[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 20]
[House]
[Pages 29561-29569]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



   RECOGNIZING THE U.S. BORDER PATROL'S SEVENTY-FIVE YEARS OF SERVICE

  Mr. BACHUS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the 
concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 122) recognizing the United States 
Border Patrol's 75 years of service since its founding.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                            H. Con. Res. 122

       Whereas the Mounted Guard was assigned to the Immigration 
     Service under the Department of Commerce and Labor from 1904 
     to 1924;

[[Page 29562]]

       Whereas the founding members of this Mounted Guard included 
     Texas Rangers, sheriffs, and deputized cowboys who patrolled 
     the Texas frontier looking for smugglers, rustlers, and 
     people illegally entering the United States;
       Whereas following the Department of Labor Appropriation Act 
     of May 28, 1924, the Border Patrol was established within the 
     Bureau of Immigration, with an initial force of 450 Patrol 
     Inspectors, a yearly budget of $1 million, and $1,300 yearly 
     pay for each Patrol Inspector, with each patrolman furnishing 
     his own horse;
       Whereas changes regarding illegal immigration and increases 
     of contraband alcohol traffic brought about the need for this 
     young patrol force to have formal training in border 
     enforcement;
       Whereas during the Border Patrol's 75-year history, Border 
     Patrol Agents have been deputized as United States Marshals 
     on numerous occasions;
       Whereas the Border Patrol's highly trained and motivated 
     personnel have also assisted in controlling civil 
     disturbances, performing National security details, aided in 
     foreign training and assessments, and responded with security 
     and humanitarian assistance in the aftermath of numerous 
     natural disasters;
       Whereas the present force of over 8,000 agents, located in 
     146 stations under 21 sectors, is responsible for protecting 
     more than 8,000 miles of international land and water 
     boundaries;
       Whereas, with the increase in drug-smuggling operations, 
     the Border Patrol has also been assigned additional 
     interdiction duties, and is the primary agency responsible 
     for drug interdiction between ports-of-entry;
       Whereas Border Patrol agents have a dual role of protecting 
     the borders and enforcing immigration laws in a fair and 
     humane manner; and
       Whereas the Border Patrol has a historic mission of firm 
     commitment to the enforcement of immigration laws, but also 
     one fraught with danger, as illustrated by the fact that 86 
     agents and pilots have lost their lives in the line of duty--
     6 in 1998 alone: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
     concurring), That Congress recognizes the historical 
     significance of the United States Border Patrol's founding 
     and its 75 years of service to our great Nation.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Alabama (Mr. Bachus) and the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson-Lee) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Alabama (Mr. Bachus).


                             General Leave

  Mr. BACHUS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks 
and to include extraneous material on H. Con. Res. 122.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Alabama?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. BACHUS. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise to wholeheartedly and enthusiastically support H. 
Con. Res. 122, commemorating the 75th anniversary of the United States 
Border Patrol.
  I would like to especially thank my colleague and friend, the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Reyes), for sponsoring this legislation.
  I come to pay tribute to a group of men and women who guard our 
Nation's borders and risk their very lives every day. The group of men 
and women to whom I am referring are the United States Border Patrol.
  Might I, as a personal note, and I know that he might share it with 
my colleagues, just thank the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Reyes) for the 
years of service that he gave in the Border Patrol command. His 
advocacy, his affection, his service has been much appreciated by all 
concerned.
  On May 28, 1924, the Border Patrol was established within the Bureau 
of Immigration with an initial force of 40 patrol inspectors and a 
yearly budget of $1 million.
  This year is the 75th anniversary of the United States Border Patrol. 
Along with my colleague, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Reyes), we also 
introduced the Border Patrol Recruitment and Retention Act of 1999.
  This legislation provided incentives and support for recruiting and 
retaining Border Patrol agents. This legislation increased compensation 
for Border Patrol agents and allowed the Border Patrol agency to 
recruit its own agents without relying on the personnel office of the 
Department of Justice or INS.
  We know for sure that the Border Patrol could, in fact, do their own 
business and do their own job, but we also know that because of the 
hard work that they deserve the incentives and pay increases that any 
other law enforcement organization deserved or received.
  The Border Patrol Recruitment and Retention Enhancement Act moved 
Border Patrol agents with one year's agency experience from the Federal 
Government's GS-9 pay level, approximately $34,000 annually, to GS-11, 
approximately $41,000 annually next year.
  Fortunately, the language was inserted in the Commerce-Justice-State 
appropriations bill, which passed the House and which established an 
Office of Border Patrol and Retention and called for the Border Patrol 
agents to receive bonuses and pay raises.
  I am delighted that in this 75th year we have respected the Border 
Patrol by acknowledging them as the law enforcement body that they are 
and providing them with the possibility of compensation that they 
deserve.
  I am glad to join with the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Reyes), a 
champion of the Border Patrol in the Congress, in drafting a bill that 
would focus attention to it more. And we have achieved some results 
from our efforts.
  We are a Nation of immigrants and a Nation of law. The men and women 
of the United States Border Patrol put their lives on the line every 
day guarding our lives and protecting our borders. The present force of 
8,000 members is responsible for protecting more than 8,000 miles of 
international land and water boundaries and work in the deserts of 
Arizona and Texas and California along with our extensive northern 
border between the United States and Canada.
  Mr. Speaker, let me thank the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Smith) for 
supporting this legislation and the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Reyes) 
for offering and authoring this legislation, H. Con. Res. 122, which 
recognizes the historical significance of the United States Border 
Patrol's 75 years of commitment and service to our great Nation.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BACHUS. Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure and honor to yield such 
time as he may consume to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Reyes), my 
friend and colleague and the author of this legislation.
  Mr. REYES. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. 
Jackson-Lee) and a very good friend of mine for yielding me the time.
  Mr. Speaker, let me begin by thanking my colleagues, the gentleman 
from Texas (Mr. Smith) and the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson-
Lee), the ranking member, for their help in bringing this bill to the 
floor today.
  Let me also thank my friend and colleague the gentleman from Alabama 
(Mr. Bachus) for his support here this afternoon, as well.
  This year is the 75th anniversary of the establishment of the United 
States Border Patrol. I had the privilege and the honor of being part 
of the U.S. Border Patrol for more than 26 years before I came to 
Congress. I joined the Border Patrol after my service in Vietnam. At 
the time that I joined, I was not fully aware of the historic past of 
the United States Border Patrol, whose motto today, as it was and 
always has been, is ``honor first'' and whose exemplary service through 
the years has proven that this motto is truly a way of life for its 
officers.
  Mr. Speaker, I include for the Record a document entitled ``The 
History of the United States Border Patrol.''

                         Border Patrol History

       From the time this nation was established until 1875 there 
     was no legislation restricting immigration except the Alien 
     Act of 1798 which provided the President with the authority 
     to order the departure from the United States of any alien 
     whom he deemed dangerous to the welfare of the country. This 
     legislation was unpopular and it was not renewed when its 
     two-year term expired. Between 1820 and 1880, more than ten 
     million immigrants arrived in this country. The first 
     restrictive legislation passed by Congress was the Act of 
     March 3, 1875, which barred

[[Page 29563]]

     the immigration of convicts and of women for the purpose of 
     prostitution. This Act was followed by the Immigration 
     Statute of August 8, 1882, which barred the admission of 
     idiots, lunatics, convicts, and persons likely to become a 
     public charge. Also in 1882, the first Chinese exclusion law 
     was adopted, and in 1885, the first Contract Labor Law was 
     passed. These laws were designed to restrict the entry of 
     certain undesirable aliens and the flood of Chinese and other 
     large bodies of cheap labor being imported into the United 
     States which was flooding and depressing the labor market. As 
     the door was closed tighter by these progressively 
     restrictive immigration laws, increasingly large numbers of 
     Orientals and other inadmissible aliens resorted to illegal 
     entry to gain admission, and the need for a border control 
     force to prevent illegal entry evolved. As early as 1904, the 
     Commissioner General of Immigration assigned a small group of 
     mounted inspectors along the borders to prevent the smuggling 
     and illegal entry of aliens. This token force of untrained 
     officers, never totaling more than 76, was woefully 
     inadequate to cope with the illegal entry problem. In 
     addition, once the alien escaped the border area, he 
     generally melted into the population undetected, as there 
     were no officers available to search out and deport him. It 
     was estimated that for every one hundred aliens apprehended 
     at the borders, one thousand escaped detection. Because of 
     increased and continuing illegal entry activity, a separate 
     unit of mounted inspector was organized in March of 1914, to 
     which was assigned additional men and equipment, such as 
     boars, cars, etc. The unit's scope was described as general, 
     and the officers operated without regard to district 
     boundaries, thus avoiding any clash of authority among 
     officers of the respective districts. It was stated, however, 
     that the new system was not extensive enough to cope with the 
     organized efforts of those engaged in the business of 
     smuggling aliens, and that this contraband traffic and 
     illegal entry of aliens could only be broken up by the 
     formation of a border patrol that could devote all its 
     efforts to the prevention of the illegal entry of aliens and 
     to seek out, arrest, and deport all aliens in the United 
     States illegally. It was stated that the only way to stop 
     surreptitious entries was to make it certain that arrest and 
     expulsion would follow.
       Because of travel restrictions and the assignment of troops 
     along the borders during the World War I years of 1917-1918, 
     immigration and illegal border activity were greatly reduced, 
     but with the close of the war, smuggling and illegal entry 
     accelerated rapidly. The Bureau of Immigration again resumed 
     its efforts to close the borders between the ports of entry. 
     The Commissioner General made strong recommendations in 1919, 
     requesting funds for a patrol service to guard the borders 
     and coastlines, stressing the need for a force that could 
     devote all its energies to this important function. It was 
     emphasized that large numbers of European and Chinese aliens 
     who were smuggled in from Canada, Mexico, and Cuba were being 
     apprehended. Reports in 1922 indicated there were 30,000 
     unemployed Chinese in Cuba, and more arriving regularly, who 
     intended to enter the United States illegally. Smuggling from 
     Cuba was prevalent, approaching alarming proportions.
       Prior to the enactment of the Immigration Act of 1917 there 
     were so few immigration restrictions applicable to natives 
     and citizens of Canada and Mexico there was little reason to 
     enter illegally. Unlike the immigrants from overseas, they 
     were not required to pay the head tax and they were not 
     compelled to take the literacy test. Those who measured up to 
     the relatively simple requirements of the law were free to 
     enter in unlimited numbers. The Immigration Act of 1917, 
     however, imposed the head tax of $8.00 on Canadians and 
     Mexicans and, like other aliens, they were subjected to the 
     reading test provided in the new law. These two provisions 
     contributed significantly to widespread border violations and 
     increases in smuggling. Between Fiscal Years 1922 and 1924 
     seaman desertions rose from 5,879 to 34,679. In Fiscal Year 
     1924 only 6,409 aliens were deported, but the small number of 
     officers assigned to patrol the borders was insufficient to 
     prevent many illegal entrants from escaping detection and 
     reaching inland points.
       The volume of legal immigration soared from 141,132 in 1919 
     to 805,228 in 1921, and there was much concern lest an 
     uncontrolled flood of immigration from the war-ravaged 
     countries of Europe might descend on the United States. 
     Because of this fear, there emerged the temporary Quota Act 
     of 1921, which permitted the admission annually of 3% of the 
     number of persons of each nationality in the United States 
     according to the 1910 census. On May 26, 1924, Congress 
     adopted a permanent quota law, which restricted immigration 
     to approximately 150,000 quota immigrants a year.
       As additional restrictions were placed on immigration, more 
     aliens resorted to illegal entry. Congress, aware that it was 
     unrealistic to inspect applicants for admission at ports of 
     entry, but at the same time leave long, wide-open stretches 
     of unguarded border between the ports where inadmissible 
     aliens could readily enter the United States, and realizing 
     the need for a force that could devote all of its energies to 
     the prevention of smuggling and illegal entry and the 
     apprehension of aliens illegally in the United States, 
     created the Border Patrol in the Department of Labor 
     Appropriations Act of May 28, 1924. The Act provided for the 
     expenditure of at least one million dollars for ``additional 
     land-border patrol''. Since then, the Border Patrol has been 
     an integral part and important enforcement arm of the 
     Immigration and Naturalization Service.
       As there was no Civil Service register for immigration 
     patrol inspectors, the initial force was selected from Civil 
     Service registers for railway postal clerks and immigration 
     inspectors. The hastily recruited small band of officers was 
     given the responsibility of enforcing Section 8 of the 
     Immigration Act of February 5, 1917 (39 Stat. 874:8 U.S.C.), 
     which prohibited smuggling, harboring, concealing, or 
     assisting an alien not duly admitted by an immigrant 
     inspector or not lawfully entitled to enter or reside in the 
     United States.
       Although the infant organization was charged with the 
     responsibility of combating illegal entry and the highly 
     organized and lucrative business of alien smuggling, the 
     necessary authority to act was not provided in the statute 
     under which the Patrol was established. During the first few 
     months of operation, officers were further handicapped in the 
     performance of their duties in that they were not uniformed 
     and had nothing but their badges to distinguish them from 
     other citizens. This situation gave smugglers, illegal 
     entrant aliens, and others an excuse for ignoring their 
     commands, thereby endangering the lives of the officers. This 
     latter handicap was remedied in December 1924 when a Border 
     Patrol uniform was adopted. The Border Patrol has since been 
     known as the uniformed enforcement division of the 
     Immigration and Naturalization Service.
       Following creation of the Border Patrol, large-scale alien 
     smuggling from Cuba to Florida and the Gulf Coast areas 
     continued. In order to combat this difficult problem, 
     Congress, in the Act of February 27, 1925 (43 Stat. 1049-
     1050; 8 U.S.C. 110), provided funds for a ``coast and land 
     border patrol'', and, in addition, realizing that Border 
     Patrol officers lacked specific authority to act, authorized 
     any designated employee of the Bureau of Immigration to 
     execute any warrant or other process issued by any officer 
     under any law regulating the admission, exclusion, or 
     expulsion of aliens and, without warrant,
       (1) to arrest any alien who, in his presence or view, is 
     entering or attempting to enter the United States in 
     violation of any law or regulation made it pursuance of law 
     regulating the admission of aliens, and to take such alien 
     immediately for examination before an immigrant inspector or 
     other official having authority to examine aliens as to their 
     rights to admission to the United States, and
       (2) to board and search for aliens any vessel within the 
     territorial waters of the United States, railway car, 
     conveyance, or vehicle, in which he believes aliens are being 
     brought into the United States.
       Officers operated under the provisions of this Act until it 
     was amended by the Act of August 7, 1946 (60 Stat. 865; 8 
     U.S.C. 110), which continued the basic authorities with the 
     following revisions:
       (1) Extended the power, without warrant, to arrest any 
     alien in the United States in violation of any law or 
     regulation made in pursuance of law regulating the admission, 
     exclusion, or expulsion of aliens, and likely to escape 
     before a warrant could be obtained for his arrest.
       (2) Reason to believe aliens were being brought into the 
     United States in a conveyance was no longer necessary to 
     board and search such conveyance; however, the search had to 
     be made within a reasonable distance of an external boundary.
       (3) Added the power, without warrant, to make arrests for 
     felonies committed and cognizable under any law of the United 
     States regulating the admission, exclusion, or expulsion of 
     aliens, if the person making the arrest has reason to believe 
     that the person so arrested in guilty of such felony and if 
     there is likelihood of the person escaping before a warrant 
     can be obtained for his arrest.
       Approximately six years later, the Act of March 20, 1952, 
     amended Section 8 of the Immigration Act of 1917 and title IV 
     of the Act of February 27, 1925. The basic authorities in 
     effect at the time of the new Act were retained with the 
     following revisions and/or additions:
       (1) Transportation within the United States of known 
     illegal entrant aliens was, for the first time, made an 
     offense.
       (2) Employment and usual and normal practices incident to 
     employment were deemed not to constitute harboring illegal 
     aliens.
       (3) Arrests for harboring, smuggling, and transportation of 
     illegal aliens were restricted to designated officers and 
     employees of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, and 
     all other officers whose duties were to enforce criminal 
     laws.
       (4) Provision was made for officers to have access to 
     private lands, but not dwellings, within 25 miles of any 
     external boundary, for the purpose of patrolling the border 
     to prevent the illegal entry of aliens.

[[Page 29564]]

       Some three months later, the Act of June 27, 1952 (66 Stat. 
     163), cited as the ``Immigration and Nationality Act'', also 
     referred to as the McCarran-Walter Act, repealed and 
     substantially reenacted most of the laws relating to 
     immigration and nationality, including the authorities of 
     immigration officers to act without warrant. The one 
     significant addition to authority of officers was the 
     provision which permitted boarding and searching of a 
     conveyance for aliens to be performed anywhere in the United 
     States, so long as the officer had reason to believe aliens 
     were being brought into the United States in the vehicle 
     being searched.
       The authorities contained in the Immigration and 
     Nationality Act provide the basis for action by our officers 
     today. The primary authority under which the Border Patrol 
     operates stems from Section 103 of this Act (8 U.S.C. 1103), 
     which states, in part, that the Attorney General shall ``. . 
     . have the power and duty to control and guard the boundaries 
     and borders of the United States against the illegal entry of 
     aliens and shall, in his discretion, appoint for that purpose 
     such number of employees of the Service as to him shall 
     appear necessary and proper''.
       This authority has been delegated by him to the 
     Commissioner of Immigration and Naturalization, and the 
     Commissioner, in turn, has delegated, under 8 CFR 103.1, to 
     the Deputy associate Commissioner, Domestic Control, the 
     responsibility for all the Border Patrol activities of the 
     Service.
       Further, in order to provide Border Patrol officers 
     authority and protection when they encounter violators of 
     customs laws incident to the performance of their normal 
     duties, arrangements were made in 1955 for their designation 
     as Customs Patrol Inspectors. This designation was updated on 
     July 14, 1971, providing for delegation of authority to 
     designate Border Patrol Agents as acting Customs Patrol 
     Officers, without compensation. Basic authority to act under 
     this designation lies in Title 19 U.S.C. 1581.
       The Border Patrol had an initial force of 450 officers 
     assigned to the Florida and Gulf Coasts and the two land 
     boundaries. Exhibit I shows appropriations, officer force, 
     and numbers of deportable aliens and smugglers apprehended, 
     Fiscal Year 1925 to Fiscal Year 1973, inclusive. During these 
     years, the Border Patrol apprehended 7,061,853 deportable 
     aliens and 40,463 smugglers of aliens. In addition, the 
     Border Patrol works closely with other agencies and, 
     incidental to their regular duties, its officers have 
     apprehended tens of thousands of violators of other laws and 
     seized smuggled contraband, liquor, and narcotics valued at 
     millions of dollars.
       The Border Patrol has always been a flexible and mobile 
     organization whose officers have high morale and an intense 
     pride in their organization. When first organized, the 
     entrance-on-duty salary was $1,680 per annum, as compared to 
     $9,969 at the present time. Initially, the Border Patrol was 
     under the supervision of the border district directors. 
     However, starting January 1932, in order to obtain a greater 
     degree of coordination and uniformity in operations and 
     supervision, it was placed under the immediate control of two 
     directors--one located at El Paso, Texas, for the Mexican 
     border, and the other at Detroit, Michigan, for the Canadian 
     border. This administrative alignment was terminated on June 
     1, 1933, and the Border Patrol reverted to its former plan of 
     organization. When the regional concept was adopted on 
     January 3, 1955, the Border Patrol continued to operate under 
     the respective districts until October of that year. At that 
     time, operational activities were placed under the immediate 
     direction of the regional offices. This arrangement provided 
     needed flexibility and better coordination of activities 
     between the sectors, and facilitated the movement of officers 
     and equipment to meet changing work-loads and conditions.
       In January 1930, hearings were held by the Committee on 
     Immigration and Naturalization, House of Representatives, to 
     consider merging of the Immigration and Customs Border 
     Patrols so that the execution of the customs, immigration, 
     prohibition, and other laws regulating or prohibiting the 
     entry into the United States of persons and merchandise might 
     be more effective. It was proposed by the Secretary of the 
     Treasury that the unified Border Patrol be part of the Coast 
     Guard and be charged with the duty of guarding the borders 
     between the designated ports of entry to prevent the entry of 
     persons and merchandise over the land and water boundaries. 
     The proposed unified Border Patrol was to replace the Customs 
     and Immigration Border Patrols on the Mexican and Canadian 
     borders and complement of work of the Coast Guard on the 
     maritime boundaries, thereby eliminating duplication of 
     effort, concentrating responsibility for the protection of 
     the borders, and bringing about a more effective coordination 
     of work. The plan, however, did not get beyond the discussion 
     stage. Upon repeal of the prohibition laws in 1933, liquor 
     smuggling, for all practical purposes, ceased to exist. The 
     number of customs patrol inspectors diminished thereafter and 
     the organization was finally abolished on July 24, 1948.
       In 1935, the Border Patrol, realizing the need and value of 
     radio communications in its work, began the installation and 
     use of radios in vehicles and stations. This was the 
     forerunner of the comprehensive and effective radio network 
     we have today.
       As a continuing effort to improve its efficiency and 
     effectiveness, the Border Patrol, in 1939, established a 
     fingerprint unit in El Paso, Texas, for aliens apprehended in 
     the three Mexican border districts. The unit provided rapid 
     and positive identification of previously arrested aliens, 
     and proved to be a very effective enforcement tool until it 
     was unable to process the increasingly large number of 
     fingerprints of aliens apprehended along the Mexican border. 
     The unit had, as its maximum, seven employees, and personnel 
     limitations made it impossible to expand the unit so it could 
     keep pace with the increasing number of aliens apprehended by 
     the Border Patrol in Mexican border districts. Because of its 
     limitations, the unit was discontinued in 1953.
       Except for the initial year of its existence, the Border 
     Patrol officer force, workload, and accomplishments remained 
     fairly constant through fiscal year 1940 (see Exhibit I). 
     During appropriation hearings for fiscal year 1941, the 
     Secretary of Labor vigorously opposed a proposed reduction in 
     the Border Patrol force, stating ``I think the Border Patrol 
     is our most efficient and effective branch of the Service and 
     whatever reductions are made in the Immigration Service 
     should be at points other than the Border Patrol. It is the 
     prevention of illegal entry that will reduce our work.'' On 
     June 14, 1940, (Reorganization Plan No. V, 5 F.R. 2223; 5 
     U.S.C. 99, 1940 ed.) the Immigration and Naturalization 
     Service was transferred from the Department of Labor to the 
     Department of Justice. Because of the grave international 
     situation that existed in 1940 and the belief that aliens who 
     would be a threat to the best interests of the country would 
     endeavor to enter the United States surreptitiously, 
     Congress, on June 27, 1940, by deficiency appropriation, made 
     available two million dollars for 712 additional Patrol 
     officers, 57 auxiliary personnel, and the necessary 
     equipment. This increased the force to 1,531 officers. During 
     the war years, this force was used to provide tighter control 
     of the borders, to man alien detention camps, guard 
     diplomats, and to assist the military to guard the East Coast 
     of the United States against the entry of Axis saboteurs. A 
     Border Patrol unit was established in Boston, Massachusetts, 
     in 1942, to guard the coastline and perform other Border 
     Patrol duties in that area. This unit was deactivated in 
     1945.
       The first attempt to patrol the borders by air began in the 
     summer of 1941 when three autogiros were obtained from the 
     military and transferred to the Service. The first fixed-wing 
     airplanes were used in 1945 after three surplus L-5 
     observation planes were obtained from the military. The 
     radio-coordinated air-ground operations have developed into 
     one of the Patrol's most effective tools.
       In 1942, after the beginning of World War II, the demand 
     for labor accelerated rapidly. As farm laborers entered the 
     military or found employment in the expanding war industry, 
     an acute labor shortage was created in agriculture. Food 
     production was considered vital to winning the war, and for 
     the first time since World War I, it became necessary to 
     recruit alien labor. An agreement with Mexico, affective 
     August 4, 1942, provided for the importation of Mexican 
     nationals. The first Mexican agricultural workers were 
     admitted to El Paso, Texas, on September 27, 1942, under the 
     Ninth Proviso of Section 3 of the Immigration Act of February 
     5, 1917. The continued shortage of domestic labor brought 
     about the enactment of Public Law 45 on April 29, 1943, which 
     provided for the importation of agricultural laborers.
       This law expired December 31, 1947, and from 1948 to June 
     30, 1951, Mexican laborers again were imported under the 
     Ninth Proviso. On July 12, 1951, congress passed Public Law 
     78, and Mexican laborers were imported under this Act (see 
     Exhibit II). Upon termination of Public Law 78 on December 
     31, 1964, the importation of Mexican laborers diminished 
     drastically. In calendar year 1965, 20,284 Mexican 
     agricultural laborers were imported under Section 
     101(a)(15)(H)(ii) of the Immigration and Nationality Act. In 
     addition, in fiscal year 1965, 15,377 British West Indians 
     and 21,430 Canadian woodsmen and agricultural laborers were 
     admitted under this Act. If the Canadian and British West 
     Indian programs were eliminated, illegal entries would 
     increase; however, the impact would not be as great on 
     illegal alien activity as was brought about by the 
     termination of Public Law 78. Statistics concerning the 
     relationship between the importation of Mexican laborers and 
     deportable aliens located reveal that as the number of 
     contracted Mexican laborers declined, the number of 
     deportable aliens apprehended increased. (See Exhibits I and 
     II)
       Early in fiscal year 1950, a Border Patrol unit was 
     established in New York, followed by the establishment of 
     units in Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Norfolk, to perform 
     seaport and crewman control duties. These units were 
     abolished in 1952 and the officers and functions were 
     transferred to the newly formed Investigations Division.
       Starting with fiscal year 1944 and upon termination of 
     World War II, illegal alien activity accelerated rapidly, 
     especially along the

[[Page 29565]]

     Mexican border. Apprehension of deportable aliens increased 
     each year. During this period, the authorized force decreased 
     from 1,637 to 1,079. The increasingly large number of 
     apprehensions each year could not be pointed at with pride. 
     These large numbers of aliens who could be apprehended so 
     rapidly indicated a weakness in the prevention of illegal 
     entry. During appropriation hearings in February 1951, 
     Service representatives were informed that the influx of 
     illegal aliens was a major and fantastic disgrace and a 
     reflection on the Immigration Service, the Department of 
     Justice, and representatives of the national government, and 
     that the situation was so serious along the Mexican border 
     that it made a farce of the Immigration laws in that area.
       The Mexican border situation continued to deteriorate, 
     especially in the California and Rio Grande Valley areas. It 
     was reported that aliens were responsible for 755 of the 
     crimes in some of the South Texas and California counties. 
     The Service was implored by citizens' associations, chambers 
     of commerce, and local peace officer groups to use all 
     possible resources toward controlling the hordes of illegal 
     aliens flooding the Southwest. The numerous reports of 
     robbery, rape, and pillage by illegal aliens indicated the 
     seriousness of the situation.
       In 1950, in attempting to halt this invasion, the Canadian 
     border was reduced by 62 positions that were shifted to the 
     Mexican border. In addition, an airlift to the interior of 
     Mexico was inaugurated June 1, 1951. Approximately 51,504 
     aliens were airlifted before that lift was discontinued 
     during July 1952 for lack of funds. The Mexican Government 
     then agreed to provide train lifts for its nationals, with 
     military surveillance, from the San Antonio and Los Angeles 
     Districts to the interior of Mexico. These trainlifts were 
     inaugurated in July 1952, but because of their 
     ineffectiveness were discontinued after about five months of 
     operation. During that time 25,297 aliens were transported 
     from the border areas. In most areas, the Border Patrol could 
     apprehend daily as many aliens as officers could handle. It 
     was the same old story, year after year--too little and too 
     late to stop the wave of illegal entries.
       On June 9, 1954, however, the Attorney General announced 
     that the Border Patrol would begin an operation to rid 
     Southern California of illegal aliens. On June 17, 1954, a 
     special force of some 800 officers from all districts was 
     assembled at El Centro and Chula Vista, California. As news 
     of the special operation spread, unknown thousands of aliens 
     left the country voluntarily. The adult, healthy, Mexican 
     males without families were expelled by bus at Nogaleses and 
     from there by train, at the expense of the Mexican 
     Government, to the interior of Mexico. In approximately 
     thirty days, the operation was shifted to the South Texas 
     area. After the wetback invasion was brought under control 
     there, officers were assigned to Chicago and other interior 
     cities to clean out the illegal aliens in those areas. After 
     removing the hordes of illegal aliens in the Southwest, it 
     was reported that unemployment claims in California dropped 
     by $188,000 a week and that crime in some border counties 
     decreased from 50%-90%. Welfare agencies and hospitals 
     reported a decrease in charity demands. Jobs were made 
     available for local citizens, and merchants reported rising 
     sales. There was a general improvement in the economic, 
     social, and health conditions all along the Mexican border. 
     For example, the infant mortality rate in Hidalgo County, 
     Texas, dropped from 233 in 1953 to 31 in the last half of 
     1954.
       To assure that there would be a sufficient number of 
     officers on a permanent basis to maintain control of the 
     borders, Congress, in fiscal year 1955, authorized an 
     increase of 400 patrol agents. To provide for a means for the 
     expeditious movement of aliens in Service custody, five 
     transport aircraft were acquired in late 1954. It was 
     realized at the time that there could be no relaxation of our 
     enforcement effort and, realizing the need to remove border 
     violators from the area of their gainful employment in order 
     to discourage their illegal return, the Border Patrol, on 
     September 8, 1954, began expelling adult Mexican male aliens 
     by boatlift from Port Isabel, Texas, to Vera Cruz, Mexico. 
     The operation was terminated in August 1956, after 49,503 
     aliens had been removed. The Ojinaga to Chihuahua trainlift, 
     and the Reynosa-Matamoros, Tamps., to Leon, Gto., airlift 
     were started September 26, 1956, and November 29, 1957, 
     respectively. For a brief period in 1965, the airlift was 
     extended to include flights from Mexicali and Juarez. The 
     Mexican airlift operation was discontinued in February 1969. 
     Various other programs have utilized bus or train transport 
     in Mexico to return aliens to the vicinity of their homes. At 
     the close of Fiscal Year 1973, the following removal 
     operations were in existence. The data of origin of the 
     operation appears within the parentheses.
       Airlift: Tijuana-Leon (3/25/70).
       Buslift/Trainlift: Presido (9/26/56); El Paso-Jimenez (9/
     12/67); El Paso-Chihuahua (9/16/68); Port Isabel-San Luis 
     Potosi (4/8/69); El Centro-Los Mochis (9/9/68); Chula Vista-
     Mazatlan (5/16/69); Del Rio-San Luis Potosi (3/13/70); 
     Nogales-Obregon (12/3/70).
       By 1956 the Mexican border violations had been reduced to 
     the extent that adequate control prevailed. It was then 
     possible to strengthen the other areas which was accomplished 
     by transferring 84 officer positions from the Southwest 
     Region. Thirty positions were allocated to the Northeast 
     Region, 33 to the Northwest Region, and 21 to the Southeast 
     Region.
       As border conditions improved, it was realized that 
     attention should be given to the illegal entry of aliens by 
     air. Recognizing the potential use of private aircraft for 
     alien smuggling and the need to provide a method to combat 
     smuggling and illegal entry by air, as there were reportedly 
     widespread violations, air detail offices were established 
     for the Mexican border at El Centro, California, in July 
     1955, and relocated to Yuma, Arizona, in June 1956; at 
     Detroit, Michigan, for the Canadian border in September 1957; 
     and in the Miami Sector for the Caribbean area in July 1959. 
     The function of these offices is to index, evaluate, and 
     disseminate information relating to suspect aircraft and 
     pilots transiting the Mexican, Canadian, and Florida and Gulf 
     Coast borders. In April 1968, the Detroit office was merged 
     with the Yuma office and in June 1968, the Miami office was 
     moved to Yuma. Although these facilities are manned by Border 
     Patrol personnel, they are Service-wide facilities and all 
     offices contribute information concerning suspect aircraft 
     and individuals, and consult the records when the need 
     arises. More than one hundred thousand legal entries by 
     private aircraft are verified each year. These offices have 
     assisted in establishing almost 950 violations of Section 239 
     of the Immigration and Nationality Act (illegal entry in 
     aircraft)
       Further, as controls were tightened along the borders, 
     increasing numbers of aliens resorted by use of false 
     documents to support claims to United States citizenship. In 
     view of the expanding complexity of the problem, it became 
     evident that a coordinated effort on a national scale was 
     needed to combat this menace to enforcement control, and as a 
     result, the Fraudulent Document Center was established at El 
     Paso, Texas, on April 15, 1958.
       The Center compiles information from completed cases 
     involving fraudulent birth or baptismal certificates used by 
     Mexican aliens, and this information is readily available to 
     a field officer who encounters a doubtful document claim to 
     United States citizenship by a subject of Mexican extraction. 
     The Center was moved to Yuma in June 1968 to place all Border 
     Patrol record-keeping facilities in one location.
       Two other record facilities are being operated by the 
     Border Patrol. The Anti-Smuggling Information Center was 
     established in 1965 to correlate information to identify 
     known and/or suspect smugglers of aliens operating in the 
     western portion of the U.S./Mexican border. The area involved 
     has been extended to include all of the Southwest Region and 
     the facility is now situated at Yuma, Arizona. Service 
     officers direct information relating to smuggling operations 
     to the Center for correlation, indexing, and filing. The 
     current workload includes handling and processing 
     approximately 6,000 cases per year and over 12,000 inquiries 
     per year. A similar facility was established on July 1, 1971, 
     at Swanton, Vermont, for information relating to alien 
     smuggling across the U.S./Canadian border. The workload at 
     the Canadian border facility is much less than the one on the 
     Mexican border, but inquiries now exceed 100 per month. 
     Beginning in 1959, there was a number of special problems of 
     national interest that arose which resulted in the Border 
     Patrol being called upon to furnish assistance. After Castro 
     had succeeded in taking over the Cuban Government on January 
     1, 1959, anti-Castro Cubans and, in some cases United States 
     citizens, used Florida airports to carry out hostile activity 
     against Cuba, thereby causing embarrassment to this 
     government. Under Presidential Proclamation 3004 dated 
     January 17, 1953, and the provisions of Section 215 of the 
     Immigration and Nationality Act (66 Stat. 190) and 
     regulations of the Secretary of State relating to 22 CFR 46 
     and 53, the Attorney General was requested, on November 1, 
     1959, to prevent the departure of persons from the United 
     States to Cuba, including its air space, who appeared to be 
     departing for the purpose of starting or furthering civil 
     strife in that country. The administrator of the Federal 
     Aviation Administration issued a regulation requiring all 
     persons operating civil aircraft for flights to or over Cuba 
     to file a flight plan, to notify the Immigration and 
     Naturalization Service, and to depart from designated 
     international airports.
       The Cabinet, on February 26, 1960, assigned primary 
     responsibility for coordinating the efforts of various 
     agencies to enforce the policy of interdicting illegal 
     flights or incursions or export of arms to Cuba with the 
     Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration. The 
     responsibility for preventing departure of unauthorized 
     flights was assigned to the Border Patrol. In order to carry 
     out these responsibilities, the 86th Congress, as a part of 
     the appropriation for fiscal year 1961, appropriated 
     $1,600,000 to increase the Border Patrol authorized force by 
     155 officers. On April 1, 1962, 33 of these positions were 
     converted to guard positions and assigned to the Miami 
     District. As the Cuban problem in Florida improved, the need 
     for

[[Page 29566]]

     the additional officers diminished, and the force was further 
     reduced by 122 positions on February 6, 1963.
       In May 1961, the Department of Justice requested the detail 
     of, and was furnished, 349 patrol agents, with necessary 
     vehicles and radio equipment, to assist U.S. marshals in 
     quelling racial disturbances at Montgomery, Alabama. 
     Subsequently, Patrol officers have assisted U.S. marshals in 
     riot control at Oxford, Mississippi, Selma-Montgomery, 
     Alabama, at the Pentagon and Resurrection City in Washington, 
     D.C.; and in many other operations. The Border Patrol also 
     participated in the transfer of food and drugs in the 
     exchange for Bay of Pigs prisoners from Cuba.
       In addition, the Patrol has aided U.S. marshals in 
     maintaining peace and good order during the hearings of the 
     House of Representatives Subcommittee on Un-American 
     Activities. Also, between January 1961 and November 1963 
     Border Patrol officers were assigned to security duty with 
     Air Force personnel to guard President Kennedy's plane in 
     West Palm Beach, Florida. Later, during President Johnson's 
     visits to Blaine, Washington, and El Paso, Texas, Border 
     Patrol officers were detailed to assist the security force at 
     those places.
       During the Presidential Inauguration in January 1969, 
     Patrol Agents were detailed to Washington, D.C., to assist in 
     security measures. Operations Instruction 105.6(b) provides 
     for immigration officers to render assistance to the Secret 
     Service in its protective responsibilities to the President.
       Between May 1, 1961, and August 6, 1961, there were three 
     successful and one unsuccessful hijack attempts directed 
     against United States commercial aircraft by unstable 
     dissidents. On August 10, 1961, President Kennedy announced 
     to the nation that U.S. Border Patrolmen would be assigned to 
     protect a number of flights in order to prevent future hijack 
     attempts. Twelve hours later, our officers were riding and 
     safeguarding commercial flights. The operation was 
     coordinated by the Maimi Sector for the entire United States, 
     and when it reached its peak on August 16, 1961, 50 officers 
     per day were accompanying 92 flights. This was scaled down 
     gradually until September 9, after which date officers 
     accompanied flights only upon request by an airline, the 
     Federal Aviation Administration, or upon receipt of 
     information that a hijack attempt might be made. During the 
     operation, Patrol officers guarded 1,310 commercial flights 
     and travelled 1,724,396 miles. That the operation was 
     successful is borne out by the fact that no hijack attempts 
     occurred during the operation. The last flight by our 
     officers took place on October 23, 1961, when Federal 
     Aviation Administration peace officers assumed responsibility 
     for this activity. Between September 14, 1969 and November 2, 
     1969 Service Immigration Inspectors, Investigators, Airplane 
     Pilots, and Border Patrol Agents participated in ` 
     ``Operation Intercept/Cooperation,'' a multi-agency operation 
     to halt the smuggling of marijuana, narcotics, and dangerous 
     drugs from Mexico. Advanced planning and subsequent 
     implementation involved realignment of Border Patrol officers 
     assigned to back-up operations to the border area, detailing 
     Patrol Agents and Investigators from other regions to the 
     Southwest Region. Extending the workweek of all officers to 
     provide greater availability of manpower, establishment of 
     radar coverage through the cooperation of the Military and 
     the Federal Aviation Administration, use of leased pursuit 
     aircraft flown by Border Patrol pilots to intercept 
     unidentified aircraft entering the United States from Mexico, 
     and establishment of a communications system between the 
     agencies for transmission of intelligence and operating 
     information. The combined efforts of the participating 
     agencies succeeded in achieving the program's objectives and 
     initiated new approaches to a problem of national magnitude.
       With the realignment and the details from other regions 
     there were 1,123 officers assigned to border surveillance, an 
     increase of 254 officers. A six day workweek was authorized 
     for the officers assigned to the operation. For pursuit 
     purposes, the Service leased seven Beech Baron aircraft and 
     furnished three Cessna 180 and one Piper Cherokee, whereas, 
     FAA provided two Beech Barons and Customs made available 
     their Cessna 210. Sixteen Service pilots were accorded 
     training to fly the Service Beech Barons. Twenty-one FAA and 
     Military radar installations were utilized, of which ten were 
     portable units. The greatest concentration of radar coverage 
     extended from El Paso to the West Coast. Service 
     communications equipment installed at radar sites were manned 
     by Service officers.
       Statistics relating to enforcement functions performed by 
     Border Patrol Agents and Service Investigators during 
     ``Operation Intercept/Cooperation'' reflect 115 Customs 
     violators were located, resulting in 52 seizures which 
     included approximately 7,000 pounds of marijuana, almost 20 
     ounces of heroin, and nearly 250,000 units of dangerous 
     drugs.
       After our enforcement effort was strengthened and the 
     illegal entry problem brought under control, the number of 
     deportable aliens apprehended remained relatively steady from 
     Fiscal Year 1957 to Fiscal Year 1964, inclusive. During this 
     period, the borders were considered to be under an acceptable 
     level of control.
       However, since termination of Public Law 78 on December 31, 
     1964, apprehensions, especially in the Southwest Region, have 
     increased drastically. For example, during Fiscal Year 1964, 
     the Border Patrol apprehended 42,879 deportable aliens, as 
     compared to 369,495 in Fiscal Year 1972, an increase of 
     326,416 or 761%. There was a more significant increase in the 
     apprehension of adult Mexican males ``EWI'' during the same 
     period--17,812, in 1964, and 435,171 in 1973, an increase of 
     417,359 or 2343%.
       To further illustrate the illegal alien problem facing the 
     Border Patrol it is necessary to emphasize that, in Fiscal 
     Year 1955, when the illegal entry situation along the Mexican 
     border was brought under control, there were 337,996 Mexican 
     laborers imported under Public Law 78 to help alleviate the 
     agricultural labor shortage, as compared to the admission of 
     only 20,287 Mexican agricultural laborers under the bracero 
     program (Public Law 78). Mexican braceros were employed in 
     seventeen states during the last year of the program. A few 
     employers of agricultural laborors have requested 
     certification for temporary foreign workers under the 
     provisions of Section 214 and relating regulations. The 
     number of Mexican laborers imported have been mere tokens of 
     the labor force formerly available. In Fiscal Year 1966 there 
     were 18,544 Mexican laborers admitted, 7,703 in 1967, 6,127 
     in 1968. No Mexican laborers have been imported since 1968.
       A few months after the bracero program terminated it became 
     evident that only a small number of workers would be admitted 
     for temporary employment. This prompted former agricultural 
     contract laborers, many whose only source of income and 
     livelihood for years had been derived from work in the United 
     States, and many others, knowing that work was available in 
     this country, to resort to illegal entry.
       To combat this pressure along the sourthern border, 
     officers were detailed to the most active areas, transfers 
     from the Southwest Region to the other regions were frozen 
     February 2, 1965, and during the last six months of Fiscal 
     Year 1966, 95 Patrol Agents positions were transferred from 
     the other regions to the Southwest Region to bolster our 
     forces there. Although these measures have helped, the 
     problem of maintaining adequate control against illegal alien 
     activity has taxed our resources to the fullest.
       The continuing high volume of border violations has 
     necessitated an increase of 152 officer positions in Fiscal 
     Years 1970 and 1971, and 140 positions in Fiscal Year 1972. 
     In addition, considerable knowledge has been acquired 
     relative to the development and utilization of electronic 
     intrusion devices to supplement border security. This 
     comparatively new field of endeavor for the Border Patrol 
     will undoubtedly become a major factor in the overall success 
     of enforcement functions.
       Barring a major economic disaster, such as a nationwide 
     depression, the opportunity for employment will remain the 
     principal attraction to the migration of aliens to the United 
     States. A severe shortage of unskilled agricultural workers 
     during World War II was eased considerably by the legal, 
     temporary admission of workers from adjacent countries. This 
     in itself did not halt the flow of illegal aliens; however, 
     increased enforcement measures, coupled with the availability 
     of legal farm workers, served to bring the illegal entry 
     problem well within control of the Border Patrol. In recent 
     years a transition in reverse has been taking place; i.e., 
     efforts have been directed toward replacing the alien worker 
     with citizens and legal residents. This transition, which is 
     beyond Service control, has already and will continue to have 
     a bearing on Border Patrol operations.
       During the transition, actions taken by agricultural 
     associations and individual farmers can affect the rate of 
     progress and the future requirements for agricultural 
     workers. Wholehearted acceptance of the local worker in lieu 
     of imported labor will facilitate the transition. 
     Unfortunately, some associations and farmers are still 
     relying on illegal aliens to perform field work. Conversion 
     to crops requiring less manpower and elimination of non-
     essential luxury produce requiring excessive labor and care 
     would reduce the need for laborers; however, such 
     conversions, if they have been made, have had no appreciable 
     affect on the laborers needed. Lastly, the development and 
     utilization of mechanical devices for ground preparation, 
     planting, cultivation, and harvesting will influence the 
     future requirements for agricultural workers. Further 
     technological advances are forthcoming, but not within the 
     present time frame.
       Other important factors that cause aliens to enter the 
     United States in violation of law are socio-economic and 
     political conditions in their homelands. Mexico is a prime 
     example of the disparity in existing socio-economic 
     conditions. Although progress has been made in commercial and 
     agricultural development, housing, educational opportunities, 
     social and welfare matters, a high rate of unemployment 
     persists, particularly for the unskilled laborer. Two 
     interesting observations have appeared in news media that 
     concisely pinpoint Mexico's labor situation.

[[Page 29567]]

     In testimony before the House Subcommittee on Immigration on 
     July 9, 1971, at El Paso, Texas, American Consul General 
     William P. Hughes stated ``Mexico is expected to have 70 
     million people by the year 2000. It must create 400,000 jobs 
     a year. Perhaps if we could aid Mexico to narrow the economic 
     gap the illegal problem could erode''. (El Paso Herald, July 
     10, 1971). The January 29, 1973, issue of U.S. News & World 
     Report contained the following: ``Mexico is wading into 1973 
     with a Growing Problem. Too few jobs for too many people. The 
     rate for unemployment and underemployment is estimated to top 
     20 per cent nationwide. In the countryside, the figure may 
     hit 50 per cent. Economists say more than 1 million Mexicans 
     reach age 15 each year. Most of them enter the labor 
     market''. In contrast, Canada's progress has served to reduce 
     incentives for some of its citizens to seek benefits 
     elsewhere. The political situation in Cuba has resulted in 
     the exodus of large numbers of Cubans, with thousands of them 
     finding refuge in the United States. It is not possible to 
     predict the degree to which the foregoing factors will affect 
     Border Patrol operations. Likewise, there is no means by 
     which to gauge the duration of conditions that prompt aliens 
     to enter the United States illegally. In the absence of 
     positive, predictable or controllable factors, the Border 
     Patrol must continue to utilize its manpower and other 
     resources as efficiently and effectively as possible to 
     control the flow of illegal aliens in the United States.


                              bibliography

       In citing the various stages of development in this History 
     of the Border Patrol, a number of sources were researched. In 
     some instances, direct quotations were lifted from the 
     original documents and, in others, the writer has paraphrased 
     to avoid voluminous and repetitious quotations.
       Among the major sources reviewed were: U.S. Statues at 
     Large; U.S. Code Congressional and Administrative News; 
     Annual Reports of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, 
     Fiscal Years 1892 through 1968; Our Immigration, M-85, 1963 
     Edition; Development of Immigration and Naturalization Laws 
     and Service History, M-67, Revised 5/1/64; The Border 
     Patrol--Its Origin and Its Work, M-157, 1963 Edition; 
     Appropriation Hearings, Fiscal Years 1920 through 1965; 
     Appropriation and Immigration Congressional Committee 
     Reports; Service Statistical (G-23) Reports; Service Files; 
     Laws Applicable to Immigration and Nationality; World Book 
     Encyclopedia, 1965 Edition; Planned Parenthood News, Spring 
     1966, Edition.

  Mr. Speaker, I just want to recap that it all started with the 
Mounted Guard, which was assigned to the Immigration Service under the 
Department of Commerce and Labor from 1904 to 1924.
  The founding members of this Mounted Guard included Texas Rangers, 
sheriffs, and deputized cowboys who patrolled the frontier looking for 
smugglers and rustlers back during that early period.
  On May 28, 1924, the Border Patrol was established within the Bureau 
of Immigration with an initial force of 450 patrol inspectors and a 
yearly budget of $1 million and an average yearly salary of $1,300 for 
its inspectors who, incidentally, had to provide their own horse.
  During the Border Patrol's 75-year history, these highly trained, 
dedicated, and professional officers have assisted in controlling civil 
disturbances, performing national security details for the President 
while he has traveled in our border States, aided in foreign training 
and assessments in countries such as Bolivia, Colombia, Cuba, Equador, 
Guatemala, El Salvador, and Haiti, and have responded with security and 
humanitarian assistance in the aftermath of numerous natural disasters, 
which include the massive earthquake in San Francisco in 1989 and the 
Mexico City earthquake of 1990.
  Every year hundreds of lives are saved along our Nation's borders by 
Border Patrol agents that are out routinely on search-and-rescue 
missions. During the first airline hijacking in U.S. history, which 
occurred in El Paso in 1961, Border Patrol agents played an 
instrumental role in averting a disaster and restoring order.
  During the civil rights era, Border Patrol agents were often 
deputized as U.S. Marshals to assist in the integration of our schools. 
Border Patrol agents have worked with the FBI and other law enforcement 
agencies throughout this country charged with our national security to 
intercept individuals that pose a threat to our national security.
  The Border Patrol is also the lead agency today tasked with drug 
interdiction between our ports of entry, playing a major role in 
keeping our neighborhoods drug free.
  Mr. Speaker, I could go on and on about the accomplishments, 
dedication, and the role of the United States Border Patrol and the 
history of this country.
  The present force of over 8,000 agents, located in 146 stations under 
21 sectors, is responsible for protecting more than 8,000 miles of 
international land and water boundaries. It is this Nation's largest 
uniform Federal law enforcement agency.
  The men and women of the United States Border Patrol have the dual 
role of protecting this Nation's borders and enforcing immigration laws 
in a fair and humane, professional manner. Their job is tough and it 
takes a special person to perform their duties. It also takes a special 
person to work summers in the deserts of Arizona and West Texas or the 
cold winters in North Dakota and Vermont.
  Our agents provide a vital service to our Nation day in and day out, 
and I am very proud that we are passing this resolution to thank them 
and honor them on behalf of this House of Representatives.
  The work that our Border Patrol agents perform each day is dangerous. 
Eighty-six agents and pilots have lost their lives in the line of duty, 
six last year and two this year.
  Mr. Speaker, I include for the Record the names of each of those 
brave men and women who have died while serving their country:

           Border Patrol Officers Killed in the Line of Duty

       Clarence M. Childress, April 16, 1919.
       Charles L. Hopkins, May 8, 1919.
       Charles Gardiner, October 22, 1922.
       James F. Mankin, September 14, 1924.
       Frank N. Clark, December 13, 1924.
       Joseph P. Riley, April 6, 1925.
       Augustin De La Pena, August 2, 1925.
       Ross A. Gardner, October 28, 1925.
       William W. McKee, April 23, 1926.
       Lon Parker, July 25, 1926.
       Thad Pippin, April 21, 1927.
       Franklin P. Wood, December 15, 1927.
       Norman G. Ross, February 10, 1928.
       Robert H. Lobdell, December 25, 1928.
       Earl A. Roberts, March 24, 1929.
       Benjamin T. Hill, May 30, 1929.
       Ivan E. Scotten, July 20, 1929.
       Miles J. Scannell, September 9, 1929.
       William D. McCalib, January 7, 1930.
       Harry E. Vincent, March 25, 1930.
       Robert W. Kelsay, June 25, 1930.
       Frank Vidmar, Jr., March 24, 1932.
       Charles F. Inch, June 26, 1932.
       Philip D. Stobridge, March 7, 1933.
       Doyne C. Melton, December 7, 1933.
       Bert G. Walthall, December 27, 1933.
       William L. Stills, January 17, 1940.
       George E. Pringle, December 28, 1940.
       Robert J. Heibler, September 7, 1941.
       Ralph W. Ramsey, February 26, 1942.
       Earl F. Fleckinger, June 23, 1945.
       Ned D. Henderson, November 18, 1945.
       Anthony L. Oneto, March 11, 1947.
       Michael T. Box, August 29, 1950.
       Richard D. Clarke, December 18, 1950.
       Edwin H. Wheeler, July 6, 1952.
       William F. Bucklew, July 23, 1954.
       Donald Kee, July 23, 1954.
       James M. Kirchner, November 15, 1954.
       James M. Carter, June 6, 1956.
       Douglas C. Shute, June 6, 1956.
       John A. Rector, October 16, 1956.
       Archie L. Jennings, April 16, 1960.
       Kenneth L. Carl, June 18, 1961.
       Richard A. Lugo, May 14, 1967.
       George F. Azrak, June 17, 1967.
       Theodore L. Newton, Jr., June 17, 1967.
       Elgar B. Holliday, October 18, 1967.
       Ralph L. Anderson, October 25, 1968.
       James G. Burns, December 8, 1968.
       Henley M. Goode, Jr., October 11, 1969.
       John S. Blue, October 4, 1969.
       Friedrich Karl, October 4, 1973.
       Edwin C. Dennis, February 4, 1974.
       Lee L. Bounds, March 29, 1974.
       Glenn A. Phillips, July 8, 1974.
       Oscar T. Torres, November 30, 1974.
       Joseph P. Gamez, Jr., April 21, 1978.
       Weldon Smith, October 19, 1979.
       Victor C. Ochoa, March 11, 1983.
       Thomas K. Byrd, November 21, 1983.
       Manuel Salcido, Jr., January 2, 1985.
       Lester L. Haynie, June 14, 1985.
       Norman Ray Salinas, August 4, 1986.
       John R. McCravey, February 23, 1987.
       Josiah B. Mahar, September 23, 1988.
       David F. Roberson, July 14, 1989.
       Keith Connelly, September 6, 1989.
       John D. Keenan, November 27, 1989.
       Louis D. Stahl, June 13, 1992.
       Jose A. Nava, January 6, 1995.
       Luis A. Santiago, March 28, 1995.
       Joe R. White, April 18, 1995.
       Jefferson L. Barr, January 19, 1996.
       Aurelio E. Valencia, January 25, 1996.
       Michael W. Barnes, December 12, 1996.
       Miguel J. Maldonado, March 10, 1997.

[[Page 29568]]

       Stephen C. Starch, June 14, 1997.
       Alexander Kirpnick, June 3, 1998.
       Susan L. Rodriguez, July 7, 1998.
       Ricardo G. Salinas, July 7, 1998.
       Jesus A. De La Ossa, October 20, 1998.
       Thomas J. Williams, October 20, 1998.
       Walter S. Panchison, October 23, 1998.
       Rene B. Garza, January 20, 1999.
       Stephen M. Sullivan, March 27, 1999.

  Mr. Speaker, last year and this year, the following agents were 
killed protecting our country: Alexander Kirpnick, Susan Rodriguez, 
Ricardo Salinas, Jesus De La Ossa, Thomas Williams, Walter Panchison, 
Rene Garza, and Stephen Sullivan.
  I am proud to have had the opportunity to serve as a member of the 
United States Border Patrol.
  When I came to Capitol Hill and began my career in Congress, I was 
pleased to find that the United States Border Patrol had tremendous 
support, some of which this evening has been given by my colleague from 
Texas and my colleague from Alabama.
  This support has been reflected in the mandate that INS hire an 
additional 1,000 Border Patrol agents each year until the year 2001. 
This support has been shown time and time again by this Congress 
providing funds for the hiring of these agents and, as my colleague 
from Texas (Ms. Jackson-Lee) mentioned, increasing their pay.
  As I said, I was proud to add my name to the legislation introduced 
by my colleague, the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson-Lee), which 
would provide pay raises for the majority of our agents.
  I am proud to have introduced with my friend and colleagues, the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Smith) and the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. 
Rogers), legislation to reform the INS and to create two separate 
bureaus. Our legislation would ensure that the voices of these hard-
working agents are heard at the highest levels and that their safety 
and well-being is priority number one.
  Mr. Speaker, let me once again thank my colleagues for their 
assistance in getting this bill to the floor. The gentleman from Texas 
(Chairman Smith), the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson-Lee), the 
Republican leadership, and the Democratic leadership all have strongly 
supported my efforts, and I want to thank them.
  I urge all of my colleagues to support H. Con. Res. 122, which 
recognizes the historical significance of the United States Border 
Patrol's contribution over the course of the last 75 years of 
commitment and service to our great country.
  Mr. Speaker, I include for the Record the following poem that was 
written by Former Chief of the U.S. Border Patrol Buck Brandemuehl, 
entitled ``That Uniform'':


                                             Buck Brandemuehl,

                                                 January 10, 1994.

                              THAT UNIFORM

       The other day I went out to the garage to rummage about. I 
     spied this wardrobe along the wall. I opened the door and saw 
     that uniform. You know the one--it's dark green, has a patch 
     on the shoulder with a blue stripe running down the pants 
     leg. I took that uniform out and hung it on the door, and 
     then sat back to reminisce awhile.
       I remember when I first put that uniform on. I'll bet you 
     do too. For me it was 1956. I was just out of the academy and 
     boy was I proud. It seems just like yesterday. How time 
     flies. Well, it took me a while to realize just what that 
     uniform stood for and what it represented. For me it 
     represented the men and women of a great country and the laws 
     they enforce.
       It embodies the old mounted patrol, the first ones to 
     patrol the line. Did you know that uniform has traversed our 
     borders for over 75 years? During prohibition when firefights 
     and loss of life were the norm, the officers wearing that 
     uniform carried out their mission above and beyond.
       Throughout WWII that uniform certainly served its country 
     well, and since that time it has appeared in some unusual 
     places such as wounded knee, Indian Town Gap, Fort Chafee, 
     and St. E's to name but a few.
       That uniform has been in inaugurations, and has helped to 
     provide security for dignitaries, including several of our 
     Presidents. It has appeared before both houses of Congress to 
     tell its story, and it has spanned the oceans to become known 
     internationally. Yes, that uniform has been on the front 
     lines during the Cuban and the Haitian crises, and the war on 
     drugs.
       I see that uniform now standing at a traffic checkpoint 
     with the sun beating down. I see it kneeling beside the 
     railroad tracks and standing steadfastly along a riverbank at 
     midnight. I see that uniform diving in a canal to save a 
     life. I see it being worn by one of our pilots on a mercy 
     flight with a burn victim. And, above all, I see that uniform 
     standing in honor of one of our fallen.
       PRIDE IN OUR PAST . . . FAITH IN OUR FUTURE . . . YOU'RE 
     DARNED RIGHT!

  Mr. Speaker, I would like to conclude my remarks this evening by 
reading the last paragraph of that poem.

       I see that uniform now standing at a traffic checkpoint 
     with the sun beating down. I see it kneeling beside the 
     railroad tracks and standing steadfastly along a riverbank at 
     midnight. I see that uniform diving in a canal to save a 
     life. I see it being worn by one of our pilots on a mercy 
     flight with a burn victim. And, above all, I see that uniform 
     standing in honor of one of our fallen officers.

  Mr. Speaker, the motto of the United States Border Patrol today is 
``pride in our past, faith in our future.''
  I want to thank the ranking member the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. 
Jackson-Lee) and my colleague the gentleman from Alabama (Mr. Bachus) 
for their support this evening.
  Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, with the eloquent words of the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Reyes) and the salute that we have given to 
the Border Patrol, I want to congratulate him and congratulate the 
Border Patrol.
  Mr. Speaker, I have no other speakers, and I yield back the balance 
of my time.

                              {time}  1830

  Mr. BACHUS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  In recent years, the House Committee on the Judiciary has strongly 
supported and greatly appreciated the indispensable work of the border 
patrol in combating both illegal immigration and drug smuggling. It was 
truly gratifying, I think, to all of us to hear the testimony of the 
gentleman from El Paso, TX (Mr. Reyes) talk about the difficult and 
dangerous work that they do. Some of us may know, but I think it is 
worth noting that he served with the border patrol for some 22 years. 
He had an illustrious career with them and was a border patrol chief. 
It is the gentleman from Texas that introduced this resolution.
  What does the resolution do? It honors the border patrol on the 
occasion of their 75th anniversary. How fitting that the person that 
introduced that resolution and the primary speaker on the floor was the 
gentleman from Texas. This resolution, because he introduced it and 
because it is such a worthy and distinguished anniversary, has 
bipartisan, widespread support. I would like to conclude by not only 
thanking the gentleman from Texas but also thanking the chairman of the 
Subcommittee on Immigration the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Smith). He 
had business in the district and could not be here. I am managing this 
legislation for him. I would also like to commend the ranking member of 
the Subcommittee on Immigration the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. 
Jackson-Lee).
  Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, the founding members of today's U.S. 
Border Patrol were Texas Rangers, sheriffs, and cowboys who patrolled 
the Texas frontier looking for smugglers, rustlers, and illegal aliens. 
From their rough beginnings they have grown into a present-day force of 
over 8,000 full time Border Patrol agents and supporting staff.
  The 1996 immigration reform law, which I introduced, authorized the 
hiring of 5,000 additional Border Patrol agents over 5 years. So far 
more than 2,000 agents have been added to the force in just the past 3 
years.
  This has had a significant positive effect in deterring and reducing 
illegal immigration and drug trafficking. However, the Clinton 
administration has continued to oppose increasing the size of the 
Border Patrol, despite widespread support and proven results.
  The Border Patrol, which must guard 8,000 miles of border against 
drug smugglers, alien smugglers, criminals, and terrorists, still has 
fewer personnel than the Chicago city police department. The 
administration's own drug czar, General Barry McCaffrey, estimated that 
at least 20,000 Border Patrol agents are needed to control the flow of 
drugs into our country. And a recent academic study estimated that 
16,000 agents are needed for the Southwestern border alone.

[[Page 29569]]

  I hope this great 75th anniversary of the Border Patrol will give the 
administration one more opportunity to reconsider its opposition to 
increasing the ranks of the Border Patrol.
  But the administration's foot-dragging should not obscure the central 
purpose of this resolution, which is to recognize the courage, 
dedication, and professionalism of the thousands of American men and 
women who have worn the Border patrol uniform with pride and served 
their country with distinction.
  At great risk and sometimes even at the cost of the lives, Border 
Patrol agents have guarded our frontiers for 75 years. By day and by 
night, in the blazing hot Southwestern desert and in Rocky Mountain 
snowstorms, they have fought and triumphed.
  Through this resolution sponsored by my good friend and fellow Texan 
Silvestre Reyes, himself a career Border Patrol agent who was 
responsible for Operation Hold the Line in El Paso, we honor the Border 
Patrol today.
  Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today first to thank my distinguished 
colleague Congressman Silvestre Reyes for bringing this tribute to the 
floor today. Silver, you have provided a daily, living example to us in 
the House of the professionalism and dedication of this great 75-year-
old organization. The Border Patrol is one of the most important law 
enforcement organizations in my community of San Diego. It is 
responsible for keeping our border community safe. Because of the 
Border Patrol, our country and our communities are protected. We are 
protected against criminals who would cross the border; we are 
protected against drugs that could flow across our border; because of 
Operation Gatekeeper, we are protected against the flows of desperate 
immigrants running across our backyards and up our freeways; we are 
protected because Border Patrol personnel, from the inspectors to the 
agents put their lives on the line daily to keep ours safe.
  For 75 years, the Border Patrol has acted as one of the first lines 
of defense for our country. I want to thank the members of the Border 
Patrol and especially honor the 86 members of the Patrol who have lost 
their lives so ours could be safe. It is a fitting tribute to them, 
this day before Veteran's Day--they are our Veterans in the war to 
protect our Border.
  Mr. BACHUS. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Barrett of Nebraska). The question is on 
the motion offered by the gentleman from Alabama (Mr. Bachus) that the 
House suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution, House 
Concurrent Resolution 122.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the concurrent resolution was 
agreed to.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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