I 
115TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 837 
To prohibit construction of a continuous wall or fence between the United 
States and Mexico, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 2, 2017 
Ms. MICHELLE LUJAN GRISHAM of New Mexico (for herself, Mr. CORREA, 
Mr. EVANS, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. GALLEGO, Ms. MENG, Mr. RUIZ, Ms. 
BARRAGA´N, Ms. LOFGREN, Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts, Mr. POCAN, 
Mr. SOTO, Mr. TAKANO, Mr. CA´RDENAS, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mrs. WATSON 
COLEMAN, Mr. VARGAS, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Mrs. 
TORRES, Mr. CASTRO of Texas, Mr. GONZALEZ of Texas, Mr. SWALWELL 
of California, Mr. PALLONE, Mr. KIHUEN, Ms. HANABUSA, Mr. VELA, 
Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. KHANNA, Mr. FOSTER, Mr. CUMMINGS, Mrs. CARO-
LYN B. MALONEY of New York, Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas, Mr. RASKIN, 
Mr. LEWIS of Georgia, Mr. CARBAJAL, Mr. O’ROURKE, Mr. VEASEY, Ms. 
CLARKE of New York, Mr. GARAMENDI, Mr. NADLER, Ms. NORTON, Ms. 
PINGREE, Mr. CUELLAR, Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia, Ms. MOORE, Ms. 
MCCOLLUM, Ms. LEE, Ms. VELA´ZQUEZ, Mr. WELCH, Ms. SA´NCHEZ, Mr. 
TONKO, Mr. SERRANO, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. GUTIE´RREZ, Ms. JUDY 
CHU of California, Mr. QUIGLEY, Mr. ENGEL, and Ms. TITUS) introduced 
the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, 
and in addition to the Committees on Homeland Security, and Foreign 
Affairs, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in 
each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdic-
tion of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To prohibit construction of a continuous wall or fence be-
tween the United States and Mexico, and for other pur-
poses. 
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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 ‘‘Build Bridges Not 
Walls Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) The existing United States-Mexico border 
infrastructure already includes physical barriers, 
drones, cameras, motion detectors, thermal imaging 
sensors, ground sensors, and other surveillance tools. 
(2) The United States already maintains ap-
proximately 650 miles of border fence in areas that 
most effectively stop the unauthorized entry of peo-
ple, vehicles, drugs, arms, and illicit items. 
(3) The number of U.S. Border Patrol agents 
nearly doubled from 10,717 in 1993 to 21,370 in 
2016. 
(4) Most experts believe that the Trump Ad-
ministration’s border wall will cost between $15 bil-
lion to $25 billion, not including additional mainte-
nance costs. 
(5) Harsh terrain and conditions along remote 
parts of the United States-Mexico border make the 
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construction of a wall or fence impractical, ineffec-
tive, and costly. 
(6) Former CBP Commissioner Gil Kerlikowske 
stated that building a continuous wall is not ‘‘fea-
sible’’ or the ‘‘smartest way to use taxpayer money’’. 
(7) A continuous border wall would likely harm 
wildlife, destroy sensitive habitat for endangered 
species, damage the environment and the natural 
flow of floodwaters, and lead to costly litigation with 
landowners, the Native American community, and 
stakeholders. 
(8) Border security is a complex issue that de-
pends on effectively using resources to maintain 
operational control of the border while also facili-
tating the movement of people, goods, and services. 
(9) The American people want Congress to use 
taxpayer dollars wisely and focus on middle-class 
priorities, including economic development, edu-
cation, and health care. 
SEC. 3. PROHIBITION ON CONSTRUCTION OF A UNITED 
STATES-MEXICO BORDER WALL. 
The Executive order entitled ‘‘Border Security and 
Immigration Enforcement Improvements’’ signed by the 
President on January 25, 2017, or any other substantially 
similar Executive order, memorandum, or other action by 
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the President to use taxpayer dollars or fees to construct 
a continuous wall or fence between the United States and 
Mexico, shall have no force or effect. 
Æ 
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