[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 107 (Tuesday, July 20, 2010)]
[House]
[Page H5723]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        STOP THE DROP HOUSES ACT

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Arizona (Mr. Mitchell) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of bipartisan 
legislation I introduced yesterday with my colleague Congressman Brian 
Bilbray: the Stop the Drop Houses Act.
  The Federal Government's failure to secure the border and fix our 
broken immigration system has allowed smugglers and Mexican cartels to 
set up vast networks of drop houses, which operate as way stations for 
criminal enterprises. In Phoenix we have as many as 1,000 drop houses. 
They are dangerous magnets for violent crime.
  Even more alarming is the fact that a loophole in Federal law 
prevents authorities from using civil forfeitures to seize these 
houses. Authorities can seize vehicles or even airplanes, but they 
can't use civil forfeiture against the actual drop house itself. The 
Stop Drop Houses Act would close the loophole and allow authorities to 
use civil forfeitures to seize these drop houses.
  Obviously it will take much more to fix our broken system, but this 
is one obvious and important step that Congress can take right now to 
make our communities safer.
  I urge my colleagues to pass the Stop the Drop Houses Act.

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