Thread: Perry's $100 million border security request moving quietly

Perry's $100 million border security request moving quietly

03/21/2007

By ELIZABETH WHITE


Gov. Rick Perry's $100 million proposal to pay for border security efforts generated a lot of buzz when the Legislature convened in January but has so far been pushed out of the limelight.

Still, Perry's request is moving forward.

The money would provide more officers, vehicles and equipment to help secure the 1,200-mile border from drug smugglers and human traffickers, said Perry spokeswoman Katherine Cesinger.

Cesinger said the money is important in light of the success of past border security operations, specifically Operation Rio Grande, which was launched in February 2006. Perry's office has said the operation reduced all crime by an average of 60 percent in certain border areas during five targeted operations.

An El Paso Times analysis found that Perry's border programs in general decreased crime an average of 8 percent in border counties during their first year of operation and that violent crimes dropped an average of 14.7 percent. But it also found that crime increased in four of 16 border counties a year after Perry's operations began in September 2005, including a 38 percent increase in overall crime in Webb County, which includes Laredo.

Action on immigration and border security have been overshadowed during the 2007 legislative session by debate over Perry's proposed anti-cervical cancer vaccine mandate and the scandal involving alleged sexual abuse of inmates in Texas Youth Commission facilities.

But last week $102 million was written into the House budget bill, which was passed out of committee on Wednesday. Earlier this month Rep. David Swinford, R-Amarillo, filed a bill with the appropriation attached.

"This is just a continuation or acceleration of that whole project," Swinford said. "I think it will be just a commonsense bill."

Both Swinford and Perry's office said the state is being forced to step up in place of the federal government.

"We certainly would benefit from more funding from the federal government," Cesinger said. "In the meantime, the state of Texas needs to exhaust all measures to protect our border."

The money would fund 300 new commissioned officers, 51 new Department of Public Safety troopers, nine new DPS pilots and 15 game wardens. It would also fund four helicopters as well as surge operations, intelligence centers and technology such as virtual neighborhood watch, which involves people watching live video from border cameras online and reporting suspicious activity. A pilot test of the program was riddled with problems, and the system is not yet up and running.

"For too many years the border counties have had to absorb the costs," said Rep. Richard Raymond, D-Laredo. "So using $100 million to help with border law enforcement I think is great. I think it is needed. I hope no one would really question whether or not we should spend the money."

But some wonder how Perry's office arrived at that number.

Rep. Rick Noriega, D-Houston, said he thinks "the number was pulled out of the air."

"What is now obvious is that it was a campaign number," he said. "And now we're scurrying to try to cobble something together to respond to a campaign number versus a deliberate planning process."

Cesinger said Perry's office arrived at the amount based on the successes of past operations.

Rep. Tommy Merritt, R-Longview, said other parts of the state need the same assets Perry's proposal will direct toward the border.

"The rest of the state is being left out of the equation," he said. "We're suffering with increased crime, increased medical issues, lack of funds for our sheriffs and our police departments."

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Swinford's bill is House Bill 13.


http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent ... OEC80.html

"This is just a continuation or acceleration of that whole project," Swinford said. "I think it will be just a commonsense bill."

Both Swinford and Perry's office said the state is being forced to step up in place of the federal government.

"We certainly would benefit from more funding from the federal government," Cesinger said. "In the meantime, the state of Texas needs to exhaust all measures to protect our border."

That's certainly a change from the "Trans Texas Corridor" attitude that Texas politicians were trumpeting only 6 months ago. Keep the pressure on the elected officials to move this along into law!