(USA Features) New Democratic legislation would cut off funding for new border wall construction as well as money to hire additional Border Patrol agents, according to a Tuesday report.
“More than 929,000 illegal immigrants have been apprehended at the southern border since October, including a near-record 180,000 in May, U.S. Customs and Border Protection statistics show,” Newsmax reported.
Nevertheless, new legislation approved last week by a House Appropriations subcommittee to allot $52.8 billion to the Department of Homeland Security in fiscal year 2022 contains no funding for more Border Patrol agents or border barriers.
In addition, more than $2 billion earmarked for border wall construction during the Trump administration was removed.
Democrats who support the measure say it will reduce backlogs in refugee, asylum, and immigration benefit applications, the news site reported.
“We have included provisions in the bill intended to reduce the over- detention of migrants as they proceed through the immigration adjudication process, if they are not flight risks and pose no threat to public safety or national security,” said Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard, D-Calif., chair of the Homeland Security Spending subcommittee, in a statement with the budget breakdown.
Other Democrats supporting the bill say their measure “makes responsible investments in border security,” according to the Washington Examiner.
The bill also provides an additional $10 million for a pilot program providing alternatives to detention for illegal immigrants.
The measure comes as eight-in-10 Americans surveyed in a Harvard/Harris poll recently believe illegal immigration is a major issue that the Biden administration should take more seriously.
“The poll found 68% believe signals from Biden’s White House are encouraging illegal immigration, and 55% believe that Trump’s border-closing policies should have been left in place,” the Examiner reported.