Dreier Praises Signing of Secure Fence Act

October 26, 2006

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman David Dreier (R-San Dimas,CA), Chairman of the House Rules Committee, made the following statement following President George W. Bush’s signing of the Secure Fence Act of 2006:

"We are taking control of our border with aggressive measures to crack down on illegal immigration. The Secure Fence Act is a critical part of our ongoing border security efforts. It authorizes 700 miles of fencing along the most dangerous border areas where deaths are common, drug smuggling is rampant and illegal border crossings are numerous," said Dreier. "There’s no question that securing the border demands action on many fronts. Already this year, we have criminalized the building of border tunnels and provided more than $21 billion to enforce immigration laws, increase the number of border patrol agents and put the latest surveillance technology in the field. These efforts will build on the quadrupling of spending on immigration related border security and enforcement and doubling of the number of Border Patrol agents Republicans have implemented since 1995."

The Secure Fence Act authorizes the construction of border fencing at five specific border zones and mandates that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) achieve and maintain operational control over the entire border through a "virtual fence." It is similar to a provision Dreier co-authored in H.R. 4437, the Border Protection, Antiterrorism and Illegal Immigration Control Act, which was approved by the House last December. The Act seeks to emulate the success of the San Diego Border fence, which led to a 56 percent decrease in crime in San Diego from 1989 to 2000. Additionally, from 1992 to 2004, the number of illegal immigrant apprehensions along the fenced region dropped from 202,000 to 9,000.