By Gallego                                           H.C.R. No. 256
         77R11496 ELG-D                           
                             HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
 1-1           WHEREAS, The United States Border Patrol was established by
 1-2     an act of Congress in 1924 in response to increasing illegal
 1-3     immigration; the initial force of 450 officers was given
 1-4     responsibility for combating illegal entries and the growing
 1-5     business of alien smuggling; and
 1-6           WHEREAS, The Border Patrol has since grown from a handful of
 1-7     mounted agents patrolling desolate areas along U.S. borders to
 1-8     today's dynamic workforce of more than 8,000 men and women
 1-9     supported by sophisticated technology, vehicles, and aircraft;
1-10     since 1986, the Border Patrol has made more than eight million
1-11     apprehensions nationwide; and
1-12           WHEREAS, Each year, more than 1,000 Border Patrol agents
1-13     spend 19 weeks in intensive training in immigration law, statutory
1-14     authority, police techniques, and Spanish at the Border Patrol
1-15     Training Academy; and
1-16           WHEREAS, The academy has had many homes; the first academy
1-17     was established in El Paso, Texas, in 1934, and was later moved to
1-18     Los Fresnos, Texas; and
1-19           WHEREAS, In the 1970s, during the Carter Administration, the
1-20     academy was moved to Glynco, Georgia; since that time, the training
1-21     needs of the Border Patrol have far exceeded the capacity of the
1-22     Glynco location and a temporary satellite facility was opened in
1-23     Charleston, South Carolina to handle the overflow; and
1-24           WHEREAS, These facilities are no longer adequate to meet the
 2-1     Border Patrol's growing training needs; and
 2-2           WHEREAS, All new Border Patrol agents are assigned to the
 2-3     southwest border upon graduation from the academy; and
 2-4           WHEREAS, Texas comprises more than half of the southwest
 2-5     border, making it an ideal location for Border Patrol training;
 2-6     now, therefore, be it
 2-7           RESOLVED, That the 77th Legislature of the State of Texas
 2-8     hereby respectfully urge the Congress of the United States to
 2-9     relocate the U.S. Border Patrol Training Academy to the southwest
2-10     Texas border region; and, be it further
2-11           RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official
2-12     copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to
2-13     the speaker of the house of representatives and the president of
2-14     the senate of the United States Congress, and to all the members of
2-15     the Texas delegation to the congress with the request that this
2-16     resolution be officially entered in the Congressional Record as a
2-17     memorial to the Congress of the United States of America.