[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 133 (Tuesday, September 30, 1997)]
[House]
[Pages H8164-H8165]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  0915
                    INS: SERVICE VERSUS ENFORCEMENT

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Thune). Under the Speaker's announced 
policy of January 21, 1997 the gentleman from Texas [Mr. Reyes] is 
recognized during morning hour debates for 5 minutes.
  Mr. REYES. Mr. Speaker, I rise this morning to speak on an issue that 
is very important to me. For more than 26 years, I was an employee of 
the Immigration and Naturalization Service. I am proud to say that I 
worked for the INS and that I helped to enforce our Nation's 
immigration laws as a Border Patrol agent and subsequently as a Border 
Patrol chief.
  I am proud to have worked alongside some of the most dedicated and 
professional men and women this country has to offer. It is for these 
men and women that I will introduce the Border Security and Enforcement 
Act of 1997, a bill which will separate the Border Patrol and other 
enforcement components from the INS and create a new enforcement 
agency.
  The INS has real problems that demand real answers. I believe I can 
provide those answers in a manner that is beneficial to the INS and the 
American people who demand more from their Government.
  The inherent problem with the INS is that they are attempting to 
serve two masters. For all of its good intentions and willing 
personnel, the INS is doomed to fail. The problem is that they are 
tasked with conflicting missions: service versus enforcement.

[[Page H8165]]

  Despite funding increases of more than 52 percent over the past 2 
years, the INS has not adequately handled naturalization or 
enforcement. There are approximately 1.4 million people waiting for the 
INS to process their naturalization applications, and this backlog, 
unfortunately, is expected to increase. This situation is unacceptable. 
It is the duty of our Nation to provide timely service to those seeking 
admission under the legal immigration system.
  Our efforts to control the border are also falling short of 
expectations by the American people. By recent INS estimates, there are 
more than 5 million illegal immigrants living in the United States. It 
is the duty of our Nation to effectively control illegal immigration 
and drug trafficking in order to provide safety and security to the 
American people.
  Increasingly the physical presence of Border Patrol agents on the 
Southwest border to deter illegal crossings has been an integral part 
of our border control strategy, but there is much more to be done. In 
addition to placing agents in the field, we must ensure that they are 
properly equipped to control our borders. It should not be acceptable 
to have drug smugglers and alien smugglers taking shots at our agents 
on the border. It should not be acceptable to ask our agents to make do 
with what resources are available rather than with the resources that 
they need to do their jobs. We owe it to these officers to provide them 
the tools that they need to protect our borders and keep our 
communities safe.
  Last year alone, there were more than 1.5 million apprehensions of 
illegal aliens attempting to enter the United States along the 
Southwest border. As if this is not enough, Border Patrol agents are 
playing a major and integral part in our Nation's drug control 
strategy. Drug traffickers attempting to supply the drugs to feed 
America's $50 billion a year drug habit have become increasingly 
dangerous and sophisticated.
  The men and women of the U.S. Border Patrol are outmanned and 
outgunned. The INS, with its mission overload, is forced to fund 
programs depending on the priority of the moment despite an 
unprecedented increase in resources. These priorities vary from border 
control, interior enforcement, or naturalization. It is time to correct 
this.
  We cannot expect our Border Patrol agents to effectively combat 
illegal immigration and drug trafficking without providing them the 
means to do so. This newly created agency will be enforcement-oriented 
and will dedicate the necessary resources to control our borders and 
protect the lives of our Border Patrol agents.
  This legislation will also allow the INS to focus its attention and 
resources on naturalization and adjudication by relieving them of their 
enforcement duties. The deficiencies inherent in our immigration system 
will finally be addressed. We must place a priority on controlling our 
borders and properly serving those seeking admission to our Nation 
legally. It is time to protect those who serve us every day on the 
border and throughout our Nation.

                          ____________________