[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 24 (Tuesday, February 7, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2256-S2258]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


               PRESIDENT CLINTON'S IMMIGRATION INITIATIVE

  Mr. KENNEDY. Madam President, today, President Clinton announced an 
important and innovative new $1 billion immigration initiative to 
address the problems of illegal immigration. This initiative represents 
a coordinated new approach by the Immigration Service, the Customs 
Service, and the Labor Department to confront this problem head-on, and 
to do so in ways which protect the rights of law-abiding Americans and 
legal immigrants.
  [[Page S2257]] This initiative comes on top of already substantial 
accomplishments by the Clinton administration in the enforcement of the 
immigration laws. This administration, more than any other, has 
enhanced border enforcement by increasing the ranks of the Border 
Patrol and applying modern enforcement tools. It has sought--and 
received--the largest budget increases in the history of the 
Immigration and Naturalization Service. It has expanded efforts to 
identify and remove criminal aliens from the country. And it has 
provided specific assistance to States which bear the brunt of the 
costs of illegal immigration.
  It is clear that effective control of illegal immigration requires 
not only strong border enforcement, but also removal of the magnet of 
employment that attracts illegal aliens to the United States.
  For the past 2 years, the administration has focused unprecedented 
new resources on the problem of illegal border crossers. The 
administration's fiscal year 1996 plan will add 700 new Border Patrol 
officers this year, and bring the total officers added during this 
administration to 1,750. It will give these Border Patrol officers the 
backup support they need to do their jobs, by adding 140 support staff 
and by providing additional sophisticated border technology such as 
surveillance cameras and motion sensors.
  Millions of people enter the United States for business and tourism 
each year. The administration's goal is to ensure that legitimate 
border crossers are assisted in entering as rapidly and efficiently as 
possible, and that potential law-breakers are identified and kept out.
  The administration's proposal will provide 680 new INS inspectors and 
375 new Customs inspectors to facilitate legal entries and to prevent 
smuggling of aliens, drugs, and other contraband. The plan will provide 
these inspectors with upgraded lookout systems and other computer 
facilities for rapid detection of those unqualified for entry. Since 
legitimate border crossers benefit most by these enforcement 
activities, the administration is seeking authorization to charge a 
nominal border crossing fee, for use exclusively in upgrading ports of 
entry and in border enforcement.
  Aliens enter the United States illegally, or overstay legitimate 
visitor visas, principally because to many employers are willing to 
violate the law to hire them. The second aspect of the administration's 
proposal will invest an additional $93 million in workplace-related 
enforcement. The administration will add 365 new INS investigators and 
202 Department of Labor wage and hour investigators to target 
geographical locations and industries where illegal aliens most 
commonly find employment.
  The majority of American employers want to comply with the law. But 
many find it difficult to determine which aliens are eligible to work. 
To address this problem, the Commission on Immigration Reform has 
called for establishment of a nationwide database of INS and Social 
Security data that employers can use to verify the work-authorized 
status of job applicants.
  The Commission's recommendation has significant support, but a number 
of critics have raised important questions about the wisdom of a 
nationwide database. Experts in computer privacy and civil liberties 
have questioned it, and others have suggested that the cost of such a 
database may be prohibitive.
  The administration's plan is a step-by-step approach to test the 
feasibility and desirability of the Commission's proposal, and to 
explore other methods of verifying eligibility for employment. This 
approach will permit us to evaluate the potential benefits and costs of 
such reforms. While making real improvements in existing systems now.
  The third major portion of the administration's plan provides $178 
million in additional funding for the deportation of criminal and other 
deportable aliens, including a major enhancement of an existing program 
that permits INS to deport criminal aliens immediately after they have 
finished serving their criminal sentences. The administration will also 
concentrate greater resources on locating and deporting noncriminal 
aliens who have been ordered deported in the past but have failed to 
leave the country.
  Madam President, I commend the Administration for its proposal. I 
look forward to hearings and action by Congress on this critical issue, 
and I ask unanimous recent that a summary of the administration's 
proposed may be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the summary was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

     Executive Summary--The President's 1996 Immigration Initiative


             Strengthening the Nation's Immigration System

       After two years of unprecedented efforts, the President's 
     FY 1996 budget includes an additional $1 billion to further 
     strengthen the Administration's commitment to border security 
     and to its comprehensive strategy ``that addresses job 
     security through worksite enforcement, community security 
     through removal of criminal aliens, and economic security 
     through assistance to states.''

              Strengthen board enforcement and management

       With a record infusion of new resources in 1994 and 1995, 
     this Administration is taking control of the border. The FY 
     1996 budget provides an additional $369 million to 
     strategically reinforce our border strategy and to build on 
     successes. This strategy includes:
       700 new border patrol agents, 680 new INS inspectors, and 
     165 new support staff, bringing the number of INS personnel 
     devoted to nationwide border control to nearly 9,000, a 51 
     percent increase over 1993. On the Southwest boarder alone, 
     we will have increased border control staffing (agents, 
     inspectors, and support) by 60 percent by the end of FY 1996.
       Over 1,000 new INS and Customs inspectors for land ports of 
     entry to complement border enforcement activities and 
     facilitate commercial vehicular and pedestrian traffic;
       Continued technological improvements, including 
     surveillance cameras, fingerprint technology, encrypted 
     radios, and senors to augment agent effectiveness;
       Automated lookout systems and case tracking systems to 
     facilitate traffic and inspections processes and provide 
     electronic information exchanges between overseas Consular 
     offices and the domestic inspection process;
       Enhanced domestic and overseas enforcement and intelligence 
     enforcement resources to deter alien smuggling and the use of 
     fraudulent documents; and
       A new Border Services User Fee program at land border ports 
     of entry to pay for improvements that will ease traffic 
     congestion, expedite the issuance of Border Crossing Cards 
     and detect fraudulent documents.

        Expand and improve worksite enforcement and verification

       The President's budget includes $93 million to reserve 
     years of inattention to enforcement of labor standards and 
     employer sanctions. The Administration also has firmly 
     endorsed the recommendations of the Jordan Commission to 
     conduct pilots to test various techniques for improving 
     verification of employment authorization and is now seeking 
     substantial funding to implement these pilots. The worksite 
     initiatives will help to ensure that jobs are available only 
     to those who are authorized to work in the United States. The 
     budget enhancement provides:
       365 new INS investigators--an 85 percent increase over 
     1993--for a targeted enforcement effort in the seven states 
     with the largest number of illegal immigrants and against 
     industries that have historically exploited illegal workers;
       202 new Department of Labor Wage and Hour investigators and 
     other enforcement personnel to maintain fair and lawful labor 
     practices; and
       $28 million for several verification pilots, including 
     expanding the INS Telephone Verification System for 
     employers. We also will significantly improve the quality of 
     INS records and make additions to Social Security 
     Administration databases that contain information related to 
     work eligibility.

 Triple the number of illegal aliens deported since 1993 and increase 
                               detention

       The Administration's immigration strategy will ensure that 
     more aliens who have been ordered deported or excluded 
     actually depart from the United States. The Administration's 
     FY 1996 budget requests $178 million to expand the capacity 
     to detain and remove both criminal aliens and other 
     deportable aliens. With these resources, the Administration 
     will:
       Triple the deportation of both criminal and non-criminal 
     aliens from 37,000 in 1993 to more than 110,000 in 1996, 
     based on current projections. Next year, we expect to
      deport more than 58,000 criminal aliens, more than double 
     the number of criminal aliens we plan to deport in 1995;
       Increase detention of deportable aliens by adding more than 
     2,800 beds to detention facilities, an increase of 46 percent 
     over 1993;
       Implement streamlined administrative procedures authorized 
     in the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 
     to deport aggravated felons, saving costs related to the 
     judicial process; and
       Ensure that those denied asylum are deported from the 
     United States.

                      Expand assistance to States

       Deterring illegal immigration is the best way to contain 
     the associated costs to states. Beyond this clear federal 
     responsibility to support states by deterring illegal 
     immigration and removing illegal aliens, the 
     [[Page S2258]] Administration is requesting a total of $563 
     million for direct assistance to states and improved 
     services, including $550 million to offset the states' costs 
     associated with illegal immigrants. Of the total $563 million 
     budget request for assistance and services, $383.4 million 
     represents the increase from FY 1995. See funding summary 
     attached. The resources requested will:
       Fund the commitment established in 1986 by Congress to 
     reimburse states for the costs of incarcerating illegal 
     aliens. The $300 million in resources requested for 
     incarceration costs represents the full amount authorized and 
     exceeds reimbursements in 1995 by $170 million;
       Provide $100 million for grants to school districts that 
     enroll large numbers of recent immigrant students--double the 
     amount provided for FY 1995; and
       Provide $150 million for a new discretionary grant program 
     to help states cover the costs of providing emergency and 
     certain other medical services.
       Expand the current Law Enforcement Support Center pilot, 
     which assists local law enforcement agencies in determining 
     whether criminals arrested for felonies are non-citizens.
       Fund a high quality Center for Immigration Statistics to 
     collect, evaluate, and disseminate accurate and timely 
     immigration data to Congress, state and local governments, 
     and the public.

             Deny public benefits to undocumented migrants

       Undocumented migrants should not be eligible for public 
     services or benefits, with very limited exceptions. These 
     exceptions include emergency medical services, children's 
     right to an education, temporary emergency or humanitarian 
     disaster assistance, and services necessary for the 
     protection of public health and safety interests (e.g., 
     immunization programs).
       The Administration will work to improve benefit eligibility 
     verification to protect the integrity of these programs from 
     eligibility fraud by undocumented migrants.
          Summary of $1 billion immigration budget enhancement

                             [In millions]

Border enforcement and management:
    Border control between ports of entry.........................$81.0
    Facilitation/enforcement at ports of entry....................260.1
    Enhance anti-smuggling, intelligence, and overseas deterrence..28.2
                                                             __________

      Subtotal....................................................369.3
                                                               ==========
_______________________________________________________________________

Worksite enforcement and verification:
    Department of Justice..........................................53.7
    Department of Labor............................................11.0
    Verification information systems pilots........................28.3
                                                             __________

      Subtotal.....................................................93.0
                                                               ==========
_______________________________________________________________________

Detention and removal of criminal and deportable aliens...........178.0
                                                               ==========
_______________________________________________________________________

Assistance to States:
    Incarceration of criminal aliens...........................\1\170.0
    Medicaid/emergency medical services...........................150.0
    Immigrant education.........................................\1\50.0
    Law enforcement support center..................................3.4
    Center for quality immigration statistics......................10.0
                                                             __________

      Subtotal.................................................\1\383.4
                                                               ==========
_______________________________________________________________________

  Total increase required:
Financed through fees............................................$219.0
New appropriations (budget authority) needed......................804.7

\1\Amounts represent increases from FY 1995 to FY 1996.
                    Total 1996 assistance to States

                             [In millions]

Assistance to States:
  Incarceration of criminal aliens...............................$300.0
  Medicaid/emergency medical services.............................150.0
  Immigrant education.............................................100.0
  Law enforcement support center....................................3.4
  Center for quality immigration statistics........................10.0
                                                             __________

      Subtotal.................................................\1\563.4

\1\Includes $550M for incarceration/medical/education.

       Immigration and Naturalization Service's budget increases 
     by over 70 percent since 1993 and a 24-percent increase over 
     1995:
                                                                Billion
1993...............................................................$1.5
1994................................................................1.6
1995................................................................2.1
1996................................................................2.6



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