fiscal year 2017 was 48,681. In fiscal year 2022, 
that number stood at 152,057, a 212 percent in-
crease. Hundreds of thousands of vulnerable chil-
dren have been ‘‘encountered’’, trafficked, and smug-
gled across the Southwest border in the 2 years 
since President Biden took office, representing hun-
dreds of children every day. 
(10) According to CBP, migrant deaths at the 
Southwest border of the United States totaled 856 
in fiscal year 2022, the deadliest year on record. 
(11) A May 2017 report from Doctors Without 
Borders indicated that out of the number of women 
surveyed, nearly one-third had been sexually as-
saulted as they approached the Southern border. 
(12) According to Drug Enforcement Agency 
statistics, over 50,600,000 fentanyl pills were seized 
in 2022, including over 10,800 pounds of fentanyl 
powder; these fentanyl seizures are enough to kill 
over 379,000,000 people. Recent data from the Cen-
ters for Disease Control and Prevention indicate 
that 107,735 Americans died of a drug overdose in 
the 12-month period ending July 2022. 
(13) Due to rampant drug trafficking at our 
Southern border, the leading cause of death for 
Americans aged 18–45 can now be attributable to 
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fentanyl overdoses; in 2020 and 2021, fentanyl was 
responsible for killing more Americans in this age 
group than COVID–19, car accidents, cancer, and 
suicide. 
(14) According to CBP data, in the first five 
months of fiscal year 2023, 106,000 pounds of 
drugs were seized at the Southwest border, including 
11,000 pounds of fentanyl. The first five months of 
fiscal year 2023 have seen a 179.3 percent increase 
in fentanyl seizures over the same time frame in fis-
cal year 2022. 
(15) The historic crisis at the Southwest border 
demands decisive action on the part of Congress. 
SEC. 3. MORATORIUM. 
Section 212(f) of the Immigration and Nationality 
Act (8 U.S.C. 1182) is amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘Whenever’’ and inserting ‘‘(1) 
Whenever’’; and 
(2) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(2)(A) Notwithstanding any other provision of 
law, if the average number of apprehensions and 
findings of inadmissible aliens documented by U.S. 
Customs and Border Protection exceeds an average 
of 30,000 per month over the most recent 12-month 
period, the President shall suspend the entry of cov-
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ered aliens until the monthly average number of ap-
prehensions of illegal aliens is less than 30,000. 
‘‘(B) For the purpose of this paragraph, the 
number of apprehensions and findings of inadmis-
sible aliens shall be the total number of U.S. Cus-
toms and Border Protection enforcement actions 
taken under this Act and section 362 of the Public 
Health Service Act. 
‘‘(C) In this paragraph, the term ‘covered alien’ 
means an alien seeking entry to the United States 
who is inadmissible under subsection (a)(6) or sub-
section (a)(7).’’. 
Æ 
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