WASHINGTON, D.C., August 18, 2010 - Republicans on the House Natural Resources Committee released a new web video today highlighting the crime, violence and environmental damage taking place on federal lands along the U.S. border.  Environmental regulations, enforced by the Department of the Interior, are hindering U.S. Border Patrol’s efforts to effectively secure these areas.  As a result, these public lands have become unpatrolled highways for drug smugglers, murderers, rapists, human traffickers, and potential terrorists.

Click here to watch

Background:

To address this issue, House Republicans, led by National Parks, Forests and Public Lands Subcommittee Ranking Member Rob Bishop (UT-01), have introduced legislation (H.R. 5016) to ensure that U.S. Border Patrol is permitted to assert operational control over the border.  This commonsense bill would simply give Border Patrol both the authority and access to effectively monitor and protect our federal lands on the border.

For more information on federal lands along the border, visit  
http://republicans.resourcescommittee.house.gov/border

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