| |
| |
|
|
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
|
|
|
WHEREAS, 42 U.S.C. Section 265, commonly known as Title 42, |
|
|
has proven invaluable in managing the crisis at the United |
|
|
States-Mexico border; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, Since the invocation of Title 42 by the Trump |
|
|
administration in March 2020, the U.S. Department of Homeland |
|
|
Security has used the order more than two million times to rapidly |
|
|
expel unauthorized migrants; enforcement of the order also serves |
|
|
as an important deterrent to citizens of other countries |
|
|
contemplating a dangerous journey to join the massive surge at the |
|
|
border; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, Texas border communities have struggled to deal with |
|
|
the huge influx of migrants, and DHS has relied heavily on Title 42 |
|
|
to protect these communities from being even more overwhelmed; |
|
|
during fiscal year 2021, of the more than 1.6 million encounters on |
|
|
the Southwestern land border, over 60 percent, or around 1 million, |
|
|
resulted in expulsion under Title 42 authority; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, Unauthorized migration has reached historic highs, |
|
|
leading to overcrowding at Border Patrol stations, and officials |
|
|
have warned that numbers could more than double should Title 42 be |
|
|
rescinded; recent policy changes at DHS have made the agency even |
|
|
less able to cope with such a spike if it is forced to fall back |
|
|
solely on its Title 8 authorities to process and detain migrants; |
|
|
small border communities, already sorely burdened, lack sufficient |
|
|
housing, transportation, and health care facilities to absorb an |
|
|
even greater tide of migrants paroled into their jurisdictions; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, Rescission of Title 42 during an unprecedented surge |
|
|
in unauthorized immigration is sure to have a deleterious effect on |
|
|
border security while degrading quality of life in communities all |
|
|
along the southwestern border; now, therefore, be it |
|
|
RESOLVED, That the 88th Legislature of the State of Texas |
|
|
hereby respectfully urge the president of the United States to keep |
|
|
Title 42 in place for the duration of the current border crisis; |
|
|
and, be it further |
|
|
RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward an |
|
|
official copy of this resolution to the president of the United |
|
|
States of America. |