Las Vegas Sun: U.S. Rep. Susie Lee introduces bipartisan legislation for border security
U.S. Rep. Susie Lee, D-Nev., is proposing a bill that calls for structural changes to how the Department of Homeland Security conducts southern border operations, her office said today.
The Advanced Border Coordination Act would give the agency six months to create two "Joint Operations Centers” along the U.S.-Mexico border to create a space for law enforcement — federal, state, local, and tribal levels — to coordinate efforts to combat unauthorized border crossings.
It also calls for the centers to submit an annual report on operational activities to Congress. A similar bill failed to pass during the previous congressional session.
“I’ve consistently voted to secure the resources and reforms we need to fix our broken immigration system, and this bipartisan bill is a big step in the right direction,” Lee said in a statement. “I’ll continue working with Republicans and Democrats to keep people safe and get common sense legislation like this signed into law.”
Lee co-sponsored the bipartisan legislation initially introduced by U.S. Rep. David Joyce, R-Ohio., along with U.S. Reps. Juan Ciscomani, R-Ariz., and Chris Pappas, D-N.H. Companion legislation in the U.S. Senate was brought about by another Nevada Democratic, U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, and U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn.
Joyce said he spoke with U.S. Border Patrol agents and visited the area to work on addressing “the disastrous border crisis we have experienced for years.” The Ohio representative previously served as chair of the House Appropriations Homeland Subcommittee.
Border crossings have decreased in recent months, following President Joe Biden’s executive order adding more Homeland Security agents and a crackdown on asylum claims. There has been a 60% decrease in encounters between ports of entry along the southwest border from May to November, officials said last month.
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All six members from Nevada’s federal delegation support the bill.