Kennedy Introduces Legislation For Border Security
By Sarah Sparks
WASHINGTON -Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass, citing an “urgent need to improve intelligence and technology capabilities,” today [Thursday] introduced a bill to improve terrorist-tracking systems and cooperation between federal and law enforcement agencies.
Fifteen of the 19 terrorist-hijackers of Sept. 11 had entered the United States legally, using student or work visas, and federal agencies have been criticized for not sharing information that could have stopped them at the border.
Kennedy joined with Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., in introducing the Enhanced Border Security Act, designed to create a database of suspected terrorists to be shared by law enforcement and intelligence agencies, update passport tracking technology and improve border patrol. Kennedy said the bill is consistent with President George W. Bush’s executive order on immigration, but it “clarifies cooperation between agencies and upgrading systems.”
“The Senate took significant steps last week to improve immigration security by passing the anti-terrorism bill, but further action is needed,” Kennedy said.
Sen. John R. Edwards, D-N.C., criticized the lack of communication among the law enforcement agencies. “It’s clear on Sept. 11 we let our guard down,” he said. “We need to know who the bad guys are.”
Brownback said the bill also would reevaluate screening procedures both at U.S. entry points and departure gates abroad. Visitors with visas from countries known to sponsor terrorist activity would undergo a full background check before being allowed to enter the country.
The bill waives limitations on hiring full-time INS personnel and increases their pay. It also increases funding for terrorist-tracking technology by allowing the Department of State to raise fees on so-called “machine-readable passports,” which have magnetic strips that hold information for immigration surveillance.
“The war on terrorism is in large part a war of information,” Brownback said.
One of the potentially controversial aspects of the database provision is the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System, which tracks those in the country on a student visa, requiring schools to keep tabs on whether students attend class regularly and remain enrolled.
The database was introduced under the 1996 Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act, but it came into use early this October in a dozen Boston-area universities. It has expanded to 25 universities, and the bill would mandate it nationwide. The bill may also restrict visas issued by schools. “There are 26,000 universities that can issue student visas,” Kennedy said. “Clearly that’s excessive.”
Some university administrators have opposed the monitoring – and the $95 registration fee for each student, used to help finance the database. Several Massachusetts universities rank in the top 40 schools in the country for foreign enrollment: At Quincy College, foreign students make up 11 percent of the student body; at Harvard University in Cambridge, 20 percent of students are non-native, according to Open Doors, which provides statistics on foreign students.
Kennedy said the legislation would protect the rights of legal students and legal immigrants. “In carrying out these urgent responsibilities, we must do so in ways that live up to our history and heritage as a nation of immigrants,” Kennedy said. “Immigrants aren’t the problem; terrorists are the problem.”
Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., introduced a similar immigration-security bill in late September, which would require a six-month moratorium on the student visa program while tighter security procedures are developed. Jim Manley, spokesman for Kennedy, said he expects the two bills to be combined in conference.
