GAO Reports Details Border Security Deficiencies
November 5, 2007 (WASHINGTON) – Today, at the request of Rep. Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS), Chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report detailing the weaknesses in traveler inspections at our nation’s ports of entry. The report, entitled “Despite Progress, Weaknesses in Traveler Inspections Exist at Our Nation’s Ports of Entry,” indicates that several thousand inadmissible aliens and other violators entered our country because of a lack of staffing, poor training, inadequate infrastructure, and weak management controls.
Chairman Thompson issued the following statement with the release of the report:
“Today’s report confirms that Customs and Border Protection must do a better job of recruiting new officers and retaining and training those already on the job. Employee retention and recruitment problems at CBP may be indicative of larger morale and vacancy problems at the Department, but that’s no excuse. While this Administration pumps millions of dollars into hundreds of miles of real and virtual fences, it must not ignore critical vulnerabilities at our ports of entry.”
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FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Please contact Dena Graziano or Adam Comis at (202) 225-9978.
