Securing our Border Act

Subjects: Immigration


<html><body><pre>[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1312 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

&lt;DOC&gt;






118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1312

      To reprogram $15,000,000,000 to improve border security and 
                  enforcement, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 26, 2023

 Mr. Scott of South Carolina (for himself, Mr. Daines, Ms. Ernst, Mr. 
  Lankford, Ms. Lummis, Mr. Rounds, Mr. Cassidy, and Mrs. Blackburn) 
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 
                          Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
      To reprogram $15,000,000,000 to improve border security and 
                  enforcement, and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Securing our Border Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) United States border security is paramount to the 
        general welfare of our Nation and ensures the efficient and 
        meaningful flow of goods and individuals through legal means.
            (2) Illicit narcotics transported into the United States 
        through ports of entry were estimated to cause approximately 
        104,000 deaths between February 2021 and February 2022.
            (3) Only 2 percent of passenger vehicles and 20 percent of 
        commercial vehicles crossing the southern border are scanned by 
        nonintrusive inspection technology through a radiation portal 
        monitor.
            (4) U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents process more 
        than 1,000,000 passengers and pedestrians on a typical day.
            (5) Limiting the amount of deadly illicit narcotics, 
        including fentanyl, from entering the United States would 
        reduce the number of Americans who die annually from the use of 
        such narcotics.
            (6) Because of the failure to update nonintrusive 
        inspection technologies at land ports of entry along the 
        southern border of the United States, there has been an 
        increase in the amount of illicit narcotics, such as fentanyl, 
        being trafficked across the southern border.
            (7) Between 2021 and 2022, approximately 1,514,000 pounds 
        of illicit drugs were seized at the southern border.
            (8) U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents had 199,976 
        encounters at the southern border during July 2022, including--
                    (A) 134,362 single adults;
                    (B) 51,822 family units; and
                    (C) 13,299 unaccompanied minors.
            (9) According to the Department of Homeland Security, 750 
        migrants died attempting to cross the southern border during 
        fiscal year 2022, which is--
                    (A) more migrant deaths than occurred in any 
                previous fiscal year; and
                    (B) more than 200 more migrant deaths than the 
                number of such deaths during fiscal year 2021.
            (10) The United States has a backlog of open removal cases, 
        which totaled more than 1,820,000 as of June 2022.
            (11) Since October 1, 2019, U.S. Customs and Border 
        Protection has reported 1,302 encounters with potential 
        terrorists at ports of entry along the southern and northern 
        borders.
            (12) According to U.S. Customs and Border Protection 
        onboard staffing data, approximately 2,700 additional U.S. 
        Customs and Border Protection officers need to be stationed at 
        United States ports of entry to fully staff such ports.
            (13) There are approximately 20,000 border agents stationed 
        at ports of entry along the southern border.
            (14) Due to shifting priorities, construction delays, a 
        lack of available technology solutions, and funding 
        constraints, most southern U.S. Border Patrol sectors still 
        rely on obsolete systems or technologies.

SEC. 3. FUNDING FOR NONINTRUSIVE BORDER INSPECTIONS.

    Of the unobligated balances from amounts made available under 
section 10301(1)(A)(ii) of Public Law 117-169, $5,000,000,000 shall be 
transferred to U.S. Customs and Border Protection during the 9-year 
period ending on October 1, 2032, for nonintrusive inspection systems 
to achieve a 100 percent nonintrusive inspection scanning rate at all 
northern border and southwest border land ports of entry by October 1, 
2032.

SEC. 4. FUNDING FOR BORDER WALL CONSTRUCTION.

    (a) In General.--Of the unobligated balances from amounts made 
available under section 10301(1)(A)(ii) of Public Law 117-169, 
$10,000,000,000 shall be transferred to the Department of Homeland 
Security during the 9-year period ending on October 1, 2032, for 
activities related to the construction of a border wall system along 
the southwest international border of the United States.
    (b) Quarterly Reports.--The Secretary of Homeland Security shall 
submit quarterly reports to the Committee on Appropriations of the 
Senate, the Committee on Finance of the Senate, the Committee on 
Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate, the Committee 
on Appropriations of the House of Representatives, the Committee on 
Ways and Means of the House of Representatives, and the Committee on 
Homeland Security of the House of Representatives that contains--
            (1) an implementation plan with benchmarks related to 
        stemming illegal immigration; and
            (2) cost estimates associated with border wall system 
        construction.

SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION TO PROVIDE BONUSES TO U.S. CUSTOMS AND BORDER 
              PROTECTION AGENTS.

    (a) Recruitment Bonuses.--
            (1) In general.--Subject to the approval of the Secretary 
        of Homeland Security, the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and 
        Border Protection may pay a recruitment bonus, not to exceed 
        $15,000, to each newly hired U.S. Customs and Border Protection 
        agent after--
                    (A) the agent completes initial basic training; and
                    (B) the execution of a written agreement described 
                in paragraph (2).
            (2) Written agreement.--A written agreement described in 
        this paragraph is a legally binding agreement between a newly 
        hired agent and U.S. Customs and Border Protection that--
                    (A) specifies the amount of the bonus payment to be 
                paid to such agent, including the timing of such 
                payment;
                    (B) the length of the period of service required to 
                be completed before such agent is entitled to retain 
                such payment; and
                    (C) any other terms and conditions to which such 
                payment is subject.
    (b) Retention Bonuses.--Subject to the approval of the Secretary of 
Homeland Security, the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border 
Protection may pay annual retention bonuses, not to exceed 15 percent 
of the agent's basic pay, to U.S. Border Patrol agents after the 
completion of each year of satisfactory service, as determined by the 
Commissioner.
    (c) Relocation Bonus.--Subject to the approval of the Secretary of 
Homeland Security, the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border 
Protection may pay a relocation bonus, not to exceed 15 percent of the 
agent's annual basic pay, to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection agent 
who agrees to be transferred and to serve for not less than 3 years at 
the new duty station.
    (d) Limitation.--None of the bonuses paid to a U.S. Customs and 
Border Protection agent pursuant to subsections (a) through (c) may be 
considered part of the basic pay of such agent for any purpose, 
including for retirement or in computing a lump-sum payment to the 
agent for accumulated and accrued annual leave under section 5551 or 
5552 of title 5, United States Code.

SEC. 6. TREATMENT OF ALIENS ARRIVING FROM CONTIGUOUS TERRITORY.

    Section 235(b)(2)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 
U.S.C. 1225(b)(2)(C)) is amended by striking ``may return'' and all 
that follows and inserting the following: ``shall--
                            ``(i) return the alien to such territory, 
                        or to a safe third country (as described in 
                        section 208), pending the completion of a 
                        proceeding under section 240; or
                            ``(ii) detain the alien for further 
                        consideration of an application for asylum, 
                        which shall include a determination of credible 
                        fear of persecution.''.
                                 &lt;all&gt;
</pre></body></html>