Illegal Immigration

Every year, an estimated 1.25 million people try to enter the United States illegally, at a rate of more than two per minute.

Many of the foreign citizens who become illegal aliens enter the U.S. legally. Once being permitted a short-term visit, they remain indefinitely and become illegal immigrants. Furthermore, there are foreigners that come here claiming that they are persecuted at home, and apply for political asylum. Because there are no housing facilities they are set free in the U.S. on parole. They are granted employment authorization and legally remain pending a hearing to evaluate their claim. Many do not return for the hearing, and of those that do only 10 to 15 percent are granted asylum. In 1994 a policy was implemented that requires applicants to wait six months before receiving work authorization, resulting in half as many people willing to come forward on their own.

Numerous illegal immigrants do not enter the United States legally, however. The Boarder Patrol tries to prevent illegals from entering, and reported capturing 1.72 million people trying to enter last year. But it estimates that two out of three attempts to enter are successful.

In 2000 an estimated 8.7 million illegal immigrants were living in the United States, and the number continues to grow by about half a million per year. These figures represent only illegal's who truly settle, not those who travel back and forth. And they do not include children born to illegal immigrants who were granted citizenship.

About half of all the illegals once had temporary passes and have over stayed their welcome and the other half cross the into the US illegally. The majority of all the illegal immigrants come from Mexico; in fact in the year 2000 out of all the immigrants charged 87% were Hispanic.

Illegal immigration is a large problem in the U.S. and is growing rapidly. Its affects are very widespread and arguably cause considerable harm to American citizens and legal immigrants, bearing the most upon the poor, minorities, and children.

Illegal aliens contribute to the staggering population growth we are undergoing in this nation. This is lending to overcrowding in schools, expending the limited affordable housing, and straining of natural resources.

Illegal immigration also drains public funds, supporting the great numbers of poor, unskilled immigrants abstracts from the ability to provide high quality education, health care, and retirement security to the people of our nation. The estimated annual net cost of illegal immigrants' welfare and general services is $20 billion.

In addition illegal immigration depresses the American workforce. It's estimated that illegal aliens oust approximately 730 thousand American workers each year, at a cost of $4.28 billion per year. The supply of illegal immigrants biddable to cheap labor and substandard working environment depresses the wages and work conditions for Americans and legal workers.

What can be done to combat aliens from taking up illegal residence within our borders? While border control is crucial, alone it's insufficient. An inclusive plan involving the strengthening of all facets of immigration control is necessary. To ensure that those who enter illegally and overstay legal status are unable to obtain employment, public assistance, education or housing without detection enforcement improvements are essential through deterrence, apprehension, and removal.

The first step is to close the current loopholes. This involves procedural reforms such as, strengthening investigation and tracking abilities of foreigners in the country. Much improvement of detention and deportation procedures is necessary, fore most eliminating delay tactics and obtaining more detention space for aliens pending deportation. As well as, placing a cap on the number asylum grantees and eliminating the visa waiver which allows foreigners to enter the U.S. for up to 90 days with no visa. 72-hour deportation notices need to be discontinued and open-field searches need to be reinstated.

It's also important to expand the existing programs that are effective. Broaden pre-inspection programs abroad in order to be more thorough and more discriminatory of those allowed to relocate to the United States. Extend the existing checkpoint and canine programs which can be effective in capturing unauthorized aliens at the borders, but currently lacking. Expand the institutional hearing program that is designed to remove criminal aliens from the United States as soon as they get out of prison. And broaden assets seizure program that is already in place.

Government agencies need to be better coordinated. Coordination between border agencies and intelligence agencies needs much work. Limits should be set on judicial reviews and deportation should be expanded. There needs to be link established between government databases of births, deaths and immigration status. As well as to combine of INS and IRS work forms, and accelerate INS notification of jailed aliens.

Incentives for illegal immigration must be eliminated. One way is to stop granting citizenship to the children of illegal immigrants and foreign visitors. We need to establish a universal system for verifying welfare and work eligibility, and delay work authorization for those with pending asylum claims. Major adjustments or termination public benefits for illegal aliens are also a must for eliminating incentives.

Penalties for violators need to be increased. There should be harsher punishments for smuggling of aliens. Any aliens that become a public upheaval should be deported and aliens imprisoned for more than three years should be banned from reentry. Funds should be denied to regions that reject efforts to combat illegal immigration,

The finest equipment and newest technology must be available to enforcers of immigration law. INS should have a facility for classified information and a centralized database. INS, Border Patrol, and Investigations need to develop equipment plans and update their technology. The vehicle fleets of Border Patrol, Investigations, and Detention and Deportation all need improved upon. And the establishment of a secure database and distribution system, and verification system are imperative for the coordination of all facets the verification of status.

The final step in the plan is investing further in the personnel combating illegal immigration. That is, increasing personnel inspections and introduce systematic performance reviews, for presently there is very little inquiry or assessment of personnel once hired. Training programs should be expanded and the amount of temporary employees reduced. There also needs to be investigators that are dedicated solely to