ICYMI: National Border Patrol Council Endorses Bipartisan Border Security Legislation

The National Border Patrol Council, which represents Border Patrol agents tasked with keeping America safe, today endorsed the bipartisan border security legislation:

“Since Joe Biden has been in office, CBP has averaged over 6,700 apprehensions per day, and the vast majority have been released under a policy known as catch-and-release,” said National Border Patrol Council President Brandon Judd. “Approximately 60% of all border apprehensions are single adults, a good number of whom are men of military age. The Border Act of 2024 will codify into law authorities that U.S. Border Patrol agents never had in the past. This will allow us to remove single adults expeditiously and without a lengthy judicial review, which historically has required the release of these individuals into the interior of the U.S.”

The statement continues: “This alone will drop illegal border crossings nationwide and will allow a great many of our agents to get back to detecting and apprehending those who want to cross our borders illegally and evade apprehension. While not perfect, the Border Act of 2024 is a step in the right direction and is far better than the status quo, which is why the National Border Patrol Council endorses the bill and hopes for a quick passage.”

The National Border Patrol Council represents approximately 18,000 Border Patrol agents and personnel who are charged with enforcing the country’s immigration laws.

You can find Senator Tester’s statement on the legislation HERE.

For months, a bipartisan group of Senate negotiators led by Republican Senator James Lankford from Oklahoma, Independent Senator Kyrsten Sinema from Arizona, and Democratic Senator Chris Murphy from Connecticut have worked to produce bipartisan border security legislation.

In December, Tester pressed Senate leadership to prioritize these border security negotiations and tackle our broken immigration system. In a recent statewide and national op-ed, Tester called for the Senate to get the bill on the floor for debate.

Tester has consistently led the charge to secure our nation’s borders and combat fentanyl trafficking in Montana. Last year,Tester directly confronted Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas over the Biden Administration’s failure to secure the southern border. As the Chairman of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, Tester passed critical provisions in the 2023 NDAA and the 2023 government funding bill to fund law enforcement and stop fentanyl trafficking along the southern border.