WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator Thom Tillis recently cosponsored the Secure the Border Act of 2023, legislation that would resume construction on the wall, tighten asylum standards, criminalize visa overstays, increase the number of Border Patrol Agents, and more.

“Once again, we are seeing a dramatic rise in illegal crossings without any serious action by the Biden Administration to finally secure the Southern border,” said Senator Tillis. “It is past time for Congress to pass legislation to make permanent fixes that would stop the flow of illegal immigration and end this humanitarian crisis. I am proud to co-sponsor this legislation that provides sensible solutions to secure our border.”

Companion legislation (H.R. 2) passed the House of Representatives in May. The Secure the Border Act enacts effective border security solutions, including:

1. Requiring the Department of Homeland Security to resume border wall construction.
2. Increasing the number of Border Patrol Agents.
3. Tightening asylum standards by restricting asylum to only aliens who present at ports of entry and by requiring aliens to prove they are “more likely than not” to qualify for their asylum claim.
4. Narrowing DHS’s power to unilaterally grant parole to illegal aliens.
5. Criminalizing visa overstays by making the first offense a misdemeanor punishable by up to a $1,000 fine and the second offense a felony punishable by up to a $2,000 fine and up to two years imprisonment.
6. Requiring employers to use E-Verify.
7. Ensuring CBP has access to the criminal history databases of all countries of origin and transit so that CBP is aware of the criminal history of illegal aliens encountered at the southern border. 

The full text of the Secure the Border Act is available here. 

###