1-1     By:  Truan, Shapleigh                                  S.C.R. No. 2
 1-2           (In the Senate - Filed December 2, 1998; January 27, 1999,
 1-3     read first time and referred to Special Committee on Border
 1-4     Affairs; March 8, 1999, reported favorably by the following vote:
 1-5     Yeas 6, Nays 0; March 8, 1999, sent to printer.)
 1-6                        SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
 1-7           WHEREAS, Bottlenecks at customs inspection lanes have
 1-8     contributed to traffic congestion at Texas-Mexico border crossing
 1-9     areas, slowing the flow of commerce and detracting from the
1-10     economic potential of the North American Free Trade Agreement
1-11     (NAFTA); and
1-12           WHEREAS, Smuggling of drugs inside truck parts and cargo
1-13     containers compounds the problem, necessitating lengthy vehicle
1-14     searches that put federal customs officials in a crossfire between
1-15     their mandate to speed the movement of goods and their mandate to
1-16     reduce the flow of illegal substances; and
1-17           WHEREAS, At the state level, the Texas comptroller of public
1-18     accounts has released a report titled Bordering the Future,
1-19     recommending among other items that U.S. customs inspection
1-20     facilities at major international border crossings stay open around
1-21     the clock; and
1-22           WHEREAS, At the federal level, the U.S. General Accounting
1-23     Office is conducting a similar study of border commerce and NAFTA
1-24     issues, and the U.S. Customs Service is working with a private
1-25     trade entity to review and analyze the relationship between its
1-26     inspector numbers and its inspection workload; and
1-27           WHEREAS, Efficiency in the flow of NAFTA commerce requires
1-28     two federal customs-related funding commitments:  (1) improved
1-29     infrastructure, including additional customs inspection lanes; and
1-30     (2) a concurrent expansion in customs personnel and customs
1-31     operating hours; and
1-32           WHEREAS, Section 1119 of the federal Transportation Act for
1-33     the 21st Century (TEA-21), creating the Coordinated Border
1-34     Infrastructure Program, serves as a funding source for border area
1-35     infrastructure improvements and regulatory enhancements; and
1-36           WHEREAS, Domestic profits and income increase in tandem with
1-37     exports and imports, generating federal revenue, some portion of
1-38     which deserves channeling into the customs activity that supports
1-39     increased international trade; and
1-40           WHEREAS, Texas legislators and businesses, being close to the
1-41     situation geographically, are acutely aware of the fixes and
1-42     upgrades that require attention if NAFTA prosperity is truly to
1-43     live up to the expectations of this state and nation; now,
1-44     therefore, be it
1-45           RESOLVED, That the 76th Legislature of the State of Texas
1-46     hereby respectfully urge the Congress of the United States to
1-47     provide funding for infrastructure improvements, more customs
1-48     inspection lanes and customs officials, and 24-hour customs
1-49     operations at border crossings between Texas and Mexico; and, be it
1-50     further
1-51           RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official
1-52     copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to
1-53     the speaker of the house of representatives and the president of
1-54     the senate of the United States Congress, and to all the members of
1-55     the Texas delegation to the congress with the request that this
1-56     resolution be officially entered in the Congressional Record as a
1-57     memorial to the Congress of the United States of America.
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