Press Releases/Columns

On Friday, the House Appropriations Committee released the fiscal year 2015 Department of Homeland Security appropriations bill, which takes a number of steps to bolster bolder security and law enforcement efforts.  Read the bill now at docs.house.gov.

1. The bill provides for the largest operational force levels in the history of the Customs and Border Protection agency, including 21,370 Border Patrol agents and 23,775 CBP officers.  

2. The bill supports several critical border security initiatives, including around-the-clock surveillance of air, land, and sea approaches to the border.

3. The bill boosts internal enforcement efforts, including significant increases above the budget request for Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention programs.

4. The bill strengthens domestic and international investigations, including increases to expand visa vetting capabilities, and enhance our efforts to combat human trafficking, child exploitation, cyber-crime, and drug smuggling.

5. The bill is expected to include amendments to stop the president’s unilateral actions on immigration. 

Overall, the Homeland Security appropriations bill keeps our commitment to save taxpayers dollars wherever possible while backing high-priority programs, including cybersecurity operations.  The full fact sheet is available from the Appropriations Committee.