Immigration

CBP Policy Regarding Search of Information
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection has recently come under fire for border search procedures. In particular, the seizure of laptops and other electronic devices has become a convtroversial issue. Access the above document for CBP's policy regarding border search of information as of July 16, 2008. Also see the Association of Corporate Travel Executives press release and CBP's travel page which details procedures for traveling through ports of entry.

Homeward Bound: Recent Immigration Enforcement and the Decline in the Illegal Alien Population "This study analyses the Current Population Survey (CPS) collected monthly by the Census Bureau. The findings show clear evidence that the illegal population has declined significantly. The evidence indicates that, since hitting a peak in the summer of 2007, the illegal population may have declined by 11 percent through May of 2008. It seems that increased enforcement is at least partly responsible for this decline. These findings are consistent with anecdotal evidence. Rebuttal

Disaster Preparedness in Urban Immigrant Communities
The Tomas Rivera Policy Institute and the Asian Pacific American Legal Center jointly published this report about disaster preparedness in urban immigrant communities. The researchers focused on Southern California communities but the key findings and policy recommendations provide insight for any community where large populations of limited English proficient immigrants reside. The study examined several such communities in Southern California and relied on conducting interviews and holding focus groups with local organizations and community members in their native languages.

Naturalizations in the United States: 2007
"This Office of Immigration Statistics annual flow report presents information on the number and characteristics of foreign nationals ages 18 years and over who were naturalized in the United States during 2007. Data were obtained from administrative records of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) of the Department of Homeland Security. These records consist of information from applications for naturalization." Access more complete data tables here

Secure Border Initiative Fiscal Year 2008 Expenditure Plan Shows Improvement "The Fiscal Year 2008 Consolidated Appropriations Act required DHS to submit to the House and Senate Appropriations Committees an expenditure plan for the department's efforts to establish a security barrier along the borders of the United States, including pedestrian and vehicle fencing as well as other forms of tactical infrastructure and technology. As required by the act, we reviewed the plan and on April 7 and April 10, 2008, briefed staff of the House and Senate Appropriations Subcommittees, respectively, on our results. This correspondence transmits these results and the full briefing is reprinted in enclosure I.

Controlling Unauthorized Immigration from Mexico: The Failure of "Prevention through Deterrence" and the Need for Comprehensive Reform http://www.immigrationpolicy.org/images/File/misc/CCISbriefing061008.pdf

Federal Bureau of Investigation's Security Check Procedures for Immigration Applications and Petitions "The Office of the Inspector General (OIG) initiated this audit to assess the accuracy and timeliness of the FBI's name checks and fingerprint identifications used by the USCIS to adjudicate immigration and naturalization benefits. The federal government's response to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, has resulted in an increased use of the NNCP's services from 2.7 million name checks in Fiscal Year (FY) 2001 to more than 4 million in FY 2007.

Homeland Security Presidential Directive 24
The White House Office of the Press Secretary issued this Homeland Security Presidential Directive on Biometrics for Identification and Screening to Enhance National Security yesterday. "This directive establishes a framework to ensure that Federal executive departments and agencies use mutually compatible methods and procedures in the collection, storage, use, analysis, and sharing of biometric and associated biographic and contextual information of individuals in a lawful and appropriate manner, while respecting their information privacy and other legal rights under United States law."

Trafficking in Persons Report 2008
"This Report is the eighth annual TIP Report. It is intended to raise global awareness, to highlight efforts of the international community, and to encourage foreign governments to take effective actions to counter all forms of trafficking in persons. The U.S. law that guides anti-human trafficking efforts, the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000, as amended (TVPA), states that the purpose of combating human trafficking is to punish traffickers, to protect victims, and to prevent trafficking from occurring. Access previous reports here

Undocumented Immigrants in U.S.-Mexico Border Counties: The Costs of Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Services
The U.S./Mexico Border Counties Coalition recently published this report. "From 1999 through 2006, the 24 counties along the U.S.-Mexico border spent a cumulative $1.23 billion on services to process criminal undocumented immigrants through the law enforcement and criminal justice system. In fiscal year 2006 alone, the cost was $192 million. These are staggering costs considering the rural nature and poverty level of most of these border counties. The enormous fiscal impact of undocumented immigration on border counties is not a recent phenomenon.