RANKING MEMBER CORREA DELIVERS OPENING STATEMENT IN JOINT SUBCOMMITTEE HEARING: “SMART INVESTMENTS: TECHNOLOGY’S ROLE IN MULTI-LAYERED BORDER SECURITY STRATEGY”
Watch Today’s Hearing HERE
WASHINGTON — Today, Ranking Member Lou Correa (CA-46), the top Democrat on the House Border Security and Enforcement Subcommittee, led his Democratic colleagues during a joint hearing with the Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations, and Accountability hearing entitled, “Smart Investments: Technology’s Role in a Multi-Layered Border Security Strategy.” You can watch today’s hearing HERE.
You will find below Ranking Member Correa’s opening statement, as prepared for delivery:
Thank you my good friend Chairman Higgins, and thank you Chairman Bishop, for holding this important hearing, and of course welcome to our witnesses today. I do hope to learn more about what Congress can do to do a better job preparing, implementing the latest technologies at our borders.
Today presents an opportunity to hear about the new technologies that can support homeland security. I hope that when Congress learns the lessons that you all too well know, we can continue to protect the homeland.
I’m pleased to see the Biden Administration prioritize integrating advanced technologies like AI—or artificial intelligence—into homeland security initiatives, while still ensuring the protection of civil rights and civil liberties.
Advanced technologies will help CBP officers and agents work more efficiently and effectively to keep the American people safe.
I must say that our nation has always been a nation of international trade and commerce. My home state, California, the San Ysidro-San Diego border crossing, everyday, over 70,000 vehicles cross and over 20,000 pedestrians cross that border on a daily basis.
Our border customs officers – those folks in the blue uniforms – scan vehicles using AI-powered machines to detect and interdict drugs and other dangerous substances before they enter our country.
These systems not only allow for better targeting, but also for quicker inspections. Facilitating the timely flow of trade and travel helps keep the economy strong.
Last year, nationwide, CBP used over 370 non-intrusive inspection scanners to examine more than 9 million conveyances, resulting in the seizure of more than 127,000 pounds of narcotics and the identification of 125 undeclared passengers.
But clearly the challenge, the scale of the challenge, is huge.
And more technology is needed. More scanners means less fentanyl on our streets. More investments in cameras and ground-based sensors means more data that our officers and agents can use to stop human smugglers and human traffickers.
But as all of you know, technology isn’t enough. In fact, it's the well-trained men and women at our border that are our greatest resource.
And technology helps them do a good job, but the men and women at our frontlines are very critical. And sadly, our ports of entry today need over 5,000 more CBP officers.
5,000 more CBP officers are needed at our border today to do the job we are asking them to do. Border Patrol is also facing a major shortfall. And even the best technology cannot fill these gaps.
And we should also remember that border security does not start or end at our border.
We need the cooperation of our neighbors across the hemisphere to tackle the big problems.
We need to be working with Mexico to counter drones and go after smugglers and traffickers.
We need to be working with South American countries to screen passengers coming into the hemisphere at the point of origin. We need to ID potentially dangerous individuals before they even get on a plane to come to this hemisphere.
A lot of cooperation is happening, but it's still not enough.
Back home in California, we look at the border as an economic driver that adds to our economic growth.
California today is the fourth largest economy in the world. Trade and travel across our borders boosts our economic output and brings us closer to our southern neighbors.
Today, as Members of Congress, we support ways to increase legitimate trade and travel while keeping the American public safe.
We often use technology to do this. But sadly, the timely and cost-effective deployment of technologies has been a longstanding challenge for CBP.
It is vital that the federal government collaborate with the private sector to develop and adopt cost-effective and innovative technologies sooner rather than later.
And to help address this problem, I’ve worked with Congressman Luttrell to introduce the Emerging Innovative Border Technologies Act.
This bill addresses the capability gaps in border security by requiring the Secretary of Homeland Security to submit a plan to Congress to identify, integrate, and deploy innovating technologies like AI, machine learning, and nanotechnology into our border security initiatives.
This is just one of many other things Congress can be doing to help the men and women at the border.
I look forward to hearing your recommendations today gentlemen. You are the experts. Let us know what else we can do to make sure that technology comes to the forefront of our battles at the border immediately—not five, ten, fifteen, twenty years later.
Thank you very much Mr. Chairman, I yield.
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