Joint Border Security Advisory Committee

---------- DOCUMENT HEADER ----------

ARIZONA STATE LEGISLATURE

Fiftieth Legislature – First Regular Session

JOINT BORDER SECURITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE

Minutes of Interim Meeting

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

House Hearing Room 1 -- 9:00 a.m.

Co-Chairman Jones called the meeting to order at 9:02 a.m. and attendance was noted by the secretary.

Members Present

Senator Al Melvin, Co-Chairman	Representative Russ Jones, Co-Chairman
Senator Gail Griffin	Representative Kirk Adams (Steve Moortel)
Senator Steve Smith	Representative David Stevens
Bas Aja	Charles Ryan
John Halikowski	Major General Hugo Salazar
Robert Halliday

Members Absent

Gilbert Orrantia

Opening Remarks

Co-Chairman Jones welcomed the presenters from Yuma; he reminded Members that the
Co-Chairmen plan to take testimony from Arizona’s southern border communities, from west to east, in order to compile good information about the state of the border. The focus will then move to the interior of the state where the impacts of drug and human smuggling affect the levels of crime.

Co-Chairman Jones stated that the Members will hear from the Yuma County Chamber of Commerce, the Yuma County Sheriff’s Office, and the agricultural sector. He stated that Border Patrol declined to be present today, but that he hoped they would attend a future meeting because the relationship of all law enforcement entities - federal, state, county, city, and tribal - is very important in order to secure Arizona.

Co-Chairman Melvin reminded the Members that this Committee will meet on the last Wednesday of each month, at 9:00 a.m. in House Hearing Room 1.

Senator Smith updated the Members on SB1406, legislation calling for the building of a border fence using donations and inmate labor, which is awaiting the Governor’s signature.

Presentations

Ken Rosevear, Executive Director, Yuma County Chamber of Commerce, gave the Members an overview of the Chamber (Attachment 1), which has 1,000 members and whose emphasis is on commerce. He explained that he will address border issues as they relate to commerce, and stated that Yuma has the highest unemployment rate of any community in the state. He discussed how a big portion of Yuma’s dollars are “cross-border” dollars. Over 25,000,000 people cross Arizona’s border, and Yuma at San Luis is the second-largest port for these crossings.

Mr. Rosevear stressed that Yuma is not a “pit stop” on the way to San Diego; it is the third-largest metropolitan area in Arizona with almost 200,000 residents and 70,000 winter visitors. Agriculture is the number one economic driver in Yuma, followed by military, then tourism and small manufacturing.

Mr. Rosevear detailed statistics on pedestrian and vehicle crossings in the area. He described the more than 20,000 farm workers who cross the border from Mexico every workday on day passes to work in agricultural fields in Arizona. He described how important it is that all traffic be expedited and move quickly across the border; he described the chokepoints that occur during high-traffic times. He stressed that the workers crossing over from Mexico are trained and want to go home in the evenings to their families.

Senator Smith asked who pays for medical care if a worker is injured on the job. Mr. Rosevear replied that the grower (employer) is responsible.

Mr. Rosevear described over twenty partnerships that Yuma has forged with Mexico and California. Monthly meetings are scheduled with partners, including the Greater Yuma Port Authority, Southwest Arizona Port Users, and the Chamber Transportation Committee. He stated that the immigration issues are different in Yuma than in Phoenix in that Yuma must move people back and forth across the border.

Mr. Rosevear stressed the importance of communicating with federal officials as well as its partners, and local and state officials.

Mr. Halikowski echoed Mr. Rosevear’s statement that “Yuma is not a pit stop” and described the Arizona Department of Transportation’s (ADOT) 50-year plan to handle freight from California and Mexico; he stressed that Yuma will become a critical gateway as goods move across the United States.

Co-Chairman Jones commented that international cargo moving east and west moves through Arizona, but does not stop in Arizona or get value added; Arizona is a transit player in this cargo movement.

Co-Chairman Melvin stated that the only negative in the migrant worker program is the federal requirement to provide housing for these workers, even though the housing is not used because the workers go home at the end of each day.

Mr. Stevens asked how much road and rail cargo comes through Arizona now and what ADOT’s expectations are. Mr. Halikowski replied that current numbers can be supplied to the Members. He also stressed the importance of determining the transportation revenue and limitations and added that this will be discussed in the near future.

Major Leon Wilmot, Yuma County Sheriff's Office, explained that Yuma County (5,500 square miles) has very short sections of border within city jurisdictions; the remainder of the border is in the county and is patrolled by 84 officers (Attachment 1). Major Wilmot described the challenges of patrolling, which include robberies, stolen vehicles and tractors, rapes and homicides. He explained that the river area is very remote and overgrown with vegetation, which provides camouflage for illegal immigrants. He described a military incursion during which Mexican military drove across the river into the United States. He explained that ultralights and cranes are being used by drug cartels.

Major Wilmot discussed the resources needed to address these problems:

· building relationships with Mexican counterparts

· building and extending the border fence

· clearing the land around the border to remove the brush that provides cover for the criminals

· Normandy-type barriers on the river

· intensified patrols

· intercommunication among all agencies

Major Wilmot distributed a document entitled “Border Security - Yuma Sector Successes” (Attachment 2). He stated that the border fence has been effective in improving the situation on the border.

Co-Chairman Jones described “Operation Stonegarden,” a federal assistance program for local law enforcement that is limited to borderland counties. Funding is provided for additional personnel and overtime pay for homeland security operations. He complimented the Yuma County officers who implemented the program and requested that they keep the Committee informed of developments.

Major Wilmot spoke of “Operation Streamline,” which is a program to reduce illegal crossings. He stated that “Operation Streamline” prosecutes all offenders; it has no sanctuary policy.

Senator Griffin commented that Yuma has apparently secured its border areas, but that Tucson still has an unsecured border. Major Wilmot replied that some Yuma resources are being transferred to Tucson; he added that the Yuma area is a different geographic type than Tucson and requires different approaches.

Co-Chairman Melvin commented that it is good to hear of the cooperation with the Tribal Nations and Police. He stated regret that the Arizona Department of Homeland Security, a grant-writing office, is not present and stressed the importance of learning what federal monies are being applied for and secured.

Mr. Halikowski stated that ADOT, the Arizona Department of Public Safety (DPS), and Yuma County will be updating radio communications to allow for interoperability among the agencies throughout the state.

Co-Chairman Jones added that Motorola is developing communications equipment and technology to enhance interoperability with Mexican counterparts.

Tony Tew, Foothills Packing, addressed the Committee to discuss the agricultural industry and how it is affected by border security. He informed the Members that, during the peak produce season, there are approximately 15,000 to 18,000 migrant farm workers who daily cross the San Luis, Arizona border to board vehicles for transportation to field locations in Yuma County. This is very challenging for the San Luis Port of Entry as it can take 3 to 4 hours for workers to pass through and they can miss their transport vehicle. He mentioned that SENTRI cards (Secure Electronic Network for Travelers Rapid Inspection) for pre-approved low-risk travelers are available, but workers generally cannot afford them and do not cross during the hours that the SENTRI lanes are working.

Mr. Tew explained that his company works closely with Yuma organizations to ensure that work schedules and border safety are always considered.

Mr. Tew discussed reasons for labor shortages, which include an aging workforce and the long workdays, sometimes 12-15 hours.

Mr. Tew described efforts to comply with the federal H-2A program which allows agricultural employers who anticipate a labor shortage to apply for permission to hire foreign workers temporarily. He stated that Foothills Packing has spent almost a quarter-of-a-million dollars for federally-required housing that is unused because the workers return home at the end of each workday. He added that Co-Chairman Jones is proposing legislation to request Congress to remove this housing requirement. Mr. Tew stressed that the H-2A federal requirements have benefitted workers who are trying to better their lives.

Mr. Tew addressed Members’ questions:

· Border security and E-Verify have improved the conditions on the border and the illegal immigration situation.

· Approximately 2,000 H-2A workers were signed up in 2010. Once his company contracts with a worker, it must guarantee work for 75 percent of the contract.

· Growers have looked at using inmate labor and have had some test cases. He added that there have been objections from some growers.

Mr. Ryan of the Arizona Department of Corrections (ADC) discussed the advantages of inmate labor, describing it as a very dependable source with no turnover or carpooling problems (Attachment 3). He explained that inmate labor in FY 2010 saved $12.5 million taxpayer dollars. Inmates have been used to clean up areas that immigrants use to hide and change clothes; the inmates clear and trim brush and trees with up to 2” trunks, allowing law enforcement to see people hiding in the woods. Mr. Ryan then described other ADC projects, including building fences.

Co-Chairman Melvin reminded the Members that of the 40,000 inmates in Arizona prisons, 6,000 are available for work such as this. Mr. Ryan clarified that 3,300 are currently being used.

Mr. Aja discussed a report provided to Governor Brewer by the Rocky Mountain Information Network (Attachment 4). The report contains assessments of:

· drug seizures along the Arizona border in FY2009 show that the Yuma area looks clear, but the central and southeast borders have activity

· corridors of cartel operations

· drug smuggling corridors from the United States Department of Justice

· reported border violence in Arizona

Co-Chairman Jones stated that these assessments show that it is possible to secure the border. He described Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) penalties for misdemeanor and felony illegal entry or re-entry after deportation.

Major General Salazar explained that the Governor has now sent a third letter to Congress and the President requesting funding to maintain the National Guard on the border; there has been no indication yet that the current mission will be extended beyond the mid-June date for 560 National Guardsmen.

Mr. Stevens stated that he has been working with the Arizona Department of Administration to set up the infrastructure for the website; he hopes that he will have this in place next week and will begin adding content.

Co-Chairman Jones asked about 287(g). Mr. Ryan stated that the 287(g) program which allows Arizona’s state and local law enforcement to enter into a partnership with ICE is working very well. Illegal immigrants who are detained are turned over to ICE, which maintains custody until the immigrants are deported.

Public Testimony

Lee Earle, Arizona 2012 Project, explained that he advocates for a secure border. The Arizona 2012 Project leads weekly tours to the border to observe the affected areas and debris, the different types of border fences, etc. It also assesses the impact that an insecure border has on the citizens and ranchers of Arizona.

Maureen Baerity, Arizona 2012 Project, stated that she is concerned about securing the border. She inquired if the Yuma migrant workers are tracked to ensure that they return to Mexico and are not just staying in the United States.

Co-Chairman Jones explained that the workers are issued green cards with electronic data strips which are read at each border crossing. These people are legal workers who return home to their families at night.

Luke Taylor, United States Army (Ret.), stated that he is an advocate for the state defense force, an all-volunteer group. He explained that California, New Mexico, and Texas all have such a force; Arizona is the only border state that does not have one. Such a force will be under the control of the Governor and will augment the state National Guard.

Co-Chairman Jones added that there are thirteen companies of Arizona Rangers which are authorized by the state.

Katherine Cobert, Arizona Immigration Reform Council, discussed an article by Congressman Jeff Flake on illegal immigration.

Date for Next Meeting

Co-Chairman Jones announced that the next meeting of the Joint Committee on Border Security will be at 9:00 a.m. on May 25, 2011, in House Hearing Room 1.

Without objection, the meeting adjourned at 11:19 a.m.

__________________________________________

Jane Dooley, Committee Secretary

May 24, 2011

(Original minutes, attachments and audio on file in the Office of the Chief Clerk; video archives available at http://www.azleg.gov)

---------- DOCUMENT FOOTER ---------

JOINT BORDER SECURITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE

April 27, 2011

---------- DOCUMENT FOOTER ---------