WASHINGTON – Congresswoman Renee Ellmers (R-NC-02) released the following statement this evening following her votes on legislation to stem the growing crisis at the border and provide resources to return unaccompanied minors to their country of origin:

“For several months, our nation has witnessed a new crisis on our border where children have been used as pawns in a deadly game involving drug cartels, murder, sexual assaults and other serious crimes. I witnessed this firsthand on a recent trip to the border last month. After speaking with law enforcement, border patrol and local officials, it became abundantly clear that this is an emergency that affects all of us and must be addressed immediately.”

“As this crisis continues to unfold, our first priorities remain the same: secure our border, provide humane treatment to unaccompanied children, and find a way to safely send them home. Tonight’s passage of two provisions to address this is an important first step, and I am hopeful that the Senate will take the same urgency to act quickly so that this crisis does not escalate further.”

This evening, Congresswoman Ellmers voted for two provisions that will immediately address the crisis facing our border. Below are some of the key facts about the bill, courtesy of the House Appropriations Committee:

• Makes changes to a 2008 law to expedite the return of unaccompanied minors to their home countries by treating Central American children the same as those from Mexico. President Obama and members of his administration have repeatedly called for such a change, characterizing it as a “bipartisan priority.”
• Prohibits the Interior and Agriculture secretaries from limiting the activities of Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) agents on federal public lands within 100 miles of the U.S.-Mexico border.
• Provides funding for National Guard troops at the southern border which, as Speaker Boehner noted in a letter to the president last month, are “uniquely qualified to respond to such humanitarian crises” and will “relieve the border patrol to focus on their primary duty of securing our border."
• Pares down the president’s $3.7 billion request to roughly $734 million, which is fully offset by cuts and recessions to existing funds, and specifically targets all funding toward addressing the most immediate needs at the border.
• Provides additional resources to the Department of Homeland Security to enhance border security and law enforcement activities.
• Increases the number of temporary immigration judges to enhance the capacity of the immigration court system, allowing the courts to process more cases and reduce the lengthy wait periods between detention and removal.
• Prioritizes repatriation assistance to Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador from within existing foreign aid funding to facilitate the return and reintegration of children in their home countries.
• Expresses the sense of the Congress that unauthorized migrants should not be housed on military installations unless certain conditions are met.