INS’ Border Patrol is responsible for preventing and detecting illegal entry along the border between the nation’s ports of entry. INS Continued to Implement the Attorney General’s Strategy

During fiscal year 1998, INS continued to make progress toward implementing the Attorney General’s strategy. As called for in the strategy, INS allocated its new Border Patrol agent positions according to its four- phased approach and increased the amount of time agents spent on border enforcement activities. Consistent with the strategy, INS allocated 740 (74 percent) of the additional 1,000 Border Patrol agent positions authorized in fiscal year 1998 to phase II sectors in Arizona and Texas. INS Is Testing a Model to Help Identify Appropriate Resource Mix

To identify the appropriate quantity and mix of personnel, equipment, and technology needed to control the border, in January 1999, INS headquarters was testing a Resource and Effectiveness Model designed to measure how changes in resources affect the Border Patrol’s effectiveness in apprehending illegal aliens and seizing narcotics. Consequently, INS did not request any additional southwest land-border inspector positions in its fiscal year 1998 and 1999 budgets. To increase enforcement efforts, southwest border ports continued activities such as using joint enforcement teams to inspect travelers and conducting multiagency cross-training, according to INS reports. Interim Effects of the Strategy

As the strategy along the southwest border is carried out, the Attorney General has anticipated the following interim effects:  (1) an initial increase in the number of illegal aliens apprehended in locations receiving an infusion of Border Patrol resources, followed by a decrease in apprehensions; (2) a shift in the flow of illegal alien traffic from sectors that traditionally accounted for most illegal immigration to other sectors; (3) increased attempts by aliens to enter the United States illegally at the ports of entry; (4) increased fees charged by alien smugglers and the use of more sophisticated smuggling tactics; (5) an eventual decrease in attempted reentries by illegal aliens who previously have been apprehended; and (6) reduced violence at the border. Although evaluative data continue to be limited, available data indicated that some of the anticipated effects continued to occur since our last report. Inspectors at southwest border ports of entry apprehended an increased number of persons attempting fraudulent entry and, according to an INS report, smugglers in the Tucson sector were charging higher fees. 7.) 8.) However, the use of IDENT has been uneven at these locations. Thus, in our 1997 report we recommended that the Attorney General develop and implement a plan for a formal, cost-effective, systematic evaluation of the strategy. Pursuant to our recommendation, INS entered into agreements in September 1998 with three independent contractors to provide evaluative studies. The Executive Associate Commissioner for Policy and Planning wrote us that these agreements “will enable INS to develop a southwest border strategy evaluation and to initiate the analysis that fulfills these evaluation plans.”
INS contracted with Advancia Corporation of Lawton, OK, to (1) design an evaluation strategy, (2) identify data needs and analytical approaches, and (3) conduct a study of the southwest border strategy. In April 1999, an official with INS’ Office of Policy and Planning said that the contractor was developing a formal analysis plan intended to assess the effectiveness of the southwest border strategy to date, as well as an evaluation design and analysis plan for continuing evaluation of the strategy. INS could provide us with no other information on the contractors’ progress. A recorded menu will provide information on how to obtain these lists.
Why GAO Did This Study

Pursuant to a legislative requirement, GAO provided information on the Attorney General's strategy for reducing and deterring illegal entry along the southwest border, focusing on: (1) the Immigration and Naturalization Service's (INS) progress in implementing the southwest border strategy during fiscal year (FY) 1998; (2) interim results of the strategy; and (3) actions taken on GAO's recommendation that the Attorney General develop and implement a plan for formal, cost-effective, comprehensive, and systematic evaluation of the strategy.

What GAO Found

GAO noted that: (1) INS is continuing to implement its southwest border strategy; (2) although some of the expected interim results continue to occur, available data do not yet answer the fundamental question of how effective the strategy has been in preventing illegal entry; (3) in FY 1998, INS' Border Patrol transitioned into the second phase of its four-phased approach, which called for increasing Border Patrol agents and resources to sectors in Arizona and South Texas; (4) INS allocated 740 of 1,000 new agent positions authorized in FY 1998 to sectors in these locations; (5) INS also added 18 miles of fencing in California and Arizona, increased both the proportion and total amount of time Border Patrol agents at the southwest border spent collectively on border enforcement, and deployed additional technologies such as remote video surveillance cameras; (6) INS was testing a resource and effectiveness model to help it determine the right mix of staffing, equipment, and technology for all of its Border Patrol sectors; (7) to complement the Border Patrol's efforts between ports of entry, INS Inspections added 179 inspectors to southwest land-border ports of entry in FY 1998 and undertook training and enforcement efforts in conjunction with other agencies located at these ports; (8) INS also began testing an inspections program designed to measure how well it conducted inspections of travellers; (9) although evaluative data on the overall impact of the strategy continue to be limited, available data suggested that several anticipated interim effects of the strategy have occurred; (10) the southwest border ports of entry inspectors apprehended an increased number of persons attempting fraudulent entry and there were reports of higher fees being charged by smugglers, which INS said indicated an increased difficulty in illegal border crossing; (11) available information on the interim results of the strategy does not provide answers to the most fundamental questions surrounding the INS' enforcement efforts along the southwest border; (12) pursuant to GAO's 1997 report recommendation to conduct a comprehensive evaluation, INS contracted with private research firms in September 1998 for evaluative studies; (13) as of April 1999, according to INS, one contractor was working on an evaluation design and analysis plan; (14) INS could provide GAO with no other information on the contractor's progress; and (15) consequently, GAO does not know to what extent the contractor's evaluation plan will provide the information needed to determine the extent to which the Attorney General's strategy has been effective.