Border Patrol looks for new tech, recruits in DHS funding bill
- Bill asks for billions to house undocumented migrants
- Would spend a record amount to increase border security
- ‘Non-intrusive’ tech will include a focus on finding fentanyl
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(NewsNation) — The bill to fund the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in the next fiscal year includes hundreds of millions of dollars for new technology, building more sections of the border wall and recruiting new Border Patrol agents.
But the bulk of the money DHS wants will go toward capturing, housing and removing people who’ve entered the U.S. illegally.
The Homeland Security Appropriations Bill, now before the House Appropriations Committee, would devote more than $4 billion for “custody operations,” building and running facilities to keep undocumented immigrants.
Another $137 million is devoted to “fugitive operations,” and $822 million will pay for the planes and busses needed to transport people out of the U.S.
The bill also sets a record of $300 million for new technology to secure the border.
The new tech will include items like autonomous security towers that monitor remote areas; tactical aerostats, tethered balloons that provide aerial surveillance; tunnel detection to identify underground smuggling routes; and “counter drones” – anti-drone drones to address unauthorized devices that fly into U.S. air space.
The measure also includes $305 million for more “non-intrusive” inspection technology like metal detectors at the airport.
Border tech, however, dives much deeper. Large X-ray and Gamma-ray imaging systems hunt for weapons, nuclear and radiological threats and narcotics at border crossings. There is also a push in this year’s bill to acquire devices that will sniff out fentanyl.
On top of the tech, the bill also asks for $600 million to build more sections of the border wall and to help retain and recruit Border Patrol agents. The agency currently has about 3,000 unfilled jobs.
Attrition is a major, ongoing issue at CPB, according to Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas. “People leave Border Patrol because it’s tough. It’s a very difficult job, especially in rural areas,” he said.
An estimated 1.3 million people are in the U.S. illegally, and that number is bound to grow in the wake of the Biden administration’s new executive order on asylum claims.