[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 10 (Wednesday, January 18, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E122]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


       INTRODUCTION OF LEGISLATION CONCERNING ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION

                                 ______


                          HON. ELTON GALLEGLY

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, January 18, 1995
  Mr. GALLEGLY. Mr. Speaker, I have today reintroduced legislation 
aimed at addressing a problem that most Americans now recognize as a 
pressing threat to our way of life and the continued success of our 
Nation. That problem is illegal immigration and I hope that the package 
of reforms I propose will--once and for all--help establish firm 
control over our borders and make it much more difficult for those who 
enter our country illegally to benefit by breaking the law.
  Illegal immigration was first recognized as a drain on public funds 
and a detriment to public welfare in the border States where it has 
been most prevalent over the years. In recent years, though, more and 
more Americans from a much wider geographic area have come to 
understand the overwhelming burden placed upon law-abiding taxpayers by 
those who enter this country illegally.
  For years, citizens in border States have demanded a Federal response 
to this problem and, for years, the Federal Government has turned a 
deaf ear to the plight of those legal residents asked to house, school, 
treat, and feed those with no legal right to be here. The response has 
been so dismal, in fact, that over the past year some border States 
have actually sued the Federal Government in hopes of retrieving some 
of the billions of dollars spent attending to the needs of illegal 
immigrants.
  But the apex of the public outcry against illegal immigration, I 
believe, was reached this past November, when nearly 60 percent of 
California voters supported a statewide initiative aimed at eliminating 
the benefits awarded to those who break the law when they enter this 
country. The overwhelming passage of proposition 187 sends a clear 
message to those who write the laws governing life in this Nation 
that--on this issue--the people have had enough and they want something 
done.
  Illegal immigration is perhaps the only situation I know of where 
those who openly and knowingly break the law not only escape 
punishment, they are in fact rewarded beyond their wildest dreams. 
Until we combine tougher border enforcement with the elimination of 
benefits awarded those who enter this country illegally, we will never 
be able to end the drain on public resources and to protect 
opportunities for those legal immigrants who seek to make a life here 
and to capture their share of the American dream.
  Mr. Speaker, illegal immigration is a complex and divisive issue and 
I recognize that no single legislative package could ever fully address 
its many facets and implications. I hope, however, that the bills I 
introduce today will provide a foundation for an appropriate Federal 
response to this crisis.
  As the head of a congressional task force on immigration that you 
created, I look forward to working with all of my colleagues on this 
issue and particularly with my good friend Representative Lamar Smith, 
chairman of the Immigration and Claims Subcommittee of the House 
Judiciary Committee.
  The time has come for national immigration reform. We in the 104th 
Congress owe it to those who put us here to recognize this and to take 
appropriate action, instead of continuing to ignore a crisis that 
threatens to undermine the very foundation of the society we have 
worked so hard over so many years to create.


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