III 

110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. RES. 239 

Expressing the sense of the Senate that the Administration should rigorously 

enforce the laws of the United States to substantially reduce illegal 

immigration and greatly improve border security. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 19, 2007 

Mr. SESSIONS (for himself, Mr. DEMINT, Mrs. DOLE, Mr. GRASSLEY, and Mr. 

VITTER) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 

Committee on the Judiciary 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing the sense of the Senate that the Administration 

should rigorously enforce the laws of the United States 

to substantially reduce illegal immigration and greatly 

improve border security. 

Whereas the President of the United States has the primary 

authority to employ Federal Government resources to enforce Federal immigration laws; 

Whereas an estimated 40 percent of the estimated 

12,000,000 to 20,000,000 illegal immigrants in the 

United States have overstayed their nonimmigrant visas; 

Whereas the implementation of the United States Visitor and 

Immigrant Status Indicator Technology (US–VISIT) 

program would provide the Federal Government with inmstockstill on PROD1PC66 with BILLS

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•SRES 239 IS 

formation about whether people who entered the country 

on a short-term visa return to their countries of origin 

before such visas expire; 

Whereas the decision of the Department of the Treasury to 

allow financial institutions to accept the Mexican 

matricula consular card as valid identification for the 

purpose of opening bank accounts encourages illegal immigrants to remain in the United States; 

Whereas Federal Bureau of Investigation officials have testified under oath that the matricula consular card ‘‘is not 

a reliable form of identification, due to the nonexistence 

of any means of verifying the true identity of the card 

holder’’ and because the card is so vulnerable to fraud 

and forgery ‘‘there are 2 major criminal threats posed by 

the cards, and 1 potential terrorist threat.’’; 

Whereas the current and previous Administrations have failed 

to enforce the legally binding affidavits of support signed 

by sponsors of immigrants; 

Whereas the lack of such enforcement sends a message to immigrants that they can wrongfully take advantage of government benefits paid for by American taxpayers; 

Whereas 98 percent of illegal immigrants arrested along the 

international border between the United States and Mexico between 2000 and 2005 were released across the border without prosecution, and many of such illegal immigrants were caught and released multiple times; 

Whereas such a catch and return without prosecution policy 

encourages illegal immigrants to keep trying to enter illegally and creates a revolving door of illegal immigration; 

Whereas the current and previous Administrations have 

largely ignored laws enacted as part of the Immigration 

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•SRES 239 IS 

Reform and Control Act of 1986 that impose fines on 

businesses that employ illegal workers; 

Whereas in 2004, the Administration did not issue any final 

orders to employers for hiring illegal immigrants; 

Whereas in 2005, the Administration issued only 10 such 

final orders; 

Whereas not enforcing employer sanctions encourages the hiring of illegal immigrants and the easy availability of jobs 

acts as a magnet that attracts illegal immigrants; 

Whereas neither the Department of Homeland Security nor 

the Department of Justice has filed suit to stop any of 

the 10 States that allow colleges and universities to offer 

in-State tuition rates to illegal immigrants in violation of 

section 505 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996; 

Whereas such a policy unfairly burdens United States citizens 

because there are fewer places for legal residents in those 

colleges or universities and out-of-State students pay 

higher tuition than the tuition charged to illegal immigrants; 

Whereas in some judicial jurisdictions alien smugglers will 

not be prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office 

unless they are caught smuggling at least 12 illegal immigrants; 

Whereas such a policy acts as an incentive for smugglers to 

continue their trade as long as they do not breach the arbitrary threshold for prosecution; 

Whereas, as of June 2007, there are only 13,500 active border patrol agents, which is 1,306 less than the number 

Congress required be in place by the end of fiscal year 

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•SRES 239 IS 

2007 under section 5202 of the Intelligence Reform and 

Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004; 

Whereas more Border Patrol agents would help ensure effective control of the international border between the 

United States and Mexico; 

Whereas, as of June 2007, there are only 27,500 detention 

beds for holding illegal immigrants, which is 15,944 less 

than the number Congress required be in use by the end 

of fiscal year 2007 under section 5204 of the Intelligence 

Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004; 

Whereas additional detention beds would help ensure that all 

criminal aliens and individuals apprehended while crossing the border illegally are detained prior to prosecution 

and deportation; 

Whereas, as of June 2007, there are only 5,571 immigration 

investigators, which is less than the number Congress required be in place by the end of fiscal year 2007 under 

section 5203 of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism 

Prevention Act of 2004; 

Whereas additional investigators would help ensure that sufficient worksite enforcement is performed to impose employer sanctions on those who hire illegal immigrants; 

Whereas the Secure Fence Act of 2006 requires that more 

than 700 miles of fencing be built along the international 

border between the United States and Mexico; 

Whereas as of June 5, 2007, only 87 miles of fencing exists, 

even though such fencing helps deter illegal border crossing; 

Whereas the Department of Homeland Security may use expedited removal procedures for any illegal immigrants 

who have not been admitted or paroled into the United 

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•SRES 239 IS 

States and who have not affirmatively shown that they 

have been inside the United States for 2 years; 

Whereas the Department of Homeland Security only uses expedited removal procedures for illegal immigrants who 

are apprehended within 100 miles of the United States 

border and within 14 days of entry to the United States 

even though wider use of expedited removal would help 

decrease the number of appeals of removal orders which 

clog the Federal court system; 

Whereas the current Immigration Violators File in the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) database is 

being underutilized and could be expanded so that State 

and local law enforcement could help locate the more 

than 600,000 alien absconders living in the United 

States; and 

Whereas the current illegal immigration crisis is a direct result of this and previous Administrations failing to enforce or adequately enforce at least 8 immigration laws 

passed by Congress and enacted by the current and previous Administrations: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate believes that— 

2 (1) the Administration should— 

3 (A) implement the entry and exit portions 

4 of the United States Visitor and Immigrant 

5 Status Indicator Technology (US–VISIT) as re6 quired under the Illegal Immigration Reform 

7 and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996; 

8 (B) reverse the United States Treasury 

9 Department decision to allow financial institumstockstill on PROD1PC66 with BILLS

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•SRES 239 IS 

1 tions to accept the Mexican matricula consular 

2 cards as valid identification for the purpose of 

3 opening bank accounts; 

4 (C) enforce legally binding affidavits of 

5 support signed by sponsors of immigrants; 

6 (D) end the practice of catching illegal im7 migrants at the border and returning them 

8 without prosecution; 

9 (E) enforce the employer sanctions con10 tained in the Immigration Reform and Control 

11 Act of 1986; 

12 (F) enforce section 505 of the Illegal Im13 migration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility 

14 Act of 1996, which prohibits in-State college 

15 tuition for illegal immigrants; 

16 (G) require prosecution of anyone caught 

17 smuggling immigrants across the border regard18 less of how many immigrants are being smug19 gled; 

20 (H) increase the number of full-time bor21 der patrol agents by at least 1,306 by the end 

22 of fiscal year 2007, as authorized by the Intel23 ligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act 

24 of 2004; 

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•SRES 239 IS 

1 (I) increase the number of detention beds 

2 for illegal immigrants by at least 15,944 by the 

3 end of fiscal year 2007, as authorized under the 

4 Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention 

5 Act of 2004; 

6 (J) increase the number of full-time immi7 gration investigators by at least 1,600 by the 

8 end of fiscal year 2007, as authorized by the 

9 Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention 

10 Act of 2004; 

11 (K) comply with the Secure Fence Act of 

12 2006 by building over 700 miles of fencing 

13 along the international border between the 

14 United States and Mexico; 

15 (L) increase the use of expedited removal 

16 procedures for all illegal immigrants eligible for 

17 removal under United States immigration laws; 

18 and 

19 (M) expand the Immigration Violators File 

20 in the NCIC database to include information on 

21 aliens with final orders of removal, aliens with 

22 expired voluntary departure agreements, aliens 

23 whom Federal immigration officers have con24 firmed are unlawfully present, and aliens whose 

25 visas have been revoked; and 

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•SRES 239 IS 

1 (2) taking the steps set forth in paragraph 

2 (1)— 

3 (A) will lead to a substantial reduction in 

4 illegal immigration; and 

5 (B) will greatly improve the border secu6 rity of the United States. 

Æ 

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