WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) introduced the Stopping Border Surges Act to disincentivize child trafficking and combat bad-faith asylum fraud. The bill is cosponsored by Senators Jim Banks (R-IN), Katie Britt (R-AL), Tom Cotton (R-AR), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Rick Scott (R-FL), and Tommy Tuberville (R-AL).

“Child traffickers have smuggled abused children across our border thanks to the Biden administration’s policies that made it easier for them to cross by claiming to have a child,” said Senator Mike Lee. “On top of that, many of these kids were released into their kidnapper’s arms. This is not merciful; it’s a Democrat-concocted system that favored traffickers. All the while, these coyotes were claiming to seek asylum, passing multiple safe countries on their way here without stopping. The Stopping Border Surges Act will disincentivize asylum fraud and give President Trump’s border team the tools they need to protect exploited kids.”

“Loopholes in our immigration laws have encouraged illegal crossing, fueled asylum fraud, and put vulnerable children at risk,” said Senator Jim Banks. “The Stopping Border Surges Act closes those loopholes, strengthens enforcement, and restores integrity to our immigration system.”

“Illegal border crossings not only endanger Americans; they also incentivize the abuse and trafficking of migrant women and children,” said Senator Katie Britt. “Now is the time to pass the Stopping Border Surges Act to permanently close these loopholes that embolden criminals and bad actors. I will always fight to keep American families and communities safe.” 

“Joe Biden’s reckless open border policies allowed illegal aliens to exploit our immigration system,” said Senator Tom Cotton. “Our bill would close loopholes that incentivize illegal border crossings, endanger children and families, and undermine our asylum system.”

“America saw what open borders and mass amnesty looked like for four miserable years,” said Senator Rick Scott. “Democrat policies failed Laken Riley, Sheridan Gorman, Jocelyn Nungaray, and countless other Americans. We can never let a future president do that to us again – or worse. We know what the radical left socialists want: look at Spain and across Europe and look at what happened to our border under Biden. For the sake of our country, Congress must codify President Trump’s border agenda and close every possible loophole in America’s immigration system before it’s too late. We cannot go back.”

“Thankfully, President Trump has locked down our borders after Joe Biden let millions of illegals invade our country,” said Senator Tommy Tuberville. “But unfortunately, we still have loopholes that are incentivizing illegals to make the dangerous journey to come here. Proud to join Sen. Mike Lee in introducing legislation to make sure we are not actively encouraging illegal immigration.”

Background

Senator Lee’s bill would eliminate the expansion of the Flores Settlement Agreement by allowing alien children accompanied by parents to be held with that parent for the duration of the parent’s adjudication. This would end the incentive for non-parents to claim an unknown child as their own. It also removes any incentive for parents to bring children with them on the hazardous journey to the U.S. Border. Unfortunately, non-parents are increasingly using children as a get-out-of-jail-free card at the child’s expense. These children are often “recycled” by smugglers and forced to cross multiple times to ensure admission for more adults.

The United States currently returns unaccompanied children from Mexico and Canada quickly and safely. Children from other countries, however, are placed in a lengthy removal process. They are released into the United States with the same adults that smuggled them into the country. Consequently, the policy incentivizes the enlistment of couriers to smuggle children across the border. Senator Lee’s legislation ends this incentive by extending the same seamless process available to children from Mexico and Canada.