Enforcement-Only Bills Moving Through the House of Representatives

Two bills are winding their way through the House’s Judiciary Committee that focus on immigration enforcement tactics and ignore any major policy changes: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Authorization Act (H.R. 2406) and the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Act (H.R. 2407). Included in the former bill is a provision that gives ICE access to personal information within any Department of Homeland security database — including data on DACA recipients — and also allows ICE broader authority in issuing detainers. The second bill requires a mandatory expansion of the E-Verify system despite the fact that the system is in dire need of many improvements. Neither of these bills put forward any new policies or revisions to existing immigration practices, nor do they address the millions of undocumented individuals currently living in the shadows.