Chairwoman Roybal-Allard Statement on Administration's New Border Funding Request

Statement

Today, House Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee Chairwoman Lucille Roybal-Allard (CA-40) issued the following statement about the Trump Administration's emergency request for additional border funding:

"As I said in our hearing with the Acting DHS Secretary yesterday, addressing the humanitarian crisis at the border will require Congress and the Administration to work together on a balanced approach to the crisis that first and foremost respects and protects the dignity of migrants. Unfortunately, some parts of the Administration's new supplemental fail to meet that balance.

"For example, the proposal would replenish funding for detention beds, on which ICE has been overspending since the beginning of the fiscal year. Additional funding simply rewards ICE for its poor fiscal management and inability to prioritize enforcement efforts. Before Congress considers any additional resources for ICE, the agency must demonstrate that it is appropriately prioritizing the use of its existing resources.

"In addition, the proposal to shift the responsibility for conducting asylum screenings to the Border Patrol is ill-advised. Border Patrol agents are already overwhelmed in trying to perform their own duties. To protect the integrity of the asylum process, we must ensure that asylum seekers are evaluated only by trained asylum officers.

"I will continue to closely assess the Administration"s emergency funding request, and keep fighting for policies that will keep our country secure while treating migrants fairly and humanely, and addressing the root causes of migration."

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