Emerging Innovative Border Technologies Act

Floor Speech

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased that we are here today to consider my legislation, H.R. 993, the Emerging Innovative Border Technologies Act.

With this piece of legislation, the House has the opportunity to improve the Department of Homeland Security's ability to quickly acquire and deploy new and innovative technologies, like artificial intelligence and machine learning, to enhance our border security.

With more innovative technology, we can improve CBP's targeting and our detection capabilities, which would help officers find and stop more illegal drugs like fentanyl before they reach our communities and harm our communities and children.

My bill requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to create a plan to address capability gaps and integrating innovative technologies into our border security operations.

This bill requires DHS to think strategically about opportunities to work with the private sector and others developing and implementing our latest technologies.

This bill also authorizes CBP's Innovation Team to work with frontline agents and officers to develop pilot programs that help them do their job in keeping America safe.

Their work is another great example of why Federal workers are so important to making our country safe and prosperous.

The innovation team finds and tests new commercial technologies and collaborates with companies to adapt them for use along our border.

These Federal employees also help companies and CBP navigate procurement and other processes that we need to move these technologies as quickly as possible to the front lines.

New technologies don't just help with catching drugs. These technologies also help detect victims of human trafficking or immigrants in need of a rescue. These technologies can also help Border Patrol agents communicate reliably in remote areas. When an agent gets ill or injured or runs across an injured individual, the ability to communicate quickly and effectively can mean the difference between life and death.

Advanced technologies will also help prevent long lines and delays at our ports of entry, and, of course, strengthening our supply chains and reducing travel delays will also be helped.

I am a longtime resident of southern California, Mr. Speaker. I have been at the border many times. I know what long waits are all about. These long lines, these waits, hurt our businesses.

For example, produce will spoil in trucks, rather than reaching our grocery stores. In fact, delays at our ports of entry between California and Mexico costs our economy an estimated $3.4 billion in economic output and an estimated 88,000 jobs.

Besides this tremendous cost, no one likes to wait in line at airports. I represent Disneyland, and I know many tourists from across the world want to come and hang out with Mickey and Minnie, and they don't want to wait to spend those tourist dollars in my district.

While we need more manpower at our ports of entry, technologies will help get people and goods across our borders quickly and safely.

This bill is just one of many solutions we need to fix the border.

I thank Congressman Luttrell and his team for working with us on this legislation.

I look forward to working together on a variety of bills that this Congress has to offer to show the American people that we can work across the aisle to keep them safe and our economy moving forward.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this measure, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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