PROTECT THE U.S. BORDER

Nowhere does the federal government face a greater challenge to live up to
the constitutional responsibility to "establish Justice" and "ensure
domestic tranquility" than the Southwest border. The tidal wave of humanity
crashing across the border poses a law-enforcement challenge that demands
the strongest possible response by the Justice Department.

The Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS), the Drug Enforcement
Administration (DEA), the Border Patrol and the federal judiciary are being
asked to do increasingly more along the border; yet, these agencies face
critical shortfalls in funding in nearly every area. Instead of addressing
these shortfalls, the Clinton administration's priority is to send $1.6
billion in foreign aid to Colombia to help it fight its own drug war.

The president's plan provides 15 Huey helicopters and 30 Blackhawk
helicopters for Columbia. Our DEA and Border Patrol agents fly Vietnam-era
helicopters, many of which are unsafe and grounded, and their request for
additional aircraft was not funded by the administration.

The president's plan gives Colombia $2 million to buy night vision goggles.
Yet the border patrol is woefully short on night vision goggles, pocket
scopes, fiber-optic scopes and hand-held searchlights. The DEA and Border
Patrol requests for additional equipment were not funded by the president.

The unmet capital needs of the INS, DEA and the judiciary represent
approximately $1.8 billion. For Border Patrol agents, this means operating
in cramped, substandard offices. One site designed for five people now
houses 125 agents. Another site is a converted Tastee Freeze store.
However, the president proposes that we send $49 million to Columbia to
construct brand new buildings for their anti-drug forces.

My point is simple. Before we send $1.6 billion to Colombia so it can have
more planes, goggles, radar sensors and new buildings, how about funding
our own law-enforcement community so it can adequately interdict and fight
drugs in the United States?

That is what I plan to do as chairman of the Senate Appropriations panel
that funds federal law-enforcement — because I believe our first priority
should be to fully fund the drug war on the Southwest border.

Here is what I propose:

First, we should focus on expanding the centralized development of certain
computer and communications technologies, such as the Automated Booking
System and narrow-band communications, to maximize information sharing.
Fully 20 percent of all federal law-enforcement officers are concentrated
in an area running from Presidio, Texas, to the Pacific Ocean. Nowhere are
the benefits of centralization more obvious than the Southwest border where
overlapping operations demand better mission coordination and cooperation.

Second, existing manpower needs to be redirected to the border. Because
shifting patterns of crime are not always reflected in the distribution of
federal law-enforcement resources, seasoned officers and agents need to be
deployed where they are needed most. Today, they are needed on the
Southwest border.

Third, we need to stop shortchanging the DEA. The president's DEA budget
request provides only a $4.6 million increase for enforcement operations.
Paltry increases for our pre-eminent drug-fighting agency is not a proper
response to the drug war. Methamphetamine use is growing rapidly, and 85
percent of it is smuggled in from Mexico. As a result, my bill will provide
the DEA with increased funding for methamphetamine enforcement, training
and cleanup. We also direct the DEA, INS and FBI to coordinate operations
by, among other things, co-locating their Southwest border offices in the
states of California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas.

Fourth, the single greatest deficiency continues to be the appalling
inadequacy of Border Patrol facilities. Stations designed to house a few
agents now serve hundreds. Detention facilities in federal courthouses and
at INS processing centers are antiquated, cramped and unsafe. Our proposal
upgrades existing facilities to standard while expanding capacity to meet
the growing caseload.

Finally, the federal judiciary has been hit hard by a staggering number of
drug offenses and illegal immigration cases. The five federal border
districts now handle 26 percent of all criminal activity, much of which is
drug-related. To put that in perspective, of the 89 federal judicial
districts in the nation, five of them handle over 25 percent of the
caseload. We provide relief to the border courts by providing resources to
the five federal districts on the border.

More and more drugs are coming across the Southwest border. The Mexican
cartels are replacing the Cali cartels as the drug smuggling kingpins. To
be effective, our strategy must recognize the clear and present danger that
exists on the Southwest border and allocate the resources that are
necessary to mount a concerted and comprehensive anti-drug effort here at home.

Sen. Judd Gregg, Republican of New Hampshire, is chairman of the Senate
Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, State and the Judiciary.