Boozman Signs Letter To Obama For 287(g) Funding

Press Release

U.S. Representative John Boozman (R-AR) announced his support for 287(g), the immigration enforcement program utilized in Northwest Arkansas by signing onto a letter to President Obama asking that funding for the program be continued.

The following is the text of the letter:

"We support the 287(g) program. The Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (P.L. 104-208) created the 287(g) program to provide state and local law enforcement officers with statutory immigration enforcement authority, in addition to their inherent authority. It was not limited to "dangerous" criminals, as some have suggested, but designed to let state and local law enforcement officials help enforce all immigration laws and to remove illegal immigrants from the streets before they go on to commit preventable crimes.

The 287(g) program, whether through jail intake, task force or other operational models, is effective and has been used by jurisdictions across the United States to help reduce crime and illegal immigration. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) own website states "[T]he 287(g) program has emerged as one of the agency's most successful and popular partnership initiatives as more state and local leaders have come to understand how a shared approach to immigration enforcement can benefit their communities." It allows law enforcement officials direct access to the information needed, and the authority, to issue detainers and hold an illegal immigrant until ICE is available to transport the individual to a detention facility.

According to ICE statistics, "[S]ince January 2006, the 287(g) program is credited with identifying more than 100,000 potentially removable aliens -- mostly at local jails. More than 950 officers have been trained and certified through the program…." The number of participating jurisdictions, currently at 63, has been as high as 67. Participants include local police departments, county sheriffs' offices, state departments of corrections and state departments of public safety.

As of this week, 12 more Memoranda of Agreement by law enforcement agencies seeking to join the 287(g) program are approved and awaiting final action, and 21 have been requested and are pending a decision. Unfortunately, over the years ICE has declined a number of applications due to resource limitations and financial constraints. For instance, ICE told the state of Virginia in July 2007 that because of a lack of resources it could not agree to a proposed Virginia request to train staff under section 287(g) at every state jail. This is unacceptable.

While the majority of the current 287(g) agreements follow the jail intake model, the task force model is also a highly effective means of removing illegal immigrants from the streets. Both should be continued.

Recent criticism of the program is unfounded. When asked about claims of racial profiling or civil rights violations at a March hearing, the Government Accountability Office testified, "[w]e didn't see any complaints in the files of any jurisdiction or in OPR about any jurisdiction…."

Federal, state, and local cooperation is key to combating illegal immigration. So it is crucial for the federal government to continue to support the range of 287(g) operational programs in jurisdictions throughout the United States."
287(g) is a program utilized by a task force made of up Benton and Washington County Sheriff's Department officials and officers from the Rogers and Springdale Police Departments."

287(g) is a program utilized by a task force made of up Benton and Washington County Sheriff's Department officials and officers from the Rogers and Springdale Police Departments and has been effective in the arrest of more than 1,500 illegal aliens who have or are in the process of deportation.

Source