Slotkin Introduces Bipartisan Border Security Legislation

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin (MI-07) is continuing to push for a bipartisan approach to address the nation’s broken immigration system by reintroducing three bills that support border security and cosponsoring two pieces of immigration legislation.

The three bills Slotkin has introduced will supply new resources to the Department of Homeland Security to support border security, while the two bills she has cosponsored will overhaul the current systems for immigration and work visa processing, and in particular, address the workforce needs of Michigan agriculture.

“For decades, Presidential administrations and Congressional majorities from both parties have treated our broken immigration system as a political football rather than pursue thoughtful, bipartisan, and comprehensive reforms,” said Slotkin. “Today, immigration issues continue to be used as a bargaining chip. It’s like watching the same old story.

“Our approach to immigration and border security should draw from five essential pillars: keying our immigration system to the needs of our economy; expanding legal immigration pathways; investing in smart border security; addressing the root causes of displacement; and ensuring our policies live up to our nation’s values and morals.

“In order to support practical immigration solutions instead of just partisan infighting, I’m announcing my first tranche of bipartisan bills aimed at addressing the dysfunction in our immigration system and at our border. I’ve introduced three bills that will provide Customs and Border Protection and the Department of Homeland Security with the resources necessary to secure our borders in a comprehensive and humane way. In addition, I am announcing my cosponsorship of two pieces of bipartisan legislation that are aimed at addressing the broader immigration system: the Dignity Act and the Farm Workforce Modernization Act.

“In the coming months, I will introduce additional legislation to link our immigration system to our economy and to move immigration processing away from our physical borders. There are reasonable legislators on both sides of the aisle who know our immigration system is broken, and I will continue to press my colleagues to embrace an affirmative plan to end what has become a perennial issue.”

The INTEL at Our Borders Act is co-led by Republican Reps. John Duarte (CA-13) and Andrew Garbarino (NY-02) and Democratic Rep. Abigail Spanberger (VA-07); the Border Security and Migrant Safety Act is co-led by Republican Rep. John Duarte (CA-13).

Details on the legislation Slotkin has introduced are below:

• The INTEL at Our Borders Act requires the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to create a comprehensive strategy for identifying, deploying, and integrating emerging technologies into our border security and would facilitate the replacement of outdated security measures with new technologies.
• The Border Security and Migrant Safety Act would create an intelligence analytic cell to provide necessary insight on concentrated surges of migration to the southwest border and require DHS to partner with neighboring countries to counter malicious actors like transnational criminal organizations.
• The Emergency Migration Response Act would direct DHS to treat migration surges as events that demand a swift, coordinated, response from across the U.S. federal government.

Details on the legislation Slotkin has cosponsored are below:

• The Dignity Act would address border security and border infrastructure, provide a pathway to legal status after proper vetting for undocumented immigrants living in the United States, and reform asylum and work visa processes.
• The Farm Workforce Modernization Act would update the H-2A agricultural guest worker program and is a compromise solution that provides needed stability for farms and farmworkers.

Slotkin has long been an advocate for smart, bipartisan solutions that will secure our borders and reform our broken immigration system.

She previously introduced the INTEL at Our Borders Act in both the 116th and 117th Congresses and previously introduced the Emergency Migration Response Act and Border Security and Migrant Safety Act in the 117th Congress.