Senate Working to Alleviate Border Stress (Sen. Pete Domenici)

As the critical immigration issue continues to find new vehicles for debate, I thought it was important and appropriate to amend the Commerce, Justice, and Science Appropriations Bill to include a provision to bolster the U.S. Marshal Service with desperately-needed resources to continue their important role of handling illegal immigrants who are placed into the federal judicial system.

Our U.S. Marshals are involved in several aspects of immigration matters, including helping to transport criminal immigrants and guarding them in federal courthouses.  As we improve border security and interior enforcement, our Marshals need increased staff to handle a growing caseload that will be associated with those improvements.

My amendment authorizes the hiring of 50 new deputies each year for five years.  Increasing the number of Deputy U.S. Marshals by a total of 250 new law enforcers will make a great impact on this service that is overburdened in their role relating to border security and immigration enforcement.  Without such action, we will only be adding to the workload of our already thinly-stretched Marshals Service as border enforcement efforts are stepped up.

Last week, my Senate colleagues accepted this amendment by voice vote.