IV 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. RES. 281 

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding the success 

of Operation Streamline and the importance of prosecuting first time 

illegal border crossers. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 21, 2015 

Mr. GOSAR (for himself, Mr. FRANKS of Arizona, Mr. DUNCAN of Tennessee, 

Mr. DESJARLAIS, Mr. SCHWEIKERT, Mr. SMITH of Texas, Mr. OLSON, 

Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania, Mr. BROOKS of Alabama, Mr. RICE of South 

Carolina, Mr. MCCLINTOCK, Mr. MULVANEY, Mr. NUGENT, Mr. WEBER

of Texas, Mr. DUNCAN of South Carolina, Mr. SESSIONS, Mr. BARLETTA, 

and Mr. JODY B. HICE of Georgia) submitted the following resolution; 

which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition 

to the Committee on Homeland Security, for a period to be subsequently 

determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding the success of Operation Streamline and the importance of prosecuting first time illegal border crossers. 

Whereas the Border Patrol’s Yuma Sector has long grappled 

with the crossing of illegal aliens and has seen illegal 

traffic decline precipitously from the early 2000s to the 

present; 

Whereas a combination of increased manpower, technology 

implementation, and the delivery of appropriate conVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:46 May 21, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR281.IH HR281

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•HRES 281 IH 

sequences have resulted in gains in border security in the 

Yuma Sector; 

Whereas a key to the success in the Yuma Sector has been 

the implementation of Operation Streamline, a program 

established in 2005 that was described by former Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano 

as ‘‘a DHS partnership with the Department of Justice, 

. . . a geographically focused operation that aims to increase the consequences for illegally crossing the border 

by criminally prosecuting illegal border-crossers.’’; 

Whereas known for its ‘‘zero-tolerance’’ approach, the Yuma 

County Sheriff’s Office cites 100 percent prosecution of 

illegal border crossers as a shared goal of a partnership 

including Federal, State, and local law enforcement agencies; 

Whereas among the various consequences delivered to illegal 

crossers by the Department of Homeland Security, Operation Streamline is associated with a recidivism rate that 

is well below average and has seen a steady decrease in 

recidivism in recent years; 

Whereas the United States Attorney’s Office for the District 

of Arizona will reportedly no longer be prosecuting those 

apprehended crossing the border illegally for the first 

time; and 

Whereas according to the Sheriff of Yuma County, Operation 

Streamline ‘‘had a deterrent effect in Yuma County, 

which gained a reputation as an area to avoid crossing 

into because if caught, you were assured to go to court 

and possibly face penalties’’, but now the program ‘‘has 

been severely diluted.’’: Now, therefore, be it 


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•HRES 281 IH 

1 Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Rep2 resentatives that— 

3 (1) gains made in border security in the Yuma 

4 Sector and positive trends in recidivism rates are of 

5 critical importance to those living and working in 

6 the border region and to the Nation as a whole; 

7 (2) refusing to prosecute first time illegal bor8 der crossers under Operation Streamline will jeop9 ardize border security gains; 

10 (3) the border security steps that have led to 

11 some measure of improvement on the border, such 

12 as the historical implementation of Operation 

13 Streamline, should be preserved; and 

14 (4) the executive branch should immediately re15 move any issued or related prohibition, policy, guid16 ance, or direction to cease prosecuting first time ille17 gal border crossers under Operation Streamline. 

Æ 


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