Statement
by Senator Dianne Feinstein
Urging
Senate Passage of the "Enhanced Border Security
and Visa Entry Reform Act"
March 20, 2002
"The Enhanced
Border Security and Visa Entry Reform Act is one of the most important
pieces of legislation before Congress this session. It responds to national
security issues in the aftermath of the September 11th attacks
and it tightens up processes and procedures of a huge federal agency
that has failed terribly to meet the critical needs of our nation over
and over again.
This legislation
would help transform the Immigration and Naturalization Service from
a paper-driven bureaucracy to one that better manages its mission by
upgrading its information management and sharing systems. This would
enable the INS and State Department consular offices to access vital
intelligence information in real-time before they issue visas and permit
entry into the United States.
In the wake
of September 11th, it is unconscionable that a terrorist
might be permitted to enter the United States simply because our government
agencies don't share information. There are many other important provisions
in this legislation, including reforms to visa waiver, foreign student
visas and other nonimmigrant visa programs.
The legislation would also require the Attorney General and Secretary of State to issue machine-readable, tamper-resistant visas that use standardized biometric identifiers. This will allow INS inspectors to determine whether a visa properly identifies a visa holder and thus combat identity fraud. Second, it will make visas more difficult to counterfeit. Third, in conjunction with the installation of scanners at ports of entry to read the visas, the INS can track the arrival and departure of aliens and generate a reliable measure of aliens who overstay their visas.
The bill provides that aliens from countries that sponsor international terrorism cannot receive nonimmigrant visas until it has been determined that they do not pose a threat to the safety of Americans or the national security of the United States. American embassies and consulates abroad will also be required to establish terrorist lookout committees to ensure names of known terrorists are routinely and consistently brought to the attention of consular officials, our nation's first line of defense.
This bill has twice passed the House. It could have passed the Senate before Christmas, however, here we are three months later. I am hopeful the Majority Leader will bring the bill to the floor as soon as possible. Let's debate the issues, get it passed and get the President to sign it into law before we have another incident like the issuance of student visas to two of the hijackers six months after the September 11th attacks."
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