Senate Passes Britt, Cornyn Legislation to Make Border Catch-and-Release Data Public

WASHINGTON, D.C., September 19, 2024 – U.S. Senator Katie Britt (R-Ala.) and Senator John Cornyn’s (R-Texas) legislation the Southern Border Transparency Act passed the Senate. The legislation would require the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to accurately report how it is handling migrants encountered at the border and ensure the American people have a full, timely accounting of the number of migrants being released into the United States by the Biden Administration.

“I am committed to securing our southern border and addressing the crisis President Biden and Vice President Harris created,” said Senator Britt. “The Southern Border Transparency Act will ensure the American people know just how many individuals the Biden-Harris Administration is unlawfully letting into America’s interior. While I’m thankful this bill passed, there is just one of several actions Congress should take to combat the Biden-Harris border crisis. I will continue fighting for the consideration and passage of other commonsense bills, like the WALL Act and Laken Riley Act.”

“The Biden-Harris administration has gone to great lengths to hide the ball when it comes to levels of illegal immigration, but the American people deserve to know exactly how many migrants are being released into the country and exactly on what terms,” said Senator Cornyn. “This is the most basic of transparency measures – just the facts, that’s all we’re looking for.”

Senator Britt recently led a group of Senate Republicans in asking the Senate to pass four critical pieces of legislation, including the WALL Act, which Senator Britt introduced, and the Stopping Border Surges Act, which Senator Mike Lee (R-Utah) and Senator Britt introduced. Democrats blocked their effort.  

Background:

The Biden administration’s strategy for handling the influx of migrants at the border has been to funnel them into unlawful parole programs or other mechanisms that lead to their release into the interior of the United States, including the Cuban, Haitian, Nicaraguan, and Venezuelan parole program, an expanded Central American Minors program that now includes adults, and the likely widespread use of parole at Ports of Entry (POEs). These migrants are eligible for work authorization, and there is limited visibility into whether they ultimately depart the United States.

Right now, there is only limited public data available on the total number of people who have been released into the U.S. under some of these programs, whether they are even making asylum claims before they are released, what screenings are taking place, or whether these migrants ever depart the United States. The Southern Border Transparency Act would require DHS to fully report on how it is handling migrants encountered at the border, including:

• The number of migrants paroled at each POE and in each Border Patrol sector;
• The number of migrants apprehended at each POE and in each Border Patrol sector and how many were granted voluntary departure, placed into expedited removal, or simply released into the interior;
• The number of petitions for parole received and granted by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS); and
• The total number of migrants paroled into the United States each fiscal year, whether they are granted work authorization, and whether they ultimately depart the United States when their parole expires.

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