II 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4518 

To extend title 42 expulsion authority, to resume border wall system construction, to preserve the exclusive authority of immigration judges over asylum claims, and to codify the Migrant Protection Protocols. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 13, 2022 

Mr. RISCH (for himself and Mr. PORTMAN) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To extend title 42 expulsion authority, to resume border 

wall system construction, to preserve the exclusive authority of immigration judges over asylum claims, and 

to codify the Migrant Protection Protocols. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Solving the Border 

5 Crisis Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act: 


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1 (1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT2 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com3 mittees’’ means— 

4 (A) the Committee on Homeland Security 

5 and Governmental Affairs of the Senate; 

6 (B) the Committee on Appropriations of 

7 the Senate; 

8 (C) the Committee on Homeland Security 

9 of the House of Representatives; and 

10 (D) the Committee on Appropriations of 

11 the House of Representatives. 

12 (2) TACTICAL INFRASTRUCTURE.—The term 

13 ‘‘tactical infrastructure’’ includes boat ramps, access 

14 gates, checkpoints, lighting, and roads associated 

15 with a border wall system. 

16 (3) TECHNOLOGY.—The term ‘‘technology’’ in17 cludes border surveillance and detection technology, 

18 including linear ground detection systems, cameras, 

19 underground detection sensors, and autonomous sen20 sor towers, associated with a border wall system. 

21 SEC. 3. TERMINATION OF SUSPENSION OF ENTRIES AND 

22 IMPORTS FROM DESIGNATED PLACES RE23 LATED TO THE COVID–19 PANDEMIC. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—An order of suspension issued 

25 under section 362 of the Public Health Service Act (42 


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1 U.S.C. 265) as a result of the public health emergency 

2 relating to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID–19) 

3 pandemic declared by the Secretary of Health and Human 

4 Services on January 31, 2020, under section 319 of such 

5 Act (42 U.S.C. 247d), and any continuation of such dec6 laration, shall be lifted not earlier than 60 days after the 

7 date on which the Surgeon General provides written notifi8 cation to the appropriate committees of Congress that 

9 such public health emergency declaration and all such con10 tinuations have been terminated. 

11 (b) PROCEDURES DURING 60-DAY TERMINATION

12 WINDOW.— 

13 (1) PLAN.—Not later than 30 days after the 

14 date on which a written notification is provided pur15 suant to subsection (a) with respect to an order of 

16 suspension, the Surgeon General, in consultation 

17 with the Secretary of Homeland Security and the 

18 head of any other Federal agency, State, Tribal, or 

19 local government, or nongovernmental organization 

20 that has a role in managing outcomes associated 

21 with such suspension (as determined by the Surgeon 

22 General or his or her designee), shall develop and 

23 submit to the appropriate committees of Congress a 

24 plan to address any possible influx of entries or imVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:16 Jul 15, 2022 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4518.IS S4518

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1 ports (as described in such order of suspension) re2 lated to the termination of such order. 

3 (2) FAILURE TO SUBMIT.—If the plan required 

4 under paragraph (1) is not submitted to the appro5 priate committees of Congress before the end of the 

6 30-day period described in such paragraph— 

7 (A) the Secretary of Homeland Security 

8 shall submit, not later than 7 days after the ex9 piration of such 30-day period, written notifica10 tion to the appropriate committees of Congress 

11 of the status of preparing such plan and the 

12 date on by such plan will be submitted in ac13 cordance with paragraph (1); and 

14 (B) the termination of the order of suspen15 sion described in subsection (a) shall be delayed 

16 until the date that is 30 days after the date on 

17 which such plan is submitted to the appropriate 

18 committees of Congress. 

19 SEC. 4. RESUMPTION OF BORDER WALL SYSTEM CON20 STRUCTION. 

21 (a) BORDER WALL SYSTEM CONSTRUCTION.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.— 

23 (A) IMMEDIATELY RESUME BORDER WALL

24 SYSTEM CONSTRUCTION.—Not later than 24 

25 hours after the date of the enactment of this 


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1 Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall 

2 resume all activities related to the construction 

3 of the border wall system along the inter4 national border between the United States and 

5 Mexico that were underway or being planned 

6 for before January 20, 2021. 

7 (B) NO CANCELLATIONS.—The Secretary 

8 of Homeland Security may not cancel any con9 tract for activities related to border wall system 

10 construction described in paragraph (1) that 

11 was entered into on or before January 20, 

12 2021. 

13 (C) USE OF FUNDS.—The Secretary of 

14 Homeland Security shall expend all funds ap15 propriated or explicitly obligated for border wall 

16 system construction described in paragraph (1) 

17 that were appropriated or obligated, as the case 

18 may be, on or after October 1, 2016. 

19 (D) IMPLEMENTATION PLAN.—Not later 

20 than 30 days after the date of enactment of 

21 this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security 

22 shall submit an implementation plan to the ap23 propriate congressional committees for the com24 pletion, by not later than September 30, 2024, 

25 of the border wall system construction described 


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1 in paragraph (1) and funded in accordance with 

2 subparagraph (C). 

3 (2) PLAN TO COMPLETE TACTICAL INFRA4 STRUCTURE AND TECHNOLOGY ELEMENTS OF BOR5 DER WALL SYSTEM.—Not later than 90 days after 

6 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

7 of Homeland Security shall submit an implementa8 tion plan to the appropriate congressional commit9 tees that includes quarterly benchmarks and cost es10 timates for satisfying all of the requirements of the 

11 border wall system construction described in para12 graph (1)(A), including tactical infrastructure, tech13 nology, and other elements identified by the Depart14 ment of Homeland Security before January 20, 

15 2021, through the expenditure of funds appropriated 

16 or explicitly obligated, as the case may be, for use 

17 beginning on October 1, 2016, and any additional 

18 funds appropriated by Congress for such purpose. 

19 (3) UPHOLD NEGOTIATED AGREEMENTS.—The 

20 Secretary of Homeland Security shall ensure that all 

21 agreements relating to current and future border 

22 wall system construction that were executed in writ23 ing between the Department of Homeland Security 

24 and private citizens, State, Tribal, and local govern25 ments, and other stakeholders are honored by the 


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1 Department in accordance with the terms of such 

2 agreements. 

3 (b) DNA COLLECTION CONSISTENT WITH FEDERAL

4 LAW.—Not later than 14 days after the date of the enact5 ment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall 

6 ensure and certify to the Committee on Homeland Secu7 rity and Governmental Affairs of the Senate and the Com8 mittee on Homeland Security of the House of Representa9 tives that U.S. Customs and Border Protection is fully 

10 compliant with the DNA Fingerprint Act of 2005 (title 

11 X of Public Law 109–162) at all border facilities that 

12 process adults (including as part of a family unit) in the 

13 custody of U.S. Customs and Border Protection. 

14 SEC. 5. CONGRESSIONAL RESOLUTION OF DISAPPROVAL 

15 REGARDING TERMINATION OF THE EXCLU16 SIVE AUTHORITY OF IMMIGRATION JUDGES 

17 OVER ASYLUM CLAIMS. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Congress disapproves the pro19 posed rule submitted by the Executive Office for Immigra20 tion Review and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Serv21 ices, relating to ‘‘Procedures for Credible Fear Screening 

22 and Consideration of Asylum, Withholding of Removal, 

23 and CAT Protection Claims by Asylum Officers’’ (87 Fed. 

24 Reg. 18078) and such rule shall have no force or effect. 


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1 (b) JURISDICTION OF IMMIGRATION COURTS.—Sec2 tion 235 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 

3 1225) is amended by adding at the end the following 

4 ‘‘(e) JURISDICTION OF IMMIGRATION COURTS.—Im5 migration judges shall have— 

6 ‘‘(1) exclusive jurisdiction over asylum applica7 tions filed by an alien who has been served a Form 

8 I–221 (Order to Show Cause); a Form I–122 (No9 tice to Applicant for Admission Detained for a Hear10 ing before an Immigration Judge); or Form I–862 

11 (Notice to Appear) after the charging document has 

12 been filed with the Immigration Court; and 

13 ‘‘(2) the authority to review reasonable fear de14 terminations and credible fear determinations that 

15 have been referred to the Immigration Court.’’. 

16 SEC. 6. TREATMENT OF ALIENS ARRIVING FROM CONTIG17 UOUS TERRITORY. 

18 Section 235(b)(2)(C) of the Immigration and Nation19 ality Act (8 U.S.C. 1225(b)(2)(C)) is amended by striking 

20 ‘‘may return’’ and all that follows and inserting the fol21 lowing: ‘‘shall— 

22 ‘‘(i) return the alien to such territory, 

23 or to a safe third country (as described in 

24 section 208), pending a proceeding under 

25 section 240; or 


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1 ‘‘(ii) detain the alien for further con2 sideration of an application for asylum, 

3 which shall include a determination of 

4 credible fear of persecution.’’. 

5 SEC. 7. MINIMUM STAFFING LEVELS. 

6 (a) OFFICE OF ENFORCEMENT AND REMOVAL OPER7 ATIONS.—The Secretary of Homeland Security shall en8 sure that there are always not fewer than 10,000 full-time 

9 equivalent employees in the Office of Enforcement and Re10 moval Operations of U.S. Immigration and Customs En11 forcement. 

12 (b) U.S. BORDER PATROL.—The Secretary of Home13 land Security shall ensure that the authorized personnel 

14 level for United States Border Patrol agents beginning on 

15 the date of the enactment of this Act is not fewer than 

16 25,000 agents, excluding Border Patrol Reserve Agents 

17 and Border Patrol Processing Coordinators. 

18 SEC. 8. MANDATORY DETENTION FUNDING. 

19 Section 386(a) of the Illegal Immigration Reform and 

20 Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (8 U.S.C. 1368(a)) 

21 is amended to read as follows: 

22 ‘‘(a) INCREASE IN DETENTION FACILITIES.— 

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Homeland 

24 Security shall ensure that sufficient detention facili25 ties are available for U.S. Immigration and Customs 


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1 Enforcement to comply with the mandatory deten2 tion requirements under section 235 of the Immigra3 tion and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1225). 

4 ‘‘(2) FUNDING.—In addition to any amounts 

5 otherwise appropriated for such purpose, the Sec6 retary of Homeland Security may use any manda7 tory fees collected by the Department of Homeland 

8 Security for expenses incurred by the Secretary to 

9 inspect, detain, transport, and provide medical care 

10 and any other needed goods or services to aliens who 

11 have been detained pursuant to section 235 of the 

12 Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1225).’’. 

Æ 


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