[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 2]
[House]
[Page 1673]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                             SEQUESTRATION

  (Mr. O'ROURKE asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mr. O'ROURKE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to bring to your attention 
the devastating impacts that the sequester will have on my community, 
El Paso, Texas. The numbers speak for themselves. Two weeks of 
furloughs for Customs and Border Patrol officers--that's the equivalent 
of losing 5,000 border patrol agents and almost 3,000 CBP officers at 
our ports of entry. Mind you, more than $450 billion in trade passes 
through our ports of entry every year. More than 100,000 jobs in my 
home community depend on the free, secure flow of goods, trade, and 
people through our ports of entry, and jobs are at stake.
  In addition, 11,000 civilian employees at Fort Bliss in El Paso will 
be furloughed for 22 days. These are the middle class Americans who 
care for our wounded warriors when they return from war and make our 
military base run efficiently. These individuals will be facing a 20 
percent cut because Congress cannot muster the courage to come up with 
a responsible solution.
  In addition to these job losses, El Paso children will bear a large 
burden through the elimination of teachers and classroom aides and Head 
Start slots.

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