Federal

Fund and Complete the Border Wall Act

Source: Congress.gov · 2,942 words in original text

What This Bill Does

This bill creates a separate bank account in the U.S. Treasury called the "Secure the Southern Border Fund" to collect and hold money for border security projects. The bill adds new fees on money transfers sent to other countries and increases fees for border crossing forms. Money collected through these fees goes into this fund to pay for building and maintaining barriers, roads, and technology along the U.S.-Mexico border. ##

Who It Affects

- People sending money to recipients outside the United States - Companies that process money transfers - Foreign countries whose citizens illegally cross the southern border - U.S. Border Patrol agents - The Department of Homeland Security - The Department of State - The Department of the Treasury ##

Key Provisions

- The Secretary of the Treasury must create a new fund account within 60 days to receive and hold money for border security projects (Sec. 2(a)) - A 5 percent fee is added to all money transfers where the money goes to a recipient outside the United States, and companies processing these transfers must collect this fee (Sec. 4(g)(1)) - The fee for processing border crossing forms (Form I-94) increases from $6 to $25, with $9 of each fee going into the Secure the Southern Border Fund (Sec. 5) - The Secretary of Homeland Security must report yearly on illegal border crossings and the nationalities of people caught crossing illegally, and the U.S. can reduce financial aid to foreign countries by $2,000 per illegal crosser from that country (Sec. 3(a), 3(b)(1)) - The Secretary of Homeland Security must work to design, test, build, and install physical barriers, roads, and technology along the U.S.-Mexico border by December 31, 2023, and can waive legal requirements to speed up this work (Sec. 6(a)) - U.S. Border Patrol agents can be paid overtime at 150 percent of their regular pay rate for hours worked between 80 and 100 hours in a 14-day work period (Sec. 7(a)) ##

What Changes

If this bill becomes law, people sending money internationally will pay an extra 5 percent fee that goes to border security. Visitors and travelers crossing at U.S. borders will pay $25 instead of $6 for their arrival and departure record, with most of that increase going to border security. The law requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to actively build border barriers and technology by a specific deadline. Foreign countries whose citizens illegally cross the border may receive less U.S. financial aid. Border Patrol agents gain new overtime payment options. ##

Important Definitions

- **Remittance transfer**: Money sent from one person to another person located outside the United States (Sec. 4) - **Border Patrol agent**: A person employed by the federal government as defined in federal law (Sec. 7(a)) - **Operational control of the border**: As defined in the Secure Fence Act of 2006 (Sec. 6(a)) ##

Effective Date

The Secretary of the Treasury must establish the fund within 60 days of the bill becoming law. Border barrier construction must be completed by December 31, 2023. The money transfer fee system must be developed within 90 days. Not specified in bill text for other provisions.

I 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 114 To establish a separate account in the Treasury to hold deposits to be used to secure the southern border of the United States, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JANUARY 9, 2023 Mr. BIGGS introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Homeland Security, and in addition to the Committees on Ways and Means, the Judiciary, Foreign Affairs, Financial Services, Education and the Workforce, and Appropriations, for a period to be subsequently deter- mined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned A BILL To establish a separate account in the Treasury to hold deposits to be used to secure the southern border of the United States, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Fund and Complete 4 the Border Wall Act’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:13 Jan 14, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H114.IH H114 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 2 •HR 114 IH SEC. 2. BORDER WALL TRUST FUND. 1 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF FUND.—At the end of sub- 2 chapter III of chapter 33 of title 31, United States Code, 3 insert the following: 4 ‘‘§ 3344. Secure the Southern Border Fund 5 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 60 days after the 6 date of enactment of this section, the Secretary of the 7 Treasury shall establish an account in the Treasury of the 8 United States, to be known as the ‘Secure the Southern 9 Border Fund’, into which funds shall be deposited in ac- 10 cordance with the Fund and Complete the Border Wall 11 Act and the amendments made by that Act. 12 ‘‘(b) APPROPRIATION.—Funds deposited in the Se- 13 cure the Southern Border Fund shall be available until 14 expended. Such funds are authorized to be appropriated, 15 and are appropriated, to the Secretary of Homeland Secu- 16 rity only— 17 ‘‘(1) to plan, design, construct, or maintain a 18 barrier along the international border between the 19 United States and Mexico; and 20 ‘‘(2) to purchase and maintain necessary vehi- 21 cles and equipment for U.S. Border Patrol agents. 22 ‘‘(c) LIMITATION.—Not more than 5 percent of the 23 funds deposited in the Secure the Southern Border Fund 24 may be used for the purpose described in subsection 25 (b)(2).’’. 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:13 Jan 14, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H114.IH H114 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 3 •HR 114 IH (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 1 for chapter 33 of title 31, United States Code, is amended 2 by inserting at the end the following: 3 ‘‘3344. Secure the Southern Border Fund.’’. SEC. 3. BORDER CROSSING ACCOUNTABILITY AND SECU- 4 RITY. 5 (a) ESTIMATION OF ANNUAL ILLEGAL BORDER 6 CROSSINGS.—Beginning with the first fiscal year that be- 7 gins after the date of the enactment of this Act, not later 8 than 30 days after the end of each fiscal year, the Sec- 9 retary of Homeland Security shall determine and report 10 to the Secretary of State and the Committees on the Judi- 11 ciary of the House of Representatives and of the Senate— 12 (1) the number of apprehensions that occurred 13 during such fiscal year of aliens who entered the 14 United States by illegally crossing the international 15 land border between the United States and Mexico; 16 and 17 (2) the nationality of aliens described in para- 18 graph (1). 19 (b) REDUCTION OF FOREIGN ASSISTANCE.— 20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided under 21 paragraph (2), the Secretary of State shall propor- 22 tionately reduce the amount of Federal financial as- 23 sistance provided to a foreign state for the fiscal 24 year in which a report under subsection (a) is made 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:13 Jan 14, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H114.IH H114 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 4 •HR 114 IH by a total of $2,000 for each alien described in such 1 report who is a citizen or national of that country. 2 (2) EXCEPTION.—Notwithstanding paragraph 3 (1), the Secretary of State may opt not to reduce 4 the amounts appropriated for the Government of 5 Mexico from the International Military Education 6 and Training Fund, the International Narcotics 7 Control and Law Enforcement Fund, and the fund 8 to carry out nonproliferation, anti-terrorism, de- 9 mining, and related programs and activities. 10 (c) TRANSFER OF FUNDS TO SECURE THE SOUTH- 11 ERN BORDER FUND.—The Secretary of State, in con- 12 sultation with the Secretary of Homeland Security and the 13 Secretary of the Treasury, shall transfer funds described 14 in subsection (b) into the Secure the Southern Border 15 Fund established by the amendment made by section 2 16 of this Act. 17 SEC. 4. FEES FOR CERTAIN REMITTANCE TRANSFERS. 18 Section 920 of the Electronic Fund Transfer Act (re- 19 lating to remittance transfers) (15 U.S.C. 1693o–1) is 20 amended— 21 (1) by redesignating subsection (g) as sub- 22 section (h); and 23 (2) by inserting after subsection (f) the fol- 24 lowing: 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:13 Jan 14, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H114.IH H114 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 5 •HR 114 IH ‘‘(g) SECURE THE SOUTHERN BORDER FUND 1 FEE.— 2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If the designated recipient 3 of a remittance transfer is located outside of the 4 United States, a remittance transfer provider shall 5 collect from the sender of such remittance transfer 6 a remittance fee equal to 5 percent of the United 7 States dollar amount to be transferred. 8 ‘‘(2) TRANSFER OF FUNDS.—Not later than 90 9 days after the date of enactment of this subsection, 10 the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with 11 the Bureau and remittance transfer providers, shall 12 develop and make available a system for remittance 13 transfer providers to submit the remittance fees col- 14 lected in accordance with paragraph (1) to the Se- 15 cure the Southern Border Fund established under 16 section 3344 of title 31, United States Code. 17 ‘‘(3) PENALTIES.— 18 ‘‘(A) Whoever, with the intent to evade a 19 remittance fee to be collected in accordance 20 with this subsection, and who has knowledge 21 that, at the time of a remittance transfer, the 22 value of the funds involved in the transfer will 23 be further transferred to a recipient located 24 outside of the United States, requests or facili- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:13 Jan 14, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H114.IH H114 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 6 •HR 114 IH tates such remittance transfer to a recipient lo- 1 cated outside of the United States shall be sub- 2 ject to a penalty of not more than $500,000 or 3 twice the value of the funds involved in the re- 4 mittance transfer, whichever is greater, or im- 5 prisonment for not more than 20 years, or both. 6 ‘‘(B) Any foreign country that, in the joint 7 determination of the Secretary of Homeland Se- 8 curity, the Secretary of the Treasury, and the 9 Secretary of State, aids or harbors an indi- 10 vidual conspiring to avoid the fee collected in 11 accordance with this subsection shall be ineli- 12 gible to receive foreign assistance and to par- 13 ticipate in the visa waiver program or any other 14 programs, at the discretion of the Secretaries 15 described in this subparagraph.’’. 16 SEC. 5. FEES FOR FORM I–94. 17 (a) FEE INCREASE.—The Secretary of Homeland Se- 18 curity shall increase the fee collected for services per- 19 formed in processing U.S. Customs and Border Protection 20 Form I–94, Arrival/Departure Record, from $6 to $25. 21 (b) DISPOSITION OF FEES COLLECTED.—Notwith- 22 standing any other provision of law, including section 23 286(q) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 24 1356(q)), all fees collected for services performed in proc- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:13 Jan 14, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H114.IH H114 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 7 •HR 114 IH essing U.S. Customs and Border Protection Form I–94 1 shall be allocated as follows: 2 (1) $6 shall be deposited in the Land Border 3 Inspection Fee Account and used in accordance with 4 such section 286(q). 5 (2) To the extent provided in advance in appro- 6 priations Acts, $10 shall be used for salaries for 7 U.S. Border Patrol agents. 8 (3) $9 shall be deposited in the Secure the 9 Southern Border Fund established by the amend- 10 ment made by section 2 of this Act. 11 SEC. 6. CONSTRUCTION OF BORDER WALL. 12 (a) IMPROVEMENT OF BARRIERS AT BORDER.—Sec- 13 tion 102 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immi- 14 grant Responsibility Act of 1996 (division C of Public Law 15 104–208; 8 U.S.C. 1103 note) is amended— 16 (1) by amending subsection (a) to read as fol- 17 lows: 18 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than December 31, 19 2023, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall take such 20 actions as may be necessary (including the removal of ob- 21 stacles to detection of illegal entrants) to design, test, con- 22 struct, and install physical barriers, roads, and technology 23 along the international land border between the United 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:13 Jan 14, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H114.IH H114 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 8 •HR 114 IH States and Mexico to prevent illegal crossings in all 1 areas.’’; 2 (2) in subsection (b)— 3 (A) in paragraph (1)— 4 (i) in the paragraph heading, by strik- 5 ing ‘‘ADDITIONAL FENCING’’ and inserting 6 ‘‘FENCING’’; 7 (ii) by striking subparagraph (A) and 8 inserting the following: 9 ‘‘(A) PHYSICAL BARRIERS.—In carrying 10 out subsection (a), the Secretary of Homeland 11 Security shall construct physical barriers, in- 12 cluding secondary barriers in locations where 13 there is already a fence, along the international 14 land border between the United States and 15 Mexico that will prevent illegal entry and will 16 assist in gaining operational control of the bor- 17 der (as defined in section 2(b) of the Secure 18 Fence Act of 2006 (8 U.S.C. 1701 note; Public 19 Law 109–367)).’’; 20 (iii) by striking subparagraph (B) and 21 redesignating subparagraphs (C) and (D) 22 as subparagraphs (B) and (C), respec- 23 tively; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:13 Jan 14, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H114.IH H114 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 9 •HR 114 IH (iv) in subparagraph (B), as so redes- 1 ignated— 2 (I) by striking clause (i) and in- 3 serting the following: 4 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out 5 this section, the Secretary of Homeland 6 Security shall, before constructing physical 7 barriers in a specific area or region, con- 8 sult with the Secretary of the Interior, the 9 Secretary of Agriculture, appropriate Fed- 10 eral, State, local, and tribal governments, 11 and appropriate private property owners in 12 the United States to minimize the impact 13 on the environment, culture, commerce, 14 and quality of life for the communities and 15 residents located near the sites at which 16 such physical barriers are to be con- 17 structed. Nothing in this paragraph should 18 be construed to limit the Secretary of 19 Homeland Security’s authority to move 20 forward with construction after consulta- 21 tion.’’; 22 (II) by redesignating clause (ii) 23 as clause (iii); and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:13 Jan 14, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H114.IH H114 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 10 •HR 114 IH (III) by inserting after clause (i), 1 as amended, the following new clause: 2 ‘‘(ii) NOTIFICATION.—Not later than 3 60 days after the consultation required 4 under clause (i), the Secretary of Home- 5 land Security shall notify the Committees 6 on the Judiciary of the House of Rep- 7 resentatives and of the Senate, the Com- 8 mittee on Homeland Security of the House 9 of Representatives, and the Committee on 10 Homeland Security and Governmental Af- 11 fairs of the Senate of the type of physical 12 barriers, tactical infrastructure, or tech- 13 nology the Secretary has determined is 14 most practical and effective to achieve situ- 15 ational awareness and operational control 16 in a specific area or region and the other 17 alternatives the Secretary considered be- 18 fore making such a determination.’’; and 19 (v) by striking subparagraph (C), as 20 so redesignated, and inserting the fol- 21 lowing: 22 ‘‘(C) LIMITATION ON REQUIREMENTS.— 23 Notwithstanding subparagraph (A), nothing in 24 this paragraph shall require the Secretary of 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:13 Jan 14, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H114.IH H114 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 11 •HR 114 IH Homeland Security to install fencing, physical 1 barriers, or roads, in a particular location along 2 the international border between the United 3 States and Mexico, if the Secretary determines 4 that there is a pre-existing geographical barrier 5 or pre-constructed, impenetrable wall. The Sec- 6 retary must notify the House and Senate Com- 7 mittees on the Judiciary, the House Committee 8 on Homeland Security, and the Senate Com- 9 mittee on Homeland Security and Govern- 10 mental Affairs of any decision not to install 11 fencing in accordance with this provision within 12 30 days of a determination being made.’’; 13 (B) in paragraph (2)— 14 (i) by striking ‘‘Attorney General’’ 15 and inserting ‘‘Secretary of Homeland Se- 16 curity’’; and 17 (ii) by striking ‘‘fences’’ and inserting 18 ‘‘physical barriers and roads’’; and 19 (C) in paragraph (3)— 20 (i) by striking ‘‘Attorney General’’ 21 and inserting ‘‘Secretary of Homeland Se- 22 curity’’; and 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 05:13 Jan 14, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H114.IH H114 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 12 •HR 114 IH (ii) by striking ‘‘additional fencing’’ 1 and inserting ‘‘physical barriers and 2 roads’’; and 3 (3) in subsection (c), by amending paragraph 4 (1) to read as follows: 5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 6 provision of law, the Secretary of Homeland Security 7 shall have the authority to waive all legal require- 8 ments the Secretary, in the Secretary’s sole discre- 9 tion, determines necessary to ensure the expeditious 10 design, testing, construction, installation, deploy- 11 ment, operation, and maintenance of physical bar- 12 riers, roads, and technology under this section. Any 13 such decision by the Secretary shall be effective 14 upon publication in the Federal Register.’’. 15 (b) ACHIEVING OPERATIONAL CONTROL ON THE 16 BORDER.—Subsection (a) of section 2 of the Se [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]

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