Surprising number of Pro_ILLEGAL and Open Borders comments on the source article:

Gov't: Border fence to cost $6.5B over 20 years
By EILEEN SULLIVAN Associated Press Writer © 2009 The Associated Press
Sept. 17, 2009, 8:46AM — It will cost taxpayers $6.5 billion over the next 20 years to maintain the fence along the U.S-Mexico border, according to a government audit.

But as the Obama administration realizes the long-term costs of the border fence, it does not have a way to evaluate whether this investment has helped control illegal entries into the country, according to a Government Accountability Office report released Thursday.

The $6.5 billion price tag is in addition to the $2.4 billion that's been spent to build more than 600 miles of fence segments along the southwest border. As of May 14, there have been 3,363 breaches in the fence, which cost about $1,300 each to repair, GAO found.

The fence is a Bush administration initiative that has faced several delays and cost increases.

The technology portion of the government's plan to secure the border continues to be delayed, GAO said.

Rep. Bennie Thompson, chairman of the House Homeland Security committee, called the fence a "serious challenge" that the Obama administration has inherited. In remarks prepared for a hearing Thursday, the Mississippi Democrat said the GAO's findings are troubling.

Depending on funding, the whole southwestern border except for about 200 miles around Big Bend National Park in Texas would be covered by physical fencing or technology by 2014, Homeland Security officials have said. But GAO said it's more likely to be completed in 2016.




http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/ ... 23262.html