I 
110TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2593 
To secure and conserve Federal public lands and natural resources along 
the international land borders of the United States, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 6, 2007 
Mr. GRIJALVA introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on Homeland Security, and in addition to the Committees on Nat-
ural Resources and Agriculture, for a period to be subsequently deter-
mined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions 
as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To secure and conserve Federal public lands and natural 
resources along the international land borders of the 
United States, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as ‘‘The Borderlands Con-
servation and Security Act of 2007’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES. 
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds the following: 
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(1) The United States-Mexico border area con-
tains a high concentration of protected Federal 
lands, including National Parks, National Monu-
ments, National Wildlife Refuges, National Forests, 
and Wilderness Areas. These lands are of significant 
ecological, educational, historic, cultural, recreational 
and economic value to the United States and its peo-
ple. 
(2) The United States and Mexico have collabo-
rated to address shared conservation and security 
issues, including migratory, imperiled, and invasive 
species, border operations and security, cultural re-
sources, and trans-boundary pollution. 
(3) Federal lands and resources along the 
United States-Mexico border have suffered extensive 
damage from the effects of unauthorized immigra-
tion, human and drug smuggling, and border en-
forcement activities. 
(4) Increased coordination and planning be-
tween the Department of Homeland Security and 
Federal land management agencies can help avoid 
and mitigate damage to Federal lands and resources 
along the United States-Mexico border while improv-
ing border security. 
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(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are to pro-
vide a means whereby the Federal lands and resources 
along the United States-Mexico border are provided the 
highest protection possible from the effects of unauthor-
ized immigration, human and drug smuggling, and border 
enforcement activities, while ensuring that all operations 
necessary to achieve border security are undertaken. 
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
(a) PROTECTED LAND.—The term ‘‘protected land’’ 
means land under the jurisdiction of the Secretary con-
cerned. 
(b) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the 
Secretary of Homeland Security. 
(c) SECRETARY CONCERNED.—The term ‘‘Secretary 
concerned’’ means— 
(1) with respect to land under the jurisdiction 
of the Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of Ag-
riculture; and 
(2) with respect to land under the jurisdiction 
of the Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary of the 
Interior. 
SEC. 4. PROTECTION OF BORDERLAND ENVIRONMENT. 
(a) BORDER PROTECTION STRATEGY.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Not later than May 30, 
2008, the Secretary, the Secretary of the Interior, 
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and the Secretary of Agriculture shall jointly develop 
a border protection strategy that supports the bor-
der security needs of the United States in the man-
ner that best protects— 
(A) units of the National Park System; 
(B) National Forest System land; 
(C) land under the jurisdiction of the Bu-
reau of Land Management; 
(D) land under the jurisdiction of the 
United States Fish and Wildlife Service; and 
(E) other relevant land under the jurisdic-
tion of the Department of the Interior or the 
Department of Agriculture. 
(2) TRIBAL
LANDS.—The Secretary, in con-
sultation with Tribal officials, shall jointly develop a 
border protection strategy for tribal lands along the 
United States-Mexico border. 
(b) REQUIRED TRAINING.—The Secretary, in co-
operation with the Secretary concerned, shall provide— 
(1) Federal land resource training for Customs 
and Border Protection agents assigned to patrol pro-
tected land; and 
(2) cultural resource training for Customs and 
Border Protection agents assigned to patrol tribal 
lands. 
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(c) COORDINATION.—In providing training for Cus-
toms and Border Protection agents under subsection 
(b)(1), the Secretary shall coordinate with the Secretary 
concerned to ensure that the training is appropriate to the 
mission of the relevant agency of the Department of the 
Interior or the Department of Agriculture to minimize the 
adverse impact on natural and cultural resources from 
border enforcement activities. 
(d) INVENTORY OF COSTS AND ACTIVITIES.—The 
Secretary concerned shall develop and submit to the Sec-
retary an inventory of costs incurred by the Secretary con-
cerned relating to illegal border activity and border en-
forcement activities, including the cost of— 
(1) infrastructure; 
(2) equipment; 
(3) training; 
(4) recurring maintenance; 
(5) construction of facilities; 
(6) restoration of natural and cultural re-
sources; 
(7) recapitalization of facilities; and 
(8) operations. 
(e) RECOMMENDATIONS.—The Secretary shall— 
(1) develop joint recommendations with the Sec-
retary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agri-
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culture for an appropriate cost recovery mechanism 
relating to items identified in subsection (d); and 
(2) not later than May 30, 2008, submit to the 
appropriate congressional committees (as defined in 
section 2 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 
U.S.C. 101)), including the Subcommittee on Na-
tional Parks of the Senate and the Subcommittee on 
National Parks, Forests, and Public Lands of the 
House of Representatives, the recommendations de-
veloped under paragraph (1). 
SEC. 5. BORDER BARRIER CONSTRUCTION. 
(a) FENCING
AND OTHER BARRIERS
ON PUBLIC 
LANDS.—Section 102(b)(1) of the Illegal Immigration Re-
form and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (Public 
Law 104–208; 8 U.S.C. 1103 note) is amended— 
(1) in subparagraph (A), in the matter pre-
ceding clause (i), by striking ‘‘the Secretary of 
Homeland Security shall provide for least 2 layers of 
reinforced fencing, the installation of additional 
physical barriers, roads, lighting, cameras, and sen-
sors—’’ and inserting ‘‘the Secretary of Homeland 
Security, in consultation with the Secretary of Agri-
culture, the Secretary of the Interior, or the heads 
of other Federal agencies, as appropriate, and State, 
local, and tribal officials, shall provide for fencing, 
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