Rep. Hal Rogers offers bill to maintain Immigration Enforcement amid spending cuts

Chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, Rep. Hal Rogers, has offered a continuing resolution that would provide funding for the federal government for the rest of FY2013 that would maintain current immigration enforcement efforts. Funding for the federal government expires at the end of March unless a continuing resolution is passed.Chairman Rogers’ bill, H.R.933, would require the federal government to maintain current staffing levels of the Customs and Border Protection agency and require Immigration and Customs Enforcement to make full use of its 34,000 detention beds.Last week, the Obama Administration announced it was releasing up to 10,000 illegal aliens that were in custody and awaiting deportation as a way to cut costs when the sequestration went into effect. The administration also announced a plan to require Border Patrol agents to take furloughs to save additional funds.For more information on H.R.933, see the House Appropriations Committee’s website.