Bill Calls for ‘Mile-by-Mile’ Assessment of Tech Needs at the Southern Border – By Mila Jasper (Nextgov) / Aug 7 2020
Rep. Xochitl Small Torres on Wednesday introduced the Southwest Border Security Technology Improvement Act in the House, a bipartisan bill that’s already moving through the Senate.
The Homeland Security Department will need to perform an analysis of technology needs for securing the U.S. border with Mexico if a new bipartisan bill passes Congress.
Rep. Xochitl Torres Small, D-N.M., announced Wednesday the Southwest Border Security Technology Improvement Act in the House. Co-sponsors to the bill include two Texas Republicans, Michael McCaul and Michael Cloud, as well as Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich.
The legislation calls for DHS to complete an assessment of technology needs within a year after the legislation is enacted for activities related to managing who and what crosses the border. The analysis may also cover other infrastructure needs, such as physical barriers, as well.
“Since day one in office, I have been calling for a mile-by-mile analysis of the border that reveals the real-time needs of agents and communities living and working along our border,” Torres Small said in a press release. “This bipartisan effort would require that analysis and is another step forward to crafting border policy that reflects the realities on the ground.”
Continue to article: https://www.nextgov.com/cio-briefing/2020/08/bill-calls-mile-mile-assessment-tech-needs-southern-border/167565/
