In recent years, increasing amounts of money have been poured into the protection of the border region in the name of national security and immigration enforcement. Since the creation of the Department of Homeland Security in 2003, Customs and Border Patrol's (CBP) budget has nearly doubled from $6 billion in FY 2003 to $11.7 billion for FY 2012. The necessity of these escalating costs is questionable, especially when considering that no clear metrics exist to measure border security and when apprehensions at the border are at their lowest in 40 years.

On January 30, 2013 AILA released their report, Border Security: Moving Beyond Past Benchmarks, that urges lawmakers to move beyond massive expenditure on resource buildup at the border. (AILA Doc. No. 13013051.) This report examines past immigration reform proposals, specifically the 2006, 2007, and 2010 Senate bills (S. 2611, S.1639, and S.3932), and evaluates the proposals in these four areas: operational control, border personnel, border infrastructure and technology, and detention.

Read the Washington Post’s article on the report.

Read the AILA Press Release.

Watch Greg Chen and Su Kim, authors of the report, discuss Border Security.

• AILA Comments on the Beyond the Border Action Plan (AILA Doc. No. 12011062)

• CBP Guidance on Providing Language Assistance to Other Law Enforcement Organizations (November 21, 2012) (AILA Doc. No. 13010352)
• United States-Canada Beyond the Border: A Shared Vision for Perimeter Security and Economic Competitiveness (AILA Doc. No. 11120870)
• (Additional Resources on the Beyond the Border Action Plan)
• Schedule of DHS outreach events for Beyond the Border approach

• “Is Border Security Really All About the Got Aways?” an Op-Ed by Kathleen Walker, past AILA president. (2/17/2013)
• Southern Border Communities Coalition Border Briefing Sheet that lays out the argument for why we need "Better Borders" and not more of the same border enforcement. (2/08/2013) (AILA Doc. No. 13022153.)
• Congressional Research Service (CRS) report entitled “CRS Report on Understanding Threats at U.S. Borders” on potential border threats and summarizing what is known about their likelihood and potential consequences. (3/12/2013) (AILA Doc. No. 13031250.)
• GAO congressional testimony from Homeland Security & Justice Issues Director Rebecca Gambler stating that stronger enforcement presence was one of several reasons, including changes in the U.S. economy, why fewer people were attempting to illegally cross the border. (3/14/13) (AILA Doc. No. 13031448.)
• How to Fix a Broken Border a series from the Immigration Policy Center
• Guns, Drugs, and Money: Tackling the Real Threats to Border Security from the Immigration Policy Center
• Giving Facts a Fighting Chance: Answers to the Toughest Immigration Questions a report from the Immigration Policy Center
• “In the Shadow of the Wall: Family Separation, Immigration Enforcement and Security” Report by Ford Foundation and Center for Latin American Studies, University of Arizona (2013)