Border securitySenators debate border security measurement methodology

The immigration reform bill contains $4 billion for  border security. The problem is that no one is quite sure how to measure border security, how do we decide that the border is secure, and who would make that decision.

On Tuesday Senators had some sharp exchanges with  DHS officials over how to secure the border, and what  methodology should be used to measure security improvements along  the U.S.-Mexico border.

My San Antonioreports that senators grilled DHS officials on how they would use the funding.

Senator Tom Carper (D-Delaware) wanted specific answers.

“You’re going to get this money,” Carper said at the Tuesday hearing. “What are you going to do with it?”

Kevin McAleenan, a spokesman for Customs and Border Protection Agency, said the increase in spending has made the border and the surrounding communities more secure than ever.

“We have matched words with action, and now is the time to take the next step and fundamentally reform the nation’s immigration system to reflect the realities of the 21st century,” McAleenan told the committee.

Senator Rand Paul (R-Kentucky) also supports immigration reform, but is concerned that border security is not strong enough at this point to convince the house to pass the bill.

“In this bill, I’m worried though… that it says, well, you have to have a plan to build a fence, but you don’t have to build a fence,” Paul said. “And if you don’t have a plan to build a fence, then you get a commission. I don’t know what happens if the commission doesn’t do it.”

The bipartisan Senate immigration bill requires that DHS is 90 percent effective at preventing attempted border crossings. Border Patrol chief Michael Fisher said DHS reports an 80 to 85 percent range on successes currently, but Senator Tom Coburn (R-Oklahoma) said that DHS could not know illegal crossings interception success rate because the department is not aware of all border crossings.

The immigration proposal would allocate $3 billion to DHS over five years for southern border strategy, the bill would also provide $1.5 billion over five years for a border fence and an additional $2 billion over ten years to secure the border.

DHS will also be required to increase the number of customs and border agents by 3,500 by fall 2017.

According to Fisher, the Tucson, Arizona region is the worst area when it comes to illegal crossings, and Rio Grande Valley is the second worst.

David Heyman, a DHS policy spokesman, said there is more work to be done on employment verification and preventing immigrants from overstaying their visas in addition to border security.

“The border is a living breathing permeable membrane that allows us both to sustain our daily lives with goods and things that come through and business transactions, and to protect us from harm,” Heyman told the committee. “We want to be able to expedite lawful trade and travel, and we want to be able to interdict threats at the earliest possible opportunity.”