[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 114 (Thursday, September 14, 2006)]
[Senate]
[Pages S9631-S9632]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. FRIST (for himself, Mr. McCain, and Mrs. Hutchison):
  S. 3892. A bill to reduce the number of deaths along the border 
between the United States and Mexico by improving the placement of 
rescue beacons, and for other purposes; to the Committee on the 
Judiciary.
  Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, one cold May morning earlier this year, a 
Border Patrol agent found the body of a 3-year-old boy in a blue 
windbreaker, his arms crossed. He had died trying to cross our southern 
border, the youngest victim our borders have claimed this year.
  The boy's mother's name is Edith Rodriguez. She is 25 years old. She 
attempted to cross the border illegally, in hopes that she might escape 
the desperate poverty of her home state of Veracruz, Mexico. Edith 
hired a human smuggler--a coyote.
  The coyote gave his charges an illegal drug, ephedrine, to help them 
keep awake and moving. But Edith and her son still could not keep up 
with the group. So the coyote, in a cruel and heartless act, abandoned 
them in the desert. Alone. With no food and little water, with a 
dangerous drug coursing through his system, exposed to the elements--
Edith Rodriguez's little boy died.
  Edith Rodriguez violated the laws of the United States when she 
crossed the border illegally. She was wrong to violate our border. But 
all should agree that her son did not deserve to die.
  Here are the facts: Every 18\1/2\ hours, someone dies trying to cross 
the border between the United States and Mexico. About a year ago, I 
asked the Government Accountability Office to study the deaths that 
take place along America's borders.
  Today, my office released that study. The results are sobering, 
shocking, and, I strongly believe, a cause for action. Since 1995, 
deaths along our borders have doubled. Despite the heroic rescue 
efforts of the men and women of Customs and Border Protection, things 
have gotten worse. In 1995, 266 people

[[Page S9632]]

died trying to cross our borders. Last year, 427 perished.
  The increases, it appears, stem largely from an increase in deaths 
from exposure to the elements in the Sonoran Desert in Arizona. Illegal 
entries, however, have not increased. Quite frankly, it is getting more 
dangerous to cross our border.
  Until recently, CBP did not even keep a systematic count of those who 
died crossing our borders. We still do not have a unified national 
strategy for reducing the deaths. We still do not know how well our 
safety efforts work--if they are saving lives or not. We need to do 
more.
  The founding document of our Nation, the Declaration of Independence, 
lists ``life'' first on the list of Government's responsibilities. The 
overwhelming majority of the people who cross our border do so in 
search of a better life. They take enormous risks and make enormous 
investments in hopes of helping their families.
  Illegal immigration needs to stop. We must defend our borders. We 
must construct physical barriers, add detention beds, hire personnel, 
and equip them with better technology. But we have a higher moral 
obligation to protect the life of every person--every man, woman, and 
child--who sets foot on American soil. We must do everything in our 
power to preserve life.
  That is why I propose the Border Death Reduction Act. I urge my 
colleagues to support it.
  The law will implement the GAO's recommendations. It will require CBP 
to create a strategy for reducing border deaths. It will mandate a full 
count of deaths along the border. It will impose tough, new penalties 
on coyotes who abandon their charges, and it will expand the network of 
rescue beacons that people in trouble can use to call for help.
  These beacons, I believe, are an absolutely vital link in our border 
security system. Let me explain. Rescue beacons are devices at 
prominent locations that individuals can activate when they need help. 
They are tall polls with lights at the top and radio transmitters 
inside. People in trouble can activate a beacon to let CBP know that 
they need help. We know that beacons work: CBP has already saved dozens 
of people based entirely on beacon alerts.
  But individuals who activate beacons do not get a free pass. They 
will, of course, receive necessary medical treatment. But rescued 
individuals will still be detained and deported like anyone else who 
violates our borders.
  Deploying more beacons in the desert will save lives in the desert 
and simultaneously improve the security of our frontiers.
  We cannot delay. We should not rest. We must protect the lives of all 
those who set foot upon our soil. I urge my colleagues to support the 
Border Death Reduction Act.
  I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the 
Record.
  There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be 
printed in the Record, as follows:

                                S. 3892

       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 Death Reduction Act 
     of 2006''.

     SEC. 2. DEFINITION OF A RESCUE BEACON.

       In this Act, the term ``rescue beacon'' means a clearly 
     visible device with an internal power source that is placed 
     in an area likely to experience extreme weather, that 
     contains instructions for its use, and by means of lights, 
     radio signals, and other means, allows individuals to alert 
     the United States Customs and Border Protection of their 
     presence.

     SEC. 3. COLLECTION OF STATISTICS.

       (a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, the Commissioner of Customs shall 
     begin collecting data relevant to deaths occurring at the 
     border between the United States and Mexico, divided by 
     sector, and including--
       (1) the causes of the deaths;
       (2) the total number of deaths;
       (3) the location of deaths; and
       (4) demographic characteristics, including the sex and 
     approximate age of those deceased.
       (b) Development of Protocols.--The Commissioner of Customs 
     shall develop consistent, formal, written protocols for the 
     collection of data described in subsection (a).

     SEC. 4. ANNUAL REPORT ON BORDER DEATHS.

       Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of 
     this Act, and annually thereafter, the Commissioner of 
     Customs shall submit to the Secretary of Homeland Security a 
     report that contains--
       (1) an analysis of trends with respect to the statistics 
     collected under section (3)(a)(1) during the preceding year;
       (2) an evaluation, using multivariate statistical 
     approaches, of the Border Safety Initiative, including any 
     rescue beacons deployed, and any successor program designed 
     to reduce deaths along the border described in section 3(a); 
     and
       (3) recommendations of particular actions to reduce the 
     deaths described in section 3(a).

     SEC. 5. REPORT ON BEACON PLACEMENT.

       (a) Report Required.--Not later than 6 months after the 
     date of the enactment of this Act, the Commissioner of 
     Customs shall submit to the Secretary of Homeland Security a 
     report on enhancing the deployment of rescue beacons.
       (b) Focus of Report.--Such report shall contain particular 
     emphasis on enhancing the deployment of rescue beacons in the 
     Tucson Sector.
       (c) Contents of Report.--The report required by subsection 
     (a) shall include--
       (1) an assessment of the efficacy of the deployment of 
     rescue beacons in light of the statistics gathered under 
     section 3, including analysis of the locations of deaths 
     recorded and areas frequented by illegal migrants; and
       (2) recommendations on where additional rescue beacons 
     should be placed to reduce the number of deaths in the area 
     described by section 3 and section 5(b).
       (d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized 
     to be appropriated $500,000 to carry out the provisions of 
     this section.

     SEC. 6. DEPLOYMENT OF ENHANCED BEACON NETWORK.

       (a) Deployment of Rescue Beacons.--Not later than 1 year 
     after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Commissioner 
     of Customs shall deploy additional rescue beacons in all 
     areas recommended in the report required by section 5.
       (b) Guidelines for Placement of Rescue Beacons.--Not later 
     than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
     Commissioner of Customs shall issue to all sector chiefs 
     formal, written guidelines for the ongoing placement and 
     removal of rescue beacons and the appropriate response to the 
     activation of such beacons.
       (c) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized 
     to be appropriated $1,500,000 to carry out the provisions of 
     this section.

     SEC. 7. PROHIBITION ON ABANDONMENT OF ALIENS IN A BORDER 
                   ZONE.

       (a) In General.--Any person who commits an act described in 
     section 274(a)(1)(A) of the Immigration and Nationality Act 
     (8 U.S.C. 1324(a)(1)(A)) and abandons an alien with respect 
     to that act in a place not within sight of a paved road or 
     rescue beacon, shall be considered to have placed in jeopardy 
     the life of a person as described in section 
     274(a)(1)(B)(iii) of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1324(a)(1)(B)(iii)).
       (b) Construction.--Nothing in this section shall be 
     construed to prohibit any person from being held in violation 
     of section 274(a)(1)(B)(iii) of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1324 
     (B)(iii)).
                                 ______