Service (INS) now will send only a handful of
fingerprints from prospective immigrants to the FBI for a
criminal record check and only in exceptional cases.
Applicants for a wide range of immigration benefits
including citizenship, permanent residence and political
asylum will continue to submit fingerprints to the INS.
An internal memorandum from INS headquarters here to
offices around the world states that although the agency ``is
taking this action reluctantly, it is necessary due to the
current budget situation.''
Richard Kenney, an INS spokesman, said the agency hopes to
save $3 million the remaining six months of the fiscal year
by drastically reducing what he termed ``an expensive, labor-
intensive process.''
In 1993 nearly 890,000 sets of prints were sent to the FBI
for criminal record check, and less than 1 percent had
applications turned down, Kenney said.
That amounts to nearly 9,000 people who were kept from
acquiring immigrant status here last year because they had
been convicted of a felony or had some other serious criminal
matter on record with the FBI.
In the wake of the shooting outside the CIA headquarters in
Langley, the World Trade Center bombing in New York and other
recent violent incidents, there has been growing public
concern that terrorists and other malefactors are too readily
entering the United States as immigrants.
The costs of incarcerating immigrants who commit crimes
once they are in this country has been a further cause of
concern, lawmakers say.
With Congress demanding action, President Clinton unveiled
a package of proposals July 27 which he said would deal with
``the growing problems of immigrant smuggling and
international terrorists hiding behind immigrant status.''
Among the measures promised was greater coordination among
federal agencies.
Attorney General Janet Reno complained at the announcement
ceremony that the INS ``too often did not communicate with
law enforcement and vice-versa.'' She said, ``It is
imperative that we bring everyone together to communicate to
do everything that we can to address the critical issue of
terrorism.''
Demetrios Papademetriou, director of the immigration policy
program at the Carnegie Endowment, said, ``On the face of it
giving up this form of cooperation with the FBI seems rather
inconsistent with the administration's law-and-order body
language on immigration.''
The memorandum ordering the new policy makes clear budget
constraints are behind the change. Aside from cases involving
orphans coming into the United States, the memorandum calls
for a 95 percent cut in FBI fingerprint checks and requires
senior regional officials to submit a written justification
for every request to INS headquarters.
Kenney of the INS said no specific criteria had been
developed for determining what would now justify a
fingerprint check. He said adequate screening would be
accomplished by checking applicants' names in data bases with
the identities of known criminals.
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