Saturday, April 10, 2010

OBAMA'S LA RAZA DEMS' AMNESTY bit by bit by bit UNTIL THE HALF OF MEXICO LIVES HERE!

FAIR Legislative Update February 9, 2010

Obama Proposes Cuts to Important Immigration Enforcement Programs
On February 1, President Obama released the details of his Fiscal Year (FY) 2011 Budget Request, which seeks to cut funding for important immigration enforcement programs. (See The President’s Budget Message, February 1, 2010). Specifically, the president’s budget would slash funding for the Secure Border Initiative; cut funding for US-VISIT; and cut 180 agents from the Border Patrol. The president’s proposed budget also proposes to merely maintain funding for the critically underfunded State Criminal Alien Assistance Program (SCAAP).
The Secure Border Initiative (SBI) “is a comprehensive, multi-year plan to help secure America’s borders” through fencing, infrastructure, and technology. (CBP Factsheet). SBI is a critical element of the larger DHS-CBP effort to increase border security, which includes construction of the border fence. Last year, Congress approved $800 million to fund SBI through FY2010. President Obama is requesting only $574 million for this program in his FY2011 budget, a $226 million cut. (FY2011 Budget Request Appendix: DHS).
US-VISIT, or United States Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology, is an entry-exit tracking program that collects information, including biometric identifiers, on foreign nationals attempting when they enter the United States. This information is then used to, among other things, determine whether foreign nationals should be denied entry and whether exiting aliens have overstayed or otherwise violated the terms of their admission. According to a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report released in November 2009, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) does not have a unified schedule to completely implement a comprehensive exit function for US-VISIT, and it is difficult to determine when and how US-VISIT will be completed. (GAO Report, November 2009). Despite this failure to complete implementation, President Obama has proposed a $39 million cut to US-VISIT, from $374 million in FY2010 to $335 million in FY2011. (FY2011 Budget Request Appendix: DHS).
In addition, President Obama’s budget provides for a reduction of 180 Border Patrol agents. According to Acting DHS Chief Financial Officer Peggy Sherry, the administration does “not believe the 180 personnel reduction will in any way reduce the overall operating effectiveness of the Border Patrol because over the past five years, the Border Patrol has doubled in size.” Sherry continued: “A lot of the agent workforce, the substantial portion of it, has only a couple of years experience. As they become more seasoned and more mature in their jobs, their effectiveness will increase.” (See DHS Conference Call Transcript).
The administration has also requested only $330 million for SCAAP – a federal program administered through the Department of Justice that helps states pay for the incarceration of criminal aliens. (FY2011 Budget Request: DOJ). Congress recently cut the annual funding level for SCAAP from $400 million in FY2009 to $330 million in FY2010. (See FAIR’s Legislative Update, December 22, 2009). This cut drew significant criticism from border state Governors Rick Perry (R-TX) and Arnold Schwarzenegger (R-CA), yet through his request, President Obama suggests that he wants to make it permanent. (Id.).
Although President Obama’s budget is a significant barometer reflecting his policies and priorities, it represents simply a funding request to Congress. Congress has the true power to appropriate money and can choose to wholesale adopt, modify, or reject the President’s budget request. As Congress and the administration negotiate the complicated budgeting and appropriations process over the coming months, stay tuned to FAIR for in-depth analyses of important immigration-related funding decisions.

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